'The Lady has changed'
That was my genuine thought after a few days of serving her.
My name is Jane, and for the past sixteen years of serving Lady Josephine, never have I seen her so relaxed and timid.
Ever since I started working here at the duchy as a child, I always pitied the young lady. She would always try her utmost best, but her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Konrow, never paid attention to her.
They would never gaze at her, always focusing on Lady Adele like the rest of the people in the mansion.
Some days, I could see Lady Josephine staring blankly while they ate together, and at times, she would silently sob in her room.
Eventually, she would bully Lady Adele, but her actions always backfired. She would then be ostracized and made into an outcast in the upper mansion. I know what she did was wrong, but it wasn't entirely her fault.
Secretly, I disdained the Duke for neglecting her. Even after everyone abandoned her, I still stood by her side.
A few days earlier, the Lady fell down the stairs.
"Lady!" I rushed to her and saw that she was bleeding profusely. "Lady, snap out of it!" She was spinning and kept stumbling.
"W-what...?" she muttered before falling unconscious to the floor.
"Lady!!!" I immediately ran through the wing to the main mansion and rushed to the infirmary.
I opened the door and screamed, "The Lady needs help!" Despite their reluctance, I dragged the doctor to the spare mansion and had him treat the Lady.
'What a spineless doctor,' I thought.
I watched as the doctor worked on Lady Josephine, applying bandages and using his limited healing spells.
"She'll be fine," he finally said, sounding more annoyed than relieved. "Just make sure she gets plenty of rest."
I nodded, feeling a wave of relief wash over me.
As he left quickly, I turned my attention back to Lady Josephine. Her face, usually tense and filled with anger, now looked peaceful in her sleep.
*What changed?* I wondered.
When the lady woke up, and I immediately rushed to her side.
"Ah, Lady, please don't move too much. Are you okay?" I asked, concern lacing my voice.
"I'm fine, Jane. I can handle it," she replied, surprising me with her calm demeanor. When did the Lady's voice sound so normal? She would have been greatly irritated by things like this before.
"Anyways, Jane, where is my breakfast?" she asked.
"Huh? Are you really my Lady?" I was taken aback. The Lady would never outright ask for breakfast.
"Oh, right, I remember. I kinda dislike that thing. It's fine, I'm hungry after all."
"Oh?"
"Yes! I'll get it right away!" I rushed to the kitchen and got the Lady a simple porridge. But when I arrived...
"This isn't enough! Get me some more, Jane. Also, bring me some fruit!"
"When did the Lady have such an appetite?" I wondered to myself. She literally ate the porridge I brought her in less than 30 seconds! "And bring me some tea!"
The Lady had really changed. For a few days, I kept pestering her, wondering if an evil spirit had inhabited her body, but surprisingly, she answered all my questions with ease.
"Who was your crush, my Lady? "
"If I remember correctly, it was Prince Peter?"
I asked as she enjoyed tea on her balcony while I interrogated her.
At first, I was just respectfully asking questions, but now she invited me to sit down and have tea with her.
"Why are you doing Jane? Have some," she said, offering me a macaroon and pointing it at my face.
The Lady nowadays is kind. I don't know what happened, but for some reason, she changed for the better.
"Jane," she said, holding my hand. "Thank you for taking care of me. Will you stay by my side until the end?"
I felt teary-eyed for some reason.
"Yes!" I replied wholeheartedly.