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The moon rises, and it’s time for the owl to awaken.

Only the flickering light of torches illuminating the territory glows in the serene streets lost to slumber.

Among people who have deeply sunk into sleep after a hard day’s work, a woman, unable to surrender herself to a lingering, fuzzy feeling, tossed and turned, adjusting her pillow and position for no reason.

Even with her eyes closed in an attempt to fall asleep, the incessant thoughts caused her to find no peace. Instead, her eyes, now wide open, shone brighter in the darkness than when she first lay on the bed.

“…I have to wake up early tomorrow too.”

Eventually, Aheira got out of bed and sat at her small room’s desk.

She opened the drawer underneath the desk and took out a small letter resting on top, nervously fidgeting with the paper for a moment.

As she started reading the words illuminated by the moonlight, a complex mix of emotions stirred within her, leading to a peculiar sensation.

‘Why is nothing going well?’

Not long after hearing about her father’s deteriorating health, here was a letter written and sent by him himself.

Filled with concern and pride for his daughter working away from home, the letter provided her with a small source of energy. However, revealing his shaky handwriting, the visible struggle to write due to his ailing body seemed to carry a weight that dragged her heart into a quiet abyss.

“…A responsible and just noblewoman, Aheira.”

It was all about that one sentence.

Her father, judging her based on the letters she sent from this place, must have felt disregarded after witnessing how Herrel was treated. Not to mention the awards and recognition she had lost along the way; it had been a long time since she had been distant from honor while dealing with the shady affairs of the head maid.

Her father must have thought she was serving alongside high-ranking nobles, standing up for justice and gaining everyone’s trust.

The more beautifully distorted stories she wrote, the more it felt like she had achieved her dreams, as though saying she had no regrets even in death.

‘I’ve long since discarded the idea of righteousness.’

Indeed, the noble image painted like a fairy tale was cast aside. She thought she had simply compromised with reality to cover her father’s medical expenses.

“Surely that was the case. Why is this bothering me so much?”

Since her meeting with Shione and Ray recently, her previously calm heart now stirred restlessly.

Was it because, rather than bonding with maids, she stuck closely to the head maid and her work? If it was simply their warmth that she found endearing, Aheira could not forgive herself. She could not afford to be swayed by such things and risk being disliked by the head maid and end up unable to secure the funds needed for her father’s treatment, putting him in a critical state.

Shione’s remark about her becoming her personal maid if she became her person? Unlike the head maid, who had faithfully given her money for her work until now… Shione was different. Between Shione and the head maid’s persuasive tactics, she could not simply side with Shione.

‘Moreover, I too—’

Starting from the time when Herrel was bullied, she quietly stood by and watched.

Now, she played the role of delivering secret letters and fulfilling the head maid’s demands for information about Shione.

Should the head maid fall, she too would likely vanish into the back alleys of the Count’s House.

“What exactly do you want me to do?”

Caught at a crossroads of choice, her emotions swirled with confusion.

Moreover, she had seen how the head maid did not protect Herrel, and even now, she was aware of Piana Trilla’s existence, who had met them at every turn.

“…If only I hadn’t read that letter.”

The letter contained only concise sentences devoid of superfluous remarks as if no one would sneak a read. Yet, that alone made the distinctions between good and evil clearer than ever.

She had to choose.

Whether to side with Shione and visualize a future worthy of her ailing father’s hopes and trust.

Or to continue the relationship she had built with the head maid so far.

Thus, after sitting at her desk, Aheira once again stood up and threw herself onto the bed, twisting her body to look up at the ceiling as she collected her thoughts.

‘…It’s Shione.’

Her thoughts drifted toward Shione.

From the stories shared in the garden to the little tales she had begun to unravel when it was just the two of them.

Mostly intertwining her own past and struggles with flower language and boasting about her senior Ray, she had shared moments of vulnerability.

The Shione she spoke with now, unlike the peaceful one of the past, exuded a sense of righteousness and kindness… No, she felt beyond that—she was truly harmless. The notion that she would break a promise did not even cross her mind.

“I guess I won’t be able to sleep tonight.”

Aheira simply laid there, her eyes closed, as the night lingered on.

When the pure morning light and the birds’ clear chirps resonated, she solidified her thoughts and rose from her bed, dressing herself.

In her usual maid outfit, she neatly styled her long hair into a bun, pinning it in place. After using makeup that she rarely used to cover the shadows of not having slept well, she took one last look at her appearance in the full-length mirror of her room.

From the trailing hem of her skirt to her face, Aheira gazed at herself in the mirror and whispered.

“I made this decision after thinking it over all night. I won’t have any regrets going forward.”

With her determination set, Aheira stepped out of the room early in the morning.

Since another meeting with the princess was scheduled for today, she quickly came face to face with Shione.

After catching her breath, she called out to Shione.

“Princess Shione, I have something to ask.”

“Something to ask? Aheira, feel free to speak my mind openly.”

“You said that if I swore to follow you wholeheartedly, I would become your personal maid. You mentioned that I would hear the answer after the princess departed—”

The bright smile on Shione’s face flickered.

The harmless, puppy-like visage vanished, replaced by a cold, sharp expression.

“Is it alright to answer while the princess is still here?”

“What’s wrong with that? It was initially a condition because I thought you would need time to think. If Aheira has made up her mind, then there’s no issue.”

At Shione’s words, Aheira’s pupils trembled briefly.

As she shut her heavy eyelids for a moment and opened them again, the trembling ceased.

Aheira’s ordinarily subdued yet heavy voice echoed in the room.

“I… have resolved to become Princess Shione’s personal maid. Will you accept me, Shione?”

Aheira, having chosen Shione over the head maid.

*

The day of the next meeting with the princess quickly arrived.

The thoughts of the princess aiming for Shione rather than me proved to be spot on, as we talked a bit about magic. Aidelhaite also personally praised Shione’s archery, so we had managed to grow a bit closer.

Rising early in the morning, Shione and I each finished getting ready separately, and before meeting the princess, we shared one last tactical discussion.

“So, what do you think Ray feels about the princess wishing for you to become friends?”

“Shione and the princess have already become friends, haven’t they?”

“…No, not like that. I mean properly.”

“Hmm.”

What the princess meant was that she wanted to actively utilize us against the demon.

In fact, she seemed aware of the demon’s existence, as she had even gone up North herself. Her proactive attitude toward dealing with them was clear.

I thought it didn’t sound bad. When it came to the Empire, well, she wasn’t an idiot and could handle things well. She had already mentioned she would mostly ask for help with the demons, so it made sense that she wouldn’t contradict herself.

“I think that sounds good. In fact, the benefits will likely outweigh the costs.”

Moreover, given the current situation where Shione and I had been diligently resolving the incidents that occurred, if we could easily latch onto the princess’s plan to take down the demon, then we would have countless troops and support gathered under the royal name, making it easy to cut down the creature. We would also be one of the best-rewarded units.

‘It seems Shione is on board. Now I just have to convey my intentions to Adelhaite.’

Since Shione seemed to agree with my words, it was time to slowly move on.

The princess had promised to inform us about the task of bringing peace to the kingdom after hearing our answer. Since she had been up North, if anything were to disrupt the kingdom, it would likely be in the area where the demon resides. We would be able to hear detailed information about the North.

‘I heard there’s a dragon up North too.’

Having caught wind of the existence of a dragon in passing, it became essential for Shione and me, who had to take down the demon, to gather intel about the North.

If we could snag a demon’s arm during a territory dispute, that would be ideal…

But if an existence worthy of being called a dragon were to be entirely devoured by that demon of gluttony, that would be a tragedy in itself.

Considering that the world seemed to collapse if things went awry, it looked as if dragons had failed to slay the demons.

As I mulled over these thoughts while slowly moving my feet, Shione suddenly exclaimed brightly.

“Oh, right. Also… Aheira said this morning that she would join our side.”

“Was that this morning?”

“Yep. Looks like things will be solved quicker thanks to that? That also—”

With her arms crossed and a self-satisfied smile on her face, Shione declared.

“Once the princess departs, we’ll be able to capture everything in one go.”

After the tiresome discussions had come to an end, it was time to venture out and put in some work like usual.

 

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