“Sob, sob… I lost. I have to become a maid in Uncle Lynn’s house and receive ‘Sexual Education’ every day. Sob, sob…”
Two months later, in Lynn’s office, the silver-haired girl was getting dressed with a look of despair, while Lynn, standing beside her, let out a helpless sigh.
“Why do I get the feeling you actually enjoy this script, little kitten?”
“Nonsense! Sob… I might have won the competition back then, but I owe you such a huge favor that I have to wear a maid outfit for you every three or five days.”
“This feels no different from having lost in the first place! Sob—”
Keti began to wail right there on the spot, but such sobbing had little effect on the Lord Regent. He maintained his usual cynical demeanor, and the relationship between them hadn’t changed at all.
‘Guh…’
‘How should I put this?’ Even though Keti was the one who originally suggested a friends with benefits relationship, the fact that their connection was now truly stuck at that stage made the silver-haired girl feel a bit miserable.
She wanted to move things forward, but… ‘Sob… how can I say it?’ Keti couldn’t bring herself to speak up, so the situation remained awkward.
‘Wait, that’s right!’
‘Speaking of which, aren’t I an Official Teacher now?’
After that competition ended, that old man had a sour look on his face and refused to admit he had lost the wager. Keti hadn’t expected it to be so easy to make that fellow pay up.
However… for some reason, it seemed her enemy had put in some effort behind the scenes.
In the end, she really did manage to snatch the status of Official Teacher away from that old teacher. It had been so smooth that Keti herself could hardly believe it.
Because of this, Keti could no longer be considered her enemy’s teaching assistant.
Although she still taught the same class and the students’ level remained the same, she was now a formal member of the Magic Tower!
‘That’s right…’
‘In that case, the first sword drawn after reaching the shore… cough, cough, cough…’
‘Well… never mind. I’m just joking.’ Keti didn’t actually want to cut down her enemy; after all, the guy was quite useful. She hated to admit it, but… ‘My body seems unable to leave this guy now. Ugh…’
‘And even setting the physical aspect aside, emotionally, I’ve become more dependent on him than before. That idiot…’
‘I…’
‘Sigh…’
The more the silver-haired girl thought about it, the more confused she became.
Now that her former wishes had been fulfilled, she felt as light as a feather, with nothing left in her head except for her relationship with Lynn.
She had completely forgotten that there was still one crucial person she hadn’t dealt with from start to finish.
Keti finished changing in Lynn’s office and prepared to head back to class. Just as she stepped out the door, a familiar figure suddenly jumped out from a corner.
Keti thought it was likely Layla or Sylvia and instinctively prepared to give them a hug. After all, her relationship with her two former comrades had become as close as best friends.
But…
A familiar voice she hadn’t heard in a long time caused Keti’s body to tremble, leaving her frozen in place.
“Good afternoon, Keti… It’s been a long time. Have you had enough fun?”
“Eh?”
Keti blinked at the sound of the voice. Then, she saw the figure clearly: a petite girl with golden twin-tails draped over her chest and her arms crossed. She had a haughty, rude, and yet cute expression.
This… wasn’t this her childhood friend, Alice?!
*Hiss—!*
Moreover, the most terrifying thing was… Alice had called her by her name!
‘No… that shouldn’t be right. Didn’t she not know my identity before? Didn’t Layla and Sylvia say they were keeping it a secret from her?’
‘How… could it be? Don’t tell me… I-I-I… I was seen through immediately?’
Keti hurriedly took two steps back and let out a few awkward coughs.
“Cough, cough… Um, little girl, who are you looking for? What’s a Keti…”
“…I’m looking for you, Keti. Stop pretending. Layla and Sylvia told me everything. I can’t believe it. I searched for you for so long, and yet you were right under my nose the whole time.”
Alice crossed her arms, looking like she was sulking. Her words made Keti feel like vomiting blood. ‘Good grief… in the end, I was still betrayed. Sob…’
But it seemed normal enough. After all… from the moment Layla and Sylvia learned her identity, the silver-haired girl had prepared herself for the possibility that they would tell Alice.
If anything, it was a bit strange that they had waited this long to tell her…
“I… I’m sorry. I…”
A deep blush immediately rose to the silver-haired girl’s face as she lowered her head in embarrassment.
‘Sob… even though my childhood friend saw me in that illusion and knew I was a girl, this is the first time in the real-world that I’m meeting her as a girl.’
It was awkward, even managing to make the current Keti feel a rare sense of shame.
Back then, she had hidden her identity from her former comrades mainly because she didn’t want Alice to know she had turned into this.
“Alright, I already know exactly what happened…”
Keti sucked in a breath of cold air on the spot.
“You… you know everything? W-What do you know?”
“Don’t start crying! What do you think you look like?! …Some things happened, and those two were a bit vague when they told me, but anyway, I have a general idea of the situation. Honestly, why didn’t you tell me!”
Alice’s reaction was somewhat unexpected. Keti felt… Layla and Sylvia might have left out some very important details when they spoke to Alice—for example, what had happened between her and Lynn.
“Anyway, since you turned into a girl because of a potion, and you passed the trial of that temple, your potion-making skills must have improved by a lot. You should have a way to change back by now, right?!”
Alice narrowed her eyes and spoke with annoyance.
“Then what are you waiting for? Hurry up and brew the Reverse Transformation Potion and change back to your original self! What is this supposed to be… you look more like a girl than I do!”
“Hurry up and change back so we can continue our adventure. Honestly… you left me all alone and lonely for so long. Now that you’re back, I’m definitely going to punish you!”