IWIAHC Chapter 1

1. The Haunted Castle and the Housemaid

"The main building? You want me to take charge of the main building?"

Lily was horrified.

"You're joking, right?"

"Am I on joking terms with you?"

The head maid's glare was sharp. Sensing that further impertinence would be dangerous, Lily immediately changed her tune.

"No, it's not that..."

She shook her head vigorously, and her simply braided hair swung behind her back. It was a light brown color close to orange.

"But Head Maid, you know what they say about the main building... don't you?"

Despite her attempt at groveling caution, the head maid's expression soured considerably.

"How dare you spread rumors in a place like this?"

The head maid had worked at the ducal castle for many years and treated her employer's honor as if it were her own. Naturally, bringing up that topic in front of such a person would earn a sharp rebuke.

However, now that she was being pushed into a position as a maid in the main building, Lily had no choice.

"It's not a rumor! Everyone who worked there really experienced it!"

"Dienta!"

The head maid's voice rose even higher.

"So you're saying there really is a ghost haunting the noble House of Casimir? Is that what you want to tell me?"

Lily wanted to say, 'Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying!' but she wasn't quite that brave. She merely mumbled vaguely, "But still..."

The head maid sighed and pressed her forehead. Lily wanted to sigh just as much.

'Marie said it was real! Real, really real!'

Marie was her close friend—they'd bonded over their similar-sounding names and shared status as lowly maids.

Unfortunately, Marie had been assigned to the main building a few days ago and was still working there. After her very first shift, she'd said this:

'Then suddenly... bang! The door flew open. There definitely wasn't anyone inside, and all the windows were closed tight—not even a breeze could get through. So whose doing was it? The ghost's, obviously!'

Evidence of the ghost haunting the main building overflowed beyond Marie's testimony. Just before Marie, the previous worker had quit after being injured by a mysteriously shattered window.

Beyond that, books would pull themselves from shelves and fall, or chairs would rattle on their own—these things happened constantly.

Lily Dienta absolutely detested anything supernatural. She'd suffered nightmares just from hearing Marie's stories.

She clasped her hands together and pleaded earnestly.

"Please, Head Maid. I'll clean the stables instead. I'll scrub every toilet in the castle by myself. You know cleaning is my specialty. So please don't send me to the main building. Please?"

"That's right. Cleaning is your specialty."

Color returned to Lily's face, only to vanish immediately at the next words.

"Which is why you'll handle the cleaning in the main building."

"Head Maid!"

"You just need to air it out regularly and wipe away some dust. Why would you volunteer for unpleasant work when this is so easy?"

Because there's a ghost!

Though she didn't voice this answer, her insolent expression conveyed it perfectly well.

The head maid stared Lily down intently.

'Oh no... was that too cheeky?'

A chill ran down Lily's neck.

Obviously, she shouldn't have acted so impudently toward the head maid. The head maid held every maid's welfare in the palm of her hand. Getting on her bad side would lead nowhere good.

'If she says it one more time, I'll just have to agree.'

Lily swallowed hard.

"Hah..."

The head maid looked up at the ceiling and exhaled lengthily.

"Lily Dienta."

"Yes, Head Maid."

"Twenty percent."

The head maid held up two fingers.

"I'll give you twenty percent more in wages. As compensation for doing such easy cleaning work. And one paid day off per month. You said your grandmother lives nearby, didn't you? It would be nice to visit her."

Lily's eyes blinked rapidly.

"Well? Do you still refuse? If so, I'll have no choice but to find someone else..."

"I'll do it! I really want to clean the main building!"

Her about-face was swift. For a lowly maid with no hope of advancement, the additional income was too tempting to refuse. She could practically hear coins jingling in her ears.

"Good. I don't intend to burden you for long. Just do your best until His Grace awakens. After that, I'll return you to your original position."

"Yes, Head Maid."

Right. Think positively. As the head maid said, she wouldn't have much to do.

With the duke's unconscious state stretching past three weeks, very few people visited the castle anymore. Only part of the main building remained open, and even then, the head maid personally managed the floor where the duke stayed.

In other words, this was an excellent position that only a fool would pass up. She just needed to steel her nerves and ignore the ghost.

"Ah, remember one thing."

Angela spoke as if she'd just recalled it.

"I dislike seeing the Casimir name brandished about in people's mouths over trivial matters."

The moment Angela began, Lily realized she absolutely had to follow this instruction.

"If something breaks, report that it needs repair. If you're injured, see the doctor. Especially now when His Grace is unwell, there's no need to add pointless gossip to the situation. Isn't that right?"

"Yes, yes. That's right."

"I'm entrusting this to you precisely because you usually hate even hearing such stories, let alone speaking of them."

"Yes, Head Maid. I'll keep that in mind."

'Assigned to the ghost's house because I hate ghosts...' While Lily absorbed the world's fundamental unfairness, Angela waved her hand dismissively. The conversation was over.

After leaving the head maid's office, Lily stood in the corridor and heaved a great sigh.

At any rate, this was an opportunity. Even if she worked for another ten years, her wages would never increase this much.

Temporary or not, it didn't matter. Combined with her savings, she could afford to take her grandmother out for a nice meal at New Year's, or buy her a new pair of shoes as a gift.

'Right, I'll just close my eyes and do it. I can do this! I'm not scared...'

Lily prayed fervently that her greed would triumph over her fear.

The next day, Lily gathered supplies from the main building's storage closet and began cleaning from the first floor.

The interior of the main building was silent. Though she felt anxious that the ghost might cause trouble at any moment, the continuing peace gradually put her at ease.

Moreover, the work difficulty was absurdly easy. Without worrying about encountering nobles, she moved freely, and the first-floor cleaning was finished in no time.

Lily gathered her tools with a bright face.

'I can do this! I haven't even met the ghost!'

Hope blossomed vigorously. It seemed the head maid had been right after all.

The ghost was all rumor. The castle was old and furniture kept breaking, which people linked to the duke's illness and let their imaginations run wild.

Lily climbed to the second floor with a hopeful heart. However, the moment she laid eyes on the second-floor corridor, she immediately turned around and descended.

An unreal form stood by the window.

'That's a ghost!'

Lily's eyes widened as if they might pop out.

'Why? Why when I'm working? No one has ever actually seen the ghost before!'

Stories about the ghost's activities overflowed, but not a single person had actually laid eyes on the ghost itself. Lily had unconsciously assumed it would be the same during her shifts.

But this changed everything. She could clean up unexpected messes, but directly encountering a ghost was a problem of an entirely different dimension.

Lily spent a long moment taking deep breaths. She rubbed her eyes with both hands.

Perhaps she'd seen wrong? Her worries had become excessive, and she might have mistaken a pillar or statue for something else.

Holding onto a thread of hope, she cautiously peeked her head out.

The result remained unchanged. A translucent being with only light and shadow but no color was gazing out the window.

She immediately pulled her head back in.

'God Almighty, goodness gracious. I knew it. I knew there was a ghost!'

Dizziness swept over her with the encroaching terror.

"R-right. I didn't finish cleaning the first floor. H-how careless of m..."

Lily muttered needlessly to herself and hurried down the stairs in a fluster.

She positioned herself at the window farthest from the staircase. Then, while wielding her feather duster, she replayed the scene she'd just witnessed.

The ghost had the form of a tall noble gentleman. Since she'd been quite far away, she hadn't seen clearly, but the impression had been remarkably familiar.

Which was very strange. A lowly maid couldn't possibly be familiar with any noble.

However, whether she was acquainted with the ghost or not wasn't particularly important. Lily sank into worry.

'What do I do about cleaning the second floor?'

She wanted to flee the main building immediately, but that was out of the question. If she showed fickleness on her very first day after transferring, the head maid would certainly mark her.

Suddenly, her grandmother's teaching came to mind.

'Lily, when that happens, just pretend you don't see it, don't hear it, and don't speak to it. Pass by as if you haven't noticed. Not getting involved is the best way to handle it.'

Her grandmother had been rather interested in ghost stories and supernatural matters. She'd told Lily related stories almost every day.

At the time, Lily had cried miserably from fear, but as time passed, it all proved useful.

Lily thanked her grandmother mentally and prepared herself to attempt the second floor.

"All right... pretend I don't see it, pretend I don't see it..."

[What are you pretending not to see?]

"Eeeep!"

Lily squeezed her eyes shut. Her legs gave out and she plopped straight down onto the floor. The feather duster rolled across the ground.

[You can see me...]

A voice resonated inside her head. Unlike normal speech, it carried an somehow unreal vibration.

[Can't you?]