Not a Villainess but a Maid

#016 Pink Fox and Black Peacock

“I need to take it off, Amber.”

With her hand on the bra hook, Ruby spoke.

“Sure.”

Don’t hesitate. It’s just between girls, so there’s nothing to be embarrassed about.

There might be some debate about whether I am a mentally intact woman.

Anyway, after taking off the apron first, I unbuttoned each button of the maid uniform.

‘Somehow it feels like she’s blatantly looking at me…’

Thinking it’s just tension, I also pulled down the skirt.

It was a routine, but just knowing Ruby was watching made my heart pound.

The light pink underwear top and pristine white panties were revealed.

The chest that became visible when I lowered my head was smaller compared to Ruby’s.

It’s not like it doesn’t exist at all, but it’s not something I can say is big either, when talking about my chest.

This might be the first time I’m evaluating my own body.

My well-developed buttocks, compared to when I was young, caught the end of gazes.

I had to adapt to a body that became more feminine as the sun set.

Come to think of it, am I unnecessarily worried about it alone?

To Ruby, I must be like a childhood friend.

When we were 13, we went into the bath together many times, but nothing special happened.

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Unlike me, who would come up with strange imaginations, she called me with the impression that she simply wanted to bathe together, innocently.

Never mistake it. Ruby just felt a sense of intimacy with me and suggested bathing together.

Before removing the underwear that barely covered my body, I lastly observed Ruby’s expression.

“···?”

Clearly, someone was looking at me blatantly, concentrating on this side.

“Miss, it’s a bit uncomfortable when you look at me like that…”

“···!”

Her face turned red at my words, and she quickly turned her head, pushing my back with her other hand.

“Sorry, I’ll do it alone after all…”

“What? You’re already naked, aren’t you?”

“Not today…!”

Even though I had already put on a triple-layer armor around my heart, I was pushed out of the dressing room along with my clothes.

“···Not today, you say?”

Unaware of the English language, she left her clothes behind in the room.

Did she change her mind after saying she would do it first?

Quite peculiar, Miss.

Today, Ruby’s bath time seemed longer than usual.

“She couldn’t have fallen asleep in there, could she?”

Occasionally, there was a rustling sound, so it seemed unlikely.

***

The maid left alone in the room on the weekend.

In such a situation, there was one duty she had to fulfill as a maid.

“I have to clean the room!”

Although it was used by both of them, in reality, this room was no different from Ruby’s room.

Opportunities to clean the owner’s room were not as frequent as one might think.

When she was resting in the room, the situation of me cleaning would be burdensome, and when she was asleep, the rustling sound might wake her up.

Moreover, at that time, I wouldn’t be able to properly wash the bedding.

Rolling up her sleeves, she began the thorough cleaning of the room.

Although it was a fairly spacious room, compared to the mansion days, this scale was nothing.

She took out the broom and pushed all the furniture away, then neatly swept away the dust and sand on the floor.

It would have been nice to have a mop, but all she had brought with her was a cloth.

I should ask Miss later to get me one.

She dampened the cloth with water and knelt down, diligently wiping every nook and cranny of the room.

After a long time, memories from the days of being a maid candidate came flooding back as I cleaned the room with a mop.

Back then, the skirt was longer, so my bare knees didn’t touch the floor as they do now.

Looking back, maybe the only advantage of the long skirt.

By the time my knees were turning red, all the floor cleaning was done.

Now, all that’s left is washing the blanket and organizing the desk.

Since Ruby is using the bathroom, I decided to leave it aside and start with the messy desk.

Of course, the messy desk was mine.

Ruby, who never kept unnecessary things on her desk, always had it tidy as if it were brand new.

While neatly arranging things, I noticed a book on the desk.

[The Red Fox and the Blue Peacock]

It was the book I borrowed after seeing Coral reading it in the library.

I had read about half of it after a thorough reading last night while waiting for Miss to wake up this morning.

“Huh?”

I had used a pen as a bookmark, but it had somehow slipped away and was rolling on the desk.

“When did this fall out?”

It was deeply stuck, so it wasn’t supposed to fall out, but it was strange.

Anyway, with the book in place, the desk took on a neat form.

As I was admiring the tidy room with a satisfied expression, Ruby, who had finished bathing, came out toweling her hair.

“…Did you clean?”

“Yes. Cleaning on weekends has become a habit now.”

“Amber didn’t need to insist. Anyway, thanks.”

***

In the middle of a night’s sleep, I woke up to a persistent rustling sound.

“Is Milk wandering around?”

I wondered if the cat was roaming and making noise, but that wasn’t the case.

Milk was currently curled up on my bed, peacefully asleep.

I couldn’t believe Ruby would make such a sound while sleeping. Growing increasingly uneasy, sleep eluded me.

If it was a thief or something, it wouldn’t be a good situation.

Doubting whether I had properly secured the room, I slowly got up.

Sneakily scanning the room, the unexpected source of the sound was Ruby’s bed.

“Huh?”

A bizarre scene unfolded with a shining pile of blankets on her bed.

“Could there be fire inside the blanket?”

Considering Ruby’s proficiency with fire magic, the possibility of her unconsciously using magic while asleep couldn’t be ignored.

“Miss!”

“…”

Startled, I uncovered the blanket, and Ruby, with rabbit-like eyes, met my gaze.

Beside her head, a glass lamp and an unfamiliar book unfolded.

“…What are you doing instead of sleeping?”

“…Oh.”

Ruby hurriedly closed the book when she saw me.

Then, the title written there caught my eye.

‘…The Red Fox and the Blue Peacock.’

Clearly, it was the book I had borrowed from the library…

As I looked at her with a puzzled expression, Ruby stammered.

“Sorry…! I didn’t mean to touch your stuff… I just happened to see a book on Amber’s desk, so I thought I’d read something, and then…”

It had been a while since I had seen Ruby so flustered.

Maybe it’s better to pretend I didn’t see anything.

“…Ah, I see.”

I casually flipped the blanket back over and lay down.

Then, Ruby called out in a bewildered voice.

“Amber…?”

I pretended not to hear her and yawned.

“…?”

“Is it okay like this…? Without saying anything…?”

Her reaction was quite cute, so I deliberately kept listening.

When it seemed like she was about to cry, I finally reassured her.

***

The next afternoon, I went to the place with a library with Ruby.

Ruby also seemed surprised that such a place existed.

“Ah, so this is the place. Quite surprising.”

“Yes, isn’t it? I wonder why it’s been left abandoned.”

Upon opening the door and stepping inside, Coral, who had arrived earlier and was sitting, greeted me with a smile and a wave.

“Amber, you’ve come again.”

Then, looking at Ruby beside me, Coral expressed a puzzled expression.

“Um… who’s this person?”

“The one I mentioned I would be bringing. Miss Ruby.”

Coral glanced at Ruby and awkwardly greeted her.

“Oh, hello… I’m Coral Hestia.”

“…Another woman…”

Ruby mumbled something looking at Coral, then turned to answer.

“No need to be so formal. Just make yourself comfortable.”

“Thank you. You’re as beautiful as Amber described.”

“Amber said that?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.”

Ruby, without saying anything, went to explore the library, and I whispered quietly to Coral, low enough for Ruby not to hear.

“Did I do as I instructed?”

“Yes. Just as Amber told me.”

Before bringing Miss Ruby to Coral, I had already coordinated with Coral as per my instructions.

I approached Ruby, who was browsing through the books.

“How is it? A nice place, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. I like it. Reminds me of the library in the mansion.”

As she was a lady who enjoyed reading, I had no doubt that she would like this place.

Sitting facing each other in the middle of the library, Coral handed a book to Ruby and said, “This is the sequel to the book you read.”

“···Thank you.”

Taking it, Ruby paused for a moment and then asked Coral, “Do you have more books like this?”

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“Of course. I’ll recommend a few.”

Perhaps due to the shared interest, the two easily became friends.

Coral, with a happy expression at finding someone to share interests with, asked Ruby, “Which part did you like the most? I personally love the part where the two escape from the eyes of society to pursue their love.”

In response, Ruby, pointing to a deeply moving passage, said, “···I think it’s the part where the Duke reveals his desire to a maid for the first time.”

“That part is good. It’s like there’s an unseen tension flowing, and I find myself trembling as I read.”

Initially just a visit to pass the time, it had turned into something resembling a book club where Ruby had also joined.

“I did well bringing Ruby along after all.”

For the first time, the lady had a commoner friend.

Feeling a subtle pride as Ruby distanced herself further from the role of the villainess, tainted by corruption, I couldn’t help but feel satisfied.