Chapter 11

-Clank!

“Housekeeper Sir?”

“Return to your post, Camila.”

“…What?”

“I mean you should return as the maid for Young Master Carsein.”

Thus, Camila was released from her isolation room.

No, it wasn’t enough. She wasn’t expelled from the Bargrand family.

Without any charges.

Without any punishment.

She returned as Carsein’s personal maid.

But at the same time, she was forbidden from doing any work. Or rather, unable to do so.

“You know, I was told to come today? But there’s nothing to do in the morning. Just go.”

“There’s nothing for you to do. Just go back and rest.”

“Just read a book or something. There’s nothing for you to do. Go.”

It wasn’t just that day. It was every day.

Morning. Noon. Evening.

No matter when she visited, there was nothing to do.

Bed-making, room cleaning, managing items, laundry.

All tasks that should have been done by Camila were already completed.

This had been going on for two days.

‘Today too, Young Master didn’t ask me to do anything…’

Carsein hadn’t asked her to do anything. All his duties were taken care of.

Even if all she did was bring meals and take away dishes, this was something even a regular maid could do.

At first, she was puzzled, but soon she began to feel uneasy. This couldn’t continue.

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I’ll come 30 minutes earlier. I’ll make sure Young Master doesn’t finish all the maid work before I arrive.

With such resolve, Camila carried the tray with dishes and walked down the corridor.

Then.

A girl approached, her pink hair fluttering like silk.

“Miss Claire…”

“You. We need to talk.”

Claire pointed her thumb towards an empty room.

Let’s talk over there.

Camila swallowed hard and agreed meekly.

***

One day. Two days. Three days.

Servants came in only to deliver meals, and no family members entered.

Thanks to this, she lived alone in the room without incident.

The clothes were unfamiliar, but at least they were for a lady. And it was a grand mansion, not a drafty room. Meals were provided.

She didn’t need to eat instant noodles for three meals. She didn’t need to worry about returning home after part-time jobs and facing her parents’ scolding.

She mostly just cleaned and did laundry, like her usual routine.

But she couldn’t settle for this.

▶CHAPTER 1 – Episode III is starting!◀

I just woke up this morning.

The status window announced the start of a new episode.

Since only the episode number appeared and not the title, it seemed a choice had been made. So, the next episode is beginning now.

“How will we proceed here?”

Not long ago, Butler Heron came and said that Isabella allowed Claire to attend her coming-of-age ceremony.

Furthermore, she was released from house arrest. Carsein had been under house arrest since the start of the game due to some accident he caused.

When house arrest was lifted, activities within the Bargrand family became free, and the upstairs map, which couldn’t be accessed until clearing Episode II, opened up.

This was a natural flow of the story, a result of clearing Episode II by rescuing Camila, and a sign that Episode II was successfully cleared and the next episode was starting.

And cunningly,

“Claire’s coming-of-age ceremony is tomorrow.”

What a timely event.

Last night, I found a memorial in this room. A memorial I hadn’t discovered while playing the game, showing Arina’s coming-of-age ceremony three years ago.

Seeing what happened there and how Carsein reacted made my anger boil, delaying my sleep.

“That coming-of-age ceremony. Must’ve been hell for Carsein.”

On Arina’s coming-of-age ceremony day, family members and nobles, fitting the name Bargrand, gathered to congratulate her.

The hall was packed with nobles, none doubting that this little girl would become the successor of the Bargrand family.

The other daughters were also expected to lead the noble society as future leaders.

But one person faced relentless exclusion.

“Oh, oh. That shameless…”

“She may share the Bargrand name, but she lacks any grace.”

“Of course, a lowborn is always a lowborn.”

While the Bargrand family had many friendly nobles, they despised him, a mere rag from the slums.

Still, Carsein could enter the hall because the Duchess brought him in and recognized him as her child.

But the nobles were cunning.

They used children of Carsein’s age to push him out of the hall. Through their interactions, they diverted the attention of the Bargrand family.

Forced outside, Carsein was thrown to the ground and trampled mercilessly by other noble children.

“Why?” he protested, but got no sympathy.

“Why? You’re not a Bargrand.”

“Do you think it’s right for a lowborn to be in the same place as us?”

“Hah. Did you think you had the same rights as us?”

Only harsh treatment as a commoner, or worse, a pauper.

Driven to desperation, Carsein gritted his teeth and resisted. Despite surviving the harshness of the slums, he managed to knock down one of the noble children.

But this became his downfall; they bound his feet.

“Sister Arina! They started it first…”

-Snap!

“Don’t call me sister. You’re not my brother or family.”

After causing a scene, Carsein was confined for a month for ruining Arina’s coming-of-age ceremony.

From then on, he couldn’t call anyone his sister. Even his mother couldn’t call him son, much like Hong Gil-dong.

Reflecting now, it’s disgusting. Even though he shared no blood, he was unjustly cast out and beaten for not being a Bargrand.

Abandoned by his family, the only support he had, he was left alone.

“My heart aches.”

Even though these memories weren’t mine, they hurt because I, too, had experienced bullying and fought back at school. I once retaliated against a bully, and the first one called me a disgrace to the family, hitting me. Since then, I felt the same way.

Anyway, something happened three years ago?

“No, not going. No, no matter how I think about it, it’s better not to go.”

There’s no doubt this bias will stick. I’d rather not participate in tomorrow’s coming-of-age ceremony.

If possible, avoid it.

If I don’t encounter any choices, I won’t have to go there and risk getting into trouble or being noticed by others. No one would welcome me anyway.

How can I stay in this room and not go anywhere?

Maybe I could pretend to be sick and stay in bed after taking a cold shower?

Just as I was brainstorming ways to avoid it—

“Young Master, it’s Camila. May I come in?”

Camila?

Why is she here at this hour?

Though the situation is good, I can’t fully relax yet. Until I clear a specific episode, I can’t let my guard down.

Reluctantly, I opened the door.

“Pardon me, Young Master. Um…”

“Just come in.”

I saw Camila standing demurely. Instead of asking what was wrong, I invited her in.

Someone might hear if we talk in the hallway.

“Yes, Young Master…”

Camila looked uneasy as she entered my room. Her voice trembled slightly, indicating something was wrong.

As soon as she entered, her lips parted and her eyes began to waver.

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing her anxiety made me anxious too. I could lose control too, damn it!

What could she possibly see in my room?

Following her gaze, my eyes rolled along.

But…

“…My hand?”

Oddly, her gaze fixed on my hand.

It was just that I was holding a mop from cleaning.

No, who gets anxious seeing a mop? I checked again, and it was indeed true.

What an absurd situation.

Just then, Camila snatched the mop from my hand.

“This is for me, Young Master. You shouldn’t do these chores!”

Huh?

A question mark appeared in my mind.

-Ding!

[1. You came 30 minutes early today? Why? What are you planning now?]

[2. You’re cleaning, why take it? Give it back.]

[3. What’s with this sudden random comment?]

“Oh, thinking about it, I entered through the route where I don’t take a maid.”

Seeing these options made me remember vaguely.

Originally, option 2 was the correct answer, and option 3 was a dead end. But now, the content had changed.

As my recognition within the Bargrand family improved, the choices changed accordingly. This rule applied here as well.

“But I remember using this branch only before finding a better one, so my memory is a bit hazy…”

For a moment, I decided to answer to gather information.

I chose option 3.

“What’s with this sudden random comment?”

“I’m your personal maid. Let me handle these chores!”

Camila held the mop and pleaded in a begging tone.

Only then did the scenes of this branch flash in my mind.

“Right. This happened after Claire talked to Camila.”

Now I understand why she was so anxious. It must have been after meeting Claire.

That makes sense. Even if there’s no problem now, Claire was the best trigger for Camila’s death in the game.

If this story continued,

Surprisingly, things went smoothly.

[1. What are you planning to do in my room?]

[2. Sorry, but there’s nothing for you to do.]

Perfect choices.

This is how I remember it.

“Sorry, but there’s nothing for you to do.”

This could raise Claire’s affinity.

***

When the two disappeared, the corridor was empty. Servants usually avoided the left corridor where Carsein stayed.

Moreover, the servants and other workers had all left, making the passage unusually quiet today.

Thus, silence flowed naturally.

-Creak. Creak. Click.

But instead of silence, the sound of footsteps echoed quietly.

“Wait, how did Camila get out of solitary confinement?”

The blonde girl saw Camila, who should have been in solitary confinement, walk into Carsein’s room unharmed. Carsein also nicely invited her in after knocking.

This was unsettling.

Flora herself instructed Carsein to put stimulants in his breakfast.

If this truth came to light, with her confession and payoff, everything could reach her mother.

Dashing—

Flora hurried to her bedroom. She locked the door and pulled the blanket over her head, thinking hard.

“No, there’s no need to worry. Even if the plan failed, I can just deny it.”

In the Bargrand family, no one listens to Carsein anymore. Not even his mother, who once listened to him, has snapped out of it.

While disappointing, the failure isn’t something to fear.

But why?

Why is it so scary?