My Maid is Cute Chapter 64 : Things That Haven't Changed (Patreon)

*Things That Haven't Changed*

Starting the afternoon of the day she parted ways with Rieserago, Rebecca resumed her work as a maid.

"Is this about right, I wonder?"

Carrie asked with a beaming smile.

Rebecca stood before the mirror, gazing at her reflection in her new clothes.

Although she had returned to work as a maid, the fact that her body had shrunk meant things couldn't go exactly as they had before. The very first problem they encountered was the uniform.

"Naturally, there aren't any maid uniforms that fit the current Rebecca, are there~"

Saying that, Carrie had prepared a simple black dress and a white apron. The apron was a bit too large, but it seemed she could manage to work in it.

"Thank you, Carrie. I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble..."

"No trouble, no trouble at all. Oh, that's right. Let's do up your hair, too."

Chuckling, Carrie took a comb in hand and began to arrange Rebecca's hair.

Grateful for Carrie’s kindness, Rebecca spoke to her through the mirror.

"Um, Carrie..."

"Hm? What is it?"

"There is something I wanted to ask..."

Rebecca hesitated for a moment but decided to take the plunge.

"Did something happen between Lord Christopher and Milady?"

The instant she asked, Carrie’s hands stopped completely. She met Rebecca's eyes in the mirror and spoke immediately.

"...Right. You’d be curious about that... But, I’m sorry. I don’t know either."

"Is... that so..."

Seeing Rebecca look disheartened, Carrie continued, looking a bit troubled herself.

"I think it was a little over a year ago... that the two of them stopped speaking to each other."

"That long ago...?"

"Yeah. ...I remember that day well. They were invited to some party, and Lord Christopher and Lady Wendy attended together. Until that day, everything was normal. But when they returned to the mansion, both of them had terrible, grim expressions on their faces... The atmosphere was incredibly strained. I suspect something must have happened at that party..."

Carrie continued braiding Rebecca's hair as she spoke, recalling the past.

"That night, Lord Christopher and Lady Wendy were talking alone in the study about something. It was quiet at first, but... suddenly, I heard shouting. Lady Wendy was furious... she was screaming at Lord Christopher. I couldn't hear the content of the conversation, but my husband... Reed, immediately went into the room to try and mediate. But Lady Wendy was angry with an intensity I'd never seen before... and she was crying, too."

"Milady was...?"

Rebecca muttered involuntarily.

She couldn't believe it. That Wendy, showing such open rage? Even Rebecca had rarely seen Wendy raise her voice. And to think she was angry at Christopher, of all people.

What on earth could have happened?

"In the end, it seems Lady Lisette intervened and forcibly stopped the fight... but from that day on, Milady began to avoid Lord Christopher. ...Reed seems to know something about the reason, but he wouldn't tell me."

"...I see."

To cheer up Rebecca, who was looking down dejectedly, Carrie lightly patted her back.

"There, how's this?"

Startled, Rebecca turned her gaze to the mirror. Her long hair had been parted down the middle and tied into two braids.

"Cute, right?"

"..."

Honestly speaking, it made her look even more childish, leaving her bewildered. But since Carrie had gone to the trouble of arranging it, she decided to leave it as is.

"Thank you very much."

When Rebecca smiled and offered her thanks, Carrie smiled back and patted her back lightly again.

"Alright then, let's get to work!"

***

Apparently, during the four years Rebecca was away, Jeanne had been taking care of Wendy. Hearing this, Rebecca was surprised and spoke to Jeanne.

"Jeanne, you're Milady's personal maid now?"

"...Personal, or rather..."

Jeanne answered with a troubled expression.

"...I was just mainly taking care of Milady, so... it's a little different, I suppose..."

Isn't that what a personal maid is? Rebecca was about to ask back, but before she could, Jeanne handed her a broom.

"...In any case, let's work together today, Rebecca-san. Since many things have changed while you were away, please ask me anything if there's something you don't understand."

"Ah, okay."

At those words, Rebecca couldn't help but laugh.

"Right now, I'm the junior and you're the senior, Jeanne."

Jeanne giggled in return.

"Well then, shall we go?"

"Yeah. I'm counting on you, Jeanne."

"Yes."

They decided to head to Wendy's room first for cleaning.

As they walked with their cleaning tools in hand, Rebecca suddenly remembered something and called out to Jeanne.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you something..."

"What is it?"

"...You see, on the way here... I saw Sadie in a town called Lulune."

At that moment, Jeanne's shoulders twitched.

"...You saw Sadie?"

"Yeah... She was with a man."

At Rebecca's words, Jeanne's face darkened for just a split second. However, she immediately raised her head and spoke.

"That girl got married half a year ago."

"Eh!? ...I-Is that so. With the person she was dating?"

"Yes. He finally graduated from school and found a job... so she took that opportunity to quit working here, get married... and move away."

Jeanne's expression was stiff as she spoke.

"Is... that right..."

Rebecca muttered blankly, then spoke again.

"Then, it must be lonely for you, Jeanne."

"...That's not true at all."

Jeanne laughed as if to gloss over it and added,

"She writes often. It seems they are getting along well as a couple... she seems happy. Sadie was very worried about you too, Rebecca-san... so I'll tell her in a letter that you've returned. I'm sure she'll be overjoyed."

"...Yeah."

Rebecca didn't say anything more and followed Jeanne toward Wendy's room.

***

Arriving at Wendy's room, Jeanne knocked on the door, and a voice answered immediately.

"...Come in."

At the somewhat grumpy-sounding voice, Rebecca exchanged a quick glance with Jeanne before opening the door.

"Excuse us."

Wendy was sitting on the sofa placed in the room, looking angry for some reason. With a sullen face, she turned her gaze toward Rebecca and Jeanne as they entered.

The moment she saw Rebecca, Wendy's eyes snapped wide open, and she froze.

She stared intently at Rebecca.

"U-Um, Milady? We came to clean..."

When Rebecca called out to her, Wendy responded shortly.

"...I see."

She said nothing more. But she was fidgeting for some reason.

While tilting their heads at Wendy's behavior, Rebecca and Jeanne began cleaning the room.

As expected, unlike before, working was difficult. She couldn't reach high places, and with her small limbs, she couldn't move as she wanted. On top of that, she got tired after just a little work. Jeanne helped out wherever Rebecca couldn't manage.

I need to build up more stamina, Rebecca thought as she somehow managed to proceed with the work.

All the while, Wendy's gaze was poured upon Rebecca. She stared silently and incessantly.

Confused by the gaze, Rebecca pretended not to notice and continued cleaning.

What is it? This look from Milady... is she angry about something?

She thought about it while moving the broom, but nothing came to mind.

Cooperating with Jeanne, they managed to finish the work, and Rebecca called out to Wendy.

"—Milady, we are finished."

Still fidgeting, Wendy replied briefly.

"Ah, okay."

Her eyes were still glued to Rebecca.

Just as Rebecca and Jeanne grabbed their cleaning tools and were about to leave the room...

"—Becca, stay."

Wendy's quiet voice was heard. Rebecca instinctively looked at Jeanne. Feeling somewhat anxious, she remained where she was as told. Jeanne looked apologetic but left the room alone.

Click. The door closed, and Rebecca was left alone with Wendy.

"Lock it."

"Ah, yes."

Bewildered by Wendy's demeanor, she locked the door as instructed.

The moment the sound of the lock echoed in the room, Wendy stood up. She walked straight toward Rebecca. Rebecca looked back at Wendy nervously.

"Milady, um... is something the matter?"

Wendy crouched down on the spot. She locked eyes directly with Rebecca.

The next instant, Wendy hugged Rebecca with great force.

"Wah!"

Surprised, Rebecca let out a voice. Ignoring it, Wendy began to speak.

"—Geez, what is this hairstyle? That's foul play, isn't it? Cute. Cute, cute, cute. Unbelievably cute. Cute!! I can't hold back anymore. Ahh, geez, you're so cute I could die."

"U-Um, wait, Mila—mmgh!?"

Pressed face-first into an ample bosom as if being enveloped, Rebecca let out a strange muffled sound.

What is this sensation? It's fluffy and soft. And warm.

—Milady has really grown...

She felt pathetic for being deeply impressed by such a thing in this situation.

Meanwhile, Wendy kept repeating "Cute" like a broken doll.

"Haa... honestly, how are you so cute? You're small, really like a child. It's so healing... truly cute. Cute, cute, cute, cute...! I just want to lock you up like this..."

She's saying something rather disturbing.

When Rebecca's shoulders twitched with a start, Wendy buried her face in Rebecca's hair this time. She took a deep breath.

"Haa... how is it possible that even your smell is cute...?"

Wendy muttered softly, and Rebecca flusteredly mumbled.

"U-Um, Milady... it's a little suffocating."

"Ah, sorry."

Wendy finally pulled away, and Rebecca let out a breath of relief. Grabbing her own braided hair, she spoke.

"Did you take a liking to this hairstyle?"

"Yeah. It is veeerrry adorable."

Wendy nodded vigorously, and Rebecca smiled wryly.

"Carrie tied it for me."

"Hah? That maid did...? Is she a genius?"

At Wendy's words, Rebecca couldn't help but giggle. Then, she muttered softly.

"Thank goodness..."

Seemingly hearing that murmur, Wendy tilted her head and asked.

"Hm? What's wrong?"

"Ah... well..."

Rebecca continued hesitantly.

"Milady looked somewhat angry... so I was worried that I might have done something rude."

When she answered honestly, Wendy pursed her lips in a pout.

"That's right. I was a little angry."

"Eh?"

"—Because you were hugging that person called Rieserago."

Then, she lightly bumped her forehead against Rebecca's.

"I'll forgive you this time in consideration of your cuteness... but hugging anyone other than me is prohibited from now on. Absolutely forbidden, okay?"

"...Um."

"This is an order, Becca. You are my maid, after all."

"...Yes."

When Rebecca nodded slightly, Wendy smiled with satisfaction.

***

After finishing cleaning Wendy's room, Rebecca found tasks she could do, such as kitchen work and cleaning, and busied herself. It was quite tough working for the first time in a while, but when she was in trouble or about to fail, the surrounding servants kindly helped her. She felt she managed to get through the work more smoothly than she had imagined. Although her body was quite exhausted, it was a very fulfilling day for Rebecca.

When night fell, Wendy apparently took dinner in her room. Rebecca tried to carry the meal, but Carrie and Jeanne stopped her. Pointing out that the dishes laden with food were heavy and would be difficult for the current Rebecca, she reluctantly gave up.

That night, while having dinner with the other maids in the servants' dining hall, Carrie spoke to her.

"Earlier, when I brought dinner to Milady's room..."

"Did something happen?"

"It's just, her reaction to me was completely different from usual. Usually, she doesn't converse with the servants or maids at all, but when I placed the dinner on the table, she gave me a huge smile and said 'Thank you.' I was surprised. I almost dropped the dishes."

"...A-Ah, is that so."

She almost said, That's probably thanks to the braids, but not knowing how to explain it, Rebecca ended up giving a vague reply.

Listening to Carrie's story next to Rebecca, Jeanne spoke up in surprise.

"M-Milady did? That Milady, who is always expressionless, indifferent to everyone, cold, and barely speaks?"

"Exactly. I wonder if it's the influence of Rebecca coming back after all..."

While eating her dinner bread, Rebecca asked.

"Is Milady always like that?"

"Yes."

To that question, Jeanne nodded greatly as she answered.

"Basically, when she is in this mansion, she shuts herself in her room or the library and barely speaks to the servants... She only opens her mouth when ordering something."

Even though she's grown, that reclusive part of her hasn't changed, Rebecca thought, while Jeanne continued.

"I am technically taking care of Milady as her main attendant, but honestly, in this mansion, there is almost no work related to Milady. She hates interacting with others anyway... and I'm told not to do anything unnecessary. All I do is clean the room, maintain the environment, make tea when requested, and offer a little help..."

"Help? Help with what?"

When Rebecca asked, Jeanne covered her mouth as if startled. Then, she hurriedly shook her head.

"Um, like academic work... help with that."

She answered mumblingly as if to gloss over something. Just as Rebecca tilted her head at that behavior, another maid called out to her.

"Rebecca-san, Milady is calling for you."

"Ah, yes!"

Rebecca answered loudly and hurriedly finished eating her meal. After clearing her dishes, she spoke to Carrie and Jeanne.

"Sorry, I'm off!"

"Okay, do your best."

"See you later. Give my regards to Milady."

Jeanne waved, and Carrie sent her off with a smile.

***

After Rebecca left, Carrie whispered to Jeanne furtively so the surrounding servants wouldn't hear.

"Say, about that thing... is it a secret from Rebecca?"

"..."

Jeanne nodded, looking slightly awkward.

"...Yes. Please keep quiet about it too, Carrie-san."

"I don't mind, but... why? I think it would be fine to tell her... or rather, she's definitely going to find out sooner or later."

"...It's an order. It seems she doesn't want to talk about it yet. So..."

At Jeanne's words, Carrie glanced toward the direction Rebecca had run off to with a puzzled expression. Then, exchanging a look with Jeanne, she quietly resumed her meal.