Cinderella is... the Male Lead? - Chapter 12
A few days later, Rona brought her blankets and nightgown to the well in a cart. A newly hired sturdy servant pushed the cart beside her. Eventually, Susan had succumbed to Rona’s scheme and hired some servants.
Having only Cinderella to do all the household chores in such a large mansion was not only hard on Cinderella but also on Susan and Rona.
Initially stubborn, Susan seemed to feel the inconvenience as well. The ghostly wails and traces of animals were the tipping points that made her change her mind.
With this new recruitment, five servants joined the mansion. The funds to pay the servants came from the gold and silver treasures in the count’s warehouse. While it would have been ideal to hire more, it wasn’t easy. They had to find entirely new people with experience as servants, not those who had previously worked in the small rural area.
Although the situation was much improved with the new servants, Cinderella still did housework. Was it because there weren’t enough hands? Rona hadn’t asked, but it seemed likely. So, Rona also took on household tasks herself whenever Cinderella wasn’t looking.
After all, if Cinderella felt physically comfortable, she would be mentally at ease as well. And if she discovered that Rona was diligently doing housework even when she wasn’t watching, her icy heart might melt like the spring river.
The only fortunate thing was Susan’s indifference, having been so drained by the ghostly wails. Mentally exhausted, she stayed locked in her room lately, neither coming out to torment Cinderella nor paying attention to what Rona did.
‘The plan was only to make Susan hire workers, but things are turning out better than expected. If Susan doesn’t torment Cinderella, we might avoid the serious incidents in the latter part of the novel.’
While Rona was lost in thought, the servant brought the cart to the well and placed the blankets in a large wooden basin. He drew water from the well and used his feet to wash the goose feather blankets.
“You can rest, Miss.”
“Oh, no. We’re short-handed, so I should wash my own clothes.”
“Alright, if you insist.”
Rona took her nightgown from the cart and started washing it by hand. Before regaining her past life’s memories, she hadn’t realized how many plot-holes there were in this damned novel world.
The sight of a noble lady washing clothes by hand while the servant merely nodded was one of those absurdities.
‘Should I just let it go?’
Rona shook her head vigorously. What could she expect from a world based on a fairy tale? She should be grateful for having a chance to survive after regaining her past life’s memories.
She recalled Cinderella bringing stew to her room. Though Cinderella was still curt, she at least responded when spoken to. Rona wondered what her reaction would be to the new servants. Maybe this time, she’d show a genuine smile instead of a sneer.
Rona stopped washing for a moment, gazing into the distance with a faint smile. Cinderella smiling meant an extension of Rona’s life. It was a pleasant thought.
“What are you doing?”
The familiar voice came from behind Rona, who was engrossed in washing her nightgown. She turned around from her low seat and immediately met Cinderella’s cold blue eyes. Cinderella, with her blonde hair tied with a blue ribbon and draped over one shoulder, looked very pure.
‘Can’t you see that I’m washing clothes? Ah but if I respond like that, I’ll lose whatever favor I’ve gained. I need to cater to her as much as possible.’
A shadow fell over Rona’s face. The bright sunlight made Cinderella’s blonde hair shimmer. Mesmerized, Rona pulled her hands out of the water and shrugged her shoulders.
“I’m washing clothes. The clothes I left for a few days started to smell moldy… it’s unbearable.”
Cinderella frowned, glancing between the nightgown in the basin and Rona’s face. She pulled over an empty basin and put in all the laundry she had brought with her. Then, she brought over a chair and sat next to Rona, starting to wash clothes herself.
“If they get dirty, you should wash them right away. Why don’t you give me those clothes? Stepmother won’t be pleased.”
“It’s just one set. Since I’m already washing, I might as well do it myself. It’s no big deal. Besides, Susa— I mean, Mother has been staying in her room lately, so she won’t even know what I’m doing.”
Rona hugged the basin protectively, wary of Cinderella. She didn’t want Cinderella to snatch away her almost-finished laundry and then scold her for making her do all the housework alone.
Cinderella, left without anything to say, fell silent. It was true that Susan hadn’t been around to bother her lately.
Feeling flustered, Cinderella glanced around, her eyes landing on the servant doing the laundry.
“It looks like you hired new servants.”
“Oh! Yes. See, I said I’d get it done. Didn’t I promise to hire help? Now you can leave the hard work to the servants.”
“I noticed a few. Well, it’s better than nothing.”
