Having received Lavia’s “pardon” and “appointment,” the two maids supported each other as they bowed and took their leave.
They walked toward the door, unable to stop their muffled sobbing.
Lavia watched their retreating backs quietly.
Once the door closed, the drawing room returned to silence.
She had indeed frightened the two girls quite a bit, and a brief flicker of guilt crossed her gaze.
However, Lavia soon picked up her teacup again and took a sip.
As the warm black tea entered her mouth, a slight bitterness spread slowly across her tongue.
Having handled the small trouble she had created, Lavia’s expression relaxed slightly.
This matter had been her arrangement from start to finish; there could be no mistakes.
This morning, she had already sent out a letter.
In her name, she had invited the daughter of a distant relative to the Royal Capital to enroll in the Academy.
Low-ranking nobles usually didn’t receive such treatment, but it was a different matter when she was the one making the request.
Her surname — Astarea.
One of the Kingdom of Rune’s most noble ducal families.
Every head of the family throughout the generations possessed the strength of a High Magician, serving as the true backbone of the kingdom.
Therefore, that letter bearing her seal was an official invitation to the Academy.
No one would raise an objection.
The only thing Lavia found troublesome was that enrollment began next week.
Even if the messenger changed horses along the way from the Royal Capital, it would take at least a few days to arrive.
By the time the other party received the news and set out for the Royal Capital, even more time would pass.
Furthermore, the travels of a noble lady were always accompanied by various tedious preparations.
She didn’t have that much time to wait.
Since the person had to come eventually, it was better to send someone from her side to pick them up now.
The only ones who would suffer were these two delicate girls.
They had to travel to that unfamiliar territory and bring the young lady back to the Royal Capital.
Lavia knew they had just reached adulthood, and it was precisely because of this that she had entrusted the task to them.
Long journeys were inherently full of risks; she wouldn’t feel at ease if she sent anyone else.
For safety reasons, she would arrange for guards from the Duke’s Mansion to escort them.
But even that wasn’t quite enough.
“Erin.”
The maid standing behind her immediately responded, “Eldest Miss, is there anything you need me to do?”
Lavia gave her instructions without turning around. “When they depart, remember to prepare a sufficient amount of travel expenses for them.”
“Even if they are only leaving the Duke’s Mansion temporarily, they still represent my name.”
“I don’t want anyone to think — that I would let my attendants leave in a shabby state.”
The maid was slightly taken modular, but she quickly lowered her head and replied.
“Yes, My Lady.”
Lavia set down her teacup, her gaze falling on the courtyard outside the window.
As if suddenly remembering something, she turned her head to look around the room.
“Where is Evie? Why isn’t she here? What is she doing?”
The maid hurried to answer, “Eldest Miss, the Head Maid has gone to rest for a while. If you have any instructions, you can leave them to me.”
Because Lavia had many lessons and affairs to handle every day, the maids responsible for taking care of her followed a clear shift schedule.
The person in charge of managing them was the Head Maid, Evelyn.
Lavia frowned.
‘Evie… She couldn’t have gone to find Harvey, could she?’
Once the thought appeared, it grew rapidly in her heart.
“Go and call her here.”
She pursed her lips. “I suddenly remembered an important matter that I haven’t told her yet.”
A hint of gloom was added to her originally bright blue eyes.
“Yes, I will go at once.”
The maid hurried to bow and quickly left the drawing room.
Another maid behind Lavia reminded her softly, “Eldest Miss, you should rest now.”
Lavia waved her hand, her voice carrying a trace of unavoidable exhaustion.
“We’ll talk after Evie arrives.”
She raised a hand to press her temples. “Close the curtains first; the sunlight is a bit glaring.”
“As you wish.”
—
Just as Lavia had expected, the moment she took her eyes off them, the two had met.
Harvey looked on blankly as Evelyn carried a tray and walked directly into the room where he lived alone as a male servant, without his permission.
He felt something was off, but he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he stared at the tray in her hands.
On the tray were two pieces of freshly toasted rye bread, a bowl of steaming thick soup, and several slices of smoked bacon.
Evelyn had actually brought a lunch.
The aroma quickly spread through the room, and Harvey’s stomach gave an uncooperative growl.
Evelyn gave him a faint glance and placed the tray on the only square table in the room.
“The cafeteria has already passed its serving time,” she said calmly. “The Eldest Miss had someone prepare a portion for you.”
Harvey was stunned for a moment.
“Prepared for me?”
What a stupid question. The moment it left his mouth, he regretted it.
Evelyn similarly had no interest in explaining. She stepped back silently to make room at the table.
Harvey didn’t ask further.
He sat up and pulled the tray toward him.
The rye bread still held a bit of warmth, and the steam from the thick soup drifted slowly upward.
The aroma was simple, yet hard to ignore.
Seeing the food made Harvey realize just how hungry he actually was.
He grabbed a piece of bread and dipped it into the soup. Once it had soaked up the broth, he picked it up and took a bite.
Rye bread that had lost its temperature was hard enough to break a tooth, but it was entirely different when soaked in soup.
The warm broth mixed with the scent of wheat spread through his mouth, making him feel a several degrees more awake.
For a time, the only sound in the room was his ravenous eating.
Evelyn stood a short distance away and did not leave.
She was watching him eat.
Harvey only realized this after eating for quite a while.
He looked up at her with some confusion.
“Do… do you have something else, Head Maid?”
Evelyn didn’t answer. Instead, she looked elsewhere in the room.
Beside the messy bed lay his discarded Butler uniform jacket. The window was half-open, and the slightly cool spring breeze was slowly blowing in.
“Was it you who requested this from the Eldest Miss?” she asked tonelessly.
Harvey didn’t react for a moment.
“…What?”
Breadcrumbs still clung to the corner of his mouth, making Evelyn’s brow furrow.
“The matter of the Eldest Miss arranging for you to go to the Academy.”
Harvey suddenly understood and shook his head repeatedly.
“It wasn’t me. I couldn’t possibly do something like that.”
Though he did the work of a servant, he was fundamentally different from them.
There were many servants in the mansion, but he was the only Slave.
A Slave had no right to make requests.
Having received his answer, Evelyn nodded and didn’t ask further, turning to leave.
“Wait.”
Harvey called out to her.
“Head Maid, why did you think it was me?”
He was truly curious.
And he felt a bit uncomfortable.
Had the Head Maid personally brought him lunch just to interrogate him?
Harvey suddenly thought of those “colleagues” he had encountered this morning.
In that instant, the Head Maid’s figure seemed to overlap with theirs.
But soon, he dismissed the thought.
It was different.
He had said he wanted to be friends with her.
It was fine if she was unwilling.
It was just… for some reason, he cared about her opinion of him.
And yet, this person he cared about was doubting him.
Harvey felt a tightness in his chest.
The room fell silent for a moment.
There were no voices from outside, only the quiet afternoon sunlight spilling into the room, stopping right in front of her.
Evelyn slowly turned around.
The sunlight outlined her cold profile.
Those dark eyes were like the surface of a rippleless lake.
“You have always shown interest in the Academy.”
“And the Eldest Miss happens to indulge you quite a bit.”
She replied calmly, “You were the only one I could think of. No one else has a motive.”
She didn’t hide her suspicion in the slightest.
Harvey was stunned, a trace of bitterness appearing at the corner of his mouth.
“Is that all? Then why is it me?”
It was a strange rhetorical question.
One couldn’t even tell what he was asking.
Evelyn looked at him and fell silent.
For a moment, neither spoke in the room.
Who knows how much time passed.
“Fine.”
Harvey broke the silence first.
He turned his head and continued eating the bread she had brought, no longer meeting her gaze.
“The Head Maid isn’t wrong to think that.”
“Thank you for the lunch. I’ll keep it in mind.”
“…”
The depths of Evelyn’s eyes glimmered with a faint hint of purple.
Her originally circular pupils had narrowed into thin vertical slits at some point.
She had thought Harvey would defend himself, or perhaps try to lie and deceive her.
But she seemed to have misunderstood again.
She could sense his dejection.
But she said nothing, and her eyes returned to their normal state.
She left the room.
The door was pulled shut, and the sunlight was once again shut out.
Evelyn walked alone through the empty corridor, where the tall stone pillars cut the sunlight into regular fragments of shadow.
For some reason.
Harvey’s back from just now kept flickering through her mind.
Evelyn took a soft breath.
She suppressed the inexplicable touch of irritation in the depths of her heart.