Getting Work III

When Carolyn left her room to get breakfast in the tavern and return the bucket she used, she didn't expect to see anyone other than staff, but to her surprise, there was a mature young woman with her back to the door already at a table with a cup of tea. The ceramic cup and saucer seemed out-of-place considering the tavern's atmosphere, but it fit well in the young woman's hands.

While she was sometimes mistaken for a refined young lady, Carolyn believed that the woman at the table was much more worthy of that title. She possessed an air of calm and elegance and had a low ponytail while her attire consisted of a long-sleeved grey blouse along with black pants. At times, Carolyn's mother had a similar atmosphere, but in her mother's case, there was a sort of barrier that made her hard to approach. Even as her daughter, Carolyn could only try to get into her vision so that she would invite her to come closer.

"I don't mind you staring, but you should sit down if you want to order."

As they were the only two in the room, it was clear that the young woman's melodic voice was referring to Carolyn, though the woman never turned to look at her.

"Ah, yes. I'll do that."

Carolyn headed for a table closer to the wall, but then the woman called out to her again.

"Not there," the woman tapped her table, "Sit with me."

Carolyn was naturally apprehensive of this request, but she was also curious about the young woman, so she followed her suggestion and turned around. When she saw the woman's face for the first time, she wasn't surprised. This was because the woman's beauty matched her atmosphere. Carolyn believed that her mother was objectively the fairer maiden, but besides her, this was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen before.

Her sharp eyes could pierce through any falsehoods; her slender red lips could make a drowning man thirsty; her lustrous black hair could outshine even the finest silk, and her figure drew out lust in men and envy in women. Trying to draw an accurate portrait would be a task that only the greatest of artists could achieve, and writing a proper description was a fool's errand. If she wasn't used to looking at superior beauty, Carolyn wasn't sure if she could stop herself from falling for her charm as well.

'I wonder if this is a what a 'kingdom-toppling beauty' is like.'

After lowering her cup, the woman spoke once more.

"So, you're the new tenant?"

"Yes. My name is Carol. Nice to meet you."

"Hmm, you seem to be safe but, let me confirm something. Are you being chased by any scary people?"

The first thing that came to Carolyn's mind were the bandits that attacked her village. She knew she couldn't say that, but her hesitation ended up showing in her tone.

"Ah, no."

"Really?"

"..."

Carolyn knew she messed up on her first response, so all she could do was stay silent and hope she didn't reveal anything else. Thankfully, after staring at her with a piercing look for a couple of seconds, the woman's gaze softened, and she extended her hand with a smile.

"I suppose that'll do. You can call me Lavender. I'm also a tenant here."

Carolyn sensed no malice in her captivating smile, so she cautiously took her offered hand.

"I hope I didn't scare you. I just wanted to check that you wouldn't bring too much trouble to the inn."

"No, I understand."

"I'm glad, but I do I feel bad for being so intrusive. How about we go to my room so that I can make up for it?"

"Huh?"

Carolyn felt Lavender's grip subtly tightened, but it didn't hurt. It actually felt strangely comforting.

"Sis Lav, leave it at that."

Suddenly, Mila appeared from behind Carolyn. Carolyn had faintly sensed someone approaching, but it had been hard to focus with Lavender in front of her.

"Ah, I guess I shouldn't make Lil' Mimi upset. Maybe next time, Carol."

Lavender released Carolyn's hand and then leisurely left the tavern. It was almost hard to believe that she was the same dignified lady that Carolyn saw when she first entered.

"Sorry about her, she can be a bit too, playful sometimes."

"No, it was fine. Our talk went well."

"I hope it didn't go too well."

"Hmm?"

"Anyways, she mainly works at nights so you might see her in the morning from time to time, so be careful."

Carolyn wasn't sure why Mila wanted her to be careful, but Lavender certainly didn't seem like an ordinary woman, so Carolyn nodded.

"Good. Now, do you have an order for breakfast, or do you want to leave it up to me again?"

"I'll leave it up to you if you don't mind. Oh, but would you have time to talk? You might think this is too nosy of me, but I heard that taxes have been a problem, so I want to do what I can to help the inn."

"Who told you that?"

"I heard it from Marco when I went to replace the water in my bucket this morning."

"That damn blabbermouth."

"No, please don't blame him. He just mentioned it accidentally while answering my questions. I'm the one at fault for putting my nose into your affairs."

Carolyn understood that it wasn't pleasant to have your hardships advertised without your knowledge, so though she wanted to help the inn so that she could get hired, she found it difficult to push ahead without considering Mila's perspective.

Mila could tell that Carolyn was being sincere about helping, so she was more upset with her brother than her. Still, this wasn't a matter that she could decide upon without careful consideration.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'll need time to think about it. I'll take the bucket for you."

"I understand, thank you. By the way, does this teacup and saucer belong to the tavern?"

"Oh that. No, Sis Lav bought them with a teapot and left them in our care for when she wants to drink tea. She says she'll replace them if they end up breaking, but it's still nerve-wracking handling them."

"I see. Maybe I should ask her where she bought them."

As a tea lover herself, Carolyn thought it would be nice to have her own tea set, though it would have to be after she started making her own money.

"Were you not listening to what I said before? Just make sure you're not alone with her."

"? Okay."

After giving a warning which was only partially understood by Carolyn, Mila left with the bucket that Carolyn brought down and then returned for the teacup and saucer. While Mila was gone, Carolyn was the only one seated inside the tavern. Perhaps because she was the only one in sight, Carolyn felt at peace. Thanks to her sensitivity to gazes, it was often hard for her to relax around those she wasn't close with, so she treasured peaceful moments like this.

Carolyn closed her eyes to immerse herself in this atmosphere, but she quickly reopened them once she heard the door open and saw who entered the room.

"Good morning, Ms. Margaret."

"Oh, good mornin' to you too, girlie. Do you normally wake up this early?"

"Yes. I grew up in a village, so I'm used to early mornings."

"A village, huh? Anyway, this is good timing. Remember that job you asked me for?"

"You're going to hire me?!"

"No, but I know someone who might. Take this."

While Carolyn was still deflated from having her expectations dashed, Margaret handed her a paper note with creases from being folded. On the back of the note was a simple map with directions and on the front was a short message that said, 'Bring the person with this note to my office', signed by a 'Rome'. The moment she realized what this meant, Carolyn felt somewhat conflicted, but that ambivalence couldn't suppress from her immense gratitude.

"You, did this, for me?"

"Don't make a big deal out of it. He was just complaining about needing an extra pair of hands to help with some paperwork and you look educated, so I figured I might as well let him give you a shot. You need to have money to stay here after all."

Even though she downplayed it, Carolyn felt touched at the thought of Margaret going out of her way to help her. Carolyn was smart enough to figure out that no business would be enthusiastic about hiring during this time of economic hardship, especially not an outsider like her. Therefore, for them to even consider it was all because Margaret endorsed her. If she ended up failing at her job, it would be Margaret's face that mud was splashed on and yet...

"Miss Margaret, thank you so much..."

With the note to her chest, tears fell down Carolyn's eyes. Though she had no malicious intent, she was hardly free of ulterior motives, and Margaret had only known her for less than a full day. Despite these facts, she trusted her, and to Carolyn, that trust was more than she deserved.

"Ah, stop it. It's not anything to mess up that face of yours for."

When she felt Margaret's warm hand on her head, Carolyn wanted to cry even more, but her makeup was already at risk of wearing off and she didn't want to give any more trouble to Margaret so she covered her eyes and held them back.

This was the moment Carolyn decided, like many other patrons, that she would certainly return the favour that she had been given.