I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince

T/N: This bonus chapter is sponsored by James B. (11/14). If you enjoy reading and are willing to help me catch up to the latest chapters faster by sponsoring bonus chapters, see my Ko-fi.

Three weeks had passed since the start of the emergency meeting to plan Machart’s assassination.

It was a period that could be considered long if you thought it long, or short if you thought it short. One thing was certain: within the academy, those three weeks had flown by in the blink of an eye. [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

It was unavoidable, as we had to diligently attend our classes as usual while proceeding with the plan for the assassination of Machart. It was quite challenging to prepare various things while attending Luminor Academy, which was already famous for overworking its students.

Since my life was the most important thing, I had to be relatively less attentive in other subjects. The most notable example was the Magic Swordsmanship class taught by Harold.

Clang.

“Haa, haa… I, I’ve lost… haa…”

“…I see. Good work.”

In the final duel with Harold in the Magic Swordsmanship class, I ultimately failed to reach the level where I could break an Arcane Barrier with swordsmanship.

Moreover, not only did I fail to win against any of the four Part 1 students, but I also collapsed pathetically in the final evaluation duel against Harold. It’s fair to say I made little to no progress in swordsmanship this semester.

In truth, a mage doesn’t necessarily need to be proficient in swordsmanship. If you have a reliable vanguard, it’s obviously wiser to focus solely on magic.

Therefore, due to the particularly limited time this semester, I ended up focusing on my major subjects instead of swordsmanship, resulting in no real progress. There was a considerable sense of emptiness in concluding a class I had been taking for three hours every week.

“Sigh…”

“Don’t be too discouraged, Lilith.”

“Professor Harold…”

“Growth can’t be achieved in a short time, so have patience and wait.”

“Ah, yes…”

It was quite a delicate consolation for Harold, but it didn’t really resonate with me.

This was because one of the other Tier 1.5 students taking Harold’s Magic Swordsmanship class had recently and unexpectedly broken through the barrier and joined the ranks of those in Tier 1.

I was quite taken aback as this had never happened in the original story. Judging by how unfamiliar the name sounded, they were probably an extra-level character who couldn’t even be a supporting character in the game.

Yet, this student had suddenly become the fifth Tier 1 student after Gyeongmwajogyegigwat, Ethan, Natalie, and Caraham.

‘Harold is known not only for providing tailored swordsmanship instruction to each student but also for specializing in personalized development.’

After all, he had the skill to raise Ethan, who dual-wields, to second place in the Swordsmanship Department. Anyone who could enter the academy’s Swordsmanship Department must have had potential from the start, so it wasn’t strange for them to awaken their talent after taking Harold’s class.

However, it was inevitable for me, a main character of Luminor Academy, to feel dejected seeing this.

Although our majors were different, if you only considered the innate abilities of the characters, Lilith should have had a much greater advantage. Yet, while someone was growing at a rate closely following Ethan’s, someone else still couldn’t even tear through an Arcane Barrier with a sword.

In my case, the situation was even more shocking because my growth had slowed despite having the advantage of being able to take Harold’s swordsmanship classes even during vacations.

“Lilith, what are your thoughts on taking next semester’s Magic Swordsmanship class?”

“Pardon?”

“I hope you’ll consider joining the class next semester as well. Given the level you’ve achieved so far without majoring in swordsmanship, I think you might be able to accomplish something with a sword in the near future.” [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

“…I appreciate your words, but you don’t have to console me like this, Professor Harold.”

“It’s not consolation, I genuinely think so.”

“I see…”

…Well, since it’s coming from a Sword Master, maybe I should believe his words one more time.

In truth, I had been thinking that this was as far as I could learn with a dagger and was planning not to study swordsmanship any further.

However, since the Magic Swordsmanship class was a common major with Ethan, I was planning to take it again next semester. If I was going to take it anyway, it might be okay to put in more effort until next semester.

After all, there’s no harm in being skilled with a self-defense weapon like a dagger. In this world, the ability to handle a dagger could mean the difference between life and death in an unexpected crisis.

“And, I don’t mind whether you’re good at swordsmanship or magic as long as you get along well with Ethan, so if that’s why you’re feeling down, there’s no need to worry.”

“…Pardon?”

“Continue to maintain a good relationship with Ethan. If you wish, even after graduating from the academy.”

Why is he suddenly talking about Ethan? Does he mean I should just focus on my duties as an exclusive maid instead of worrying about things like this?

Harold probably doesn’t know that I’m dating Ethan, so he probably didn’t say this with that in mind…

Listening to Harold’s inexplicable words, I ended up finishing the first semester’s Magic Swordsmanship class with a B.

The silver lining was that I had achieved good grades in most of the required liberal arts courses in the Magic Department. This was a natural result since I had understood everything without any issues, unlike the swordsmanship classes.

Now, the Final Evaluation Duel during the first semester arrived, which returned this year following last year.

Like last year, at the end of the first semester, the combat departments determine the final exam scores through evaluation duels between students.

This was the final exam that all students prepared for, as it could make up for any disappointing performance in one’s major subjects if one did well in this final evaluation duel. Naturally, everyone was interested in which opponents the top students of each department would choose.

More accurately, it was closer to students ranked 6th and below praying in their hearts, “Please don’t pick me.”

Currently, Agnes was undoubtedly holding the top position in the Magic Department.

Even though I hadn’t been negligent in my Magic Department classes, I couldn’t possibly close this gap. This was despite my unexpectedly high scores in last year’s evaluation duel and the Hunting Festival, leading to a surprisingly good final evaluation.

She had a mind so formidable that she could easily get perfect scores if the exam questions were just a bit easier.

Although she often appeared strangely incompetent and clumsy in areas other than magic, at least in the field of magic, I couldn’t keep up with Agnes even with my knowledge from my previous life and Lilith’s physical conditions.

While there was a slight gap between first and second place, I was barely maintaining my position as second in the Magic Department.

And according to Agnes’s usual personality as learned from the game, she would naturally have used her authority as the top student to call out the second-place student, using the evaluation duel as an excuse to freely unleash her magic. So, normally, I should have been Agnes’s opponent. [Only on Galaxy Translations! / Axiomatic]

In fact, considering this possibility, I had thought about adjusting my grades to be third in the academy instead of second. Especially remembering last year’s Isabel, who flaunted her presence as second place only to be thoroughly beaten in the evaluation duel and drop to around 10th place.

In the end, there was no reason for me to go out of my way to avoid Agnes by adjusting my grades, so I was just maintaining second place. This was, of course, due to the dramatic improvement in my relationship with Agnes, which was unimaginable last year.

By helping Agnes, who was already struggling with spirit contracts, to contract with the fire spirit she wanted most, we quickly became close. After taking various major classes together throughout the first semester, we had now become close enough to call each other best friends.

In other words, at some point, I had already become an irreplaceable person in Agnes’s heart. I had probably secured the position of Agnes’s second best friend after Seraphine. …It was a bit embarrassing to say it myself, though.

Unless Agnes particularly wanted to ruin our relationship, it made sense for even her to request a duel with someone ranked third or below, rather than me, who was second in the Magic Department.

…And what completely defied everyone’s expectations was the current situation.

“……”

“……”

Agnes and I stood on the evaluation duel arena, glaring at each other.

Contrary to many people’s expectations that Agnes and I, being on good terms, wouldn’t point swords and magic at each other in the evaluation duel, Agnes had become my opponent for the first semester’s Final Evaluation Duel.

To explain how this situation came about, we need to go back in time to about a week ago.

T/N

Hello! Axiomatic here.

Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow!