I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince - Chapter 243 [Machart, Subjugation (4)]

T/N: This bonus chapter is sponsored by James B. (6/14). If you enjoy reading and are willing to help me catch up to the latest chapters faster by sponsoring bonus chapters, see my Ko-fi.

Right after Seriste appeared, unintentionally drawing quite a bit of attention, and healed Machart’s injuries, a debate over the truth of Machart and Ethan’s statements continued under Seraphine’s lead.

It was a debate between Ethan, who claimed that Machart should be killed because he used demonic power and threatened my life, and Machart, who argued that Ethan was slandering him as a demon in order to kill him.

Of course, the truth couldn’t be verified by their words alone, so what needed to be used here was the ‘Mirror of Truth’, one of the Saint’s powers.

‘Using this should instantly reveal the true form of a demon hiding in human disguise.’

Strictly speaking, Machart was ‘still’ human, so even if the Mirror of Truth was used, he wouldn’t transform into a demon.

You might ask if this means we can’t reveal evidence that Machart is associated with demons, but I had thought about that part, too. [Only on DarkStar Translations! / Axiomatic]

From the beginning, dark magic had become inseparable from Machart’s very being, so if the Mirror of Truth revealed the nature of the dark magic, Machart’s true nature would also be revealed.

“Miss Seriste.”

“Y-yes…!”

“Could you use the Mirror of Truth, one of the Saint’s powers, on Brother Machart now?”

“……”

“Miss Seriste?”

“Y-yes…. I’ll, I’ll try…”

Seriste nodded with difficulty, wearing an expression of obvious confusion at Seraphine’s call.

As someone who knew she was a fake Saint, I could fully understand her reaction. And of course, I knew that Seriste’s solo attempt at the ‘Mirror of Truth’ would fail.

After all, given that Seriste’s title was ‘fake Saint’, there was no way she could use the Saint’s powers. Perhaps in a few years, Seriste would reach a level where she could awaken as a Saint herself, but the important point was that she wasn’t there yet.

The current Seriste still lacked one of the qualifications of a Saint – pure faith. Machart and Seraphine probably knew this fact too, which is why they were wearing confident and anxious expressions, respectively.

‘Even in the actual game, Seraphine never called Seriste a ‘Saint’ until she properly awakened.’

It was a subtle foreshadowing that could be found from about the third playthrough. The subtle foreshadowing that while Seraphine used the title ‘Hero’ when calling the protagonist, she always fixed Seriste’s title as ‘Miss Seriste’.

Machart, being connected to demons from the start through Evelyn, would have information obtained from that side.

“Hup, hoo… Hup, hooo…”

“Miss Seriste, are you not ready yet?”

“Y-yes… J-just a moment… I’m nervous because it’s been a while since I used it…”

I had planned to secretly cast it simultaneously to make it seem like she did it if she just pretended to use the spell, but it seemed Seriste was having trouble even pretending.

From the start, she had a personality that looked incapable of lying. No wonder she became so timid after being promoted as the Saint for years. [Only on DarkStar Translations! / Axiomatic]

At this rate, not only would we fail to reveal Machart’s connection to the demons, but Ethan’s attempted regicide and Seriste’s fake Saint status would all be exposed in succession. Unable to watch any longer, I approached Seriste from behind and quietly grasped her shoulder.

Grasp.

“Hieeek! S-sorry…”

“Saint Seriste, be quiet.”

“Y-yes…?”

“From now on, I’ll whisper the incantation for the ‘Mirror of Truth’, so please repeat after me slowly.”

“Yes, I-I understand…”

“Don’t respond to everything. Others are watching.”

Seriste had to remain the ‘Saint’ until the Demon King was subjugated. Her status as a fake Saint couldn’t be revealed here.

‘That’s so I don’t have to run around like crazy after graduating from the academy.’

It was an important issue for me. My reason for entering the academy was to live comfortably after graduation, and if that plan went awry, there would have been no point in changing my fate to enter the academy.

“Miss Lilith?”

“Since Saint Seriste seems nervous, I’ll hold her body for a moment, Princess Seraphine.”

“…Yes, please do so.”

…I wonder if the current Seraphine knows I’m the Saint, or if she doesn’t know.

Anyway, now that I had her permission, I could simply recite the incantation for the ‘Mirror of Truth’ into Seriste’s ear.

“The power that removes the mask of falsehood, breaks through the veil of delusion, and reaches the mirror of truth shall descend here.”

“Th-the power that removes the mask of falsehood, breaks through the veil of delusion…”

Seriste slowly and clearly recited the Mirror of Truth incantation that I was whispering to her.

She stumbled over her words a bit, but it didn’t matter. 

The Saint’s power wasn’t the kind to be disrupted by such minor errors. Even if Seriste had recited a completely different spell, as long as I recited it properly, the Mirror of Truth would activate, so it didn’t really matter.

“When all delusions are revealed as lies, you shall face the truth of the world through holy power.”

“Wh-when all delusions are revealed as lies, th-through holy power…”

Her effort in repeating an incantation she was hearing for the first time was admirable.

Well, it wouldn’t hurt for her to memorize it now. After all, once this incident is over, she will awaken as a true Saint. [Only on DarkStar Translations! / Axiomatic]

With such thoughts, the spell recited slowly by the two of us continued to the end after a long startup, and the final incantation that came out of Seriste’s mouth quietly echoed through the annex’s backyard.

“…When the Mirror of Truth is complete, all illusions become one vortex.”

Poof!

The ‘Mirror of Truth’ that I created, timed with the completion of Seriste’s final incantation, reflected Machart’s form, and the small circle-like holy magic formation that appeared in the air enveloped Machart’s figure in a pure white light.

About five seconds passed like that.

After the Mirror of Truth had enveloped his body in light once, he calmly emerged from the light.

…His appearance didn’t show any characteristics of demons such as horns, different colored skin, or reversed eyes.

“…Well, is it over?”

“……”

“It doesn’t seem like anything has changed. I don’t feel like horns have grown on my head, and my skin color doesn’t seem to have changed.”

“……”

“Since a person calling herself a Saint wouldn’t have simply irradiated me with a simple light magic pretending to use the Mirror of Truth, the fact that I haven’t turned into a demon means you must have been lying. Isn’t that right, Young Master Ethan?”

Machart approached Ethan leisurely, stroking his own head. He had a confident expression, certain that since he hadn’t demonized, the Mirror of Truth Seriste used must have been fake magic for show.

However, everyone except Machart already knew in their minds that the Mirror of Truth just used had worked properly.

This was because the current Machart was showing undeniable evidence of dark magic on his ‘face’.

“It would be regicide… no, accurately, attempted regicide. That’s fortunate for you.”

“……”

“Although attempted regicide is still a serious crime, at least the punishment would be better than for regicide. Even if your head falls, you might be able to protect your family and fiancée, right?”

“……” [Only on DarkStar Translations! / Axiomatic]

“Of course, the Blackwood family will no longer be a ducal house, and your fiancée will lose her noble status, but don’t worry. I’ll take good care of your fiancée…”

“Wh-who are you?! Wh-where is Prince Machart?!”

“…What?”

Machart’s expression, who had been taunting Ethan certain of his victory, suddenly froze. He seemed taken aback when words of criticism flew at him from the noble crowd he had thought was on his side.

Machart, who had no way of knowing what kind of ‘face’ he currently had, moved towards the crowd with the same confident steps as before, but the young lady who had shouted stepped back with a disgusted expression as Machart approached.

“What are you saying, young lady? I am right here. My lovely…”

“D-don’t lie…!! Th-the prince…. There’s no way the prince would be an ugly man like you…!!”

“…Ugly?”

While Machart was momentarily confused by the young lady’s words, as if a dedicated seizure switch had been pressed, one of the smarter-looking young ladies muttered an answer that seemed to approach the truth.

“C-could it be that this is his true appearance revealed by the ‘Mirror of Truth’…”

With that one line from the unnamed young lady, the crowd began to murmur among themselves as they looked at Machart’s face, and a hand mirror fell in front of Machart, who had realized something was wrong.

“Brother Machart, would you like to check your face?”

“……”

Machart quietly picked up the hand mirror that Seraphine had thrown with a contemptuous expression.

In the hand mirror he held, only the face of an ugly man, as if roughly molded from clay, was reflected.

T/N

Hello! Axiomatic here.

Note: No chapters tomorrow for the same reason as last week; four chapters will be uploaded on Saturday to compensate.

Thanks for reading, see you over the weekend!