Boyhood (13): The Forbidden Magic Makeup
Better find Elise fast and get her to wake Serifina.
Hmph!
Serifina was already awake.
Had Edwin known, he would have fainted on the spot. For Serifina, though, rising at this hour was only natural.
She had a diary to read!
That noisy Edwin!
Of course, Serifina was not getting up early of her own free will simply to read the diary. The whole affair had begun a few days earlier.
Edwin's diary was more entertaining than the fairy tales her mother read her, so checking it before bed had become habit. A few nights prior, while reading as usual, she had accidentally brushed a few spots in the diary—and that was how she discovered it…
The terrifying feature known as the alarm setting!
If the diary detected the keyword "Serifina," it vibrated without mercy, and there was simply no staying asleep. Of course, the function was useful when she got so busy she forgot to look—when she was eating cake, for instance, or receiving head pats from her mother, or racing around the training grounds with Edwin before galloping off on horseback. Those kinds of busy situations.
Ting-a-ling.
When Serifina rang the bell beside her bed, the maids hurried in.
"You're up early again today."
"Truly impressive."
Entering with praise on their lips, the maids broke into motherly smiles the moment they saw Serifina's face.
"Why are your cheeks so puffy? Are you angry, by any chance?"
"That's right! I'm super mad!"
"Let me guess. It's Young Master Edwin, isn't it?"
"Hah!"
Serifina clutched her head and dove under the covers.
"How did you know? You peeked at my diary too!"
The maids exchanged glances.
Is our young lady diligent enough to keep a diary?
Well, girls her age do write secret diaries.
She's so cute.
"Not at all. We've never even seen your diary, Young Lady."
"Then how did you know!"
"Lately, whenever you're happy or angry, it's always because of Young Master Edwin."
"Well… that's true."
Convinced, Serifina emerged from the blanket. Then she declared with great dignity:
"I have to get ready before that mean Edwin gets here!"
"Get ready? But Young Lady, you always said dressing up was a bother and you hated it."
"Edwin's been completely ig… ig…"
Having struggled to find the right word these past few days, Serifina chewed her lip with desperate concentration.
"Ignoring me!"
Having finally seized the word she wanted, Serifina announced it with pride. She was so pleased she straightened her small frame as tall as it would go. Had the Duchess seen her, she would have wept that the writing lessons had not been wasted.
The maids, too, bloomed with smiles at the little lady's cuteness.
"I see. So Young Lady has found someone she wants to look pretty for."
"You're already at that age."
"Then we'll do our absolute best to dress you up!"
When the maids lit up with enthusiasm, Serifina panicked.
"W-wait?"
"Just leave everything to us."
"Two hours should do it~"
"No! Edwin will be here any second!"
"That can't be."
The maids' gazes crossed in the air a dozen times over.
"We'll have no choice but to use that power…"
"Sorry, Head Maid. We only meant to use it in truly critical situations…"
The maids pulled bracelets from their pockets and fastened them on.
Click.
Striking cool poses, they surrounded Serifina.
Clean! · Style! · Brush! · Curl! · Perfume!
In an instant Serifina became soft and fluffy as if she had just stepped from a bath; a dress flew from the wardrobe and fitted itself upon her. Her hair brushed itself into place, a natural no-makeup makeup look completed itself, and a subtle fragrance lingered as if expensive perfume had been sprayed.
This was the Erhardt family's forbidden technique—Magic Makeup.
"What was that! My hair just moved and everything!"
Startled by the Magic Makeup, Serifina ran to the mirror. Before it she puffed her cheeks, shook her head, and rose on her tiptoes, trying out pretty expressions.
"If you had this, why do you always fuss with me so boringly?"
"Heh heh."
Clatter.
The maids pulled dull stones from their bracelets.
"One magic stone to power the bracelet costs more than our monthly salary."
"What if Miss Elise scolds us?"
"It was an emergency—Young Master Edwin was about to arrive. When else would we use it?"
"No regrets. We'll leave the scolding to our future selves."
Having steeled their resolve, the maids wore meaningful smiles.
"We'll be going, then."
"Young Lady. Please don't forget our sacrifice…"
On their way out, the maids spotted Edwin.
"Young Master Edwin. Fighting!"
"Do your best!"
"Ah, I want to get married too. Wonder if there's a good man out there."
???
What's wrong with these maids.
Did they all take something?
Knock knock.
"Serifina. May I come in?"
"Yeah!"
Edwin stepped inside and understood the maids at once.
They got drunk on Serifina's cuteness…!
Having received the Erhardt family's forbidden technique, Serifina looked exactly like a fairy. Even Edwin, who spent every day glued to her side and should have been thoroughly used to her, found himself completely conquered.
I was going to tell Serifina to hurry up, wash, and get ready.
No need for that.
How could you even improve on this.
She must have gotten up earlier than me to prepare, right?
Leonhardt, seriously. Sleepyhead Serifina got up this early to get ready—what were you even worried about.
"Mm!"
Seeing Edwin's reaction, Serifina nodded with satisfaction.
I'm amazing after all!
"O-hohohoho!"
Serifina covered her mouth and laughed grandly. Through Edwin's rose-tinted glasses, even that was adorable.
"So you knew the magic teacher was free today too. I've confirmed it, so I'll be going."
"Ah!"
Serifina scrambled up and circled around Edwin.
"Compliment me more!"
"Uh… cute?"
"Again!"
"Cute as a fairy?"
"Again!!"
She's super hyped.
She must have worked hard since dawn, so I'll play along.
Edwin squeezed out every flowery phrase he could muster until Serifina was satisfied. When she, swollen with praise, started bouncing in place—
Knock knock.
"Young Lady Serifina. The Young Master has asked that you come downstairs."
"Edwin!"
Snap. Serifina held out her hand.
What.
She wants to hold hands?
Serifina shook her head vigorously. Remarkably, not a single hair fell out of place.
"Escort!"
"What?"
"You're a knight, Edwin! You have to escort me!"
Edwin scanned Serifina's room with a hawk's eye. Sure enough—on one corner of the bookshelf sat the romance novels favored by noble young ladies.
With Serifina's reading level there's no way she read those herself. One of the maids must have read them to her.
"Escort!"
"Alright."
Over the past two weeks, Edwin had not only received knight training. He had also received a bit of etiquette instruction from the Duchess. It was so slight it did not even make the lecture list, but it was enough to pretend to be a knight escorting a young lady.
Edwin bent slightly at the waist and offered his hand.
"Fair lady. Shall we go?"
"Mm-mm. Edwin is nice!"
And then the two of them stopped.
Uh… what comes next. Do I take her hand? That feels like too intimate a contact…
"Ugh!"
Serifina snatched Edwin's hand.
"Edwin is salt!"
"…You mean timid?"
"Yes! Timid!"
When the two children emerged holding hands tightly, the young butler waiting had his mouth slightly open.
"Uh…"
Whatever he had been about to say, the young butler closed his mouth.
"…I shall escort you."
"Mm-mm!"
Excited, Serifina swung her arm wildly. Edwin's arm swung with it.
"Sir Leonhardt said to show the dignity befitting a duke's daughter."
"Hah. I shouldn't wave my hand?"
Serifina looked up like a pitiful cat.
"…It's fine until we see the magic teacher."
"Weird."
Serifina stared hard at Edwin.
"Why are you so nice today?"
"I've always been nice."
"No!"
Letting go of his hand, Serifina drew wild circles in the air.
"You used to be like this, like this… you were mean!"
I have no idea what she's trying to say.
There's not a person alive who can understand what's going on in Serifina's head.
Even Leonhardt the hardcore siscon would fail.
"See? You're mean!"
What did I do to have my reputation completely flipped.
Sigh… Serifina being Serifina again.
Edwin looked Serifina over once more. No matter how cute the outside had become, the inside was still the same.
How did a kid like this grow into that villainess.
"Ohohoho!"
"Why are you suddenly laughing like that."
"Villainess practice."
Serifina clenched her fists and declared:
"Because I'm a cool and stylish villainess!"
Ah, yes.
Born to be a villainess, I got it. Message received.
Thump thump.
"Why are you hitting me?!"
"Edwin is mean!!!"
"You're here."
Seeing the two children enter, Leonhardt flinched. More precisely, because of Edwin, who was putting on a brave face but looked oddly uncomfortable.
He seemed fine when I saw him earlier.
Could the aftereffects of yesterday's sparring have hit him late?
To show it the next day after only taking that much… I'll have to hit him a bit harder next time.
Leonhardt, thinking thoughts that would have earned him several choice lines in Edwin's diary if overheard, looked at the woman seated across from him.
Edwin, keeping his aching back ramrod straight, also checked the female mage.
Confirmed.
Face I don't know.
Let me try guessing. Looks young—early to mid-twenties. She's showing some nerves.
Huh? She suddenly looks fine.
All she did was look at Leonhardt's face.
Don't tell me looking at a handsome man calms her nerves…
…As expected, in a romance fantasy world, being handsome is everything.