Author's Note:
I'm going to write chapter 3 onwards with a third person's point-of-view for convenience's sake.
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Ann-who-turned-into-Arlea, finally experienced a luxurious life for the first time. Even the bed she was sleeping in was so comfy that Ann thought she snored... there seemed to be a trail of saliva left on the corner of her mouth...
Thankfully, since she was told to take care of everything on her own, nobody saw her sorry state. Ann also managed to wake up early—she guess she was on time?—thanks to her habit of sleeping for only a few hours and still feeling refreshed when she woke up, a habit she picked up as a corporate slave.
But Ann was no longer a corporate slave that needed to rush up in the morning, so she figured she would open the window to get some fresh air. Therefore, she opened the window as she looked at the scenery outside. The sky was clear. The air was so fresh that Ann inhaled lots of them as she stretched her body.
"Psst, psst."
Suddenly, Ann heard the voice of someone whispering—it was coming from below.
Ann forgot that her room was on the second floor and she completely didn't know that this window enabled her to view the residence's garden. There were several maids already working in the garden, and they seemed to steal a few glances at her as they whispered.
...Are they gossiping about me so early in the morning?
Ann tilted her head as she looked at the gossiping maids without hiding anything. Ann was unable to hear what they were talking about, but at least she could guilt-trip them with her innocent staring.
She picked up this habit when going out to eat after work with her colleagues, especially with Lori. Whenever the restaurant was packed, they would find some couples or some people who were so ignorant that there were other people who wanted to eat after them—as they leisurely chatted with empty glasses and plates. Lori and Ann used to stare at them while they were standing. Eventually, the other customers came to realize the two girls' intense staring and moved.
Thinking that it would take a long time for the maids below to notice her, Ann put her hand casually on the window's frame as she propped her cheek with it.
"EEKH!"
Contrary to Ann's expectations, the maids immediately went away after they let out such a weird voice. They bowed very deeply before they ran to who-knows-where.
Ann blinked rapidly. Did something just happen?
Oh well, she should probably take a bath now and go eat her breakfast.
She didn't know that the maids were frightened when they spotted Ann looking at them. What Ann thought to be 'innocent staring' turned out to be such deadly gaze!!
Yesterday, Ann casually grabbed any of the sleeping clothes available. She hadn't really paid attention to the kind of clothes Ann—or Arlea—possessed. It was time to see how much wealth she actually amassed. Ann finally had a wardrobe full of various clothes, as opposed to her time as a struggling corporate slave.
...To be honest, she thought that it was also her fault for spending the hard-earned money for games. Despite the fact that Ann didn't have enough time to play them all. You could say that hoarding games was more or less Ann's hobby. After testing them out and playing prologues, they usually collected dust at the corner of her wardrobe... except for some that she played zealously during what little free time she had.
With full expectations, Ann opened the wardrobe and examined the clothes.
HOLY FEATHER! I MEAN—WHY IS THIS DRESS MADE UP FEATHER THAT'S SO DASHINGLY WHITE?
AND WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH THIS DRESS' DESIGN?!
The frills! Gods!! I am not cosplaying!!
ALSO WHAT IS THIS?
This dress looks like it would make me turn into a walking cake! Cake as in the tall wedding cakes, you know?
AND THIS!!
Are you wearing this to show off the gems embedded in the dress? Are you a gem exhibitionist?!
OH MY GOD!
Despite having a wardrobe packed with dresses, Ann soon found out that she couldn't fulfill her dream of changing clothes everyday—as she found most of the clothes were... outrageous or too gaudy that she would be an easy target to kidnap.
...Is this just how noble women here are supposed to dress??
Ann thought. However, she just... couldn't bring herself to wear them, even if the other nobles would wear them with happiness.
Ann would bury herself in the ground out of shame if she were forced to wear them. Ann was never a shameless woman after all.
She clearly didn't realize that her behavior of staring at others was the perfect example of being shameless...
Eventually, Ann gathered a few of the dresses that were still 'modest' in her opinion, and casually picked one of them to wear in the downtown outing today.
Then, Ann leisurely took a bath before a knock to her door was heard.
"Arlea-sama, breakfast is ready...," the maid's voice could be heard.
"Coming~," she casually answered. Ann had no idea that the maid's body jumped up in surprise when she heard Ann's casual answer. Apparently, the old Arlea never said that with such a tone.
When Ann went to the dining room, again, she saw a table prepared with food... for one.
"Allen isn't eating his breakfast?" She immediately asked the maids.
"Uhm, Allen-sama has already gone to work..."
"Hee, so early. How diligent," Ann said as she was reminded of her life as a corporate slave.
Again, her casual words were interpreted differently by the maids as they thought she was being sarcastic.
The menu for her breakfast was more like a typical Western breakfast. Bread, egg, meat, lettuce... Nevertheless, they looked appetizing.
For some reason, the maids were looking at Ann with alert on their faces.
Were they nervous I wouldn't like the food? Nonsense, I, this corporate slave, was so glad for this free food that looked so appetizing!
But... Eating them like this would be a trouble. It would be inconvenient.
Ann thought as she stood up again from her chair to go to the kitchen.
"Arlea-sama, excuse me, what might be the problem? What do you want to eat?" A maid immediately chased after her in panic. She was on the brink of crying.
Please, no more trouble. The maid prayed with all of her faith in her heart.
Ann stopped walking and turned to look at the maid with confusion.
"Eh? I'm just going to wash my hands...," She said as there wasn't a bowl containing water that she could use to wash her hands with.
"Then, this little one will go and get you a wet towel—"
"What? No, just let me go to the sink and wash my hands," Ann denied it with all her being as—for a modern person like her, she knew washing her hands with a soap would be the best method of getting rid of dirt and bacteria. Perhaps the people of this world had no such knowledge yet.
"...," the maid no longer dared to say anything against Ann. To be more exact, she was completely thrown aback by Ann's strange conduct that her brain froze!
She couldn't even read her mistress' conduct anymore now! She even began to think that perhaps it would be better to have the previous mistress... Though her every conduct was villainous, at least she was still readable...