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As a firm believer in the concept of 'fate', Nicole had always been a whimsical girl. This was so when she had been a poor orphan with no one to rely on, and it remained so after she came under the care of her 'cousin', Noelle.
So far in her life, the girl considered herself to be quite lucky, not counting the fact that her parents were probably dead.
After all, how many people would have such an excellent older cousin who would not only look for them, but also take care of them like this?
But it was precisely because she was grateful that Nicole had always been burdened by the fact that she had no way to repay this older cousin of hers at all.
No matter if it was money or companionship, Noelle firmly rejected everything, and required her only to perform well for herself. Eventually, Nicole also realized that it was better to just accept it, or instead of helping, she would just start being a bother.
And thus, right after she finished college, Nicole officially began her life as a shut-in. Although she did have a 'job' as a newbie food streamer, it really didn't make her much money, and was more of a whim than anything else.
Her days started with movies and snacks, and ended with games and junk food, with plenty of entertainment and unhealthy consumables in between.
At first, Noelle really didn't seem to care too much, but as their once cozy home started looking more and more like a pigsty, the older girl finally decided something must be done.
Since she wasn't interested in hiring a maid or any kind of dedicated cleaning staff, Noelle decided it was about time for her little cousin to start putting in some work. Anyway, as long as Nicole stopped making a mess, there was no need to hire anyone anyway.
Of course, finally getting the chance to do something for the older girl, Nicole passionately embarked onto the path of becoming the best maid that she could be.
It was only later that Noelle realized a problem. Although Nicole tried to do as she was told and even took care of most of the household tasks… she wasn't good at any of it, at all.
Noelle was more than capable of affording the replacement of all the crockery, plates, windows, and even flooring if needed, but how could she let it be after her kitchen was set on fire? Had she not been at home then, who knows what would have happened?
But seeing how passionate the girl was, as if she had finally found her purpose in life, Noelle really didn't want to just ask her to give it all up and go back to her previous, unmotivated self.
That was when Noelle recalled how Nicole had pestered her with questions back when Emilia was first interviewed on TV, knowing that she was a 'higher-up' in the girl's company, and a brilliant plan formed in her mind.
As someone who often dealt with the housekeeper of the White Deer mansion, getting the girl in as a 'trainee' maid wasn't difficult at all. All she had to do was make sure that they were aware of the girl's disaster-level 'skills', and both of them would get what they want.
And with this new job settled, Noelle also imposed the rule of the girl not being a 'maid' in her home under the cover of 'work-life balance'.
Before she actually went there, Nicole had been full of zeal for her new position. After all, she would get to meet the little beauty who had struck her heart across the screen, get to learn how to be a better maid, and still be able to play games all the time at home. Could it even get any better?
Nicole's enthusiasm for getting to work at the White Deer mansion didn't last too long, however, as she realized that not only did it require a lot of hard work, but the opportunities of interacting with the little beauty were also few and far between.
The closest she had come to Emilia, in fact, had been to stare at her from a distance while she had breakfast, and the experience could be described as complicated at best.
Having seen Emilia's interaction with Michelle then, the newly appointed trainee maid couldn't help but wonder if continuing to stay there would cause her mind to become strange as well. After all, what kind of person would actively ask for more punishment? Nicole couldn't comprehend it at all.
Thankfully, the little beauty had a weird way of punishing people, so Nicole was still willing to try adapting first, and only talk to Noelle about it if she really couldn't bear it.
Anyway, even if her luck wasn't good when the time came for her punishment, and it ended up being something like a slap to the face, how much could that fairy's soft little palm hurt?
Thankfully, the rest of her training didn't come with too many surprises, and Nicole soon reaffirmed her decision to do well. It was fine to bear a little hardship to be able to gaze at a beauty like that from time to time. Maybe one day, she would even be able to see her up close!
Those had been her thoughts until her older 'cousin' returned from her 'date' and brought back the very same little beauty that she had been fantasizing about.
Moreover, they entered without knocking, and Nicole couldn't believe that she ended up exposing such disgraceful, sloppy behavior!
Although the two of them hadn't talked yet, Nicole was sure that Emilia must have a horrible impression of her by now.
Thinking about how good the relationship between her older 'cousin' and Emilia seemed to be, Nicole couldn't help but give birth to the idea of asking Noelle for help.
Anyway, since it was somewhat the older girl's fault for entering without knocking, she definitely had to help clarify her image in front of her boss!
But as she had been too mortified to go out and face them again right away, Nicole decided she would hole herself up in her room first, plug in some earphones to drown out the embarrassment with music, and talk about it to Noelle after waking up tomorrow.
What she never expected, however, was for her next morning to start with a piece of sexy black lingerie lying in front of her door.
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