Chapter 60

“Oh… When am I ever going to clean all this up?”

In the late afternoon.

The maids who returned to the kitchen after tidying up the restaurant let out a sigh.

Flour scattered on the floor and cooking utensils strewn about everywhere.

Just looking at the piles of unwashed dishes left behind was enough to take one’s breath away.

The head chef who made this mess had already clocked out, and the clean-up was solely the maids’ responsibility.

“First, let’s soak the dishes in water… should we start by cleaning the kitchen?”

“Let’s do that…”

There’s no point in complaining.

It would only lower their spirits, draining their energy, and if the butler heard wrong, it could turn into a big problem.

The maids, aware of this, sighed deeply without a word and trudged toward their assigned areas.

This rush wasn’t just after meal times.

Out of the 24 hours spent in the villa, except for sleeping, they were usually under heavy workload.

Naturally, it was to be expected since the staff managing such a large villa amounted to less than ten.

Excluding the head chef, who cooked and left, the butler, who gave orders but did no physical work, as well as the coachman and the duke’s personal maid, only four maids remained.

With only four people taking care of all the cleaning, meal preparations, and various organizing tasks, it was incredibly hectic.

The only consolation was that the pay was good, but that didn’t reduce the rising stress from the intense workloads.

“Hey…”

“What?!”

As soon as a soft voice came from outside the kitchen, the maids shot back with annoyed voices.

Julia.

The duke’s personal maid.

A woman who had secured her position solely based on looks, merely trailing behind the duke like a doll.

She probably spent her day doing trivial tasks that barely required effort, occasionally buttering up the duke.

Julia already had a daughter, yet the duke didn’t seem to care much about that.

‘How can someone with no ability end up in such an easy position without putting in any effort…’

The maids gritted their teeth, glaring at Julia.

The more they looked at her, the more they disliked her.

Soon, Tia’s face appeared from behind Julia, causing the maid’s contorted expression to soften slightly.

It wasn’t Tia’s fault that her mother was unlikable.

“You’re busy, so go out. Can’t you see the floor is a mess?”

“Ah, sorry… I came to help since you looked busy.”

“What? What about the duke?”

“He’s taking a nap right now. There aren’t enough hands, so we’re always busy after meal times, right? I’ll try to help whenever I can.”

“……..”

The maid was so taken aback that she lost her words.

She hadn’t expected such a response from Julia.

“Hmph. Helping out? What can you do? I doubt you’ve even gotten your hands wet.”

For a moment, the maid was surprised, but she shot back without lowering her guard.

She couldn’t trust her.

Most likely, she had come to mock them.

Whatever she had done to charm the duke behind the banquet hall, there was no way that woman, who monopolized the maid position like a snake, was the same inside and out.

She had no intention of falling for the sly fox’s tricks and becoming a laughingstock.

“I can handle washing dishes at least. Since I’d only be in the way while cleaning, I’ll stick to washing dishes.”

“Huh, really? You’ll actually help?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t break anything. If I do, it’ll come out of my salary.”

“………”

Confidently rolling up her sleeves, Julia grinned and headed toward the sink.

The maids, dumbfounded, merely watched her without comprehension.

Tia, who briefly looked around, hurried after Julia.

“Will Tia help too?”

“Um… ugh… I feel so sleepy all of a sudden…”

“You just took a long nap. That’s no excuse.”

“T-Tia will just get in the way, so I’ll stay out!”

“Mom’s been spending so little time with Tia lately; don’t you want to be with me? Is Tia not happy?”

“Ugh…”

Tia’s legs stiffened as she tried to back away from the kitchen.

She couldn’t bring herself to reject Julia’s pitiful gaze.

Reluctantly, Tia returned to Julia’s side.

“What should I do?”

Such an easy child.

Julia swallowed her laughter, petting Tia’s head.

Tia was a child so sweet and lovable for loving her mother so much.

Thinking that this Tia might grow up to be moody during her teenage years and get annoyed with her mother…

“Ah.”

“Mom? Why are you suddenly crying?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Just some detergent splashed into my eyes.”

Tears flowed without her realizing.

She wished Tia wouldn’t grow up.

The thought of Tia’s tail and horns growing larger and becoming a magnificent dragon made her uncomfortable.

Since the onset of secondary sexual characteristics, her chest had begun to swell gradually, which displeased her as well.

If it were possible, she wanted to freeze Tia just as she was now.

“Alright, I’ve prepared the soapy water for you to wash the dishes easier, Tia. Just take the dishes out and hand them to me.”

“Um… I can’t reach. It’s too deep.”

“Our little lady, there’s a step stool here.”

Standing on the step stool hurriedly brought by a maid, Tia started pulling out various bowls and utensils from the sink and handing them to Julia.

Julia would meticulously dry each dish with a cloth before placing it on the drying rack.

The other maids occasionally glanced at the mother and daughter busily washing the dishes.

Every dish was spotless, without a single stain or trace of water.

Julia’s careful motions as she wiped down the dishes radiated genuine care.

Above all, there was not a hint of deception in the smiles exchanged between Tia and Julia.

‘Was she really such a pure-looking woman?’

In a single day, she seemed like a completely different person.

Perhaps she wasn’t as bad as they initially thought.

“Julia! Here’s leftover cheese from cooking. Do you want it?”

“Oh, um. Thank you! But right now, I don’t have a hand…”

“I’ll feed you! Say ah. Ah.”

“Ah…”

On the chopping board, the maid, wearing a playful smile, brought the piece of cheese stuck to the knife to Julia.

Unaware, Julia opened her mouth as the small piece of cheese slid right in.

As she mindlessly chewed the cheese that melted on her tongue, Julia’s face gradually twisted in disgust.

“What the heck! What is this?!”

“Hahahahaha!”

“Ugh, bah. Is this expired? It tastes weird?”

“No, no! That’s how it’s supposed to taste! Hehehe.”

“People actually pay for this? If it’s this bad, I’d rather just eat normal cheese!”

“Hahahaha! Your reaction is too funny, really…”

As soon as Julia started gagging, laughter erupted as if it had been waiting to be released.

Only Tia couldn’t laugh.

It was just cheese that tasted good to her.

Tia couldn’t understand what was so strange about it; she alone couldn’t make sense of it.

“Ahahaha… I laughed so hard my stomach hurts. But Julia, you must have eaten this cheese before. Why are you acting like it’s your first time?”

“It is my first time.”

“That can’t be. The duke serves this as dessert or a midnight snack regularly.”

“Huh? Why would I eat something the duke eats?”

“Don’t maids get to freely eat stuff like that?”

“No, they don’t.”

“………?”

The maid thought they ate the same meals as the duke.

When they realized that the duke seemed to treat Julia particularly well, the maids were left speechless.

Of course, there was a different kind of special treatment, but the reality of working without designated meal times and starving was the same as that of the other maids.

At that moment, the maids’ mouths fell open in realization.

They suddenly recalled how they had always turned Julia away when she had rummaged through the kitchen, perhaps looking for something to eat.

A sudden wave of guilt washed over them, leaving an uncomfortable feeling in their hearts.

“Are you almost done with the dishes?”

“Not much left!”

“Ugh… my arms are numb…”

“If it’s too hard, you can stop now. Thank you for your hard work, my daughter.”

“No, I want to help until the end!”

“My, who did you inherit such a strong sense of responsibility from? It doesn’t seem to come from your father.”

“Hehe. Who is Tia’s father anyway?”

“Right, right! I’ve been curious about that; can you tell me, Julia?”

“Oh, that’s…”

Once the misunderstanding was cleared up, the kitchen quickly filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

No one uttered the word sorry.

Even without such embarrassing words, Julia could sense it.

She felt she could get close to these people.

They weren’t bad people at all.

“It seems like it might be a bit complicated? Then let’s take our time to hear about it later.”

“Th-thank you…”

“Julia, don’t you have anything you’re curious about from us?”

“Well…”

As Julia turned her head, she felt the eager gazes directed her way.

She had many curiosities.

How did you precious looking ladies end up in a place that forced you into such hard labor?

Why did you all crowd together when you go to the restroom?

And sometimes, when trying to sleep at night, she heard the mixed sounds of two people from beyond the wall; was that what she thought it was…?

“What’s wrong? Your cheeks are turning red.”

“Ah, no…”

Julia turned her face away, blushing.

She decided to choose another question.

“What about the duke? What’s his name? I’ve been curious about that.”

“The duke’s name? Are you talking about the name that comes before Dragania? You still didn’t know that?”

“Yeah. What is it?”

“It’s Schwarz. Schwarz Dragania.”

“Ah…”

Schwarz.

It meant black in German.

Julia kept murmuring Schwarz to herself.

It felt strangely familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere, but she brushed it off as simple déjà vu.

‘I wonder what kind of person he was in the original work.’

Suddenly, she became curious.

Duke Schwarz Dragania.

What kind of character had this man been in the book that served as the original of this world?

At times, he seemed like a third-rate villainous noble driven by lust, but there were moments where he showed subtle respect toward Julia.

In formal settings, he had the air of an imposing duke, but in private, he seemed like a neighborhood uncle who would make silly jokes.

He was a complex person.

…

…

…

“Julia. Julia…”

In the afternoon office.

Duke Dragania fidgeted with a cold teacup as he looked over some documents.

The pile of documents wasn’t thick at all.

That was strange.

Typically, when requesting background checks from contractors, even the most ordinary person would yield a mountain of paperwork.

However, the information about Julia and his daughter Tia amounted to just two sheets altogether.

They seemed like people who had suddenly appeared after hiding in a remote place until recently.

“The holy maiden who had been hiding suddenly appears with amnesia…”

Chances were high that the hero Leopard knew the full story.

But he wouldn’t readily share with him, and even if he did, the likelihood of it being false information was high, so conducting his own background investigation was essential.

As he exhaled, seeming displeased, and turned to the next page, the duke’s eyes widened.

“Tiamat…”

Tiamat.

Until now, he had known her simply as Tia.

He had just learned her full name.

But the reason the duke was surprised was for another reason.

“The name of a dragon slayer. What an ominous name for such a cute child.”

The name Dragon Slayer Tiamat belonged to a dragon from ancient times who had slaughtered hundreds of dragons, driving them to the brink of extinction.

Such a name seemed to carry meaning, making the duke feel a tingling sensation in his groin.

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