“Did you have a conversation?”
Ye Sara returned to her usual self faster than I expected.
After So-hee pulled So-ri away, and her father sat down, Ye Sara cleared her throat and spoke in a calm voice.
Although her cheeks were slightly red where So-ri had been playing with them just moments ago, she still managed to stay composed.
“Uh… well.”
So-hee’s father, debating whether he should apologize for his younger daughter’s behavior, decided it might be better to just let it go.
Since Ye Sara herself didn’t seem to mind, he thought there was no need to bring it up unnecessarily.
So-hee glanced at Ye Sara with a slightly worried expression.
In fact, So-ri was still a child.
Her act of touching Ye Sara’s cheeks probably wasn’t something she did after much thought.
Considering Ye Sara hadn’t reacted at all and had even placed So-ri on her lap, it seemed like So-ri had approached her first, asking to play.
Ye Sara probably entertained her as one would with a child, and then got caught in a situation where she couldn’t easily free herself.
As So-ri’s older sister, So-hee knew how to firmly refuse or scold her when she behaved rudely.
But Ye Sara had no such skills.
In fact, even when dealing with adults, Ye Sara’s defenses were extremely weak.
‘…Yoo Ha-neul, Lee Soo-ah, and even myself— we all thoughtlessly crossed those weak boundaries.
The reason for Ye Sara’s low defense was her lack of understanding in human relationships.
Up until now, I had considered that ignorance to be an opportunity… but I realized my thoughts had been too shallow.
To Ye Sara, it was something that could hurt her.
Moreover, it could become a significant weakness when forming relationships with others in the future.
For instance, what if another man approaches Ye Sara—
The thought alone made my fists clench.
Ye Sara was beautiful and wealthy.
It wouldn’t be strange for someone to approach her.
From what I’ve heard, she’s already engaged to someone.
If she were to become a maid, would I have to start by teaching her basic common sense again?
…But then again, my common sense is a bit off from the norm too.’
While So-hee pondered this internally, the conversation between Ye Sara and her father continued steadily.
“Of course, I understand you must be worried. It’s not just a simple part-time job, she’ll be living here and spending a lot of time with me.”
Yes, indeed.
It was a reasonable concern.
That was what So-hee’s father thought.
But his worry wasn’t about his daughter.
Looking back, So-hee wasn’t the type of girl to fall for something as simple as ‘love.’
At the time, he was overheated from what he heard over the phone and couldn’t think straight— but now that he saw things for himself, the girl in front of him, Ye Sara, didn’t seem dangerous at all.
Of course, setting that aside, there were still things to worry about as a father.
Even if So-hee liked Ye Sara, he felt there was a high chance Ye Sara’s family would oppose the relationship.
In fact, if So-hee were to become a maid, it seemed less likely the relationship would progress.
Until now, they had been friends of the same age, but once a master-servant relationship formed, that dynamic would change.
Even though So-hee was a daughter he could proudly present anywhere…
The same likely applied to Ye Sara’s parents.
No, more than that.
The bigger concern was the way So-hee looked at Ye Sara.
Of course, as her father, he trusted his daughter.
He trusted her, but—
“Dad.”
His daughter’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
“Nothing’s going to happen. And it’s not like I’m offering to work for free.”
‘Would nothing really happen…?
Was there a chance So-hee might do something to that girl, Ye Sara?
She might be unexpectedly good at the maid work.
She had been handling all the housework while I was out at work.
But could she really spend every day around someone she liked and still not act on it?’
“Oh, wait.”
So-hee’s father suddenly remembered something.
“Then, may I ask what will happen with school?”
As Ye Sara had said earlier, they had agreed to speak more comfortably.
So-hee and Ye Sara exchanged a brief glance before looking back at him.
“I’ll be transferring to Ye Sara’s school.”
“And where exactly is that school?”
He asked, furrowing his brows slightly.
“It’s Hwayoung High School,” Ye Sara answered.
Hwayoung High School.
He was familiar with the school because it was famous for being expensive.
People who weren’t particularly interested might not know about it, but he had grown up in the area, so he’d heard the rumors.
Of course, he didn’t know the details, but there were rumors about tuition fees being in the tens of millions, and that it was hard to get into.
He let out a soft sigh.
Fine, he could allow a part-time job.
He could even consider the possibility of transferring schools to follow her first love.
But the tuition for Hwayoung High School was out of the question.
He didn’t know if So-hee’s grades were good enough for her to get in, either.
“So-hee, isn’t that a bit too much? The tuition at Hwayoung High School is…”
“Oh, the tuition will be fully covered.”
Ye Sara cut in, still maintaining her polite tone.
“…Pardon?”
He had just resolved to speak casually, but her words shocked him back into formality.
“We can cover the tuition as part of employee benefits.”
As… employee benefits?
Tens of millions of won per year…?
“Actually, considering the salary the previous employee received, you wouldn’t even need my support to afford Hwayoung High School. So, you don’t need to worry about money.”
At her words, his jaw dropped.
*
In fact, many large corporations provide tuition benefits for employees.
They might cover their children’s college tuition or pay for staff training.
But that comparison didn’t really matter.
After all, the people who work here are either hired directly by the Chairwoman or by me.
Still, I don’t want to be stingy with the people I employ.
Even if it’s not at the level of creating a faction, I need to ensure that those working under me don’t become discontent.
It’s not something that can be fixed just by paying them.
Take a look at the people working in this mansion.
Instead, they need to see some sort of ‘results’.
Though I haven’t quite come up with any good ideas yet.
In that sense, if So-hee becomes my personal maid, she’ll be the first case of this.
I absolutely won’t treat her carelessly.
Besides, So-hee is one of my friends.
“The previous employee’s salary was 500 million won. It may decrease slightly after insurance and taxes, but I’ll make sure it’s at least that much.”
Hearing this, So-hee’s father’s jaw dropped again.
So-hee’s mouth also hung open.
It seemed she hadn’t expected me to offer that kind of money.
“Fi—five hundred million?”
Only So-ri, who didn’t fully understand the situation, tilted her head while repeating the amount.
“Uh, no, you don’t need to…”
“As I said, this was the amount the previous employee received. But of course, that’s assuming you get proper training and do your job well. If I’m not satisfied, the pay will be reduced, so you’ll need to do it right.”
I said firmly, and So-hee nodded stiffly.
Well… that was meant to be a joke.
Honestly, there won’t be that much for her to do.
Yang Hye-in had managed all the staff, but I doubt So-hee would need to go that far.
And I’m not sure if the staff would even listen to her.
“And we’ll arrange the working hours to comply with labor laws. You really don’t need to worry.”
I turned to So-hee’s father again, and he seemed deep in thought.
Then,
“So-hee, when do you start work?”
He asked her.
*
“Bye, unnie~!”
Surprisingly, So-ri didn’t seem that upset about parting with So-hee.
Or maybe she didn’t fully understand what it meant to be separated.
Either way, she was a bright child, which was refreshing.
Although, it’s a bit scary to be alone with her.
Earlier, she kept talking to me and then suddenly climbed onto my lap like it was nothing, which startled me.
“If you ever need to look after your sister, feel free to bring her here. But she’ll have to stay close to you the entire time.”
“Uh, thanks…”
So-hee responded, looking a little dazed, still dressed in her tracksuit.
“And soon, I’ll order a bed for you, so you can sleep there. It’s not like you can live with just a sleeping bag on the floor.”
So-hee staying in my room didn’t seem like such a bad thing after all.
If So-hee were staying elsewhere, I would have been worried anyway.
I was the only person in this mansion that she could count as being on her side.
I didn’t expect the staff to outright harm her, but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t cause her trouble in more subtle ways.
…It’s a shame for So-hee’s father, though.
I left out some important details in our conversation.
If he had known everything about my situation, I doubt he would have allowed So-hee to work here.
“Ah, right.”
So-hee suddenly cleared her throat in an exaggerated manner.
“Well, then, young lady, this way—”
“You don’t have to speak like that yet.”
I cut her off.
“I told you, we still need to go through the handover process… and you still need to handle the school transfer. There’s no way you’ll be at my school by next week.”
Today was still Saturday.
I wasn’t sure how long the transfer process would take…
Oh, right, that’s going to be complicated too.
It’s not easy to transfer, especially with all the school district regulations, right?
Should I change So-hee’s address to this mansion?
…
Ugh, what a hassle.
Even if I ask the current staff for help, they’re not likely to assist willingly.
“…By the way, So-hee.”
“Yes… yes!?”
When I called her name, So-hee jumped in surprise, and I flinched too.
“What, what’s wrong…?”
“Oh? No, it’s nothing!”
But her face was beaming for no reason.
I let out a small sigh and said,
“By any chance, do you have…”
Now that I think about it, what should I call her?
I’ve always referred to her as the maid, but now that she’s quit her job, should I call her Ms. Yang Hye-in?
…That feels a bit too formal.
“Do you have the ‘previous employee’s’ contact information?”
In the end, I settled on that ambiguous title.