Chapter 9

The court lady went out and the door closed with a click.

As soon as the door shut, I immediately leaped into the bed.

“Wow!”

I rubbed my face on the blanket, its unique soft texture similar to a blanket dried under the sun.

‘Wow, the fabric smells like sunlight!’

The quilt rustled lightly against my face. Eventually, I lifted my head. My gaze landed on a hanger hung up on a wall; my new maid attire.

I slowly got up, and carefully lowered the outfit, standing on my toes.

“…this.”

The clothes were tilted back, and a little stone peeked out from the pocket of the apron. I reached my hand out and took the small thing out. It was a crystal brooch.

A rose crystal brooch, the proof of an official maid.

‘Rose, rose, the rose reminds me of…’

“Sister Rose,” I called out her name unconsciously, but immediately shook my head.

‘No, she’s not Rose anymore,’ I bit my lips in dejection, ‘It’s Her Majesty from now on.’

I quickly changed my clothes, dispersing Rose out of my thoughts.

***

The court lady had told me to rest, but honestly, I just couldn’t rest in ease.

‘I’m in a position where I have to prove my worth to the Empress’ people.’

I glanced towards the door with conflicting emotions.

If I wanted to create a good impression, wouldn’t it be better to show them my diligence?

‘After all, if I want to feed myself, I need to work hard! I’m confident I can do this job well!’

After convincing myself, I turned the doorknob cautiously.

“Did you see her? The kid that was brought by Court Lady Hayden herself!”

’Are they talking about me again?’

The complaints of the maids passing through the hall didn’t escape my attention. Hearing their grumbles, I hid behind the door instinctively.

“Who does she think she is, for the court lady to be escorting her to her room?” the court lady to show her room?”

“I don’t understand either. It doesn’t make sense, no matter how young she is!”

“Don’t you think she’s too young to be an official maid?”

“Honestly, isn’t she just a normal kid you can find anywhere?”

‘…what should I do…? I guess they don’t like me.’

My pupils were now quivering  from uneasiness. I’d rather they pass through the hall quickly, but instead, they were standing in front of my room and gossiping.

“Listen, I heard the girl was promoted to an official maid as soon as she came to the Empress’ palace!”

“What? Oh my God, I thought it was just a rumor!”

“Really? The head maid even brought a rose crystal brooch for that little girl today!”

I fiddled with the brooch on my chest.

The maids continued in a detestable tone.

“Did the other maids not see that?”

“They were just being nice, weren’t they?”

Well, I understand the prejudice the maids held against me, even though I didn’t want this promotion in the first place.

I inevitably felt downcast. Honestly, being assigned to the Empress’ Palace was the last thing on my list.

Moreover, I never thought I would be promoted to an official maid.

However, it couldn’t be helped.

I was sure that from their point of view, I was only a young child who somehow acquired the Empress’ favor.

I squatted down.

‘Why does everyone hate me? I already had enough of it when I was a maid-in-training.’

I bit my lip firmly as my heart filled with determination.

‘…if I keep thinking like this, those maids will continue to speak ill of me.’

I lifted my head and set my gaze straight.

My situation had changed a lot from when I was in the education hall.

Previously, I would’ve eventually escaped from Becky and other maids-in-training if I were assigned to another palace.

However, the chance of me being allocated to another palace again was very slim.

After taking a big deep breath, I stood up.

‘First of all, let’s solve the problem at hand.’

I was going to be straight-forward about this.

I pushed the door open.

The maids, who were gathered in a small group, looked back at me in surprise.

“Can I say something?”

The maids turned vigilant..

I ignored the tremble in my voice  and forced myself to speak calmly.

“To you, I may seem lacking in many ways, and I know it as well.”

The maids’ eyes narrowed in response.

‘Don’t be nervous.’

I clenched my fist in an attempt to gather my confidence.

“But I’ll, uh, do my best to make up for it,” I appealed to the maids, my voice was filled with desperation.

“I’ll do my best, so can you please tolerate me for a while?”

At the same time, a maid suddenly opened her mouth.

“Do your best, you said, but will doing your best solve everything?”

“Young kids these days.”

I was speechless.

The maids threw ridicule towards me one by one.

“She’s right, does it make sense to have a young kid like you above us?”

“Even if you’re an official maid, don’t even dream about giving us orders.”

“You need to know your place.”

My lips were bleeding from the built-up frustration.

No matter how earnest I was, there’s no point if they weren’t listening. Talking to these stubborn maids was similar to talking to a wall.

But at that moment.

“Huh, it seems like everyone has a lot of free time nowadays,” a voice tinted with amusement cut through the mockery like a sharp knife.

Surprised, I turned towards the voice’s origin. At the end of my gaze stood a maid with light brown hair.

Above the maid’s bosom was a clear white crystal brooch.

(TL/N: rose crystal – maid, white crystal – senior maid, yellow crystal – court lady/head maid)

Meanwhile, the maids couldn’t hide their astonished faces. Their attitude was different from when they were dealing with me.

“Senior maid Wember!”

‘Senior maid Wember?’ my eyes widened in amazement, ‘Wasn’t she the one who brought my rose crystal brooch?’

Her voice rang once again, a hidden chill veiled within, “Didn’t Court Lady Hayden warn all of you earlier? Don’t mock others.”

“That, senior maid…”

“Well, we didn’t mean to do that…”

“That’s funny,” said Wember, as she smiled and took a step forward.

“I heard what you said to the child myself,” the senior maid ridiculed as she tilted her head, “Even though I’ve already caught you, why are you still trying to deceive me?”

The maids widened their eyes in sheer surprise.

“Have you all forgotten what the Empress had said?” the head maid questioned them.

“No, that’s not it…!”

“I’m sure that I’ve told you to treat the new maid nicely, haven’t I?”

‘…what?’ I gnashed my teeth in vexation, ‘It’s the Empress again.’

Every time she was mentioned, my mind became a mess akin to countless threads tangled within each others’ knots.

‘Why is the Empress so nice to me? Still, that doesn’t change the fact that she deceived me.’

“A servant who doesn’t obey their master’s words, aren’t they useless in the end?” Senior Maid Wember asked rhetorically. She made the biting remark, all the while smiling brightly. Even I was scared of the venom dripping from her words.

Despite the comment, words of protest resounded instead.

“But, is Senior Maid not angry?”

“What do I need to be upset about?”

“A little child who came out of nowhere acquired Her Majesty’s favor!”

So that’s what it looked like.

My chest felt stuffy as if someone substituted my heart for a rock.

For these maids, I wasn’t more than a stepping stone in their career.

I wasn’t even striving for them to like me, but even a child like me didn’t want to be on the receiving end of people’s hate.

‘This is why I prefer being alone.’

“What’s wrong with that?” Senior Maid Wember asked without hesitation.

‘…?’

Her unexpected answer surprised me. She rested her hands on her waist and spoke firmly, “So what if Her Majesty favors her?”

“Senior maid!”

“The people who reside in this palace each have their own role. You, me, and even the new maid has her role,” Wember spoke indifferently.

Yet the maids remained unconvinced.

“Role? What can a small kid like her do?”

”Right! We’re already lucky enough that she didn’t add another load of work for us!”

“How can I live with a small child like her as our superior? Can you even call her a maid?”

The maids voiced out their complaints, and the building frustration lit a raging fire inside me.

‘Are they insulting the training I had undergone now? I’m the longest maid-in-training! I know how to clean, do laundry, and even clean the fireplace!’

“Of course, you have to live with her as your superior,” Wember spoke.

“No way!”

“It doesn’t matter what you say anymore, because she’s the only one who can do what we can’t.”

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Wember, who looked around at the perplexed maids, coolly asked, “Amongst us, is there anyone who can cheer up Her Majesty?”

A heavy silence fell upon the maids.

While, on the other hand, I felt as if I had swallowed a rock.

Someone who can please the Empress…

‘How can a child like me, cheer up the Empress?’