Chapter 2: Rejection

 “Is the priest here yet?!”

 “Um… no your lord. Priest Jacob has not arrived yet”

 “Then send in soldiers to retrieve him!”

 “Right away!”

 “Your lordship, My CV would only take a minute to make and I assure you that I am capable of cleaning and manual labor.”

 “What are you talking about? You are the daughter of a duke, behave yourself!”

“That is beside the case. If you think about it. It would be a waste if I do not work.”

Evy had now changed tactics.

Since she can’t make sense of how she got here, then she might as well leave it be for now. What she does need to do is to look for work. Even before she was back at home, it was a necessity for her to have work no matter what it is and where she was.

That wouldn’t change even if she turned into some noble daughter.

“No. My answer is no.”

“What if I showcase to you my skills instead.”

“NO!”

 …

“So this is Lady Evelyn. So nice to meet the ever rumored daughter of Lord Reynold.”

The way he worded his greeting was as if he was meeting someone of great importance. That’s kind of funny to her since Evy was tied to a chair.

How rumored does he want her to be?

Evy had pestered the duke for a position of a maid in the mansion. She was insistent, since she has no documents to show her experience and doesn’t have any backers to support her application, she has to make do with begging.

Yet, somehow, what she ended up with was an irritated duke.

When she showed no signs of giving up, she was tied up and placed in the chair as Evy waited for the priest to arrive.

When the priest saw her, he didn’t even bat an eye. It made her feel as though this was a normal occurrence here.

“Do not disclose anything that you’ve seen, do you understand?”

“Well, I can’t disclose anything to anyone outside the faction and to any lower priest. But you have to understand that my superiors and the archbishop are people I cannot deny.”

The priest who visited her wasn’t how she pictured a priest should be.

He was bald with a scar on the left side of his head and a tattoo on his hands. The only thing priestly with him was the white robe he fashioned and the insignia of an X with spirals on it.

“As long as it only stays to a small group of people. Now please assess her for any dark magic.”

“You can untie her first.”

Lord Reynold gave her a warning glance to which she only ignored and tilted her head, trying to look clueless.

The men guarding her finally took off her chains and the hand that muffled her mouth.

“Lord Devine, I can also cook..”

“except for her mouth”

 She was unable to speak yet again.  

 Evy sat as comfortably as possible while she behave to let the priest take a look at her.

The priest did his thing and started assessing Evy.

Looking over at her eyes, the veins in her skin, her back, and even had his hands hover over her head.

He took too long for whatever ritual he was doing, that she slipped off to observe his tattoo instead.

Evy found the tattoo glowing for some reason, either her eyes were failing her or it was only a reflection from the light.

“There is good news.”

“Is it a nasty curse?”

That’s rude. Just because she’s trying to get hired doesn’t mean she’s possessed by a ghost.

Also, how can that be good news?

“No. Your daughter is perfectly devoid of any curses.”

“Nothing?”

The priest shakes his head. Lord Devine looked at Evy and narrows his eyes as if he doesn’t believe him. 

“Then why is she acting so different?”

“I can’t possibly answer that. What I do know is that your daughter is safe from any curses and is not possessed by anything malevolent. As far as I and the church is concerned, that would be for someone else to worry about.”

“Fine. I’ll deliver you the money.”

“Thank you for your generosity.”

The priest looks at Lord Reynold before he looked at her. There was something in his eyes that she does not truly trust.

The priest left afterward.

Lord Devine ordered her to stay in her room until he settles on the incident that just happened to her.

Left with nothing to do and nothing to occupy her mind to, she instead thought to look around.

It shouldn’t be a surprise as no one had made sure she actually return back to her room.

The nice Oji-san was busy, the man she met a while ago was serving the Duke and the other servants were avoiding her.

This gave her the perfect opportunity to look around.

After half an hour of looking, she found the same maid that went to her room this morning, cleaning a large room by herself.

She was donning a white cloth that hides her mouth and nose while dusting up the shelves.

The room looked as if it needed at least two-person to clean it and after feeling sympathy to the young maid, she raised the cuff of her blouse and entered the room to take a wet cloth that the maid has prepared.

“Ahh… young miss. Wha… Please stop.”

Her words were meek and scared but still manage to tell on her.

“It’s okay. I have nothing to do anyways. Why don’t I help you? You don’t need to tell anyone else.”

“But it’s wrong. You… wha… please stop cleaning”

Evy ignored her as she quickly began wiping the tables and chairs and any surface she could get her hands on. Her body feels alive for doing the work that she has been asking for.

“My Lady, if you continue to do this, I can get in trouble.”

“You’ll only get in trouble if you tell someone. Besides, you wouldn’t be able to finish by noon if it's only you.”

The maid pouted while playing with her hands. She really couldn’t look her in the eye, even with how nice Even was with her and that's saying something. Evy is not nice. Maybe amicable and civil, rarely does she even show favoritism. 

But with the maid so small, Evy could easily distinguish her as a small brown puppy. She can't easily be cold to something as cute as a puppy.

“What’s your name?”

“Wha… my—my name?”

“Yes. I want to know.”

“Well…. it’s Holly.”

Her cheeks went red while her voice turned smaller.

“Then you can call me Evy.”

 “No! That’s disrespectful.”

 For the first time since meeting Holly, she had dared look up at her with a face and voice that was so cutely against her words. She must have realized this as her cheeks turn red again.

 Holly wasn't a bad person. Maybe too shy and transparent in her way of expressing her emotion.

 “Then Lady Evy should be fine.”

 “But… that’s… um…”

 Evy didn’t let Holly let a word in as she polished small edges of the walls and carefully placed the ornaments she had cleaned back to where she remembered they last were. Holly had stopped protesting long ago, but often she would sneak glances at her when she thought Evy wasn’t looking.

This is understandable because if she destroy anything it would reflect solely on her. Luckily, nothing bad happened this time and with the two of them, they manage to finish before noon.

Holly let out a small grin when everything turned out well.

“Uwahh… We’re done.”

“Yeah. Then Holly, hope I see you sometime.”

Evy had left Holly to do more chores inside the house.

She found out that she can use the servants’ fear of her to do whatever she wanted. Most of the things that she wanted to do were cleaning and gardening. It was funny how they tried to stop her at first.

 Protesting that they would tell the Duke, yet when she told them to try it, they would clamp up and let her help.

 The most she has done was help the gardeners shear the large bushes on the estate and even took coordination to shape them to how the Duke usually likes it. Now, she was in the cellar peeling potatoes while, those who were with the same chores as her, were shaking from just the thought of being in the same room as Evy.

 She must have eaten a baby for them to be this terrified. 

 But by now, she had learned to ignore it. Her curiosity over why they were liked this hasn’t been extinguished though. She can find out later, she doesn't need to hurry. Just like how very mind-boggling her situation, she can't possibly drive herself too fast without something to fall back in. 

 “Okay. I’m done with this batch. I should probably look for other work— ”

 “Lady Evelyn, we finally found you. Your father wishes to speak with you in his office.”

 That was how she got found out. After troubling them, a maid had snitched on her and got called instantly.

 “So. I heard you specifically been going around the house doing chores and bothering the servants.”

 “I don’t particularly see it as bothering if I do it well with no complications.”

 “That is not the point here!”

 Evy could see the stress in the Duke's face. He sighed and rubbed his head.

 “You just woke up from a very harrowing experience and while I get that you don’t remember anything that’s why you’re like this. You shouldn’t push yourself. Why do you even want to have a job? As I’ve told you, you’re my daughter. I can provide you with anything you want.”

 “If I may be blunt with you, Lord Devine— ”

 “You can call me, father”

 She looks him in the eye then ignores the statement.

“Again. If I may be honest with you Lord Devine. I don’t remember a lot of details about my stay here. It’s also true that I had just gone through something most people would be traumatized with. But that should be all the more reason for me to distract myself. A job for example is the perfect stress relief.”

 The fact that the Duke had heard job and stress relief in the same sentence and in a positive light, had him looking at her incredulously. They just see things differently.

 “Also as for the money. That is not mine to use. That is yours, Lord Devine. I want to earn my own money. How little it may be.”

 “You’ll likely inherit some of my money in the future.”

 “So I should just wait for you to die before I can supply myself?”

 The Duke had no reply.

 “Lord Devine, we can’t know what will happen, having my own means of money is something I am determined to do and unless that time comes, I would feel bad for using money that I did not earn myself.”

The Duke’s expression did not change.

“Touching as your words may be. I still do not give you permission to work in our estate. You have a responsibility as my daughter—  to your house.”

 “If that is how you really feel then I won’t pester you anymore”

 “Finally you understand what I’m— “

 “Then I’ll find work outside this estate.”

 Lord Devine turned to face her and couldn’t believe what she just said.

 “What did you just say?”

 “I’ll find work outside the estate.”

 The Duke wanted to laugh. 

 “No one would hire you if they knew that you’re my daughter. And even if you keep it a secret you have no connections to get seating in the first place.”

 “I won’t know if I don’t try.”

 “Fine then. If you’re so adamant about getting work then find one yourself. If you get hired then I’ll leave you be. But that is if you get hired.”

 “Remember your words, Lord Devine.”