Chapter 1089: A Stroll for Hay, a Chat for Votes ( 1089 )

The guard narrowed his eyes, a slow grin spreading across his face. "Heh~ So it’s just me, huh?" He wiggled his eyebrows at his partner. "And what about someone else eyeing that new maid in the west wing?"

His companion glanced away, suddenly engrossed in scribbling in the guard report journal.

Nearby guards, catching the conversation, immediately swarmed around them.

"O... oi! What’s with the crowd?"

"Err... we heard you talking about his ’interest.’"

"Yeah, I heard you mention a maid."

"Oi! Back off, give a man some space!"

"No chance! Who is it?" another pressed, grinning.

"Ugh! If I tell you which one... you’re going to make her uncomfortable. Besides, she doesn’t even know I like her, alright?"

"No, you have to tell us! Don’t you dare keep it a secret!" another guard chimed in, grinning. "We all have our eyes on someone here, if we don’t coordinate, we might end up stepping on each other’s toes."

"No way I’m telling you all that!" he grumbled.

"Hmm... now that you mention maids," another guard mused, "I heard there’s a new group still in training at the hall."

"Right, just like us. Everyone gets trained up before placement."

"Now, talking about maids... You know Erisa, the head of household maids? Now there’s beauty."

"Hah!? No way. Mahira’s prettier!"

"Have you seen Cerine? She’s the real gem."

"Who’s Cerine?" another guard looked at him, confused.

"Hah? The new maid who started working six months ago. Tall, dark brown hair, works in the east wing library? Seriously, you haven’t noticed?"

"Really?" another guard chimed in.

"Yeah... she’s super hot!"

"Hah! No way. I still think Mahira’s more striking."

The guard rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Now that we’re talking about ’prettiest,’ I heard the elite troops, the officers, and the Armand elite knights have a ranking system for the maids."

"Really?" Everyone turned to look at him.

"Yeah. It’s by vote. Two categories: one for those with partners, and one for those still single."

"Eeehhh!? There’s a list of single maids!!?? And a list of who already has a partner!!!? What’s with the votes?"

"Hmm? You didn’t know? This list is circulated so no one tries their luck with someone who’s already taken. Besides, it’s more like a friendly competition set up by Lady Francesca. She says it boosts morale and helps people socialize properly."

"So? Who’s ranked first?"

"The single category is still up for debate, but the partnered category..." He leaned in, lowering his voice. "...it’s The head of all maids. Mrs. Erinnette."

"Ehhh!!!? Seriously?"

"No way man! Isn’t she like... already old!?"

"Hmm? I don’t know about that. But you know the Elite Armand Knights, the Elite Guards, the Secret Corps, the Shadow Corps, and the main army who’ve seen her real self? They all say she’s the hottest and most beautiful one."

"But she looks old!"

"Yeah, some of the elites mentioned it’s her disguise. Didn’t you notice our King still looks young despite having so many sons?"

"Ah... now that you mention it. Yeah."

"Everyone in the elites who’s seen Mrs. Erinnette’s real self voted for her."

"Are you sure they didn’t vote because they’re scared of her?"

"No, because everyone gets two votes. They can vote for two different people if they want. But trust me, Erinnette’s votes leave everyone else far behind."

"So who’s ranked second?"

"Oh, without a doubt, it’s a stalemate. Miss Liana and Miss Gloria." the senior guard declared.

"Oh... Prince Javier’s future wives, huh? Yeah, that one I agree with. Since Miss Liana is an elf, after all."

"Hmm? But Miss Gloria is Miss Liana’s cousin, you know," the senior added, his tone dripping with inside knowledge.

"Huh? How do you know that?"

"Oi... don’t tell me you didn’t know... ah, forgot. Most of you are still ’rookies.’" He smirked and wiggled his eyebrows, proudly tapping the insignia on his shoulder. A real guard, one rank above a rookie.

"Cih. So... how do you know Miss Gloria is Miss Liana’s cousin? Gloria isn’t an elf, right?"

"Hmm? By appearance, no. But she’s half-elf."

"Oh... no wonder her beauty is so striking. Her body..."

"Oi! Watch your mouth," the senior guard cut in sharply. "Don’t talk about Prince Javier’s partners like that. Show some respect. Even if they are... you know."

"Ah, right, sorry. So, is this the final vote?"

"Hmm? No, it’s still ongoing. Just started this week. But for the ’Partnered Maids’ category, Mrs. Erinnette is leading by a mile, leaving both Miss Liana and Miss Gloria far behind."

"Oooohhhh~" All the guards chimed in, voices filled with awe.

"Ah, speaking of maids," another rookie chimed in, "doesn’t Prince Marcellus have those two dark elf attendants? Rumor says they’re a mother-daughter pair."

"Those two? They’re out of the voting. They’re not maids anymore, both are marrying Prince Marcellus the day after tomorrow. Same with Meira and Zania. They’ve been taken off the list."

"But Prince Javier’s maids are still on it."

"Because they’re not formally wed to the prince yet, dumbass. There’s a difference."

"Oh... right," the rookie mumbled, offering a sloppy salute. "My mistake, Senior."

"So... can we vote?"

The senior grinned. "Well... you just need to go meet the general to get the voting slip~"

"Eh? The serious General Hesbeirn? The strongest berserker? No way! He’s scary!"

The senior chuckled and smirked. "Heh... rookies~"

Another guard chimed in. "So... what do they get if they get high votes?"

"Hmm? I heard from the officer that the top 10 will be chosen for the first live contest, broadcast all through Armand and Arjam. On Live Stream Holo TV."

"Oh... the newest invention from Prince Javier during Our King’s coronation, after Armand became fully independent, huh?"

"Yeah. From Count of Armand, now Sovereign of the Armand Nation."

"Ugh! Senior, you just diverted the main topic! So who’s currently ranked first for single maids?"

"Hmm... Erisa and Mahira are both ranked 7 and 8, I believe."

"Ehhh!?"

"Huh? What’s with that shocked look?" the senior guard teased, raising an eyebrow. "Those two are always around the estate, you see them all the time. And since..." he wiggled his eyebrows and smirked, "...you’re all still rookies~ That’s why you haven’t gone to check out all the maid sections yet. Unlike me~"

"Ugh! Senior!"

"So. Senior?"

"Hmm? What?"

"What do the maids get if they win?"

"I don’t know the details. Some say Lady Francesca prepared surprise gifts for anyone in the top five for single maids and top five for partnered maids. Since Lady Francesca is the one taking over this new thing called ’entertainment’... err... ’programming’?"

"Hmm? What do you mean, Senior?"

"Oh? Ah, since Prince Javier announced the radio for everyone, right? And the Holo TVs are in every public square in each town. They’re thinking about entertainment, like beauty contests and such. But we don’t know much yet."

"Uooohhhh!!!! Does this mean..."

"Yeah... you could say that. Now, you rookie!"

One of the guards sighed. "Senior... stop calling us rookies already."

The senior guard smirked, tapped his shoulder insignia again, and wiggled his eyebrows. "Go to Prince Javier and inform him about his Pekko’s weird behavior!"

The guard sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Alright, alright. But Senior! I also want to vote!"

"Hmm. Don’t worry. The voting slips will be given to every Armand staff member anyway."

( End Of Chapter )