Late afternoon.
Winterwald's staff lounge.
It was currently a short break time for the manor maids.
"What did you think of her?"
Head Maid Gemma asked, sipping her chamomile tea.
"Well, how should I put it..."
It was Maid Kate who answered.
"Same as my first impression, she's like a plain, ol' pebble you'd find by a creek."
The Head Maid smirked, a sly look on her face.
"You mean round and cute, kinda sparkly in a weird way, the kind you just gotta pick up and fiddle with?"
Kate nodded vigorously. She wasn't great with words, and people often misunderstood her, but luckily, the Head Maid always understood her perfectly.
"Did the Master really adopt Ririn as his daughter? For real?"
"Who knows."
"Head Maid, I heard you saw that video thing, too."
Everyone was pretending to be cool about it, but Ririn and Theo were the talk of the manor.
The Head Maid's eyes narrowed, remembering.
"Yes. It was surprising... For that Master to be doing childcare. It's crazier than the sun rising in the west; I'd be less shocked if the sun just vanished. And, the Master looked totally different in that video, which was kinda weird."
The Head Maid melted chocolate cubes in warm milk. Kate chimed in from the side.
"So that's why he still has that pink in his hair..."
"Shh. Kate, keep quiet about the appearance-altering magic tool. If the Magic Tower gets wind of this, even our Master won't be able to avoid a grilling. It's a very precious magic tool, you know."
"Oh my gosh, I messed up. Should I just chop off my finger now?"
"We're not the mob, you know."
The two of them sipped their tea again.
Then, another maid, who was quietly ripping open a bag of marshmallows, chimed in.
"But if you look closely, Maid Ririn does resemble Master a bit."
"Oh, for crying out loud. Aisha, shouldn't you get glasses? It's covered by our benefits, so use 'em!"
"No, I mean... like, her actions and the way she talks. She's got the Master's vibe."
Aisha recalled a scene she had witnessed in the dining hall today.
"Theo Winterwald, I swear, if you don't stop being picky about those tomatoes, I'm gonna 'Grrr!' at you! Look at this! You didn't eat any! Should I spank your little butt?"
"Poo!"
She also remembered Calex working nearby.
"Lusca Higgins, I swear, if you keep turning in papers like this, I'm gonna (cut your neck off)! Look at this! You think writing numbers is a joke? (Neck) chopped?"
"Poo!"
"Has he lost it?"
"No, it's more like the most important word got bleeped out."
"Hmm. Now that you mention it, they kinda talk the same way."
"Especially how they never back down in an argument."
"Now that you mention it, during tea time after lunch earlier..."
This time, Kate, who had been listening quietly, recalled the snack time from earlier.
Calex had a habit of drinking brandy or strong tea after meals while looking out the window. It was the same as it had been five years ago.
The only difference was this little pink head popping up next to him.
"Hoo."
"Hyaa."
The father and daughter... I mean, the adult and the kid, were sitting there with their legs crossed, sipping on brandy and fruit tea.
And of course, little Theo was at the end, trying to cross his tiny legs and sipping his milk.
Aisha said.
"Hmm. Call it a maid's intuition, but I think the Master really cares for Ririn."
In fact, that was a fact tacitly acknowledged by everyone except Calex.
"So, if the Master gets his memories back... will Ririn be, like, a Lady?"
At those words, the Head Maid's eyes narrowed as she carefully placed marshmallows on top of her hot chocolate.
"Th-that could happen... Ahem! But still, we can't slack off on training the newbie. A maid's gotta focus on the job at hand, right?"
"That's right."
"So, let's worry about that later, and as always, let's focus on whipping these newbies into shape! Got it?"
"You got it, Head Maid."
Kate grinned, showing off her buck teeth.
"You know we're not pushovers, right?"
The Winterwald staff had great pride in the name of Winterwald.
Yeah, the Master's a bit of a pain, but hey, work's work, right?
Plus, they pay us crazy good money, and the benefits are amazing.
So, when we walk around outside in our maid uniforms with the snowflake, everyone's totally jealous. It's a sweet gig where you get respect and can show off a little. Gotta be loyal!
"We gotta show her the ropes, the good, the bad, and the ugly."
The maids rolled up their sleeves, grinning mischievously.
Clack. Finally, the super-sweet hot chocolate they'd all made together was ready.
"Um..."
The owner of the hot chocolate, who had been rolling her eyes around since earlier, opened her mouth quietly.
"What is it? Maid Ririn."
"Shouldn't you guys be talking about this stuff when I'm not around...?"
Ririn, who'd been sitting on the Head Maid's lap this whole time, asked, all smart-like.
"No way."
The Head Maid put on a solemn expression.
"You're one of us now. It's not cool to leave you out of tea time, right?"
"Heh."
Late afternoon. The maids' lounge.
"Want more milk? Marshmallows? Needs something sour. Go get some dried oranges!"
"Right away!"
Newbie Ririn was having a nice, chill afternoon surrounded by the tough-but-kind older maids.
After a nice, relaxing break, a servant from the annex came over and said break time was over.
"Head Maid. Looks like we gotta spruce up the west annex this afternoon."
"Huh? What's up?"
"Former Duke Elissa and his husband are coming back early."
The Head Maid calmly stroked Ririn's head as she wiggled off her lap.
"Oh wow. I thought they were off enjoying the countryside and wouldn't be back till the day before the parade?"
"Seems like they changed their plans 'cause of the rain last night. And, Lord Blaine..."
The servant glanced at Ririn's pink crown and replied.
"He's in a big rush, apparently. He'll probably be here in, like, two days."
"Gotcha."
The Head Maid quickly put down her teacup and tapped the table.
"Break's over, ladies! Let's go!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
The maids rose to their feet in perfect order.
Ririn, who'd been sitting there like a doll, jumped down and answered, taking tiny steps.
"Yes, ma'am!"
But of course, the Head Maid grabbed her by the back of her neck before she got too far.
"Yes, ma'am?"
"Ririn, you can go after you finish your hot chocolate."
"Okaaaay... But what do you want me to do after?"
Sparkle, sparkle.
"Just go to your room and chill..."
Sparkle, sparkle, sparkle.
Give me a job, too!
No bedroom! I wanna play, too! Let me help!
"Ahem."
It was crazy, but it was like she could hear the kid's thoughts.
The Head Maid groaned, seeing the look on the kid's face, like she was all excited for some fun.
Fine, whatever.
"Then go check if everything's clean inside and outside!"
Basically, she was telling her to go play and learn her way around the manor.
"Oh. But I don't know where anything is!"
"Oh, right, I didn't give you the map of the manor yet. Here you go."
"Oh! A map!"
"Just ask if you get lost."
She handed it over, but she didn't really expect her to understand the whole thing.
She'd explain everything very clearly if she came running back.
"Newbies should take it easy! Nice and slow, just look around!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
The kid yelled, all excited to run around and explore the whole place.
'Hmm, backyard: -300 points.'
I wrote it down on my notepad, looking all serious.
'Lobby +100 points.'
You'd be wrong if you thought I was just gonna run around and play.
'Overall: Only cleaned the obvious spots. Three stars.'
I'm a kid who knows how to be responsible.
After checking every nook and cranny like a hawk, I tap-tapped down the hallway.
Maybe because of what the Head Maid said, everyone just acted normal no matter where I popped up in the manor. If I bowed, they'd just smile.
'Everyone's super nice, even if they try to hide it.'
They even gave me hot chocolate and let me join their break.
And they even put Theo down for a nap in the lounge.
'And...'
I recalled the conversation the maids had had.
I giggled to myself.
"Aww~ Do I really look that much like Daddy?~"
Actually, since that appearance-changing thingy disappeared, Daddy and I look totally different now.
But they said we looked alike.
I was happy everyone had such good taste.
'More than that, I really need to keep the appearance-altering magic tool safe.'
I thought of the earcuff, safely stored in my personal safe along with the ring.
'Like the older maids said, Daddy could get in trouble if the Magic Tower finds out. I heard they're extra sensitive about magic tools and leaks these days since the Magic Tower Lord is gone...'
The Empire's Magic Tower Lord died a few years back.
He sacrificed himself during a big dungeon raid, blocking a magical explosion with his body.
If he hadn't done that, the Empire would've been in serious trouble.
'I heard he was a hero 'cause he was super good at magic and a really great guy, right?'
Geez. Why do the good ones always die young? Hope he's happy in heaven.
I thought this sadly as I climbed the stairs.
After a bit, I stopped at my destination.
I peeked my head around the corner.
"Hmm. No one's here. Good."
It was Daddy's office.
Earlier, I went up to the tree in front of the building, pretending to check things out. And I found out when the office would be empty.
It was the perfect time: Daddy wasn't there, and neither were the guards.
I looked around carefully and slipped into the office, sneaky-like.
