Chapter 38

“M-maid.”

As soon as I opened the door of the Exclusive Maid’s Room, as usual, what appeared was, unexpectedly, not the mansion guards nor Harold, but Ethan’s face.

To be honest, it didn’t really matter that Ethan’s face was the first thing I saw when I woke up in the morning.

The start of my exclusive maid duties was waking this brat up and tidying his bedding.

For the past three months, his face was the first thing I saw every morning when I woke up, so I was long past the point of feeling particularly worse because of something like this.

…But on this last day in this world, I still didn’t want to see this brat’s face.

I responded calmly since I could guess why he appeared before me.

I didn’t particularly want to be treated like this brat’s plaything until the very end.

“M-maid…”

“What a sight, isn’t it?“

“Huh, what?”

“Seeing the maid who cursed you to death with all sorts of curses after you tried to strangle her being dragged off to the slaughterhouse must be quite enjoyable for you.“

“M-maid! No, lower your voice!“

“…?”

I responded as calmly as possible with no emotion, thinking he had come to mock my final moments, as I did to Ariana and Alicia.

But for some reason, after hearing my words, Ethan started fidgeting and glancing nervously down the hallway toward Harold’s room.

“Is there perhaps someone else over there?“

“Huh, no… Ah, Father doesn’t seem to be up yet… Phew…“

“…?“

…Why is he acting so suddenly strange?

Usually, he’s an arrogant brat who doesn’t care about others’ opinions, including Harold’s. So why is he abruptly starting to watch his surroundings?

Also, why is he fidgeting strangely when I open my mouth?

Ethan seemed totally off this morning, no matter how I looked at it.

Not that it really matters to me, who only has a few hours left to live.

“I, I didn’t come to mock you…”

“Huh?“

“I came to… a-apologize to the maid…”

…What is he saying?

Based on Ethan’s personality, he would absolutely never come to apologize to a mere maid like Lilith. He must be plotting some other devious trick.

For example, pretending to bow his head in apology, only to raise it and headbutt me or something suddenly.

Or maybe he wants to see my reaction when he “apologizes“ so he can insult me further.

He could make me feel relieved, as if I’d been forgiven for yesterday’s incident, only to crush my mood then and make me feel the utmost despair…

“…..“

“M-Maid…?”

…But looking at this brat’s level of intelligence, he doesn’t really seem capable of such an elaborate mockery.

Of course, he’ll likely become more crafty as he gets older. Still, for now, his intelligence is probably only that of an elementary or middle school student at most.

And since Ethan hasn’t received a proper upbringing or mandatory education, his reasoning ability is undoubtedly even lower than that.

While I don’t necessarily take this brat at his word, it seems a bit hard to assume he has some other ulterior motive when I examine it carefully.

I get the feeling his words about wanting to apologize may actually be sincere.

“By apologizing, are you referring to what happened yesterday?“

“Y-Yeah, what happened yesterday and…other th-things too…“

“Other things?“

“F-For playing tricks on the maid until now… I’m s-sorry…“

“……“

“M-Maid…?”

…Are you serious? Really?

If you’re just going to keep being a shitty brat, then stay that way until the end.

Coming to show this repentant attitude at the last minute, what should I make of that?

Somehow, I’ll feel bad if I don’t accept this apology.

It’s not like the shitty things you put me through disappear just because you apologize at the end, Ethan.

My impending punishment will likely still proceed as determined.

Thinking about it that way, you really should have apologized sooner if you actually felt remorse, so I wouldn’t have tried to strangle you.

…Well, pondering hypotheticals now was meaningless.

Considering the potential repercussions, it was objectively better for me just to accept his apology.

“I understand, Lord Ethan.“

“Huh, um…?“

“Since it seems Lord Ethan sincerely wishes to apologize to me, I have no choice but to accept your apology.”

Even for the sake of whoever takes my place as Ethan’s exclusive maid after me, it was better to accept this brat’s show of remorse to avoid any further issues.

Let’s say I responded by saying I had no intention of accepting his apology and told him to stuff it instead.

While it might briefly satisfy me to stick it to Ethan, my actions could potentially turn this brat, who had just started to change, back to complete darkness.

Perhaps my successor as his maid would suffer the same torment I endured, negating any meaning to my sacrifice.

The targets could even be Isabel or Catherine – that possibility was not zero percent.

‘I can take this brat’s shit myself and be done with it. There’s no need to subject those innocent girls to such an ordeal.’

On the flip side, if I accept his apology, Ethan may experience some psychological growth to a degree.

Perhaps he won’t inevitably become the irredeemable villain from the original game.

At least there’s more possibility than if I betrayed his attempt at apology and remorse.

Ethan looked up at me with a slightly surprised expression after hearing my response and carefully asked:

“Y-You’re forgiving me…?“

“The word ‘forgive‘ is an expression used when a superior pardons the mistake of a subordinate. In that sense, I cannot forgive you, my lord.“

“Huh, uh…?“

“So you should simply understand that I am accepting your apology. By unburdening the weight from your mind, there is nothing more you need.“@@novelbin@@

“Then, for the maid…“

“I, too, will no longer mention past events. Let’s just end it at that.“

“……”

…Though realistically, I likely won’t even have a chance to mention it again.

The dead remain silent. Only I will know just how annoying and shitty a brat Ethan was these past 3 months.

Still, this incident may have knocked some sense into this foolish brat’s head, so at least he may rein in his abhorrent behavior towards my successor.

…Ah yes, I almost forgot something important again.

“…Lord Ethan.“

“Y-Yes!“

“If it’s alright, could you grant me some time to bid farewell to my colleagues?“

“Bid fare…well? Where is the maid going…?“

“…Nowhere good, I’d imagine.”

At least out of the options I envision, it will either be a pile of dog shit or the afterlife.

“No matter that Lord Ethan has apologized to me, the attempted murder of a nobleman is a grave crime. Especially given how dearly your father the master loves you, Lord Ethan, I surely cannot avoid execution.“

“Ah, that, that’s...”

“However, if my colleagues learn that I was executed or banished far away as punishment, it would cause them no small amount of worry. So, at the very least, I wish to convey to Isabel and Catherine that they need not concern themselves over me.“

“No, m-maid…“

“I implore you, Lord Ethan. It should not take long, so could you grant me this small mercy?”

Bowing my head to Ethan felt a bit ridiculous, but this momentary indignity was well worth it.

It was a bargain if it could alleviate the worry Isabel and Catherine would feel for me.

Truthfully, I, too, wished to converse with the two who had become my closest friends in this world one final time.

Additionally, there was a chance that sharing some of my future knowledge could aid them in some way.

Considering all those factors, the opportunity to meet them now held considerable value.

“Ah, I didn’t tell Father, so it’s okay…!“

“Pardon?“

“You’re worried I told Father about you strangling me, right, maid? If I told Father about that happening… you’d become someone I would never meet again…“

“Is that not the obvious outcome?“

“So it’s okay… I didn’t tell Father about yesterday’s incident…“

“…Pardon me?”

…Could it be that the reason Harold didn’t come arrest me in an uproar last night, nor show up to execute me while I slept or this morning, was simply because Ethan didn’t tell his father about it?

“……”

Considering how Ethan from the game would run whimpering to Harold over anything he couldn’t handle himself, it was hard to take this brat’s words at face value right now.

Sensing to notice my suspicious gaze, Ethan reiterated that he did not say anything.

“R-Really… I really didn’t say anything, maid…“

“Or perhaps you’re trying to command me not to resist you from now on in exchange for keeping quiet about yesterday’s incident…“

“N-No, it’s not like that! I just didn’t say anything… The thought of telling Father about you, maid, and never being able to see you again…“

“……“

“I didn’t want that… So, I didn’t say anything…”

…Should I simply believe this?

Given that no mansion guards have come for me by this morning, his claim of not saying anything does seem truthful.

But the idea that he stayed quiet merely because he didn’t want me to die is…rather hard to swallow.

…Well, whether I believe it or not, it won’t improve my current circumstances either.

Rather than agonize over something that hasn’t happened yet, I reluctantly nodded, keeping an open mind for now.

“I see. Thank you for your mercy, Lord Ethan.“

“Y-You believe me?“

“Yes. Since you have said you will overlook and conceal my momentary transgression, I can only believe your words and express my deepest gratitude, my lord.“

“Ah, no… It was my wrongdoing…”

…No matter how I look at it, he doesn’t seem to be the Ethan I knew.

Well, that’s that, and this is this. The fact that this brat has become somewhat more docile is good news for me, not bad news.

At the very least, I needed to return to my abandoned duties to avoid yesterday’s incident from being discovered.

“Then I should resume the room cleaning I failed to complete yesterday. Will you permit me to enter your chambers for a moment, my lord?“

“Y-Yeah, come in…”

…To be honest, I don’t believe people can genuinely change overnight.

Perhaps this attitude is merely a temporary reaction born of the terror he experienced yesterday. He may very well revert to his old wicked self and torment me again by tomorrow.

If that happens…then I’ll deal with it when the time comes.

After resigning myself to death once already, I’ve realized how foolish it is to fret over futures that may never come to pass.

For now, it will be easier on my mind to believe Ethan has changed a bit for the better.

At the very least, there’s no immediate cause for worry from Isabel and Catherine…

“…Ah.“

“What’s wrong, maid?“

“…No, it’s nothing.“

Come to think of it, just moments ago, I was about to make a big fuss about bidding them farewell and such.

If I had exchanged those kinds of parting words with them under the impression I could never see them again, only to still be working at the mansion…just imagine how awkward it would have been for all of us.

The mere thought of the embarrassing future that was narrowly avoided causes my face to flush.

…I almost created an embarrassing anecdote for no reason.