I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince-Chapter 472: What happened in the Imperial Palace (3)

Lydia led us further down the corridor packed with royal knights, explaining that it was the waiting room she and the other maids used.

When she lost consciousness earlier, it was likely because she had instinctively thought first of the bedroom she shared with them. As she opened the door, praying that they were unharmed, she was greeted by the sight of one of the maids, lying naked on the floor.

“A-ah... Lora...”

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Upon seeing the state of the room and the figure of her friend, Silena quickly covered her mouth, stepping out. Following her lead, the hero and Ethan exited as well, giving Lydia and the maid privacy.

And then, only the four of us—three maids and I—remained in the room.

‘As expected, it’s horrifying.’

The foul smell, a mixture of dozens of men’s sweat and the sickening stains smeared across the room, told the story. The maid lying on the floor was in the worst condition, showing clear signs of recent abuse.

Her body was covered with bruises, especially around her torso, indicating how much she had suffered at the hands of those men.

“Lora... S-sorry... I’m so sorry... I was too late...”

Lydia clung to the white-haired maid, weeping bitterly. Watching this heart-wrenching scene, I cast a cleaning spell, wiping away the filth left in the room.

Even though this place was now imprinted with horrific trauma for both of them, cleaning it was the least I could do.

“L-Lydia... run... Knights, they’re in the villa...”

“The knights have been dealt with. The hero of the Empire and his allies helped us.”

“There... there were at least thirty of them... I counted....”

“We killed them all, Lora. Every last one.”

“All...?”

Lora’s eyes widened in disbelief as she looked up at Lydia, struggling to process that every knight had been defeated. Then, like a true maid loyal to Princess Rainy, she immediately shifted the conversation to the princess’s safety.

“Then... is Princess Rainy...?”

“She... yes, she’s downstairs... When we realized something was wrong, we came up to check the villa first...”

“That’s... good. As long as the princess is safe... that’s all that matters...”

“But Lora, you...”

“It’s okay. I kept telling myself that if I could endure this, it would mean the princess was safe. Now that I know she’s unharmed... that’s all I need....”

“Lora...”

“Don’t cry, Lydia. I really am okay... I’m still here, after all.”

...I could see why Lydia trusted her so deeply.

After enduring something so harrowing, Lora was still concerned for Princess Rainy’s safety instead of harboring any resentment. Not an ordinary person by any means.

Even though she had been forcibly violated, which made her unappealing in my previous life as a game character... seeing her like this now only filled me with pity.

After using the cleaning spell on the blanket on the bed, I cut it in half with my dagger and handed it to her.

“Miss Lora, please cover yourself with this for now.”

“And you are...?”

“I am Lilith Blackwood Rosewood, maid of the Blackwood Ducal House of the Argentia Empire. I came at Princess Rainy’s request from the Academy, though I’ll provide a more formal introduction later.”

“Oh, I’m Lora. I don’t have a family name, so please just call me Lora.”

“Understood, Miss Lora.”

...If I were in her place, I would probably have found a spell or something to end it all, yet Lora retained the strength to introduce herself even after this ordeal.

Only one of them had the resilience to handle such a trauma with grace.

“L-Lora! What about Neris...?”

“...”

“Don’t tell me... did they... did she...?”

“No, it’s not like that, but she isn’t in good shape.”

“What... what do you mean?”

“Could you help me a little? It’s hard for me to walk.”

“I-I’ll carry you, Lora!”

“No, just help me walk. She’s not far.”

Though Lydia was puzzled by Lora’s cryptic words, she supported her without hesitation. Leaning on Lydia, Lora directed us to a small closet tucked away in the corner of the room.

–Creak.

“...Neris, it’s safe to come out now.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’ll be good. I’ll do whatever you say. Please, please spare me....”

“Neris...?”

“No, no! I’m sorry! Please forgive me! Please, I beg you, just this once...!”

“Neris! Stop! It’s over now!”

“...W-what? O-over?”

The other maid, curled up inside the closet, was muttering a frantic plea, her hands covering her head.

Lora called out to her, finally drawing her attention. Blinking in confusion, Neris looked around as if trying to grasp the situation.

“L-Lady Lydia? H-how did you...?”

“Neris... I’m so sorry I was late....”

“The knights... they’re all dead. The hero and his comrades from the Argentia Empire helped us.”

“...”

“...Miss Neris, right? Here, please use this to cover yourself, and let’s get you cleaned up....”

“Aaah! Nooo!”

As I offered her a blanket, Neris suddenly leapt out of the closet and clung to Lydia, screaming.

Though I could have intervened, I let her express her emotions. In her current state, she couldn’t harm Lydia, and she deserved the release after everything she had suffered.

“Why...?!”

“...”

“Why only Lady Lydia...?! I suffered so much... so why only...?!”

“Neris...”

“Why... why only Lady Lydia... why, why, ahhh...”

“I’m sorry... I’m so sorry I was too late...”

“Ah... ahhh...”

Unable to hold back her rage any longer, Neris lashed out at Lydia, who silently accepted her sobs and held her tightly, sharing in her grief.

Lydia embraced the battered Neris, weeping for nearly an hour.

She continued to hold her as she sobbed, occasionally screaming and lashing out in despair. Eventually, even Lora joined them, tears streaming down her face as she clung to ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) both women. With the three of them consumed by their grief, I took over handling the villa’s aftermath.

“Lilith, how is Lady Lydia?”

“...It may take some time before she’s ready to resume her duties. I know the layout of the villa, so I’ll handle the arrangements for food and rest in the meantime.”

“We understand. No one would expect her to immediately return to work after what she’s been through.”

“...Humans are disgusting. For so many of them to do this to a single woman? It’s revolting.”

“I’m human too, Silena.”

“No, hero, you’re different from ordinary humans.”

As we returned to the first floor, we found Princess Rainy and the others waiting. ...Alongside several bodies strewn around, evidently from a recent fight.

“Hero! Th-these men were hiding inside the villa and suddenly attacked us! According to Thomas, they seemed to be from the same group as the knights who attacked us this morning!”

“That would make sense. We just finished dealing with about thirty of them upstairs.”

“T-thirty...! There were that many?”

“...Which means there may still be others hiding in the villa. Or this could be only part of their force.”

“...I doubt it. The thirty knights gathered on the third floor were there for a specific reason.”

“For... a specific reason?”

“...Something like that.”

Ethan refrained from stating outright that they had gathered to assault the captive maids, mindful of Princess Rainy’s presence.

“The remaining maid informed us that there were approximately thirty knights in total. However, we should stay on guard in case any stragglers remain.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“We have much to do, but rest should come first. After traveling on horseback for over half a day, everyone needs to recover.”

“Can we bathe first? I don’t want to sleep like this.”

“Apologies, but the bathing schedule is backlogged. It will be available in about two hours.”

“Fine, I understand.”

Although I sympathized with Agnes, who hadn’t had a proper wash in nearly ten days... there were two people who needed to cleanse away their horrific memories before anyone else.