Princess’s Struggle for Survival
Chapter 305: Maid on Duty Again (Volume 4 Ends)

Chapter 305: Maid on Duty Again (Volume 4 Ends)

After discussing the naming of the new magic, the glow on the carpet in the bedroom gradually dissolved as the Sword of Light was absorbed into Lyra’s body.

Astrid put down her crossed legs, gently smoothed her skirt, and said softly, "Although it requires the Sword of Light as a medium to release, in any case, [Light Cascade] is truly Lyra’s self-created magic."

"I really haven’t heard of any mage who can create their own magic at the early level. Well done, Lyra."

Giving appropriate praise would definitely make Lyra very happy. Astrid knew this well, so she never hesitated with her words.

Hearing Astrid’s words, Lyra’s cheeks turned slightly red, her palms resting on her legs, her ten slender white toes gently scratching the soles of her sandals.

"It’s nothing... not that amazing..."

"Huh??!!"

After speaking, Lyra suddenly trembled, her fingers clutching the bedsheet, the muscles in her calves and back tensing.

Through the smooth and delicate silk nightgown, Lyra felt a warm hand slid down her spine, finally landing on the area above her tailbone, giving it a gentle pat.

"AA-Astrid?"

Besides herself, the only other person sitting on the bed was the silver-haired princess with a cool demeanor. There was no need to think about who the owner of this hand was.

Noticing Lyra’s body was tightly tensed, not daring to relax at all, Astrid chuckled softly and slowly released her hand from the other’s skirt.

"I just wanted to see if Lyra’s little tail wags happily after being praised."

"..."

She wasn’t a real puppy, where would she have a tail!

Lyra’s cheeks flushed faintly, her blue eyes half shy and half angry as she looked at Astrid.

What tail or no tail... Princess Astrid was definitely teasing her...

Successfully teased, a mischievous smile appeared on Astrid’s lips, and she deliberately placed the hand that had just touched Lyra by her leg, her slender, white fingers curling and straightening in the light.

Seeing Astrid’s hand, with its distinct knuckles and delicate skin, Lyra suddenly thought of something, and the sense of shame in her heart grew stronger.

"Have you seen enough now..." Lyra said.

Hearing this, Astrid gasped softly, "Yes, I’ve seen enough."

"It really wags happily."

As soon as she finished speaking, the blush on Lyra’s face deepened, and she turned her head to look at the cotton pillow on her bed.

Seeing this, Astrid blinked her eyes a few times, waiting for the other’s sense of shame to pass, and then said seriously.

"Alright, no more joking."

"Is that all Lyra wanted to say? If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back now."

She had come to see Lyra while Amalia was taking a bath. If she didn’t return before Amalia finished, the little girl would probably be upset.

Hearing this, Lyra hesitated for a moment, then spoke in a low voice.

"Actually, there’s one more thing..."

"Astrid, do you know much about Linda, um, Linda Jostlin?"

Hearing this familiar name, Astrid nodded, her hands resting on her knees, her pink lips parting.

"Quite a bit. Countess Charlotte is quite close to her father, Marquis Joestrin, both being reformist nobles."

"Why bring her up suddenly?"

Astrid knew that Lyra had always been close to Linda. The A-class leader wanted to win her favor, which Astrid was well aware of, but she didn’t dislike the other’s personality and had no intention of preventing Lyra from having more interactions with her.

Firstly, it was an unspoken rule in the noble circle. If she wanted to push Amalia into a higher position or have Charlotte reform the magical devices, she needed the support of these people.

Secondly, although the majority of nobles were jackals and tigers who exploited commoners for wealth, there were also a few who could drive social progress. Cutting off Lyra’s channels to understand the upper class will only make her see more of the negative aspects of the empire’s nobility.

To put it selfishly, Astrid didn’t want this future Holy Knight to overthrow her too soon. As for whether the future Valeria Empire could take a more reasonable path...

This was a different world, with swords and magic, dragons and elves. The social systems of her previous life were hard to apply directly, and even the soil suitable for developing an advanced class hadn’t appeared yet. Given these limitations, Astrid didn’t believe she had the talent to overturn the world.

Print poverty, one cultivates virtue; in prosperity, one benefits the world. In some decisions, she might be briefly swayed by emotional thoughts in her mind, making romantic acts like rescuing the princess from the castle, but most of the time, Astrid was pragmatic.

She wasn’t that selfish, nor was she that great.

"I just... wanted to hear Astrid’s opinion..."

"Is that all?"

Lyra’s words brought Astrid back to her thoughts. The woman raised her hand and gently poked her thigh a few times, the soft, white flesh of her leg indenting and bouncing back with each movement of her fingers.

"Besides that, Miss Linda is also a very diligent person. I heard that her total exam scores were only a dozen points lower than yours."

Astrid spoke softly, her crimson eyes flowing with a gentle light.

"As for in the noble circle, there are rumors that Linda once rejected an arranged marriage by her father and publicly stated that she had no plans to marry before the age of twenty-five."

"And indeed, she doesn’t have any close male friends. The closest would be someone who chats with her at a dance, but there has never been any private dates."

In the imperial capital, where noble gossip was rampant, Linda was like a breath of fresh air. This was one of the reasons Astrid allowed Lyra to interact with her.

Being friends with someone who kept herself clean wouldn’t lead her astray.

After hearing this, Lyra fell into deep thought, her mind constantly recalling the other’s flustered expression this morning.

Could it be... this is a romanticized Cinderella story...

An ordinary maid is noticed by a noble princess, goes through trials and tribulations, and eventually lives happily ever after.

Then... What about her and Princess Astrid...

Suddenly raising her head to look at Astrid beside her, their gazes entangled in mid-air for a moment, Lyra suddenly felt timid, not daring to look into those red eyes.

"Miss Linda... is indeed a person who keeps her image clean..."

But in private, she has probably already... with her maid...

After thinking for a moment, Lyra whispered.

"Thank you, Astrid. I understand."

"I’ll get along well with Linda."

Since the other also lived in the capital, she could learn more about her anytime.

Hearing this, Astrid nodded and responded softly.

"You don’t need to tell me these things. I’m not so bored as to restrict my maid’s freedom in everything."

"As long as you do your work properly, you can take half a day off and still get paid."

Although she said she wanted Lyra to serve her as a maid, Astrid’s real purpose was to prevent this plot trigger from wandering around outside, causing a lot of variables.

Only by keeping the heroine destined under her watchful eye could she truly feel at ease.

"Then I’ll head back now. If I don’t leave soon, I won’t have time for a nap."

What Lyra didn’t know was that Astrid was actually thinking that if she didn’t leave soon, Amalia would be waiting anxiously.

"Mm."

Standing up to see Astrid to the door, Lyra looked at the cool beauty wrapped in a plain white nightgown, her silver hair cascading down, revealing only her round, fragrant shoulders. She moistened her lips and said.

"Astrid..."

Her hand on the doorknob, about to push the door open and leave, Astrid turned back in surprise upon hearing the voice.

"What is it?"

"..."

The air was silent for a few seconds. Lyra smoothed a strand of pink hair, straightened her back, and spoke softly.

"Can I hug you too?"

After speaking, to avoid Astrid overthinking, Lyra added.

"Just a friendly hug."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Lyra felt it was redundant, making it seem like she was trying to cover something up, and couldn’t help but regret it.

Hearing this, Astrid silently looked at Lyra’s lowered head for a moment, then crossed her arms, her tone slightly rising.

"Lyra, why are you acting like a child, asking for hugs?"

After saying this, Astrid expected Lyra to blush and answer sullenly, "It’s okay if you don’t want to hug, Astrid, have a good rest," and then she will take the initiative to offer a hug. But instead, the girl continued to lower her head, her teeth lightly biting her lips, her eyes fixed on the sandals on her feet.

"..."

Finding that Lyra’s actions differed from her expectations, Astrid felt a bit of surprise in her heart, but soon she took a deep breath and stretched out her arms.

"I’ll do it, since Lyra is used to being passive," Astrid said.

Feeling the cool, smooth touch of hair against her cheek and the softness in front of her chest, Lyra’s heart racing, her hands hanging by her sides mechanically resting against her legs.

It was a brief yet long hug, carrying a faint, pleasant floral scent.

Feeling it was about enough, Astrid released her hands and said gently.

"Go take a nap, my heroine."

Or rather, the heroine of the entire world, destined to shine brightly in the future.

Hearing Astrid address her as such, Lyra was stunned, her heart as if struck by an electric current, trembling incessantly.

Princess Astrid’s... heroine...

No matter how smart one was, it was impossible to deduce the essence of the world from Astrid’s brief address. Lyra was no exception.

She could only understand this address as she was very important to Astrid.

Like the protagonist who carries the most scenes or influences the key plot points in a drama, or the male and female leads in a knightly romance novel.

The heroine... could she really be that...

Before Lyra could speak, Astrid pushed open the door and walked into the corridor with her long legs, leaving only a few faint, lingering traces of her scent in the air.

Unbeknownst to Astrid, just beyond the door, Lyra’s heart was like a lake struck by a stone, ripping with millions of waves. Just as Astrid turned her head, she saw a little girl with water vapor rising from her body, her dark hair still dotted with water droplets, standing at the bedroom door, gazing at her with deep eyes.

"Sister..."

Amalia’s voice was soft, showing no dissatisfaction or complaint, but rather timid, like a newborn chick unable to find its mother.

Hearing this, Astrid quickly stepped forward and bent down to hug Amalia.

"Go take a nap."

While listening to Astrid speak, Amalia buried her nose in Astrid’s hair, and as if she had discovered something, her completely harmless pupils narrowed slightly.

"Mm, sister."

In just this short while, there was already a hint of Lyra’s scent.

Could they have... done something...

.........

Valeria Empire, Capital City. Since the Elizabeth Academy of Magic had set the holiday date for today, the streets were bustling from the early morning hours, with carriages from all over converging into a stream, pouring out from the city gates, creating a rare spectacle in the imperial capital.

However, all this had nothing to do with Lyra, who was in the palace. The girl had gotten up early to wash up, groom her hair, and check her mental state in the bathroom mirror, then slowly walked to the wardrobe and opened the closet.

A dark and white ruffled maid dress, a bow-style white headband, white lace-trimmed stockings with garters, and a pair of pure dark round-toe leather shoes.

With a rustling sound of changing clothes, Lyra looked at the pink-haired girl in a maid outfit in the mirror, her palms against her neck, her blue eyes fluttering slightly.

’It’s been a long time since I wore this outfit.’

On her pink fingernails, a sword-shaped light seal shone brightly, the dazzling light spots also brought Lyra back to reality, realizing that she was no longer the clueless maid from a year ago, but gradually moving towards the perfect and graceful head maid, with some self-defense abilities as a knight, Lyra.

Feeling some wrinkles in the soles of her stockings, making it uncomfortable to walk, Lyra, who had taken a few steps, sat on the bed, bent her knees, lifted feet, inserted her fingers into the gap between the leather shoes and her heels, and gently pulled them up.

That should do it.

Touching the tight stocking tubes, Lyra left the bedroom and, like half a year ago, came to Astrid’s room door, swallowing her throat slightly, her hand forming a fist against the door panel.

"Knock knock..."

With a crisp knocking sound, Lyra once again reached out to smooth her skirt, her two white stockinged legs unconsciously pressed together.

"..."

"...Come in."

A cool female voice came from inside the door.

Lyra pushed open the door, the heels of her leather shoes made a creaking sound on the wooden floor. The girl raised her eyes and saw the bright sunlight pouring in from the window, illuminating every corner of the room.

In the morning light, a silver-haired, red-eyed woman lay against the headboard with her eyes closed, her face beautiful and serene, a faint smile on her lips.

Lyra saw that a few strands of Astrid’s hair were scattered on her chest, and a warm feeling inexplicably welled up in her heart. She spoke softly.

"Princess Astrid..."

"It’s time to get up."

####

First half of academy volume is completed, so fourth volume ends here. Fifth volume will be about Lyra’s advancement and political schemes happening due to Hibbort’s illness that is worsening day by day. Thank you for reading it till now and keep reading.