I Possessed As A Childcare Extra Chapter 10

There was something scarier than a ghost.

“Annie the maid.”

“Kyaaaaaah!”

Where in the world is there a master who appears without a sound right next to a maid cleaning the fireplace and scares her?

Thump, right here. My heart almost stopped! I thought I was dying again!

My name was called like a declaration of war, and I screamed loudly and fell on my butt.

“You started working when you were eight.”

Aeon kept talking as if he didn’t care whether I had almost died or not.

“Raised by the gamekeeper, Willian Carter.”

*gamekeeper is employed by a landowner or by a country estate, to prevent poaching, to rear and release game birds such as common pheasants and French partridge, eradicate pests, encourage and manage wild red grouse, and to control predators such as weasels, to manage habitats to suit game, and to monitor the health of the game.*

“Huff, huff… y-yes…”

I only gasped for breath and then belatedly lay flat on the ground.

“You weren’t adopted.”

In a medieval-style society, a commoner needs the lord’s permission to leave official documents.

Uncle Will probably wanted permission, but Aeon, who wasn’t a good lord, didn’t open the audience hall. He didn’t even stay connected to the estate until the young lady appeared.

Instead of waiting for paperwork to be processed, it was better to just declare, “Annie is our daughter now!”

A guy who probably won’t even manage the estate properly only knows how to use his mouth.

“Still, he raised me like his real daughter.”

“I heard Edel keeps you close.”

Aeon threw that out as if he didn’t care. If it’s like this, why did he investigate me at all?

“Yes, I’m very grateful…”

From the moment I got tied up with the young lady, I expected this kind of thing.

It wasn’t the first time. After trial and error, I even prepared answers.

If he asks, ‘What’s your secret?’ → ‘I don’t know either.’

Even if he says, ‘You can tell me anything,’ → ‘I don’t know.’

Anyway, the answer is always, ‘I really don’t know.’

If a bundle of money were to fly at me with the classic rich father-in-law line, ‘Stay away from my daughter,’ I’d say, ‘Oh my, you didn’t have to.’

But it was neither.

“I’ll be watching you.”

After watching me all this time, now you say that. Is that it? Kind of a shame about the money bundle, though.

The moment I felt relieved, thinking he was at least more straightforward than his son—

“If my daughter cries in front of you again.”

A heavy voice pressed against the back of my head.

“Make. Sure. You comfort her.”

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

Even after Aeon left, I stayed bowed for a long while.

…Terrifying.

Was that really just words? Did he put sword energy in it or something? I can’t even move.

If I make Edel cry just one more time, he won’t leave me alone… right?

Narkis was nothing compared to him. If Aeon had spilled tea, like Holly said, he might have fainted.

No, he wouldn’t have even opened his mouth before that. Not even to beg for his life—he would’ve just trembled like when he was dragged to the office.

Will Narkis grow up like that too? I really shouldn’t have messed with him.

They say the best time to regret something is as soon as possible. I should run before it’s too late.

“Hey.”

A voice full of annoyance interrupted my resolve.

A pair of boots, much smaller than Aeon’s, stood crookedly in front of me.

Right, I wondered why you hadn’t shown up yet.

“You’re Annie, right?”

“Yes, young master.”

The second son of the Tricen family. A twelve-year-old squad leader.

As soon as I stood up to greet Leoni Tricen, a grumbling voice shot at me.

“Why are you getting up? You bowed to my father!”

That’s because your father is scarier than you. That bow is usually only for emperors.

Still… if he wants me to bow, I guess I have to bow.

As I bent my knees again, my legs tingled and gave out.

“Aah!”

“Hey, watch it!”

Leoni grabbed my forearm and snapped.

“If your legs hurt, you should say they hurt!”

“…Sor—”

“Stop, don’t apologize!”

“…Tha—”

“I said stop!”

What is wrong with the men in this family?

Leoni, who was about a head shorter than me, was easy to see even with his head lowered.

Jet-black hair with the minimum amount of grooming. His attendant must’ve struggled to get him to sit still.

His red eyes glared at me. They were bright and kid-like, but the slightly upturned corners looked sharp.

His tiny face had features that were surprisingly cute, unlike his rough behavior.

Let go of my arm already. It’s going to bruise.

As soon as I complained in my head, Leoni flung my arm away.

“You!”

“Ack.”

“What? Did that hurt?”

He’s the one who hurt me, and he’s glaring? It hurt a lot, but I shook my head.

“It didn’t.”

“Let me see!”

I wish he’d just say what he needs to say. He was surprisingly nosy—very different from his father.

The place he grabbed was just below my elbow, and maid uniforms always had long sleeves.

“Do you want me to roll up my sleeve?”

“Yes!”

What a sight this was… but I unbuttoned the sleeve.

If he says roll it up, I roll it up.

Just as I expected, it was red and swollen. Definitely going to bruise.

“I told you to say it if it hurts!”

“…Sor—”

“Argh, you’re so annoying!”

Leoni yelled and pulled something from his inner pocket.

“Put this on!”

It was a small box. I took it by reflex and opened the lid. Inside was a yellow ointment.

If he says apply it, I apply it.

Its texture and absorption were better than I expected. Medieval technology, huh.

Now I can probably greet him properly?

“…Tha—”

“Stop saying that!”

Doesn’t yelling every sentence make his throat hurt?

Before I could even close the lid, Leoni snatched the box back and finally got to the point.

“Anyway, you! Edel asks for you every day, right?!”

That’s the Tricen way.

“Not every day.”

“Then?”

“Maybe once every two days…”

“That is every day!”

Just endure it. If I smack him, I’ll be the one who breaks.

“A-ahem, um… about Edel…”

He took his sweet time. I was ready for whatever he said. I had gathered enough big data.

‘What’s your secret?!’

‘Stay away from my sister!’

‘If you make her cry again, you’re dead!’

Even if he went off-script, it didn’t matter. He wasn’t Aeon—he was Leoni.

Leoni put his hands on his hips and declared proudly:

“Tell her Leoni oppa likes tea too!”

“Ah…”

“Ah, you got that?!”

“Yes, I’ll tell her.”

“If you don’t, you’re in trouble!”

He pointed at me, got his confirmation, and ran off. With ears bright red. I should add that to the big data.

Now that Aeon and Leoni have come by, the only one left is…

I hadn’t run into Narkis since that day. Only from a distance or through a window.

Sometimes I felt a gaze, but when I turned, no one was there. I had a feeling it was Narkis, but I ignored it.

Being left alone wasn’t a good sign. It felt like standing clueless in the center of a storm, not knowing when I’d get swept in.

Even a slip of the tongue could get me kicked out, and I even ran away without being told I could leave.

Why is Narkis leaving me alone?

 

 

****

 

 

9 p.m., lights-out time.

Holly was tense, despite her feeling good about having swapped patrol areas for me.

“Annie, if you hear even the slightest strange sound, run straight away. Got it?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“I’m right upstairs, so don’t worry. I’ll wait until you come back! Okay?”

“Wow, so reliable.”

“I said, okay?!”

“Alright, alright.”

I answered sincerely, but Holly still didn’t seem satisfied.

All her ghost-prevention tips spilled out like a chant, and the conclusion was always the same: Run for your life.

After hearing the same warning about ten times, I finally told her the nickname that floated around among the servants like a heroic tale.

“Holly, I’m Annie, the girl who ‘survived a one-on-one with the master.’”

“That’s… true, but…!”

Leaving the speechless Holly behind, I walked into the hallway behind the main building. Since Holly was in charge of the second floor back area, she had to go upstairs.

“See you upstairs.”

“Annieee…! You must come back alivveee…!”

Her teary voice echoed behind me.

Soon, only my footsteps and the clinking of my lantern could be heard.

Moonmist Castle had a rectangular structure.

It was split in half: the front for the Tricen family, the back for the servants’ living area.

Compared to the front, the back was simple—only the essentials, with minimal decoration.

Among them, the first floor was the narrowest and darkest part of the whole castle. Maybe because the corridor stretched deep into the most remote areas.

Aside from the storage rooms near the entrance, most of the rooms were hardly used. They were restricted areas.

Rumors said they were filled with barbaric torture devices, connected to underground prisons, or sealed cursed objects or monsters.

In short, the first floor behind the main building was the breeding ground of all rumors. Every strange event in Moonmist Castle happened here.

The ghost that appeared every summer was one of them.

Creeeeak.

As I used the pole with the cover to put out the first lantern, a scratching sound came from the wall. Did mice show up again?

Northern mice, raised in harsh conditions, were nothing like mice. Their vicious eyes and bulked-up bodies should’ve classified them as monsters.

Still, I couldn’t help feeling sorry for them. They needed to leave before spring came.

Every spring cleaning day, the family’s magicians would drive out the mice. Using some master-level secret magic or whatever. Just like the Pied Piper.

A few years ago, when I witnessed the scene… the line of mice piled into a hill, and I couldn’t hold back from running away.

Holly asked what was so surprising. Had Annie always liked the mouse-clearing?

Every spring, I just prayed for the poor things. Who in a medieval-style romance novel bothered to accurately recreate medieval European mice?

And the castle not having electric lights was ridiculous too. They could drive out mice with magic, but they still had to light and extinguish fire manually?

Do they not have magic stones? Every other place seems to use them just fine.

Like, “Ta-da! With this all-purpose magic stone, you can light fires, control indoor temperature, use lamps and heating, and enjoy all sorts of modern conveniences!” Something like that? No?

So it is medieval-style… but why only when it’s inconvenient?

Sure, the castle did have warmth enchantments. But it wasn’t as warm as a boiler and broke at least once every winter.

Then you had to feel the northern winter with your whole body and chant like a dying person:

‘Winter is coming…’

It wasn’t that winter was coming—it had already descended on us. All you could do was pray you didn’t freeze to death. It was a matter of survival, not comfort.