I Became the Traitor in an Academy Story

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“Life just got a whole lot more exhausting with one extra schedule!”

It was just a makeup and styling class added to the academy schedule, yet I could feel my life suddenly becoming more burdensome.

To be fair, there’s technically two new schedules, but the other one was honestly nothing to get worked up about.

The other task was just lightly doing up Harane after I helped wash Lapiz, which meant I only needed to apply a bit of skin care.

All the complicated stuff—hair styling, hair care, adornments, makeup, and so forth—were left entirely to Harane, so I could just sit back and watch her work on Lapiz.

Harane mentioned that I should pay attention since I’d eventually have to do it myself, but given my current skill level, that seemed like it would be months away.

I had just barely learned the basics of cosmetics! When would I even get to that level?

“All done, Lapiz. How do you like it?”

“Yes, Mom! I love it today too!”

“Phew, I’m glad to hear that. Sigh… If only your grandma would put in a little effort, she’d look so pretty.”

“Grandma looks pretty even without getting ready, like Blanca. So it’s okay, right?”

“That’s true… Sigh, but she won’t listen if I say anything.”

While overhearing this heartwarming exchange between the mother and daughter, Harane gave me the nod to skedaddle and finish my own tasks.

“As you wish, milady.”

With no reason to stick around and having already ironed out Lapiz’s bag and uniform, I slipped out without a care.

Honestly, eavesdropping on other people’s family matters is not my cup of tea.

Now, it’s been… about two weeks? If I round up, it’s been three weeks, right?

Working as a maid has made me realize how often I unintentionally ended up spying on Lapiz’s family dynamics.

Between a husband who’s half-captive to his wife and also under the thumb of Harane’s parents, and that cringey pair of returners who can barely keep their hands off each other… ugh.

If I had to pick the toughest task amongst these, it’d be cleaning up their overly passionate love marks.

Honestly, I never wanted to know, but the returners? Their nights were way too intense.

I haven’t actually seen anything myself, but no matter how much soundproofing is done, you can still hear faint sounds through the walls.

So, I can’t say I’ve seen anything, but just from the aftermath, you can tell it was quite the wild experience.

Anyone in the world would look at that and think, “Is that even okay?”

Had I not known they were hundreds of years old, I might’ve thought they were just a couple with a bit of a unique love life, but knowing their ages and usual demeanor makes it all the more unsettling.

Myungho, the grandfather who roams around like a saint, has scratch marks all over him, and Altera, usually tough and straightforward, looks like a girl stumbling around, with handprints all over her as she leans on Myungho.

Each time I witness that, my head spins.

In total, I’ve seen that scene five times, including today at dawn. And of course, the cleaning up afterward has been all on me.

When I wasn’t taking classes, I could just close my eyes and zip through it, but now with classes as well, I feel like my sanity is slowly being chipped away.

I’m sure I’ll adapt in the end, but until then, I’m in for quite the struggle.

Oh, by the way, Harane and her husband have quite the dynamic, with Harane taking the lead, if you know what I mean.

This has me worrying that one day, I might be the one having to look after kids too. Ugh.

Not that I can’t see some wholesome moments—there are a lot of those too. Like the loving bond between a mother and daughter or a daughter who’s still worried about her somewhat clueless mom.

And Myungho, who acts aloof yet still looks out for me as his son-in-law… that kind of thing.

Well.

Thinking about it, it seems there’s actually more I’d rather not see.

But hey, being a maid comes with those challenges. It’s a given that I’ll have to bear some invasion of privacy.

When I headed to the kitchen, Altera was busy cooking away.

A few hours ago, there were fingerprints all over the place, but now it’s pristine—just goes to show you that a returner is a returner.

“Ah, you’re here. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. I slept soundly without waking up at dawn. This bed is really good, even better than the one I used before.”

It seemed like I was holding onto the events from earlier, but I played it cool and pretended to know nothing—sailing smoothly past.

Altera then cleared her throat, as if she understood my cue, and mentioned that the good bed she set up for me was definitely paying off.

After setting a serious tone, she gestured for me to come closer, and I wondered what she wanted to say, but it turned out to be a request to keep it a secret from Harane and Lapiz.

“Of course, I’ll take it to the grave, milady. Just please ease up on the overly intense activities; there’s a risk of infection.”

“…Wow, how rude.”

Altera, having been pointed out, looked a bit annoyed, but couldn’t really retort, only fussed with her hair.

“Anyway… I’m thinking of teaching you how to cook. What do you say? If you want to learn, I’ll gladly teach you, but if not, I won’t bother.”

“Are you talking to me?”

Altera sounded genuinely eager to share her skills. And her tone hinted that she wouldn’t force it if I didn’t want to…

But this option—turning out not to be a choice at all—is just one of the sad realities of being a maid, isn’t it?

“If the lady herself teaches me, I’d be more than happy to accept.”

“You’re trying to flatter me, huh? Well, since that’s the case, fine. I’ll start teaching you tomorrow. It’ll just be tips here and there during breakfast and dinner, but still.”

Now there’s an extra task added. I swallowed a sigh I wanted to vocalize and watched her cook.

—-

“From now on, use just your two hands. Seriously, do you even need all those extra limbs?”

Ribette didn’t even give me a chance to defend myself, declaring that today’s lesson was over and I could leave.

Her additional comment about not using slime to make extra hands and instead mastering the basics was just icing on the cake.

Honestly, I felt totally wronged. I’m a beginner! How am I supposed to keep up with pros using only two hands?

I had a lot of complaints, but with no way to vent them right now, I just simmered internally.

Ribette said that using extra hands should come only after getting the basics down, but wouldn’t it be okay to just use all the extra hands to do the same amount of work as two hands?

But well, it wasn’t like I could change anything, so what can I do? I just have to endure.

At least today was a day for the kids to come, so I figured I might be able to unwind a bit.

“Did you enjoy today’s lesson?”

“Yes, milady. It’s difficult, but I have to keep trying.”

“Of course you do! Now hurry up and prepare before the guests arrive.”

Every time I get into that fancy carriage, I can’t shake the thought that someday I might have to drive it myself.

But, I thought that was probably pushing it. I mean, no way they’d make a maid do something like that, right?

…Except they already have me cooking. So who knows, maybe it’ll really happen one day.

Feeling an odd sense of anxiety, I decided to ask Harane something.

“…Milady, may I ask you something?”

“That depends on what you want to ask. But sure, go ahead.”

“Do you happen to know if Ribette is… acquainted with you?”

She kept mumbling about Harane whenever she taught me, and it made me curious if they were friends.

Of course, the real intention behind my question was to lay some groundwork for later, like “Am I going to have to drive a carriage too?”

“We’ve known each other since childhood… if memory serves, we’ve been friends since we were five.”

Because her parents crossed over to this world shortly after giving birth to her, Harane said Ribette was the only one who approached her without awkwardness during those unfamiliar times.

“She was my first friend, so of course I was curious when we hit it off like that. But we ended up becoming inseparable friends as time went by.”

I had no idea there was that kind of background. Hmm. I thought about setting it all straight if I couldn’t stand Ribette’s lessons any longer, but I’ll just keep that to myself for now.

Life’s connections really can be a web.

Still, it felt like Harane was slowly opening up to me a bit. Should I consider that a good sign?

Back in the day, she’d have told me not to even ask, but now she’s answering according to my questions… is this progress?

I honestly don’t know.

Even after pondering it, I wasn’t going to find answers, so I stayed quiet all the way home.

I figured asking if I’d have to drive would get a deadpan answer, so I didn’t even go there.

That’ll come later, once we get closer.

For now, it was about preparing to welcome our guests.

I took some fruits out from the fridge, cut them up for serving, and lined up various drinks on a tray.

It was a bit tricky managing the balance, but thankfully I’d done it often enough that I was getting the hang of it.

Since I figured Lapiz would show up any minute now, I waited by the front door, anticipating the lively sounds of the kids nearing the entrance.

Then… let’s get to it.

“Blanca’s here!”

“Welcome, miss. And to your friends, too. We’ve been waiting for you.”

“Oh, sorry! I’m a bit late… traffic was crazy! Hehe. Let’s hurry in, guys!”

Lapiz strolled in like it was no big deal, but the expressions of the other kids were absolutely priceless.

All of them were incredulous, wondering what they just witnessed, which honestly got me giggling.

Winking and smiling at the kids, they even rubbed their eyes in disbelief.

Yep, this is it!

“Please come in, esteemed guests.”

 

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