Working at a Haunted Mansion Chapter 12

Lily wanted to leave the estate right that moment, but reality wasn’t like a novel.

Unless they were planning to flee in the middle of the night with nothing but the clothes on their backs, they needed to gather money and apply for a travel permit.

The permit was especially important. To leave the city, they had to present it at the gate to the guards.

If caught trying to leave illegally, the minimum punishment was forced labor, and the maximum was immediate execution. For an old woman and a young lady like them, illegal escape wasn’t even an option.

“Do you know a forger?”

“Do you?”

Silence filled the space between them.

They had lived lives far from crime. They knew the word from novels, sure, but neither Julia nor Lily had the faintest clue which street you’d even start looking on.

Lily asked hesitantly.

“Do you think we can get the permit safely?”

“We’ll have to try.”

Unlike relocation permits, which needed approval from the lord, short-term travel permits could be issued by the office as long as your record was clean. That is—if you slipped in a little bribe.

“Alright. Then let’s get everything ready today and leave first thing tomorrow.”

To sum it up—they didn’t leave the next morning either.

Even though Julia had sold off some old books for quick cash, informed Mrs. Brown to vacate the room, and even booked a carriage in advance.

Of course, the issue was the permit.

“It still hasn’t been approved?”

Lily, holding her travel bag, asked the clerk.

They’d been waiting in the seating area for five hours already. At one point, they were even kicked out for an hour during lunch.

The clerk replied with a bored expression.

“These things don’t happen just like that. Either wait patiently, or I’ll have to ask you to leave for disrupting business.”

Then give back the bribe you took this morning!

They had discreetly handed over nearly three months’ worth of living expenses to smooth things over—and were still being treated like dirt.

But with absolutely no power in the situation, Lily could only swallow her anger and return to Julia’s side.

She still couldn’t understand. Their application had been flawless.

A visit to her parents in Drindle, a clean record, Julia Dienta listed as unemployed, and Lily as a laborer.

They even gave a generous “thank-you.” There was no reason this should’ve taken so long.

“Let’s wait a little longer,” Julia comforted her, but Lily’s nerves were worn thin.

Too much time had passed. If Angela’s words were true, she should’ve returned yesterday afternoon. There was no doubt Wolfram had already heard.

Should they give up on the permit and think of something else? But nothing came to mind.

She was just a maid with some cleaning skills—not a master of disguise or someone with a body of steel. She had zero connection to criminal groups or mercenaries.

Just then, the office grew noisy, and the director and all the clerks hurried to the entrance.

Sensing something unusual, Lily perked up her ears.

“…Baron Burnett, how is your condition…”

“It’s nothing seri—”

Wolfram had shown up! Lily held her breath. With each step, the sound of footsteps and voices grew closer.

“Where is Miss Dienta?”

“She’s over there.”

Crouched awkwardly, Lily quickly looked around for an escape route.

“Lily, what’s wrong?”

“Oh, no. Shh, shh.”

Just as she hushed Julia, the footsteps stopped. Lily couldn’t bring herself to look in that direction.

“Miss Dienta, there you are.”

His voice was so polite, it gave her chills. Trembling with fear, she looked up—and saw Wolfram in a condition she hadn’t imagined.

Before she could stop herself, she asked,

“Are you okay?”

Wolfram had a bandage wrapped around his head. There were a few scratches on his cheek, and another bandage was visible beneath one sleeve.

“It’s nothing serious.”

Wolfram turned to the director who had followed him.

“Thank you for informing me. I won’t forget this favor.”

“Thank you, sir.”

The director bowed with a bright smile and lightly patted the shoulder of the clerk beside him.

That man had been in charge of Lily’s permit. His face was just as cheerful.

Lily realized then—no matter how long she waited, she was never going to get that permit. She watched in dazed silence as the men casually returned to their seats, chatting as if nothing had happened.

“Are you Mrs. Julia Dienta?”

“Yes, that’s me, but…”

Julia rose from her seat. Lily, hesitating, also stood and introduced her.

“Grandma, this is Baron Wolfram Burnett. He’s a close aide to Lord Kashimir and my superior.”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Baron.”

Julia greeted him with a composed and graceful gesture.

“Please, raise your heads. Let’s discuss everything in the carriage.”

Lily cried out in surprise.

“G-Grandma doesn’t need to be involved!”

“No, she does.”

Lily looked between Wolfram and Julia.

“Involved? What do you mean… a, a hostage?”

“Are we really going to have this conversation here?”

The way he avoided the question—it had to mean he was planning to take her as a hostage. It made sense. If someone could think up staging an accident, then of course they’d consider taking a hostage too.

Lily quickly stepped between them.

“You don’t need a hostage! I’ll go back quietly, just please don’t lay a hand on Grandma!”

All eyes turned to them. Wolfram furrowed his brow, but Lily stood firm, determined not to move.

He pressed his fingers to his forehead and whispered low enough for only Lily to hear.

“Mrs. Dienta is coming with us for the translator position. She volunteered. So stop talking nonsense about hostages.”

“For the translator job? Wait… don’t tell me she was the only applicant…”

Lily, lowering her voice to match his, suddenly jumped.

“Grandma! You didn’t say anything to me!”

“I wanted to surprise you at the castle. But after hearing your story, I changed my mind and didn’t bring it up. I thought it was an unnecessary topic.”

Wolfram’s brow furrowed even deeper.

“You insisted so much on security, and now you’ve already told her everything?”

Lily responded shamelessly.

“G-Grandma is family. Anyway, you heard her. That matter has nothing to do with her anymore, so please let her go. If you don’t, I won’t take another step.”

Wolfram began biting his lip like someone in trouble. His fists clenched tight.

Was he going to hit her for defying a noble? If that was the price for resisting, she’d take it.

‘I’m not backing down. This time, I’m the one protecting Grandma.’

Lily clenched her jaw and braced for impact.

But instead of striking her, Wolfram let his arms fall limp. He looked like someone who had given up completely as he said,

“Fine. Just you, then. Please, for the love of everything, come back to the castle even one second sooner. Even now, His Lordship…”

Lily blinked. The arrogance and classist tone were completely gone.

Considering the bandages and his unusually desperate manner, the Duke of Kashimir was likely causing a disaster again. And obviously, her escape was the reason.

Just thinking of him raging over her absence made her both scared… and oddly queasy.

She gathered herself and asked again, just to be sure.

“Alright. It’s a promise. I’ll trust that you won’t do anything strange to Grandma after I’m gone.”

Wolfram gave a solemn nod. The way his body was already half-turned toward the entrance made it clear he was focused only on getting her back to the castle.

Lily felt a small weight lift off her chest. If she’d secured Julia’s safety, then the escape hadn’t been completely meaningless.

She turned toward Julia, who had remained quiet this whole time.

“I’m sorry, Grandma. Things turned out like this. I caused such a fuss. I don’t even know if Mrs. Brown will let you take the room back.”

Julia’s face was serious, as if calculating something in her head.

“If she’s already found a new tenant, please write to me. I’ll try to sort it out somehow.”

But Julia shook her head.

“I’ll go to the castle with you.”

“You said you were canceling your translator application!”

Lily asked, flustered.

“You’re going back to the castle, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am.”

There was no helping it. Now that Wolfram had her, there was no way out. And honestly, he was being relatively lenient with her.

As long as the employment contract still stood, Lily had no right to complain even if she was punished immediately.

But that was her problem not Julia’s. Julia had nothing to do with any of this.

Honestly, Lily was starting to feel hurt. Julia had seen firsthand how hard she’d tried to save her. That effort should’ve meant something. If she respected it, she couldn’t do this.

“Grandma—”

Julia cut her off firmly.

“If that place is really so dangerous, there’s no way I’m letting you go alone. I’m your guardian, and you’re my one and only granddaughter. I’ve made up my mind, so don’t make me say it twice.”

And when Julia used that tone no one could ever change her mind.