‘I didn’t expect to be reminded of him while looking at such a young woman.’

Madam Saint said with a gentle smile.

“If you hadn’t helped me then, I might have foolishly swallowed back the vomit that came into my mouth and choked right there.”

“How can you say such a thing? That would never have happened.”

Deborah said firmly. But Madam Saint really thought so.

Swallowing back instead of spitting out when nauseous was Madam Saint’s bad habit. Because of this, she often suffered from choking.

There were two people who diligently scolded her for this bad habit of hers.

‘Him and this child.’

Perhaps Deborah had been saving Madam Saint not just on the day they first met, but throughout all the years they had spent together.

‘Though she wouldn’t admit it herself.’

With a languid smile, she said,

“I still can’t forget the taste of the mint tea and lemon ginger preserves you gave me. They were such a great help.”

“I’m glad I was of help, but anyone else would have gladly helped you too, Madam.”

“You always respond like that.”

Humility is a virtue. That’s probably a truth that won’t change even as times change. But in Madam Saint’s view, Deborah could afford to be a little more arrogant.

“It saddens me that you swallow wise words in your mouth while trying to be humble.”

“I’m not wise at all.”

“There you go again, again.”

Madam Saint frowned unnecessarily. Deborah gave an awkward smile.

“Anyway, as I said at first, I want you to stay here.”

Deborah knew Madam Saint would say that. Of course. She was the one who sent Deborah here.

Nevertheless, Deborah didn’t give up hope.

Thinking, ‘She’d be more open to dialogue than Zen, wouldn’t she?’

“Madam Saint. Thank you for viewing me favorably. But I’m a widow. How can a woman who hasn’t even taken off her mourning clothes be a lady’s maid? People’s eyes won’t be kind.”

“Deborah! Isn’t that the fifth time you’ve used that excuse?”

Madam Saint said with a kind smile. Deborah nodded.

“And every time I say this, you pretend not to hear, Madam.”

“My goodness, did I do that?”

Madam Saint put her hand on her cheek and laughed.

“Anyway, you gave in to my stubbornness and agreed to the interview.”

“Madam. I agreed to the interview because I thought I would be rejected anyway.”

“Oh, how honest. But you got accepted.”

“I don’t know why Mr. Baker made such a choice… But anyway, just because I was accepted doesn’t change the situation. I’m still not suitable to be a lady’s maid. You know that.”

Deborah said earnestly to Madam Saint.

“Madam. I don’t want to cause trouble for others. Especially someone who has a deep connection with you.”

“Hmm. Then think about it this way, Deborah.”

Madam Saint said as she put her teacup on the table.

“Is there a better choice than you?”

Caught off guard by the unexpected question, Deborah was momentarily speechless. But soon she recalled the crowd she had seen yesterday.

“Of course! Yesterday, there were so many women who were better than me both in appearance and refinement!”

“Hmm. Deborah. Not that kind of thing.”

Not that kind of thing? Deborah looked at Madam Saint with a bewildered expression for a moment.

Madam Saint, looking at Deborah with amusement, opened her mouth again.

“The daughter of Count Blaise, who is to become the lady of this house, grew up poor in the countryside. As a result, she not only lacks education but is also said to have a very weak personality.”

Deborah knew about that too. She might even know it better than Madam Saint, who was now talking about Dia’s flaws.

“For such a young lady, the social circles of the capital will be like a gathering of hungry dogs. She needs someone who can be a kind comfort to her.”

“There must be many people kinder than me.”

“Maybe so. But it’s not easy to find such a person with just one interview.”

Madam Saint was right. Even in the original story, they probably didn’t intentionally choose a bad lady’s maid. Yet Dia suffered the childish but certain humiliation of wearing unfashionable clothes and being insulted.

‘But, even so…’

Madam Saint didn’t miss Deborah’s moment of hesitation.

“My dear. You are a genuinely good person that I can vouch for. Someone who can sincerely care for others, such a good person. How many like you do you think there are in this era?”

This was truly a turbulent era. Never in all of history had industrial technology developed as rapidly as now.

In the blink of an eye, something moves forward, and at the same time, something becomes obsolete. That something could be an individual, or it could be a society.

People lived each day fiercely to survive in the current era. As a result, finding someone who could genuinely care for others in the current era was not an easy task.

“Deborah. I don’t think there’s a better choice for this job than you. Of course, I fully understand that you feel burdened. So I’d like to make this proposal, what do you think?”

Madam Saint continued speaking.

“Work for this family only until she truly becomes Mrs. Baker.”

“Pardon?”

Deborah inadvertently asked in a loud voice. She quickly covered her mouth, but still couldn’t shake off her bewilderment.

Until she becomes ‘Mrs. Baker’? In the original story, Dia got married as soon as she came to the capital, and she met the lady’s maid after the marriage.

“Hoho. Why? Does it seem like a long time when I put it that way? But it won’t take that long. At most, about a year?”

At most a year, she says. From Deborah’s perspective, knowing the original story, it was ‘as long as a year’.

Deborah’s hands began to sweat.

‘Fate has changed.’

And the initial setting of the story has changed. Why?

‘Could it be because of me?’

Deborah thought, inconspicuously clutching the hem of her skirt.

What on earth could she have done to change fate?

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t even begin to guess.

“So, Deborah. Please, couldn’t you stay by her side for just a little while? And then come back to me.”

Madam Saint’s voice was nothing but gentle, but Deborah felt as if she was being driven to the edge of a cliff.

Deborah couldn’t understand not only why fate had changed, but also why she had to be caught up in the largest flow of this world.

If she hadn’t known Dia and Zen’s story, she would have peacefully accepted Madam Saint’s request. But she knew the story. She knew how terrible this story was.

‘That’s why I don’t want to get involved…’

Deborah unconsciously frowned. It was because Dia’s bright face, which she had never even seen, vividly came to mind.

‘Yes. I know all too well that hell awaits her. Even knowing that…’

In the novel, Dia was constantly anxious from the moment she received Zen’s suggestion. But even so, she comforted herself that it would be okay, that her future would gradually move in a better direction.

‘Telling herself that her inevitable choice would be hope blooming in the midst of unhappiness.’

So Dia tried to suppress her anxiety and entered the Baker family, but unfortunately, Dia’s anxiety became reality.

Dia had been poor from the moment she was born and had lived a painful life because of it, but she was still someone who dreamed of happiness. But her future was full of unhappiness.

And no one here knew about Dia’s unhappiness. Except for Deborah, who had never even met Dia.

‘I didn’t want to get caught up in Dia and Zen’s unhappiness, no, honestly, I still don’t want to. But…’

Deborah felt suffocated by the disgust and guilt towards herself for immediately turning away from someone, citing the reason of not wanting to get caught up in unhappiness.

What cleared her airways was a small sense of responsibility.

Madam Saint, pleased with Deborah’s small nod, wore an elegant smile.

“Phew. I’m so relieved that you’ve agreed like this.”

“Madam, I say this because you’re overestimating me, but I won’t be of much help.”

“Hoho. There’s no need to feel such pressure.”

As Deborah looked into Madam Saint’s eyes, she spoke in a voice that was as warm as sunlight, yet as dignified as a lion.

“Deborah. Just in case, let me tell you this. You are my person. You must never forget that. No one in this mansion can treat you carelessly, and it’s the same outside. So you must always be confident.”

Deborah grumbled at Madam Saint, who had pushed her to the edge of a cliff while simultaneously reaching out a hand.

“I’m really grateful for your words, but I really don’t know. I feel like I’ll tarnish your honor.”

“No matter how much trouble you cause, you will never bring shame to me.”

Madam Saint said confidently. Deborah smiled awkwardly. Seeing right through her true feelings, Madam Saint shook her head and said playfully,

“My dear, how can such a young child have so little spirit?”

“My goodness, Madam Saint. A child? I’m twenty-eight years old.”

“Hoho. To me, you’re completely a baby.”

“I’m at an age where it wouldn’t be strange to have a young child?”

“What does that matter? To me, you’re just a child!”

Following Madam Saint’s faint laughter, Deborah also smiled a bit more comfortably.

Of course, it was still uncomfortable and anxious, but now it seemed impossible to avoid this storm. If so, there was only one thing for Deborah to do.

‘Stop the storm.’

It’s probably impossible for a human to stop a great fate. Moreover, Deborah didn’t have such great abilities. But it would be better than not trying at all.

‘By the way, what kind of relationship do Madam Saint and Zen have?’

Seeing Deborah lost in thought, Madam Saint asked.

“What are you thinking about so deeply again?”

Unable to say that she was thinking about what kind of relationship Madam Saint and Zen had, Deborah asked a different question.

“But Madam. Isn’t a lady’s maid someone who helps with grooming according to fashion trends, not someone who comforts?”

“Hoho. That’s right. You’ll become Lady Blaise’s dedicated maid from now on. Your workload might increase a bit, but it shouldn’t be a big problem for you. Right?”

“Madam…”

Madam Saint laughed loudly at Deborah, who was sending her a playfully reproachful look. Deborah liked her laughter too.