Birds twittering outside, people chattering, chickens clucking early in the morning, and her landlady bursting her door open making Hee-young- or rather Harlia Kali wide awake from the noise. Looking at her door not leaving her bed, she saw an old lady fuming with rage walking towards her. 

'Who is she? Wait, where am I?!' Harlia wondered looking around in the room not knowing where she was.

"WHEN ARE YOU WAKING UP?!" The old lady shouted as she was fuming with rage, but the confused Harlia made a '?' face.

"I was too nice to let you stay here without paying rent for 4 months. Are you planning to make me wait for another month again?! Change up now, you'll be late for the job. Remember your posture, manners, and the way you speak! I taught you about this don't forget about it. Your clothes are in your closet. They're from me and don't forget your luggage!" The old lady who was the original Harlia Kali's landlady said as she moved around her room helping Harlia with everything. 

'She's like a mother.'

"What are you waiting for?! Go take a bath and change right now."

"I'll prepare you a breakfast. Hurry up!" 

Harlia rushed to the bathroom and took a bath and changed quickly.

Looking at the miror, she saw a woman with reddish brown hair and dark brown eyes in a maid outfit the landlady gave her that she wore.

"She suprisingly suits in this outfit." Harlia said turning around and looking at it in her mirror.

She went out of her room and found her way to the kitchen without losing her way.

'I'm pretty good in direction.' She thought but of course that was wrong there's only one hallway and it leads to the kitchen.

When she already arrived to the kitchen she saw the landlady cooking. The table was full of food and it was all her favorites. Harlia can't help but drool at the food.

"Sit down already and eat. You'll be late." The landlady said as Harlia sat down and waited.

"Eat already. Stop dilly dally and eat."

"Let's eat together." Harlia suggested.

And with that the landlady sighed. "I'll just finish cooking this it won't take a while."

They ate together in silence. The food is pretty delicious that Harlia can't help but smile. It was peaceful but Harlia finds it weird why this landlady is like a mom. Maybe she adopted Harlia or something? 

"I packed up some foods. Eat it on your way to the palace. Always remember to behave yourself." The landlady reminded for the hundredth of time.

After a while they finished eating. She helped tidy up the table and went outside.

"Always remember to behave yourself. The manners I taught you. Don't ask rude questions to them!" The land lady reminded for the hundredth of time again.

But Harlia finds it weird. She thinks she heard this voice somewhere and someone teaching her with a gentle voice. She shook it off immediately and walked but the lady stopped her.

"Here. You don't know your way to the palace don't you? And don't forget to write me a letter!" The lady sighed giving her a piece of paper.

"Thank you." And with that she went straight to the palace.

The way to the palace was not nice. After climbing up the mountains and being transported into another world and completely clueless and woke up by someone telling her to go to the palace to work and being tasked to save the Duke. Why would it be nice? Climbing up in the mountains to take a rest and to avoid people then ended up in another world to have a job and save the duke. It was completely different from what she wants.

'I'm supposed to be sleeping right now.' Harlia sighed.

The enourmous gate appeared from Harlia's sight as she arrived at the palace's gate.

There were many people going inside in the same uniform as Harlia. They assembled in a destined place, lucky for Harlia the landlady wrote it down.

'How could she know that?'

They assembled in a large hall probably more than 10 times larger than her Grandma's house, after all it was just a cabin.

The hall was sparkling clean, and around it are 90% gold. It will probably take her a hundred- no, a thousand of years to be able to buy that small pedestal that can be a pocket money to the Duke.

"All of you here have a job to do, a very important job. Working inside the palace is a great honor. Work independently, work properly, work with pride, and respect everyone here. Fighting is not allowed, if you ever do you'll be fired immediately." The Head maid said. She's an old lady, and it was pretty obvious that she worked here for more than 40 years.

"There's some time left so we will go around the palace. Follow me and not lose your way. Remember everything here." We followed the Head maid around the hall.

Tall patterned wall, sparkling clean floors, glamorous paintings, and the pleasing garden view in the window glass made Harlia gawk.

A painting made Harlia stop her tracks. It was a painting of a child it was probably the Duke. It was slightly familiar to her but she shook it up.

Looking back realizing she lost the head maid she stumbled her way to the hall trying to find the head maid, but then luck is not on her side and misfortune is on her side.

She stumbled into many halls and she still haven't found them, but atleast she found a man.

"Excuse me, did you ever find the head maid? You see... I'm lost so can you help me please."

The man with black hair and blue eyes just looked at her up and down with judging eyes.

'What a nasty attitude.'

"Follow me." The man said as they walked around the hall silently.

Harlia noticed there was a man infront leading us. It was obvious that he was a butler.

'He's kinda familiar...' Harlia thought as she tried to remember if she knew him. And when she knew she paled up.

'That fancy clothing, and a butler around. I am not mistaken...'

Claude Hale, The Duke.

And this is the moment she knew she failed up.

The duke stopped at the door and Harlia paled. She knew what will happen.

'Just remember good things happen after bad things. Just remember, just remember...' She said repeatedly.

The duke opened the door and they went in. The room was almost covered in Gold but that didn't bother Harlia. What actually bothered her is that the Head maid and all the maids are lining up in the room greeting and bowing to the duke.

The head maid and the maids are looking at her.

'I was told to save the duke not to be embarrassed.' Harlia grumbled as her face flushed.

The atmosphere was awkward and Harlia didn't know what to do.

"My apologies, Duke Claude, it seems that she lost-" The head maid was stopped.

"She's my personal maid from now on." The Duke said as everyone's eyes widened including Harlia.

'Wait, wait, wait!!!' Harlia screamed internally.

"Very well, Duke Claude, but may I ask why?" The head maid said completely curious.

"She have the dumbest face." The Duke said bluntly.

Harlia fumed with anger and currently cursing him internally.

"Oh... I see" The head maid said.

And with that the Duke and his butler left making the room less awkward.

"Didn't I told you not to get lost?" The head maid scolded her.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am." Harlia apologized.

"Haa... you should be grateful that you weren't fired." The head maid sighed.

"Follow me all of you still have to go to the dormitory."

The dormitory was pretty nice. It was much better than her original house back in the city. But no one beats her Grandmother's house.

Each one of us have single room. It was not too big nor small. There's a clean bed next to the wall, a window in the middle of the wall, a cabinet next to the window, a mirror next to the cabinet, and a desk on the right side.

She unpacked her things and of course she didn't know all of them since they all belong to the original Harlia.

'11 AM'

The head maid said that they can rest for awhile until 12 AM, and after 12 AM they will be assigned to a task.

And what about Harlia? Of course, the Duke will specially be the one to teach her and assign her. He, of course, requested it- or more like ordered it.

'Shouldn't be Dukes be busy and have less time? Why do this one seems to have a lot of free time to even assign a maid by himself? It seems like he's gonna be annoying. He should be grateful that I'm gonna save him. But why do I have to save him? Dukes are pretty strong right? He should be able to protect himself. Maybe someone gonna backstab him or something. It seems like I'm in a novel.'

Tidying up her things in her closet, she saw a food on her luggage.

'The landlady is pretty kind. She seems pretty familiar.'

Harlia smiled genuinely at the food as she ate it. The food is pretty delicious, because the food is her favorite.

'Maybe Harlia and me have the same taste?'

The atmosphere in her room is pretty peaceful. This is what she wanted. Eating and free of worries.

But, of course, her wish of free of worries disappeared from her eyes. After all, she have to save a ill-mannered Duke.

'This won't go well... I guarantee it.'

'12 AM'

Everyone went to their destined place, and, of course, Harlia will go straight top the Duke.

Her heart raced as if she ran a marathon, she was of course, nervous. After all, she will be serving the Duke. An ill-mannered at that.

The possibility of her snapping at the Duke is huge. Her patience already ran out when she lived in the city.

'But, how could I save him? The palace seems to have high security. No one also dares to mess with him.'

Breathing deep breathes as she stood infront of the door, she tried to relax and maintain her posture.

'Do not snap at him. Do not snap at him.'

She kept on chanting this line but she's pretty sure she'll snap at the second she'll see his face.

She knocked thrice on the door politely.

She heard a stern voice saying 'come in' she gently opened the door and closed it.

"Good Morning, Duke Claude, I'm your--"

"I know. Hurry up and go near me." The Duke cutted her off and she want to snap at him but she needs to keep it in and curse him internlly.

"What's your name."

'You should've have listened to my introduction.' Harlia right eyebrow twitched.

"My name is Harlia Kali, Duke Claude." She bowed. Luckily, she read some novels and know how she should act. But, of course, she's not gonna act dumb like the protagonist in the book she once read.

"Lia."

"Pardon?" Confused and furious Harlia can't figure out what's going on inside his head.

"I'll call you Lia starting from now on."

"V-Very well, Duke Claude." 

Harlia cannot figure out what's going on with him. He's indeed handsome but, why does it seems he have some lose screw?

The Duke taught her what to do and what time she will enter his room.

It was dawn when he finished talking. Why did it take too long you asked? Because, he spent more time annoying Harlia by asking question than teaching her what to do.

"You can come back again tomorrow as we scheduled."

"Yes, Duke Claude." Harlia bowed and excused herself.

She walked out and closed the door behind her. She sighed and went straight to her room.

The maids had dinner together and it was just a normal meal and a normal place. Nothing extravagant with it.

After dinner, she took a bath and fell on her bed.

'I want to quit this job and move far away but guilt will hunt me if I fail to save him. I don't know why but I want to save him. It sounds stange but... it seems like I can't leave him alone. I'll just save him and go back to my peaceful life. That's it.'

And with that she fell into deep slumber.