Chapter 7
38.
The discussion about the proposal is still far from over. The presentation was well executed but it does not end there. Duke Nasmuir liked the idea when he heard the Fashion show theme. He immediately thinks of the next-in-line queen due to her gracefulness. Rin and Aoi thought that Duke Nasmuir called the current one, Queen Elenoria, but it was in fact her daughter that he was referring to.
Roughly half an hour had passed, and the Royal Guard came back. "Duke Nasmuir, the princess is here," he presented as an ash-blonde medium-length hair Kemi entered the room.
As soon as the maids turned their attention toward the incoming royalty, they saw Grace walking in.
"Welcome Queen Grace, thank you for granting my humble request~" Duke Nasmuir said.
"I am not yet the queen, I told nyu to address me as a princess while we are here in the mansion." Princess Grace replied.
"My apologies, I am just excited about your crowning." The Duke responded.
"QUEEN GRACE!?" Rin and Aoi reacted.
"Ah… Hi…" Princess Grace responded. She was shocked as well when she saw the maids.
"Great, thanks Nasmuir. My cover is blown now. They are Mae's friends and they shouldn't have known I'm royalty.! Eventually, Mae and Mittsy will know, and then the whole maiden school follows!" Princess Grace scolded Duke Nasmuir.
"I did not know that. I thought you were just checking the cafe as well last time. Look, I can fix this! We can tell them that the deal is off when they tell Mae anything." Duke Nasmuir replied while in panic.
While everything is in utter chaos right now, Hana secretly checked the Runecrystal inside of Pily's fur. Both Duke Nasmuir and Princess Grace are candidates on their list. It will narrow their suspects if the Runecrystal will give her a sign. But right now, the Runecrystal is not even glowing.
"I am so lost right now…" Hana commented.
"Me too…" Rin added.
"Add me to the mix as well…" Aoi responded
"Anooo… She's one of Mae's friends right? Is Mae a royalty as well?" Lulu asked Hana.
"Mae and Mittsy are commoners, just like the rest of nyu. I'm pretending to be like one as I attend the maiden academy, to observe the land that I will rule someday." Princess Grace answered.
"Don't worry, we won't tell the others about your true profile!" Hana said.
"Hai, we promise!" Rin added as Aoi and Lulu nodded.
"Thank nyu for cooperating." Princess Grace politely replied as she bowed lightly.
"She is indeed graceful, just like last time at the cafe," Hana whispered.
"She truly is," Aoi whispered back.
"Now tell me, why did nyu summon me here?" Grace asked Nasmuir, still mad about Nasmuir's mistake.
"Hai! You see, they will host a fashion show for the grand reopening. You are a natural beauty, and can easily be the highlight of the show! The other royalties would love to be on the runway with you!" The Duke said.
"I told nyu, standing out is the last thing that I should do. Plus it won't work, if I agreed to be one of the models, Mae and Mittsy would get curious about why I suddenly appeared in the fashion show." Princess Grace straightforwardly answered.
"Can you at least check the designs first? They are truly magnificent!" Nasmuir replied as he tried to change Grace's decision.
"Nyu want me to be the highlight of the fashion show even though there are other royalties there? Are nyu serious?" Princess Grace questioned.
"Anooo… Hana and Lulu will be models as well. If nyu want, we can choose Mae and Mittsy to join as well. In that way, there will be no other royalties besides nyu. Every model will be a commoner to the public's eye." Rin suggested.
"Good point, no one would suspect that I'm royalty if the rest of the models are commoners as well. If we are going to do that, Mae should ask me to join this fashion show first. The initiative should come from them, if Mae did not ask me to join then I won't join the fashion show. Explaining to Mae how I got the offer from the maids would be problematic." Princess Grace responded.
"You heard her. You must do what she said or else I won't be sponsoring the grand reopening, understood?" Duke Nasmuir said to the maids.
"Ha-hai!" They all reacted. The phasing was too quick, which made them panic a little bit.
"It is settled then, I should go and attend to some paperwork, now if nyu will excuse me." Princess Grace said as she left the room.
"To compensate for the problem that I created, I'll send half of the budget you requested. You will receive the latter half once I get confirmation that Grace is in." Duke Nasmuir said.
"Hai~" The maids replied.
It turns out, Duke Nasmuir is a loyal follower of Princess Grace. He wants to give her the spotlight every time there's an opportunity to do so. The original plan is to have a deal with the maids wherein somehow Grace will also benefit, but he doesn't need to pull any schemes right now since the event is a fashion show.
The meeting has finally concluded. The maids left the premises as the Duke put their proposal on hold. It's a definite yes if the maids manage to pull Grace in, but the deal will be canceled if they fail, since they only have half of the budget required.
Eventually, Rin and the others made it back to the cafe.
"Nee-san, how was it?" Lisa immediately asked as she welcomed everyone upon entering.
"I think it was a success." Rin confusedly replied.
"Nyatta!" Coco, Kita, and Yuna reacted.
"But why do nyu sound like nyu are not sure about it?" Lisa questioned.
"Duke Nasmuir liked the proposal but he put a condition first before he sponsors our grand reopening," Aoi answered.
"Condition? What is it?" Lisa asked.
"Aaaand that's where the problem starts…" Hana commented. Everyone suddenly became more curious when they heard Hana's statement.
"Let's head to the office. We will explain everything but before we do, I want everyone to promise that this information is solely for us. If this leaks, the deal is off, and a lot of problems will surely occur." Rin added.
The other maids are quite lost at the moment. It was the same reaction for those who participated in the presentation. The maids who waited in the cafe felt like something went right and wrong both at the same time.
39.
The maids' office has been the meeting place for quite some time now. Ever since Kita's group appeared, the room held meetings way more than usual. Calling a meeting is commonly for announcements and adjustments. But with Kita's group, they have been setting up a meeting almost, what feels like, every day. Thus another meeting is being held in the office.
To begin with, Rin ensured that no one would enter the cafe for now. Putting up a "Closed" sign and locking the doors. Mae will usually still enter even if there's a closed sign on the door, she's welcome to the cafe after all. But now that the door is locked, Mae will interpret it as everyone is out, in case she suddenly shows up.
Without a second of delay, Rin started to explain everything. Including the part of the true identity of Grace. It will be problematic if they let that vital information out. If they are going to execute this plan, everyone should be on the same page. Meaning, they should know every detail as well.
The rest of the maids were astonished when they heard what happened. It explains why Grace's appearance is naturally elegant and classy. The only problem right now is how will they make Mae invite Grace and Mittsy, without being suspicious about it. Asking Mae to do a vague or not distinct instruction is quite risky. For instance, they ask Mae to join the fashion show and bring 2 of her friends, there's no guarantee that it will be Grace and Mittsy. Considering how friendly Mae is, there is a possibility of her inviting a different friend.
Another meeting went lengthy again. This time Rin decided to separate the maids into 3 teams; The first one will secure the participation of the target models. The second team will be Aoi's assistants in making the dresses, they have Hana and Lulu's measurements, meaning they can start with that for now. And the last one will focus on gathering the necessary items while working with half of the budget.
With that said, the teams are now decided. Rin and Lisa are responsible for securing the models. Aoi, Hana, and Lulu will be the second team, the dressmaker and the models. Lastly, Coco, Yuna, and Kita will work on the current budget, planning on what they should get first. It will be time-consuming if they tackle the itinerary one after the other. Splitting the workload as they all take charge of a certain task will surely make things faster. The plan immediately started as the cafe was temporarily closed.
First up, Rin and Lisa made their way to Mae's residence to offer her a visit. Waiting for Mae to show up in the cafe will waste tons of time. Plus intentionally visiting her will show the sincerity of the offer.
Eventually, they reached the humble home of Mae, a simple small house but surely comfortable to live in. Rin knocked at the door, and someone responded and opened it. Looks like it's Mae's pawrents.
"Good afternoon, is Mae home?" Rin politely greeted a quite tall Catman in his 40's, he is Mae's father.
Mae's father is trying to remember if he knew the visitor. "Nyu are… Rin right? Mae's friend! Haha, it's been a long time, come inside, and I'll call Mae." He offered as he immediately went to Mae's room.
As Rin and Lisa entered the residence, shortly, Mae showed up.
"Hellooooo! I'm glad that nyu visited me! Let's go to my room!" Mae invites Rin and Lisa as her father prepares them some snacks.
After they settled down, Mae's father brought them some orange juices and biscuits.
"Sorry, my room is quite messy. I did not expect to have a visitor today~" Mae said as she chuckled.
"No worries," Lisa replied.
"It was us who should apologize for the sudden visit," Rin added.
"It's all good! Anyway, what's up? Any news or something?" Mae asked.
"Hai, we do have some news," Lisa answered.
"Hontooo? What is it?" Mae excitedly replied.
"Remember our plan for the grand reopening?" Rin responded.
"Hai, did Duke already agree to it?" Mae said.
"Not yet, he will only approve it once we have a complete list of the models," Rin answered.
"If I'm not mistaken, Hana and Lulu are already part of it, right?" Mae clarified.
"Hai," Lisa responded.
"Oh! I finally got it, nyu want my help in finding more models?" Mae wildly guessed.
"We want nyu and your friends to be our models." Rin requested. Since Mae already introduced Grace and Mittsy to them, it's better if Rin will straightforwardly request what they want instead of asking Mae to join with the friends of her choice.
"I knew… wait what?" Mae was about to react like she knew what the maids wanted, but was interrupted when she heard differently from what she was expecting to hear. Helping the maids is not a problem for Mae, though she usually helps them to find someone, not be part of it.
"Nee-san said we want nyu and your friends to be our models. Specifically, the Kemis that nyu introduced to us last time." Lisa reiterated but with added details.
"I understand why nyu want Grace and Mittsy to be your models. Grace is indeed elegant and Mittsy is charismatic. It's alright for me to ask them without me joining the fashion show. I am not as beautiful as them hehe…" Mae replied. She is indeed helpful to others but her confidence in herself is very low.
Lisa and Rin were quite shocked, it is the first time that they heard how Mae feels. Though it is understandable since Mae is used to being a background character. Believing that she is more of a catalyst to let the other Kemis shine.
"Are nyu sure about that?" Lisa questioned.
"Hai, nyu don't have to invite me as well. But I appreciate the courtesy! I understand the situation…" Mae answered.
"Then why does your voice sound different?" Lisa asked.
"What do nyu mean?" Mae replied.
"Nyu sound hesitant. Perhaps nyu are just afraid?" Lisa added.
"Lisa, don't push her that much," Rin said to Lisa.
"But Nee-san, her answer sounds like it's not what she truly wanted," Lisa argued.
"It's alright. I never experienced a vital role, that's why I instinctively declined. Knowing that it is a big event, I am afraid that I may not be good enough for that." Mae confessed.
"Let's put it this way, We will only accept Grace and Mittsy as our models if nyu will join as well," Lisa stated.
"I'm sorry, Lisa is just straightforward. She may sound a little bit inconsiderate but she truly cares for others." Rin apologized. She is afraid that Mae might misinterpret how Lisa is. Creating a misunderstanding right now will lead to bigger problems later on.
"A… are nyu sure about that? The fashion show might fail if I'm one of the models…" Mae said while stuttering a little bit.
"The fashion show will not continue if nyu are not going to be part of it," Lisa answered. Both Rin and Mae were stunned by Lisa's statement.
40.
The condition sounds like they are putting all of their eggs in one basket. From Mae's point of view, Lisa is pressuring her to make her finally accept a vital role. In Rin's perspective, this is actually their current state with Duke Nasmuir, but Lisa's methods are too drastic. Lastly, Lisa embraced both of those views. She thinks that Mae needs more pressure while their situation in the cafe is exactly what she said. The approach is definitely straightforward yet a hidden reason is still there. Demonstrating how Lisa is. The maids must stand firm with their approach, there's no redo after this moment.
Mae does not know what to answer right now. Having her cornered made her somewhat speechless.
"We won't force nyu to decide right now. We will be waiting for your answer in the cafe. But nyu must not forget that your answer will define the cafe's progress. Thank nyu for having us." Lisa said as she bowed and left.
"Oy Matte!" Rin said to Lisa. "Sorry for the intrusion and thanks for welcoming us," Rin said to Mae as she bowed and immediately followed Lisa.
Even though Mae wanted to escort the maids outside, she could not even stand up right now. Rin and Lisa left the premises.
"Lisa, why did nyu do that?" Rin questioned what Lisa did as they walked towards the cafe.
"Nee-san, do nyu know why Mae keeps on appearing in the cafe?" Lisa responded.
"Because she is our friend?" Rin answered diffidently.
"That's part of it, but that's not truly the answer," Lisa replied.
"What do nyu mean?" Rin asked.
"I've been observing her for a long time. I once asked her back then, if she wanted to be part of the cafe. I cannot forget her answer because she was hesitant, and I don't know the reason behind it. That's why I did not force her that time." Lisa said.
"This is the first time I heard about this…" Rin commented.
"Her response earlier reminded me of our previous conversation when I invited her. She was indeed hesitant, but now, she told us the reason why she cannot simply commit to it. Mae wants to help but her low confidence scares her, preventing Mae from fully committing to a vital role." Lisa explained.
"Now I finally understand why nyu went to that level of pressure…" Rin added.
"We can only wish to the stars that Mae will fight through and not be swallowed by the pressure," Lisa replied as they continued walking back to the cafe.
Both of them eventually reached the cafe and as they entered, Rin and Lisa noticed a heavy aura inside.
"Why is everyone looking gloomy…" Lisa questioned.
"The Runecrystal, it blinked while we were buying some silk and fabrics…" Kita answered.
"And?" Rin asked.
"It means that there's an Evil Mimi nearby…" Yuna replied.
Those words flinched Rin and Lisa. The situation was indeed a dire one as none of their plans are going well as of now.
"We don't know if we should continue working. At this point, there's a huge possibility that the grand reopening will be postponed…" Aoi melancholically said.
"That's true…" Lisa commented.
"Not only that, we failed to locate where the Evil Mimi is. It looks like that thing was hiding, it would have attacked someone by now if it wasn't." Coco added.
"Thank the stars that no one was hurt," Rin replied.
"But it doesn't remove the fact that it can still hurt someone. What we worry about is the Evil Mimi might be hiding for a reason." Yuna said.
"For a reason?" Lisa asked once more.
"When we first encountered an Evil Mimi, it straight out attacked us. Even Pily said that the creature wants to eat us, meaning they will attack Kemis as soon as they see one. Being this passive makes me think that they are not acting normally to their behavior…" Yuna explained.
"But what if they did not have normal behavior, unlike the other Mimis?" Rin asked.
"What do nyu mean?" Coco responded.
"I've been thinking about the information that we have and so far, their actions are indeed inconsistent, just like what Yuna said. It's either they can rationalize and adapt their plans, or someone is controlling them…" Rin hypothesized.
Everyone was indeed puzzled by the scenario, later on, Lisa noticed that someone was missing. "By the way, where's Lulu and Hana?" She asked.
"They are in our room. Lulu is scared of those, that's why Hana is calming her down." Kita answered.
"Nee-san, what should we do?" Aoi worriedly asked.
"Informing the Queen is our top priority. But I don't know if they will believe us…" Rin answered.
"Is the Runecrystal not enough evidence?" Kita questioned.
"There's a chance that it will not end well if we just randomly showed them the Runecrystal. Remember how I reacted when I saw it? There's a huge possibility that they might react worse than I did." Lisa responded.
"I guess we need to know first whom to trust, but we have to do this quickly…" Yuna replied.
"What is your assessment of Duke Nasmuir? Can we get him on our side?" Kita asked.
"I am not sure about that. He is a family friend, but I think he is always rooting for something that will boost Grace's reputation. He might even go against us if he thinks that the situation is bad for Grace…" Aoi answered.
"What about Grace?" Yuna also asked as they were trying to think of whom to trust.
The question made Rin think and thoroughly assess Grace based on when they met her last time. After a couple of seconds, Rin answered. "She thinks rationally. The fact that Grace is willing to pretend as a commoner just to experience their lifestyle, makes me think that we can trust her with this."
"Nyu do have a point, it's the first time that I heard a royalty would do such a thing…" Coco commented.
The maids are truly in a tight spot. They are so close to achieving their dreams, but the current situation has made them feel that it's unreachable.
End of Chapter 7