"You don't talk much," Andras remarked. "So what was it like in the orphanage? Did you have friends? Will you miss anyone from there?"
"I didn't have friends," Noelle whispered. "Everyone mocked me. They called me an evil, ugly witch. But I'm not a witch!"
"And you're not evil or ugly either," Andras said firmly.
"I'm not ugly?"
"Of course not, in fact! I think you'll grow up to be the most beautiful girl of all in the orphanage. Even now you're much prettier than them."
"But I have white hair, and pointed ears. And my eyes are violet."
"I like your white hair. And I absolutely adore your pointed ears. Your violet eyes are as mystical as magical power itself."
"No one has ever told me they liked my hair or my ears."
"That's because I'm a man of culture," Andras replied proudly.
"What is culture?"
"Culture? The customs of different races. You're still too young to understand."
Andras smiled.
"We won't begin your maidservant training today. Tomorrow. Then we'll go to Master Florian, and I'll persuade him to teach you magic as well. I'll also ask Anita to give you some lessons in self‑defense."
That day the Young Wolf and the half‑elf girl talked until nightfall. Noelle felt wonderful. Never before had anyone paid her so much attention. With a little exaggeration, one could say she spoke more that day than she had in an entire year at the orphanage.
For the first time in her life she ate until she couldn't eat anymore, and the dinner was so magnificent that she had never tasted anything so delicious and plentiful. If she had any doubts about this new and unfamiliar place, by the time she closed her sleepy eyes before falling asleep, all her worries had vanished from her thoughts.
From the very first moment, she liked Andras. The Young Wolf was the first to be kind to her, never mocking her even once. He even praised her white hair and pointed ears. For the first time, her heart was filled with a strange but pleasant warmth.
Andras spent the entire day focused only on Noelle. That evening, the half‑elf girl fell asleep with the feeling of happiness in her heart for the first time in her life. She slept better than ever before. They lay together on the noble boy's enormous bed, large enough for four grown adults.
Before they fell asleep, Andras drew a boundary line between them on the bed—leaving about the space of one person. They fell asleep that way, but by dawn the boundary had disappeared, and Noelle lay almost a breath away beside him, sleeping peacefully. The Young Wolf wasn't bothered, since they were both only eight years old.
Noelle slept in one of Andras's pajamas, since she didn't yet have her own. The Young Wolf quietly slipped out of bed and dressed. In the meantime, Noelle also woke up.
"The clothes you wore in the orphanage are more rags than clothes," Andras said. "For now, stay in the pajamas. I'll call the maidservants to bring you something proper to wear. Or better yet, you should put on a maid's uniform. I hope they can find one in your size."
"Alright," Noelle replied.
"Are you looking forward to the maid's uniform?"
"Yes. At the orphanage the girls always talked about how beautiful the maidservants' clothes were."
"I believe that," Andras nodded. "Considering the rags you lived in there… If the king didn't demand so much in taxes, more money could go to developing the villages. But that's too early for you to understand—you're only eight."
After Andras spoke to the maidservants, they took Noelle to the dressing room to find clothes for her. They found three suitable pieces. Noelle dressed in the uniform, then looked into the mirror. She had never seen such a beautiful outfit, and from then on she could wear it.
The maidservants whispered in the background about her snow‑white hair and long ears. But this no longer bothered Noelle so much, since Andras had praised her, saying he liked them.
After she was ready, they escorted Noelle back to Andras's room.
"I see they found the right size for you," Andras said. "Come here, let me take a closer look. Hmm… it's as if it was made for you. Noelle, you were truly born to be a maidservant."
The half‑elf girl was overjoyed at the compliment. She blushed and grew flustered. This feeling was completely new to her—she didn't really know how to handle it.
"And do you know what the most important thing for maidservants is?" Andras asked.
"I don't know," Noelle replied.
"The maidservant things will be taught to you by the other maids. What I will teach you is what it means to be my personal maidservant. The basic expectation is that you can do one hundred push‑ups, one hundred sit‑ups, and one hundred squats every day. You must understand magic, be able to defend yourself, and know how to use a weapon. I'm not saying you need to wield a longsword like the knights, but you must learn to handle a short sword and a dagger. That's my baseline requirement. I think magic will be your strongest skill, but with the right training plan you'll master self‑defense too."
"What is a push‑up, and the hundred other things?" Noelle asked innocently.
"Don't worry," Andras smiled. "Step by step, you'll learn everything from me."
After Andras had eagerly told Noelle about the maidservant he imagined her to become, they set off for the Magus Master's chamber. Every day at this time Andras had his magic lesson, which he would never miss—he loved the lessons too much.
"Good morning, Master Florian!" Andras greeted.
"Good morning, Young Wolf!" Florian replied. "Did you manage to choose a girl as your maidservant yesterday?"
"I did indeed! I even brought her with me. Just don't be too surprised. Here she is—Noelle, my personal maidservant!"
"By the holy dragon's fang!" Florian exclaimed. "An elf girl?! No—half‑elf!"
"Well now, can you really tell elves and half‑bloods apart at a glance?" Andras asked.
"Who do you take me for? I am the Magus Master! Of course I know elves! Elves have long, thinner pointed ears. Half‑elves have shorter pointed ears, more similar in shape to human ears. Even a third‑rank mage knows this."
"I see! Well, I've never seen an elf. And I only saw a half‑elf for the first time yesterday," Andras said.
"What is a half‑elf?" Noelle asked softly, almost fearfully.
"Elves are a race different from humans," Andras began. "They look almost the same, but the biggest differences are that elves have long ears, live much longer, possess greater magical power, and elven women are all true beauties. A half‑elf is the child of a human and an elf. That means one of your parents was an elf, while the other was human. Most often the mother is an elf and the father a human. After all, an elven man has little reason to desire a human woman, but there is no human man who wouldn't desire an elven woman. If I had to guess, I'd say your mother was an elf and your father a human. But there are always exceptions, so I can't say for certain."
"So I'm not human?" Noelle asked timidly.
"You are—half human, half elf," Andras replied.
"And is that a bad thing?"
"For me it's a good thing, because I love elves. That's why I chose you from the orphanage, and not one of the other girls."
"Because you like pointed ears?"
"Because I adore pointed ears," Andras smiled. "Be they elf, half‑elf, dragon, or demon—pointed ears are beautiful!"
Master Florian laughed.
"I never knew that was your taste. But I understand. When I was young, I wouldn't have been able to resist an elven woman either! Hahaha!"