I became the contracted maid of the (villainous) Duke due to personal circumstances

In the backstreets of Lian, while inwardly muttering words that sounded like a provincial girl, sixteen-year-old Ruru Einwazu clung to a corner of the wall in despair.

What made things so dangerous was that the surroundings of Ruru’s home, the Einzweir Trading Company, were surrounded by rough-looking men. She kept a firm grip on the scarf she was using as a disguise, covering her face and hair, as she cautiously peeked out from the shadows.

“There are more of them than yesterday…!”

Ruru’s gaze was fixed on a thoroughfare known as “Craftsman Street.”

This was the main street of the Seventh District, the capital of the Wisteria Kingdom. Three to four-story buildings lined both sides of the road. Each building had specialty stores on the first and second floors, while the upper floors were used as residences. Establishing a shop on this street was a status symbol for businesses in the city.

Among them, the impressive building with a notably large plot of land belonged to the “Einzweir Trading Company.”

Ruru’s residence, renowned as a high-end furniture store, currently had its wooden shutter doors down, indicating that it wasn’t open for business. Despite this, several men were gathered outside, banging loudly on the shutter doors.

“Hey, Mr. Einzweir ! It’d be a real problem if you don’t come out of hiding. You’ve got that 10 million gallons I lent you ready, right!?”

(Gulp!)

Despite the distance, she couldn’t help but shrink at the booming voices.

Her fellow men joined in a chorus of “Come out!” and “Give us the money!”

Even though it was still daytime, people in the vicinity quickly disappeared, and the neighboring businesses seemed to want nothing to do with the Einzweir family, as they hung up their closed signs as if to say they wanted no part in this.

“The repayment deadline is tomorrow! Do you understand?”

“Don’t hide, come out!”

(I know! If I could repay it, I would have done so a long time ago!)

With the urging voices behind her, Ruru made a dash from the scene.

Her destination was an atelier located on the outskirts of the city. Ignoring the sign that read “Bank Seizure Property,” she furtively unlocked the door and entered. She removed her scarf, let out a sigh, and squatted down forcefully. Her long apricot-colored hair spread out softly, a beat delayed.

“What should I do? Father and the others aren’t coming to help, the debt collectors just keep increasing, and today the bank also rejected the investment…!”

Taking a deep breath, Ruru calmed herself.

There was no one in this room who would respond to her distress. The Einzweir family was currently scattered, and their daughter, Ruru, had been hiding in this atelier for several days now.

The familiar scent of wood put her heart at ease.

This place was once used by the carpenters contracted with the Einzweir Trading Company. Even though they hadn’t bought new wood for quite some time, the entire building was still saturated with the rich aroma of wood.

(Just one or two years ago, this atelier used to be bustling with craftsmen…)

As she reminisced about the days of old, Ruru let out a sigh.

The beginning of the Einzweir Trading Company dated back to her grandfather’s time during the Industrial Revolution. It was an era when many craftsmen were losing their jobs to machines, and the market was overflowing with cheap mass-produced goods. Her grandfather, with a reverse mindset, focused on selling meticulously crafted items, deliberately pricing them higher, and emphasizing the value of “handcrafted by artisans,” something machines couldn’t replicate.

For example, they specialized in wooden furniture adorned with intricate carvings.

For example, cabinets using stained glass techniques.

For example, tapestries with intricate patterns resembling paintings.

Not only furniture but also custom-made wallpaper, furnishings, and interior decorations were all within their purview. These beautiful pieces distinguished themselves from mass-produced furniture and captivated the nobility.

Einzweir’ ateliers were established in various regions, where craftsmen from various fields, including painting, gilding, and carpentry, proudly worked under employment contracts.

However, she wanted to be involved in the company’s work at least until the day she left home. She wanted to get as many of her designed pieces of furniture out into the world as possible – in fact, maybe even consider marrying one of the craftsmen? That way, she could continue to be involved in the family business…

While daydreaming about these vague plans for the future, she had intended to assist with the family business in earnest after graduating from school at the age of fifteen. Just then…

A staggering deficit had been uncovered in their family business.

Since her grandfather’s passing, the company’s performance had been declining over the past few years. Good products were being replicated at lower prices, and with the construction of railways and the influx of new goods from foreign countries, sales inevitably suffered. The deficit gradually ballooned, and they reached a point where they couldn’t even pay the wages of the craftsmen they had contracted at the time with the money borrowed from the bank.

At that time, her father had borrowed money from somewhere, but who would have thought it was from some shady loan shark who would turn a three-million loan into a demand for ten million? No honest citizen would ever expect that!

Over the past year, they had sold their household possessions within limits, borrowed money against their land as collateral, and had been slowly settling their debts while buying time. However, no matter how much they paid, it all seemed to get absorbed as interest.

Finally, the debt collectors had set a deadline that was impossible to meet and were aggressively pushing for it.

That deadline was looming tomorrow.

Currently, her father was away on a trip to a glassmaker’s workshop located about three days’ carriage ride west from the capital city.

At that workshop, they were developing a certain glass product that, once completed, had a contract with a noble who had invested heavily and was guaranteed to pay a high price. If everything went well, not only could they obtain a substantial amount of money for repaying their debts, but it could also become a hit product that could help revive the trading company.

Her mother had gone to visit the estate of a former client who was a noble, asking for an investment.

Her younger brother, four years her junior, had been placed in a student dormitory because he shouldn’t be distracted from his studies due to the family’s problems.

While her parents were away, Ruru had intended to stay in the capital city and work with the accountant they had hired to see if they could raise the needed funds. However, she found herself constantly dealing with the debt collectors who visited day after day.

Perhaps overwhelmed by the unpleasantness and pressure, the accountant had resigned and fled shortly after her parents left the capital city.

As a result, Ruru found herself alone, running around to deal with the debt collectors. A 16-year-old girl as the sole negotiator was a daunting prospect for the banks. Moreover, whenever she tried to find work, she was met with rejections from various shops, with responses like, “We can’t have debt collectors coming to our store.” She couldn’t keep asking friends or acquaintances for money either. She felt completely stuck.

If her father couldn’t secure the contract, or if her mother failed to raise the funds, the Einzweir family would have to part with everything—the trading company, the family home, the land, the product patents—everything.

Any hope of rebuilding the company would be completely shattered, and they’d likely have to flee from the capital city.

“No… I can’t give up yet. I’ll wait for news from Father and Mother.”

Ruru didn’t want to see the trading company go under if she could help it. It had been a family business they had all run together. There were so many memories from her childhood tied to it.

(At times, I’ve even thought about doing something extreme like selling myself or becoming the mistress of a wealthy man to protect the company… but that just feels like a dead end.)

She felt that sacrificing herself, both mentally and physically, wouldn’t bring happiness to anyone in her family. Ruru didn’t just want to earn money; she wanted to be involved in the company’s work.

“Wouldn’t it be nice if ten million just fell from the sky? Just kidding…”

Tomorrow, I’ll go to the bank and try once more.

To boost her spirits and shake off her discouragement, she lightly slapped both her cheeks and psyched herself up.

And so, the following day arrived.

Ruru wandered through the city, her restless feelings getting the best of her.

The bank had repeatedly rejected her requests for a loan, and her home remained under constant watch by the debt collectors, making it impossible for her to enter or leave freely.

A flyer flew in and stuck to her face.

“Custom-made furniture at Coldsmith & Co.!”—It was a flyer from a rival company that had come into prominence just as Einzweir Trading Company was sinking into debt. Ruru couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy at their seemingly successful business.

(Father and Mother haven’t contacted me… I wonder what happened. Could something have happened?)

Anxiously waiting for news and as the sky turned crimson, she finally saw the familiar falcon they used for family communications. She sighed in relief.

“Let it be good news!”

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