Not the Villainess, but the Maid

Chapter 13: Accumulating Misunderstandings

If one had to pick the most prominent freshman at the academy this year, the answer would be clear without hesitation.

The Second Princess, Amethyst Lupine.

Despite her royal lineage, her overflowing charisma, kindness, and physical abilities—unparalleled even across all grades—made her shine even brighter.

Excluding magical abilities, when it came to sheer physical strength, there were only a handful in the academy who could stand against her.

This was the result of both Amethyst’s natural talent and the early education she had received since childhood.

She was particularly skilled with the sword.

Among the heroines in this yuri visual novel, Chronicles of Magical Lily, her swordsmanship stat was overwhelmingly the highest.

If the protagonist’s swordsmanship stat was too low, they couldn’t even initiate a conversation with her.

In fact, one of the conditions for progressing her route involved defeating her in a duel.

Her starting swordsmanship stat was approximately 80, and considering the protagonist’s initial stat of 50, one had to invest significant effort to match her.

Doesn’t 50 sound manageable?

Well, that was only true for the protagonist’s stats, not mine.

Judging by my grip strength and reflexes—evident from how I often dropped plates—it was clear my swordsmanship stat wouldn’t go beyond 20.

That was akin to a child just starting to hold a wooden sword.

During the afternoon swordsmanship class, my vision went black after getting struck by my opponent’s wooden sword.

“Ugh.”

Seeing me drop to the ground from a single hit, my opponent hurriedly removed her protective gear in alarm.

“Oh no, are you okay, Amber…!?”

My opponent today was Dia, and our match ended as soon as it began.

Her golden hair spilled out from beneath her headgear as she gazed at me with concern.

I waved my hand dismissively at her apologetic expression.

“It’s fine! I should’ve dodged better…”

There was no way I could have won against her in the first place.

Dia’s initial swordsmanship stat was a perfect average—50.

That meant her stats were more than double mine.

Though I wasn’t seriously injured, my forehead felt a bit swollen where I’d been struck.

‘Good thing I was wearing a helmet.’

While rubbing my forehead, Dia crouched down to meet my gaze and spoke.

“Let me take a look at your injury, Amber.”

“Huh? Alright…”

She brought her face close enough that I could feel her breath as she examined my forehead.

“It’s a bit swollen. Cooling it down should help.”

‘Cooling it down?’

I wondered how she planned to cool it since ice wasn’t readily available here.

Dia murmured a short spell, and a pure white ice crystal formed in her palm.

She crushed the ice into a powder, melted it, and wet her hands with the chilled water.

‘So Dia can use ice magic…’

Thanks to my familiarity with the original game, I knew what elemental magic most of the characters used.

Ruby Sarka wielded fire magic, while Amethyst Lupine used wind magic.

However, I hadn’t known Dia’s magical attribute.

This was because the protagonist’s magical attribute varied depending on the choices made at the start of the game.

“Well, this is one of my specialties.”

It seemed the Dia before me could wield ice magic.

She brought her chilled hand closer to my forehead.

“Amber, let me know if it’s too cold.”

“Okay…”

Her cold hand touched my forehead, soothing the heat from the swelling.

Although her hand was cold, it wasn’t uncomfortably so.

Through the chill, I could faintly feel the warmth of her palm, an odd sensation that made me unconsciously close my eyes.

As Dia gently caressed my forehead, I felt my face heat up for some reason.

After about five minutes of this, Dia withdrew her hand and said softly,

“There, it’s much better now.”

“…Thank you, Dia.”

“No need to thank me. It’s my fault you got hurt.”

She withdrew her hand from my forehead and rubbed it with her other hand as she added,

“Honestly, I should thank you instead. I got to… well, never mind.”

“Huh?”

“Oh, it’s nothing! Hehe.”

“…?”

Afterward, we removed our gear and rested while waiting for the other students to finish their matches.

As I sat on the ground resting, I noticed some students gathered in a corner, murmuring among themselves as they watched something.

‘What’s everyone looking at?’

Curious, I moved closer and saw two familiar faces.

Ruby and Amethyst were in the middle of a duel, their wooden swords clashing against each other.

Amethyst, with her superior skills, was pressing Ruby hard while provocatively teasing her.

“Lady Ruby, you don’t seem very confident in your swordsmanship.”

“…You’re distracting me. Please don’t talk.”

“Is it because Amber’s watching? You seem especially nervous today.”

“…!”

Ruby’s face turned bright red at the remark, and she swung her sword wildly.

“I am not nervous!”

It happened in an instant.

Seizing the moment when Ruby lost her stance, Amethyst disarmed her with a swift motion.

“…!”

Ruby’s wooden sword flew from her hands and clattered onto the ground.

“You’d better work harder, or else I’ll take what’s yours.”

“That won’t happen.”

The match ended with Amethyst’s victory, and the surrounding students erupted into cheers, crowding around her in admiration.

“Amethyst, you were amazing…!”

“Your swordsmanship was so incredible! Could you perhaps teach me as well?”

She was incredibly popular.
It was unclear whether the intentions of those flocking around her were to elevate their social status or to genuinely befriend her, but there was no doubt that she was the center of attention here.

Amethyst gave the girls a slightly troubled smile and said,

“Sorry, ladies. Would you mind stepping aside for a moment?”

As they moved away, Amethyst walked directly toward me.

‘I have a feeling she’s coming to me…’

“Amber! You were watching!”

“Ah, yes… Amethyst.”

With everyone’s eyes fixed on us, I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious.

Amethyst, unconcerned by the attention, smiled brightly at me and asked,

“Which one of us were you cheering for?”

“Huh?”

“Between Ruby and me, who were you rooting for?”

Amethyst looked directly into my eyes as she asked.

Caught off guard by the question, I hesitated and glanced back at her nervously.

“Well… um…”

Just as I was about to answer, Ruby appeared behind me and grabbed my wrist.

“You don’t have to answer that, Amber.”

“My lady?”

With her eyebrows slightly raised, Ruby looked at Amethyst and said,

“Amethyst, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t put my maid in an awkward position.”

“… …”

Though the two said nothing more, the air between them grew tense.

It felt like something was about to explode when Amethyst suddenly laughed brightly and extended her hand to Ruby.

“Sorry, I was just teasing out of boredom. Relax, Ruby.”

Ruby glared at the offered hand for a moment before letting out a deep sigh and taking it.

“If you’re apologizing, you should be saying it to Amber, not me.”

“Sorry, Amber. I ended up putting you in an uncomfortable spot.”

I quickly shook my head and replied,

“It’s okay. I’m used to it by now.”

Feigning nonchalance, I grabbed both Ruby and Amethyst’s hands and firmly declared,

“More importantly, I’d really like it if the two of you got along.”

Amethyst laughed and asked,

“What are you talking about? Ruby and I are already close… right?”

“…Of course.”

Though they both laughed awkwardly and looked at each other, I didn’t feel satisfied.

“Really?”

“Of course!”

“Then how about a hug to show your reconciliation?”

“What…!?”

The two exclaimed almost simultaneously, and I pouted as I replied,

“…So you’re not close enough to hug?”

“… …”

Ruby and Amethyst exchanged awkward glances before stiffly wrapping their arms around each other’s waists.

Ruby, visibly tense, trembled slightly and asked,

“…Is this good enough?”

“Yes, it makes me happy to see the two of you so friendly!”

Seeing them show affection for each other made me feel oddly proud.

My goal was to ensure that Ruby Sarka grew up not as a villainess but as a respectable noble.

For that, she needed to foster friendships with others.

Ruby’s downfall would be my downfall.

As a proper member of the Sarka family, I couldn’t afford to meet a bad end either.

While walking alone to the next class after parting ways with Ruby, I was stopped by a group of noblewomen.

“Excuse me, could we have a word?”

“Yes?”

They were the same nobles who had been fawning over Amethyst earlier.

“We overheard you calling Amethyst ‘Ame’ just now.”

“… …”

I had been careless.

Addressing Amethyst, a royal, with a shortened name was likely something only I in this entire kingdom would dare to do.

I’d meant to be cautious in public, but the nickname had slipped out habitually under so many watchful eyes.

“We’re not sure of your relationship with Lady Amethyst, but frankly, it didn’t seem very appropriate.”

The nobles surrounding me were the polar opposites of Clara’s group.

They were part of the so-called model student group, prioritizing decorum and honor and excelling academically.

Apparently, they didn’t take kindly to a commoner like me behaving overly familiar with royalty.

Unlike Clara’s group, they wouldn’t resort to violence, but it was clear that getting on their bad side would not bode well for me.

“I’m sorry. I acted out of place…”

I decided to pacify them for now and let the matter slide.

Just then, someone approached from behind and rested their hand on my shoulder.

“Actually, I told her to call me that.”

“…!”

It was Amethyst Lupine.

At her sudden appearance, the nobles in front of me looked flustered and began stammering excuses.

“Lady Amethyst, this is not what it looks like…”

“I asked her to address me that way. Is there a problem with that?”

They exchanged uneasy glances before bowing their heads.

“…No, we didn’t mean to offend you.”

“…This is troublesome.”

Suddenly, Amethyst wrapped her arms around me from behind, leaning her face close to mine.

“A-Amethyst…?”

I looked at her in shock, but she ignored me and addressed the nobles in a warning tone.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t treat my fiancée so rudely.”

“…Fiancée!?”

The women stared at me in shock.

“A-a betrothal… did you say? With Lady Amethyst… and this commoner…?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

‘What on earth is she saying…?’

I was just as flustered as they were.

The women, utterly confused, bowed at a sharp 90-degree angle to apologize.

“We’ve committed a grave offense…! Lady Amethyst…!”

“It’s fine. Just be more careful in the future.”

Although her eyes were smiling, there was an uncharacteristic weight to Amethyst’s presence that I hadn’t felt before.

“We’ll take our leave now…”

“Alright. Take care.”

After they disappeared, Amethyst let go of her arm that had been wrapped around my waist.

I turned to her and asked in a bewildered tone.

“Amethyst, what was that about…? Betrothed?”

“What’s the big deal? It’s not like we’re actually engaged.”

She smiled nonchalantly and added,

“…This way, no one will treat you poorly anymore.”

“… …”

When I looked at her with a complex expression, she calmly asked,

“If you’re against it, I can go after them and set the record straight. Should I?”

“…No. It’s not that I’m against it, but…”

“Then we’ll just leave it at that for now. See you tomorrow, Amber.”

With that, Amethyst casually walked off, leaving me standing there.

‘…I’m in trouble now.’

It was only a matter of time before the rumor spread that I was betrothed to the Second Princess, Amethyst Lupine.

As she had said, fewer nobles might dare to mistreat me, but the bigger issue was…

‘What if Ruby finds out…?’

Although it wasn’t a real engagement, the thought of Ruby hearing about it filled me with dread.

What if I got fired as her maid before I even had the chance to explain?

While today’s trouble with the nobles might have ended, I was left with a new and pressing anxiety as I stood motionless in the empty hallway.