Development (3)

And that night.

I lay side by side with Isabel in the Servants’ Room, my tired body resting as I tried to sleep.

Starting tomorrow, it was finally the Kitchen Duty I had been looking forward to.

Although it was a workplace I had been unexpectedly transferred to because of Lilith’s appearance, I had no intention of missing such a good opportunity that had come my way.

For Lilith, who couldn’t openly use magic to consume mana for training, nor could she go outside the mansion to hunt monsters, this was the first time an environment had been provided where she could try something.

Although it was only for a week, for now, I had to be grateful for even this much.

My heart pounded at the thought of finally using magic for the first time, and my mind simply couldn’t fall asleep.

Isabel, noticing that I wasn’t asleep yet, called out to me in a low voice.

“Lilith, are you asleep?”

“…No, not yet.”

“Lilith, you’re on Kitchen Duty starting tomorrow, right? It’ll be lonely for a while if we’re working separately…”

“It’s only a week, though. Once the guests leave, I’ll go back to my original duties.”

“That’s true, but…”

From Isabel’s perspective, Lilith was a colleague she had worked with for a year, so it was natural for her to have grown quite fond of her.

It wasn’t that I wasn’t sad about performing my duties separately from Isabel, but even so, mastering magic came first.

Because whether I grew even a little in my current situation could change whether I would be able to escape from Ethan in the future.

So, for now, I had to focus on growth rather than friendship.

“Speaking of which, Lilith.”

“Hm.”

“Lilith, do you know you’ve changed a lot lately?”

“…Huh?”

“How should I put it, Lilith from about a week ago feels like a slightly different person.”

……Huh?

“I-is that so? I feel the same as usual…?”

“See? Even now, you’re different from before.”

At Isabel’s firm conjecture, which sent shivers down my spine, I felt cold sweat forming on my back.

She pointed out my way of speaking and cautiously continued with her conjecture that I might not be Lilith.

“Lilith used to always speak to me using honorifics, but recently, she suddenly stopped using them at all. And her way of speaking and actions also seem subtly different.”

“…………”

…I had let my guard down.

I had been so desperate about the fact that I had transmigrated into Lilith that I completely forgot Lilith’s character and was acting without it, realizing it far too late.

Indeed, her nickname was ‘Foolish Maid Lilith’ after all.

If I wanted to continue pretending to be Lilith even after recalling my past life’s memories, I should have kept acting with that unnecessarily obedient and frustrating personality.

Otherwise, it was only natural that my identity would be discovered by someone so close.

…What should I do?

If Isabel found out that I wasn’t Lilith but someone else, how on earth should I gloss over it?

Or should I silence Isabel in some other way entirely?

As all sorts of anxious thoughts flashed through my mind, Isabel’s next words quietly followed.

Tense, I listened intently to her words.

“So, Lilith, are you perhaps…”

-Thump. Thump.

“Perhaps, do you want to be friends with me?”

“…Huh?”

“Lilith suddenly stopped using honorifics, and for some reason, I feel like we’ve subtly grown closer. H-perhaps that’s what it is…”

…Well, of course.

There was no way the people of this world would come up with ideas like someone transmigrating from another world or regaining memories of a past life.

There was no way I’d be discovered unless I spoke first, so thinking about it, it was needless worry.

“T-then, of course!”

“…Really?”

“Actually, I’ve wanted to be friends with Isabel ever since we first met. I never had time to play with friends outside because I was helping my father with his work since I was young, and Isabel is also a colleague I started working with.”

“I, I too…! I’ve always wanted to be friends with Lilith, too…! B-but Lilith always used honorifics even with me, so I thought maybe she felt burdened by being friends with me…”

“I-I see…”

…It hurts.

Isabel’s innocence, completely fooled by my brazen lie, hurt me.

But what could I do? I couldn’t just reveal the truth as it was.

Since things had come to this, it was better to be brazen; that was my way of surviving.

“So, how about we act like friends from now on?”

“Yes, yes! Let’s pinky promise!”

“Yeah, promise…”

Isabel leaned her head over from the top bunk and extended her pinky finger downwards.

Meeting her gaze, I also raised my right pinky finger and intertwined it with Isabel’s.

With our two slender fingers linked, she and I quietly shared a smile.

“Promise~.”

“Yeah, promise…”

…Well, it’s not so bad.

That I’ve gained one more trustworthy relationship in this world.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The next day, 4 AM.

Reading the current time from the stone that tells time, the ‘Time Stone’, I got out of bed to prepare for work.

For reference, a Time Stone refers to a stone whose transparency changes with time. It becomes completely black at midnight, and almost transparent like glass at noon.

Numbers of varying brightness were written on the stone, and whether those numbers were legible or not was used in this world as a substitute for a clock.

There were also ordinary wind-up clocks, but in this world, those were usually in the realm of magic tools.

At least, it wasn’t something to be placed in a two-pyeong room used by two Junior Maids.

To prepare without being late, I quickly changed into the Maid Uniform I had taken out of the closet beforehand.

Perhaps awakened by the rustling sound, I heard stirring from the top bunk as well.

“Lilith… Is it morning already…?”

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

“No… I have to get up anyway…”

“Isabel, you can sleep for two more hours. It’s only 4 o’clock.”

“…Huh? 4 o’clock?”

Isabel, with sleepy eyes, climbed down from the bed and checked the time on the Time Stone.

And then, confirming that it was indeed 4 o’clock, she made a puzzled expression.

“You’re right… It really is 4 o’clock…”

“Sleep a little more. If the top bunk is uncomfortable, you can sleep in my spot.”

“What about Lilith…?”

“I’m on Kitchen Duty, so the senior maids told me I have to wake up two hours early. That’s why I have to go to work early.”

“Really…? I wasn’t taught anything like that…”

Saying that, Isabel slowly slid her body into the bedding where I had been lying.

They were making a girl her age, who should be growing, work from morning till night, so it was understandable that she was tired.

From tomorrow, I’ll have to move a little more quietly so Isabel doesn’t wake up.

“Sleep well, Isabel.”

“…Kuuul, Kuuul.”

Leaving Isabel, who had fallen asleep on the first-floor bed, in the room, I quietly closed the door and slipped out.

I moved with quiet footsteps to the first-floor dining room, careful not to wake anyone else in the mansion.

After taking a deep breath, I quietly stepped inside the door.

-Kiiiiiik.

The dining room, the preparation room, and then the kitchen.

Paying attention to the friction sound of the old hinges, I opened each door one by one and slowly entered the kitchen.

Into that forbidden space, which would normally never be allowed to me, a Junior Maid.

“…No one’s here yet.”

Actually, when I saw the Time Stone, I worried I might be too late and hurried a bit, but fortunately, it seemed I wouldn’t get scolded for arriving later than the senior maids.

Being a maid was such hard work that the hierarchy was subtly strict.

Especially in a ducal family with so many servants, the hierarchy among the maids was practically on par with the military in my previous life.

If I didn’t want to be nitpicked for no reason, I had to come out a little earlier.

“Haa, there’s really a damn lot of work to do…”

Seeing the mountain of potatoes and carrots piled up on one side of the kitchen, a sigh naturally escaped my lips.

This much was barely enough for ‘breakfast’. I had to prepare this amount before lunch, and the same for dinner.

Breakfast was at 9 AM, but I could tell what it meant to be called at 4 AM.

With this much work, it was only natural to be told to come in two hours earlier than the regular start time.

Still, with this amount, it seemed like four maids could finish it within three hours.

“…Should I check something quickly before the senior maids arrive?”

My early arrival in the kitchen was, in another sense, an opportunity. It meant I had a chance to use magic without anyone else noticing.

I looked around once more, confirming again that there was definitely no one else in the kitchen.

I recalled how to open the info window in 『Luminor Academy』, which I had played in my previous life.

…Lilith’s action, was it this, perhaps?

『Name: Lilith Rosewood (Lilith Rosewood)

Title: Junior Maid

Gender: Female

Age: 18

Occupation: Maid

Affiliation: Blackwood Family Servant

Attack: 3

Defense: 5

Intelligence: 4

Charm: 12

Luck: 0

Current Level: 2

Remaining EXP: 19

Currently Held Skills >>

Current HP: 15 / 15

Current Mana: 21 / 21』

“…Oh, it worked.”

Lilith’s info window, so familiar to me who had poured 2,000 hours into 『Luminor Academy』, appeared before my eyes.

The way to open the info window in 『Luminor Academy』 was like this: when the character being played performed a specific action, the character’s info window would appear in front of them.

In the protagonist’s case, I could directly specify the action, but for other characters, the action to open the info window was individually assigned.

Among them, Lilith’s action to open the info window was to quietly bring her two hands together as if in prayer.

Currently, my level was only 2, so most of my stats were crawling at the bottom, but this was something I would have to resolve by raising my level somehow later.

Among the various stats, the most noticeable ones were indeed Charm and Luck.

While other stats hovered around average, these two stats, running to opposite extremes, seemed to perfectly represent Lilith’s life.

It was a stat perfectly suited for Lilith, who, precisely because of her beautiful appearance, caught the eye of the Scoundrel Prince Ethan, and consequently lived a damn unlucky life until her enrollment in the Academy.

For reference, stats like Intelligence, Charm, and Luck didn’t directly affect reality but rather influenced things like a skill’s accuracy rate or power.

For example, if Intelligence was high, the effect of magic abilities would be stronger, and if Luck was high, the Accuracy Rate would increase.

Of course, a character with 0 Intelligence didn’t necessarily mean they were dumber than a paramecium.

Of course, the rate of increase upon leveling up tended to be proportional to the character’s traits.

For reference, the ‘Charm’ stat influenced buff and debuff magic. Since Lilith herself was a support character specializing in buffs and debuffs, it was natural that her Charm stat was also measured high.

Indeed, she was treated as a character with an attractive appearance within the game, so it was historically accurate.

“…Fortunately, opening the info window doesn’t seem to be treated as magic.”

Until now, I had hesitated even to open the info window, just in case. I might have been suspected of knowing how to use magic if I opened it anywhere.

But now that I had confirmed it wasn’t, I could open the info window anywhere from now on.

With just this, more than half of my purpose for coming to the kitchen today had been achieved.

“…Oops.”

Realizing that I had entered the world of 『Luminor Academy』 after a long time, I ended up wasting too much time viewing Lilith’s info window.

Even though the other senior maids hadn’t arrived yet, if I, who had arrived early, wasn’t doing anything, I would naturally get an earful.

Whether it was the info window or magic, if I wanted to check anything, it was better to pretend to be working.

Anyway, peeling potatoes was something I could easily do while checking the info window.

“Let’s work, work. Opportunities will come later anyway.”

Considering that not being suspected was the top priority, I picked up the mountain of potatoes and a paring knife.

Waiting for the other senior maids to enter the kitchen, I began preparing the ingredients for breakfast.

-Srak, srak.

“…………”

-Srak, srak.

“…………”

And so, after 30 minutes had passed.

Only after peeling enough potatoes to fill a large pot, was I barely able to notice.

“…Those bitches.”

That I had been delegated work by those damn senior maids.