Working at a Haunted Mansion Chapter 109

Meet who? Who’s meeting who?

Lily almost burst into the room yelling.

Who was that man trying to ruin with such accusations? How could he stick someone else’s lover into this mess?

It was clear the Emperor had lost his mind, but she couldn’t understand why his soul’s color was still normal.

But safety came first. The vibrations inside were so strong it felt like the windows would shatter any moment.

She rushed in and dragged the maid out. Anna babbled things like, “What are you doing, let go, Her Majesty still—” and so on.

But she couldn’t win against the strength of a former chores maid. Besides, with the baby in her arms, she couldn’t resist much anyway.

Holding Anna back with one arm to keep her from returning inside, Lily stretched her other hand out toward Wolfram.

“Advisor, give me the ring.”

“Here it is.”

He didn’t even ask why and handed Julius’s ring over. Lily then entrusted the maid to him and added firmly,

“Until I come out, don’t let anyone else go in. Confidentiality is the lifeblood of counseling.”

Then she slipped back inside and shut the door.

The chaos was still raging. Dust and fragments fell from the ceiling as Julius roared, while the Empress cowered and begged.

“No, it’s not like that. You’re mistaken. That’s not true. Sheizwarts, please. Believe me. I swear nothing like that ever happened.”

She shouldn’t have been able to hear the Emperor’s words, but she knew exactly what he was accusing her of.

Meanwhile, Julius, who should have clearly heard her pleas, ignored them entirely and kept raging.

[Ah! You must be so happy. The reason you haven’t left this place until now is because of Aiden, isn’t it? Living so close by! Anyone would think you were the Duke’s wife, not the Empress. Those filthy rumors floating around the estate! Just how were you behaving for such talk to spread!]

It was such a terrifying scene that Lily wanted to run straight back out again…

But this was a request Aiden had entrusted her with. That pride alone gave her strength to endure anything.

She slammed the ring hard into her palm and shouted at the paranoid husband.

“Your Majesty! Calm yourself! Can’t you see Her Majesty is terrified?”

She struck the ring again as she spoke. The Emperor turned to her with the look of someone who had just been slapped.

She remembered how faint his soul had felt when she first received the ring, so she had tested it—and luckily, it worked.

As soon as he snapped back to himself, Lily bent at the waist in a deep bow, her voice deferential, as if everything had been for his sake.

“I apologize for using a treatment without Your Majesty’s permission. Since it directly affects the soul, I should have explained in advance, but the situation was urgent and my body acted before my mind. Please forgive me.”

[Treatment?]

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Lily improvised on the spot.

“It’s a method where sudden impact is applied to correct acute abnormalities in the soul, similar to how a dislocated bone is reset. You may think of it that way.”

In truth, it was no different from slapping someone to bring them back to their senses. But what could anyone say against a so-called soul doctor insisting it was true?

‘What, you think you know better than me? Hah?’

With that attitude, she piled on the nonsense.

“It’s a direct surgical strike on the soul, which is why it’s rarely used. But just now, even a moment’s delay could have harmed the Empress, so I acted quickly. I will gladly accept any punishment.”

She bowed even lower, but her words kept flowing.

“To have protected the Empress, whom Your Majesty treasures so dearly, fills me with boundless pride as a citizen of the Empire. Therefore, if you command it, I will never appear before you again and live a life of penance…”

[Enough. Raise your head.]

She obeyed.

The Empress was staring at her in confusion. A stranger spouting incomprehensible words—anyone would be startled.

But Lily couldn’t address her yet. For now, it was the Emperor’s turn.

He spat his words, dripping with hostility.

[Kashimir’s dog.]

“It is precisely because Duke Kashimir is Your Majesty’s subject that you should call me your dog instead.”

She could churn out flattery as much as needed!

There wasn’t even a drop of sincerity in it, but the Emperor rolled his eyes at the shameless words.

Lily felt no sting at all. So what if he glared? The one in need was the one who had to bow.

Sure enough, he soon stopped glaring and switched to a more authoritative tone.

[Tell Themis I apologize for earlier. In a moment of confusion, I let my temper get the better of me and raised my voice at the Empress.]

‘Hah, as if he’s sane.’

Trying to save face in front of subordinates, was he? She had already seen his true colors. Mocking him inwardly, Lily turned to meet the Empress’s gaze.

“Your Majesty, it’s an honor to meet you. I am Lily Dienta. I once cared for the late Emperor’s spiritual health, and now I serve as Duke Kashimir’s exclusive counselor. My sudden arrival must have startled you.”

She explained the situation calmly and kindly, trying to inspire trust.

“As Your Majesty must already feel, His Majesty the Emperor is here by your side. He asks me to tell you he’s sorry for what happened just now. He says it was never his true intention.”

The Empress pulled her shawl tightly around her shoulders and lowered her head toward her chest, hiding from the outside world.

Lily softened her tone even further.

“I heard Duke Kashimir already explained His Majesty’s current condition to you once. At the time, you didn’t believe him. But now, I think I don’t need to explain further.”

The Empress stayed curled up, silent. Lily didn’t rush her.

“How hard must it have been, not being able to communicate until now? But now that I’m here, you may say whatever you wish. Thanks to the blessings of the Lord, I can see and hear spirits like His Majesty. I will relay his answers to you without leaving out a single word.”

She folded her hands together with respect.

After a long pause, the Empress finally spoke, her voice trembling with fear.

“He’s… here… right now.”

That was not the tone of a wife reunited with her beloved husband.

“Yes, Your Majesty. His Majesty is standing behind you, holding your shoulders, looking down at you with an apologetic face.”

The Empress lifted her face toward where Lily gestured and forced her trembling lips into a faint smile. Then she spoke to the Emperor.

“There’s nothing to worry about. The one I love is you. Only you…”

The human trash actually smirked with pride, clearly pleased by her answer.

[Of course. That’s how it should be.]

He stroked her face, speaking with feigned tenderness.

[Your face looks worn. You must eat properly. Dienta, tell the head chef to make veal soup. Themis must always have that when she’s unwell.]

His expressions, his words, his gestures—each one was so revolting Lily almost gagged in front of them.

She had thought, from how he cried out the names of his wife and son, that at least he loved his family.

But no—he was just a wretch lost in delusions of infidelity, unable to control his rage.

And now he dared act like a doting husband? It was disgusting.

Lily summoned all her training as a servant to hide her disgust and replied politely,

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Empress darted uneasy glances between Lily and the empty air.

“His Majesty knows your purity well, and he laments the toll on your face,” Lily assured gently.

She lifted her lips just slightly, forming a reassuring—not grim, not overly bright—expression.

“I’m sorry I didn’t notice sooner that the meals weren’t to Your Majesty’s liking. I’ll have veal soup prepared just as His Majesty instructed.”

The Empress’s eyes widened, then she bit her lip. Despair and resignation were plain on her face.

‘Veal soup’ had become undeniable proof of the soul’s presence. And Lily had clearly seen how that proof only deepened her despair.

Stepping backward, she slipped out of the room.

Wolfram was still waiting by the door. The maid had been sent elsewhere.

“How did it go?”

“Oh, don’t even ask.”

Lily whispered, glancing back at the door. The Emperor had not followed her out, staying by Themis’s side. She lowered her voice further and spoke quickly.

“He’s completely out of his mind.”

“Miss Dienta…”

Wolfram trailed off, but Lily only pouted her lips and didn’t take back her words.

She had chosen the most courteous phrasing she could, considering he was a noble.

If she had spoken the exact words that came to mind, Wolfram would have been so shocked by the variety of commoner curses that he might have collapsed on the spot.

At any rate, this finally explained why the Empress had refused to meet Aiden. Of course she had.

If the Emperor caused this much chaos without Aiden present, then if he ever saw the Empress and Aiden together in the same room… the entire building really would come crashing down.