episode_0118

After finishing our meal at the Academy student cafeteria, Ethan and I headed to the martial arts department building for the afternoon class that was originally planned.

The lecture scheduled for this afternoon, “Fundamentals of Magic Swordsmanship,” was one of the few common subjects that both the martial arts and magic departments could attend, and Ethan and I had both signed up for this course.

As a full-time maid, it seemed advantageous for me to have as much contact with Ethan as possible, so I planned to take as many common courses as possible in the future.

Of course, if Ethan had not been interested in this class, it would have been impossible for us to take the same class, but as a member of the Blackwood family, he was in a position where he had to learn magic swordsmanship more than anyone else.

Considering that I needed to have as much contact with Ethan as possible, it could be said that our relationship was somewhat aligned.

“This is the first time I’m taking a class together, so I’m a little nervous.”

“Is that so?”

“Aren’t you nervous, Lillis?”

“As Ethan’s full-time maid, I have already attended my master’s swordsmanship classes several times, so I was thinking that taking this class together for the first time is not a big deal.”

“Well, when I think about it, I guess I can see it that way.”

No matter how much of a fool Ethan was, he was ultimately a sword master and a magic swordsman.

Even though my knowledge of swordsmanship was limited, attending Harold’s lectures alongside him would inevitably help me grasp some concepts.

Thinking back on the past, this common lecture was not the first class I had taken with Ethan. It could be considered the first class we took together, but it was not the first class we attended together.

With these thoughts in mind, we walked to the indoor training ground in the martial arts department building, where several students had already gathered, waiting for the “Fundamentals of Magic Swordsmanship” lecture.

As Ethan, who had a certain level of recognition as a martial arts department senior, appeared, students began to greet him one by one.

“Hello, Blackwood Master.”

“Yes, thank you for the greeting.”

“Will the Blackwood Master also be taking this class?”

“The Blackwood family has been using a blend of swordsmanship and magic for generations, so it’s only natural.”

…I suddenly felt a surge of anger.

I was already being treated as a prominent figure in the magic department and couldn’t make any real friends, so why did Ethan always attract a crowd wherever he went?

Moreover, the high proportion of women approaching him was oddly discomforting.

“It seems your fiancée is also participating today!”

“Fiancée…? Ah, um. Yes, that’s right…”

“You mentioned that your fiancée is from the magic department, right? In that case, has your fiancée learned swordsmanship separately from the Blackwood Master?”

“I didn’t teach her, Lillis has always been good with daggers.”

…It’s not important whether I’m good or bad with daggers right now.

These stupid girls are misunderstanding me as your fiancée, and instead of denying it, you’re just awkwardly avoiding the topic.

I wanted to immediately interrupt the conversation and shout that I’m not your fiancée, but disrupting the conversation would only make things awkward, and it was not appropriate for a full-time maid to interfere in her master’s conversations.

Unlike when I was forced to be a full-time maid two or three years ago, I had volunteered to be Ethan’s full-time maid now, so I felt that if I had decided to do it, I should do it properly until the end.

So, I reluctantly listened to Ethan and the other students’ conversation while waiting for the class professor to arrive.

…My thoughts suddenly came to a halt when a bombshell-like figure appeared out of nowhere.

“Hey, Blackwood. Nice to see you here again.”

“…Cup.”

The protagonist of ‘Luminor Academy’ and the current suspected hero, Ketmyojoshegi, appeared.

“Of course, you’re taking this class too, Blackwood. Well, as a member of the Blackwood family, you must have some experience in magic swordsmanship.”

“Aren’t you getting a little too friendly? I don’t remember becoming this close to you.”

“We saw each other at the entrance ceremony. And we’re both senior and vice-senior in the martial arts department. That should be enough to consider us acquaintances, right?”

“If I can barely call that being acquaintances, then you must be acquaintances with Princess Seraphine as well. There’s only a slight difference between being the overall senior and the department vice-senior.”

“Well, someday… Oh, no. Don’t be so stiff about it.”

Ethan was wary and did not let down his guard against the hero who was trying to be overly friendly with him.

The subtle combination of them, which seemed unlikely to match, left my mind in confusion.

‘Why is the protagonist suddenly trying to be so friendly with Ethan?’

The protagonist in the original game was not only unfriendly towards Ethan but was even marked as an enemy from the start.

In the “Luminor Academy,” Hyundan, my exclusive maid, openly displayed abusive behavior towards her from the beginning in front of other students, and he was a trash-like guy who hung out with his entourage and showed off his arrogance to common students.

Of course, the current Ethan is a completely different person from that trash and tends to look out for me, his exclusive maid, to the point of showing care rather than abuse.

If the protagonist of this world is not just a dummy character created by the game system, then such a reaction might be a bit more natural.

…Still, as someone who knows the ending of the two characters dealt with in the original game, it was an endlessly anxious encounter.

“If you think you can build a relationship with me just because of the Blackwood family background, I want to tell you to stop in advance. I have no intention of becoming close to you, and even if we become friends, I have no intention of lending the power of Blackwood to you.”

“I’m not looking for that kind of relationship or wanting to become friends. I just thought that as top students in the swordsmanship department, we could be friends. Why are you so guarded about it?”

“…You’re good at talking about the topic that appeared from the first meeting.”

“….”

“Sorry, but I don’t want to build a relationship with someone who lacks self-restraint like you.”

Ethan’s argument seemed to leave the warrior, who was momentarily speechless, unable to refute.

The women who appeared on either side of Ethan were probably Cerista and Serena.

Cerista will stick to the protagonist like glue until the ending, except for a few episodes in the middle, and Serena also seems to have a considerable liking for the protagonist at this point.

Both characters probably have their own reasons for being with that guy, but objectively, a guy who walks around with a woman on each side doesn’t seem very trustworthy.

Even I, without background knowledge, felt a sense of wariness when I saw the protagonist with Serena and Cerista on either side.

“I don’t have the kind of relationship you think with those girls. We just became a little closer, and it just so happened that both were girls.”

“But both girls seemed to have a significant interest in you.”

“You’re also the same, receiving attention from girls, Ethan.”

“But I don’t walk around with a woman on each side without self-restraint. At least if I had to choose one of the two in front of me, I might believe in your sincerity.”

“…What?”

“A guy who walks around with a woman on each hand is not someone to be trusted.”

“…Sorry, but that’s impossible.”

“Then it’s also impossible for me to become friends with you.”

With that, Ethan turned his head decisively, avoiding the protagonist’s gaze.

On the other hand, the protagonist, not wanting to give up the conversation with Ethan, tried to speak to him again, but Ethan’s attitude was firm from start to finish.

“Stop it…”

“You saw me cut off the wrist of Raidenhart’s trash son, so you know.”

“…Yes. I saw it that day.”

“You’re not an exception, Gyeonmyeojosegye.”

“…What do you mean?”

“No matter how much of a hero you are, if you approach my release recklessly, I won’t stand by.”

…Does he still think I’m his property?

I’ve long since shed the debt maid status, so what’s this about my release, my release?

Of course, considering my current position, it was true that I had to continue my exclusive maid life with Ethan for a while, so it wasn’t easy to break away.

“…Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Understood.”

“But I do want to know more about you, regardless of my relationship with Hyundan. If you ever feel like having a conversation next time, feel free to talk to me. If you’re uncomfortable, Cerista and Serena don’t have to accompany you.”

“…Okay.”

“Well then, goodbye.”

With those words, the protagonist moved to a slightly distant place, approaching Natalie for a conversation.

Really, even he’s quite busy moving around.

Well, Natalie is comfortable to have around in the early and late game, so it’s worth building a friendship with her.

Thomas’ entrance was left undisturbed, so it was probably impossible to go as far as serious conquest, but if the goal was just a proper strategy, it was a play without any problems.

Seeing this side of him, I couldn’t help but naturally think that he was really serious about his conquest.

As I quietly followed his gaze towards him, I started to feel a slightly cold gaze from the seat next to me.

“Do you have something to say, Edan?”

“Are you bothered by that guy, Lillis?”

“I just remembered because it seemed like Edan didn’t like him very much.”

“Alright. Remember it well, and if that guy ever approaches you, don’t engage with him.”

“…Yes.”

In truth, it was a difficult order to just listen to him as a fellow possessor, but for now, I nodded my head.

Just as Edan expressed hostile feelings towards Thomas, as his exclusive maid, I also had to respect that choice.

Thinking that there might be other opportunities for communication between fellow possessors in a different way, I withdrew my gaze, and before I knew it, the afternoon lectures at the academy began endlessly.

About a minute after the bell rang, a man walked into the indoor martial arts training room, which would become a new professor, completely unexpected by both Edan and me.

“Huh…?”

“No way, that person…”

“The legendary Sword Master…”

The training room began to buzz instantly at the unexpected appearance of the famous figure.

Both Edan and I, who knew his identity better than anyone else, were engulfed in a bewildering emotion upon seeing him.

“Lillis.”

“Yes, Edan.”

“…Have you ever heard separately from father?”

“No. I just found out now too.”

I never thought we would meet again in this way.

I had thought that we wouldn’t meet for a while since the stage had moved to the academy.

The fact that this foolish son followed Edan all the way here… was a situation I had never seen in the game.

“Nice to meet you, everyone.”

“……..”

“My name is Harold Richard Blackwood. Some of you may already know me.”

“……..”

“Starting today, I will be in charge of the basic magic swordsmanship class, so please take care of me.”

Oh, really.

Why is he following us all the way here?