Rapunzel Is Raised by Her Stepmother

Chapter 18 : Rapunzel’s Job Experience (1)  

The next day at noon.  

Dorothea woke up later than usual. She swept her disheveled hair back and sighed as she glanced at the hour hand on the wall clock.  

‘Not in the morning, but waking up at noon.’  

Was it because she had been so tense in front of her father and the swindlers yesterday? On top of that, the moment her father praised her, all the tension drained from her body, leaving her exhausted.  

She had definitely slept deeply, to the point of not even dreaming, yet she didn’t feel particularly refreshed. She had been lying down for so long that she couldn’t even remember how many hours had passed, and now her back felt stiff, accompanied by a slight headache.  

“Ugh...”  

Feeling the dull aches that came from oversleeping, Dorothea staggered to her feet, stretching her arms above her head with a groan. As she straightened her back, a satisfying cracking sound came from her body, sending a pleasant sensation through her.  

“Haa...”  

Now fully awake, Dorothea recalled the events of the previous day.  

Through Rapunzel and the all-knowing mirror, she had learned the whereabouts of that woman, “Dorothy.” The moment her father heard the location, he immediately boarded a carriage and set off.  

To be honest, Dorothea had listened to Rapunzel’s story with half doubt and half skeptical anticipation.  

After all, the idea that the woman was a “real witch” and the existence of a “mirror that tells everything” felt far from reality.  

Perhaps if she had heard the information directly from the mirror, she would have had fewer doubts. But honestly, watching Rapunzel talking to a handheld mirror all by herself had made her wonder—was she just odd, or was she completely insane?  

‘Still... now that I know, I have no choice but to believe it.’  

The reason she had no choice but to believe Rapunzel’s words—  

Dorothea opened the second drawer of her desk, lifted the false bottom, and took out a book hidden inside a secret compartment. A secret that no one else in the mansion knew about.  

Looking at the “forbidden book” she secretly read whenever her stress reached its limit, Dorothea’s face turned red. She never imagined that a child would be the one to discover she had something like this.  

Even when she bought this book, she had gone to great lengths to disguise herself so no one would recognize her. There was absolutely no way anyone in the mansion could have known about it. The only exception was Sophia, who had said she knew about the books she had hidden on the bookshelf...  

‘Even if Sophia knows about those, she’s not the type to carelessly spill secrets... She wouldn’t have rummaged through my room without permission, and there’s no way she could have known about the secret drawer...’  

So, it really must have been the mirror that revealed it.  

Which meant Dorothea had no choice but to believe what the mirror had said about that woman’s location.  

The only thing that left her dumbfounded was how utterly unrealistic the mirror’s story seemed.  

The very idea that the witch she had refused to believe in actually existed felt surreal.  

What even was a mirror fairy? And what exactly was a “Coven,” a gathering of witches?  

And if witches truly existed…  

‘…What on earth did that child go through for her cut hair to turn into gold?’  

That thought suddenly crossed her mind.  

What was Rapunzel’s connection to the witch?  

Rapunzel was a “Remnant of a Witch” that her father had purchased from the slave market. If her cut hair turned into gold, she could have been called by any number of other names, yet her father insisted on calling her a “Remnant of a Witch.”  

‘Well, Father did call all sorts of trinkets and oddities ‘remnants of witches.’ It was just a bit unsettling that this was the first time he had ever bought a person…’  

On top of that, her father referred to Rapunzel as a “guide who would lead him to a witch,” as if he were absolutely convinced that she would eventually find one for him.  

Who on earth had told him such a thing?  

Was it the slave trader who sold Rapunzel?  

Or perhaps her previous owner?  

Or maybe someone from the village where Rapunzel had lived?  

Now that she thought about it, it was strange how quickly her father had decided to adopt Rapunzel as his foster daughter.  

Dorothea understood that he had done it to prevent anyone else from taking her away. But hadn’t he made the decision within just two days of bringing her home? It was such a swift and decisive action, as if he were utterly convinced about something.  

As if he was certain that someone would come looking for Rapunzel…  

‘…Am I overthinking this?’  

Dorothea let out a small sigh as she placed the book back into the secret drawer.  

The reason she had never questioned any of this before was simple—she had never believed in the existence of witches. And she was used to her father’s obsession with anything related to them.  

A father who never listened to her but eagerly lapped up the flowery words of swindlers.  

It was entirely possible that, once again, he had fallen for some con artist’s nonsense.  

‘Maybe they told him that Rapunzel was being chased by a witch. That a witch was looking for her, so if he just kept Rapunzel with him, the witch would come to him on her own. And that until then, he had to make sure no one else took her away…’  

She wasn’t certain, but it was probably something along those lines.  

The proof would be the ridiculous story about her hair turning into gold because of some curse. She could already imagine how the conversation must have gone, even without hearing it firsthand, and the very thought of it made her scoff.  

So in the end, her father had been so taken in by that absurd tale that he had spent enough money to buy a small mine—just to bring that child home.  

When she saw the transaction document, she had felt dizzy with shock. As if their dwindling wealth wasn’t already a problem, they had even been forced to sell several of the family’s lands.  

‘When I first saw that child, I was determined to cut off all her hair and restore our fortune with it.’  

Dorothea let out a deep sigh that felt as if it could sink into the ground. She pulled back the curtains and opened the window in an attempt to change her mood. Yes, it was because she had been cooped up in her room that she kept having such depressing thoughts.  

A cool breeze blew in through the open window, cooling her skin. The late-summer wind gently tousled her hair, and she closed her eyes, allowing her senses to take it all in.  

‘...This is nice.’  

The refreshing breeze that cooled her skin, the faint scent of grass carried on the wind, and—  

“Wheee~!”  

—Rapunzel’s voice echoing through the garden as she ran around.  

Dorothea furrowed her brows and glanced down below the window. There was Rapunzel, dashing through the garden with Sophia holding her leash.  

Did that child dream of being a dog or something?  

She couldn’t understand why Rapunzel was still wearing that ridiculous collar. Did she have no sense of dignity as a person, or was she simply too ignorant to care?  

Annoyed, Dorothea let out a sigh and promptly shut the window, drawing the curtains closed. She really couldn’t stand the sight of that child. Just seeing her brought up frustrating thoughts about witches and all the nonsense surrounding them, souring her mood.  

“…Hah, I should just take a bath to clear my head.”  

Just as Dorothea was about to call for a maid to prepare her bathwater, there was a knock at the door.  

Knock, knock—  

“My lady, Head Maid Cordelia requests an audience with you.”  

“…Cordelia?”  

Hearing the name, Dorothea tilted her head slightly in curiosity. She quickly grabbed a brush from her desk and tidied her hair before granting permission for Cordelia to enter.  

“Come in.”  

“Excuse me, my lady.”  

With permission granted, the door opened, and in walked a slightly older woman with reddish hair. She was dressed neatly in a maid’s uniform, exuding an air of strict discipline.  

“Did you sleep well last night, my lady?”  

“…Did you come here just to scold me for waking up late, nanny?”  

“Fufu, of course not.”  

Cordelia’s eyes slowly opened as she gazed at Dorothea with a small smile.  

She had once been Dorothea’s nanny and was now serving as the Head Maid of the Nebrant household.  

As the head maid, she primarily worked at the main mansion where the lord of the household resided. She rarely came to this annex unless there was a significant issue.  

Knowing this, Dorothea let out a deep sigh before asking her a question.  

“Then, what brings you all the way here? You wouldn’t come here over just any trivial matter.”  

“Oh, it’s really nothing much this time. If it’s anything… perhaps it’s about the lord’s absence?”  

“…? Why does that matter?”  

“Well, since the lord is away, my lady, you’ll be acting as the ‘head of the household’ in his place, won’t you?”  

Her father had left in a carriage to search for that woman. The place he was headed to required over a month for a round trip, so it was only natural that she would take over as the acting head of the family during his absence.  

Besides, her father had never truly handled his responsibilities, so Dorothea had already been managing the household affairs for quite some time. It didn’t feel like anything new at this point.  

“…And? Isn’t that how it’s always been?”  

“Yes, but… this is the first time the lord has been away for this long, isn’t it? So I came to assist you with your duties while he’s gone.”  

Seeing Cordelia smile sheepishly, Dorothea nodded.  

Having someone to help with family affairs would be reassuring. And Cordelia was someone she could trust.  

“I won’t refuse if you’re offering to help.”  

At that, Cordelia bowed her head slightly. Then, with quiet steps, she walked behind Dorothea, who was seated in her chair, and picked up a brush to tidy her hair.  

“By the way, is Sophia doing well? I saw her briefly when I arrived at the mansion…”  

“…What did you see?”  

“A rather perverted sight of her walking a child on a leash?”  

“Ah—”  

Dorothea groaned and covered her face with both hands, as if her head was throbbing.  

So Cordelia had seen that scene too.  

She had really hoped Cordelia wouldn’t witness something like that.  

After all, Cordelia was like a mentor to Sophia. Sophia had only been able to work here thanks to a letter of recommendation from Cordelia. So for her to see Sophia acting like that…  

“…It’s not like Sophia actually enjoys it.”  

“Really? She looked pretty happy, smiling brightly as she ran around the garden with the child.”  

“…There’s no way.”  

As a wave of headaches threatened to wash over her, Dorothea let out a deep sigh.  

Cordelia chuckled softly before continuing.  

“I’m only joking. I already know a bit about that child’s story. I heard she completely turned the annex upside down. She seems like a rather amusing girl.”  

“Amusing? You and Sophia both—what exactly do you find so entertaining about that child? Sophia said the same thing. Did she pick it up from you?”  

“Perhaps she did.”  

Cordelia finished brushing Dorothea’s hair and let out a small laugh before pulling back the curtains and opening the window.  

Immediately, the faint sounds of Rapunzel playing outside became much clearer.  

“My ball! My ball! Pant, pant, pant!”  

“Look at that. Isn’t it funny? She’s playing fetch with the guard dogs by the main gate.”  

“…Oh, for heaven’s sake.”  

Dorothea grimaced at the mental image that formed so easily in her mind.  

As she watched Rapunzel running around outside, Cordelia slowly spoke again.  

“When I said she was interesting, I meant that ever since she arrived, the atmosphere of the annex has changed.”  

“The atmosphere…?”  

“The person throwing the ball to the child right now… That’s the head chef, isn’t it? Wasn’t he sent here because he got into a fistfight with his fellow chefs at the main kitchen?”  

“What?”  

At the absurd statement, Dorothea immediately sprang to her feet and looked out the window.  

The head chef—who had been demoted to the annex due to his fiery temper and inability to get along with the other chefs—  

“How are you so good at catching? Try catching this one too!”  

“Eheheheh!”  

That very same short-tempered chef was now smiling as he tossed a ball to Rapunzel.  

And Rapunzel, in turn, ran to retrieve the thrown ball and brought it back to him.  

They were literally playing fetch—just like a pet and its owner.  

“…? What am I even looking at right now?”