I ran back to the Emerald Room, and I was slightly short of breath when I made it back.

  Unsurprisingly, I am not particurly athletic. Hanamarie is slightly below average in this category, and a brisk walk up the stairs will leave me panting. The royal pace is quite rge, and obviously there are no elevators in this isekai world. There are five stories to the main building, which can be quite a workout if I have many errands to run.

  I closed the door behind me and sighed.

  It was still retively early in the morning, and on an ordinary schedule Kang Jiesu was still supposed to be asleep. The Otherworlders had absolutely nothing on their agenda until the te morning, so normally I would be expected to stay in the bedroom while my master slept. It was sort of a 'default' location, and somehow I just felt more comfortable with four walls around me with no surprises lurking in the hallway corridor.

  ...The problem was that I had run away without Kang.

  He wasn't supposed to be awake and wandering around this early, but technically I was also supposed to stay with him.

  Surely it was his fault... right...?

  Kang was supposed to be in the bedroom right now.

  Yes! It was absolutely his problem, not mine.

  If you walk away from an NPC, obviously an NPC wouldn't be expected to follow you. All NPCs have pre-programmed locations, and in Stardew Valley you can always find Mayor Lewis standing in front of the fountain from 2:00 PM to 9:00 PM every Friday. By analogy, my preprogrammed location is currently the the Emerald Room, so nobody can criticize me for standing at my assigned post at the scheduled time. After all, maids are expected to be punctual and prompt.

  It was definitely a failsafe strategy!

  + + +

  ...The problem was when my manager showed up.

  I was minding my own business pretending to be productive (I started organizing the clothes in Kang Jiesu's closet — rearranging them by color because why the hell not??) and humming happily to myself. I walked out into the living room of the Emerald Suite and then almost did a double-take when I found the majordomo leaning against the wall.

  His arms were crossed and he was tapping his fingers impatiently.

  There was an unpleasant scowl on his face.

  Uh oh.

  At some point, he must have let himself into the Emerald Suite...

  I could only assume the worst. Presumably, he must have spotted me when I ran away from Kang Jiesu. A dy-in-waiting shouldn't abandon her lord, and I knew deep down inside that I was in trouble. Moreover, the majordomo is not a very pleasant person, and most maids tried to avoid him whenever possible. He was sort of like the principal or superintendent of a high school. Ordinary students never interact with the school administration, and you only ever went to the principal's office if you were in trouble.

  For him to actually show up here in person...

  I gulped.

  "C-can I help you, sir?" I stammered with a weak and stiff smile on my face.

  I tried to be as polite and maid-like as possible.

  "Please, sit." The majordomo gestured at the many empty sofas in the living room while he made himself comfortable on an armchair.

  "...I wouldn't dare." I responded humbly and bowed.

  After all, it wasn't my room, and maids weren't allowed to use the furniture in their care. I could only assume that the majordomo was testing me, and as such as I instantly put on my best possible behavior with a tight (extremely fake) smile.

  "Oh? Is that so?" The majordomo responded.

  There was faint suggestion of feigned surprise in his voice. However, his attitude was slightly sarcastic.

  "You would disobey a command then?" He remarked casually while examining his neatly filed fingernails.

  "..."

  I was speechless.

  This wasn't fair! It was cruel!

  There wasn't any correct way to answer the majordomo's question. All answers were wrong answers, and I was almost certainly set up for failure. That man was clearly unhappy with me, and I could instantly sense that this was a thinly veiled threat. In the Kingdom of Galuterica, the rich and powerful held a disproportionate amount of power over the weak and poor, and it was an extremely trivial affair for an aristocrat to ruin a servant that they disliked.

  "...Hypothetically speaking, of course. Not at all implying that you would do such a terrible thing. You are an excellent maid, after all."

  The majordomo added these dangerous words to the end of his sentence with an ominous smile.

  "Yes sir..." I responded helplessly.

  I bowed twice more for forgiveness.

  There was nothing else that I could say.

  Please! I understand the message! I regret my behavior already!

  However, the majordomo was not finished with me. He took a sip out of a teacup that he had apparently poured for himself.

  "I think we need to have a chat, Miss Hanamarie."

  ?