Inside an Inn on the outskirts of Semohr.
"Another girl?"
Mayzin sipped on a non-alcoholic drink and asked, raising her brows and pointing at a girl opposite to her.
The girl's hands were on the table with her head down on them. She seemed to be sleeping, judging from her unhurried, calm breaths.
Sylvia sipped on some coffee and did a curt nod.
"Master has a weird tendency to pick up girls wherever he goes," a soft voice said.
It wasn't Sylvia, since she barely said more than a few words. It was Fei, sitting beside her with a sleeping orange cat on her lap.
She gently caressed the cat's back and continued, "Lady Mayzin would need to get used to it soon."
"Seems like it." Mayzin brushed her hair to the back of her ear and said.
Fei and Sylvia both nodded in response.
"…"
Mayzin suddenly realized something.
"Wait, what do you mean get used to it?"
"Hm?" Fei tilted her head.
Mayzin looked at the two with a squinted, questioning gaze. "You two, why would you say I need to get used to it?"
"…Because Milady will be looking at such scenes more in future?"
Mayzin squinted her eyes further. "And what makes you believe that I'll see this scene more?"
Fei didn't understand where Mayzin was getting at with such questions. Was everything she said not satisfactory?
Fei thought for a bit and answered, "…If Milady is around Master, then you'll be looking at such scenes often. This is what I meant."
"Yeah, and what makes you think I'll be around him?"
"Hm? Why wouldn't you be?" Fei asked back. The question was quite stupid if one were to ask her, but she didn't say it out loud. "Isn't Milady dating Master? Is it not natural for you to be around him?"
"…"
Mayzin facepalmed. It was as she had thought. These two were mistaking her for dating Lith.
"I am not dating him." Mayzin said flatly to clear the misunderstanding.
"Oh." Fei was somewhat surprised. "Then, is it a one time thing?"
"What one time?"
"Did Milady have a one night stand with Master?" Fei asked with a straight face, completely unfazed, as if it was a natural thing to ask.
Mayzin was taken aback by the question. 'What sort of pervert is he to have his maids think in such a way?'
What weird things had Lith done in the past to get such a reputation?
Shaking her head with a sigh and sipping on the drink, Mayzin replied, "No. I didn't have any such thing happen. And I don't plan to, either. I am not dating him, and I don't think I will be in future either."
"It's a matter of time." A soft, monotonous voice replied. This time, it belonged to Sylvia who had been silent all along.
"It isn't." Mayzin's eyes twitched as she said that.
Sylvia and Fri both nodded in response, not arguing with her further.
"If it helps Milady feel better, then so be it." Fei said what was on her and Sylvia's mind.
The two obviously didn't agree to Mayzin's statements. But she gave up trying to bicker with them.
Changing the topic, she asked, "So, who's that girl? Is she someone special like the druid cat?"
"Yes." Sylvia answered. "She is an alchemist. How good, I do not know."
"She is intelligent, but severely lacks courage and isn't street smart whatsoever." Fei added.
"Street smart?"
"Yes. She doesn't have much practical knowledge. She doesn't know how to go about everyday things properly."
"Suppose we needed an artifact for masking our scent. When Milady and I visit a shop, the shop staff would think of us as pretty ladies who don't know anything. They'll increase the price and speak highly of a subpar product, then sell it to us. Milady and I will know we are being extorted, but this girl won't. She'll think she got a good deal."
"Oh. So that's what it is." Mayzin understood it now. Money was the best way to make her understand things.
Fei and Sylvia were taught a few things by Luna back in the castle for convenience. Not just them, but all the new maids who had joined. These few things ranged from Lith's likes, dislikes, and general information on his ladies.
Mayzin was quick to grasp things related to wealth. So if she didn't understand something, the maids were supposed to tell her the same thing from a wealth or business point of view.
"She seems like Alea." Mayzin commented.
Fei shook her head. "She can't compare to young miss Alea."
When hearing such a sentence, one would usually think that Fei was saying Alea was better, but in the present context, such wasn't the case.
Mayzin smiled awkwardly and scratched her cheek with her index finger. "She has her charms."
Fei nodded. "Young miss Alea's innocent charms are otherworldly."
"Alright, I better get going. Need to protect my nephew."