Damn! Damn! Chapter 6

The large white stone buildings maintained their classical style, and the decorative elements unique to the Neo-Baroque style, prominent on the building’s exterior and window frames, exuded a sense of luxury.

It was a scene that looked as if a utopia from a fantasy had been recreated in reality.

“Yvonne Lasch?”

Startled by the voice that interrupted his observation, Achim shut his parted mouth.

Beside him stood an elderly man wearing transparent, monocle-style glasses.

Achim nodded.

“Yes.”

The man turned and began to walk, leading the way. Achim checked his wig twice, as if to confirm it was still in place, and followed him.

He had fully changed into the maid uniform.

Standing in a hallway carpeted in red, Achim glanced at the maids standing in a row beside him. Judging by a quick look, they were all similar in height to him, or perhaps slightly shorter, just as the recruitment conditions had stated.

Just as Achim felt relieved that he wouldn’t stand out, he spotted a head of hair at the far end of the opposite row that barely reached his waist.

“I am Wolfgang Apel, the butler of this mansion.”

As the man’s voice echoed, Achim, who had been tilting his head, looked forward again.

After introducing himself briefly, Wolfgang recited the duties the house maids would be responsible for.

Achim nodded as if listening intently. He couldn’t afford to be on the bad side of the butler. Since he needed to sneak around the mansion, Achim was determined to be as invisible as possible.

However, as the man’s explanation dragged on, Achim felt the limits of his concentration. So boring. His focus drifted, and other thoughts began to nibble away at a corner of his mind.

A short while later, the butler suddenly stopped speaking. He bent his waist toward a certain direction, and everyone’s gaze turned that way.

“You have arrived, Mr. Michael.”

Achim did the same. When he heard the name and turned his head, he finally spotted the target of his operation.

After seeing Michael a moment later, Achim’s mouth fell open of its own accord.

Ironically, the first thought that crossed his mind upon seeing him was, The screen really doesn’t do him justice.

Standing well over 190 cm tall, Michael Bernhard commanded attention just by appearing. His blonde hair shone as if coated in honey, and his eyes, framed by long lashes, were a mysterious mix of gray and emerald that drew one’s gaze automatically.

His near-white skin went without saying, and his straight, high-bridged nose made his beautiful face look強 (strong). It was nothing short of miraculous.

Perhaps because of his striking features, Michael, who wore a perfectly fitted black suit without even a single button undone, exuded an air of asceticism.

He was truly a man for whom the phrase “flawless” was an understatement.

He was lost in admiration of the man’s face when, suddenly, Michael’s reddish lips curved pleasantly, and a voice flowed out.

“I look forward to working with you all.”

Achim was startled once more by the deep, resonant voice. Even his voice is great. What kind of perfect man is that? Is he even human?

His very existence was so astonishing that Achim couldn’t close his parted mouth.

Michael walked slowly from the opposite end of where Achim stood. As he scanned each maid, every one of them turned red in turn. It was like a sensor light that turned on whenever he walked past. They didn’t miss the chance to reveal their presence by shyly making eye contact.

Achim, unlike them, lowered his head. There was no benefit to having his face burned into Michael’s memory. Of course, Achim lowered his eyes just enough to look like he was showing respect without being too obvious.

It was when the tips of Michael’s shoes passed in front of his eyes. For some reason, the feet that Achim expected to walk right past him came to a halt in front of him.

“…”

As the silence persisted, Achim eventually looked up. Right before his eyes was a face so beautiful it looked like it had been meticulously crafted by the gods.

When their eyes met, Michael curved the corners of his eyes softly. Just as Achim gasped involuntarily, Michael opened his lips with a smile.

A moment later, Michael walked away, and Achim followed his retreating back with a vacant expression, only blinking after a long while.

—Pathetic.

Surprisingly, truly surprisingly, those were the words Michael had spoken soundlessly, with only the movement of his lips.

Achim stared at the end of the hallway where Michael had disappeared with an absurd expression.

That bastard…?

The maids, including Achim, were each assigned a room to stay in.

It was one of the conditions of employment: one must live and board at the mansion while working there.

Days off the mansion grounds were classified as “holidays,” and they could go out about once every ten days on a rotating basis, according to the dates specified by the housekeeper, who was the manager.

Achim looked around the dormitory.

Inside the room, a bed and a wardrobe were placed side-by-side against one wall, and a round walnut table with two chairs was set near the window.

It was spacious and comfortable for a servant’s room. Compared to his own home—his place of work—it was no different from a palace.

However, Achim was in no mood to feel impressed right now. It was because of the words Michael had tossed his way just a moment ago.

Did I hear that right? Like, ‘hashish’ or something…?

As Achim tried to infer words with similar pronunciations based on the movement of his lips, he shook his head. Why would he suddenly talk to me about drugs? If anything, “pathetic” fit the situation better.

No, would he really insult someone to their face like that? …Michael Bernhard?

—As expected of someone who leads a welfare organization, his character seems gentle too. ‘He is always kind and exudes a relaxed air.’ That’s something people who have actually met him often say.

Remembering Linus’s words, Achim shook his head again. Whatever he said, there was a high possibility he had misheard it. He didn’t know why, but maybe there was something Michael wanted to convey only to him, or if not that…

—I guess the bigger the better, right?

…No way?

Achim lowered his gaze. A flat chest came into his field of vision.

Should I have worn that godforsaken piece of cloth? He felt a belated sense of regret and rubbed his forehead irritably with his palm when, suddenly, he felt a tugging sensation on his collar, and Achim whipped his head around.

“…S-sorry…”

Curiously, the voice came from below. Achim dropped his gaze to follow the voice.

“I’m sorry…”

It was the maid who was sharing the room with him. She was also the girl who had been at the very end of the line on the hallway a moment ago.

For some reason, the girl was tearfully apologizing with a face full of terror. Even so, she was still clutching the hem of Achim’s skirt, so Achim asked with a bewildered look.

“What for?”

The girl sniffled.

“Y-you were angry…”

“…Me?”

When Achim asked in an absurd tone, the girl bit her lip and nodded. With only the top of her head showing, the girl fixed her eyes on the floor and spoke in a tearful voice.

“Because I’m sharing a room with you… that’s why you were angry, right?”

“…”

One of Achim’s eyebrows arched crookedly. Just as he was wondering why she would make such an assumption, the girl wiped her eyes with her thin arms along with a sound like a sob.

Surprised, Achim opened his eyes wide and plopped down.

“Why, why are you crying?”

Achim sat on his knees and waved his hands around in a panic. As he watched her with a perplexed expression, unable to do one thing or another, the girl sniffled loudly and then began to cry, her shoulders shaking.

Achim didn’t know what to do with the child who was suddenly bawling, so he just stared, momentarily stunned.

As her cheeks became soaked with tears, Achim, who had been watching, grabbed his own skirt. When he lifted the black fabric to wipe the girl’s tears, she flinched and pulled back, then slowly lifted her head.

Her round eyes were still full of tears, so Achim silently pressed the fabric against the corners of her eyes and cheeks to wipe them dry.

At the somewhat rough touch, the girl blinked her eyes alternately and then bowed her head politely.

“Thank you…”

Watching the girl who now seemed to have stopped crying, Achim let out a sigh of relief and rested his arms on his knees. It was a very slouchy posture, but he was unaware of it himself.

Achim watched the girl, who was still sniffling slightly, and asked tentatively:

“Why would you think that?”