Working at a Haunted Mansion Chapter 74

The Day of the Final Showdown

Lily stood in front of the mirror. The outfit delivered to the townhouse the day before fit her body perfectly, with no error. It didn’t feel altered to fit her, but like it had been tailor-made from the start.

She turned her face this way and that in the mirror. Even though she had done her makeup, her complexion was dull. Especially around her eyes—it looked so dark that even considering the time near sunset, it was too much.

‘Maybe I should’ve gotten a good night’s sleep for once…’

With a late sense of regret, she applied some more powder under her eyes.

For the past four days, Lily hadn’t touched any housework. Dishes with sauce on them were piled in the sink, stained teacups were mixed in, and dust had begun to gather on the window sills and hallway edges.

Turning her back on housekeeping—something that was basically her reason for existence—had been incredibly difficult. But Lily’s priorities were clear. Right now, more than anything, studying was the most important.

Studying, of all things! She had expected to work as a maid, hopping from house to house. But suddenly, she was studying psychology! You really never know how life will unfold.

As sudden as it was, Lily studied Introduction to Psychology as if her life depended on it.

She threw aside her manager duties and invested every bit of effort she could, even cutting into her time for sleeping and washing. Though she hadn’t read all of the other books, she at least read the introductions thoroughly.

Lily used up every ounce of her strength. From the second day she got the books, she began curling up to sleep on the sofa. If she lay on her bed, she felt like she’d sleep through the entire day.

The guilt of upsetting Aiden turned into a compulsive need to carry out her assigned task perfectly. As someone who messed up one thing, she couldn’t afford to mess up another.

So in her effort to memorize knowledge that might not even be necessary, Lily had reached a state where she would fall asleep the moment her head hit something.

“Haaa…”

A woman with orange-tinted hair, exhausted from fatigue, yawned loudly. Her reflection in the mirror was harsh and unfiltered. Lily turned her head in dismay at the sight she hadn’t meant to see.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Lily moved sluggishly toward it.

‘It really feels like my head is physically heavier.’

Indeed, her head tilted forward with every step. If she let her guard down for a second, her body would sway. At this rate, she would fall asleep the moment she sat in the carriage.

She pressed her palm tightly with her fingernail.

‘If I hadn’t put on makeup, I’d be slapping my cheeks. Anyway, I have to do whatever it takes not to fall asleep in the carriage.’

She mentally braced herself. When she got into the carriage, Aiden would be sitting either across from her or right beside her.

She had to act like she was only there for work. Her stance hadn’t changed. Just imagining it made her feel suffocated.

‘Should I just fall asleep? Maybe it’s better to zone out than to sit awkwardly. No, no! What if I drool? I must stay awake. I’ll keep my eyes wide open and stay awake.’

With a firm resolve not to look pitiful in front of Aiden, Lily opened the front door.

Her heart was pounding uncontrollably. As she approached, the coachman opened the carriage door, and inside was…

‘Huh?’

Lily blinked. She hadn’t seen wrong. Wolfram was alone in the carriage. She gave a polite greeting.

“Hello, Assistant.”

“Can’t say it’s a good afternoon. Are you feeling unwell?”

“No.”

Lily tried not to show her confusion and asked casually.

“What about His Grace?”

She ran through a few expected responses in her head.

That he had stepped out briefly for something, or that he was on his way, or that they would go pick him up next.

But Wolfram’s answer was none of those.

“His Grace went straight to the Imperial Palace.”

Lily immediately understood.

Aiden didn’t want to ride with her.
He couldn’t stand to see her face, always saying unpleasant things, so even though they were headed to the same place, he went separately.

In that moment of realization, what Lily felt wasn’t relief—it was disappointment. It was a subconscious reaction, something she couldn’t control.

But the moment she noticed that feeling, she snapped herself out of it and quickly denied it.

‘Yay! That’s a relief! He gave me space on his own! I’m really, really happy!’

Just as she tried to drown herself in near-hypnotic denial, Wolfram asked again.

“Still, your complexion looks terrible. Are you really okay? Can you hold up today?”

“I’ll have to, somehow.”

Lily took a mirror out of her handbag. The mirror shook slightly up and down with the carriage’s movement.

She squinted and studied her face carefully.

‘Hmm… Still better than my bare face, I guess…’

She lowered the mirror and asked,

“Do I really look that bad?”

“Yes, you look like you might collapse any minute. Why not take a short nap? It’s a bit of a distance to the palace.”

“Okay. Then, thank you.”

Lily closed her eyes right away. There was no need to pretend in front of Wolfram.

Drowsiness came quickly. In truth, she had always been sleepy—it was more like she finally stopped resisting it.

‘Surely I won’t forget everything I memorized just because I nap, right? Everything I stuffed in my head feels like it’s about to spill out…’

Drifting between consciousness and sleep, Lily let her thoughts wander freely.

‘Honestly, if it comes down to specialized knowledge, they should just send His Grace instead of me… When did he find time to analyze everything with all his duke work? Investigating secret groups, summarizing books… Being a duke isn’t easy, huh…’

Her head bobbed as she gave up on staying awake.

‘His handwriting was pretty, too… Even after we broke things off, he sent that note… He must be really patient…’

The note had lingered in her unconscious mind for the past four days.

“N… ote… Why…”

She murmured in her sleep without realizing it. Wolfram, somehow understanding her, asked,

“Oh, did you see the note?”

Lily’s head nodded up and down like it was on springs. It was clear she was asleep. Wolfram clicked his tongue.

“Talking in her sleep, huh.”

Lily was annoyed.

‘Hey, I can hear you, you know? Stop treating me like a joke…’

She wanted to respond properly, but the accumulated exhaustion over several days was too much.

Only a weak groan, less than even a baby’s babble, escaped her lips. Then, with another louder click of his tongue, Wolfram muttered,

“Why the note… Ah, there was still Introduction to Psychology left.”

The carriage rumbled gently, just the right amount. Lily was about to fall deeper into sleep.

“When both of you stayed up all night, one looked like a pile of withered weeds, while the other looked even more energized. Strange, isn’t it?”

‘This guy, seriously…’

“Did you know? His Grace didn’t just prepare Introduction to Psychology. He had two more books ready as well.”

It was a quiet murmur, like a lullaby. But when she heard his name, Lily felt like she could wake up at any moment.

She let her body relax with the carriage’s movement, hoping Wolfram would keep talking.

“Honestly, I wanted to tell him to take it easy. But what can you do? He insisted. Men in love always do pointless things. He looked more satisfied than he did even after a military victory.”

Wolfram clicked his tongue once more.

“If I knew he’d throw it all away, I should’ve tried to stop him at least once.”

With that, his murmuring stopped.

‘What a shame…’

Lily thought blankly, without realizing it.

‘Aiden, looking proud… I bet it was cute…’

Her unfiltered mind couldn’t recognize how shameless a thought it was. She was simply, sincerely disappointed.

Wolfram stayed quiet after that. With no more outside stimulation, her drifting mind finally fell into a full sleep.

 

 

 

 

*****

 

 

 

 

“Miss Dienta, please wake up. We’re almost there.”

Thanks to Wolfram waking her up at the right moment, Lily had time to check her face.
Just as he said, the carriage stopped shortly after. Outside, it was dim and dark.

“Make sure to follow closely.”

Before getting out, Wolfram spoke to Lily as if he were talking to a child.

‘Seriously, this guy—! Hmm? Since earlier? Hmmm…? I feel like he said something unpleasant before, too.’

The memory wasn’t clear.
It was like being wrapped in fog—just a vague sense of regret over missing something important lingered.

As soon as Lily stepped out of the carriage, she understood what Wolfram meant. She widened her eyes and looked around.

Even though it was still early evening, the light from chandeliers shining through the windows was dazzling. The sparkling glass and the grand exterior of the palace were so beautifully blended, it was hard to look away.

“Try not to stare too much,”

Wolfram said with a comment.

“Unless you want to become part of the spectacle.”

Lily kept her mouth shut and walked where he led her. As they climbed the steps, the sounds of chatter and music reached them—it was clear the banquet was in full swing.

Come to think of it, they hadn’t seen any other guests in dresses or tailcoats outside.

‘Did we arrive too late?’

While Lily wondered about this, Wolfram showed an invitation to the doorman. Recognizing his identity, the doorman’s expression changed as he spoke.

“Baron Burnett, you’re late. We’ve been expecting you. Is this the personal counselor of Duke Kashimir standing beside you?”

“She is.”

“The Duke experienced shortness of breath during the banquet. He is resting in a private room. Please head there directly.”