It was not much of a victory for the young lady, but it made her blissful to see the abashment in her bully's gaze. There were only a few chances for Zarya to stand up for herself. So when she encountered one of them, there was no way she would let go.
Finally, one of the maids in the circle spoke up. Being the most reasonable, she turned towards Helga and shook her head.
"Helga, just apologize. You need to get going within the minute since your break is over. The Young Master's visitors are about to arrive." The aforementioned maid suggested, urging her acquaintance further through her stare.
The maid's words pulled back Helga's reason. Though she was reluctant to concede at first, she eventually did. Anyhow, the numbing pain on her wrist pulled her pride down, compelling the woman to say her apologies.
"A-alright! I'm sorry, okay?! Happy?!"
With the lingering aggressiveness, Helga's request for forgiveness barely passed as one. Even so, Zarya couldn't ask for more. She immediately released Helga's arm, leaving a thick mark of reddening on her superior's fair skin.
The senior maid looked at her wrist, clicking her tongue once she noticed the slight bruising on it. Helga began massaging her wrist as she lifted her head to give the young lady a dirty look. However, she flinched once their eyes met.
"You, aren't your eyes hazelnut in color? Why is it golden now?" Helga asked, her eyebrows knitted deeply.
Upon hearing the word golden, Zarya urgently shut her eyes. Before she tried to open them again, she was blinded by the morning sunlight passing through the windows.
"Golden? I don't know what you mean. Maybe you're hallucinating?" She replied while blinking several times to get her vision back.
The second that the young lady opened her eyes, Helga approached her and held her shoulders.
Staring intently into Zarya's eyes, the senior maid spoke in confusion, "Huh? It's back to normal. What is happening?"
From across the room, their companions were wondering why Helga hadn't taken her leave. One of the maids took it upon herself to remind the woman.
"Helga, the grand parlor should be prepared before the young master comes home.You'll be scolded by the Head Maid if she sees you're not preparing with the others. You need to hurry!" The maid stressed on the importance of the matter, causing Helga to snap out of her musing.
She scowled at Zarya once more as she let go.
"I'm not done with you."
Those were Helga's last words before she turned her back against the lady. In less than no time, the Maid was out of the servant's parlor.
Helga hadn't even taken a few steps past the open doorway when she lowered her head hastily.
The sudden politeness of the woman earned the interest of Zarya. Luckily for her, ahead of uttering a query, she found her answer in the procession of a handful of young aristocratic men.
Thus and so, she locked eyes with the leader of the pack, who was the heir to the Romanoff Dukedom.
Little did Zarya know, her eyes had turned into luminous golden orbs yet again.
Ius Romanoff halted his steps, flickering his eyelids out of curiosity.
"What was that? Did I just see...?" He muttered under his breath, creases appearing on his forehead as he contemplated.
The entire procession was impeded by Ius' acting up all of a sudden, much to the bewilderment of his peers. They all stared at Ius as if he had done something atrocious.
"Ius, what seems to be the problem? Are you in pain?" Fluger Schertrude, an heir to a Count's household, spoke of his query to the young man.
However, he was ignored by Ius. The latter immediately retraced his steps and stopped afore the opening of the parlor.
He entered the parlor and surveyed its entirety. Since the servants were surprised by his abrupt arrival, they weren't able to bow their heads in time, allowing Ius to pore over their countenances.
The young man couldn't remember the face of the lady he had taken an interest in. Hence, he began questioning the servants who were inside.
"Who was the maid standing by the door earlier?" He asked as he stared at a maid directly in the eyes.
It was better for him to designate someone to answer his question. Most often than not, the servants were frightened of talking to him.
The chosen maid hurriedly lowered her gaze to avoid displaying further disrespect towards their master. Before responding, she pondered over the right words to say.
"I believe it's Helga, Young Master." The maid replied as she repeatedly glanced at the other maids.
It was clear in her demeanor that she wanted to escape the interrogation. Nevertheless, she should never turn to the other maids for help. It would only serve to infuriate Ius.
"I see. Then, is she a human?" The young man dished out another question.
The maid's eyebrows furrowed, albeit slightly, puzzled on why the person who's supposed to be the most aware of the mansion's rules was asking such a question.
"Young Master, the number one qualification for hiring a servant in the Romanoff Household is that one needs to be a human. It is for the reason that the demi-humans and shifters have unpredictable heat cycles that would hinder them in doing their jobs. Helga is definitely a human." The maid explained in detail.
"Very well, pardon my disturbance," Ius uttered ahead of exiting the parlor.
As he stepped outside, Ius brought his hand to his chin and started recalling what he had seen.
'I could swear that I beheld golden eyes. Only a handful of pure breed shifters, such as the wolf clan, have this specific luminescence in their orbs.' He then turned his attention towards the window, 'Is it because of the sun? Can the sun rays change one's eye color to that degree?'
He soon shook his head, dismissing the occurrence as a mere hallucination on his part.