"This will be your new home for now. You will attend the lessons with other children I have picked up, and only I will adopt the best. If you need anything, ask Mary for help. She will be your guide and your mentor for the duration of your stay."
Without lingering, Duke Lockhart swiftly departed.
He was a busy man with many responsibilities and things he needed to take care of.
As such, Layla was given to a relatively young-looking maid with brown hair and brown eyes.
"Leave it to me, Duke! I will take care of the child well."
Mary bowed in front of the Duke before she looked at Layla and smiled reassuringly. Perhaps it was her way of making Layla comfortable with her.
But all she did was make Layla suspicious of her even more.
The smile on Mary's face did not disappear even when the duke went away, but her eyes did have a weird light to them.
"My lady, if you need anything, please don't hesitate to tell me. And I do mean 'anything.' Nothing is a secret under the Duke's roof, and you better remember it."
Mary smiled back at Layla with an eerily familiar smile, which was beginning to make the young woman suspicious of her origins.
"I will tell you. What rules do I need to follow in this place?"
Layla asked the maid, wanting things to be as straightforward as possible.
"Rules? They are simple - don't care about any trouble for the Duke or do nothing that would ruin the Duke's reputation. If you do these two things, the Duke will overlook anything else in this place."
Mary informed Layla.
These two might seem like simple rules to a child, but to Layal, they had a different meaning.
'So, as long as my actions do not contradict what the Duke wants, I am free to do whatever I want? That means even murder is not out of bounds in this place if it is carried out in secret. What a tough place this is.'
Mary's smile had a new meaning now. She was likely ordered to watch Layla and ensure he survived this mess.
"You can leave now. I want to go to sleep. I would also like to visit the library in the evening."
Layla informed the maid, and Mary was quick to take her leave.
The older maid did not show what she felt on her face until the end, but Layla had met people like her before.
'I am sure I managed to pique Mary's curiosity with my actions. I am sure that girl won't be able to hold herself back for too long.'
Layla went to sleep that night, and she felt secure. It was her first night here, so few people knew about her existence. She needed to take these quiet moments and make sure of them to relax as much as possible.
...
"Oh my! Did you get a new child, Mary? I was so sure that the Duke would not hand another child over to you after you murdered your last three charges. I feel pity for the poor soul in that room."
Cold eyes looked at the older maid in front of her with a charming smile.
"I am afraid I have no idea what you are talking about. Murder? What murder? Didn't you hear the notice the Duke posted about those children? They just went missing. I am sure they will come around happily one day in the future.
Now, if you keep making such baseless assumptions, I won't be able to speak the same about you."
Mary leaned closer to the female before her, noticing how nervous the maid suddenly looked.
No matter how confident the female was about her position, she could do only so much.
Mary was one of the Duke's favorite maids and had much more flexibility in what she could do.
"Hump! Do what you want! I am just warning you because I like you. The Duke might have tolerated your behavior up until now, but he won't forever favor you. Once you get old enough, you will be abandoned."
The older maid quickly ran away, leaving Mary crackling like mad.
"Ah, I love making those old hags all jealous of me. But who am I to call someone old when I am about a thousand years old? They all think that the master favors me. Well, they are right. Master favors me because I am his summon."
The maid lost control of her form for just a second, and her demon ears appeared on her head. Her face and eyes also looked demonic, making her origins clear.
She soon regained control, and her features returned to normal, but the damage had already been done.
One of the kids noticed the maid's alternate form, and he let out a yelp of fright.
"Tsk, looks like you got unlucky, kid! I am afraid that I will have to shut your mouth now. Don't be too afraid of me and forget you ever saw my true form."
Mary raised her hand and covered the kid's face with her claw.
The kid went stiff before he lost consciousness and fell asleep. Mary had erased his memories, but this was only the start.
The Duke might call this place the foster care, but it was a food ground for his demons to feast upon.
Only the strong survived and got out to join the Duke's family.
"Hmm, speaking of strong…my new little miss seems remarkable. I have never seen a kid this mature before. I am about to have a lot of fun because of her. I should make sure not to kill her off accidentally."
It was not often that Mary felt such a thrill of excitement, but something about Layla set her apart from the other kids.
And Mary was excited to see what the little one would do. If not, she would finally make a tasty snack for the demon.