The next day.
Olivia opened her eyes slowly, the ceiling of the room still lit by the glowing lights.
"So, I'm still here," she whispered softly as she walked toward the mirror, rubbing her eyes. She turned to look toward the window. The sun had started to rise.
Without wasting any time, she got ready. She took a long-sleeved black gown that was neatly tucked inside the closet. She put on a fine lace-trimmed white apron around her waist, providing a sharp contrast to her outfit. Not forgetting, a small ribbon was tied neatly around her collar, representing her identity as a loyal personal maid.
After that, she started braiding the sides of her long hair so it wouldn't interfere with her work.
"Aww, cute," she complimented herself.
She stared at her reflection, touching her face. She looked at her smooth, fair skin, her cheeks slightly flushed as if wearing blush, her almond-shaped round eyes, and her full, naturally red lips without even needing lipstick. The corners of her mouth curved into a smile.
TOK TOK TOK.
A knock sounded on her door. She immediately left her chair and walked toward the door to turn the knob. Once she opened it, a woman in her forties stood straight before her.
She was wearing a long black gown with a neat white apron. At her waist hung several silver keys that jingled every time she stepped. A small white cap adorned her neatly bunned hair. Just by the way she stood, it was enough to show that she was the head maid of the residence.
"Your name is Olivia, isn't it?" she asked Olivia with a serious expression.
"Yes, I am Olivia," she answered briefly while stepping closer to the maid.
"Alright, I will tell you your duties as the Princess's maid," she said while adjusting her glasses.
She added, "Follow me," and began walking slowly. Olivia followed closely behind.
Throughout the journey, the head maid was constantly greeted by other servants. After greeting them, they would return to their work. Olivia, who was watching, also smiled at them.
Not long after, they arrived at the location mentioned.
"This is the kitchen used by the Aethelgard family, so at every mealtime, you will be responsible for bringing and tasting every piece of food that will be given to the Princess," she said.
Olivia was a little surprised to hear it.
"Tasting the food?" she asked softly.
The head maid nodded.
"To ensure the food is not poisoned."
She then continued,
"Besides that, you need to prepare the clothes that will be worn by the Princess and always accompany her wherever she goes. Understand?"
Olivia nodded without saying much while looking around. The head maid spoke again,
"Forgive me, I almost forgot. My name is Irene. I am the head of all the maids here, so you can come to me if you have any problems or questions," she said calmly.
"Very well, Madam Irene," said Olivia.
After that, they continued their tour around the Aethelgard residence.
They passed the dining room, family room, garden, flower garden, and the Aethelgard family park.
However, Olivia was not overly excited to see all that because she had already read about it all in the novel before entering this world.
But, when the head maid arrived at an abandoned garden overgrown with various wild trees, Ms. Irene fell silent for a moment.
"This garden was once used by the Duchess for afternoon tea, but after she passed away, the Duke ordered the gardener not to enter this garden ever again," she explained seriously.
That explanation made Olivia a little interested.
For some reason, she felt as if there was something hidden behind those wild trees.
"That's enough for today. You may return to Princess Ophlia's quarters," she said while walking back into the residence.
Olivia, who had high curiosity, felt disappointed about the matter. Before she could walk to follow Ms. Irene, her ears caught a faint voice calling for help.
"HEEEEELLLP," the voice echoed but sounded distant.
She tried to listen again while closing her eyes to find the direction of the voice.
"Waaateeeer," the voice spoke again.
Olivia was jolted. Her hands began to tremble and her face was covered in sweat. At that moment, only one word was in her mind:
"GHOOOOST!" she screamed, running into the residence while crying her eyes out.
Ms. Irene, who saw Olivia, held her brow and shook her head.
"Madam Irene, there's a ghost!" Olivia said, pointing her finger toward the garden.
Madam Irene only smiled and said, "Olivia, there are no ghosts in the early morning," while holding her shoulder.
Olivia was sure she heard something in that abandoned garden.
"Don't think about it, maybe it's because you were carried away by the dark atmosphere around that garden," Ms. Irene said while patting her head.
Even though Olivia was sure about the voice, she only nodded at Ms. Irene and followed her back to her room.
Upon arriving in her room, she saw Ophlia and Celine chatting. Seeing them, her tight chest returned to normal.
TOK TOK TOK!
Olivia knocked on the door.
Both of them turned toward the door quickly.
"Come in," said Ophlia.
Olivia entered and joined their conversation. Until the abandoned garden crossed her mind again. She wanted to ask Ophlia.
"Your Grace, why is the garden behind left abandoned?" Olivia asked with curious eyes.
Ophlia, hearing that, said nothing and only replied,
"Um, I have never taken notice of that garden, it was just mother's favorite garden," she said, shifting her gaze elsewhere. Her cheerful eyes turned gloomy.
Celine was stunned by Ophlia's behavior and tried to calm her down.
"Um, forgive me Your Grace, I will not ask about that matter again," she said while calming Ophlia down.
Ophlia remained silent and daydreamed while smiling at Olivia.
"It's alright Olivia, what is dead will not live again," she said while carving a wide smile.
"Creepy,"
Olivia's heart whispered.
Celine and Olivia looked at each other. Olivia could feel something had happened that caused Ophlia's mental state to become increasingly disturbed.
The silence of the room pricked Olivia's heart again, so she changed her question to Ophlia who was staring blankly.
"Um, you look beautiful today, Princess," she said while spinning around looking at Ophlia. Instantly, Ophlia's gloomy mood turned cheerful as before.
"Is that true?" she answered while blushing shyly.
Celine and Olivia nodded simultaneously and praised her with all their might. Seeing Ophlia laugh made her feel relieved.
Olivia felt guilty for having asked something that reminded her of her bitter past.
"Regardless, she is still a child,"
she whispered to herself. The room was soon filled with the sound of happy children.
After Ophlia finished dinner, she told Ophlia to return to her room because at night her nanny would help her sleep.
Olivia nodded and waved her hands to both of them before entering her room.
After she entered her room, she cleaned herself up and wrote something down, which had become her routine.
Olivia exhaled. She threw her small body onto the bed. Slowly, her eyes closed tight.
Just as she was dreaming, she was awakened by the sound of a chain followed by a faint voice.
"HEEEE...LLLPPP...."
The voice spoke with a long, drawn-out tone.
Olivia immediately sat up, shivering hearing the sound.
"Don't disturb me... I'm not tasty... Find another victim," she said with a trembling voice.
"HEEEE...LLL...PPP," the voice was heard again.
Olivia, who was terrified, took her blanket and wrapped it around her body. Not long after, the sound was no longer heard. She breathed a sigh of relief and started sleeping as usual.
However,
"Heeeelp," the faint voice was heard again.
Unable to stand it, she stood up, took a lantern, and slowly left her room.
Creakkkkk,"
her door opened.
A guard guarding Ophlia's room was standing there. The guard turned toward her.
"Where to?" the guard asked.
"I want to get some water to drink, my throat hurts," Olivia answered with a blank smile.
The guard only nodded and said, "Be careful, okay."
Olivia walked out toward the garden.
"Aiya, the forest is so thick," Olivia said while stepping on the ground around her.
Once again, "HEEEE....LLL....PPP." The raspy voice grew louder. Olivia no longer looked around; she dived into the thick forest.
When she looked around, it was only trees, with no grass growing in the vicinity. Olivia began to spin around looking at the surroundings.
She looked forward; the distance from the Aethelgard residence was about 3 meters. She didn't need to worry if she got lost because the distance was close enough.
She then started peering around. Unknowingly, her foot stepped on something between the large tree roots.
Suddenly—
Aaaaahhhhhh!
Olivia's body fell.
"Pak pak tub tub pak," she tumbled down the old wooden stairs.
"Ouchhhhhh," Olivia groaned in pain while holding her head.
She slowly got up and looked around.
The state there was very dark and damp. The walls were made of old, mossy stone.
Olivia lifted her lantern slightly higher to see more clearly.
"Looks like... a basement?" she muttered slowly.
Suddenly—
The sound of iron chains moving was heard.
KLINK…
KLINK…
Olivia's body immediately turned stiff.
The same faint voice was heard again, this time much closer.
"Help..."
Olivia swallowed hard.
Slowly, she lifted her lantern toward the front.
And at that moment...
She saw something in the darkness.
Olivia's eyes widened.
"What... is that?!"
TO BE CONTINUED...