CHAPTER 11 "MARINA" (2)

The next morning, I awoke to the sound of birds chirping sweetly outside my window. Yesterday, I had fallen asleep much faster than usual. It seemed that the events of the previous day had truly tired me out—from touring the mansion, to dealing with Kyle, and then Marina and the maids.

I didn't even know if Kyle had come by our room last night. Last night, I had slept so soundly that I was totally unaware of anything happening around me. I did remember that before I retired to my chambers, I told Jean to take care of the maids who bullied Marina. He didn't need to fire them, since I knew that this mansion was suffering from a workforce shortage as it were. Instead, Jean only punished them by adding more chores to their workload and cutting their salaries. The latter was a far more effective punishment since nothing was more painful for a worker than a salary cut.

By the way, I never thought I'd meet the heroine in this place. But I suppose it's lucky because if I can make her stand by my side, my future will be reassured in many ways.

After mulling on my situation and the events of yesterday, I stretched and revitalized my body. Soon after, a familiar face arrived at my room. It was Marina, who was reporting for her first day as my personal maid.

"Yo… Your Highness," she stammered, "have you woken up?"

"Yes, Marina," I greeted her warmly. "Did you sleep well, too?"

"Ye… Yes."

Marina's voice trembled slightly as she answered. She had a small stutter, but I could sense that she was a good child. Was she often taken advantage of because of her tender heart?

Hmm, that's not good. I should change that.

I smiled softly at Marina and set about getting ready to start my day.

"Marina, could you tell me what's on my schedule for today?"

"Oh, it's…" Marina continued to stutter as she explained what was on my agenda.

Usually, the lady of the house didn't have a very fixed schedule, so for the most part they were free to do whatever they wanted. In more blunt terms, they had nothing to do. I thought that would also apply to me. Even though the lady of the house was officially supposed to be in charge of all matters related to the upkeep of the house, if she had a competent butler then she could simply relegate those responsibilities to him and not have to worry about a thing. In my case, I knew Jean was very capable at his job, so I wasn't very concerned.

Sometimes there were cases where the lady needed lessons to become acquainted with the basics of housekeeping or some other skill, but they were generally not required to do so unless their husband insisted on them learning about something. As I listened to Marina relay me today's agenda, my eyes widened in astonishment.

"Isn't my schedule too packed?"

Marina had mentioned many classes that I needed to attend today: flower arrangement, embroidery, and introductory courses in accounting, politics, economics, and sociology. From 09:00 to 15:00, my schedule had been filled to the brim with lessons. The young maid started sweating profusely at the judgment in my tone.

"The… The archduke suggested this. He said that there would be no harm in organizing the lady's schedule this way."

At that moment, I could imagine Kyle's voice in my mind.

"I'll keep you busy, so don't bother me."

Wow, he's truly incredible, I thought sarcastically. He really made my schedule as dense as possible to ensure I wouldn't have the time to bother him.

"But the butler said that you could tell him if you can't handle this," Marina added.

I frowned unknowingly at her suggestion and raised my hand to indicate that there was no need to take Jean up on his offer.

"No, it's alright," I said. "It's not too much. I can handle it, so you don't have to worry about me."

I can't lose to him. Besides, these are my obligations as the lady of the house.

Moreover, I didn't want to hear Kyle's mocking remarks if I complained. I could almost imagine him standing over me and saying, "You can't do it?"

I refused to hear such words from his mouth. I turned to Marina while keeping my facial expressions as steady as possible so that she wouldn't continue to be afraid of me.

"Do I have anything scheduled for the afternoon?"

"At 16:00, you are supposed to take a stroll with the Archduke."

"Huh?" I lifted a brow in surprise. "Was the Archduke also the one who suggested that?"

"No… This activity is one that the butler put in."

Jean must have used his secret weapon again to make Kyle agree to this.

In the midst of our discussion, a few other maids entered the room and bowed their heads.

"Did you sleep well, Your Highness? We have finished preparing a bath for you."

They then guided me to the bathroom while Marina quietly followed behind me. As I gently lowered myself into the hot tub full of petals, the fatigue gradually left my body. All the while, the maids set about attending to me.

"Your Highness, this oil is the most popular fragrance these days. Do you like it?"

"Your Highness, your skin is really white, like ivory!"

"Oh my God, your hair is also so soft."

Only

Marina just stood alone in the background, cleaning the bathroom while observing the maids that were busy flattering me. She seemed like an outcast. I gestured for her to come to me.

"Marina, I'm thirsty. Can you get me a drink?"

All the maids turned their focus to Marina. She looked around helplessly with a withering face, feeling pressured by the sudden attention.

"Ah, yes, Your Highness!" Marina quickly came to her senses and rushed to fetch my drink.

I took a sip of the beverage she handed me. It was rosemary iced tea.

"It's refreshing. I like it. Thank you, Marina."

"No… No problem, Your Highness."

Marina's face flushed when I thanked her.