Chapter 7
"So you came all the way here just to say something like that?"
"Theo! I am your…"
"fiancée…"
She couldn't bring herself to continue.
There wasn't a trace of affection for Ellis in Theo's eyes. If anything, they seemed to hold even disgust.
"Your… what comes after that?"
"Urk…"
Of course, Ellis knew Theo hated Verdia, yet despite knowing that, she always came to Rebellin under the pretext of some trivial gossip.
Because Ellis wanted to see Theo's face just one more time.
She truly loved Theo.
'Couldn't you smile at me like you used to, just once…?'
Like when they'd first met as children…
Theo, smiling gently at her then, had been the very image of the prince on a white horse from the fairy tales she'd read as a child.
After that, it was only natural that she fell in love at first sight. Theo was still kind to her, so she was able to spend happy days with him.
But the following year, after Theo's younger sister died in an accident…
"If you have nothing else to say, I'd like you to leave…"
Perhaps tired of waiting while Ellis hesitated, Theo frowned and urged her to leave.
"Sigh, all right. I'll be going for today."
Ellis rose, greeted Theo with poise, and left the reception room, thinking,
'Time is on my side anyway…'
No matter how much Theo hated Verdia, he couldn't break off their engagement.
House Rebellin owed House Verdia an enormous debt.
Their wedding would take place at the end of this year as planned.
Once that happened, they'd spend their whole lives together, so even if he hated her now, he'd eventually come to love her.
Ellis was confident she could make that happen.
* * *
After Ellis left the room,
"Haa…"
Theo bowed his head, pressing a hand to his forehead, which had begun to throb.
'Does Ellis know about that maid?'
The woman his stepmother, Serena Rebellin, had brought in a little while ago, saying she'd hired a new maid.
The moment Theo saw her, he was certain Verdia had sent her to seduce him.
Because…
Knock, knock.
"Master, I've brought some light refreshments."
It was her.
Theo hid his nervousness and kept his emotions under control as much as possible, just as he had when dealing with Ellis.
"Come in."
The door opened, and the maid entered with a tray. Theo's gaze naturally turned to her.
Her golden hair, falling to her waist, shone as if a craftsman had spun it strand by strand from the purest materials.
Her large eyes met his, clear and transparent blue, like a beautiful lake.
When her face was expressionless, she looked like a cool beauty,
"Master?"
but when she looked puzzled like she did now, she had such an innocent air that he felt he might blush if he let his guard down.
A woman who seemed to have a thousand faces and a thousand charms.
In short…
"Master, are you feeling unwell?"
She was incredibly beautiful.
Far too beautiful to be working as a maid.
"Hmm, set it down there."
"Yes, sir."
Of course, Theo didn't think so merely because of her looks.
Was it because his stepmother, whom he suspected of colluding with Verdia, had hired her?
Or because, as Ellis had said, she had no connections?
Both were partly true, but the biggest reason was…
"Um, Master?"
'It's come.'
Theo calmed himself as much as possible and put on a composed expression.
"What is it?"
"Just once today…"
"No."
Guessing what she was about to say, Theo cut her off without hesitation.
'She wants me to hug her, doesn't she?'
Theo recalled the first time he'd met this woman.
Despite her beautiful appearance, she'd seemed lacking in confidence, glancing around at the people nearby as if anxious.
Back then, he'd thought she was nervous because it was her first time meeting a noble.
But…
'Master, could you please hug me just once?'
The moment they were alone, she'd raised her eyes and started seducing him. When he rejected her outright, she said,
'Hmm, I guess that's a bit much? All right.'
Then, starting the next day, whenever she got the chance, she kept asking him to hug her. Even when he refused and scolded her, she'd cautiously bring it up again the next day.
Of course, he'd deliberately spread rumors that he lived a debauched life, and Verdia was probably trying to take advantage of that,
but he'd never expected her to come on so directly.
"Tch…"
On top of that, an ordinary commoner had openly clicked her tongue right in front of Theo, her employer and a noble.
That was why Theo was sure.
This woman had definitely been hired by Verdia to seduce him.
Of course, one might ask why they would do that when Theo was already engaged to Ellis Verdia,
but it was obvious they wanted to create another weakness they could exploit in case Theo didn't follow Verdia's wishes after the marriage.
They knew he hated Verdia, after all.
'The one good thing is that this woman is as stupid as she is beautiful.'
If she hadn't made it so obvious, perhaps he might have succumbed to the temptation right in front of him when his resolve was weak.
Even though he had become the head of House Rebellin, Theo had lived a life free of worldly desires, unlike his father. But even he found the woman before him so attractive that his heart fluttered.
Besides, these days, even her scent seemed familiar when she came close.
He'd even gone all the way to a church, suspecting she might have put him under a hypnotic spell.
The result was that there was nothing wrong, but…
"If you've set everything down, you may leave."
"Master, I…"
"What now?"
Theo asked the maid irritably.
"Then, could you just pat my head once…"
"Leave."
"But…"
"Leave."
"…Yes."
At Theo's firm refusal, the maid turned to leave, her shoulders drooping…
"Ugh…"
But perhaps reluctant to go, she turned back and gave Theo a wistful look. He lowered his head to avoid her gaze,
"Tch."
At that, the maid clicked her tongue once more and finally left the room.
A little while later…
"Sigh…"
Theo felt an even worse headache than he had with Ellis and slammed his head down on the desk.
'Am I going crazy? Why would seeing her look so dejected affect me…'
For a moment, he even thought he saw animal ears on her.
Drooping ears, like a puppy that had just been scolded.
The church had assured him there was no magic affecting him, but now he was starting to suspect the church, too.
'That woman really is a fox.'
Shaking his head to clear away his thoughts, Theo made up his mind.
He would never fall for that woman's seduction.
* * *
"He really won't hug me, not even once."
I'd been pestering him for a whole week, but Theo hadn't budged at all.
Curious, I looked at myself in the full-length mirror hanging in the hallway.
Hmm, I'm pretty today, too. And busty… So why won't Theo hug me?
If a pretty woman like me asked for a hug, couldn't he just give me one?
"Sigh…"
He won't pat my head or hug me!
And even when he heard my name, he didn't seem to remember anything… Well, it was just the name of the forest.
Anyway, at this rate, there was no point sneaking into this mansion as a maid!
Of course, that wasn't why I was working as a maid, but…
"Edel!"
Just then, I heard a sharp woman's voice calling me from the end of the hallway, so I turned around,
"Gah, the head maid…"
A stern-looking woman wearing a maid's uniform like mine was walking toward me from the end of the hall.
She was the only woman in this mansion I was afraid of.
I didn't know why, but everyone else treated me with kid gloves, while she treated me no differently from the other maids.
"Is it appropriate for a maid to sigh in the hallway?!"
What do you mean, 'is it appropriate'…
"W-well, I've had a bit of a hard time…"
"I saw Sully doing the laundry I'd assigned you earlier!"
"Sully offered to switch with me."
"How dare you talk back to me!"
This is so unfair! I didn't hypnotize her or anything; Sully offered first!
"Now, hurry up and follow me!"
"Eeeeh…"
"No making strange noises!"
Aah, honestly! Theo won't hug me, and I'm stuck doing housework day after day.
Should I just go back to the forest? Then I could live comfortably like before…
"No…"
"What do you mean, no?!"
"Eek! It's nothing!"
I'd accidentally said my thoughts out loud.
Fortunately, the head maid looked at me for a moment, then seemed to let it go. She turned around again, took my hand, and led me toward the laundry room.
Anyway, I'll stick it out for a while longer.
Even if he won't hug me, seeing Theo is fun, and honestly, it's kind of fun to work and live with people again after so long.
'But it's already been two weeks.'
To begin with, I'd crept into the mansion to check on Theo.
After avoiding the servants wandering around, I found his room and went inside. Theo was lying asleep on his bed.
But seeing Theo again after so long made me feel… how should I put it…
'He's grown up well.'
His eyes were closed, which was a little disappointing, but I could still tell.
This was the same boy who'd once saved us, and somehow, seeing how much he'd grown moved me.
After that, I lost track of time as I stared at Theo's sleeping face, remembering the boy from my memories and comparing them,
Swish.
Suddenly, the door opened, and I was startled and hid in a corner beside the bed,
Then someone quietly entered Theo's room, went to what looked like his writing desk, and started rummaging through something.
Perhaps they couldn't find what they wanted, because they hurriedly left soon after…
That's when I thought:
They say royalty and nobles always live under the threat of assassination. Maybe Theo—my benefactor—was in danger.
So I hypnotized his mother, Serena, and made her hire me. I planned to stay by Theo's side disguised as a maid, protect him, and while I was at it, find out whether the rumors were true…
"Edel!"
"I'm coming!"
Ever since that day, I'd gone to Theo's room every night to keep watch, but no one else came in, so I ended up sneaking in to hug him while he slept before heading back. It became a routine.
…Somehow, the reason I sneak into Theo's room at night seems to be changing little by little.
Strangely, even though I'd been a man in my previous life and you might think I'd feel uncomfortable hugging another man, none of that seemed to apply to Theo.
Because even when I worked with other people and touched them, I never felt anything pleasant.
'Honestly, I don't know why.'
And the rumors that he'd changed were definitely nonsense.
If he really liked women as much as people said, he wouldn't have turned me down every time I asked him to hug me.
And as for him becoming violent… Honestly, aside from being irritable, I couldn't say.
"All right! Get in there and finish the work with Sully!"
"Okay…"
When I opened the laundry room door, I saw Sully hard at work taking clothes out of the laundry magic tool.
"Pfft, Edel, you got caught after all?"
"Yeah… Sorry, was it hard?"
"It's okay. We're friends."
Did you hear that, little sis? I finally made a friend, too.
I'm seriously touched.
"Thanks. Do I just carry all of these?"
"Yep!"
Sully and I put the clothes in baskets and headed for the drying racks outside.
Anyway… how can I get Theo to hug me while he's awake?
I was satisfied with cuddling him at night now, but honestly, I was curious.
If hugging him on my own at night felt this good, how good would it feel if Theo hugged me back himself?
"Sully, what should I do to make a man want to hug me?"
"W-what?!"
"That's dangerous!"
My question must have shocked her, because Sully was so flustered she nearly dropped the basket she was carrying.
"Ah, sorry."
"Are you okay?"
Why's your face so red, too?
"Y-you mean a woman, right?"
"Yeah, that's right."
I used to be a man in my previous life, and even I don't know.
If things went the way I thought, Theo should've opened his arms the moment I asked him for a hug.
"W-well, maybe if you ask him to hug you, he'll do it…?"
From the way she said it, she seemed to know I wanted Theo to hug me.
"Was it that obvious?"
"…A little?"
How'd she know? She's really perceptive.
"But I already asked him to hug me, and he still didn't."
"What?!"
Clatter.
Ugh, this time she really did drop it.
I hurriedly picked up the clothes that had spilled out first. Do I need to wash these again?
"Edel, then, how about trying this?"
Sully had been staring blankly at the dropped laundry, but she seemed to come up with a brilliant idea. Her face lit up as she explained it to me,
"Genius…"
I couldn't help but marvel at her idea.