The Maid Who Stormed In
I yawned and stretched. Morning sunlight seeped past my eyelids, staining my vision red, but it didn't last long.
"Nnnngh—"
Anyone watching might have found the sight rather indecent. A woman with a voluptuous figure, dressed in nothing but her undergarments, arms raised high enough to bare her armpits completely.
Well... I was alone, so it didn't matter.
"Did you sleep well, my lady?"
Ah.
I wasn't alone.
My mind snapped awake in an instant. Oh god—had Lora just seen all of that?
"Ah... uh, L-Lora. How long have you been watching?"
I tilted my head with a forced little laugh, and the words that came out of her mouth were something else entirely.
"I've been watching since the moment you first stretched. Now then—it's morning, so let's start with a bath."
"W-wait, I can wash myself just fine—"
"I don't trust you. You'll just scrub everything with soap again, won't you?"
Crap... she'd caught me. Honestly, washing my hair properly with shampoo every single time was a pain. I'd been planning to just lather up with soap like doing laundry and call it done.
And so, first thing in the morning, Lora dragged me off and scrubbed every last inch of my body clean.
But wasn't this basically bathing together? It felt a little... weird. Or maybe not. People say this kind of thing is common between friends, not that I'd know. And since we were both girls, maybe that made it even more normal?
Once we were out, Lora carefully combed through my damp, warm hair, towel-drying it strand by strand. She really was devoted, wasn't she?
"You're amazing, Lora. Are all maids like this?"
"I think I might just pay a little more attention to you than most, my lady."
"Hm?"
"You've lost your memories, haven't you? If anything goes wrong, the responsibility falls on me—so of course I have to help you with everything."
Ah... so that's how it worked. Well, Lora was my personal maid now.
That made sense enough. It couldn't be helped. She was here to take care of me, after all. If I caused problems, the blame would land squarely on her.
Was that why she'd cut ties in the game...? She'd decided she couldn't take the responsibility anymore and just bolted. Thinking about it that way, I could understand.
Still, abandoning a longtime friend felt pretty harsh. Though... I had done some pretty awful things.
"Your hair is so long, it took longer than I expected. But I managed. Hehe..."
Lora smiled brightly and shrugged her shoulders, looking surprisingly cute. She seemed awfully proud of her handiwork.
"Yeah... good job."
I casually rested my hand on her head and gave it a gentle pat—and she immediately flushed red and stepped back. Oops... maybe we weren't that close.
I could hear her breathing hard—hah, hah. She seemed pretty upset, and I felt bad.
Then again, I was tall enough that even Lora looked relatively small next to me. She had a rather voluptuous figure, sure, but otherwise she was about a head shorter.
My hand had gone to her head on instinct. She'd worked so hard combing and styling my hair—I couldn't just brush it off with a thank-you.
"Sorry if that was rude. I guess patting your head wasn't the right move."
"Ah... n-no. I-it's just... um..."
"Just...?"
"Next time, please at least say something before you pat me."
Her eyes looked a little moist. She was clutching my hand tightly while looking away, and the whole effect was surprisingly alluring.
I looked in the mirror and turned a full circle right there. The white dress fluttered up lightly with my blonde hair, and the whole look was undeniably pretty.
This was a villainess? Shouldn't I look a little more sinister or wicked? I was so cheerful it was almost excessive—I didn't even know what to say.
"Not bad! I look so much better."
"Of course. I styled you myself—there's no way you wouldn't look good."
Lora shrugged with her lips curved into a proud smile, clearly delighted with her own skills. Hmm... she definitely hadn't wasted her years as a maid.
But there was one problem...
"Hey, Lora. This might sound strange, but... when the family sent you here, did they send any money along?"
I was completely broke. Yesterday I'd checked my wallet just in case, and it was empty—not a single coin. In short, I didn't even have money for breakfast. At this rate, I was going to starve to death right in the middle of the city.
Seriously, for a family of mages, they sure didn't bother giving their own daughter any proper funds. No wonder her personality had turned out so rotten.
"What? You really don't have a single coin?"
"Nope! The family should be sending money, but it seems like it's running late."
I scratched my cheek and let out a long sigh. Lora's gaze sharpened. It made me a little uneasy.
"Lora?"
"Haa... Even so, not sending a single coin to the young lady who carries their blood... What is this..."
"Uh... what do you mean? Haven't I been receiving support this whole time?"
"Support? There's no such thing. Aside from a bit of money they sent at the very beginning, they essentially abandoned you."
Huh? Is that right? Then this house is...
My head was starting to hurt. Just how cruel was this family? Then why had Lora come here in the first place...
"Wait—then why did you come to me, Lora? You said I've basically been abandoned by the family. So how..."
"They sent me under the pretense of providing support, but in reality it's no different from sending me to keep watch over you. They probably expected you wouldn't last long before you collapsed."
"Ah... this is giving me a headache."
So they'd only sent her to stop me from causing any inconvenient trouble. And since Lora had volunteered to come, if things had gone the original way, some watchdog of a maid would have shown up, just watched me fall apart, and reported back?
What a joke. Was it because they were mages? The way they treated their own family's young lady was just awful...
My plans were a mess from the start. I'd just wanted to get exiled and live comfortably, but at this rate I was definitely going to wither away and die.
I wondered if I should start raising affection points now, but at this point living out on the outskirts without surveillance almost seemed better.
The conclusion was simple. I needed to make money.
Even if I went to the outskirts, I'd need to scrape together every coin I could right now if I wanted to survive.
"Lora, can I ask you for one favor?"
I asked her earnestly. She tilted her head, watching me quietly, wondering what I was about to request.
I closed my mouth for a moment. A strange silence settled over us, broken only by the voices of people outside.
It was noisy and quiet all at once. Feeling the silence settle, we simply looked into each other's eyes.
I desperately needed Lora's help right now. I knew nothing about this city. I didn't know what I needed to do to make money, and beyond the vague things I'd seen in the game, I didn't really know anything properly.
In a way, it was fortunate she'd come to me. The previous Eriana would have thrown a fit, but I wasn't that rotten of a person.
"What... kind of favor?"
She spoke. I slowly stepped closer, took her hands in mine, and said:
"From now on, I'm going to try to make money. But I don't remember anything, you know? So... please. I want you to help me, Lora."
No answer. Had I asked for too much? Formally she was here as my maid, but in reality her role was closer to that of a watcher.
Maybe this would even be seen as something like betrayal of the family? I could try to figure things out on my own if I had to, but having someone to help versus having no one at all were completely different.
I held her hands and waited for her answer, forcing down the anxious flutter in my chest.
And then—after who knows how long—Lora spoke.
"Do you want to live on your own? Completely as yourself, separate from the family?"
Well, it wasn't quite that grand. The way they treated me in the family just seemed pretty terrible, so I figured I'd leave on my own terms.
"Uh... y-yeah, something like that?"
I could only give a vague answer. Lora seemed to be looking at me like I was something impressive. In reality I was just a rotten person running away because things sucked.
"My lady... you seem so much stronger now. How could I possibly refuse?"
She smiled, the corners of her lips lifting, and gently pulled me into her arms.
"I'll help you. As much as you need."
Ah... thank goodness.
I'd managed to keep at least one good friend. Nice going, Eriana!
"Then I'll be counting on you from now on, Lora."
"Yes. I'll be counting on you as well, Lady Eriana."
In a soft, gentle voice, I quietly pulled her into a hug. From now on, she and I were in the same boat.
But why did I feel this sticky, clinging aura from her? As if she wanted to hold me completely in her arms.
For a maid girl, there was a distinctly obsessive atmosphere seeping out of her.
Hmm... it was probably just my imagination.