'You will sleep here. '  Kyung, the head housekeeper, whose voice he recognized from the intercom, showed him into a room that , by Siwon's standards, was barely larger than his French antique wardrobe back home.  I won't be able to move  around here , and they're telling me this is my place?  His mind travelled back to the days spent in the gym.  He wouldn't be able to work out in this room-that-wasn't- even-a -room .  The bed, a single-person one, already occupied half of it.  Kyung, seeing his expression, said : 'If you don't like it, you are free to sleep outside.'   Siwon shivered at the thought of sleeping outside , in the cool air of early autumn, but he said nothing.

While Kyung slipped out , Siwon put his backpack on the bed and lay down, staring at the ceiling. He checked his phone; there was a Katok message from Zoey. Are you home? I was waiting for you at the restaurant on Wednesday, but you didn't show up. One of the waiters told me the dinner had already been paid for, so I ate with my sister.  I hope you don't mind,

Siwon sighed. Zoey's sister, Sohyun, was a budding fashion designer, so it was not surprising that Zoey and she hung out together a lot . Siwon had tried to flirt with her once, but she had turned him down coldly. Because of this, he tended to call her Madam Icy in his head. Zoey had laughed when he told her this, and said that her sister could indeed come off as a bit cold but that she was really a warm-hearted person, once you got to know her better. Siwon wasn't sure he wanted to get to know Sohyun better , but now that he thought of her...

No. He had to focus on making some money in this household first. His father had blocked his credit card, something he'd awkwardly found out when he tried to pay for a bottle of water at a Seven-eleven yesterday.  Siwon smiled wryly. He liked to impress people.

Dinner was kimchijjigae , which he ate with the five other servants. Kyung glared at him from the head of the table, as if he were a dog that needed reprimanding. He ignored her and ate in silence.

Just before he would return to his room, one of the other servants, a man a little younger than his father , tapped him on the shoulder.  'You're probably wondering why everyone here seems so dour, right ? ' Siwon turned . The other servant smiled, one of those smiles that includes the eyes .  'You may call me Chung .'  'Siwon', said Siwon, and he made a small bow. The other man waved his hand. 'No need, no need, we're both serfs here . '  

'Serfs ?'

'Ah , yes, that's how I like to refer to us, considering how this family works us like slaves. '

Siwon had trouble not jolting at the word 'slaves. ''  If he occupied any position in this household it was that of servant, not slave. At least the title 'servant' still had some dignity to it.

'So you wanna know right ?' Chung's voice grabbed his attention once again.

'The Master's was an arranged marriage, and they're planning on the same for the Young Master. In fact, they're already found an eligible lady. '