Chapter 43. Calen Castle, Part IV

After patting her empty stomach to console herself, she left the maid's quarters and was heading back to the main castle, where a shrill voice called out from behind her, "Who's there? I haven't seen you before. What are you doing here?"

It was the head maid of Calen Castle, the Baroness Pamela Lanolf.

Pamela was on edge from nerves.

Due to the complaints of the Viscountess, a lover of the Prince, she had been called to Rezen Castle since morning, so she could not come out to greet the Prince, the ruler of the Principality. Moreover, it was nerve-wracking to think of meeting Sir Albert, the Grand Chamberlain, who did not like her.

Pamela barely comforted the Viscountess, thinking that the old man would soon retire and that her nephew, Jeff, would soon be the Grand Chamberlain, and then she would get out of this boring war of nerves.

Immediately after that, she put behind her the maids, who she carried with her to greet her returned Prince, and headed to the Oval Office of the main castle, where she was told the Prince was. A maid she saw for the first time was wandering about. There was no chance of a stranger entering the heavily guarded main castle, so she could only be one of the members of the returned owner's party, but she couldn't think of her as a member of the party by any means after looking at her thick appearance from behind.

Though she had a long way to go, the Baroness, who thought she should clarify where she belonged in order to prevent any accidents that might occur, called out to the big maid in front of her. When she saw the maid turn around, she opened her mouth in astonishment, and the maids who followed her made a fuss.

"Did you call me?" As soon as she turned around and saw the women with disapproving faces, Julietta slowly began to get irritated by the repeated reactions.

'Don't they know how foolish it is to judge a person only by their looks?'

She managed to clamp her mouth shut as it twisted, as they were shocked that someone like her had ever appeared where she was not supposed to be.It was a moment before Julietta tried to introduce herself after bowing as politely as possible according to etiquette, as Johanna, the head maid of Harrods Street, had taught her. The woman in front of her suddenly got angry.

"Oh, my God! How could this happen? How did someone like you get into this castle? Where the hell do you belong to?"

If she had just waited a little while, she would have answered well, but she had interrupted her speech and she felt something even worse. Julietta, though, politely announced her affiliation.

"I am Julietta Salmon, who is serving His Highness Killian of Austern, the master of Bertino."

Once again, the Baroness made a further grimace, looking on as she casually twitched, raising her glasses that had come down to the tip of her nose as she bowed deeply.

"I am really dumbfounded. How could a maid like you serve His Highness? This could be fatal to his dignity. What the hell did Sir Albert do? I'm sure he's done something so ridiculous like this, believing in the favor of His Highness. I'll tell His Highness about this situation right away."

She had been offended by the look of freaking eyes for awhile, as if they were seeing a monster carrying an infectious disease. Julietta, who felt as if she was guilty of the Baroness' criticism, stood helplessly at her wits' end.

"What are you doing? Make sure you stay in your quarters until there's another order, so people do not see you."

Julietta sighed unconsciously.

This was not her true self, but she could not help being hurt by the eyes of those who were shocked and disgusted every time they saw her. Now she did not think that if she took off this disguise... It really hurt her heart to think that her disguised appearance was her true self.

After she bowed to the noble lady with a ferocious expression in front of her, Julietta turned around and a maid of the Baroness, Celine, opened her mouth.

"How could she work as a maid of His Highness in that shape? Sir Albert was very strict about this and that, and he harassed the head maid, but did he really pick her as a maid? This is a strong case to appeal to His Highness."

As if to console the surprised Baroness, Celine spoke ill of the maid she had just seen, and Rosalyn, the other maid, also agreed enthusiastically.

"I think Sir Albert's eyes are terrible when I see the maid changing every time His Highness returns. As His Highness had not liked them, he must have changed them every time. Jeff, a nephew of the head maid, needs to take over as the Grand Chamberlain's seat."

Jeff, who was her nephew, was not a nobleman, because the man her sister had married was a titled man, not landed. However, Pamela had worked as a maid of Duchess Irene, the mother of the Prince, and was knighted by her own ability, so she was able to rise to the position of the head maid of Calen Castle.

The first thing she had done as soon as she had become the head maid was to put her nephew as the Prince's servant. Unlike the Prince's private maids, who were changed from time to time, Jeff had been in the position of the Prince's servant for several years, being protected by Pamela.

Now, when the old Sir Albert retired, Jeff would succeed him at his post of the grand chamberlain. That way, Jeff could get the title of Baronet and she could really be the number one of Calen Castle, without having to read the faces of Sir Albert or any other grand chamberlain.

The maid from a moment ago was a golden opportunity to express Sir Albert's incompetence to the Baroness with such a goal. So she had made more fuss, as if something big had happened.

With a smile of satisfaction, Pamela hurried to the Oval Office to meet the Prince.

"Your Highness, welcome back. Please forgive my disloyalty that I happened not to meet Your Highness, since I had something to work on in Rezen Castle."

Killian frowned at the head maid and the maids who accompanied her, and who glanced up and bowed to him as if they were shy. At his mother's recommendation, he gave her the title and allowed her to serve as a head maid, but Killian didn't like her, as she always seemed to be calculating and greedy.

"It's been a long time, Baroness Lanolf."

Pamela rushed to speak, as if to attract the attention of the Prince, who nodded dryly and looked away, "Your Highness, I met your private maid. You don't know how surprised I was to see her."

He looked at the Baroness again at the words 'your private maid', after he had turned away after he had apathetically received her greeting.

Marquis Oswald and Count Adam, who did not pay much attention to Pamela's greeting, were also interested in what happened. When Pamela drew the attention she wanted, she stopped talking to create a dramatic effect and held her hand near her heart as if surprised.

"How hideous the appearance of a maid who serves Your Highness can be! I was so surprised at how Sir Albert could keep such a maid beside Your Highness. I was so worried if it was time for him to retire."

The maids who stood behind the Baroness looked at each other, as if it were truly impossible. Count Adam sprang up at the sight of Killian, who watched without a word.

"Oh, the Baroness! The former maid quit in a hurry, and Jeff's accident overlapped, so she was to serve as a temporary maid for the time being. It's not Sir Albert's fault."

"What do you mean by 'an accident'? Where did Jeff get hurt?! That's why I can't see him now!"

Adam interrupted the Baroness's words as she forgot that she was in front of the Prince and made a great fuss about trifles in surprise. "I don't know the details, so listen carefully to Sir Albert later. Anyway, that's all the circumstances that led the maid to serve His Highness."