“My humble apologies. …...Are you awake, milady?”
She turned to face the person who called her in an unnatural way. The maid opened the room’s door and was looking in nervously.
“......How may I help you?”
She responded in her normal flat tone. The maid was bewildered at Uni’s choice of words.
“Sorry, milady? I am the servant, there is no need to be formal with me. Yes. Please be relaxed in addressing me.”
“......”
Only now did she realise that the person before her was a maid like her; in fact, she was a maid that was her junior. Therefore, there was no need for her to be overly respectful with her.
However, she did not dare to put it into words. She had spent a full night before understanding that doing so could possibly put her master in an unfavourable position.
“......Then I shall take you up on that. What are you here for?”
“Yes. I am here to inform you that it is time to wake up, but milady is already awake. I have come to help you change.”
“I can do it myself.”
“No, please let me…...”
The maid had a troubled look on her. That was to be expected. It was most likely that the butler or chief maid had been given detailed instructions from Cartan.
Thinking about how troublesome it might get, she decided to let the maid help her.
“What do you wish to put on?”
Frankly speaking, Uni wanted to have her maid uniform back. And if possible, her chief maid armband too.
When she was brought in by Count Cartan, she had her uniform swapped with sleepwear, so she was now wearing normal clothes. Her mind was completely in a daze since then.
Her uniform was first-grade, personally handcrafted by her master. Even if her body was autopsied, no clues would be found, but the same could not be said for her equipment. Low grade materials were used to allow the uniform to appear inconspicuous, but it should not deceive a trained eye. Uni feared that if it were to be analysed, the enemy would be able to infer her master’s technological capabilities.
Also, the maid uniform was an important gift that her master bestowed on her. When it was decided that she would start adventuring prematurely at the age of 10, she was given protective armour by her master. She had requested it to be an apron dress. She repeatedly insisted that it was so that she could be reminded that her entire existence was to serve her master whenever she was on the battlefield. He had been rather surprised at the request. Still, he quickly designed it and tailored a masterpiece. Since then, whenever she grew taller, her apron dress was redesigned and she would be given a new one.
It was one of the few precious possessions she got from her master. It was proof of her memories with her master.
It carried a mountain of affection and attachment to her master, but unfortunately, she would never be able to wear it again.
“Milady?”
“......It is nothing. I don’t really have any preference, so I shall leave it to you.”
Absorbed in the past, she accidentally said something unfitting her status. To completely leave somebody in charge of her clothes would also mean to push the full responsibility to that somebody.
She could recall how troubled she felt whenever her master did the same. She could not defy him nor say she was unable to do it, so she devoted herself to studying male fashion. Recently, she had been adding the latest trends by consulting Victor and the rest whenever there was a chance to.
Taking a deep breath, she calmed down again.
She had gone off point again. She had yet to come to terms with reality. Even though she was now neither maid, nor adventurer, nor even a slave, she still could not accept it. On one hand, she was slightly satisfied at the fruits of her completed education, but on the other hand, she believed that performing what she has learned would cause trouble for her master.
If she could not behave in a way that would satisfy Count Cartan, he might use it as a reason to blame her master, who had rescued and raised her.
“My apologies, that was thoughtless of me. I take back what I said.”
She bowed to the maid who was completely dumbfounded at her request. Because her bow was way too deep, the maid panicked even more. Measuring the right amount of seasoning was such a bother. Seriously, the weight of a noble’s head was too heavy.
“......Do you mind showing me what is there to wear?”
“If that is the case, then the clothes are kept in this closet.”
She became evidently relieved and guided her to the large closet inside the room. Inside the closet were enough clothes for a lady around her age to wear for a full year.
She took a random set of clothes to test and it seemed to fit her.
“Didn’t I arrive here last night……?”
“Ah, the clothes here belonged to the madam, your mother.”
She promptly replied to her doubt.
Mother. These belonged to Anna Marie. The Count must have secretly kept them here. The more she examined the clothes, the more the clothes did appear to be out of fashion. They were clothes that appeared too plain for a noble lady. She could understand, however, if Anna Marie wanted to avoid the attention of others.
Still, it was amazing how he managed to keep this from his legitimate wife, Joséphine. She was a deeply obsessed and jealous woman who had framed Anna Marie and hired hooligans to assault her. She was a brutal and merciless woman that even got Anna Marie’s daughter raped and disfigured her face before selling her as a slave. Count Cartan’s infatuation with his lover must have not been normal, to have kept this many of her possessions from Joséphine.
“....”
Leaving that aside, she started to consider among all the clothes.
What clothes should she choose?
Considering that she had met almost none of the family members because of how hurriedly she was brought into the residence last night, this would be her actual “unveiling” to everybody. She had many other things to think about, but dressing up well here would surely be of some benefit to her. However, it was ultimately just a first impression. If she dressed up to the nines, it might leave a bad impression on Joséphine and the heir whose name she did not know, and it could possibly be used as evidence to criticise her upbringing. With that said, if she dresses too conservatively, it would upset the Count who wanted to show off his daughter to everybody. Finding the right balance was challenging.
‘’How about this?”
After some hesitation, she picked up a scarlet one-piece.
It was a design that was mildly showy for just wearing at home, but for a woman with fair skin like her, choosing a plain colour would cause her to look dull. She had always been an attendant waiting behind her master, so picking dull colours was suitable, however, this time she focused on choosing something that went against her instincts. With that in mind, she aimed for the colour red, which was likely to be eye-catching and not too fanciful.
Sure enough, as the maid helped her put on the clothing, the maid beamed in great delight.
“I think it is a brilliant choice. As expected of a person with the blood of high nobility.”
She was too insensitive. It was her bloodline that led her to where she was now. She could now empathise with how her master felt when he wanted to hide his talents and avoid the seat of power. There were too many details that she rather not pay attention to and too many things she would rather not do.
Nevertheless, she knew that the maid held no ill intentions. For somebody randomly assigned to the Count’s long lost daughter, she was a rather kindhearted person. Even though she did not possess magic powers, she wanted to bring her back, have her undergo the brainwashing and make her a subordinate.
She freely contemplated about such matters as she let the maid change her. It did not take too long for a trained hand to change her.
The mirror reflected a familiar, yet unfamiliar person.
“Wow, milady is so beautiful! Milady must be the most graceful lady among the four countries. The head of the family would be able to hold his head proudly.”
Uni stared at the mirror motionlessly as the exaggerated praises went in one ear and left the other.
The person she saw was a living copy of the Anna Marie she faintly remembered from her memories. She could somewhat understand how Madam Joséphine could mistake such a person as a ghost. There were some minor differences in their hair length and expression, but it was entirely possible for somebody to joke that they were two peas in a pod. In fact, her dead expression was a reason why others believed she was a ghost.
It might not be simply the result of the Countess’ delusions that she saw Anna Marie’s ghost. Once could sense the depth of grudge of the woman from the netherworld by looking at the girl in the reflection.
―Did she want Anrietta Cartan to be welcomed into the family to that extent?
Somehow, she managed to suppress the repugnant words that were about to emerge from her throat.
… Something was really wrong with her. If she was functioning normally, she would have wiped the vulgar thoughts clean immediately.
Still, she had to avoid any big mistakes, even if she was underperforming. At the very least, she needed to maintain her flawless record until plan D was executed.
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