Siel, can I ask you a favor for this, too?”

“Can you check the laundry?”

“Please check that the table is set well!”

I was sweating heavily because of their constant callings and I was stretching my neck out like a giraffe. Every maid was competing to look for me and were satisfied when they got the answer ‘OK' from me.

I was overloaded with so much work but I had to wait for even more work before I had the time to rest.

It was okay though. My dream was to become the top maid, and there were no other places that paid me this well.

‘The Grand Duke is generous, considering that people say that he is a bad guy.'

I was not able to continue to think since everyone was constantly calling me here and there. There were dozens of servants including me, walking around in the luxury hall.

We drew aside the ivory curtain and decorated it with roses. And then, finally we were given the time to rest.

“Siel, where is the tea?”

“Oops. I totally forgot about it. Are the white tea leaves in the bas.e.m.e.nt?”

“Make sure to prepare the tea from Lorraine.”

I quickly went down to the bas.e.m.e.nt and came back to the hall with the white leaves dried for tea. I needed to taste the tea before serving it at dinner.

As always, I heard the butler walking around and shouting to scold people.

The old butler with the long mustache was staring at me.

“You have to adjust your clothes even if you are too busy!”

I stopped lifting the teapot and looked aside furtively.

There was a narrow mirror in the hall, from which I saw myself. Turning my head, I saw my sky blue hair in a braid. I moved my ruffled bangs to the side and smoothed out my ap.r.o.n. It looked like my face was filled with solemn determination when I saw myself in the mirror.

It was the day they raised our pay so the maids looked excited even though it was so busy but instead, my face was sullen.

‘Of all of the days, why does the grand duke die today?'

There were not many chances a maid like me would be able to see him.

He was a handsome guy.

He had immense riches, power, and honor.

In addition, the grand duke reached his majority this year. At the age of 20, he will unfortunately die. He had a more unfortunate destiny than me who was reincarnated into a maid.

I was just one of his servants. But, how was I able to predict his death? It is because I was in the novel that I have read from beginning to the end.

The villain who died in misery in the novel was my master, Duke Perse. As said from the olden times, one has to lick the villain's foot to survive. That saying was from the novel, of which t.i.tle is ‘Random Box', though. Back then, I couldn't imagine I would follow the saying. After living here for five years, now I see I completely agree with it.

‘What are the odds of being reincarnated into my favorite novel?'

-------

My original name from my previous life was Si-eun Yeon. I was an orphan.

I grew up in an orphanage but I never felt that it was my home. I had to be out of the orphanage before I reach my adult age so I went to several foster homes.

A stout-hearted child who acts like an adult.

That was the saying that I always heard from the adults.

I graduated from a college and came through a compet.i.tion of 237 to 1. I succeeded in landing a manager position at a branch of a famous clothing company.

I was a complete workaholic who worked much more than anybody else. Some people said that I would die because I overworked myself. I was promoted to the leader of a team after working hard for 3 years.

‘There aren't many jobs that I haven't tried since I was in college.'

I never relaxed and enjoyed some time off because I worked hard, studied to earn credits, and did my best to earn some certificates.

When I got one of those rare opportunities to see a friend, I was not able to make it if there were some small issues in the branch. I basically worked overtime at night.

‘I was happy to be a reader only three years after starting my career, though……'

I was having a boring several hours, sitting in a narrow seat of an airplane for a business trip. I read the entire novel, ‘Random Box' and looked at the sky through the small rounded window.

It was before sunrise. I saw only dark clouds in the dark sky. It was like a metaphor of my life that was filled with working all the time.

‘I need to live a decent life. I live like a slave.'

I had a top credit rating. I hadn't bought anything expensive for myself. I only saved money and worked hard.

“Sieun, what do you live for? You only work and go back home and the next day, you only work and go back home again. Isn't it boring?”

A boss who is three years older than me asked me what I could get finally after my constant boring life. I did not like hearing that but it was true in a sense, so I decided to take a trip to an island after the business trip.

‘Death from overwork in the place where I went to go on a business trip……'

Just a day before I was to return to my home, I was on my way after finishing a meeting.

Argh. Is there……?

I was not able to even ask if there was someone.

My heart stopped at the door of the hotel that my company prepared for me. It was like a lie. Who knew I would die, with this monotonous life with just working? If I had known that I would die abruptly like this, I would have tried to do things that I really wanted to do.

-------

Siel! b.i.t.c.h!”

This was what I heard when I came to consciousness. I heard an angry voice.

“If I had known she would die like this, it would have been better to just sell her to a bar!”

“Derek! Don't talk about her like that.”

The room was full of an angry and tough voice. Hearing the voice, I opened my eyes slowly.

A woman was trying to calm down an angry middle-aged man.

I opened my eyes of my reincarnated body of Siel who was a twelve-year-old girl. I started to live her life with memories of her past. They were commoners so they did not live in a palace. Instead, they lived in an old house located in the slums that was likely to be collapsed soon.

There was a dad who was a drunk, whose name is Derek. Her mother pa.s.sed away, while giving birth to her.

There was also a timid woman with him.

Technically, she was not my stepmother. They didn't have enough money to hold a wedding and couldn't be a legal couple in that sense.

In the novel, I saw that the stepmother kept on hara.s.sing her but now I could see the real problem was my father, not the stepmother.

The stepmother made clothing for aristocrats. And also, made and sold some bags if she was able to obtain some cloth.

In contrast, he was a lazy and dead-beat dad who did not make money for our family. Instead, she was the only one who made money for our living.

One day I cried saying that I would die because there's nothing to eat. My father dragged me to the street, holding my wrist roughly.

He spoke loudly in front of people there.

“Don't cry just because you're hungry! Get food even by begging!”

There was nothing to do for me as a twelve-year-old girl. So, I begged and managed to get some bread from a bakery. I brought them home and I was slapped by my father.

“Do you think we are beggars? I used to be a butler for a baron!”

He threw away the bread that I earned very hard.

My stepmother left us because she was probably scared of him and I was blamed for that saying that I was useless.

----

One day, I was walking around to get some food....

Bam!

I b.u.mped into a horse-drawn carriage that was moving back slowly to stop. I flew up into the air and fell down to the ground. I lost consciousness and fainted. I was not able to endure the heavy impact on my lean body.

After two days, I was able to open my eyes. I stared at the ceiling in a haze.

It was at home. It was the same old ceiling that I saw yesterday, the day before yesterday, and the day before several days. However, I noticed something was different.

‘Oh……?'

I raised my hands up to the ceiling.

I saw there were cute little hands instead of long hands.

“She's just spending our food. When she b.u.mped into the carriage of the aristocrat, she should have made a request for more money. What little compensation we got here……”

After a year of being reincarnated into Siel's body, I finally regained all the memories of my past life, Si-eun Yeon.

The accident of that day saved me.

Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to escape from that house.

It wasn't easy to accept the fact that I was once dead. But memories from my past life were pouring in.

"You c.u.n.t! If it weren't for you, my life wouldn't have been ruined!"

I covered my ears.

Innocent eyes turned into enraged gaze. Who in the world is this old man yelling during my childhood years? None of the memories from the past were pleasant.

What kind of father tells his daughter to pickpocket people and beg for money just because he doesn't have any? As soon as I recovered my memories from the past, I wanted to strike Demion's stomach but my small hands were useless. Stuck in a child's body, my options were limited. I decided to lay low for a month. Felt like being a scarecrow on an empty field. Stupid scarecrow just standing there with arms wide open even when sparrows are poking. Just standing here being cussed at. Just standing there being yelled at. When he was about to hit me after losing his money from gambling, I ran away.

After a little more than a month, I realized where I was. I was in the 'Random Box,' that book I used to read on a boring plane ride. Siel was a child from a slum who played a small part and her name was never mentioned in the original book. No wonder it took a long time for me to recognize this place even though I recovered my memories from my past life.

n.o.body seemed interested in helping me. But I had a plan for an escape. I stole from Demion little by little. I saved the money that I earned from doing errands under a tin can. Plus, I made quite a sum of money from delivering ingredients for the old man at the bakery who felt pity for me. It was just enough to get a good meal but I decided to save them.

I spent all the money that I painfully earned just to send a letter to a royalty.

I was out early in the morning and on my way back. That day, Demion threatened me with a bottle of liquor as usual. He was hammered on a bright day light in the afternoon.

"G.o.d, so annoying."

Slim-bodied Demion his eyes widened with fury.

His eyes were saying, how dare you?

"You! What's that look on your face? Do you know who I am?"

"Yeah, heard you were the butler for the Baronet. So what? You were fired."

I looked at him as if I had no interest whatsoever.

I understand that he is the biological father of Siel, but who cares? The woman who used to live with Demion told me he was strikingly good-looking when he was younger but it really was none of my business.

"Hey old man, didn't you steal Baronet's money while working for him as a butler?"

Demion looked at me like I was crazy.

Perhaps rightfully so. The daughter who used to be an obedient girl who says "I'm sorry daddy" all the time is now asking him "didn't you steal money?"

How did I know?

Well I've been listening to that story every day that my ears hurt.

From 'Way back then, I used to be this guy…' stories to the story that he stole money from the Baronet, Demion told all kinds of story when he was drunk.

"Hah, you little b.i.t.c.h…"

"Look at this guy cussing again."

I looked at him with despise.

"You little!"

He raised his arm to hit me. I yelled at him back.

"No! Are you crazy? How can you hit a small girl like me?"

"What!"

Demion looked at me stunned as if I was indeed crazy.

I, young and weak, had nothing but myself to trust. But how did I get the guts to do what I'm doing now? Suddenly the sound of clanking armor approached and I looked towards it. Demion also stopped arguing and turned his head towards the sound.

"That's him. Baronet Dolin."

There he was standing with a stubborn face like a Moai statue. He was one of the va.s.sals of Count Lenis who owned this land. The t.i.tle Baronet did not mean much to the royalties but to us common people, their status was beyond our reach.

"Ah yes. Here he is, my butler!"

His face instantly brightened with a big smile. The Hound of Lenis. He opened his arm as if he was about to hug Psycho Dolin.

"You were even willing to lick my feet and now you steal my money?! You certainly are bold!"

Fortunately, that psycho Baronet wasn't interested in me. Same for his bodyguard knights. Baronet Dolin wasn't willing to harm a child even though he had a reputation for being reckless. He simply missed his backstabbing butler for a long time. As the Baronet walked towards me, I instinctively raised my arms covering my face. But the Baronet pa.s.sed me by.

"Here's your reward."

Baronet chuckled and threw me a pouch filled with few golden coins.

"You little b.i.t.c.h…"

"Compared to your stupidity, she is quite intelligent. Tsk tsk. Such an embarra.s.sing father."

I quickly observed my surroundings. I bowed to the Baronet and left the house, never turning back.

"Hey old man, don't treat your life like that."

I didn't forget to stare at him with despise before leaving.

I left the slum with luck but the reality was harsh.

I got swindled while exchanging gold coins into silver coins. Actually, it was not a scam but more like being robbed. People try to scam me wherever I go. I know the market price but people treated me like a child. Even more, they accused me of stealing from royalty and threatened to report me to the guards.

I had to bite the merchant's hand who was trying to steal my money before I could escape. Waking up as a child from a slum is not an easy task. Even exchanging money was a ha.s.sle.

I thought it was going to be a breeze, thinking I would luckily end up with someone from royalty as my guardian… Who would've thought I would be living a harsher life than my past life?

'I can't even use magic and I am so grimy that I look like a slum kid from every angle.'

My sky blue hair was like dry straw and dark stains were all over my face.

My cyan eyes were as dark as the dead; they were sparkling no more as they should be. My old one-piece dress seemed like a rag all worn off. The Baronet was more generous than expected. Yet, there were more people with malicious intent in the world looking to exploit a kid with money.

'I've been through a lot.'

Haha, wow.

If it wasn't for the housekeeper of the Duke's palace who picked me up when I was thirteen, I would've been dead by now.

"At least not all people are evil."

It was Marian the housekeeper of Duke Eckart's palace who saved me from slowly dying on the street. She told me I was. .h.i.t by a carriage while I was mindlessly walking after losing all the money I earned from the Baronet. I was too weak and severely injured to recall the incident.

The warm-hearted housekeeper told me that she brought me into the palace of the Duke. With Marian's generosity, I began to work as an apprentice housemaid at thirteen years old. My colleagues were about the same age so I wasn't that young.

Four years has pa.s.sed by since I came to the palace.

"Siel, how are you doing?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I was a little worried. You're not doing everything again by yourself, are you?"

"No, not at all. Others are working hard too."

"Well, if that's the case…"

Marian asked as she approached me. She looked a little pale than usual. She was taking a break after she contracted a rare disease. But it seems that she is back on her feet because of the upcoming visit by the Saintess. Marian was healthy and lively few years ago but she looks drastically thin.

Marian gave me a warm smile and left to talk to the butler.

'Gotta work, work!'

I started cleaning again from where I stopped. If something changed in me, it would be my goal. I wanted to become a regular housemaid and not just an apprentice. Housemaid is not a job that I would prefer as a modern woman to be honest, nonetheless I was quite satisfied with this. Unless I was perfect and flawless in every possible way like Riena. I am a nameless girl who only played a small part and I needed a way to survive. Being antagonist and sub-protagonist Perse Eckart's housemaid doesn't give you a lot of options. Come to think of it, there were some stories I heard about the Duke.

From throwing a serial killer alive to a monster to not even making a face after getting hit by a poison coated arrow to mindlessly decapitating his enemies.

I've also heard he castrated royalty who tried to s.e.xually abuse one of his housemaids. He revenged three times harder; it fits him well. There were even more stories about him. At this point, it wouldn't be so strange if there were rumors flying around that treated him like a hero.

Perhaps it is his intimidating appearance and merciless punishment that made Perse famous with nicknames like the Devil of Gibril; he was well-known as a villain for his thirst for blood and slaughter. However, the ruler of this palace and evil villain Perse was a great master contrary to popular beliefs.

First of all, the Grand Duke does not force us to work for free labor. If we finish all the work within the scheduled work hours, we are not forced to do extra hours. In fact, it is true that he is not much interested in those lower cla.s.s people like us as he is rich but the master's ignorance is the best thing for a maid.

Second, he is generous with his incentives. Actually, there is no such thing as an incentive here. But from time to time, whenever he takes the role of regent of the other kingdoms due to wars, mountains of presents are sent to his mansion endlessly. Then, he gives away those presents to everyone as he has only an interest in politics not greed.

Third—he has no interest in women whatsoever. He is not interested in women which is quite fitting as a natural sub-villain.

It is the same with the main heroine Liena. As their parents have been close to each other, Perse and Liena have known each other for a very long time. Since she was a young child, her love towards him had grown. Unfortunately, Perse is such a carefree person who shows no interest at all. She could only have a pitiful one-sided crush on him. However, even before Perse was born, Liena has been chosen as his fiancee because of the pre-arrangement between the two families. He was not interested in such things called love. He just wanted to get married with whoever is acceptable by his n.o.ble family.

There was a hope that he would change if he were to be engaged but Perse is Perse.

After Perse became the Grand Duke, he spent 8 months out on the battlefield. Since he considered it as his duty, he faced the enemy's army and commanded the subjugation of the monsters near the borders. The grand duke with a group of white knights to hunt the monsters is such person who cares nothing but war. As the grand duke is so preoccupied, Liena visits the mansion of the grand duke only twice a year. There is no reason to say no to a fiancee's visit for him so Perse treats her to dinner rather than avoiding her. Whenever Liena tried to talk to him, Perse only replied with dry answers like “Is that right?” or “I see” without any sign of interest. The maids who were standing by to serve the dinner would become restless whenever they looked at those two; the lady who was trying her best to communicate and the one who showed no interest whatsoever.

There was one memorable incident:

"Do you remember the invitation of debutante from Lady Nina? Unfortunately, you could not make it because of the battle and Andro kept chasing me around and confessed his feelings to me. Isn't it surprising?"

"I see. And then?"

"I warned him as I had enough. I said, ‘Please do not chase me as I have already a fiancee….umm, Sir Eckart?….Are you listening?"

"Liena, how could you be so rude to a son of a n.o.ble family? It is not acceptable."

"You have not been listening to me, have you?"

Liena showed her sadness due to his insensitivity but he did not show any signs of compa.s.sion at all. His interest were only about war or how to maintain the political power as the king was pressuring him.

"You dare to scold me? Do you even remember the name of the person chasing after me?"

"I know he is from a n.o.ble family."

"Wow, it is truly…… now, you have done it!"

Maids were calling out the name of Andro who confessed to her! As everyone knew the answer but the Grand Duke did not even show any sign of attempt to get the right answer. Perse's action drove Liena to change her target from the grand duke to his people. As she is a smart lady, she would not touch the maids who would do no harm. Instead, she gave heartwarming greetings and presents that won our hearts. Back in those days, we were complaining how the grand duke was such a heartless person for not showing much interest to his fiancee. However, the problem was that she was cheating on him.

Due to the insensitivity of the grand duke, Liena eventually chose his cousin, the Emperor. Liena's love for him turned into hatred. Her hatred toward the grand duke grew day by day. As time pa.s.sed, Liena convinced herself that the Eckart family was a threat to the emperor, she decided to kill Perse for the Emperor Kalan. On the surface, it was for ‘Kalan' but deep down, it was the hatred because of her loneliness.

"If I cant have it, then no one can. He is a precious diamond that everyone wants. Who would leave such a precious jewel in the middle of a road? Unless, it is thrown away before another woman takes it……."

Those were the words Liena used when she was talking to her people. Initially, she was not a saint but took the t.i.tle by killing her step-sister who was about to become a saint. It was the first step that was hard to take but now poisoning for the second time wasn't an issue for her at all.

It would have been nice if Liena did not try to poison Perse!

Ever since I have become a maid, I've acquired the habit to keep an eye on Liena whenever she visited. And today is the day that the grand duke is going to be poisoned. The day that Perse invited Liena to his house! The day I am too busy carrying out the duties with my fellow maids…….This is the memorable day that my wage finally increased that also is the day Perse dies.

Perse is an honorable master.

How wonderful if we could leave the monument for him that says, “he was a villain, but he always paid the salary on time” when he pa.s.ses away. In fact, I did not like Kalan nor Perse but I thought at least I could leave that for my generous master. Unlike my simple wish, the reality is brutal.

What would happen to the butlers and maids who have served him when the Grand Duke Perse pa.s.ses away?

What about the housekeepers and knights?

The gardeners who had been hara.s.sed by the clergy saying that they would grow the rose field themselves for Liena?

The answer is very clear.

All shall follow after the master.

If this were a game, it would be considered as a perfect kill.

Right now, I am serving the dinner for Perse and Liena. As a human being, the food on the table, naturally caught my eyes. Roasted duck meat, appetizer made with olives, cheese made out of milk with Lenin – milk enzymes, and pumpkin soup mixed with stock. This was truly a masterpiece made by the master chef for the Grand Duke.

Do we get to eat those? Of course not.

As a maid, I can only watch their elegant meal from a distance.

‘All I could do is just standing here and watch those mouth watering food!'

As I am serving Liena, all I can do is to enjoy those food with my eyes only. I have to stay calm and show no emotion on my face to not offend those n.o.ble people. If there is a leftover, maids would eat those but it's not important at the moment. After taking a deep breath, I pull myself together and serve Liena as if nothing's wrong.

‘Pay attention, Siel! Today is the day the grand duke dies!'

All my focus is on the conversation between my master, Perse and Liena. With elegant gestures of cutting and putting a piece of duck into her mouth, Liena's eyes became wide open. That gave me gooseb.u.mps. Underneath that angelic face is a face of killer who can still enjoy the full flavor of the food. Liena smiled and said:

“We saw each other often when we were children until after the engagement. It is very rare to see you, Sir Eckart. How sad it is."

“There have been too much going on near the borders, my lady."

"Even when there was not much going on in the country?"

Instead of answering, Perse replied back with a smile. On the surface, the conversation seemed normal. Liena is much older than him but in terms of status, Perse had a higher status but both showed respect to each other. Not knowing what was coming for him, the Grand Duke enjoyed a gla.s.s of port wine after the light dinner.

“Do you remember what happened 10 years ago? When I was kidnapped by the Bissenna family?"

"Ah, yes, that day."

"If it were not for you, I would have been hurt badly. To think that Sharqis Bissenna kidnapped me ……”

Liena's face turned pale. She is known for her boldness but turning her face pale shows how much fear she has against Bissena. Perse muttered lowly, saying about the ill-fated relationship with the Bissenna family and soon burst into laughter.

"They were bold even when they kidnapped my father, but never imagined they would dare to kidnap me, the Saint of the Empire."

"That's their nature, my Lady. I am still waiting for the right time but when Bissena shows their weakness, they will be done for.”

Now, that sounded like a heroine full of ambition. Still, the voice was shaking despite her aspiration. After that, the conversation shifted to daily matters. Rather being extra careful, Liena kept checking on the Grand Duke during the meal. The evening of n.o.bles is more than just a dinner. A gla.s.s of wine over a dinner table is more of a tool to alleviate the tension. However, maybe it is not the right time to poison him yet. Liena drank a cup of tea prepared by her servant with a bottle of the poisoned wine in front of her. But as soon as Grand Duke's gla.s.s is half empty, Liena pulled out the chardonnay wine made from white grapes.

“It is a wine from Northern Serate. Normally, it is not for sale but I got one just for you.”

“If it's from Serate, it must be a precious one.”

“I brought it to celebrate your safe return from the battlefield.”

She held the wine with her two hands and smiled. Soon, she handed the wine to the servant since it was heavy for her and she glanced at the servant to serve him. The servant standing next to her pulled out the cork of the wine and soon the fresh scent filled the air. My hands started to shake as if I were the one handling the wine instead.