Chapter 101 Return To Grandchester Castle And The Maids
Sara returned to Grandchester Castle with Rebecca in the evening. Unlike their previous trip to the hunting ground, which was done on a whim, this time they had to enter the castle during a busy time. Since Robert and Jeffrey hadn't returned to the castle yet, it was difficult to ask for their help.
Since it wouldn't be good for Sophia to be seen by the many people inside the castle, Sara stayed at an inn on the outskirts of the capital and had one of the inn's servants send a message to the castle to have Maria come pick her up in a carriage.
There was also a knight who had been escorting them, but after confirming the carriage sent from the castle, they followed Rebecca's instructions and took the horses they had ridden back to the knight's headquarters. These horses originally belonged to the knight's order.
Sara changed back into her 8-year-old form inside the inn and snuck out the back door to get into the waiting carriage. Later, Rebecca had Maria, who had arrived secretly through the back door, wear the hooded cloak Sara had been wearing, and changed out of her horseback riding clothes into a dress. Maria put on the hood and looked down, leaving the inn with Rebecca and getting into the carriage.
"Milady Sara, why did we have to go through all this trouble?"
"I'll explain later. For now, I'm really tired, so let's hurry back to the castle."
"Yes."
When they arrived at the main residence of Grandchester Castle in the carriage, the servants were lined up in front of the entrance, as if they had been expecting them.
"I'm back. What's going on? Why are you all waiting like this?"
"Welcome back, milady. We all gathered to confirm your safety as soon as possible."
The steward, Joseph, spoke on behalf of the servants, who were gazing at Sara with moist eyes.
"You didn't have to worry that much."
"You left without even changing, and you left Maria behind too. We know you're wise and skilled in magic, milady, but you're still just 8 years old. Even with Miss Orson with you, we were worried that Sir Robert might not be able to protect you..."
'...They don't trust my uncle, huh?'
"I'm sorry to have worried you. I'm safe and sound, so please don't worry. The knights have put down the riot, and I've heard that they were able to prevent the attacks in various parts of the territory that were connected to the riot."
"Yes, we received that report too. And, the report to the royal family has been successfully submitted, and His Excellency the Marquis is on his way here."
Sara had already heard from Mike that the report to the royal family had been successful, but hearing it from Joseph made her feel like she had overcome a huge obstacle.
"I'm glad. And, I'm a bit tired."
"Oh, I apologize for that. Please, go to your room. The bath is ready."
"Thanks, Joseph."
Sara and Rebecca returned to their respective rooms, took a bath, and got changed before heading to the dining hall. When they opened the door, they saw that the table was filled with Sara's favorite dishes. Of course, Rebecca's favorites were there too.
"Welcome, miladies. Please, help yourselves!"
When they looked around, they saw the cooks standing in the corner of the room. They seemed to be putting in a lot of effort.
"This is an amazing spread!"
"Normally, we would serve one dish at a time, but since miladies must be tired, please eat as much as you like."
"Wow, I'm so happy!"
"Hehe, Ms. Sara, then just for today, let's forget about manners, okay?"
Rebecca smiled at Sara.
"Yes!"
And with that, they enjoyed their meal, but before long, Sara fell asleep at the table.
"Hehe, I guess she was really tired."
Rebecca smiled as she gazed at Sara. The servants were also smiling as they watched over Sara.
"We should take her to her room, shouldn't we?"
Joseph's statement sent a shiver down the spines of the male servants, creating an atmosphere of tension as they eyed each other warily. However, Joseph didn't call out to the young servant, instead effortlessly scooping up Sara. It seemed he had no intention of entrusting her to someone younger. The surrounding servants gazed at Joseph with a hint of resentment in their eyes.
"Ms. Sara seems to be loved by everyone, doesn't she?"
"Of course, she is."
After escorting Sara to her room, Joseph summoned a few maids. However, when it came to Sara's change of clothes, Maria refused to budge, and the other maids were only able to assist with tasks such as preparing the washbasin and sideboard, as well as laying out the undergarments needed for the next day.
Once the preparations were complete, Maria extinguished the lights in the room and left Sara's quarters, heading to the maid's lounge with the other maids. With the end of their shift approaching, they would soon be exchanging information with the night shift maids before returning to their quarters.
In the maid's lounge, the maids who had finished their duties were relaxing and sipping tea with the night shift maids.
"I'm so envious of Ms. Maria, getting to take care of such a lovely young lady."
One of the maids whispered, prompting the others to nod in agreement.
"I may have been lucky, but when we were in the capital, she was bullied by her cousins, the young master and lady, and even the other maids would ostracize her. I'm really glad I came here. Everyone here is so kind."
"What?! Bullying Milady Sara? That's unthinkable!"
"Indeed, young master Adam and milady Chloe might do something like that, but I don't know much about young master Christopher."
"It's just that serving them is so difficult, and every time there's a hunting tournament, I get so depressed."
"Even the young Marquis and his wife are a pain to serve. All they ever say is 'in the capital, we...' and they treat us like country bumpkins."
"Speaking of which, the maids from the capital who come with them always look down on us with an air of superiority. It's really annoying."
The maids started spilling their grievances about the Marquis couple and their children.
"You know, Young Master Adam got caught stealing a maid's underwear and hiding it, and His Excellency the Marquis scolded him severely! And to make matters worse, the box he hid it in also had a collection of lewd pictures of women!"
"Ew, that's disgusting..."
"But I heard from a senior maid that The young Marquis Sir Edward also used to touch the maids' bodies on purpose when he was younger."
"Ugh, they don't have to be so similar in that way..."
The maids nodded in agreement.
"On the other hand, Sir Robert and Sir Arthur were pretty smooth, weren't they? Although they do like to talk about some pretty shady topics... But I guess that's to be expected from bachelors with no specific romantic interests."
"But when it comes to Sir Robert, doesn't he have a thing for Lady Rebecca?"
"Yeah, he's totally whipped when it comes to her..."
"And Sir Arthur, wasn't he always bragging about his skills in romance? But then he got rejected by Adelia so badly..."
"Oh yeah, I remember she told him, 'Don't give me that fake smile, it's creepy'. Milady Sara was just like Adelia, always speaking her mind."
"Well, if someone is that beautiful, it might be more dangerous for them to say things that are suggestive, right?"
"And Sir Arthur's actions after that were just like Sir Robert's, it was hilarious."
Just then, the head maid appeared.
"Wow, you girls are certainly having a lively conversation today."
"I'm sorry, head maid."
The maids all stood up at once, but the head maid waved her hand for them to sit back down.
"It's okay, it's just a break after finishing your work. And by the way, being a pushover is kind of a tradition among the Grandchester boys... After all, His Excellency the Marquis was pretty bad himself."
"Pfft..."
The maids all burst out laughing, and the room was filled with the sound of their amusement.
"Oh, Maria."
"Yes, head maid?"
"You should probably start receiving training as a lady's maid soon. Milady Sara doesn't have one yet, does she?"
"Really?"
"Yes, His Excellency the Marquis has ordered that a maid be assigned to Milady Sara. That means His Excellency the Marquis has decided to treat Milady Sara as the young lady of the Grandchester family."
"That's wonderful news!"
The maids around them also look delighted.
"Earlier, I also spoke with the head lady-in-waiting. It seems that for now, a veteran maid will be assigned to her, but at the same time, you'll need to learn the duties of a lady-in-waiting."
"Yes!"
"However, the maid training at Grandchester is strict, so be careful. Don't disappoint me, who recommended you."
"Really, you recommended me? Thank you so much!"
"I thought you could do it. Do your best, okay?"
"Yes, I'll do my best!"
Maria feels like she's on cloud nine. Being promoted from a maid to a lady's maid is a big deal for a female servant. And if she becomes a personal maid, there's a high chance she can follow Sara even if she gets married to another family.
"Congratulations, Maria."
"I feel like I've been surpassed, but I know you can do it, so good luck!"
The maids around them are also congratulating Maria.
'Ah, I'm so glad I came to Grandchester Castle.'
Then, the head maid's voice becomes slightly firmer, and she addresses all the maids present.
"And there's also talk of establishing a separate department for office maids. The roles are just too different. We'll need to discuss it with Milady Sara and Milady Orson, but we also need to think about how to educate those who want to become office maids. So, I want you all to think about what you want to do in the future."
Then, one of the maids asks hesitantly.
"Is it something we can decide for ourselves?"
The head maid nods.
"I, as well as the head lady-in-waiting, think that each and every one of you should consider your future. Many of you become maids as a way to prepare for marriage, so if you plan to retire after getting married, that's okay too. Like me, some of you may want to master the art of being a maid, aim to become a lady's maid, or strive to be an office maid――there are many paths to take."
"I, honestly, want to continue being a maid. If possible, I'd like to become an office maid But, my fiancé thinks it's only natural for me to stay at home after marriage. He's already decided that I'll be the one doing the household chores..."
"You need to decide your own future, taking things like that into consideration. You should have a proper talk with your fiancé."
"Yes, I understand."
That night, many maids in their rooms couldn't sleep even after turning off the lights. The night shift maids, in the break room, were whispering to each other, discussing their thoughts.
And, it would be much later that the head maid would realize that this night had become the catalyst for many women in Grandchester to become independent in various ways.
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