Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Masquerade Ball (2)
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In a medieval fantasy world, what’s the most important virtue a mere commoner needs to stay alive?
Assuming, for argument’s sake, that overwhelming power, magic, or high status are off the table.
Skills like silver-tongued eloquence, masterful cooking, or other technical talents would obviously make life easier, no doubt.
But setting aside those things that lead to a ‘better life,’ what’s the absolute essential for bare ‘survival’?
People might give all sorts of answers, but for me, personally, it boils down to one thing.
The ability to ‘know your place.’
No matter how eloquent you are, if you don’t grasp your station and flap your gums in front of a tyrant, your head rolls.
No matter how great a chef you are, opening a restaurant in the capital without connections means you’ll end up kicking the can down the street from debt.
And showing up at the Third Princess’s birthday banquet as a commoner maid? That wasn’t just failing to know your place—it was begging for your nose to get broken from sheer absurdity.
So, my body heading straight to Ethan’s room next door to stop this madness was only natural.
“W-Wait a second, Lilith! You need to change if you’re going—what the hell?!”
“Miss Lilith…! That’s the young master’s bedroom…”
The moment Isabel explained, I bolted from the room, and I could hear her and Katarina chasing after me. But my head was already too fired up to think straight.
Ending up knocking on the door of Ethan—the prime suspect behind all this—was just the logical next step.
-Knock, knock, knock.
Even as I stood before Ethan’s door and rapped, my mind was a whirlwind of chaotic thoughts.
Soon enough, the voice of the man responsible for this mess came from the other side.
“Maid? Come in.”
The moment I opened the door, there he was: the black-haired young noble, right in front of me.
He’d clearly been getting ready for the banquet himself, dressed in a far sharper dress uniform than usual.
Now that his true form was shining through, the black suit suited him pretty well. Back at Luminor Academy, all he could manage was a suit so tight the buttons looked ready to pop… No, focus—that’s not the point.
The instant I snapped my wandering thoughts back, Ethan—in his black suit—turned to look at me.
With a hand gesture, he signaled Isabel and Katarina, who’d followed me, to step back.
“……”
“……”
-Creak.
Somehow, my two colleagues had trailed me into Ethan’s private room and now quietly closed the door behind them as they left.
The second they were gone, Ethan shot me a shameless question with a straight face.
“What’s up, maid? If you’re coming to the evening banquet, you should start prepping now.”
“Are you insane?”
“Huh?”
“I asked if you’re in your right mind, Young Master Ethan.”
“……”
What the hell was he thinking?
Taking his own maid as a partner to the princess’s birthday banquet? Was that even remotely sane?
Sure, he was a Blackwood duke’s son, but this level of rudeness was off the charts.
If it were some count or viscount’s birthday party, fine—no issue. Just showing up would be an honor for them.
Whether he brought a maid or the girl from the corner bakery, no one would bat an eye.
But this banquet was hosted by the imperial family—the Third Princess’s birthday, no less.
Even if she wasn’t the frontrunner for the throne, this was peak disrespect.
A Blackwood duke’s heir bringing a commoner maid—not even a low noble—as his partner?
What would the Third Princess or the other nobles think?
That he was dragging me along to equate the distant-from-the-throne princess with a commoner? Or to symbolize that the Blackwood family’s loyalty to the crown was no greater than that of some peasant?
It was the kind of move that could invite all sorts of twisted interpretations from the imperial family and nobles watching.
Seeing Ethan’s blank stare as he parroted my words, these thoughts naturally flooded my mind.
‘I thought he’d gotten his act together with all that management training lately, but he’s still just a damn kid inside?’
Ethan failing at the bare basics expected of a Blackwood heir left my head spinning.
Even the improved opinion I’d had of him lately was plummeting in real time.
‘If you’re gonna be rude, do it alone—why drag me into it?’
But despite my reaction, Ethan just shrugged it off like it was no big deal.
Soon, his mouth opened, and an answer to my question tumbled out naturally.
“That’s why I asked you, maid. Do you really get what I meant when I said we’re going to the banquet together?”
“Obviously, as your personal maid, it means attending with you…”
“I even double-checked with you. And you said you understood perfectly.”
“……”
“Too late to back out now, maid. It’s all set.”
…Yeah, when you put it like that, it’s kinda my fault too.
I did gloss over what he meant by ‘coming to the banquet together.’
But seriously, what maid could’ve imagined this?
Her master asking her to be his partner at a banquet—especially the Third Princess’s birthday?
Common sense screams misunderstanding.
If I’d grasped his real intent, I’d have shot it down without a second thought.
“But it doesn’t make sense.”
“Tell me what doesn’t, maid?”
“You’re a Blackwood noble. And since the master has no other children, you’re the next head of the family.”
“Yeah, I know that.”
“I’m just a commoner maid. A worthless one sold off for debts, at that. Sure, I’ve lucked into being your personal maid, but that doesn’t make me think my status has risen.”
“……”
“Plus, this banquet is the Third Princess’s birthday—it’s politically huge. Didn’t you consider the fallout of bringing a commoner maid as your partner?”
Please, if you get it, cancel it now.
Don’t stake my life on your political stunt—just grab any random noble lady.
“As expected, you think deeply, maid.”
“Pardon?”
“…Nah, just mumbling to myself.”
Ethan muttered something under his breath after hearing me out.
Then, with an expression like he’d already considered my concerns, he continued.
“I get your worries, maid, but no need to stress about that.”
“How can I not—!”
“I already sent a letter to the palace. Told them my partner spot goes to you, my personal maid.”
“You… what?”
“Like you said, bringing a commoner maid could spark misunderstandings. But if I let them know upfront there’s no funny business, it’s fine.”
…He sent that letter just three days ago? And calls it ‘preemptive’?
Impressive foresight, sure—but it only raised another huge question in my head.
Why was he so dead set on dragging me, of all people, as his official banquet partner?
“……”
“……”
My suspicious glare didn’t fade after his answer.
Reading it, he nodded and elaborated on why he wanted me as his partner.
“Reason I’m bringing you? To fend off annoying nobles.”
“Annoying approaches?”
“You know I’m not engaged yet. Spent my childhood bedridden from the curse, and lately I’ve been too busy for noble socializing.”
“…Yes, I know.”
“So, when I show up at an official event after so long, how many nobles do you think will swarm to ride the Blackwood name?”
“…Enough to cause a real stir, at least.”
His words made it click—yeah, that’d happen.
An open marriage slot in a powerhouse like Blackwood was prime real estate for connections.
Nobles had been circling since he woke up, letters about engagements pouring in steadily.
The second he appeared at this event, they’d mob him over fiancées.
‘And with his looks now, he’d draw eyes even without the Blackwood halo.’
Sure, I inwardly cursed Harold every time I saw him, trembling—but objectively, he was handsome by any man’s standards.
His wife Thanacia was a poised beauty full of ethereal grace. (Never seen her myself, but still.)
Ethan, born of those two, went without saying.
In the game, thick fat hid his potential, but now—thanks to brutal training—it was all stripped away.
A guy like that as Blackwood heir? He might steal the spotlight from the guest of honor.
“I don’t want a scene, maid.”
“……”
“It’s the Third Princess’s birthday banquet. She should be the star.”
“…I agree.”
“That’s why I asked you. If you wear a matching ring and pose as my partner, I can play it off like you’re my fiancée and shut them down.”
“Pretend fiancée…”
“Plus, among the maids I know, you’re the most trustworthy. And looks-wise, you’re the prettiest. …And personally, I’d want you as my partner.”
“Pardon?”
“…Nah, just mumbling.”
Once I heard the full story, it wasn’t totally incomprehensible.
Pretending to have a fiancée to block nosy nobles? Solid plan.
But it had a fatal flaw.
Me being a commoner ‘pretending’ to be a noble.
A matching ring might fool them at a glance, but if anyone probed my identity, I’d have to reveal I’m just a maid.
I’m a commoner; they’d likely be nobles. Refusing a noble as a peasant? Trouble later.
So I pressed him on it, but Ethan had that covered too.
“What about my identity? If they ask my name and status, I’ll have to admit I’m a commoner maid.”
“No problem. No one’ll ask at this banquet. If they do, ignore ’em.”
“Pardon?”
“The Third Princess’s birthday theme is a masquerade ball.”
…Oh.
Right. I’d forgotten amid the chaos.
The heroine of Luminor Academy. What the empire’s Third Princess was like in the original story.