After enjoying the festival on the sixth day of the Sixth King Festival, Lilia and the others returned to the inn when the sun was about to set. The building is no longer an inn, but rather a mansion, but as you would expect after spending seven days in it, I've gotten used to it.
　After leaving their luggage at the entrance with the resident servant, Lilia and the others moved to their respective rooms.

　Lilia's room is shared by three of her best friends, Lunamaria and Sieglinde, because of her own strong wishes.......mainly because she has a stomach ache.
　After seeing Lilia sitting in a chair back in the room, Lunamaria and Sieglinde also sat in the chair. The three of them, who were best friends before they were squires, often sit around the table like this in their private time and chat with each other.

''I'm really glad that today is relatively peaceful,''
''Yes. We didn't have to stand in line for hours waiting for our turn like we did yesterday...

　Lilia smiled serenely at her, while Lunamaria nodded deeply in agreement. Sieglinde picked up her pet Seras, who had come near her, and placed him on her lap, taking out a cup of tea from the magic box and placing it in front of them.

''But with Lili looking so careless like that, I'm afraid that something is going to happen now.
'Oh, I understand. Lili really has a constitution that pulls in hardships, you know~
'Please don't!　Not a good omen....

　Right now, Luna Maria also calls Lilia by her nickname 'Lili' instead of the usual 'young lady', and because they are best friends with a good heart, a peaceful and restful time is flowing between them..................but soon after, a discreet knock is heard and Lilia 's shoulders bounced a little.

'....What?
'Oh?　What is the matter with you immediately?　It's as good as it gets, Lili.
...Isn't it Aoi or Chicks?

　Since it was right after they had talked about something that might happen in the future, the three of them look at each other in surprise. And while Lilia is somewhat praying.......................hoping it's not a nuisance, she opens her mouth.

''Ha, yes ...............................go ahead.
Oh, excuse me. There's a visitor for Duke Albert.
Do you have a visitor?
Yes. Mr. Ilnes, sir.
'Illness?　.........Okay. Please let me through.

　Lilia nodded her head once, as if the name announced by the resident servant who came in was surprising, and then told her to let the room pass.
　After the resident servant bowed and stepped back, a minute or so later, there was another knock on the door.

''Come in.''
I'm sorry.

　A peculiar voice, somewhat lispy and peculiar, was heard, and Illness, the maid of the Duke of Albert's family, entered the room.

''I'm sorry for barging in on you so suddenly, miss.
''...What's going on?　Is it possible that there's something in the house?
No, there's nothing wrong with the house. However, I have two letters for you to check with your daughter.

　Lilia wondered if there was some kind of trouble because Ilnes, who was supposed to be in the mansion, came to visit her, but Ilnes shook her head and took out two letters.

I've decided that it is necessary to respond as soon as possible. Please make sure you check it out.
'All right. I'll look it over.
Oh, and don't worry about the house. All in good time.
'Well I'm sorry, Illness. I even asked you to fill in for me while I was away.......are you tired?
This isn't a problem at all. Please, don't worry about the house, young lady, and enjoy the festivities.
"...it's a big help. Thank you so much for everything.
I hope you don't mind.

　Illness was the oldest in the Duke Albert family........no, she was originally 'the maid that followed Lilia when she was a princess' in the first place.
　She was an extremely talented maid, and she was also the one that Lilia desperately asked for and recruited when she was anxious about becoming independent as a duke.
　Although she asked me to let her think about it for two days, she finally listened to Lilia's wishes and followed the Duke Albert family.
　Most of the other servants had voluntarily followed Lilia, and the only person Lilia had asked to follow her was Illness...........................In that sense, he was unique in the Duke Alberto family.

　And in fact, her skills exceeded Lilia's expectations, and the fact that the Duke Albert family has become very stable in just a few years is largely due to her. However, she dislikes standing out, and she doesn't talk about it openly.
　However, the trust of the people in the mansion, including Lilia and Lunamaria and Sieglinde, is immense, and she has been entrusted with substituting for Lilia when she is away.
　He willingly performs miscellaneous tasks rather than flashy ones, and all of them are nearly perfect in their work. He was truly the backbone of the Duke Albert family.

Are you enjoying yourself, Lunamaria?
''Yes, well I suppose Illness-sama could have stretched his wings and joined in once in a while, but...''
It would be a burden on the other servants if both the young lady and I were to participate.

　If we were to talk about a simple position, Lunamaria, the master's personal maid, is superior to Illness, the common maid, but Lunamaria calls Illness by her nickname, because most of the maids in the mansion, including Illness, are taught by her.
　This is because most of the maids in the house, including Lunamaria, have learned how to be a maid from Illness. In other words, to Lunamaria, Illness can be considered a teacher, and she seemed unusually nervous in her responses.

''Sieglinde too~Oh?　Kuhihi, it looks like you're enjoying yourself with your adorable pet.
Yes, sir.
That's good to hear.

　After nodding to Sieglinde as well, Illness gives a clean bow before opening her mouth.

''........So, well then, I'll go back to the mansion, huh?
I'm sorry to bother you. I can't seem to stop thinking about you, but...
No, no. I'll summarize the events of your absence in chronological order, so you can take a look at them when you return.
I understand. Thank you so much for everything.

　After exchanging greetings with Lilia, Illness exited.
　And after a few moments of silence, Lunamaria was the first to speak up.

''........You are still an extraordinary person.
Besides, Kite has asked me to take care of Belle and Lynne, too.

　Sieglinde also nods deeply to Lunamaria who tells her sullenly.
　There, Lunamaria suddenly smiles something nasty, glances at Lilia, and then begins to speak with an exaggerated movement.

''That's how good you are and you're doing a huge amount of work!　
'Please don't say anything horrible!

　At Lunamaria's words, Lilia exclaims with a pale expression. In fact, once Illness is gone, the Duke Albert's family......................will take a big hit, if not a tilt.
　I didn't even want to imagine how many people would be needed if others tried to fill the job of her alone.

'I mean, even I've offered her a raise many times!　But he's 'adamant' about it, so it's no use!
Well, it's true, Master Ilnes isn't greedy at all, is he?
The only thing I wanted was to be exclusive to Kite, who was in a weak position at the time, so....

　Yes, it's not like Lilia likes to make Illness a flat maid. There were many times when she even tried to pay her a salary commensurate with her work.
　But all of that was refused by Illness.........Currently, Illness is the same salary and position as a flat maid.

''........I'll make her head maid as soon as Ilunes is willing to do so. Or rather, even the current head maidservant frequently asked, ''Isn't Irunes-sama more suitable to be the head maid rather than me?'' But he doesn't agree with me at all.
''Well, I suppose so. Or rather, almost all of the servants in the mansion think that Irnes-sama is the one who is worthy of being the head maid.
The only person who doesn't think that is him.

　Very capable and wholeheartedly dependable.........The only thing that bothered her very much was that she hated her position of prominence.
　Well, most of all........such anguish was too light compared to the stomach ache she felt when she found out one day that Illness' identity was pandemonium.......