Returning to the Blackwood estate after several months for winter break felt more familiar to me than the home I lived in as Lilith or even the one from my past life. On the first night back, I found myself unable to fall asleep and eventually woke up a bit earlier than usual.

“…….”

The faint light from the time stone showed a 4, which meant it was around 3:30 AM. Considering that we had only arrived late last night, had a quick meal, washed up, and gone to bed, I hadn’t even slept for three hours.

‘…I can’t sleep.’

Was it because I had napped while resting on Ethan’s lap in the carriage? Or perhaps my body wasn’t used to the unfamiliar bed after such a long time? Or maybe… it was simply because the familiar warmth wasn’t next to me.

I hoped it wasn’t the last reason. If I became too accustomed to having Ethan by my side every night, it would only make it harder when the time came for me to leave this estate.

Of course, I didn’t necessarily have to leave the Blackwood estate, even if I didn’t marry Ethan, but staying here wouldn’t do me any good. After all, what would be the point of remaining as a maid only to witness Ethan and his future wife indulging in their affection? That would surely mess with my head.

It would be best to follow through with the contract I made with Harold and leave once my four years at the academy were over, collecting my severance and moving far away.

“Ugh, ugh…”

Once I had woken up, there was no point in staying in bed, so I decided to start my day early. Back when I was a regular maid, waking up at 4 or 5 AM was common, so this was just a bit earlier than that.

After brushing my hair, putting on my maid uniform, and fastening my headpiece, I quietly left the personal maid’s waiting room, careful not to disturb Ethan, who was sleeping in the adjacent room.

‘…Since I’m already awake, maybe I’ll take a walk.’

As a personal maid, I couldn’t wander too far, but a stroll around the estate grounds would be fine. With that thought, I descended the stairs and made my way to the first-floor lobby, where I spotted Dietmeyer bustling about early in the morning.

“Lilith?”

“Good morning, Head Butler Destroy.”

“…It’s Dietmeyer Colin Evercroft. It’s been a while since I’ve heard you call me that.”

“Yes, I know. I just thought I’d tease you a bit since it’s been a while.”

“……?”

Dietmeyer’s puzzled expression briefly registered on his face before he quickly regained his composure and said something that was neither a compliment nor an insult.

“You’ve truly become a proper young lady, Lilith.”

“…Is that supposed to be a compliment, Head Butler?”

“In another sense, it means you’ve become more like a noblewoman, so I suppose it’s not an insult.”

The way Dietmeyer responded so naturally with a calm expression reminded me why he was the head butler. As I quietly reflected on the meaning behind his words about becoming a ‘proper young lady,’ Dietmeyer elaborated on what he had just said.

“Becoming more like a noblewoman is a good thing, Lilith. While I greatly appreciate your dedication as a maid, in the future, it would be unsuitable for you to act like a servant forever.”

“…Pardon?”

“What I mean is, in a few years, you’ll find yourself in a position where maid duties will no longer be your concern... Ah, ahem.”

“What exactly do you mean by that, Head Butler?”

“Never mind. Forget I said anything, Lilith.”

“…….”

Dietmeyer coughed awkwardly and trailed off, leaving me feeling frustrated and curious. His manner of speaking was one of those infuriating styles that made you want to pry further.

“Head Butler? Why do you leave me hanging like that and stop mid-sentence?”

“…I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lilith.”

“You just told me I’d be in a different position from maid duties in a few years. Are you implying there’s some planned transfer for me?”

“I’m busy, so I’ll excuse myself for now. Let’s talk later, Lilith.”

“Wait, hold on….”

Before I could catch him, Dietmeyer quickly darted up the stairs, disappearing onto another floor. As a mere maid, I had no way to chase after the head butler, who, despite my noble status, still outranked me in the household.

Left with nothing but questions, I pondered over the meaning behind his final words.

‘Does he know I plan to leave the estate in two years?’

That was the only plausible explanation. It wasn’t as though I had any plans to be promoted to a higher position like head maid. The real mystery was how he had found out about my plan to leave after graduation. It was something I hadn’t even mentioned to Isabelle or Katarina, only something I had decided on my own.

Then again, there was no use speculating. The head butler probably had a good sense of how long his staff planned to stay in the estate.

The best way to clear my mind of such thoughts—and the lingering drowsiness—was to go for a walk.

-Whiiiing.

“Hoo…”

The cold, early-winter air wrapped around me, but since I was wearing my winter maid uniform, it wasn’t too bad. Plus, with a little magic coursing through my body, I could easily withstand the chill.

Moving my body to warm up, I leisurely strolled around the Blackwood estate, finding the brisk air refreshing enough to wake me up.

‘Now that I think about it…’

If I had faithfully fulfilled my original debt-maid contract, I wouldn’t even be here by now.

It had been about eight years since I first arrived at this estate, and seven years since I regained my memories of my past life.

Of course, I could have chosen to stay and work even after paying off my debt, just as I was doing now. But if Ethan had remained the same as he was seven years ago, I would’ve fled from this estate the moment my contract ended, without looking back.

But the reason I stayed was because Ethan had changed so much—so much so that it made me feel a strange sense of accomplishment. After all, the most positive change I had made in this world was none other than Ethan himself.

‘If it weren’t for me, Ethan would be preparing to fight the warrior who would invade this estate during winter break.’

If the warrior had attacked the estate as he did in the original story, would Ethan and I be able to defeat him together?

In the original, Ethan could sometimes hold his own in a duel with the warrior, so it wasn’t entirely impossible. And if I supported Ethan with buffs and assists, we’d likely be able to subdue him. But now, this was all just idle speculation.

As I continued walking, having circled about three-quarters of the estate, I spotted a familiar figure wielding a sword in the training yard. The silhouette belonged to the second most familiar man in my life in this world.

-Swish! Swish! Swish!

“Hm?”

The sharp sound of sword strikes, almost like the whistling of the winter wind, belonged to none other than Harold. As expected of a Sword Master, he immediately sensed my presence as I approached, turning to look at me.

“Hm, it’s you.”

“Did you sleep well, Master?”

“You’re up early. Are you here to train?”

…As if. I wasn’t a swordsman.

Misinterpreting my early morning stroll as a sign that I wanted to train, Harold—ever the Sword Master—asked, but I shook my head slowly.

“I woke up a bit earlier than usual and thought I’d take a walk, Master.”

“I see. If you had come to train, I was about to ask you to spar with me.”

“Thank you for the offer, but you know my skills are far below yours, Master.”

Indeed, throughout the entire last semester, I hadn’t won a single match against Harold in his swordsmanship class.

Of course, the curriculum had become much harder than last year. The secret tricks I had used before wouldn’t work twice. Besides, a longsword had significant advantages over a dagger in many aspects, so even if Harold fought with one hand, I still couldn’t guarantee victory.

“That’s true. But what if we sparred with me using only one hand?”

“…Pardon?”

“If you use both hands and I use one, that should make for a decent handicap. What do you think?”

“No matter what, I doubt I could win, even with you using one hand, Master…”

“If you manage to score even one point against my one-handed sword, I’ll raise your last semester’s grade from a C+ to a B+.”

“Please prepare yourself, Master. No backing out now.”

“I must say, I admire your attitude.”

And so, rather unexpectedly, a morning sparring session with Harold began.

Starting at four in the morning, our duel lasted nearly an hour. The result of my sparring with the Sword Master, in exchange for a grade increase, was…

“Cough! Cough, cough!”

The reason I spent the entire next day bedridden.