I Don't Need a Family - Chapter 11

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Malfoid

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◈ I Don't Need a Family ◈

Episode 11

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The maid could not continue.

‘Gasp! What? I can’t speak!’

As she mouthed soundlessly and hurriedly turned her head, Vivette’s loyal maid was standing there.

Lola had cast a voice-removal spell on Aile.

Not only Aile but the other maids who knew magic were startled that Lola had silenced Aile. Vivette, however, was startled simply by Lola’s appearance.

“Lola? I told them not to wake you.”

Lola grinned and casually replied that she had woken up early.

While they exchanged a few more pointless remarks, the maids desperately tried to break the silencing spell, but it was no use.

Lola was one of the few skilled mages in the estate. They could hardly defy someone like her.

“Miss, there’s no need to drag this out. I’ll report those girls to the head maid and have them dismissed.”

“Go ahead.”

Lola said it decisively, and Vivette readily nodded.

She did not even wonder what Aile had been so determined to reveal.

Just like that, it was over in an instant. The estate’s secret remained buried beneath the snow.

* * *

The old wing of the annex was the oldest part of the Ashwilt estate.

It was preserved with magic, so it was not dangerous, but it could be eerie at times.

It was a relic of a bygone era.

Its faded colors set it apart from the other buildings entirely.

An old white owl was carved into its stone pillars, and its tapestries depicted ancient myths from the Erenston region.

It was exactly the sort of place where a witch like the Lady of the Annex might live.

‘I never thought I’d set foot in a witch’s nest.’

Though, when it came down to it, the entire Ashwilt estate was full of mages and witches.

“Oh dear, look at the state of this place.”

“We really did the right thing dismissing them, Miss.”

The old wing was such a mess that all my maids had to rush over to clean it.

I had decided to stay there from now on.

“We should have made those girls clean this place before throwing them out. You’re all suffering in their place.”

“It’s fine, Miss. This is where you’ll be staying.”

“It’s an honor, really.”

The maids waved their hands, telling me not to think that way.

Vivette must have been happy here, at least. Fortunately.

“Thank you, everyone.”

“But Miss, the main annex is much bigger and nicer. Wouldn’t it be better to bring Madam there instead? This place is too old and hasn’t been maintained...”

“I have considered that too.”

A familiar place would surely be more comforting for a patient.

Living here might even bring back old memories.

Thud!

Since morning, servants had been moving the furniture from my room into the old wing.

There were only maids in the annex, so I had borrowed a few able-bodied servants from the main house. Surely the Duke of Ashwilt would not be petty over something like this.

The Lady of the Annex was a member of his family too. Since things had come to this because she had been neglected, much of the responsibility lay with him.

But while that might have been true for the Duke, the servants dragged here at the crack of dawn seemed to feel differently.

They had been slamming the furniture onto the floor with a bang ever since they arrived, their expressions sour.

The occasional low curse was a bonus.

‘Do they not realize I’m right here?’

They sulked no matter what they were told, like younger brothers dragged out to help move furniture on a weekend morning. It was absurd.

As I considered saying something, Lola, who had briefly gone to my room, strode over to them.

“Gentlemen, are you not done yet? Hmm, you seem especially sluggish today. You weren’t like this when you worked in the main house.”

The servants all looked at her.

Then they began whispering among themselves, barely loud enough to hear.

“This wasn’t even our job to begin with. Shouldn’t they be grateful we came to help?”

“If someone helped me with something I was too weak to do, I’d at least hurry and bring them some juice.”

“How would she know whether we’re working hard or not? She’s never touched so much as a blade of grass with her bare hands.”

Lola scoffed at their blatant disregard.

“So there were plenty of people in the main house who deserved to be dismissed.”

“Miss Maid, what did you just say?”

“Why are you speaking like that?”

When I hurried into the room as the mood turned ugly, Lola was holding my display cabinet up with one hand.

It was Lola’s specialty, weight-reduction magic.

Even academy students struggled with such advanced magic, but Lola could do that much with her eyes closed.

It was not because her magical ability was extraordinary. She had simply practiced that one spell obsessively.

Children of wealthy families learned magic as an academic discipline, but maids usually practiced only a few useful spells. Weight-reduction magic was one of them.

The servants, who did not know that, gaped.

“Th-that can’t be done with human strength...”

“If you can’t lift it because you’re weak, then I’ll lift it for you. Here, take it and carry it.”

Lola casually handed the heavy piece of furniture to the servant at the front, as though she were giving him a picnic basket.

The furniture lined against the wall was swiftly lifted and passed over to the servants.

“The room at the end of the hall! If you get it wrong, you’ll die!”

Intimidated, the servants obeyed Lola without thinking.

Whether the men left the room or not, Lola looked only at the furniture lined against the wall.

“Miss, are you really going to live here? With that Madam?”

“I am.”

At my calm answer, Lola’s eyes lit up.

“So you don’t really want to, either, do you? If you only intend to look after her because you feel responsible as a member of the same family, you don’t have to.”

“Why not?”

“Actually, she is your relative, but you don’t share a drop of blood.”

“We’re still family under the same roof, aren’t we? Even without blood, family is family.”

“Miss... I just don’t want you to suffer for nothing.”

“It’s all right, Lola. I think I’ll feel better this way.”

“You’re too kind...”

I’m not kind, Lola.

It’s only trauma.

The reason I drove those maids out was because I remembered being neglected by my caregiver when I was ill.

And the reason I was doing this now was because I had spent my whole childhood worrying that my family might abandon me because I was sick.

‘Ah, was Vivette kind to the servants for that reason too?’

Perhaps she identified with those who were weak within the household, just like her.

Vivette had been a kind mistress. But that did not always turn out well.

Being kind also meant it was easy for people to look down on you.

Only the people in the annex repaid kindness with kindness. The other servants often treated me with contempt, as they had earlier.

“Those servants won’t complain to their superiors just because they were scolded, will they?”

“At most, their superior is the head steward. I outrank them.”

“What if they report it to Young Master Gillian or the Duke?”

“Would the Duke who ignores his own daughter listen to servants?”

“That’s true.”

Besides, the Duke had forbidden me from entering the main house. He had not forbidden me from calling its servants here.

Surely he would not complain about me borrowing a few people.

The Duke was hot-tempered and clearly favored some of his children over others, but he was not a petty person.

“Vivette!”

At that moment, a booming voice rang out from downstairs.

I thought it might be the Duke of Ashwilt, but it was Gillian who appeared.

We had only fought a few days ago, so I did not want to see him even from a distance. Yet he had shown up without warning.

‘Don’t tell me he’s making a fuss because I borrowed a few servants from the main house?’

“Throw that woman out.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Ha. I heard you decided to live with Fadde Ashwilt.”

So Madam’s name was Fadde.

It felt refreshing to finally know.

“And?”

“She’s a mage. But she’s senile and her mind comes and goes. What if she starts firing magic at you?”

Mages with mental illnesses or dementia were a major problem in mage society.

They could cast magic indiscriminately, and their spells were usually abnormal formulas that strayed from established practice.

If a magical formula was normal, a higher-ranking mage could at least counter it. But if the formula itself was twisted, there was no way to deal with it.

“So what? We’re her family. Family should care for people like her even more.”

I could not believe he failed to understand.

“Do we have to take care of that old woman just because she’s family? Did we seem that idle just because we keep you company, Vivette?”

“Then I’ll do it.”

“Ha! You?”

“Yes. You always dismissed me as someone who’s no help to this household, didn’t you? I’ll use this opportunity to be of some small help. I’ll care for Madam.”

Of course, that was not why I had stepped forward to help Madam Fadde.

I simply could not bear to watch a helpless person be abandoned by their family.

“You don’t understand because you’ve never been hit by magic. You’ve been raised too gently, haven’t you? What if she attacks you?”

“Then I’ll take the hit.”

“What?”

When I declared it boldly, Gillian’s expression darkened.

“You could die.”

“I won’t.”

“You are powerless. You’re so weak that you can’t even defeat a single maid.”

“You know my magic resistance well enough. It would be better than you stepping in, Brother.”

Gillian seemed properly offended.

“So? Do you only feel pain if you die? You don’t care if you’re hurt as long as you don’t die?”