The Maid In The Reverse Harem Game Wants To Quit - Chapter 18

No matter how ignorant Louise was, she knew it.

She also knew that each time her father returned home with wounds, he was also beaten by those asking for the debt.

Sometimes, she could hear her father being beaten by debtors nearby.

Louise closed her eyes and ears. She was famous for her ignorance, so her clumsy acting worked out well.

Since calling a doctor would cost money, she took care of her father’s treatment directly. And, because she had been doing it every day for several months, Louise had gotten pretty good at it.
​​
“I do not know whom you want to look so good for, but I will do my best to help. Do not worry!”

Louise said with a lively smile.

She was not very trustworthy, but it was the first time he has seen someone with such good intentions, so Rodion only looked at her modestly.

‘She is like a dog…’

From Rodion’s point of view, it was both the best compliment and curse at the same time.

The moment Louise opened her mouth to say something out of embarrassment.

“Ahibalt…!”
​​
There was a loud bang from outside, and the hallway shook.

Along with Rodion, Louise leapt ten centimeters from her seat and blinked her eyes.

“Hey, what is going on outside?”

As if answering Louise’s question, another shout was heard outside.

“How dare you!”

‘That is my aunt’s voice.’

Rodion frowned.
​​
What the hell is going on out there?
​​

* * * 

‘What is this?’

Irene thought quietly.

Shortly after the Veronicas barged in, she had all the employees on their knees, leaving no one to go to call the Master. Meanwhile, people who knelt a little late for being clumsy were beaten one by one.

It was common in Knox.

Of course, Irene was about to kneel down with her maid’s position, but the leather-gloved hand gently grabbed her shoulder.

Veronica, in her sable hair, was smiling deeply with her lips on her red lipstick.

— Oh, my. Irene. Why are you kneeling down?

— I am also a employee.

— You are the exception. Just Irene, not anyone else.

She made a rough guess so far.

Veronica had a predisposition to show favoritism toward people who were good at their jobs. So, in her eyes, Irene was fairly capable at her job.

She even tried to take Irene when she moved to Lichpen.

— Do not sit over there, why don’t you have a cup of tea with me?

— …Aren’t you here to see the Young Masters?

— Of course. But, it is not urgent, so why don’t we let the children come out on their own while we have a cup of tea?

Leaving her wry laughter behind, Veronica snapped her hand and ordered her bodyguard.

— Go get some tea and a table. Oh, why are you moving so slowly…? Is everyone this slow because there are no holes in their temples?

Saying so, she twirled her gun around her index finger and swung it around to intimidate the servants.
​​
Obviously, at this time, Irene’s eyes were tightly shut.

One of Veronica’s stinking beauty was to treat the employees recklessly according to her mood. It was also the most prominent reason Irene did not follow her.

‘Until last time, the atmosphere in the mansion was a mess.’

Irene glanced down at the red teacup that was steaming up before her eyes. Because Veronica preferred tea over coffee, she always carried quality tea leaves.

Contrary to her complicated feelings, the tea smelled very good.

As Irene looked up from the teacup, Veronica smiled brightly and picked up the teacup first.

“Doesn’t it smell good? It is a tea that has been rather difficult to find.”

“…Yes, it is very nice.”
​​
‘I cannot even smell the scent or feel anything…’

Still, Irene nodded her head swiftly, hiding her trembling expression.

Unlike her, Veronica had an elegant face that did not appear to be the same as the person who intimidated employees with her gun just a while ago.

After calmly taking a sip of her tea, Veronica, who put down her teacup, smiled sweetly.

“Drink it.”

“Thank you.”

At her words, she silently picked up the teacup. Even though Irene brought it to her lips, wetting it, she never drank the tea.

It was not just because of her complexity, of course.

This is Knox, and the woman in front of her is Knox’s Consigliére.

No one knows what was in this tea.

‘Still, it smells good.’

The dazzling scent of roses sprang up.

She does not know what it is, but the tea certainly looked of good quality. Nonetheless, she still did not plan to drink it.

Just as Irene was about to put the mug down, she could feel Veronica’s persistent gaze.

In the end, she put down the teacup only after giving a performance of swallowing it with her throat.

Clank.

Hearing the sound of placing down the teacup, Veronica’s twinkling eyes widened even more.

“How is it?”

“…It’s not overly bitter. It’s delicious.”
​​
“Right? It’s very precious!”
​​
She smiled excitedly, and at her command, Veronica gave her glare at the pitiful footman, who kept holding the hot teapot tilted.

“Why are your hands shaking like this? I do not want to see you. If you want to have your hand cut off, why did you not tell me in advance?”

“Oh, no! I apologize!”
​​
“Then, hold it straight.”

At Veronica’s words, the footman made a pathetic contemplation. It was an added bonus that he was holding the teapot with all his might.

Only then did she turn to Irene again with a satisfied face.
​​
That gaze and expression. It was natural now that even her touch with each teacup was not as neat as the person who uttered the ruthless words a while ago.

“Irene, I am not here today just to see your Masters.”

She did not answer.

It was because Veronica did not ask first
​​
“Not long ago, a girl from Lichpen came, do you know her?”

“Yes.”

“She is the girl under Henrietta, and she is pretty cute at that.”

The word ‘cute’ from Veronica was never a compliment since she would often use stupid with the word cute.

“I am here to see how she is doing.”

Irene only bit the flesh inside of her cheek and let it go.

As Veronica said, she was visiting Louise.

To be precise, she came to spy on Lavrenti, using Louise as an excuse.

After the death of the Head of Knox’s Boss, Lavrenti, the position was vacant for three years. Originally, the Underboss, Ahibalt, should have succeeded him, though Veronica coveted the position, and Ahibalt decided to step down as a courtesy.

For exactly three years.

And soon, when spring comes, it will be three years. The new Boss, Ahibalt, and Veronica, who absorbed some of the influence of the former Boss during three years, along with others aiming for the position.

In the meantime, a full-fledged power struggle begins.

‘Oh, seriously. I want to get out of the game quickly.’

Irene sighed inwardly, blaming herself from her past self for making foolish choices, blinded by money.

Currently, Lavrenti was divided into two.

Lichpen, and here at the Lavrenti’s.

Lichpen’s women are all full of ambition. Either they want to make their own child the head of state, or they want to be the Head as her own.

On the contrary, Lavrenti all supported Ahibalt.

Though even this will soon be dismantled by Louise.

‘This bean powder family…’
[ T/N: Bean powder could also mean ‘dysfunctional’—the state of a family where there is no order or bond among the family members. ]
​​
It was because the two half-brothers, who initially supported Ahibalt to become Head, changed their minds with the desire to have Louise.

All have different methods, but the result was the same.

Of course, there was Lichpen’s pressure in the process.

And, the beginning is here, this episode.

‘Tired, I am tired.’

She thought that even if the game had started, she would be able to skip the cumbersome process, but who knew that Veronica would do it like this.

‘Until last time, Veronica did not have time to pay attention to me.’

In fact, it should be that way as the original proceeding should be that way.

Irene was just an extra.

Until the last time, Veronica was only interested in Louise and the three male protagonists. Even if she was treated specially, that was the story as an employee.

Veronica said she wanted to go quickly check on Louise, the bait that Henrietta had thrown, but why is she messing with her here?

Of course, there are some guesses.

‘…The reason Veronica is doing this is to confuse the Young Masters.’

To put it simply, she is playing with the minds of the male protagonists.

More specifically, incitement to strife.

After going through several lives, Irene noticed that the episodes in the game do not flow the same way every time. Taking tea time as an example, sometimes the teacup would be broken, and sometimes it just stopped at the level of pouring tea.

Amidst ever-changing things, she realized that to take control of the situation, she had to focus on something other than events.

It is a person.

Circumstances may change, but people do not.

There was no reason for Veronica to come to this point and discipline the employees.
​​
She was trying to show off her influence to the three men of the Lavrenti mansion, after moving to Lichpen that it was still at this level.

Under most circumstances, Veronica showed off her influence by punishing pitiful servants.