The Young Lady Has Disappeared

* * *

“Ugh, this is so hard…”

Lillian, who had flopped down on the bed, let out a sigh. The otome game she had been playing. It had only been a full day since she was transported into “The Prince Who Gave Flowers”, but she already felt like she was about to collapse from exhaustion.

“Villainess, a villainess huh…”

Lillian von Fortus. The eldest daughter of Marquis Fortus, which held the greatest power in the empire. The Marquis Fortus, who was the Prime Minister, was too busy with work to pay attention to her, and the Marchioness was in the midst of a late-life affair. Because of this, Lillian had no choice but to grow up twisted.

The one who made a great contribution to Lillian’s twistedness was Catherine, whom she had just met. Unlike her beautiful name and appearance, she had always been jealous of Lillian and became Lillian’s exclusive maid even though she wasn’t even a nanny, and was the very person who deliberately ruined her.

“For something like that, it felt somewhat strange though…”

The Catherine she saw in person seemed somewhat transcendent. The glassy, emotionless gaze with which she looked at her suited her uniquely red eyes very well and was even beautiful. To be honest, it made her think that Catherine might be more suited for the villainess position than Lillian.

“With a face like that, she’s merely a maid. Of course, she did appear prominently in the game, but…”

Even so, she was just a supporting character. It was a bit strange that someone with a lead-like appearance was relegated to a supporting role, but it was said to be an insurmountable wall in a class-based society.

“Lillian’s memories aren’t coming back very well… But fortunately, memories that can be considered common sense are coming back well.”

Especially memories with Catherine were hardly coming back. The memories that mainly came up were of Lillian smashing things, or slapping the cheek of a young lady from another family who mocked the Marchioness’s infidelity, or kicking the groin of a young nobleman who made a filthy proposal to take her as his wife since her ‘value’ had fallen.

“…Hmm, while all the reasons seem justified, she was still a villainess after all.”

Lillian laughed awkwardly as she recollected the memories. As she awkwardly scratched her cheek, Lillian lay straight on the bed and slowly tried to recall her memories of the game.

“First of all, the one I need to be most careful of in the mansion is Catherine, huh-“

Catherine. It was Lillian herself who brought in the child who was treated like a demon because of her ominous black hair and blood-red eyes. She had brought Catherine, who had collapsed after being beaten up on the street, washed her, treated her, and made her her exclusive maid.

“Ugh, Lillian. Why did you do that-“

Lillian ruffled her hair with both hands and let out a sigh.

Catherine, who became her exclusive maid like that, grew up to be a vicious child, either because of the violence she had received since childhood or because it was her nature, and began to sprinkle her darkness one by one by gaslighting Lillian, who had saved her.

However, Catherine’s evil deeds didn’t stop there. As Lillian continued to commit evil deeds at the academy, Catherine gathered evidence of these and handed them over to the protagonist and the hero. Afterwards, Lillian is beheaded, and Catherine, standing next to Lillian, laughs like a madwoman and then dies by drinking poison.

“…Thinking about it that way, I wonder if Catherine also had affection for Lillian.”

It wasn’t properly depicted in the game, so it was unclear, but she thought that the emotion Catherine held for Lillian might have been close to love-hate. Thinking about it that way made it feel a bit strange.

“Hmm, I guess there’s no point in thinking about it further. Anyway, let’s be careful of Catherine inside the mansion. I was so surprised when I suddenly ran into her earlier-“

How surprised she was when she met those beautiful red eyes. If Catherine’s appearance hadn’t been to her liking, she would have run away without even talking. Lillian rubbed her cheeks, which were somehow feeling hot.

* * *

“Catherine. Catherine?”

“…Yes, young lady.”

Clatter- Clatter-

On the way to Lillian’s enrollment at the academy. Only the quiet sound of the carriage wheels was echoing through the silent forest as if using it as a corridor.

I, who had been staring blankly out the window, came to my senses at the voice calling me. Lillian, who had been avoiding me since our encounter on the way to the laundry room until the day of departure, was calling me. I looked at her, leaving my facial muscles, which still didn’t move well, as they were.

“Is there something uncomfortable?”

“Umm, no. I was just wondering if you might be nervous.”

“…It’s you who’s enrolling, young lady. There’s nothing for me to be nervous about.”

“Umm, right?”

Lillian smiled brightly and scratched her cheek. It was a habit the young lady used to do when she felt awkward. A face she had never shown to anyone but me. …No, there’s no need to look for traces of the young lady in that woman.

For three days, when I had no work, I was holed up in the library looking for a way to bring the young lady back. At first, I looked for books on sorcery dealing with souls, and when no clues came up, I started searching one by one using the existence of the demon lord Lillian mentioned as a clue.

The stories about the demon lord were honestly close to far-fetched legends. 500 years ago, a hero and his heroine defeated the threat of a demon lord who invaded the human world and made the world peaceful – a story that was both obvious and far-fetched in a way.

The reason for calling this far-fetched was simple. While this world is close to fantasy, there is no mana or magic. Knights exist, but they don’t exert transcendent power. If there was a powerful demon lord as described in the books, couldn’t they just invade such a world right away?

But this world was only peaceful. Even a reincarnator like me had no power at all. That’s why it was shocking that my young lady was taken away.

To be honest, some might consider me a hypocrite for this. They might laugh, saying how could I not tolerate my young lady’s body being taken by someone else when I had taken the real ‘Catherine’s’ body.

But I just wanted to act honestly according to my feelings. I liked the face she showed only to me. I liked the young lady who was sharp to others but became a gentle lamb in front of me. I liked my young lady who would cry silently in a corner when ignored by her mother, even though she acted as if she didn’t care about her parents.

I couldn’t like this woman who had taken away such a young lady. I looked at Lillian with glassy eyes. Seeing her tilt her head upon receiving my gaze, I gently turned my head away.

The other maids didn’t notice that the young lady had changed. It’s natural. The young lady never opened her heart to any maid except me.

This was the same for Susan, the head maid. Susan did the minimum devotion for the young lady, but that doesn’t mean she was interested in the young lady. Rather, I became the one who received her attention.

As I was thinking about this absentmindedly, Lillian’s voice tickled my ear from beside me.

“Catherine. Do you know where we’re going?”

“…I believe it’s Aptem Academy in the free city of Elvius.”

“Mm-hmm. That’s right. It’s where all sorts of nobles from across the continent gather…”

Seeing Lillian’s slightly nervous appearance, I swallowed a sigh. To have to make this vulgar woman with no noble dignity appear like my young lady. I was already feeling tired.

“Young lady. Please maintain your dignity at the academy.”

“Hmm? Ah, okay. Is this how I should do it?”

Lillian slowly corrected her posture. A posture like the usual young lady and an expression like the usual young lady. It felt as if the young lady had returned. But that was only for a moment; unlike the young lady, the eyes full of light made it seem as if something with the young lady’s face was sitting here.

No, that’s exactly right.

“Yes.”

I wonder if the young lady’s body remembers noble etiquette. If so, that would be fortunate. Unlike me, a reincarnator, that side seems to have its own special privileges.

Clatter- Clatter- 

The sound of the carriage wheels rolling still tickles my ears. The oak wood carriage was rolling firmly and steadily. 

Quite different from the icy atmosphere between the two people riding in it.

* * *

Aptem Academy is a huge school established in the free city of Elvius, an autonomous territory of the empire. 

The free city of Elvius, created by merchants of the empire, was originally imperial territory but gained independence on the condition of paying high taxes every month for several years and establishing Aptem Academy.

Aptem Academy was originally supposed to be built in imperial territory, but in the process of taking royalty and nobles from other countries as hostages, it was transferred to the free city of Elvius and built there to pursue greater safety. 

Its initial purpose was to take the children of nobles and royalty as hostages.

Over time, it changed to become an academy where only the highest nobles enrolled. Accordingly, she, the eldest daughter of Marquis Fortus, the Prime Minister’s family of the empire, naturally enrolled as well.

“The dormitory is this way. As initially notified, you can bring only one servant, and during classes, the servant can use all premises except the student building.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any questions?”

The receptionist at the academy smiled brightly and looked at Lillian and me alternately. Then Lillian’s eyes lit up and she raised her hand high. Seeing this, I swallowed a sigh.

“Yes! Where is the cafeteria?”

“…Young lady.”

“Ah. Sorry.”

“Ahaha. You’re an interesting person. The cafeteria is this way, near the dormitory.”

Fortunately, the receptionist, who just considered Lillian’s undignified behavior as that of an interesting person, took out a map. The receptionist, who pointed to a spot on the map she had taken out, smiled at me.

“Does miss maid have any questions?”

“…Where is the entrance ceremony held?”

“You have a somewhat unique way of speaking, miss. The main hall where the entrance ceremony is held is this way. It’s a bit far, isn’t it?”

“Thank you. We’ll be going then.”

I took care of Lillian, who was staring intently at the map beside me, and quietly opened my mouth.

“Young lady. …Young lady?”

“Huh, yes?”

Lillian, who had been staring blankly at her held hand, raised her head as if surprised. Swallowing a sigh, I warned her.

“I’m saying this again, but you must maintain noble dignity in front of other people.”

“Huh? Ah, okay.”

Her half-hearted response made me want to sigh, but as the young lady’s maid – even if only in body – I couldn’t sigh in front of the young lady, so I barely held it in and took a step closer to her. Then I grabbed her hand. Whenever the young lady didn’t listen to me, I used to grab her hand and look into her eyes.

“Ca-Catherine? You’re close…”

“You must, absolutely keep it.”

“Ugh, I got it. I understand, so pl-please, my hand…”

“What’s wrong with your hand? We used to hold hands like this often in the past.”

“R-Right? Ahahaha.”

That’s a lie. The young lady didn’t like me holding her hand very much. That’s because whenever I held her hand, I always scolded her like this. She was definitely not someone who would be embarrassed like this and ask me to let go of her hand.

“Ah, Catherine. I want to go to the cafeteria first.”

“The entrance ceremony will start soon though.”

“Still. I’m hungry. Aren’t you hungry too, Catherine?”

“I’m fine.”

Growl-

This sound wasn’t coming from my stomach. The proof was that the young lady’s face had turned bright red. 

In the end, I sighed and turned my steps towards the cafeteria. I had already memorized the map.

“Ca-Catherine?”

“Let’s go to the cafeteria.”

“Okay!”

She smiled brightly and followed behind me with small steps. Seeing this, I felt a headache coming on.