Chapter 3 The Master’s Command

On Elsa’s first day working at Dustin’s residence, she finally realized that the place was located in the middle of an island. Most of the food was supplied by the servants who grew crops there, while some provisions were delivered directly by helicopter.

There were no sea or land vehicles available. The place was extremely difficult to access and might even have been hidden from the world’s maps. Elsa had never seen an island like this when browsing maps on her phone.

No wonder Marley had once told her that it would be difficult to leave. Apparently, it was true. The only way to enter or leave the island was by air.

“So Dustin has been living this far away from ordinary human civilization all this time? He doesn’t know about the internet, malls, or anything else found in big cities. He’s probably never even seen a skyscraper,” Elsa thought, feeling sorry for him.

But as she worked on the balcony, cleaning the floor, Elsa spotted Dustin exercising outside. When she thought about it, perhaps she was the one who deserved more sympathy because she was here because of a debt. Dustin, on the other hand, probably had more money than Elsa could imagine.

“He’s the son of the Dawson family. He has everything he needs, even though he lives in a remote place like this,” she murmured.

When Dustin turned around, their eyes accidentally met. Dustin paused for a moment, looking toward Elsa as he realized that the new servant had been watching him. Elsa quickly returned to her work.

“So the right side of the house Marley mentioned is actually huge. How am I supposed to finish all of this by myself in one day?” Elsa thought, grumbling inwardly and still unable to believe that such a massive house could exist in the middle of a remote island.

After finishing the balcony and the surrounding area, she went downstairs. Dustin had just entered the house as well, sweat dripping from his neck and face. He accepted the towel Marley offered him, and once again, his eyes met Elsa’s.

Elsa immediately lowered her head and hurried away. She had only been in the house for a day and still had no idea what Dustin was really like. She did not know whether he was like Deon or even worse.

“Tell the new girl not to enter my bedroom until I give her permission,” Dustin said, his sharp gaze following Elsa’s retreating figure.

Marley obediently nodded. “Yes, sir.”

Dustin then headed toward the other side of the house. He casually removed his black tank top and tossed it onto a table before diving into the pool with a graceful movement. After spending some time in the water, he surfaced and put on a bathrobe, allowing water to drip from his hair.

“Hey, you!” Dustin called when Elsa walked past carrying a mop.

Elsa’s body seemed to freeze at the sound of his voice. She slowly turned around, her expression tense.

“Come here!” Dustin motioned for Elsa to approach.

With no choice, Elsa set down the mop she was holding and walked toward him.

“Yes, sir. Do you need something?” Elsa asked.

“How old are you?” Dustin asked instead.

Elsa raised both eyebrows, surprised by the unexpected question.

“I’m twenty-four this year.”

“Have you ever worked as a servant before?” Dustin asked again.

Elsa shook her head. She had previously worked as a private-sector employee. Her career had begun to take off when she started working as a receptionist at the Dawson company, but instead of continuing her career there, she had been kidnapped and brought here to work as a servant.

“Then why are you here, working as a servant? Do you realize this house is very far from the city? Getting back home won’t be easy for you either,” Dustin asked again, sounding like he was interviewing a potential employee.

Elsa knew it would be difficult to leave this place, but she had no other choice. She certainly would not allow Brisa, her niece, to take on an adult’s responsibilities in her place.

“Does Dustin really know nothing about his family outside this island? Did this man grow up on an island like this? What a miserable fate, being exiled by his own family. But my fate is even worse because I’m the servant here. I’m so unlucky,” Elsa thought.

“I know. I’m working here because I want to make a lot of money,” she lied, hoping Dustin would stop asking questions. After all, the man did not know much about the outside world either. Even the internet was inaccessible from this place.

“How much money would you need to leave this place?”

Elsa frowned.

“If I name a number, will you give it to me? Will you tell me to leave this place?” she asked.

The tension that had been written across her face suddenly disappeared, replaced by hope at the thought that Dustin might actually order her to leave.

But Elsa’s assumption was wrong. The man laughed mockingly.

“Tell you to leave? You seem to think getting in and out of this place is easy. You’d better prepare yourself. You’ll spend the rest of your life here, just like Marley. So having a lot of money is pointless if you can’t use it to buy anything.”

Elsa’s expression immediately fell. But what Dustin said was true. Having plenty of money in a place like this was useless because there was nothing she could use it to buy. The painful reality struck her so hard that she could feel it deep in her heart.

“Now go and bring me some fresh fruit,” Dustin ordered, casually leaning back in a chair beside the swimming pool as he closed his eyes.

“I hope you’re not deaf, Miss Elsa,” Dustin added, giving her a warning.