Before her first lesson with Cedric, Judith was relatively calm. It was the result of the Count and Countess persuading their daughter, who had wailed about not wanting to be taught by her eldest brother, with every sweet word they could muster.

Even Judith, who had turned her back on studying, had some sense.

While clinging to her parents and whining, she realized once again that they could never go against the opinion of the eldest son, and that the true power in this household now belonged to Cedric Calley.

When the lesson time came, Judith went up to the third floor at Cedric’s summons. Naturally, Sheila, as the whipping maid, accompanied her.

Upon arriving at the door, Sheila knocked for Judith with a tense hand.

Knock, knock.

“Come in.”

A concise and distinct voice was heard from inside.

Sheila opened the door for Judith, who did not so much as lift a finger, and followed her inside.

The spacious room she had entered a few days ago came into view. In front of the fireplace, a table and chairs that she had not seen before had been set up. It was clearly a study table for Judith’s lessons.

“Sit.”

At Cedric’s command, Judith replied demurely with a “Yes” and sat at the table. Cedric, who had been seated at his own desk, picked up a sheet of paper and approached the table.

Sheila glanced at his hand. Fortunately, he was not holding a cane or whip. She let out a small sigh of relief, but then met his gaze.

His sharp eyes seemed even more striking today.

“You, over there.”

Turning to where he indicated, she saw a plain chair placed in front of the fireplace, which was edged in fine marble.

The fireplace had been there since the room was used as a guestroom. It had been polished to a shine when Cedric’s room was redecorated, but the inside, by the nature of a fireplace, was coated in black soot. It was unsettling to see the chair she was to sit in placed right in front of that dark opening.

Reluctantly, Sheila stepped over and sat where Cedric had directed.

On the table were already writing materials prepared, so her own paper and pen would be used by Sheila herself.

Cedric sat across from Judith, leaning back in his chair and crossing his long legs. Even seated, he looked aristocratic and elegant.

“Today, we will simply do a short test.”

It seemed he intended to keep it light for the first day.

Relieved at avoiding a thorough beating on the first day, Sheila exhaled quietly. Then she felt his gaze. When she cautiously looked up at him, he gave an order.

“You will mark the number of wrong answers on that paper.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

Sheila responded promptly. He was paying her well, so she felt she should at least appear motivated.

Cedric began questioning Judith on the basics for her age—Lotas language, geography, and mathematics.

Judith could not give a correct answer even once. It was a stark display of how little she respected her tutors and how much she had neglected her studies.

Even things Sheila, a maid, had picked up just from listening in, Judith did not know. Each time a question came up that Sheila knew, her lips twitched involuntarily.

Meanwhile, the number of tallies marking Judith’s wrong answers kept growing. Each time Cedric’s eyes narrowed at her poor performance, Sheila grew more anxious.

Would his anger make him hit harder? He had come empty-handed, so perhaps, since it was the first day, he would forgo the cane?

Of course, Judith slapped her maids with her bare hands almost every morning, but Cedric did not seem the type.

As Sheila harbored vain hopes, Cedric posed a basic common-sense question.

“You have to give one solid and eight denis to each of forty servants. How much is that in total?”

It was a problem anyone could solve with knowledge of currency and basic multiplication, without any advanced schooling. Knowing how to calculate money was essential to living, regardless of status.

Twelve lera equaled one denis, twenty denis equaled one solid. While children just learning about money might confuse such units for a while, adults accustomed to currency could calculate easily.

Even those in the lower classes who lived day to day could do so, and for a noble young lady destined to manage a large household, it was indispensable.

Judith began scribbling on her paper, working hard at the calculation.

‘Please, just get one right.’

Sheila prayed inwardly. The atmosphere was already tense from Judith not having answered a single question correctly so far, so she hoped she would at least get this one.

Despite her nerves, Sheila finished the calculation in her head.

Eight denis for each of forty people made 320 denis. That was exactly sixteen solid, so added to the forty solid, it was a simple fifty-six solid…

“Fifty-two solid and three denis…?”

After much scribbling, Judith gave her answer.

It’s fifty-six solid, you fool!

Sheila swore silently without meaning to.

Not only was it wrong, but where had the three denis come from?

Sheila immediately drew a bold slash on the paper she was holding.

Cedric then gave the correct answer.

“Wrong. It’s fifty-six solid.”

“But I was close, so count it as right.”

Huh…? How…?

Sheila stared at Judith in disbelief at her unreasonable request.

She swore she had almost never cursed Judith in her heart before.

The reason was partly that hating the young lady she served would change nothing, but more so because she had no desire to waste energy. She knew from experience how much energy was consumed by hating or cursing someone.

‘Better to save that energy and take on another side job.’

But Sheila soon realized such thoughts only held when Judith’s stupidity caused her no harm.

Then came a sharp tap as a pen was placed on the table. Cedric seemed to have decided they were done for now.

Watching their lesson from close by, Sheila quickly lowered her gaze.

“How many wrong?” Cedric asked her.

As instructed at the start of the lesson, Sheila had faithfully kept count. She glanced at the tally marks and answered quickly, “Eleven questions, Young Master.”

Hearing her answer, he rose from his seat and said, “Stand up.”

***

Smack—

“Hhht! Ei… eight…”

Smack!

“Aaah…! Ngh… nine…”

Each time the rattan cane struck her calves, Sheila counted the number she had received.

Before the beating began, Cedric had given the short order to “Count.”

Smack!

“Ugh! T-Ten…”

The cane, which had been hanging beside the fireplace, had been prepared from the beginning, only hidden by the frame.

Gripping the skirt of her maid’s uniform tightly with both hands, Sheila stamped her feet from the pain. Seeing her in clear agony, Judith, who had been crying noisily, shouted.

“Brother! Judith was wrong! Can’t you stop now?”

Despite Judith’s plea, Cedric swung the cane without pause.

Smack—

Letting out a pained groan, Sheila stamped her feet in place.

“…Eleven.”

She did not forget the final count.

Ha… damn, it hurts.

Her calves burned as if set aflame. For Sheila, unaccustomed to the cane, it was an unfamiliar pain.

‘Is this… fortunate?’

She had heard that in the past it was common to bare the buttocks for a beating or lash the back with a whip.

Contrary to her worries, the beating was limited to her calves.

After ordering her to lift her maid’s skirt to mid-calf, he struck slightly above that.

At that position, there was no worry of it being visible once the skirt was lowered.

Moreover, since it was not her buttocks being struck, she could still sit at her worktable for side jobs without trouble.

Even as the pain lingered in her calves, Cedric spoke to Judith, “Remember this, Judith. When you do wrong, your maid will be beaten like this.”

“Judith… hic… will study hard from now on.”

Judith, who had burst into tears the moment the beating began, answered between sobs.

It seemed a great shock for her to see the maid who cared for her being beaten in her place.

Sheila recalled when she had first begun serving Judith four years ago.

‘Back then, she was beaten often.’

Even now, Judith would sometimes strike out with her hands in her sleep, but compared to before, she had improved greatly. And seeing her cry at her maid being beaten in her stead showed that, no matter how arrogant a noble young lady she was, she was still a thirteen-year-old child.

“It’s not just about studying. You must pay attention to all your actions.”

“Hic… yes,” Judith answered meekly.

“Now that I know your level, I will prepare lessons accordingly. Classes will be three times a week, with three subjects each time.”

“Yes. Thank you, Brother.”

And a polite thanks, at that.

Even with her calves throbbing, Sheila’s eyes widened at the sight of Judith.

Judith was the precious only daughter of the Calley Count family and had never shown such courtesy to anyone.

“You may go.”

Perhaps because of her docile response, even Cedric, as her tutor, told her to leave without further comment.

While Judith, having wiped away her tears, lifted her skirt slightly and gave a small bow, Sheila quickly gathered her school supplies. It was the maid’s duty to follow whenever Judith moved.

Her calves still burned, but of course it was not enough to keep her from working.

“Sheila.”

Just as she turned to follow Judith out, he called her name.