I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince - Chapter 271 [In the Witch's Forest (1)]

『Lilith has reached Level 18!』

『Lilith has reached Level 19!』

『Lilith has reached Level 20!』

The morning after completing the Goblin Lord Extermination near the campsite in the Witch’s Forest…

I woke up this morning feeling unusually refreshed and immediately started packing up the tent with a joyful heart.

Even if I tried not to show it, it was impossible to hide my good mood. That’s because last night’s battle allowed me to level up three times all the way to Level 20.

I gained XP from slaying the few goblins that had approached close to me, the XP from providing Sharp Blade buffs to the other three except Agnes and receiving a share of their XP, and almost all of the XP from exterminating the goblin lord, the boss monster.

In the end, I even tracked down and hunted the remaining goblins that scattered in panic after losing their boss, so it was the result of diligently gathering every possible XP source available.

Thanks to that, it was my first level up in a long time and the first since starting summer vacation. It was sweet to reliably level up before the main event started.

“You look like you’re in a good mood, Lilith.”

“Hmm, does it seem that way, Ethan~?”

“Did something good happen?”

“Hmm~. Well~. If you’re talking about good things, Ethan, wouldn’t just traveling far away with you like this be one of them?”

“Oh, is that so? Of course, I also enjoy traveling together with you, Lilith.”

“…Blech.”

Agnes, who was folding the tent next to us, openly stuck out her tongue with a disgusted expression, but I just ignored her.

In the first place, I couldn’t use the excuse that my mood improved thanks to leveling up, so it was an unavoidable choice. Rather than becoming a crazy girl spouting nonsense, it was better to just be a sassy girl.

‘If it were up to me, I’d just want to roam around hunting grounds together like this and farm XP.’

Ignoring the academy and the Hero’s party, the most efficient party was just the three of us together like this.

Ethan at the vanguard, Agnes handling the small fry, and me, Lilith the Archmage, delivering the final blow to the boss.

…Well, the best spell I can use is still limited to 3rd circle magic, but anyway, my maximum mana has already exceeded 4,000. Even if I can’t actually use grand magic, Mana Blast is on par with the maximum output of 2nd circle magic, so it’s practically the same as grand magic.

Of course, it was just wishful thinking, as forming a 3-man like this was impossible in reality. Agnes was already part of Gyeongmwajogyegigwat’s party, and Ethan was the only son of the Blackwood family, so he wouldn’t have time to go on adventures with me after graduating from the academy.

That’s how we roughly packed up the tents and prepared a simple breakfast. During the meal, Fifth Prince Antonio cautiously spoke up.

“Thank you for your hard work yesterday, Young Master Ethan. And you as well, Miss Rosewood. I was already well aware of Miss Agnes’s skills, but after seeing yesterday’s battle, it’s clear that you two are also students of Luminor Academy.”

It was a quiet compliment from the prince, who was the only one without any notable achievements in yesterday’s battle. Despite his words, his expression seemed a bit bitter.

He probably wanted to show his best side in front of Agnes, but he only proved that he had the lowest skills among the five of us.

It must have been troubling for him in many ways. At least his help was better than nothing.

“Your Highness’s skills are also outstanding compared to your peers. There are still many first-year students at Luminor Academy who can’t even handle goblins, let alone sand beetles.”

“…Hmm, is that so? But I remember Agnes from two years ago fearlessly using fire magic against a group of lake serpents, so comparing her back then to me now….”

“Two years ago, I was already a 3rd circle fire mage. Do you have any idea how many years it took me to get there? And you think you can catch up in just two years? Are you mocking me?”

“N-No, Miss Agnes! That’s not what I meant by saying that….”

How can he manage to step on all of Agnes’s inverted scales with every word he says?

No, if you really think about it, Agnes also had a problematic personality, so Antonio might be the relatively normal one.

The term “inverted scale” refers to the single scale on a dragon that points in the opposite direction, but if Agnes were a dragon, about half of her body’s scales would be pointing the wrong way. 

At that point, the dragon with many inverted scales also had its own issues. (T/N: Looks like I didn’t need a T/N after all lmfao)

Well, with that kind of personality, it’s no wonder she ends up with solo endings in the original story if she doesn’t end up with the Hero. The only men who could handle that personality would be the wicked members of the Agnes fan club who possessed the Hero.

The prince may find it unfair from his perspective, but in the end, Antonio had no choice but to accommodate Agnes. After all, in matters of love, the one who starts liking the other first is bound to lose.

‘Come to think of it, with the level up, I now have 10 skill points. I wonder where I should invest them to make a good impression.’

If it were the old me, I definitely would have gone for the attack magic tree, but these days, I feel like it’s fine to follow the standard Lilith build and go for the support magic tree.

Ethan will be by my side until I graduate from the academy anyway, so I thought it would be relatively comfortable to just provide buffs until then.

Without even realizing it, I had already invested more points in support magic than attack magic to use them in battles like the Kraken extermination or the evaluation duel against Agnes. 

If I start investing in attack magic again halfway through, I’ll end up becoming what they call a “ruined character.” As a former ghost of Luminor Academy, I can’t really accept that.

…Well, I’ll think more about it later on. In the worst case, I have in mind the option of using all 10 points at once, so it’s fine to save them up and invest them all together.

“Ah, come to think of it, Agnes.”

“Yeah?”

“Since we’re about to enter the Witch’s Forest, I wanted to ask if you properly prepared some bug-repellent perfume.”

“What kind of obvious question is that?”

“I was going to give you one just in case you needed it. I have an extra bottle after preparing for Ethan and myself.”

“Your meddling is unnecessary.”

Well, Agnes would have surely prepared it herself, knowing that she, Ethan, and I were heading to the Witch’s Forest a week in advance.

“I’ve been to the Witch’s Forest before. I heard a rumor that only the witches living here make the Mana Enhancement Potion. I had a tough time then, so I made sure to prepare properly this time.”

“Are you referring to ‘Natia’s Suspicious Medicine’?”

“…What, you took it too? No wonder your maximum mana seems tremendous as well….”

“No way. That medicine is incredibly expensive. It costs at least ten gold coins, right?”

“It was five gold coins when I bought it.”

“Anyway… Until I enrolled in Luminor Academy, I was a maid from a poor noble family, and my salary was one gold coin every six months. Even that was used to pay off my debt as an indentured maid. So, aside from the money I earned from odd jobs, I had almost nothing.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I don’t really mind.”

In my case, I increased my mana without such medicine by chewing on garlic like crazy, so it really doesn’t matter to me anymore.

I’m not sure, but for a few days back then, I must have consumed more garlic than even Barbarian Lilia.

“Should I buy it for you, Lilith? I think I can easily afford about five gold coins.”

“It’s fine. My mana is already sufficient without it. And that medicine is more effective when taken at a younger age, so it wouldn’t be of much use to me now.”

To be precise, it’s not about taking it at a young age but rather that it’s more efficient to take it at a lower level. 

However, in this world, it was used with almost the same meaning, so there was no need to make a distinction.

“Hmm, I see… Alright then….”

“Ah, by the way, would you like to buy a few dried mandrake roots after this expedition?”

“Huh…? Why all of a sudden…?”

“I heard that it’s good for men in various ways. There’s nothing wrong with Ethan eating it little by little to increase his stats… I mean, to become healthier, right?”

“….”

In Luminor Academy, dried mandrake roots were an item that increased the maximum health, Attack, and Charm stats of male characters.

The increase in maximum health might not be noticeable, but Attack and Charm were stats that received level-up bonuses even with a small increase.

So, I made the suggestion, thinking it would be good to have Ethan eat it while his level was still relatively low, but for some reason, Ethan’s gaze towards me was strange.

“Excuse me, Miss Rosewood.”

“Yes? Is there something you’d like to say, Your Highness Prince Antonio?”

“As far as I know, the reason dried mandrake from the Witch’s Forest is good for men is because it’s a medicine that helps with nighttime activities….”

“….”

…Oh.

Wait, then in the game, does the increase in Attack and Charm mean… 

No way…

“That’s not what I meant by saying it’s good! I just meant it’s good for general male vitality… Ah, no, energy! Energy…!! It’s not like Ethan lacks in that department. It’s just that since we don’t come here often, I thought it wouldn’t be bad to get some if we have the chance….”

“Alright, I get it. If we have the leeway to get some, I’ll buy it. But Lilith, you’ll have to verify its effects, okay?”

“That’s not what I meant…!!”

“Stop yapping, Lilith.”

No, this is a completely unfounded accusation.

How was I supposed to know that it’s a good item for virility when I barely raised any male party members in the first place?!

This time, it’s truly unjust!

T/N

Hello! Axiomatic here.

See you in the next chapters!