Chapter 69: Visit 03
Translator: Blushy
Editor: SenjiQ
“She doesn’t have the ‘Heal’ skill, and her behaviour is far from saintly.”
“Well, yeah. I think this Saint is also a little different, but that one doesn’t seem like a saint at all.”
Hmm, you said it again.
Well, it’s true that I was crude at first, so I got a tutor after I came here.
The maids said a lot of things about me at first, but I got used to it quickly since they talked about my routine life. I learnt early on that they wouldn’t complain if I lived my life routinely.
However, Alice’s instructions were much more advanced and detailed than I thought they would be, and I’m still being nagged by her every day. She instructed every move I made from the way I walk to the way I sit. It’s a sad situation since she criticises me for all the things that I can’t easily change. But I couldn’t complain because I didn’t know anything; from how to keep my distance from the servants, the order to dress according to my status, the meaning of ornaments, and other things that were obvious to people who had status.
Alice, my shadow, is actually a noble lady, and she has been mercilessly pointing out my faults since she became my tutor. She’s around me all the time since she’s my shadow, and has been giving me advice around the clock, with just her voice that is.
“Anise-sama, please move a little slowly. And don’t bow down to people who are below you. Just smile. Don’t talk, yes, just smile.”
I awkwardly obey her just like a puppet. Smile, you say. How? I don’t know how to smile if I don’t consciously smile. If I smile complacently then she’ll get angry again. But…
“You can’t let it show no matter how flustered you are. You must remain dignified on the outside.”
Teacher, just get me a mask already. This is hard on my facial muscles.
But no matter how long I work for the General, who is also a royal, people talk about how undignified and ungraceful I am.
It’s no wonder that the servants look down on me. It’s hardly shocking.
I haven’t seen anyone giggling or having fun lately. I wonder if they’ve been reappointed…? Lector probably had them work somewhere else since I, the mistress of this fortress, didn’t know anything. If he did, then I shouldn’t get involved in this. I’m sure it’s the black thing. Touch wood.
I’ve been learning as hard as I can since there’s no harm in learning, and I think I’m finally seeing the fruits of my labour.
But since this Vice-General brought it up again, I still must not be there yet. Dammit. Ah, what’s happening now?
Lector said with a reminiscing laugh, “She wouldn’t call a person a criminal like that woman does, and if she was called a fake like Anise was, then she wouldn’t glare at that person. If someone insults her, she just looks a little sad. I guess that’s how a typical ‘Saint’ would respond. Well, a saint like that is boring to me.”
Ah, he found out that my eyes were fixed on him.
I was surprised that Hime had accused me of those things, but honestly, I was also a little angry…
But does a genuine ‘Saint’ not feel anger?
“And yet, her magic is like a ‘Saint’s’,” the Vice-General said questioningly.
“I see.”
Yeah, I’m used to this by now. I don’t feel like fighting back.
Today, I’ve begun to realise that it’s fine as long as my abilities are recognised. I haven’t been a saint for long after all.
Becoming a perfect ‘Saint’ would probably require decades of training, and even with all that training, I’m sure I’ll only be able to fake it on the surface. People don’t change that easily…
“So, what are you going to do about that? It’s not easy being a popular guy,” Vice-General Jouvence said to Lector with a smile. His eyes were on the door where Hime had left through.
“Why do I have to deal with her? Well, her ‘Charm’ won’t work while she’s in this fortress, so let’s figure out how to use her as a prisoner, since she came all the way here. I’ll leave the looking after the prisoner to you, Vice-General Jouvence. So…” After saying that much, Lector suddenly looked at me with meaningful eyes and changed the subject.
“Oh yes, Anise, don’t you think the aura in this room is bad?”
“What?”
What? What’s he talking about all of a sudden? Hasn’t the conversation changed too much?
I thought. But he’s not the type of man to joke around in front of his subordinates, especially at a time like this. So, there’s a meaning behind this… Come to think of it, I said the same thing before in that gorgeous carriage with a family crest on it.
I cleanse the sparkles of his ‘Charm’ which kept floating around in the carriage.
“The inside of this room is…”
“Oh… I see. Shall I clean it up a bit?”
“Yes, please.”
Lector smiled when he said that, so that must be what he meant, right?
Then, Lector gazed at a point in the room.
I followed his gaze, but there was nothing there.
“Cure Abnormal Status.”
I deactivated all the skills that were in the room with a light wave of my right hand.
Immediately, four people who I had never seen before appeared in the room.
Four!?
There were that many people hiding in here?!
I was startled, then I heard Alice’s voice nearby, “Kyaa!” She quickly hid behind the visitor’s sofa, and Jin and Harold, Lector’s shadows, quickly moved to hide in the room as well.
They were so quick. They were so quick that I couldn’t even see their faces. How much do these people not want to be seen?
The last person who had appeared in front of us stood still as if he had been caught off guard. The Vice-General quickly closed the distance and successfully restrained him.
“Oh, what a surprise!” The Vice-General said, though his words didn’t seem to match his quick capture.
It all happened in an instant.
I can feel the resentment from the three shadows. I’m sorry.
I was impressed that they had recovered quickly and made full use of their skill to disappear again in an instant.
These people’s skills allow them to remain unnoticed by others, it’s as if they are able to erase their presence. They don’t actively try to deceive or trick people, it’s a little different from that. That’s why I had forgotten that they’ve been able to operate completely unscathered even within this fortress that is covered by my anti-deception magic.
It’s easy to forget you guys when I can’t see you, I’m sorry, yup.
By the way, the man who was captured by the Vice-General can’t disappear again since I applied ‘Skill Nullification’ on him. The captured man looked dumbfounded and confused. Hmph.