“!!!?”

Inside the tea room was the last person Ruth expected to see.

Alexander Halesworth sat on a plush couch, teacup in hand and a disgustingly calm smile on his face. Bathed in the sun’s orange rays, the duke’s heir looked like a golden haired seraph descended from the heavens, untouched by worries of this mundane world. Ruth cursed under her breath as her heart skipped a beat. Life was unfair, giving such angelic looks to this vile person.

As the big sister that all of the maids looked up to, Ruth knew just how heartless this man was. There were many times when other maids would come to her crying after being hurt by the young master. She also took the blame for mistakes made by her juniors whenever possible, so she ended up suffering Alexander’s wrath multiple times as a result.

The worst was when he ‘took interest’ in her. She could still remember how it felt when the bastard pinned her against a wall, pawing at every inch of her skin. One hand running up her thigh, while the other snaked under her blouse... she endured for almost ten minutes before it finally ended, praying the entire time that no one would enter the room to witness her humiliation.

For an old hag, you’ve got a pretty nice body, hahaha!

Blood boiled in her head when she recalled his parting words that day. A brat who hadn’t even come of age yet, saying that to her face after violating her…!

“You’ve finally arrived,” Alexander said, putting down his teacup after taking one final sip.

“Greetings, young master Halesworth.” Ruth bowed deeply, her face betraying none of the disgust and anger she felt inside. “May I ask why you have called for me? If I have erred somehow, then this maid begs for forgiveness.”

Ruth braced herself for a torrent of verbal abuse. The only time this bastard paid attention to the mansion’s staff was when he wanted to make them suffer. If she was lucky, she’d get out of this with nothing more than hurt feelings and ringing ears.

“Please calm down, Ms. Ruth. This isn’t an interrogation or anything like that.”

Surprisingly, the young master didn’t seem to be mad at her and even spoke politely. She had never seen such a warm, cordial smile on his face before. But this only made Ruth more nervous.

What does the young master want? And why did Emma bring me here without saying anything?

She looked at Emma with a questioning glance, but the latter just smiled awkwardly, as if trying to apologize.

A wild theory came to her mind. Emma said that nothing happened between her and the young master, but what if she was lying? Perhaps she earned his favor, and was now trying to please him in other ways...

“He only wanted me to answer a few questions.”

“I’m not allowed to talk about it. He said that if I did…”

Ruth almost stopped breathing. Could it be!? Did she sell out the other maids? None of them had secrets to be ashamed of, but their private grumblings and occasional laxness was still enough to land them in hot water. Emma didn’t seem like the type to betray their trust, but Ruth had long since learned that people often hid their true natures well. If this girl was another Ophelia in the making, then it was a terrible problem.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Alexander coughing.

“Let me get to the point then. Emma tells me that you have a seriously ill son,” Alexander said, interlocking his fingers.

Ruth’s frown only deepened. “That is correct, young master. But I have not let it affect my work, so I do not understand why it is a cause for concern?”

She felt betrayed. To think that even her personal life was being dragged into this…! Ruth sent her a hurt look, but Emma avoided making eye contact, infuriating the older maid further.

“She also said that you are having trouble making ends meet on your own. The medicine and the doctor’s fees must be expensive.”

This puzzled Ruth a bit. She expected him to criticize her in some way, not bring up her hardships. What game was Alexander playing? “It is merely a small issue, young master. Through the grace of the heavens and House Halesworth’s generosity, this lowly one is managing.”

‘Managing’ was about the most optimistic term she could use though. Her savings were quickly running dry, and since her husband died more than a year ago, her job was the family’s only source of income. She even had two elderly parents to worry about. Things were hard enough already without this bastard making it worse. Ruth silently prayed that she wasn’t about to get fired.

“Regardless, it must not have been easy.” Alexander sighed, in a voice so convincingly sympathetic that Ruth almost snorted. “Being the sole provider for your family at such a young age… that’s a heavy burden for anyone to bear. I deeply admire you for having such resilience.”

Him of all people calling her “young” was a blatant insult. Blood rushed to Ruth’s head again and she almost lost control of herself.

How could you possibly understand what we commoners go through, you spoiled piece of sh- “This is a small gift, Ms. Ruth. Hopefully it will be enough to relieve your family’s difficulties.” He pulled out a small pouch from somewhere, and stretched out his hand, offering it to her.

Feeling suspicious, Ruth maintained a calm facade as she stepped forward and received it, muttering an emotionless “thank you” as she did. But any attempts at a poker face were immediately forgotten when she loosened the string and saw the glittering pile of gold and silver coins inside. This was more than what she earned in a year.

No. Wait. Was this a trap? “Young master, I can’t possibly accept this.” Her voice was shaking, though she didn’t understand if it was due to fright, excitement, or relief.

“Please do not refuse, Ms. Ruth.” Alexander said with a smile. “You’ve served the household for most of my life, this is nothing more than a paltry token. If that isn’t enough, just let me know and I’ll see what I can do. Also, it is not good for a mother to be apart from her child at a time like this. I will ask the head maid to grant you a one week leave of absence so that you may wholeheartedly attend to your son’s needs.”

Ruth trembled. This was exactly what she needed. Even if the young master did have nefarious intentions, how could she say no at this point?

“This humble servant thanks young master.” She said, kneeling down and taking a deep bow, her head pressed to the floor. “If there is anything I can do to repay your kindness, then please say the word.”

“Don’t thank me, thank Emma. I wouldn’t have even known about your difficulties if this girl hadn’t told me. She was half-crying when she described how bad your situation was.”

“Young master!” Emma complained, but there was a playful smile on her lips too.

Ruth was stunned by this lighthearted interaction, and the theory she had earlier was instantly transformed. Perhaps Emma bewitched the young master and now had him wrapped around her little finger. Was she whispering sweet words into his ear to convince him to do this? How skilled! But seducing nobility was a dangerous game. If Alexander ever grew bored of her, or if she offended him, there was only one fate awaiting her.

This poor girl, becoming his plaything and putting her life at risk, all for the sake of her friends. Ruth’s eyes welled up with tears, which the other two mistook for tears of gratitude.

Unfortunately, Ruth’s image of Alexander Halesworth was just too terrible. There was no way she would accept that he had turned into a generous, empathic person overnight. Combined with her addiction to trashy romance novels, this was the most ‘realistic’ explanation she could come up with. She did feel slightly grateful towards him, but she believed that Emma’s sacrifice was the only reason he truly bothered.

If Alexander knew what ridiculous conclusions she had jumped to, he’d be frustrated beyond belief and would have probably lectured her for hours on trusting other people’s kindness.

The surprises weren’t quite over yet, however. At that moment the young master stood up and raised her to her feet. When their eyes met at such a close distance, Ruth’s heart rate sped up once again as she was hit with the full force of his charm.

“I know that this is not enough to make up for what I did to you in the past, and I won’t ask you to immediately forgive me either.” Alexander said in a solemn voice. “All I want to say is that I’m sorry and that I deeply regret my past behavior.”

Ruth’s mind blanked.

This was unthinkable. Never in a million years she would have imagined that the young master would one day apologize to her like this. A high nobleman lowering his head to a mere servant - if word of this got out, he would become a total laughingstock. She subtly dug her nail into her palm, and the pain confirmed that she wasn’t dreaming. But how!?

While she was standing there in mute shock, Alexander patted her on the hand.

“Please go on then, Ms. Ruth. I won’t keep you any longer. I’m sure your family is waiting anxiously for you to come home.”

The young man gave her a warm, satisfied smile.

...

A short while later.

“Ehehe, I’m glad that everything worked out.” Emma said happily.

“Mm. Thank you, Emma, I can’t tell you how much this means to me.”

“I didn’t really do anything though! The young master was the one who helped you.”

The two maids were walking side-by-side towards the servant’s quarters. Ruth needed to make some last-minute arrangements since she would be gone from the mansion for a week, so she didn’t head home immediately. Plus, this was a good chance for her to speak to Emma in private.

When she was sure that there was no one around to overhear, Ruth stopped and placed her hands on Emma’s shoulders. The younger maid tilted her head questioningly.

“You’ve done enough. If it ever gets too hard to bear, just tell me and I will do whatever it takes to protect you.” Ruth said in a determined voice. “I can get you out of the mansion and find a place for you to settle down.”

“...?”

Emma had no idea what she was talking about. Ruth just smiled and didn't elaborate further.

“Come on, let’s go.” The older maid held her hand and they kept walking.

__________________________________________________________

I refilled my tea cup. One down, an entire duchy to go, I guess?

It was fortunate that the last thing House Halesworth lacked was money. Just the coins I found in my bedroom drawers was considered a sizable fortune, and I had plenty more to spare. When Emma described Ruth’s difficulties, I realized that this was both a pressing issue and one that could easily be fixed, so we decided to make hers the first one we tackled. So far, so good.

Not all problems can be solved by throwing money at them though. And come to think of it, no matter how rich my House was, it’ll be hard to ask my parents for gold without explaining what I’m using it for. They would probably be appalled if they found out I was just ‘spoiling’ the servants. I had to think of a more acceptable excuse, or come up with my own funds once the coins in my room ran out.

Also, I kind of wish Ruth had stayed. She knew even more than Emma about how the mansion functioned, and I had my own plans for her, but... well, it’s only for a week, so it can wait until she gets back. Hopefully her son will get better soon.

Sip. Yum, this tea really was delicious. Could use a little honey though.

At any rate, the sun was going to set soon. I better get going.