n

n

nZoemi knocked on the door to his master's room and tried opening it, but it turned out to be locked.

n

"Huh...?

"

nZoemi pressed on the handle once more but the door still wouldn't budge.

n|What's going on? Miriette would normally be already up and waiting for breakfast...|

nHe thought to himself furrowing his brows.

nAfter all, he was the one who overslept – did something happen when he wasn't by Miriette's side?!

n

"My lady...? Are you alright?

"

nHe asked ab bit louder, knocking on the door with a little more haste.

n

"...

"

nThere was no response and Zoemi's face became pale as snow.

n|Something must have happened!|

nHe tensed up as his brain began rapidly producing the images of the worst-case scenarios that could have led to this situation.

nArguably, the most dangerous ones amongst those possibilities would be:

nFrist - the assassin from another kingdom who shows up in Arisu's route, who for whatever reason would arrive attacking nine months ahead of time.

nSecond - the serial killer from Xeonith's route going on the rampage long before the heroine and the brown-haired transcended capture target got locked up in the academy dungeon by accident.

nThose two and many mote horrible options just keep on popping up inside Zoemi's head although he really did try to hold himself back.

n

"My lady?! Are you there!? I'm going to use my spells to get inside!

"

nThe black-haired attendant shouted and already started gathering his mana.

n

"What!? No! Zoemi Stop! I forbid you from entering my room! No way! You absolutely cannot enter now!

"

n

"Ah...!

nBut then from the inside came the voice of panicked but very much alive Miriette.

nShe was flustered but didn't sound like she was in any danger.

n|Whew... She must have been in the toilet and I freaked out... So embarrassing...|

nZoemi felt such relief that his legs almost gave out, but at the same time, he scolded himself for the unnecessary freakout.

n

"Oh, thank god! My lady, are feeling unwell, maybe? I brought you breakfast.

"

nHe pressed his head against the door and smiled.

nRustling sounds came from the inside of the room.

n|Oh...? Maybe she wasn't in the toilet after all? By any chance, has my cute lady also overslept? Ah! She must have been worried about the results and couldn't fall asleep too...! This is bad...|

nZoemi bit his lips – for him, it seemed that Miriette was holding the grades from the exam in even higher regard than he remembered her character doing in a game.

nStill, he also prepared a plan for that exact situation.

nZoemi was someone who could learn from his mistakes, after all...

n...or so he thought...

n*thump*

nThen suddenly a loud noise came from the inside and other noises stopped.

n

"My lady, what happened!?

"

nThe scarred attendant got startled - was there an assassin or a murderer in Mireitte's room after all!?

n

"I'm fine...! I just hit my b... Stubbed my toe against the bed... Just wait... I need to get dressed...!

"

nThough clearly in pain his master responded.

n

"Ah! I see. I hope you are alright, my lady...

"

nCalmed Zoemi murmured, nodding his head.

nWell, even a noble lady can be a clutz from time to time. - it only added to her charm points

n|Though that's weird... it was such an oddly satisfying sound. It sounded almost as if something nice and plump got slapped... Well, whatever, as long as my lady is safe!|

nThe black-haired boy thought to himself waiting patiently for a couple of minutes until his master was ready to let him in.

n

"My lady.

"

nAs always, the black-haired attendant put the tray with food on the desk and he picked up a hairbrush.

nThat day Miriette's hair was also more messy than usual – a clear sign of her agitation and nervousness - and if Zeomi didn't have the help of Patishi and Teo then he and his master would be late for class for sure.

n

"My lady, today the results of the tests will be revealed. How do you feel about that? I, for example, was so nervous that I couldn't sleep at all! And it's a bit embarrassing but this morning I wasn't even able to find the vest from my uniform! I had to take the spare one!

"

nZoemi chuckled, he was making small-talk while also trying to figure out how his master feels about the exam.

nThough, it wasn't like he was talking some random nonsense that he came up with on the spot - he did misplace his vest somewhere and had to get the spare one instead.

nThat was an odd situation since he always put his dirty clothes in the basket he kept by the door, and clearly remember putting the vest on the very top the day before, just before he went for the evening training.

n

"...

"

nThe back of Zoemi's hand was touching Miriette's neck so the attendant could feel his master tensing up.

n

"...oh... ah...! yes, that happens to everyone. Haha... I'm sure you will find it soon...!

"

nEven her voice was showing how nervous she was.

n|Tsk...! It must be the worst-case scenario, those results must be super important to her! I've seen her so worked up only twice ever before...|

nThought Zoemi biting his lip.

n|Must...! Not...! Look...! At...! The...! Bed...!|

nThought Miriette while pinching her arm very hard, to keep herself in check, sitting perfectly still resisting the need to check whether she properly covered the evidence.

nHaving confirmed the current state of his master Zoemi decided to put his plan into action.

n

"My lady, what do you think about setting up a date with the first prince by the pond at night?

"

nHe kneeled down behind Miriette seemingly only to have a better angle at brushing her hair and 'coincidentally' ended up whispering into her ear, making her fidget.

n

"There's a full moon in two days and it would be breathtakingly beautiful - just you and prince Horeo, hand in hand, bathing in the silver light...

"

nHe smiled softly, making sure that only the left side of his face is reflected in the mirror that the dark-haired girl was looking into.

n

"Such a date would be nice indeed...

"

nMiriette nodded but seemed hesitant.

n

"But isn't leaving the dorm at night prohibited?

"

nShe asked in a cautious tone.

n

"Ah! That is true - but only if you will get caught!

"

nZoemi cheered out enthusiastically, recognizing that his master is at least partially interested – the bait he cast must have caught her attention, now, to lure her into biting it...

n

"I asked around and it turns out that if you won't use any magic, the teachers won't be alarmed! Are you interested?

"

n