"I'm already here, Zinnia," Zemislav said with an angry expression, as he proceeded to enter my room uninvited.
He glared at me while walking towards my direction, accompanied by another maid whom I hadn't met before. With brown hair and blue eyes, she had a mole on the left side below her lips.
I know every maid in this palace and I was not familiar with her, the only maid I haven't seen yet is Head Maid Matilda.
Raising my eyebrows, I questioned, "Why are you here, Grand Duke?" as I stood up.
"What did you say to the accountant?" he interrogated.
"Whatever do you mean?" I glared back.
"Don't play ignorant with me, Princess Zinnia. The other maids saw you heading towards the accountant's office a few days ago, and shortly after that, the accountant left without explaining much to the head maid!" he shouted.
"Sir Lendin was skilled at his job, yet he suddenly claimed he couldn't continue working here after meeting you," added the head maid, Matilda.
"He did a good job, you say? And why do you think so, Ms. Matilda?" I questioned, looking at her.
She held her head high and spoke with an air of respect, "Sir Lendin has been with us for a few years now, and I have not seen him make any mistakes since working here," she explained.
I chuckled upon hearing her words. "Might I ask, Ms. Matilda, have you checked the ledgers yourself?" I said, smirking.
Even without looking at Zemis, I could tell he was infuriated by my response.
"Yes, I have," she replied sternly.
"How odd. If both of you had checked the ledgers, why do I see a lot of 'maintenance' fees in the records, yet I don't see any corresponding changes that have been made?" I said, holding my chin while tilting my head.
Matilda was starting to sweat. "T-there were a lot of places on the third floor that needed to be looked at, hence the maintenance," she stuttered.
"And did you personally verify the places where you claimed repairs were needed?" I further interrogated.
"Y-yes."
"You don't have to lie, Matilda. I checked every nook and cranny on this floor, yet I still see many flaws and things that need fixing."
Zemis's eyes widened as he looked at Matilda.
"Is this true?" Zemis questioned, his disappointment evident on his face.
"No, Grand Duke! I-I have already assigned workers to do the necessary job. She must be lying!" Matilda defended herself, pointing at me.
Where did the dignified Head Maid Matilda go?
"They might not have done their job properly. I'll look into this right away—"
"No need, Matilda. I have already fixed the things that needed to be repaired and tidied up the place," I smirked.
"Zemis!" Theo's voice boomed as he abruptly opened the door to my room and walked towards us, panting heavily.
Great, another uninvited guest barging into my room. If magic were a thing in this world, I would have teleported myself elsewhere, away from this disaster.
"What did you do!?" Theo shouted, glaring at me.
I sighed, "I did nothing wrong here. Are we done talking now, Grand Duke? If so, you may leave," I said, gesturing towards the door.
"It's still afternoon, yet my day is already ruined. Tsk, tsk," I added, shaking my head in dismay.
They all glared at me, and Theo walked closer towards me. While I thought he was about to exit, this m*therf*cker decided to slap me instead.
I was shocked and my eyes widened, I glared at him and he smirked at me.
""Are you not done harassing Zemis yet? A good-for-nothing person like you deserves to be thrown into prison!" He shouted.
People might think that I'd just take the slap and be all pitiful about it later on, but I ain't one to be submissive! He raised his hand again, wanting to slap me once more. However, I swiftly dodged it and punched him hard across his face, causing him to fall down.
Theo looked at me all surprised and put his hand on his cheek.
I bet he didn't expect me to fight back.
"Theo!" Shouted Zemis, rushing to his side and looking at him with worry.
"First of all, Zemis went to my room uninvited, and you think I'm the one wanting trouble? I've been silent, and all of you decided to barge in!" I shouted.
"If you guys won't leave, then I guess I'll have to do the honor!" I stormed out of my room and slammed the door, making everyone around hear.
The other maids were already gathered outside my door, trying to grasp what was happening inside. I paid no attention to them and headed downstairs.
I hope this day couldn't get any worse!
I breathed in and out and cleared my thoughts, I have enough problems for today.
As I was heading to the stables to get a breather, I heard a sound of a fox crying for help. The sound was coming from the rose garden. I quickly followed the sound and saw the hunk garden caretaker picking up a small fox, which had a rose in its mouth.
"Aha! I finally caught you!" He shouted excitedly.
I quickly ran towards him while shouting his name, "Gardenbae! What are you doing?" (Yes, you read that correctly, his name is Gardenbae. ~Author)
"Princess Zinnia, good afternoon!" He greeted with a smile.
"Good afternoon to you too. What are you doing with that fox?" I asked, pointing at the fox and getting closer.
"This little troublemaker has been making a mess in the garden. It's been a few days since he found this place, and he's been taking the roses and causing havoc all around," he explained.
"I see." I nodded, then took the baby fox from him and held it up high. The little male fox had the same golden eyes as me. Despite its nervous shaking, it clung onto the rose in its mouth.
I gently cradled the fox in my arms, caressing its red fur.
"Did you set up these traps?" I asked.
"Yes, Princess."
"Did you make this decision on your own or were you instructed to do so?"
"It was the Head Maid's decision."
"Alright, then please remove the traps for me." I said, still patting the baby fox in my arms.
"But Princess, won't this fox create a mess again? It might even invite more of its friends over," he said worriedly.
"I believe this little guy is just lost. I've been personally checking this garden, and this is the first time we've had a furry visitor. We're quite far from the forest, so I don't anticipate any issues," I explained.
For some reason, the little fox seemed to understand our conversation. It appeared happy about my words, almost as if it was nodding in agreement.
"If you encounter any problems, report them to me directly, understood?" I continued.
"Understood, Princess!" He smiled.
"Thank you. Now I'll accompany this little fox out."
"Thank you, Princess Zinnia!"
I waved goodbye and made my way to the stables.