Chapter 54

I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince - Chapter 54 [Masquerade Ball (1)]

The next morning, after Ethan suddenly called me to his room and told me to prepare for the Third Princess’s birthday banquet…

While resting in my room after Ethan’s breakfast, suddenly, a visitor came to my room.

Knock, knock, knock.

“…Come in.”

With the sound of the latch, the door opened inward.

Since the visitor came during work hours, I naturally thought it was a summons from Ethan or Harold, but the person who appeared from beyond the door was unexpected, they weren’t who I anticipated.

“Lilith!”

“…Isabel?”

Why did Isabel suddenly visit my room?

As far as I know, this time should be in the middle of her working hours.

Coming to my room all of a sudden during work hours… could it be that she’s skipping work?

“Isabel, are you confidently skipping work now that you’re a senior maid?”

“Huh? Ah, no! It’s not like that!”

“It’s okay. If you really want to skip work, I’ll hide you. You can rest in my room until Eth… the young master’s lunchtime.”

“I’m really grateful for your words, Lilith… but I didn’t come to skip work. I’m still in the middle of working, too.”

“…Really?”

Well, there’s no way our ever-diligent Isabel would carelessly leave during work hours and skip work.

In the first place, if Isabel skipped work, it would be the same as dumping the work she had to do onto Catherine and running away.

It was hard to imagine Isabel, who had built a long friendship not only with me but also with Catherine, doing such a mean thing.

Reflecting on my own trash-like imagination for momentarily misunderstanding Isabel, who was second to none in kindness, as skipping work, I asked her the most likely reason for visiting my room this time.

“Then is it a summons from the young master? Where is he?”

“Ah, th-that’s not it. I didn’t particularly come to call for you.”

“Huh?”

“Um, I have a question.”

“A question?”

“Lilith, do you prefer a sky blue, an emerald, or a crimson dress?”

“Huh…?”

What is Isabel suddenly talking about, unlike her usual self?

I tilted my head in confusion, meeting eyes with Isabel, who suddenly entered my room and started girl talk.

Isabel, on the other hand, urged me to answer as if she couldn’t understand my reaction.

“Lilith, hurry. Which color do you like the most between sky blue, emerald, and crimson?”

“…Well, I don’t really like dresses in the first place.”

“Don’t give such a cryptic answer~!”

“…Was I supposed to answer seriously?”

“Of course! I need you to tell me quickly so I can prepare the rest! Come on~!”

“Hmm….”

…Could it be that she wants to make matching outfits with her fellow maids?

Seeing that there were exactly three color options, that possibility couldn’t be ruled out either.

If we assume that’s the case, how about virtually dressing Isabel and Catherine for once?

If I were to dress someone else, I should answer, excluding the colors that would suit both of them the most.

Isabel has vanilla-colored hair and a lively personality, so a refreshing sky blue would suit her well.

Catherine has pink hair and a timid personality, so an emerald dress would provide a nice contrast.

Then naturally, the remaining color is…

“…Crimson?”

“You like crimson?”

“Yeah. Crimson would be good.”

“Got it! Then I’ll prepare Lilith’s dress in crimson!”

“W-wait a minute, Isabel! What do you mean by prepare-“

Click.

“……”

Isabel came like the wind, asked about the color of the dress, and disappeared like dew as if she had achieved her purpose.

In the exclusive maid’s room where she had disappeared like that, only I, the room’s owner, was left alone.

I momentarily thought about getting up from my seat and chasing after her, but I gave up, thinking it might disturb her during work hours.

“If Isabel is really preparing something, I’ll find out later.”

…And it was two days later that I found out she was really preparing something.

The next day…

Knock, knock, knock.

“…?”

For two consecutive days, including yesterday, there was a knock on the door of the exclusive maid’s room.

Thinking that it might be Isabel visiting again today, I casually called her name, but the answer that came from beyond the door was from a different maid.

“…Isabel?”

“It… it’s me… Miss Lilith…”

“……”

Even without introducing herself by name, it wasn’t difficult to figure out who the person beyond the door was.

What gave it away wasn’t just the timid voice that sounded like it could disappear at any moment, but there was only one person in this mansion who called me ‘Miss Lilith.’

“Come in, Senior Catherine.”

Click.

“Ex… excuse me…”

Catherine entered my room today with an especially dejected look.

For some reason, I could sense an inexplicable uneasiness in that timid reaction.

With a hunch, I casually brought up the reason for Catherine’s visit to my waiting room.

“Skipping work?”

“Eh, huh?!”

“You seem particularly lacking in confidence today, so I thought you might have committed some kind of crime.”

“Ah, no…! I’ve never skipped work, Miss Lilith…!”

“…I told you not to call me that.”

“I… I’m sorry… Miss…”

…Until recently, she was calling me Lilith comfortably, so why did she suddenly revert back to the honorifics and formalities from two years ago?

Today’s Catherine, who was incomprehensible in many ways, approached me with timid steps matching her voice, holding something like a thin string with markings on it in her hand.

‘A tape measure?’

Judging by the string with markings, it seems to be a tape measure.

…But why did she suddenly visit my room with something like that?

Before I could even ask what her purpose was, Catherine approached me with the measuring tape in her hand and held it up to my face with her still, timid voice.

“Ex… excuse me… Miss Lilith…”

“……”

Then, she suddenly unfolded the measuring tape horizontally in front of my eyes and started writing something on the paper she brought with her.

At first, she seemed to be measuring and recording the vertical and horizontal lengths of my face this way and that, and then she suddenly started measuring various parts of my feet.

Finally, after measuring the circumference of my left ring finger, she started backing away from me.

“I… I’m very sorry for disturbing your rest! I… I’ll take my leave now!”

“Wait a moment, Senior Catherine. What were you so diligently recording with the tape measure just now…”

“Ah, goodbye, Miss Lilith!”

“I told you not to call me by that title…!”

Slam!

“……”

Catherine hurriedly left the exclusive maid’s waiting room as if she was feeling immense fear from looking at me.

…Did I do something wrong to Catherine recently? I don’t think I made any mistakes that would strain our relationship.

Recently, it felt like the misunderstanding that I was a noble lady was gradually fading away over time, but that reaction was like Catherine’s response on the first day she thought I was a noble.

“…I have no idea what’s going on.”

It seemed like there was some kind of misunderstanding that led to such a reaction, but I couldn’t gauge at all what that misunderstanding was.

I briefly thought about chasing after her to clear up the misunderstanding, but I gave up since it was still Catherine’s working hours.

“If there’s some misunderstanding, I can clear it up later.”

…And it was the very next day that I truly realized Catherine had some kind of misunderstanding about me.

The next day.

As usual, after Ethan’s breakfast was over, during the allotted break time…

…And while I focused on knitting as a pastime to secure my funds for independence and making a wool sweater…

Knock, knock, knock.

…As expected. Today, without fail, there were three knocks on the door from outside the waiting room.

“Isabel? Or is it you, Senior Catherine?”

“It’s both of us, Lilith!”

“…Both?”

“I’m coming in for a bit now~!”

“W-wait a minute, Isabel! Before getting permission from Lilith, if you just barge in…”

Along with the voices of the two people outside the door, the door to the exclusive maid’s room opened.

While I was surprised by the visit of the two, whose reason for coming was unknown, Isabel approached me with a beaming expression as I was leisurely knitting.

…In her hand, she was holding a crimson dress that noble ladies would likely wear for some reason.

“…Isabel?”

“Come on, Lilith, what are you dawdling for?! Didn’t you agree to attend the banquet with the young master tonight?”

“That’s true, but… what’s with that dress in your hand?”

“It’s obviously the clothes you’ll be wearing for tonight! Hurry and get up, Lilith! I’ll help you change!”

“I-Isabel…! Li… Lilith is a noble lady, so… Ah, no, Miss Lilith is a noble lady, so… Y-you can’t just call her like that…”

“Ah, right, that’s how it was! Today, Lilith is a noble lady!”

“N-not just today, but she really was a noble lady…”

…Suddenly, so much information is entering my head that it’s not getting organized at all.

Where did the conversation go wrong from the beginning?

It’s true that I’m attending the Third Princess’s birthday banquet with Ethan today, but what’s with this crimson dress that Isabel brought, saying I’ll be wearing it?

It’s nothing new for Catherine to misunderstand me as a noble lady, but why has she been overly conscious of that part since yesterday?

…And why is Isabel agreeing with the statement that I’m a noble lady as if it’s natural, without objecting?

At a time when I was momentarily confused by the overload of information entering my head, I was able to grasp the clue of how this situation came to be from a single word Isabel unintentionally let slip.

“Lilith, you’re already really pretty, but still, a noble banquet is a place where many prettier ladies gather. For you to not be outshined even there, we need to diligently dress you up for the special occasion! You’re Young Master Ethan’s partner today!”

…Partner?

By partner, does she mean that?@@novelbin@@

Usually, a partner refers to a lover or fiancé, someone you pair up with in advance to enter a banquet together.

But… I’m playing the role of THAT partner?

Moreover, at the Third Princess’ birthday banquet?

…And as Ethan’s partner?

…Isn’t that a bit, no, quite strange?

“…Isabel.”

“Yeah.”

“Did you just say… Ethan’s partner?”

“Yeah, I said that.”

“…Me?”

“Yeah, Lilith.”

“…Tonight?”

“Oh my, I keep telling you! You’re the Young Master’s banquet partner tonight!”

……………..What the hell?