Transmigrated Into A Tragic Romance Fantasy Chapter 5

༺ Maid ༻

  Crash-!

  On highways, a distracted driver would have a higher mortality rate than a drunk driver. After all, someone who was distracted would never expect or be prepared for potential danger.

  This was one of those cases.

  An unexpected collision between those unaware of someone coming around the corner.

  Just as a sedan got completely wrecked upon crashing against a truck, the fragile maid was flung away, falling onto her buttocks.

  “Ouch, ah, it hurts…”

  The hallways of the Grand Duke’s castle were made of solid marble.

  As such, a considerable shock must have been transmitted to her frail backside.

  Honestly, she would be lucky if she hadn’t fractured a single bone, seeing as how she was propelled into the air before falling.

  Even though both of us were at fault for this accident, compassion for the more injured party was only natural.

  Or at least, that should have been the case for any normal human being.

  “My Lord! Are you alright?!”

  My butler, Rendler, quickly approached me and examined my entire body.

  At his shout, the poor maid looked at me with eyes on the verge of shedding tears.

  Her face was strangely familiar.

  I was sure I’d never seen her before, but the familiarity that arose was mysterious.

  After a moment, her thoughts seemed to have caught up to her and a look of pure horror took hold over her frozen face.

  “Ah, Lord Elden……!?”

  I never knew a human face could get so pale.

  Her face, which had been flush with pain, now turned into an eerily shade of white, and her eyes lost their light as if they had been scorched by a blazing sun.

  It seemed even this maid of the Grand Duke’s household was well aware of the infamous Elden Raphelion.

  “Come now, why are you not apologizing to My Lord?”

  As Rendler scolded her, the maid quickly knelt down before me.

  Then, she pleaded earnestly.

  “My Lord…! I am so sorry! It was my fault for hurrying along and not being careful! T-This lowly servant has committed a sin worthy of death……!”

  Both were at fault for the collision, yet, the injured party was the one begging for forgiveness. A minor accident due to mutual carelessness, but somehow, one side had become the unilateral perpetrator.

  A trivial mistake that happened hundreds, perhaps thousands of times in a person’s life suddenly became an offense worthy of death.

  Simply because the injured party was a nobody.

  And when I gazed upon that vulnerable girl, kneeling on the cold hard floor, I saw a memory from my childhood, where I also suffered from a similar situation; truly a cruel twist of fate.

  At that time, when I fought another kid, I was the one who had to kneel and apologize simply because he was the director’s son.

  It was indeed a cruel memory; those times when I had to taste the bitter unfairness of those born without privilege.

  “Where were you looking at when walking? What if something happened to the Lord’s body….!”

  When Rendler started to chastise the maid once more, I lightly raised my hand to stop him.

  “Everything’s fine. You, stand up.”

  I said those words while looking at the maid.

  There was no need to blame a girl who appeared to be 10 years younger than me.

  In this cruel society, where a simple mistake could lead to your death, survival alone was something worthy of praise.

  But the maid couldn’t even lift her head, as her body trembled like a leaf in the wind.

  “I-I am truly sorry…! I’ll be more careful to ensure this never happens again! P-Please, My Lord! Forgive me just this once……!”

  ……Just what exactly did this maid think of Elden Raphelion?

  From the way she was acting, one would believe she bumped into the Devil himself.

  “As I said, I’m fine. Stand up.”

  My voice turned slightly harsher, as the reflection from my past continued to overlap with her figure.

  Facing one’s former, weaker self was never something pleasant.

  Finally, the Maid looked at me with a tearful face and said,

  “R-Really……?”

  Back then, when I had to kneel before the director’s son, there was something I desperately needed.

  A hand that helped me stand tall.

  A hand that showed me life without privilege wasn’t a sin.

  A hand that protected me from the unfairness of life.

  So, that was why…

  I reached out to a life that suffered great injustices, simply for the sin of being born with nothing.

  That was why I reached out a hand to my past self with a warm smile on my face.

  But at that moment, I realized something,

  Sometimes, things didn’t go quite as one planned.

  “Kyaa! P-Please, someone save me—!!”

  Hm.

  I see.

  This won’t be easy at all, will it?

**

  It took me a full five minutes to convince the hysterical maid that this hand wouldn’t strike her, that this smile wasn’t filled with the thrill of violence.

  Thankfully the hallways were deserted.

  Had the Idiot Trio or anyone else seen this, they might have accused me of being a scoundrel trying to score some points with a feigned withdrawal.

  A bad reputation was tolerable, but a dishonorable one was absolutely unacceptable.

  “Th-Thank you…”

  “Hm. Now off you go.”

  After salvaging the situation, I was about to head back to my room when–

  “Ah!”

  As I took a step, the maid collapsed onto the ground again,

  Turning my head, I saw her sprawled on the floor, clutching her right ankle in pain.

  “Tsk-. Are you hurt?”

  “……I-I think my ankle is twisted. Please, d-don’t mind me.”

  “……”

  It was said that an unlucky person would manage to break their nose even when falling backward. True to such a saying, this maid had twisted her ankle just from falling on her buttocks.

  “It’s quite swollen.”

  Her ankle, revealed beneath her skirt, was noticeably swollen.

  The delicate skin around seemed ready to split at any moment with the sudden increase in size.

  Just by looking at it, I could feel my ankle throb in sympathy.

  I looked around us for a moment.

  Honestly, I wondered if she was some sort of undercover judge for the competition, but her swollen ankle looked quite real. Besides, it was a waste of time to evaluate a candidate who had already declared his withdrawal.

  So, I asked Rendler.

  “Where’s the infirmary?”

  “It’s at the end of the hallway on our left, My Lord. About 100 meters away.”

  “Good, it’s not too far then. We’ll be there in no time.”

  “W-What, My Lord? What do you mean by that……”

  With a grin, I placed my hand on Rendler’s shoulders.

  This may have been an accident due to mutual carelessness, but she was seriously hurt because of it.

  For a maid who had to roam around the castle, doing various things, a swollen ankle was almost akin to a major industrial accident.

  This was my fault, and besides, it was only right to help a young girl in her mid-teens.

  At least, that was how the adults in my previous world were supposed to act.

  If you caused harm to someone, then it would be your responsibility as well as your ethical duty to take care of it.

  That was the only reason why I was helping her.

  It was neither out of the goodness in my heart nor for the desire to impress this tearful old butler of mine.

  “I’d do it myself, but I rather not attract more attention for the time being. Plus, I’m sure there will be many watchful eyes in the infirmary.”

  Despite his age, he wouldn’t have any problems carrying this frail girl.

  Besides, from this body’s memories, this old butler was quite active in his youth.

  “Pardon?”

  “Look, just do me a favor. I wish to keep a low profile until my withdrawal is approved or until the betrothal contest is over.”

  “Then I shall bring someone to help the maid……”

  “Won’t it be faster if you’d just carry her? It’s only 100 meters, right?”

  “B-But, My Lord, this maid has almost caused a grievous accident that could have harmed you. For someone of the Raphelion household to help her would be……”

  “Tsk-. Stop saying useless things.”

  I frowned and glared at him, cutting off his words.

  Just like the original Elden would do.

  Of course, I couldn’t simply replicate the original’s scummy and beastly behavior, but this should be enough for now.

  And, as if proving me right, Rendler’s excessive loyalty worked against him.

  I’ll remember to use this tactic in the future when necessary.

  “I, I understand My Lord.”

  “Good. You have my thanks.”

  Pat, Pat-.

  After patting his shoulder a couple of times, I approached the maid.

  She looked at me with a dazed expression.

  This poor girl seemed unable to understand the simple concept of a person helping another… And that made me want to help her ever the more.

  And in doing so, perhaps it would be as if I was helping my past self as well.

  While kneeling on one knee next to her, I whispered cautiously in her ear.

  “……”

**

  “It’s a minor fracture. I secured it with an ankle brace and support, so a few days of rest should heal it.”

  Rendler was by the maid’s side, listening to the healer’s diagnosis after carrying her to the infirmary.

  His intention was simply to drop her off and return, but his Lord made an additional request.

  To stay by her side until the treatment was over.

  Despite his reluctance, as the Head Butler, he had no choice but to obey his Lord’s commands.

  At that moment, the healer brought over a crutch and handed it to the maid.

  “Take this crutch with you. You are aware you have to return it, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Your ankle might throb a bit at night. If it’s unbearable, come here and I’ll give you medication to ease your pain.”

  “Thank you…”

  “Good.”

  After finishing the treatment, the healer left and Rendler rose from his seat.

  “With this crutch, you won’t be needing my help.”

  “Ah, I can’t thank you enough, Sir……I’m sorry for-”

  “No need to thank me. I was merely following my Lord’s orders.”

  “Still, I feel so indebted……”

  “If you feel sorry, then be more careful from now on. You could have ended up seriously injured, young lady, much more than you are now.”

  Rendler’s advice came off carried by an indifferent tone.

  Of course, on the surface, no one other than the King could afford to openly mistreat a servant from the Grand Duke’s household.

  But it was common for nobles to concoct vicious schemes just for petty revenge.

  And no master would willingly become a target of such schemes just to protect a simple servant.

  Ultimately, no matter whom they served, the commoners used as disposable servants were the ones who ended up hurt.

  Thus, the maid bowed her head, expressing her gratitude for Rendler’s sincerity.

  “Thank you for your concern… I’ll make sure nothing like this happens again.”

  “Then, be more careful from now on.”

  “Yes.”

  However, just as Rendler was about to leave the infirmary, he stopped in his tracks and looked back at the maid.

  “Is there something more, Sir?”

  “I have a question for you.”

  “What might that be…?”

  Before asking, Rendler surveyed his surroundings looking for any sign of watchful ears.

  He was merely curious.

  About what his Lord had ‘whispered’ in the maid’s ear.

  And for that reason, he felt a certain anticipation.

  Human nature, after all, is not easily changed.

  Especially that of a young Lord from a noble house…

  For they lived a life with unchallenged, absolute power.

  This was the sincere belief that Rendler had solidified while serving Elden Raphelion for all these years.

  And yet, there appeared to be a change.

  Rendler had been by Elden Raphelion’s side for the latter’s whole life, serving him throughout, yet he had always remained the same.

  However, this abrupt change in Elden’s behavior carried a significant meaning for Rendler.

  Of course, such change could simply be a whim on his part.

  But what of it?

  So, overcome by his curiosity, Rendler asked the question that began to plague his mind.

  “Earlier, when the Lord whispered something to you, could you tell me what it was? This old butler is quite curious.”

  “Ah……”

  The maid looked around her.

  Then, after a moment of hesitation, she opened her mouth.

  “T-That…If I were to divulge he had helped me to anyone else, besides you, Sir……”

  The maid faltered for a moment, as she once again scanned her surroundings.

  Her eyes seemed cautious, almost fearful.

  Rendler took a step closer, urging her to continue.

  “And? What would happen should you do so?”

  When the rest of her obscured words were finally revealed a moment later…

  It was inevitable for Rendler’s complexion to be dyed with an enigmatic hue.

  “…That at that time… I would actually die… is what he said…”