Silent Witch
chapter-7

Louis soaked Monica's light brown hair with a thin layer of fragrant oil and combed it with great care.

"Listen, beauty is not something you can achieve in a day. It takes time and effort to achieve. Serendia Academy was built for the children of noble families. So wearing something too shabby will make you look bad."

After doing her hair, Louis took out another cream and smeared it on Monica's skin. Monica was now at his mercy, feeling as if she were a doll.

"Keep your skin and hair moisturized! That's the most important thing. I will provide you with perfumes and creams separately, so apply them every day before going to bed. Understand?"

"Y-Yes…"

Monica replied in a faint voice as her cheek was kneaded.

He was very thorough in his commitment to beauty. He was a man with a figure so beautiful that he could be mistaken for a woman. He was supposed to be in his late twenties, but he looked much younger than that.

Such beauty of his was evidently the result of his daily care.

"Louis… you look more woman than a real woman."

Just as she blurted out what was on her mind, the hand that had been smearing cream on Monica's cheek deepened into her face with a crunch. It hurts.

Louis had a cold smile on his beautiful feminine face that almost sent chills down her spine.

"My colleague, let me tell you something good. I hate it to death when people say that I look like a woman. Do you want to know what happened to the idiot who said it before?"

The hand that grasped Monica's face was filled with strength.

Monica shuddered in fear as her skull squeezed together.

"I'm… I'm sorryyyyyy! I won't say it againnnnn!"

"I'm glad you've been so understanding."

Louis took his hands away from Monica's face and put the bottle of fragrant oil and cream in her hands.

"Don't neglect to take care of it properly… you hear me?"

With that, Louis smiled at her.

His smile was more beautiful than most women's, but also more intimidating than a dragon's.

＊ ＊ ＊

Three days had passed since Monica had been staying at Louis Miller's house.

The reason she did not immediately sneak into the school was to wait for the arrival of the daughter of Count Kerbeck. Their territory was located near the border and it would take about three days to reach the royal capital.

While awaiting her arrival, Monica was thoroughly drilled in her understanding of Serendia Academy and some manners of the nobility by Louis, while Rosalie instructed her on regular diet and sleep.

Not that things had changed drastically in just three days, but her complexion, which according to Louis looked like a dead person, seemed to have gotten much better. It took her a while to get used to the idea of sleeping at night, but once the candles and lamps were confiscated, it left her nothing to do, so she slept instead.

As for her familiar, Nero, he spent his daytime hours reading a book in the corner of her room. Apparently, he borrowed his favorites author's novels from Lynn.

Nero dexterously flipped through the pages of a romance novel with his cat's paw, and when in the mood, he would stroll aimlessly around the mansion.

And today, too, after having eaten lunch, Nero would go for another walk to relieve his stomach, but when he suddenly returned, he spoke to Monica under the watchful eyes of Louis and the others.

"Monica! There's some kind of awesome roll coming!"

"Awesome… roll?"

"It's an orange roll."

What was exactly an orange roll?

To Monica's puzzlement, Lynn approached Monica quietly.

"Miss Monica, the daughter of Count Kerbeck, Lady Isabelle Norton, your collaborator in this infiltration operation of Serendia Academy, has arrived."

＊ ＊ ＊

"Ohohoho! Good day everyone!"

The one who greeted Monica with a high-pitched laugh that could be heard throughout the mansion was a girl of Monica's age. She was wearing a crimson dress embroidered with luxurious gold threads. Her light orange hair was shaped in magnificent roll, and it appeared that Nero was referring to her ringlet hair.

As Monica stood in front of the door, feeling overwhelmed, Young Miss Isabelle Norton put a fan to her mouth and looked at Monica with a mean look in her eyes.

"Oh, my, a very good day to you, Aunt Monica. You look as poorly dressed as ever. The fact that you are the youngest member of Kerbeck's family makes me ashamed of myself!"

Monica stood there, pale from the clear hostility that was being thrown at her.

Feeble-minded Monica was sensitive to the malice of others. Even the slightest stinging words can make her shrink. The clear malicious words already brought tears to Monica's eyes.

But before Monica could even cower in place, Miss Isabelle smiled at her with a triumphant look.

"How does it look now? Did I sound like a villainess? I've been practicing my voice every single day since I was given this role. I'm confident nobody can beat the sharpness of my high-pitched laugh."

What does the sharpness of a high-pitched laugh mean, she wondered.

When she saw Monica's eyes darted around in disbelief, Young Miss Isabelle huffed as if she realized something.

"Oh my, how embarrassing, I haven't even introduced myself."

Then Young Miss Isabelle pinched the hem of her skirt and made the graceful and beautiful courtesy of a noblewoman.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Monica Everett of the [Silent Witch]. My name is Isabelle Norton, daughter of Azure Norton of Count Kerbeck. Thank you very much for your help in defeating the black dragon. Please allow me to express my gratitude on behalf of my father and my people."

Young Miss Isabelle smiled at Monica, who was so shocked that she turned into a sculpture.

It's a very cute, friendly, and loving smile with no hint of malice.

"Oh, I had never imagined that the Seven Sages, who single-handedly shot down a pack of over ten wyverns, and even defeated the legendary Black Dragon of Wogan, were so adorable! I had heard that you are only one year older than I am!"

One year difference means she must be eighteen years old, thought Young Miss Isabelle in the corner of her mind before she took Monica's hand and looked into Monica's face with rosy cheeks.

"May I call you Big Sister Monica?"

She was younger than she expected.

"Er, um…"

Louis, who had been smiling watching this exchange on the couch stood up and forced Monica to lower her head.

"Come on, Miss [Silent Witch], Isabelle will be working with you from now on, so why don't you greet her?"

"Ple-Please… take care… ofm—"

Louis kept Monica's head down and let out a sigh of exasperation when Monica choked on her words.

"I apologize, Lady Isabelle. She is a bit of a shy person."

"Oh, please, I don't mind. I know Big Sister Monica is a shy person… but she is stronger, more tender-hearted, and braver than anyone else!"

Who could that be, Monica wondered. At least she's not a very strong or brave person.

But Young Miss Isabelle seemed to be completely trapped in her own world, and with her hands on her rosy cheeks, she looked up into the air enraptured and began to speak.

"The Black Dragon of Wogan was said to be difficult to kill even for the dragon knights. Its flames which originated from flames of the underworld can burn through anything and everything, even nullifying the defensive barriers of magicians. It was the strongest, most vicious dragon of all. Exterminating it single-handedly is not something anyone can do! Especially when she left the place without saying a word after slaying the black dragon… it was so dreamy!"

In fact, the only reason why Monica joined in the fight against the black dragon was, she was told by Louis, "Why don't you exercise once in a while?" before dragged out by grabbing her neck.

It was not out of modesty that she did not participate in the party, but out of shyness.

However, to Young Miss Isabelle, who was unaware of such circumstances, Monica appeared to be a brave and humble great magician.

This was a huge misunderstanding, but Monica wasn't eloquent enough to explain it, and for Louis, he was trying to make use of the misunderstanding to the best of his advantage.

"Big Sis Monica! I've heard you've been assigned as a secret bodyguard to protect His Highness Felix this time! I'm honored to be able to help you with that! In order to prevent you from being suspected, I will put my utmost effort to bully you! So please rest assured and give your whole attention to protecting His Highness!"

After saying that, Young Miss Isabel took Monica's hand and shook it upside down.

Completely swept up in the atmosphere, Monica was left to her own devices and could only say in a faint voice, "Yes…."

＊ ＊ ＊

While Young Miss Isabelle clung to Monica in excitement, Louis smiled kindly and distanced himself slightly from them.

There, a beautiful woman in a maid's uniform, Lynn, approached and asked him a question.

"Two members of the Magical Corps who had infiltrated Serendia Academy have been discovered by His Highness and kicked out of the academy."

What an astute prince, Louis thought, clicking his tongue soundlessly.

He had sent out some members of the Magical Corps in case they were needed, but he hadn't expected them to see through him so quickly.

With Monica and Young Miss Isabelle about to enter the school, it was inevitable that the second prince would be suspicious of them.

Although there was no direct connection between Count Kerbeck and Louis, it should raise no small amount of suspicion in the second prince. These two people could be Louis Miller's minions, or so he thought.

"We need someone to act as a diversion."

"And, who could it be?"

"I will enroll my foolish disciple at the same time as Miss Monika and Lady Isabelle are enrolled here."

A grin crept onto Louis's face, and his eyes glinted sharply behind one pair of glasses.

"That way, His Highness' suspicions will undoubtedly be directed on him, won't they?"

Speaking of his disciples, he had once destroyed half of the school building of Minerva, an institution for training magicians.

So, Monica Everett, the [Silent Witch], a girl who has a problem with interpersonal skills. Lady Isabelle, who has been playing the role of a villainess for her. And a disciple of Louis Miller, who once had a record of destroying a school building.

With these three misfits being admitted at the same time, Lynn secretly wondered, how quickly Serendia Academy would collapse.

"Two months, I'd guess."

"What are you saying out of the blue, you stupid maid."

It was (her prediction of) the time left before the prestigious Serendia Academy collapsed.