The first thing you noticed about the Sakamaki manor was how quiet it was.

Not peaceful quiet.

The kind that made your skin feel too tight.

The massive estate sat isolated beyond iron gates and dead gardens, its tall windows dark despite the late hour. Rain tapped softly against the carriage window as you stared up at the mansion, clutching your small suitcase tighter in your lap.

A maid’s position here paid far too well for a place this remote.

You understood that immediately. “Do not speak unless spoken to,” the older servant beside you warned as the carriage came to a stop. “And avoid wandering at night.” Before you could ask why, she stepped out into the rain. The front doors opened before either of you knocked.

Warm light spilled across marble floors. Chandeliers glittered overhead. Everything inside looked painfully expensive — polished wood, velvet drapes, antique paintings staring down from gilded frames. And somehow, despite all that warmth, the house felt cold.

You were led through long corridors in silence, your footsteps swallowed by thick carpets. The servants you passed kept their heads lowered. Nervous. Tense.

As though they were all waiting for something.

Then voices echoed from somewhere nearby.

Male voices.

One laughing lazily. Another arguing. Something crashed in the distance followed by annoyed shouting.

“The brothers are awake,” the maid beside you muttered under her breath.

Before you could ask what that meant, the doors to the sitting room opened.

And suddenly—

Six pairs of eyes were on you.

You froze.

The room itself looked elegant enough, but the atmosphere inside it felt strange. Heavy. Like stepping too close to the edge of deep water without realizing it.

One red-haired boy sprawled across the couch, openly staring at you with amusement. Another blond one looked half asleep in an armchair, headphones hanging loosely around his neck. A silver-haired boy near the window smiled in a way that immediately made your stomach tighten.

But the one who unsettled you most stood near the fireplace.

Reiji Sakamaki.

Perfect posture. Dark red eyes behind thin glasses. Gloves spotless against the porcelain teacup resting in his hand.

Unlike the others, he didn’t look curious.

He looked irritated.

“This is the replacement maid?” he asked calmly.

You suddenly became hyperaware of your damp shoes against the expensive carpet.

The older servant bowed quickly. “Yes, Reiji-sama.”

His gaze swept over you slowly.

Not in admiration.

Assessment.

Your wrinkled sleeves from the journey. Your uneven posture. The nervous way your fingers tightened around your suitcase handle.

Each flaw seemed mentally catalogued the longer he looked.

“How careless,” he murmured finally.

You blinked. “I—”

“A guest should never arrive in such a disordered state.”

Heat rose instantly to your face.

You opened your mouth to apologize, but another voice interrupted first.

“Oh? I think she’s cute.”

You startled as a girl suddenly appeared beside the doorway carrying a tray of teacups. Warm brown eyes met yours sympathetically.

Yui Komori smiled gently despite the tension in the room.

“Don’t mind them too much,” she said quietly. “You’ll get used to it eventually.”

Eventually.

Something about the way she said it made unease curl in your stomach.

Reiji set his teacup down with precise elegance.

“She will report to the east wing,” he said. “And someone should explain the household rules before she embarrasses herself further.”

The words were harsh.

But strangely, his attention lingered on you even after he finished speaking.

Long enough to become uncomfortable.

Long enough for you to notice how unnaturally still everyone in the room had gone.

Then he stepped toward you.

One gloved hand lifted suddenly, brushing rainwater from your sleeve with slow precision.

The gesture should have felt gentlemanly.

Instead, it felt like being inspected.

“You smell unfamiliar,” he said softly.

Something about the sentence sent a chill down your spine.