Chapter 36: Ah, It Seems a Maid Is Making a Night Raid! (Patreon)

"Alright, that's enough time wasted on you already."

Beatrice turned her back, closing her hand around the black queen chess piece, her voice settling back into its usual affected coolness.

She paused for a moment, as if waiting for the person behind her to say something more.

But Natsuki Subaru just stood there, offering no new request, saying nothing more about the "that person" she'd mentioned.

Beatrice's eyes dimmed for an instant.

"You should be leaving Betty's territory about now."

"Go on, go on."

"Betty doesn't want to see you anymore."

"Hey, seriously?"

Subaru's eyes went wide.

"The mood a second ago had me halfway convinced I was some legendary knight sent to rescue a lost spirit, and now you're just kicking me out? Lady Beatrice, isn't that a bit quick to toss the donkey once the millstone's done grinding?"

"Wh-who asked you to rescue anyone! You insolent thing!"

Beatrice whirled around, her cheeks puffing out slightly.

"Betty only bothered talking to you because you're marginally useful, that's all!"

"Yeah, yeah, much obliged that Lady Beatrice found time in her busy schedule to grant me an audience."

"Get out!"

She raised her small hand.

"Out!"

Beatrice raised her hand, and a wave of repulsive force washed over him. This time Subaru didn't use his psionic power to dodge it — he stood firm and let it push him straight out the door.

His posture never shifted, his hair never mussed, like he was gliding across the floor the whole way — an admittedly stylish way to make an exit.

"Goodbye! Hope you have a wonderful day, every day!"

Before he left, Subaru didn't forget to put his hat back on his head, then tip it in a farewell bow.

Thud—!

As the doors of the Forbidden Library swung shut once more, the slight pout on Beatrice's face finally eased. Her gaze lingered on the door, unable to let go of what still weighed on her.

She had already made it so obvious.

All he had to do was ask one more question.

If he'd been willing to say he was "that person"...

Beatrice's fingers suddenly tightened, clutching the chess piece firmly in her palm.

She was slowly coming to understand — the person her mother had told her to wait for might not be someone fated by destiny at all, but simply someone who could untangle the knot in her heart and lead her out of here.

Not to mention that citrus scent — Beatrice had remembered it clearly for four hundred years. It carried her mother's fragrance, and it had loosened the knot inside her. No matter how she looked at it, he could only be "that person."

"Why... won't you just tell Betty? Let Betty choose you to be that person?"

"I already said this much..."

"Idiot!"

Beatrice's eyes reddened faintly. A single tear slipped from the corner of her eye, rolling gently down her still slightly round cheek before dropping onto the black queen piece clutched in her hand.

That night, once the whole mansion had settled into silence, a small figure in a maid's uniform gently pushed open the guest room door and crept inside.

She glanced toward the bed, and once she'd confirmed there was no movement, she inched forward, one careful step at a time, each footfall placed with the utmost caution, terrified of making a sound she shouldn't.

"Al'a korr de zhakan!"

A sinister murmur came suddenly from behind her, and the girl's blood turned to ice in an instant. Before she could even turn around, an immense force shoved her body forward and pinned her flat against the bed.

An intruder?

An assassin?

She'd already braced herself for the worst when the room's magic chandelier suddenly flared to life. The next instant, a familiar voice sounded right by her ear:

"Let's see who's trying to ambush me in the middle of the night... Rem?"

As Subaru's face came into view, Rem's face flushed red. He, too, looked visibly startled for a moment, but it quickly gave way to his trademark mischievous grin, his usual easygoing smirk resurfacing as he arched an eyebrow.

"Well, well. Wasn't expecting this."

Subaru crouched by the bed, elbows on his knees, chin propped in his hands, his gaze sweeping over Rem's flushed cheeks and slightly disheveled maid uniform with an unmistakably wicked look.

"So the Mathers family treats its guests to... a 'night raid' as part of the regular program? Offering this kind of 'special service'? Funny, I don't recall ever putting in a request for that with old Roswaal."

"Th-that's... Lord Subaru..."

Rem lay flat on her back on the soft bed, her chest rising and falling with her ragged breathing, her hands instinctively clutching the hem of her skirt tight, her cheeks burning scarlet.

"Please... please be gentle with Rem... Rem... has never done that sort of thing before..."

"Pfft — hahaha!" Subaru burst out laughing. He let go, springing back from the bed in one nimble leap, and pulled Rem up with him in the same motion. "I'm just messing with you! Do I look like that kind of guy to you?"

He stood a little ways back, watching the blue-haired maid still clutching her skirt tight, head bowed, not daring to meet his eyes, her ears burning red with embarrassment. A satisfied, mischievous grin crept back onto his lips.

He had to admit, teasing this maid — who seemed so serious and composed but occasionally let her clumsier side show — never failed to bring unexpected fun.

And then, a new idea began stirring in Subaru's mind.

"Still, disturbing a guest in the middle of the night isn't something a good maid should do." He put on a stern face. "Where's your sister? I really need to have a word with her!"

"No! Please don't tell my sister—"

Rem shook her head frantically.

"This was Rem's own idea, it has nothing to do with my sister! It's just — your clothes looked so tattered, and you never seemed to want them washed during the day, so... so I thought I'd wait until you took them off at night and wash them for you..."

As she spoke, she carefully lifted her eyes toward the head of the bed.

His signature black coat lay neatly folded there. Though it had clearly been given a simple once-over, it still looked worn and tattered, out of place in the tidy, comfortable guest room.

"Ah, that's what this was about?"

Subaru followed her gaze, the playful look on his face easing slightly. He thought it over for a moment, then shook his head.

"I appreciate the thought, but this one piece of clothing — I'd rather nobody else washed it."

That coat was an old companion that had been with him for years. It was a gift from Kafka, and a symbol of the friendship he shared with his fellow Stellaron Hunters. It carried memories and feelings from another world, and for Subaru, washing it himself had become something of a ritual.

Even if her intentions were kind, he didn't want to hand that particular task to anyone else.

But the moment the words left his mouth, he caught the flicker of dejection that crossed the little maid's eyes, as if she were silently berating herself for messing up again. Something shifted in him, and he cleared his throat, adding quickly:

"Of course, I'm still not too familiar with the way to the laundry room." He scratched his head, feigning distress. "This mansion's a bit of a maze, honestly — kind of tough for a newcomer like me to navigate."

"If I went stumbling around in the dark on my own tonight, I might accidentally wander through some strange door and disturb that short-tempered little blonde girl again — now that would be embarrassing..."

Subaru gave Rem a pointed wink.

"So, would Miss Rem be gracious enough to show me the way? Just get me there, and I promise I'll remember the favor. And as a reward—"

"—I won't breathe a word about your failed night raid tonight. How's that? Sounds like a fair trade, doesn't it?"

"Yes!"

Rem nodded firmly, a touched smile breaking across her face, her eyes gazing at Subaru now carrying a trace of admiration.

Aside from Roswaal, who had always looked after her and her sister, it had been a long time since she'd met anyone who treated her this kindly with no strings attached — it left her with an odd, unsettling sense of not deserving it.

In the end, all of it — every bit of it — she had the kindly Roswaal's careful arrangements to thank.

Without his planning, Rem might have gone her whole life without ever meeting someone who could be this good to her.