The Damn Family Is Back Again

9-9. Dead Trigger (3)

“That crazy woman came here.”

I thought Flora came to torment and ridicule Karsine, but I never expected this.

I didn’t know why she personally came to the area where the maids come to do laundry, but whether she did or didn’t, it didn’t concern me.

“The scene was skipped, so the choices appeared a little later.”

Until the predetermined scene appeared, there would be no constraints on the choices. Where could I be deceived?

I could just continue with what I was doing.

-Splash. Splash.

“Karsein, you…!”

As I started washing the laundry again, dipping the soap in the cold water with my bare hands, Claire shouted from a distance.

“What are you doing right now? Answer me!”

“What am I doing? I’m doing the laundry.”

“I mean, why are you doing that, you idiot!”

“Oh really? Should I put on these clothes and go see Mother?”

I lifted up the dirty clothes that hadn’t been washed properly, showing them off.

“You can’t go see Mother dressed like this. At least let the laundry dry until tomorrow so you have something decent to wear.”

“Ha, damn it. Hey, Karsein.”

-Splash!

Claire couldn’t hold back any longer and threw the laundry on the floor.

“Don’t joke around and tell me straight. Why aren’t you telling your maid to do this and doing it yourself? Tell me why you, who was just shivering from a cold until recently, are doing something like this.”

A faint sense of intimidation emanated from the solid wall. Claire’s face, completely distorted, couldn’t even hide her frustration.

If the choices had appeared, I might have died if I spoke recklessly here.

But now, I had no constraints. Both physically and mentally, I was in a state where I could confront Claire Bagramand.

“This is right in front of me. If I pick this up and show it to Claire… Hm?”

However, a strange difference catches my eye.

“…What is that?”

I rub my eyes, thinking that maybe my vision is playing tricks on me.

But I didn’t see it wrong. I couldn’t have been so groggy from lack of sleep.

There was something painted on that white box floating above Claire’s head.

“2…%?”

It was the intimacy box.

What? Why did it increase?

There’s still a long way to go to raise Claire’s intimacy. Unless there’s something I don’t know?

“…Could it be?”

The status window that brings about results beyond the choices. I can only guess.

Since Karsine hasn’t presented a single choice to raise Claire’s intimacy yet.

It seems that something in my actions influenced Claire’s intimacy. I have no idea what she liked about it.

“Never mind. That can wait.”

Right now, I need to shut Claire’s mouth.

-Ding!

[1. Why did you throw that? Now I have to suck it again! Are you going to do it instead?]

[2. (Ignoring Claire, I pick up the fallen clothes.)]

[3. I don’t have a personal maid. I didn’t choose one.]

That’s the scene where the choices appear.

I quickly chose option 3 without hesitation.

“Since I don’t have a dedicated maid to do my laundry.”

“What are you talking about? Arina told you to personally choose a maid for yourself!”

“I’m telling you, there isn’t one. No maid to wash my clothes.”

Where can I hide or avoid this? Since there’s simply no maid, I wash my laundry with my own hands. That’s all I revealed.

Upon hearing that there was no dedicated maid, Claire seemed to have a vague idea.

“Carsane. Are you seriously refusing to hire a maid out of pride?! Is that why you’re personally washing your clothes right now?”

“But…”

“You crazy bastard! There are times when you should prioritize your pride and times when you shouldn’t, right? You’re not hiring a maid?”

Claire exploded in anger, spewing profanities.

“You’re a noble. And not just any noble, but the highest-ranking Duke of Vagrande in the Empire! But you’re telling me you’re washing laundry by yourself in your right mind?!”

A noble doing laundry by hand? I can’t even imagine such a thing.

Even if it’s a noble with little power, they wouldn’t wash laundry themselves while prioritizing their pride over their subordinates. Especially not in this cold and harsh winter, let alone with bare hands.

It wouldn’t be surprising if this happened in any other noble family, but it’s happening in the Duke of Vagrande, so it’s mind-boggling.

“Just take a short walk and you’ll see maids everywhere. Stop acting crazy and order the other maids right away.”

As Claire was about to walk towards where the maids were, I stopped her in her tracks and refuted her in a single word.

“Order the maids? Are you telling me to do that?”

“What the hell is your problem again!”

Yeah. You wouldn’t understand.

Even the second sister I know was like that. So, let me enlighten you.

“You said it yourself. Even the maids are too precious for me.”

“…What? When did I say such a thing─”

Snap!

I unfolded the clothes that I had just washed and held them up for Claire to see, her face expressing complete confusion. The distinct marks, clearly visible even as water dripped down, were revealed.

“These marks… You don’t mean that it was you, back then?”

“It was what you said when the maid brought this outfit to be washed. You said that you should be grateful just for having a maid who would wash it like this, even though I was throwing a fit.”

“Hey, are you kidding? You forced me to wear this outfit. You were complaining about how the washing wasn’t thorough enough and you were going to punish me for it. And now you’re using this as an excuse to force me into doing something?”

That’s right. It must have been an excuse.

In Claire’s eyes, it was just an excuse, where the washing was a little incomplete during the process, leaving some marks.

But that’s exactly why my logic is correct.

“It’s not an excuse. Just like you said, I was simply doing the laundry myself because I thought the maids were too precious. Is that wrong?”

“Karsen, you…”

“Then which one should I follow this time? Should I do the laundry myself like you said in the past, or should I listen to what you’re saying now and have the maids do the work?”

As I watched Claire, who was caught in her own contradiction, struggling to find a response, I added as if I had been waiting.

“So, it’s better to have nothing at all. No food with salt or medication. No cold water in the bathtub. None of these things would happen without maids. Is that wrong?”

Claire, who had been shooting back without hesitation, suddenly fell silent.

She knows it too. What happened to Karsen that day, and what she had been through all this time. Despite all the opinions mentioned by the attending physician, Shaden, the conclusion was that it was the hand of a maid.

That’s why, if there were no maids.

If there were no maids at all to take care of Karsen.

Nothing, absolutely nothing, would happen.

Really.

“Do whatever you want! You f*cking bastard.”

The pink-haired crazy b*tch turned around with just one word. There was nothing I could say to retort.

But.

You’ll feel completely different.

Won’t you, Flora?

“…!”

As soon as our eyes met, the annoying brat who had been chirping beside me turned around and followed the second one. It’s not because of my mood that it looks like they’re running away quickly.

Of course, it was her own fault for intentionally ruining Carcerin’s perfectly fine clothes by ordering the maid to do so.

Based on the information I found during the game episode, Carcerin had rightfully punished the maid who had intentionally ruined the clothes.

However, no matter what I did, Carcerin was the one who was blamed. It was a despicable result of Flora’s cunningness and Claire’s stupidity.

So I quite liked this move.

“Ouch. Finally, I feel a bit relieved.”

Even though I’m doing hand laundry in this cold winter, oh well, it doesn’t matter. I was satisfied.

***

The next day.

I touched the clothes that had dried well in the laundry room.

“Oh. They dried well.”

Someone among the servants could have touched them and said that they belonged to Carcerin, but just like in the game, no one had touched them.

Of course, if I had come a few hours later, those clothes would have been a mess again.

If I had to give a reason, it was because I was busy preparing for an important event and couldn’t do anything else.

Anyway, thanks to that, the clothes I washed yesterday were completely dry. It didn’t matter if I met Ariana or anyone else, there wouldn’t be any problems.

I quickly packed up the clothes and moved them to my room.

After that, it was cleaning time. I didn’t have a vacuum cleaner, and the room was only fancy and spacious, without any practicality. I had to tidy up and solve everything by hand.

But it wasn’t so bad. There wouldn’t be anyone suddenly barging in, and unless it was mealtime, no one would come in.

Instead, with more time living alone, I could easily avoid the sudden appearance of dead flags.

“Phew. It’s done.”

Even so, living alone has its own advantages, and I easily managed the cleaning.

“Next… I should go and find Isabella soon.”

I mustn’t forget. I’ve only finished one tutorial and one episode.

In order to see the ending of this game, I have to clear numerous episodes and chapters that will constantly threaten my life.

Conversations that lead to small movements. Diverse choices that result from conversations. I can’t let my guard down because of the continuity of dead flags caused by choices.

After taking a deep breath, I dressed in dry clothes and headed to the Duchess’s office to pay my morning greetings.

▶ Currently in CHAPTER 1 – Episode II! ◀

▶ Go and greet Isabella. ◀

Knock, knock.

“Who is it?”

“It’s Karsein.”

There was a brief silence inside, followed by a faint invitation to come in.

As soon as I opened the door, I noticed the three intimacy bars above the person’s head.

“Sit down for now. Let’s finish this and then talk.”

“Yes.”

I had some idea, but it was truly a cold reception.

A brief silence after the knock. A response of “Let’s finish this and talk.” No warm greetings or expressions of concern, just simple conversation.

A clear display of a habitual attitude of throwing tantrums, acting childish, and wasting emotions.

-Drip.

Isabella moves her seat back and stands up. It seems like the work is finally done, but not quite.

She still holds the work in her hand and sits across from me on the sofa.

“What brings you here today?”

Her cool voice subtly reveals her hidden thoughts of wanting to finish quickly and not be interrupted during work.

That familiar sight.

Eyes focused on work more than her son’s words. Responding with indifference and trying to brush it off. And even pressing, as if this time is a waste.

It’s all because it reminds me of the image of the human being who I’ve seen so often, my mother, who wouldn’t even pretend to listen no matter what I said.

“Don’t mind it. She’s not even my mother anyway.”

I must not forget the purpose of coming here.

I have entered the main part of CHAPTER 1 and am now proceeding with Episode II.

I’m here solely to set up the Dead Trigger in advance.

I calmly spoke to Isabella in a voice that would reach her.

“I came to talk about the maid.”

“If you’re talking about Camilla, I already let her go.”

“…Yes?”

For a moment, I wondered if I had misheard something, so I asked again.

Nevertheless, Isabella answered, her gaze fixed on the documents.

“I heard from Arina and Claire that someone touched your dining table. But it’s unreasonable to suspect Camilla.”

I hadn’t misheard.

It was about a maid who had touched Carsein’s dining table and was let go.

“I couldn’t find any evidence even after searching. Besides, Camilla only became a duchess for money and married you for money. She even considered selling the noble’s mansion to support her sick mother. People around her know this very well. So it’s even more unlikely that she’s the culprit.”

Isabella continued speaking, sipping her tea.

“As I mentioned before, the trust in Camilla among the servants of the duchy is very high. They all submitted handwritten petitions and even collectively requested to be taken out of solitary confinement. I understand your frustration this time, but I have personally ordered Arina to investigate. That should be enough. Sometimes, as a noble, one must show some leniency.”

I couldn’t say a word because I was dumbfounded.

Even though this wasn’t my own problem but a scene I saw in the game, it irritated me even more.

It’s even more unlikely that she’s the culprit?

Are they really saying that even though the real culprit is Camilla, they won’t listen to Carsein’s opinion and just let her go?

And what? They need leniency?

“Ha. So, was it all just a bad ending to complain about being unfair?”

Even if I chose that option, it would be useless anyway.

Realizing that the result of the choices aligned with reality, I felt like laughing bitterly.

-Ding!

[ 1. Why did you let that maid go? She gave me a drug. She even made me use cold water and put it in the food─ ]

[ 2. Then what did I eat? What did I eat─ ]

The choices were even more cruel to Karsain.

If it were him, it wouldn’t be strange for him to say or do anything that would appear as a dead flag.

But I’m not like him.

I might want to mention it and complain about feeling unjust, but that’s Karsain’s emotions.

Bringing it up would only be a venomous remark that wouldn’t bring any benefit, but rather the opposite.

So I draw a clear line.

“Oh. Then I came for no reason. I was thinking of making that request too.”

Isabella’s eyes, which had been fixed on the documents, met mine for the first time.

“As you said, Camilla is not that kind of maid. Well, I came here to clarify that, as I was misunderstood because of me. This is the end… Oh. There’s one more thing.”

I slowly got up from the sofa and finished my last words.

“I won’t come to greet you in the morning from now on.”