Count Rutleberg's villa in the royal capital was known as the Haunted Mansion. Its rusted gates, cracked cobblestones and untrimmed trees made it a truly dilapidated house, one that lived up to the name.
Well — that was how it had been two weeks ago.
Beatrice and Millaria asked what had happened. Melody Wave, the maid, only graced them with a curtsy. Luciana Rutleberg, the count's daughter, welcomed the two of them into her home, and then had them go outside for tea.
The guests enjoyed the flowery scent and the refreshing taste of it, the deep yet mellow flavor, free of any harsh bitterness. They asked whether it was really all right for Lucy to be using such high-quality tea leaves. As it turned out, it was a cheap tea, the sort regularly bought by broke nobles. Lucy seemed proud of how the low-quality leaves had been elevated through proper steeping.
That was thanks to her very unusual maid.
The girls wanted to know what had changed about this place in the last two weeks, and at that Luciana finally dropped her ladylike act. Her friends were overjoyed, although she had worked very hard on it.
After they left, Lucy jumped into Melody's arms. The tea party had been a success entirely because of her. The affection was a bit much for this maid. She might need to start etiquette training for Lucy all over again.
While brushing Lucy's hair, Melody explained that she had decided to work here because this mansion employed only one servant, and thus she would be allowed to handle all the duties herself. She had thought of it as a rare and wonderful position. As a maid, she loved the idea of becoming an all-works maid, entrusted with every single task.
She was going to become the world's most wonderful maid, for sure. She hoped her mother was watching from above.
Earlier days in the kingdom. A younger Celeste McMartin — Melody in her childhood days — stared in awe at a beautiful maid out shopping, and decided she wanted to be one too. She became cheerier as the days passed, doing her chores with glee.
In this world, one is considered an adult at the age of fifteen. Celeste decided to train secretly to be a maid until that day came, thinking she would surprise her mother. Then, one evening, her mother died from sickness.
Celeste would pore over the letter her mother had left her.
My beloved Celeste, please forgive me for having to leave you behind. I wanted to be with you longer. I wanted to celebrate you becoming an adult, and a maid. Are you surprised? Your mother saw right through your secret, Celeste. You know, I actually used to work as a maid too. Your father, Cloud Leenbarth, was the heir to a countship at the time. I'm sure he has succeeded to the title by now. You have two choices you can make. One is to rejoin your father and become a count's daughter. The other is, of course, to become a maid. I will respect your decision — but you know, if you do end up becoming a maid, please become the world's most wonderful maid. I love you, Celeste.
Celeste wept, and swore for both their sakes to become the best there ever was.
A deep voice suddenly echoed in her mind. "For oneself and for others, the great vow. Everything is in place. Bestow the silver blessing upon the sacred maiden."
She was startled, and wondered who had said that. She stood before the candle, asking herself what she was even doing. She knew she had no talent for magic. She had tried time and again since she was a child.
But then the image of her mother casting this spell flashed in her mind, and she chanted, "Luce."
A bright light flashed, causing her to shriek. Her hand was glowing. Was this mana? She wondered how she had it, and why it seemed stronger than her mother's. It would be bad if it went out of control, so she decided to put it away, since it might be dangerous.
What Celeste did not know was that her mana was even stronger than that of the kingdom's ten greatest mages. Just a little test of her magic, and it became evident that she could rule the world if she so desired with it. But instead, she was ecstatic to have a way to achieve her dream of becoming the world's most wonderful maid.
And so she began developing maid magic.
She would eventually use a spell to change her hair and eye color. If her father came to claim her as his daughter, she would not be able to become a maid. She did not imagine he would be looking for her mother. She also had no idea that the knights of House Leenbarth were searching for Selena. At that point they were caught off guard, learning she had passed away almost half a year ago.
The man they were questioning explained to them that Selena did have a daughter, but that she had gone to a neighboring country, saying she wanted to heal her grief over the loss of her mother. Lectius asked how old the girl was and what she looked like. Fifteen. A beautiful girl with rare silver hair, and her mother's lapis lazuli eyes.
Lectius knew it had to be her. If she had left two days ago, she should have arrived in the city by now.
He asked so many people who had no idea about a girl with silver hair. Something that unusual would stand out. It was silver, just like his lordship's.
He spotted the now black-haired Melody and asked if she was lost. She turned to look at him, and glimmered in his eyes. She could not find where to catch a carriage to the royal capital. With him pointing her in the right direction, her thank-you and her smile left him in a daze. He refocused, and began his search for the silver-haired girl.
On her way, Melody was surprised to learn the carriage system had been developed by the crown prince. Maxwell explained that the actual project had started seven years ago, but apparently the prince had proposed it a year before that. Melody knew the crown prince was the same age as her, so he had to have been six at the time.
Maxwell pointed out how the driver was really amazing. The carriage had not shaken once the entire time. That reminded Melody she needed to recast a spell. She chanted, "Shake not, quake not, horizontal," and the carriage continued its comfortable trail.
Arriving in town, Maxwell told her that if she wanted to be a maid, it was best to go to the commoners' guild. They mediated for middle-class servants and did not require a letter of recommendation. He wished he could have hired her for his family, though he figured his father would not allow it.
She found a job recruitment post for Count Rutleberg's manor, and was stunned seeing the all-works requirement for a single servant. All-works encompassed everything, from cooking and laundry to cleaning, attending guests and more. It was the most grueling job with the lowest status among maids, primarily hired by lower-ranking nobles or middle-class commoners who could not afford to hire a large number of servants. For a count's house to be hiring for one suggested nothing less than a disaster waiting to happen.
But for Melody, this was the exact job she had been waiting for.
Then she was met with a haunted mansion. Ha! A worthy opponent, worth taking on.
She gleamed, seeing the beautiful count's daughter come out to greet her, and thought it was such a waste to see her skin and hair in shambles, her dress old as well. Luciana was joyous to meet her, and dragged Melody to the dining area right away.
Luciana was a bit eccentric for a noble's daughter. She dumped the whole canister of tea into the kettle right away, and Melody had to take it from her. The water seemed disgusting. It had been drawn out yesterday, so Melody used a spell to create fresh water for steeping right away.
One sip, and Luciana knew Melody was special. She hired Melody on the spot. Luciana did feel bad, though, since Melody would be their only maid. She thought Melody would quit on her for sure.