Who Brought the Head Maid Back? - Chapter 32

The Crown Prince appeared to be conversing with someone hidden from Amy’s direct line of sight. He frequently jerked his body as if angry, shook his head, or stroked his chin.

Staring intently at the scene, Amy moved to a window facing a different direction, leaning out to look down. Only then could she see the Prince’s conversation partner, who had been obscured by the tower.

‘That’s the man who came to the office to meet the Crown Prince. Was it Baron Pearson?’

The reason for meeting in such a secluded place was obvious. They likely had a topic that required a secret discussion.

‘It seems he doesn’t want the Prince’s other attendants in the outer castle to see them together either.’

There was another oddity. The Baron’s movements felt relaxed, while the Crown Prince looked as if he were either suppressing something or losing his temper.

‘What is this? Does he have some leverage over the Prince?’

As Amy watched with her arms crossed, a maid appeared from the end of the path and gestured urgently to them. The Crown Prince and the Baron hurried toward her and soon disappeared.

Amy hummed thoughtfully as she searched her memory.

‘She looks like a newly hired maid. It’s a relief she isn’t part of the original staff who worked at the Grand Duke’s castle.’

Closing the window, Amy tidied up the Bigo and left the tower.

“That concludes the report on the banquet preparations.”

Amy stared quietly at Mrs. Weaver after she finished her briefing. With her taking the lead, Amy’s workload had decreased significantly. Even Melbourne, the butler, was pleased to be completely relieved of duties regarding the inner castle and the maids. Furthermore, Mrs. Weaver was a person of clear boundaries, making her easy to work with. One only needed to follow the principles.

“Mrs. Weaver, are you familiar with the personal details of all the maids?”

“I am.”

“I see.”

Amy considered mentioning the maid she saw at the Bigo, but seeing how confident Mrs. Weaver was, she decided to wait and see. While she needed to be extra cautious with the influx of outsiders, Mrs. Weaver inspired a certain trust that made Amy feel she could leave it in her hands.

Amy readily stamped the seal of approval. Handing back the documents, she spoke suggestively.

“If you encounter any difficulties, let me know anytime.”

“To you, Head Maid?”

“No, to the butler. I expect to be busy for a while.”

“Understood.”

Mrs. Weaver bowed and left the office. Amy stood up and walked to the window. Watching the courtyard, she saw Mrs. Weaver descend the stairs and appear outside.

A maid lingering nearby quickly approached her and whispered something. After hearing the story, Mrs. Weaver gave an instruction, and the maid hurried off somewhere.

At the end of the path where that maid was heading, the suspicious woman Amy had seen at the Bigo was walking briskly with a basket.

A smile spread across Amy’s lips.

‘There is nothing to worry about.’

She turned back to her desk without a second thought. Sitting down, she opened a map of the Black Mountains and began to study it intently.

On the day of the coronation and the first day of the banquet, the staff who had finished their preparations rushed to the lounge as soon as they had a spare moment. They were there to groom themselves.

“They say this powder is all the rage in the capital. If you apply this, your complexion will look like a baby’s skin.”

As Marie spoke triumphantly while holding up a cylindrical metal case, a long line quickly formed in front of her.

“Marie, me too.”

“Let me put a little on my face as well.”

“If you had something like that, you should have shared it sooner.”

“Hush, get back. Do you know how expensive this is?”

As Marie hid the powder behind her back and waved her hand as if chasing away a dog, Cecil gave a sinister smile.

“Whatever the price, isn’t it cheaper than your life?”

“I was just saying you should line up properly. Evie, why are you cutting in?”

Suppressed by Cecil’s energy, Marie opened the powder case with a pout. Then, using a soft fur puff, she thudded the powder onto the maids’ faces as if stamping them.

The powder was smeared onto the maids’ faces like rations. The problem, however, was that the maids, including Marie, were using this type of powder for the first time.

“Doesn’t my face look a bit too red?”

Evie tilted her head while looking in the mirror. Other maids began to agree one by one.

“You look like you’re standing in front of Sir Dwayne.”

“What does that mean?”

“Don’t you know? Your face catches fire whenever you see Sir Dwayne.”

The maids nearby cackled and teased her.

“Fire! There’s a fire!”

“Shut up.”

As Evie huffed, the door opened and Amy, having finished her own simple grooming, entered the lounge. After a brief silence, the maids let out a sharp cry.

“Head Maid!”

“Are you all preparing well?”

Amy walked among the maids, straightening crooked hemlines and tidying stray hairs. The maids waited quietly and shyly for her touch.

When she finally stood before Cecil, Amy raised an eyebrow. Unaware, Cecil looked at Amy with enchantment.

‘The Head Maid hasn’t even dressed up like us, yet she is dazzling.’

Feeling embarrassed like a candle before the sun, Cecil lowered her head. At that moment, she heard Amy’s voice.

“Look up.”

“?”

“You have to look at me, Cecil.”

Amy called her name softly and soothingly.

“Yes?”

The moment Cecil reflexively looked up, Amy grabbed her chin and pulled her face close. The hearts of the other maids dropped at the suggestive angle, and they clutched their chests in silence. Amy looked at Cecil’s face carefully and flicked the excess powder away with her finger. Then she smirked.

“Now I can see your pretty face properly.”

Leaving behind the stunned Cecil, Amy turned around.

“Come out when you are finished.”

With those words, she left the lounge without looking back. Staring blankly at where she had disappeared, the maids muttered.

“The Head Maid is a sinful woman.”

Cecil shook her head to snap out of it and cupped her cheeks with both hands. It felt as though the Head Maid’s warmth still remained. Wow, to be captivated by another woman.

Then Lucy tilted her head and spoke.

“I don’t think the Head Maid realizes how beautiful she is.”

Evie chimed in.

“Exactly. I told her that before, and she just said indifferently, ‘In my eyes, you girls are prettier.'”

The maids screamed, playfully hitting each other’s backs and stomping their feet. Cecil recalled a past memory.

‘If I looked like you, Head Maid, I would have toured the North every year.’

‘What does that mean?’

‘It’s a form of benevolence. For the welfare of the residents, so to speak.’

When Cecil puffed out her chest, Amy let out a small chuckle.

‘Are you saying I’m pretty?’

‘Yes!’

Amy gave a smirk.

‘Cecil likes me too much. I’m not that special.’

‘No way.’

‘There are many noble ladies in the Empire who are like flowers. If Cecil visited the Imperial Palace, she wouldn’t say such things.’

Cecil truly wondered if the women of the Imperial Palace were that beautiful, or if the Head Maid simply didn’t know the truth.

If the Grand Duke possessed a beauty that looked as though a master had sketched and refined it many times, the Head Maid had a clean, effortless beauty that looked as if it were captured in a single stroke.

Furthermore, when she was expressionless, she looked like a cold doll standing in the shadows, but when she smiled or showed emotion, the atmosphere changed completely. It was as if the sun had come out or color had been added, and the contrast made one’s heart skip a beat.

She wasn’t the only one thinking this, as the other maids said similar things.

“Look at the Crown Prince. He follows our Head Maid around just to catch her eye one more time.”

“He truly has no dignity, but on the other hand, I can understand it.”

Cecil nodded solemnly. If there were many flower-like beauties in the Imperial Palace as the Head Maid said, why would the Crown Prince, who must have seen them all, be so hung up on her?

Then she suddenly grew curious. She wondered what the Grand Duke, who also lived in the palace and had seen many beauties, thought of the Head Maid.

“It is almost time.”

Amy spoke as she entered the Grand Duke’s inner chamber. Mrs. Weaver, Rita, and Marie, who had been helping the Grand Duke prepare, stepped back and bowed.

“Head Maid. We have just finished.”

“Good work. You all should go and prepare as well.”

Amy gave a small smile to Rita and Marie and gestured for them to leave. Rita and Marie looked proudly at the Grand Duke, whom they had painstakingly prepared, and turned to leave the room.

“Wait a moment, Amy.”

Noah spoke without taking his eyes off the stack of papers he was holding. He seemed to be reviewing the final draft of the speech announcing the start of the banquet. Amy acknowledged him and pulled Mrs. Weaver to a corner of the room.

“Any new news?”

At Amy’s question, Mrs. Weaver lowered her gaze for a moment before speaking.

“I believe you may already know, but there is a rat in the castle that needs to be dealt with.”

Amy was momentarily speechless at the harsh expression, which was hard to believe came from such a refined lady. Mrs. Weaver continued.

“It’s a maid who was hired before I arrived. She was bribed by none other than a Baron of the Empire.”

“When did you find out?”

“I noticed it as soon as I started working, as there were several suspicious signs. So I had the maid Jorine monitor her from the start.”

From the start! Admiration spread across Amy’s face.

The most important quality of a Head Maid is managing employees, and seeing that she recognized a spy at first glance made Amy feel she had chosen the right person. Amy felt proud of her own foresight in recruiting Mrs. Weaver.

Mrs. Weaver leaned slightly toward Amy, keeping her expression neutral, and lowered her voice.

“I found out something else, and I think it would be best for you to know before the banquet begins.”

“What is it?”

Amy lowered her voice as well. Glancing over, she saw Noah was still focused on reading the manuscript. Mrs. Weaver spoke cautiously.

“When Baron Pearson of the Empire, an attendant to the Crown Prince, was heavily drunk, he boasted that a lowly person like you wouldn’t even be able to look at him properly in the future.”

“Is that so?”

While it was a vulgar thing to say, it wasn’t particularly unusual. Being an attendant to the Crown Prince meant he had lined himself up correctly. However, something felt off.

The Crown Prince didn’t yet have what could be called his own faction. He only knew the nobles handpicked by the Empress. At least, that was how it was when Amy was at the palace. Had it changed now?

‘The Empress is not one to easily change the system she created.’

Furthermore, the strange relationship between the Baron and the Crown Prince she had seen at the Bigo weighed on her mind. Refusing to ignore the unsettling feeling, Amy placed Baron Pearson at the top of her list of people to watch.

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