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Chapter 8

Harm?

Alexa bit her lips, her face flushed.

Wasn't the harm falling squarely on her right now? She was about to be thrown out of a place she'd worked diligently, just like that?

'This is so unfair.'

Should she demand a three-way confrontation? Ask to bring in all the men she'd supposedly been with and confront them?

'As if they'd cooperate.'

Then should she beg? Swear she'd never let such rumors spread again?

Why should she? What had she done wrong?

She ran through possible responses in her mind, but nothing seemed worth saying out loud. Her lips grew parched.

"Tsk."

At the head maid's displeased click of the tongue, Alexa's hardened expression snapped upward.

"Playing smart, as usual."

As expected, people reveal their true nature when cornered. That tone that wouldn't back down an inch, that dissatisfied face that refused to accept defeat.

The head maid, watching her, lectured with her eyes lifted high.

"So what, you want me to fire all the male servants instead? Swap out every staff member and business contact?"

Be reasonable.

The head maid folded her arms and turned her head. Her words seemed plausible at first glance—it was far simpler and easier to cut off the one causing the problem. A maid could easily be replaced.

'But that's not right.'

What was the head maid's role? To oversee and manage the maids. If such rumors existed, it was her duty to verify the truth and move forward accordingly. She should also know how to protect and stand up for them.

At the very least, she should understand that her position wasn't meant to arbitrarily bully junior maids.

"Hahah."

At the short laugh, Alexa's gaze instantly fixed on Jeanne. Jeanne, with no intention of wiping the amusement from her eyes, stared back at Alexa.

"You don't really have much to be upset about, do you?"

Jeanne, receiving Alexa's sharp glare, looked unusually relaxed today.

"Fine, let's say the gracious head maid believes you. But what about everyone else? I don't think that many men would all lie."

Jeanne rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Really, if you're going to play around, you should have kept those men's mouths shut."

"What?"

Alexa wanted to lunge forward and strike that insolent mouth, but she barely restrained herself. The head maid was watching her quietly, as if sizing up her conduct.

The disadvantaged party was herself, and not everything was over yet.

Alexa's mind churned like a storm.

Should she just admit it and get on her knees?

Promise never to get close to anyone again, swear she'd only do laundry until she died, volunteer to work only in the kitchen—should she beg one more time?

And then what?

Would she be able to borrow money? Asking for an advance when she might lose her job was out of the question.

With trembling eyes, she looked at the head maid. And in that indifferent gaze, Alexa realized:

The head maid, sitting with her arms folded behind Jeanne, had no intention of saving her. It was clear—through no fault of her own, she was going to lose her job.

Alexa's stomach churned. Resentment washed over her, but to find work immediately, she had no choice but to appeal to the head maid's mercy until the very end.

"Thank you for everything."

Alexa bowed her head.

Somewhat surprised by her unexpectedly docile acceptance, the head maid nonetheless felt a swell of satisfaction in her chest.

'She should have done this from the start.'

So this was the thrill of breaking someone's stubbornness. Just as she thought Alexa was finally coming to her senses, Alexa spoke.

"Then I'd like a letter of recommendation, please."

"…Huh?"

"A letter of recommendation."

"Ha, ha! Look at this."

The head maid jolted in disbelief, and the wooden chair groaned under her heavy weight.

"A recommendation? Sure, what should I write?"

"That I was a diligent maid who tended to the bedridden lady."

"Ha, what audacity. Go on, say more."

"That I did twice the work of others. While Jeanne washed one set of sheets, I cleaned two rooms and washed all the curtains. You know I didn't cut corners—you even praised me that day, remember?"

Alexa gazed at them calmly, as if detached from it all. The head maid, who had been about to retort, clamped her mouth shut, while Jeanne, standing behind her, flushed from neck to face.

Seeing Alexa stand straight and say everything she needed to, the head maid unconsciously swallowed. Then, suddenly, anger flared up.

Yes, this was what she truly hated. Being constantly outdone by a mere novice maid who had barely started working.

'She should be groveling, and yet she's still acting stubborn?'

Her judgment twisted, she craned her neck to look down at Alexa.

"You're forgetting the most important part, Alexa."

"……"

"The reason you're being let go."

The head maid held the leash, so Alexa's stubbornness was simply laughable. She wasn't actually suffering from a headache, but she feigned a troubled look and pressed her temple.

"You said you had family to care for, so you needed to commute, didn't you? I took pity and accepted you—but honestly. I hear you've been going out to meet men every night? And a different one each time."

Alexa let out a long, thin sigh. Under the crushing stress, her stomach burned as if on fire.

She desperately wanted water, but to get it, she'd have to end this confrontation quickly—and as favorably as possible.

"Why is that a problem?"

"What?"

Damn. She'd tried to speak as gently as possible, but a hint of anger had seeped into her voice. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"I am unmarried—legally and morally, there's no issue. And it's true that I have family to care for, and I've never been late to work even once. This is all just baseless rumor, but even if it were true, you know full well that it never interfered with my work—don't you?"

Damn. She'd struggled to soften her tone, but the last words came out sharp anyway. Alexa bit her lip.

'Stay calm, stay calm. …Still, what I said isn't wrong.'

She had a brother who would starve to death without her, she hadn't been meeting men, and even if she had, it hadn't affected her work.

The answer to Alexa's question came not from the head maid, but from the other side.

"Disgusting."

"…What?"

Jeanne, glued to Head Maid Merrill's side, could no longer hold back and spat out her words.

"You're disgusting. What if you catch some filthy disease? What if you pass it to the old lady?"

Alexa's eyes narrowed.

Filthy? Suppressing the lava-like rage boiling inside her, she asked calmly.

"Did you actually see me behaving in a filthy manner?"

"What if I did? A week ago, I saw you entering a dark alley with two men!"

"A week ago?"

…That was the day she had gone to retrieve her brother from the gambling den. And Jeanne must have seen her being guided there by those two men.

Realizing the situation, Alexa looked at her without a trace of agitation.

"If you saw us, then you'd know I didn't even brush shoulders with those men."

"Th-that's… I didn't watch you all night! Who knows what happened after!"

"Who knows? That means you made up stories about something you don't even know for sure, doesn't it?"

"Haha. So funny. A man and woman meeting alone at night—what more is there to say? Oh! Wait—it was three, wasn't it?"

"Shameless!"

At Jeanne's words, the head maid interjected, unable to hold back. She then looked Alexa over as if she were filthy garbage.

'Hoo…'

Alexa was losing patience with this utterly fruitless emotional drain.

"Fine, I was there that night. But tell me—how did you see me? In a dark alley that late at night?"

"That—! Well…"

As Alexa stared at her, Jeanne's face grew redder by the second.

"Wh-what business is it of yours?!"

"It's just such a perfect coincidence, isn't it?"

Jeanne gritted her teeth. That day, she'd taken a day off and met a decent-looking man at a bar, and they were heading somewhere together—but she couldn't say that outright.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't being considerate in front of the head maid."

Alexa covered her mouth as if surprised.

Had she said she'd spent the night with some nameless mercenary?

As Alexa murmured thoughtfully, a small groan came from the head maid's direction. Jeanne, meanwhile, was flailing, completely red, and finally shouted:

"Wh-what are you talking about! Don't play innocent—you even seduced Andy!"

Alexa frowned at the unfamiliar name. Andy? Who was Andy?

Ah… Andy Reewood, the meat supplier.

The one who insisted his conch-shell-brown hair was black, and had brought her wildflowers roots and all.

Alexa raised her head as if finally understanding, and looked at Jeanne. She stood with her arms crossed, glaring as if she wanted to devour Alexa.

'So that's why she's being so desperate—because of that man?'

Jeanne, as if she'd caught the perfect prey, straightened her neck and sneered at Alexa with full contempt.

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