Lily's Secret # The Pink Flat Girl
I suspected her from the start. Lily Lapa Ashtar. Her looks might carry half the appeal, but how many people could actually stand a personality like that? Cyria or Ella would be far better. Those bitches only get angry if you actually mess with them. But Lily acts like a frightened little rat—approach her and she flips out, squeaking and screeching at the slightest provocation.
“What do you mean by a detailed investigation?”
“Honestly, she’s suspicious as hell.”
No matter how I look at it, she’s shady. And I’m not just saying that because of her appearance, okay? I’ve got a feeling. A really strong one.
“Is this because of His Highness the Crown Prince?”
As if.
“It’s not that. Logically speaking, her figure is straight as a board, her chest is flat enough to double as a kitchen cutting board, she’s got nothing between her ears, and her personality doesn’t seem particularly charming. So why the hell is she so popular?”
And it’s mostly with men, too. If it were really her personality winning them over, she’d have at least one or two actual friends. But she doesn’t seem to have any close ones. There are a few young noble ladies who approach her now that she’s the Crown Prince’s new fiancée, but that’s about it.
“Are you suspecting some kind of curse or sorcery?”
“The Crown Prince can go fuck himself for all I care. But isn’t it strange how every single guy is obsessed with a girl like her? And these are nobles we’re talking about. Sure, aristocrats have weird tastes, so maybe the commoner vibe gives her some novelty appeal, but the way they fawn over her is suspicious.”
I could interfere with that bitch if I really wanted to, but there are too many complications holding me back.
“Didn’t we already conduct a full investigation when she was brought into House Ashtar? I remember looking into her entire childhood—where she lived, how she lived, who she lived with.”
“Wasn’t it just proving her bloodline and calling it done?”
Normally there isn’t a dedicated profession for verifying bloodlines. Mages can sense the mana in someone’s blood to confirm kinship, so in this era it’s impossible for a noble bastard to fake their identity.
“Indeed. The investigation at the time was completed unusually quickly. The bloodline is definitely that of House Ishtar’s, however.”
The confidence in his voice about the bloodline tells me there’s more to this.
“Was the inspector who looked into her a man?”
“Yes.”
“And the blood test was performed by an assassin from the Ashtar family’s guild?”
“Yes.”
That’s fortunate, at least.
“Send some competent people from the assassination guild to dig deeper.”
“Are you suspecting something that charms men?”
“Yeah.”
Curses like that do exist. Succubi. Weak in power but specialized in ensnaring men. It’s entirely possible that this pink flat girl realized how worthless her body was and contracted with a succubus to drain men’s vitality.
This could get dangerous if it goes wrong. The second daughter of the prestigious Ashtar family contracting with a monster? Unlike demons, succubi are treated with even greater disdain, so the pink flat girl would be seen as lower than a whore.
Then again… with that body, maybe not?
“I’ll look into it.”
I can trust the assassination guild to handle this properly, right?
“It’d be nice if I’m just overthinking it, but we can’t have anyone in House Ashtar connected to demons or wielding power in unsavory ways.”
Better safe than sorry.
“Understood. That goes without saying.”
“Then you’re dismissed.”
As expected, being alone in a room with a woman still feels awkward.
“Um, My Lady? Are you not going to bathe?”
“I’m not. Why?”
My answer made Claire’s eyes tremble violently, as if she were deeply shaken. Is that her version of showing emotion? How peculiar. Or rather, is it really that shocking?
“No, women must maintain even stricter hygiene. You should wash every single day.”
What the hell. So she’d been looking at me like I was some filthy girl who never bathed. No need to worry on that front. This world has incredible magic, after all. And I happen to be one of its greatest practitioners.
“Just shaking the mana off my body in the bathroom is enough.”
“Just what happened to you during your time at the academy that…” Claire shook her head, clearly wondering how I’d become so unclean.
What? She’s shaking her head? Is that how a maid is supposed to behave toward the lady she serves? This is exactly why people who don’t understand magic can’t grasp it.
“There’s nothing wrong with it. As long as you end up clean, the method doesn’t matter, right?”
In fact, using Mana Fusion to coat my body with mana lets me clean myself far more easily. There’s no need to actually get into a bathtub. It hasn’t even been that many days since I became Olivia, yet I’m still not used to a woman’s naked body. Most of all, parts that were easy to wash as a man become incredibly inconvenient now that I’m a woman. Plus that perverted saintess used to nag me, saying women had to wash delicately and that I shouldn’t complain if it took time. In other words, it required a lot of washing. Even putting that much care into it was still inferior to simply shaking the mana off.
“Even so, there is a proper way for women to bathe. Even if you are a noble from Atelina, this is something you must handle yourself. Today I will teach you the proper method and assist you.”
That’s exactly why I said it was annoying. I wish she wouldn’t force this on me.
“No, what kind of nonsense is that?”
“Please follow me.”
Claire grabbed my wrist and pulled.
“Hey, wait. Since when do maids have this much strength?”
If I hadn’t braced myself, I would have been dragged along. I knew she’d be strong since she came from the assassination guild, but is it really okay to treat the lady she’s supposed to serve so roughly?
“If you continue behaving this way, I will have no choice but to report to His Grace the Duke and the Duchess. Is it truly appropriate for a noble young lady to cleanse herself with mana?”
“This way is cleaner!”
This is far more comfortable for someone who used to be a man. It feels like preserving what little pride I have left as one.
“Wash properly. Or shall I wash you myself?”
“Ah. Fine, I’ll wash. I’ll do it!”
I couldn’t endure the humiliation of being washed by someone else.
# In the end, I had no choice but to enter the women’s bath attached to the dormitory alone. As expected of the empire’s Atelina, the bathing facilities were impressive. Even now, many people in the provinces struggle to survive, yet this was positively luxurious. If I were still a man, it would have been perfect.
“Fuck. How the hell did I end up like this? Huh?”
While taking off my clothes, I spotted that pathetic pink flat girl. She was even surrounded by noble young ladies.
“I am His Highness the Crown Prince’s woman. Why can’t I use this bath?”
It was impressive that she could say something so brazen out loud.
“Oh my. I thought being an Ashtar young lady meant something, but weren’t you a commoner until recently?”
“That’s right. So you absolutely cannot enter until that commoner stench disappears.”
Wow, they were openly insulting her. Poor thing. How pitiful.
“Where is there such a rule? If you keep this up, I’ll tell His Highness the Crown Prince!”
That girl was energetically fighting with the other young ladies again today. Well, it’s none of my business.
“Hmph. You’re nothing without His Highness the Crown Prince, yet you act so high and mighty.”
“I have not only His Highness but also a proud older sister!”
She used to say she’d steal the saintess position from me.
“That older sister whose fiancé you stole?”
“Well, it is rather pitiful for Lady Olivia. To have her fiancé taken by someone like this.”
“Wasn’t the rumor that she’s a wicked woman spread by this very sister?”
Wow, is this what a catfight looks like? Scary. Terrifying. Still, I have no desire to get involved. I have zero obligation to help Lily.
“Exactly. With a body that lacks any charm whatsoever…”
“Lacks charm? Don’t you know bodies like this are popular these days?”
……
……No, that’s definitely not true. Even the hero would hate a body like yours. I wanted to step in and correct her, but getting involved would just be annoying. And if I were discovered it would cause even more trouble, so I used concealment magic to hide my body and slipped into the bath.
I never imagined I’d end up entering a bath with a woman’s body.
“Come to think of it, a woman’s body really is inconvenient like this.”
The chest is particularly bothersome. The weight, for starters. The proportions feel all wrong compared to Noah’s body. Even though Mana Fusion has let me somewhat transcend normal human limits, the swollen chest and hips inevitably change how I move. At first I thought it wouldn’t be a problem, but it is.
“That’s why I’m jealous of that pink flat girl.”
Even as a woman, if your body is straight as a board with zero appeal, at least you wouldn’t draw men’s attention and your body would feel relatively light. That stupid pink flat girl has no idea how convenient her body would be in battle. If I stay here, won’t I end up seeing all those young ladies naked? Or worse, I might have to look at that pink girl’s pathetic naked body with my own eyes. Should I just leave immediately?
No. Claire is probably monitoring this place from somewhere.
“Wouldn’t it be better if you simply gave up on everything?”
“Wh-what did you say?”
“Oh dear. Did we say something wrong?”
If you’re going to fight, take it outside. This is annoying. That said, I have no intention of siding with Lily. The previous Olivia had suffered as much from Lily as she had tormented her, and even her own blood-related sister fought with her every day. I have no mental energy to spare on a girl like this.
“Honestly, your smell disgusts me, you know?”
“That’s right. Trying to go after His Highness with nothing but a body like that!”
I can’t listen to any more of this. At the very least, I should stop them from disturbing my bath, right? Let’s drive out everyone, Lily included. Yeah, that’s the solution.
“Huh?”
Something about Lily’s aura changed. Her eyes began glowing red as she fixed her gaze on the young ladies.
“This is the first time I’ve used this on anyone other than my sister.”
“What? Huh? Why are your eyes so re—”
At that moment, the female students who had been mocking Lily suddenly froze. I couldn’t see everything clearly from my angle, but it looked like something had taken hold of them. There was definitely a trace of magic.
“From now on, whenever you see me, you will want to praise me.”
“““Yes.”””
“And you will not dare say anything about His Highness the Crown Prince to me.”
“““Yes.”””
This is insane. Is that bitch using mental magic? That pink flat girl capable of such high-level spells? No, it doesn’t look like it. The way her eyes turned red suggests this isn’t something she learned—it’s a contract.
“They clearly warned that using it more than necessary is dangerous.”
She’s even speaking as if quoting someone else. This is definitely someone granting her power. No mage would be stupid enough to hand a weapon to a child like this. With that empty head of hers, it’s doubtful she could even learn mental magic. Which means that power is almost certainly connected to a monster or a demon.
Of course. With an appearance like that, how else could she seduce men? Now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense. In the capital it might be different, but she was probably just a girl living in the provinces, unaware of her own status. I can’t be certain, but nobles usually discover the seeds they’ve sown out in the countryside. The barriers protecting provincial villages are small, so succubi could easily slip in. She must have made contact there. It’s probably a succubus itself rather than a demon. That ability is similar to a succubus’s charm, after all.
Even if I intervene now, there’s a chance I could end up crippled. The wicked woman Olivia—who is already infamous for tormenting Lily—would cause an uproar if she were to take Lily down. So what should I do with that pink flat girl? Kill her? Or let her live?