I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince - Chapter 50 [The Sword Carries the Will (9)]

 

At the mock arena, the new soldier and I stood facing each other.

We quietly bowed our heads and exchanged greetings.

 

“I look forward to a good match!”

“…I look forward to a good match as well.”

 

I didn’t feel any particular aura from my opponent. Just the feeling of a regular new soldier.

On the other hand, the soldier probably didn’t get any special impression from me either. In the first place, how nervous would they be facing a mere maid?

That was the part I had to aim for in the first duel.

Since this moment was the easiest opportunity to win when the opponent was being careless towards me, I had to secure an overwhelming victory as much as possible.

That way, I could gain more experience points from the training facility.

…And if I needed more XP, it would also be appropriate to use it as an excuse to continue to the next duel.

I’d say something like wanting to have another duel with a different opponent because this one didn’t take the duel seriously.

 

『XP to Next Level: 83』

 

Lilith just needed 83 XP remaining to level up.

Based on what I knew about the monsters, defeating a level 6 monster would roughly give 80 XP while defeating a level 7 monster would give around 120.

Even if they were a new soldier, if they were good enough to join the Blackwood Estate Guards, they must have at least the minimum level of skill.

So, it was best to assume that the opponent had at least reached level 6-7.

If I was lucky, I might be able to finish it in one go. Then, I could end this training as quickly as possible.

If I didn’t get as much experience as I expected… I’ll think about that when the time comes.

 

“…Both sides, get ready!”

“……”

“……”

 

Following the call of Emilia, who took on the role of temporary referee with a deadly expression, we took our stances.

 

“Begin!”

 

With her signal, I immediately leaned my body forward with my dagger in hand.

The weapon I wielded was a single dagger. I couldn’t use magic that would stand out too much in this situation.

Still, the situation wasn’t completely hopeless. Since I found this dagger in the preparation room, my chances of victory had increased considerably.

In Luminor Academy, Lilith’s most common growth path was to focus on support magic and buff the entire team.

However, that didn’t mean she had so little flexibility that she had to be used solely as a support magic character.

Naturally, Lilith’s skill tree was not limited to just the two options of ‘attack magic’ and ‘support magic.’

There was also a skill tree that could be used for close combat.

That skill tree contained upgrades for one of the three main weapons that Lilith could equip. Naturally, there was a skill tree corresponding to the dagger among them.

I needed 5 skill points to learn Mana Blast. I currently have 4.

If I leveled up once, I could gain 3 skill points, so even after acquiring Mana Blast, I would have 2 points left over.

In other words, it meant that there was no problem with using 2 points now to acquire a skill that was essential for leveling up.

Realizing this, I immediately put a point into a lower-level upgrade for using the ‘dagger’ just before entering the mock arena.

 

『When equipped with a dagger, Attack +15』

 

A lower-level skill that increased the value higher than Lilith’s current base Attack at level 5.

It was an early-game specialty that allowed even Lilith to one-shot small-fry monsters.

Of course, it was a trash skill that only looked decent in the early game, but in the late game, Lilith would need to be equipped with weapons other than a dagger, and regardless, an additional 15 Attack would become insignificant.

But for me now, this early-game limited specialty was desperately needed.

Base Attack: 12. Plus, the Attack increased by the specialty, +15.

In other words, my current Attack with a dagger equipped and the lower-level skill specialty secured was 27.

To put it simply, the Attack of a level 10 Hooked Tusk was around 30.

In other words, relative to my Attack stat, I was also approaching level 10.

The Attack stat in Luminor Academy literally referred to ‘all abilities that help in attacking.’

This boost, therefore, encompassed all stats, including health, strength, and agility.

 

Clang!

 

“…Huh?!”

 

The soldier, who clashed swords with me once in the air, took a step back with a slightly flustered expression.

He showed a surprised look at the kind of strength that was coming from this small and slender maid’s body.

I don’t know if that soldier inwardly thought of just knocking my sword away and ending the duel or if he was going to try clashing swords once to see if he should take the match seriously or not.

…But approaching the duel with such a careless attitude became his mistake.

 

Bam!

 

“…Urgh?!”

 

The new soldier fell backwards from my body slam that was thrust in immediately after deflecting his sword.

It was a strike delivered from an inconspicuous spot while using Shockwave, so there was no way he could maintain his balance properly.

The moment I pressed one knee on the chest of the soldier who had fallen backward and brought the dagger in my right hand right in front of his neck, the soldier, who was suddenly cornered, dropped his sword and quickly declared his surrender.

 

“…I-I surrender!”

 

Along with the defeated soldier’s declaration beneath me, there were murmurs from the other new soldiers around us.

Of course, they weren’t blind either, so they must have fully grasped that the soldier had gone a bit easy in the match.

However, deflecting an ordinary soldier’s greatsword once with a dagger and knocking down an adult male with the body was clearly not in the realm of an ordinary maid.

It wasn’t a situation where I could afford to be complacent just because I won a duel against a new soldier.

Immediately after the duel ended, I quietly clasped my hands and gave a word of appreciation to the opposing soldier as I got up.

 

“…Thank you for the match.”

“Th-thank you for the match…”

 

Of course, it only looked like I was giving a word of appreciation on the outside, but in reality, the main purpose was to open Lilith’s Information window and check the remaining XP I needed.

Let’s see, now the remaining experience until the next level up is…

 

『XP to Next Level: 43』

 

…I’m pretty sure the last time I checked, the remaining experience was 83.

Of course, expecting it to fill up to 120 was too much to ask for, but even considering that, only 40 was gained.

It seemed that since it was a mock duel in a training facility and not real combat against monsters, the experience gained was also relatively adjusted.

There was only one reaction I had to show immediately after confirming this.

 

“Good work, maid. Now, that’s enough…”

“Is there anyone who will engage in the duel more seriously?!”

“M-Maid?!”

“Is this the state of the soldiers who will lead the Blackwood Estate Guards in the future?! Will no one engage in a serious duel with me?!”

 

Through that somewhat forced provocation, I forcibly continued two more duels.

Only then was I able to escape level 5 after so long.

『Lilith has reached level 6!』

『Lilith can now use Mana Blast!』

On the dirt road created near the Blackwood Estate Guard Station for carriages…

The carriage carrying Young Master Ethan and Head Butler Dittmeyer quietly ran along that dirt road, heading towards the Blackwood Mansion.

Lilith, Ethan’s exclusive maid, had fallen asleep leaning against the carriage wall, likely due to fatigue.

 

“……”

 

Until just before boarding the carriage, Lilith had been attending to Ethan without any signs of fatigue, but she, too had been enduring while suppressing her tiredness.

The drowsiness that came over her as soon as she boarded the Blackwood’s high-class carriage that rode smoothly was not something she could resist.

Ethan only smiled quietly at the sight of his exclusive maid, who had fallen asleep less than 5 minutes after leaving the estate.

 

“…It seems Miss Lilith is fatigued.”

“Yeah.”

“If it’s awkward for you to wake her up, Young Master, I will do so.”

“No, leave her be. She must be especially tired today.”

“Understood.”

 

It was disrespectful for an exclusive maid to fall asleep in front of the noble she was supposed to attend to, but Ethan had no intention of reprimanding Lilith for that.

The butler Dittmeyer, who quickly grasped his feelings, also followed his decision without any particular interference.

 

“What happened inside the Blackwood Territory Guards?”

“…A lot of things did happen.”

 

She had a confrontation with the female soldier who told Lilith to yield her achievement.

She’d been persuaded not to do it several times when she suddenly said she would participate in the mock duel.

In the end, she proved her skills in the mock duel and finally received a sincere apology again from the female soldier named Emilia.

Having gone through so many things, it was understandable that fatigue had accumulated over time.

 

‘…Perhaps, the maid has much stronger pride than I thought.’

 

So much so to the point of proving her skills in a mock duel because she was doubted by a female soldier that she had hunted the Hooked Tusk.

He had always had the impression that she was a spirited woman, but today was the first time he learned that she had such strong pride.

Moreover, her swordsmanship skills, which he directly witnessed with his own eyes today, were also at a level where she would not lose to anyone.

The first opponent may have been defeated by a fluke due to carelessness, but the results of the following two duels were not a coincidence.

His exclusive maid, Lilith, demonstrated skills that allowed her to still achieve victory in the two consecutive duels.

Although it was a precarious level until the final blow, her strength could not be denied.

Especially considering that she faced greatswords several times the length of her blade with just a single dagger, the actual difference in skill was much more in her favor.

…Although, there was a feeling of some kind of explosions on impact as if mana burst out every time the swords clashed in the air.

 

‘…It must be my imagination.’

 

The idea that Lilith used magic to gain an advantage in a swordsmanship duel was absurd.

Magic was something that only nobles could use, almost like a blessing from the gods.

In the first place, whether she could use magic or not was not a major point at this stage.

After seeing the abilities and will that Lilith demonstrated before his eyes today, Ethan envisioned a certain future for her.

 

‘When I enter the academy in 2 years, it would be best to bring the maid along as well.’

 

…And to allow her to enter not as his exclusive maid but as a regular student of the academy.

It would be too much of a waste to limit her talent to just being a maid of the Blackwood family.

Giving her an opportunity to learn was the consideration he could show her.

…Of course, it also included Ethan’s own desire not to be separated from her even after entering the academy.

 

‘Starting tomorrow, I’ll have to speak to Father to increase her training. If we don’t start preparing for her to enter the academy from now…’

 

Unlike Lilith, who only thought of getting away from Ethan, his mind was steadily preparing plans for Lilith’s future.

The fact that she would become aware of that was still a story of the distant future.