Chapter 29

**Somewhere in the Gilded Plaza of Ironhelm**

In the brightly lit corner of the servants' quarters, Azure crouched down, his back to the room, hands covering his face as a deep crimson flush spread across his cheeks. The embarrassment burned so intensely that he could barely think straight. His fellow workers exchanged glances, unsure whether to be concerned or amused.

"How long has he been like this?" asked a demi-human woman with soft, flicking cat ears and a matching tail, her tone a mix of curiosity and mild amusement.

"Ever since we got our break," Eva replied, sounding more concerned than amused. She gave a small shrug, glancing over at Azure with a hint of sympathy.

"I mean, the guy did lie," chimed in another maid, a tall woman with dark skin and an eyepatch that made her look more like a pirate than a domestic servant. "So, honestly, this little self-imposed time-out is kinda deserved."

From his corner of shame, Azure's muffled voice rang out, tinged with frustration, "I can still hear all of you! And I'm not in a time-out corner—I'm not a dog!"

The group exchanged a knowing look.

"We know, dogs are cute and useful," added the dog-eared demi-human maid ironically with a smirk, tail wagging lazily behind her, "while you're, well... you."

Azure, still covering his face, let out a defeated whimper, slowly rising to his feet. His eyes shone with frustration as he faced the group, throwing his arms wide in exasperation. "I just wanted to be cool, okay? Is that so wrong?" His voice cracked slightly as he poured out his plea.

As one, the maids all nodded with synchronized precision.

"Yep."

"Yes."

"Mmm."

"You're really sucky," added the dog-eared maid, her voice casual but cutting.

Azure froze, his hand pointing accusingly at the dog-eared maid. "Immediate rejection!" he shouted, his face now flushed for a different reason. "And that last one was completely unnecessary!" 

The dog-eared maid smirked, ears twitching playfully, her tail wagging slowly behind her. "Sorry, not sorry." 

The others stifled their giggles as Azure groaned, sinking dramatically back into his corner, muttering under his breath, "I can't win..."

"Well, you shouldn't have lied," said the pirate-like maid with the eyepatch, crossing her arms as she leaned against the wall. "That's not exactly something a cool person does." Her words cut through the air with a kind of sharp finality.

Azure groaned, somehow sinking even deeper into his corner as if willing himself to disappear entirely.

"Come on, Malissa," the cat-eared maid teased, placing a hand on the pirate-like maid's shoulder with mock sympathy. "We all know Azure can't be cool—it's just the way he is. So, he has no choice but to lie to try and cover it up."

Azure spun around, glaring at her. "Why are you bullying me so much, Ester?!"

The cat-eared maid shrugged, a mischievous smile on her face. "Because it's too easy."

Before Azure could retort, the dog-eared maid approached, giving him a friendly pat on his green-haired head. "Don't worry, Azure, you won't be bullied by just Ester. I'll join in too," she said, her voice radiating a saintly calm, as though offering him a blessing rather than a threat.

"That's not what I'm worried about, Ficus, but thanks for your concern!" Azure cried out, rubbing his eyes in frustration.

"A-Are you crying?" Eva asked softly, her eyes wide with concern. The rest of the maids grew quiet, exchanging uneasy glances as they wondered if they had gone too far.

"I'm not crying!" Azure snapped, spinning around dramatically to face them, clearly not in tears, though he rubbed at his eyes again. "My eyes have just been itchy all day."

The girls collectively exhaled in relief.

"That's all? How boring," Ester sighed, quickly slipping back into her teasing as if the moment of concern hadn't even happened.

Azure shot her an incredulous look. "Why do you sound like you wanted something bad to happen to me?"

Ficus patted him on the back, chuckling. "You gave us a scare, that's all. We thought it was something serious. But it's just you being you."

Azure's brow furrowed. "I don't like the way you said that. What do you mean 'just me being me?'"

Eva chimed in with a dramatic gasp, leaning forward slightly. "You have been rubbing your eyes a lot. What if they're… infected?"

Azure turned to her, panic immediately setting in. "No way, you're joking, right? They're just a little itchy, that doesn't mean they're infected... right?"

Ester let out a playful chuckle, her eyes gleaming mischievously. "Don't worry, Azure. If they are infected, we'll just pop them out. Then you can wear an eyepatch like Malissa! Only instead of one, you'll get to wear two!" She grinned wickedly as she imagined it.

Azure's face paled, and he looked at Malissa in terror. "That doesn't make me feel better!" His voice pitched high as he turned to the one-eyed maid. "Is that really how you lost your eye?"

Malissa gave a grim nod, her voice low and serious. "Yes. It hurt so much I thought I was going mad. In the end, I had to gouge it out myself to escape the pain."

Azure went completely white, his hands trembling slightly as he stared at her in disbelief. "Is that true?" he asked in a whisper, horror lacing his voice.

Malissa's serious expression shifted quickly as she said with a flat tone, "Of course not. We're just messing with you."

Azure stumbled backward, almost losing his balance from the sudden change in tone. He stared at Malissa, clearly rattled and speechless from the abrupt shift.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and Eirv strode in with his usual briskness. "Everyone, get ready. We have a very important guest arriving shortly," he announced, his tone sharp and no-nonsense.

The girls snapped to attention immediately, their playful attitudes vanishing in an instant. "Yes, sir," they all said in unison, offering slight bows. Azure, still reeling from the earlier teasing, scrambled to follow suit, giving an awkward bow just a moment too late.

The head butler scanned the room, giving a brief nod of approval. "Good." He turned to leave but paused at the door. "Oh, and Azure," he called out, his voice cutting through the room like a blade.

Azure stiffened, his heart skipping a beat. "Y-yes, sir?" he stammered, standing as straight as he could manage.

A smirk tugged at the corner of Eirv's mouth. "Prepare yourself... mentally."

Before Azure could even begin to process what that meant, Eirv was already out the door, leaving him standing there, mouth slightly open in confusion. *What does that even mean!?* he thought, his mind already spiraling as he imagined worst-case scenarios. *I don't like where this is going...*