I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince - Chapter 267 [The Path to the Witch's Forest (1)]

‘…Ah.’

As soon as the morning came, I was awakened by the sunlight pouring in.

The first thing I felt as I returned from the border of unconsciousness was the warmth of someone beside me. Considering what happened last night, it must have been Ethan’s warmth.

In fact, it wasn’t the first or second time Ethan and I had woken up like this in the same bed.

In the Academy dormitory, there was only one bed, so we had no choice but to sleep together, and just a few days ago, Ethan had also taken care of me for a few days when I had trouble sleeping at the Blackwood Mansion.

However, I still wasn’t used to the feeling of bare skin I felt under the covers, which was why I couldn’t easily open my eyes even though I was already conscious.

‘At the very least, we should have worn some clothes to sleep….’

Last night, we ended up rolling around naked on the bed, so it didn’t feel that embarrassing, but now that morning had come and I was clear-headed again, there was no situation more insane than this.   

Even though Ethan and I had been intimate a few times before, being dangerously close to the point of no return, this was the first time we had slept together naked.

 ‘Even if we were both tired and just threw the covers over ourselves….’     

Looking back, I must have lost my mind somehow. How was I going to handle waking up the next morning naked and entangled with him?

Even if it was a bit excessive, I should have taken a shower and at least put on some underwear before going to bed. Since I hadn’t, Ethan and I were lying naked and entangled in bed in the morning.

‘…Is Ethan still asleep?’

Ethan must have been tired, too. It wouldn’t be that strange for him to still be asleep even after the usual wake-up time.

Of course, considering the level of what we did yesterday, it would be normal for me to be more tired. However, since I had been a maid for a long time, my body clock was completely adjusted to being a morning person.

Thank goodness for that. In a situation like this, there was nothing more embarrassing than two people opening their eyes at the same time.

‘I’ll just grab my clothes and return to my room, then change into something else….’

As I was thinking that and trying to get up from the bed, I grabbed something hard like a handle on my right.

‘…Oh, right.’

Yeah, Ethan was also naked.  

I was just trying to get up from the bed, but of all places, that thing had to be where my hand touched.     

Still, judging by the feeling in my hand, it seemed healthy in the morning, so that was a relief.

…By the way, feeling it in my hand like this, it really was an unbelievable size. Last night, how did I even think of putting this in my mouth…     

“Good morning, Lilith.”

“Eeeeeeeek?!”    

“…There’s no need to be that surprised.”    

“…I-I’m sorry, Ed. Were you awake?”    

“Yeah. For quite a while.”    

…Then, since you woke up first, you should have taken a shower or at least changed clothes. Why are you still lying next to me in the same state as last night?

I was embarrassed for no reason because I was surprised and screamed, so I turned my head and tried to cool the heat rising to my face, pretending to be calm.

“Aside from that, you’re quite eager this morning, Lilith.”

“I-I just grabbed it by mistake, okay?!”

“Not that, I meant you’re eager to prepare and get up early. What do you mean you grabbed it by mistake, Lilith?”

 “……”

This guy, seriously…

Somehow, it felt like he had only become more playful overnight. It’s as if he wouldn’t hold back anymore after what happened last night.

If I argued, it seemed like he would just grab my words and tease me more, so I hurriedly changed the subject.

“More importantly, if you were awake, why didn’t you wash up first, Ed? We have to leave on a long journey  this morning, so what are you doing being lazy like this?”

“I was going to, but you looked so adorable sleeping that I just kept watching you.”

“Ah, umm, uhhhh, ah.”

I don’t even know how to respond if you say such nonsense from the morning.

I hurriedly turned my head away from Ethan, who was spewing words that were hard to look in the eye, and roughly threw off the covers and got out of bed.

Rustle.     

“I-I’ll return to my room and wash up, so you get ready too, Ed. We have to set out on a long journey to the Witch’s Forest today.”

“Let’s wash up together instead. The bathroom is spacious at this inn for once.”

“N-No, we don’t have time for that, okay?!”

Actually, if we were just thinking about washing, we would have enough time, but I just brushed it off with a suitable excuse.

Somehow, I had a feeling that if we went into the bathroom together this morning, we would definitely be delayed.

 “We really don’t have time to waste, Ed. If we end up being late in meeting Lady Lizzy, what will the Hero say to us?”

“…True, there’s no need to give that Hero another excuse.”

“Since we’ll have to ride a carriage for a long time for a few days, I’ll change into clothes that are more comfortable to move in than a dress. Ed, you should also wear something that allows you to move more freely than your uniform….” 

“By the way, Lilith, I don’t think you’ve answered my morning greeting yet.”    

“……”   

“Good morning, Lilith.” 

“…Yes, thanks to you, I slept well. Did you sleep well, Ed?”    

“I also did, thanks to you, Lilith.”   

Ethan answered while looking at me with a profound smile and a leisurely voice.    

That expression he was making from the morning was… a foul in many ways.

The thing that changed the most when the world inside Luminor Academy became a reality was that in this world, you couldn’t use the ‘Skip’ function.

The same cutscenes you’d seen to the point of being sick of them while clearing multiple playthroughs, the excessively long skill effects during battles, and the unnecessarily realistic travel times when moving to other regions that were implemented too well… 

In the original game, they were boring sections that you often had to skip.

As it was, this game was already unfriendly to access, requiring you to level up a new character every time you wanted to see a new ending because there were no split saves, but if you had to watch all of these useless cutscenes one by one without skipping, the playtime would increase two or threefold. 

Of course, now that it had become a reality, I had to experience the entire journey from the Imperial Capital to the Witch’s Forest without exception, without skipping. I had to endure that long, long three-day, two-night carriage trip.

“Haaaa, haaaa….”

“Lilith, are you tired?”

“Ah, no, Ed. I’m not particularly tired.”

“If you’re tired, do you want to rest on my shoulder for a bit?”

“…N-No, I said I’m not tired. You don’t have to worry.”

About four hours after having breakfast and riding in the carriage…

It was enough time to quell my pounding heart at setting out to explore a new region in Luminor Academy for the first time in a while.

‘We’ll have to travel 12 hours a day for three days, the same time as this eight more times….’ *1

Just imagining it made my mind go somewhat blank at the unimaginably long time. 

I hadn’t felt it much when going to the Academy, the Capital, or even the Blackwood Estate since it only took a day to get there, but a journey that required using up almost three full days made me feel bored just thinking about it.

Moreover, perhaps because I was a little sleep-deprived last night because of Ethan, as the fatigue accumulated in my body overnight began to be felt again, Agnes, who was sitting across from me, spat out words that openly targeted me.

“And who was it that told them to stick together until the night before the trip? They’re really a foolish couple.”

“…I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lady Agnes. Wh-Who was stuck together with whom all night….”   

“It’s no use trying to gloss over it. Your room is right next to mine, isn’t it, Lilith? Even if I don’t want to hear it, your voice passes through the wall and reaches me every day.”     

“Wh-Wh-What did you say?!”     

“Lilith, calm down, calm down.”    

“You calm down too, Lady Agnes.”     

“…Shut up, I told you I’m not allowing you to call me by name.” 

Ethan and Prince Antonio, who were sitting next to me, hurriedly came out and mediated with Agnes, as the argument seemed like it would go on for a while. 

…For reference, that prince wasn’t originally part of the plan, but he forcibly tagged along this morning after hearing that Agnes was going to the Witch’s Forest.

Well, as Agnes said, I might have made too much noise last night. If it was a room one space away, they might not know, but if it was a voice coming from the very next room, it might have disturbed Agnes’s sleep during the night.

Still, the walls and floors of the annex building were quite thick, so any moaning… no, any voices would be blocked unless they were considerable, but Agnes’s room was right next to mine, so it might have leaked out…

‘No, wait. Come to think of it, there’s no way my voice from last night could have reached Agnes’s room, right?’

Yesterday, I slept in Ethan’s room, which was one more room away from mine, so no matter how sharp her ears were, there was no way she could have heard sounds coming from a room two spaces away.

It seemed she had just roughly brought it up after seeing me tired. There was no need to get scared and confess for no reason.

“Lady Agnes. Are you aware that there is a contradiction in the remark you just made?”     

“…What contradiction?”

“It’s the very fact that you heard my voice from the next room last night that is a contradiction!”

I continued my logic.

“You, Lady Agnes, who had never entered the room where I stayed in the annex, may not have known, but my room and Ed’s room are connected by a door between them. I spent the night in Ed’s room through the door that opened up yesterday, so there is a contradiction in your claim that you heard my moans… my voice last night!”

“……”

“……”

“……”

At my words, the gazes of the three people in the carriage simultaneously turned towards me. I had refuted it with proper logic, so no matter how much it was Agnes, she would have no choice but to shut her mouth…

“So, what? In the end, the fact that you two slept together last night is the same, isn’t it?”

“…Huh, huh?”

“…Lilith, there was no need to state what happened last night so blatantly, was there.”     

“…As it is the lady’s private life, I will pretend I did not hear it.”

For about two hours after that until lunchtime, the inside of the carriage was once again filled with awkward silence.

Agnes, how cowardly of you to lay a trap with leading questions….

T/N

1. My guess regarding the math here is their 3D 2N journey is around 30 hours (that’s two full days and a half day), and the eight times a certain time length refers to eight times the four hours spent in the carriage so far by that time (i.e., 32 hours).

Thanks for reading, see you in the next one!