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Chapter 32: Nia

Looking without prejudice, Nia realized that the black-haired young boy really wasn’t bad-looking.

With a handsome appearance, gentle personality, and a title as a marquis’s son, it’s surprising that Roy wasn’t popular with the girls.

Nia couldn’t help but chuckle, a clear hint of mischief in her voice: “With a master like you taking care of her, Alice must be so lucky~”

“You better treat your little girlfriend well.”

Roy, however, was taken aback, scratching his head: “What are you talking about?”

“We’re not like that,” the boy said, slightly exasperated.

Now it was Nia’s turn to be surprised.

Her gaze flickered back and forth between inside and outside the room, filled with disbelief: “Not? But I thought your relationship looked like…”

“What? You’ve never seen a pure master-servant relationship?”

“Oh, I see.”

Nia understood now and felt a strange sense of joy.

Not being in that kind of relationship meant this guy was still single.

A hint of a smile crept up the corners of Nia’s mouth, her dimples like petals dancing in a gentle spring breeze, charming and enchanting.

The boy was momentarily stunned by her captivating smile.

Setting aside hostility and clearing up misunderstandings, the current Nia was exactly who he was familiar with—the lively elven girl.

“Thanks for the clothes! I’ll return them later!”

Nia waved her hand cheerfully, then with her long legs, turned and left.

Once that green figure completely disappeared into the tranquil night, Roy turned back inside.

Nia skillfully returned from her own area to the dormitory in the commoner district. Using her climbing skills, she quickly scaled the building.

After entering her room, she cautiously opened the window and tiptoed in, moving so quietly that she was afraid of waking her two roommates.

Not wanting to disturb their rest was one thing; what was more important was that she was wearing a boy’s uniform, and if they found out, gossip would be unavoidable.

Saying every day that she’s not interested in romance, but if they caught her, it would be quite embarrassing, right?

Though she wasn’t actually in a relationship, of course.

She just hoped she could take the time to return the uniform to Roy tomorrow when they weren’t paying attention.

Just thinking about it made Nia feel immensely troubled.

Fortunately, she wouldn’t have to worry for long.

The dormitory had a bunk-bed design with three beds lined up.

Nia had just climbed onto her bed when her two best friends suddenly opened their eyes and pounced on her. Even though she was quick to react, she was caught off guard.

The girls from the southern and northern countries initially just wanted to scare her for fun, but when they saw the clothes she was wearing, their interest skyrocketed.

“Yo yo yo, isn’t this Nia? You say you’re not dating, and look at what you’re wearing?!” Jenny exclaimed, her eyes glued to the boy’s uniform.

Amy had a knowing look, as if she could see through everything: “So that’s why you’re so late returning!”

“No, I’m not! I didn’t! It’s not what you think!” Nia exclaimed in panic.

“Don’t be shy! Just tell us which handsome guy it is!”

“Yeah, since you’ve reached the stage of exchanging clothes, you should share a bit with us!”

Nia felt so embarrassed and furious that she almost fainted.

Forget about the handsome guy—she hadn’t even held hands with a boy! What did “reaching the stage of changing clothes” even mean?!

Nia retaliated, fighting back against her two friends, who begged for mercy as her little hands tickled them, regaining control so she could explain everything.

“In conclusion, I just went to save Alice, and this outfit was borrowed from Roy! Got it?”

Seeing them nod blankly, Nia finally sighed in relief, clapping her hands: “Alright, let’s drop this topic and go to sleep!”

Nia took off her jacket and slipped under the covers in her white shirt.

With such strong resistance, Jenny and Amy naturally wouldn’t press further.

However, their hearts were far from the calm they pretended to show.

For someone as warm-hearted as Nia, it wasn’t surprising that she would go out of her way to help Alice.

But everything following that was just outlandish—what about the “slime mines,” covered in goo, leading to a teacher’s search? No one wrote stories like that!

Especially with someone like Nia, who babbled about ridiculous things every day—saying she’d marry a beautiful girl one day and become a legendary adventurer the next. Once she even seriously claimed she had a mysterious identity that surpassed their imaginations—wasn’t that all just pure nonsense? Not a single truthful word in ages!

In their eyes, this explanation could only be half-believed at best!

Perhaps she had indeed gone to save Alice initially, but after that, who knows how complicated things got.

Thinking of the “scoundrel” reputation, the two girls couldn’t help but worry for their friend.

Meanwhile, Nia, lying on her side in a white shirt, allowed her thoughts to wander in the quiet night.

Looking back on the rumors and wrong assumptions, Nia found them humorous.

What “bad boy Roy”? It was all just gossip.

If anything, he was the opposite—not only had he never been rude to her, but he even saved her life and unexpectedly took care of her.

And on top of that, he was single, not dating anyone at all.

Sensing a faint, unfamiliar fragrance from him, Nia’s face felt warm, and she couldn’t help but smile, her chubby white legs rubbing together.

She wrapped her shirt a little tighter around herself.

Roy Ainbrad was actually a pretty good guy.

Meanwhile, after finishing the cleaning with Alice, Roy’s heart stirred.

“Congratulations on completing the reverse fate node!”

“Current reverse fate node: Nightingale.”

“Nightingale reverse fate progress: 10%.”

“Nia Molly: Affection +16, current affection 1 (Recognition).”

“Reward: Reverse fate point +1.”

The boy who received his task reward couldn’t help but beam with joy.

Even though there were quite a few unexpected turns, the outcome was still positive.

Alice, who was nearby gathering the cleaning tools, noticed that Roy was in a good mood and couldn’t help but feel curious.

“Master, are you very happy?”

“Pretty much. After all, I finally cleared up that misunderstanding.”

Alice’s hand slightly paused while wringing out the towel, her voice as calm as usual: “What do you think of Nia?”

“She’s really nice—kind and lively, optimistic and adorable. You should get along well with her. Besides, Nia is Alice’s friend, so I want to build a good relationship too.”

“Mm. Alice will.”

Seeing Roy’s positive attitude and lack of resentment towards Nia, Alice finally relaxed.

She didn’t dislike Nia, but if Roy had hated her, she wouldn’t hesitate to cut off relations. Luckily, it hadn’t gone that far.

“It’s getting late, Master. Please take a bath quickly.”

“……Okay.” Roy hadn’t expected Alice to still be concerned about the order of bathing.

As she said, it was already quite late, and delaying further would affect the early start tomorrow. Unable to resist Alice’s insistence, Roy reluctantly took his bath first.

However, for some reason, there was a faint jasmine fragrance lingering in the bathroom, mingling with the steaming mist that wouldn’t dissipate.

 

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