Fayette had been discovered. And there was a knife hidden in her hand.

Just a butterknife—but was it sharp? That was the question. And… should she use it?

Not yet—not right here.

Forcing her head down, Fayette shuffled to the side. “You’re mistaken sir,” she mumbled under her breath, then began to step away. Her mind was racing. What to do? She wasn’t supposed to be the one at risk of discovery.

“No, wait a minute there you—” The [Mage] said, then grabbed onto Fayette’s dress. “You’re not going anywhe—”

But Fayette slapped his hand away, and began striding forward, not looking his way. “You are mistaken,” was all she said again, but her face was tense. The knife was gone from her hand.

Could she convince him that he was mistaken? No. And if Cadeau could recognize her, he would probably recognize Marie too. The hair did shift her look quite a bit, but everything else—no. It was too risky.

She would have to get rid of him. It was a necessity she recognized—but still. Fayette wanted to know, she wanted to be sure. Was her knife sharp? Did he deserve to die, or was he just a necessary casualty?

Because, after all, hadn’t he been following orders back then too? Fayette needed to know. Does that justify it all?

He was following her, brisk steps along the stone floor echoed, and Fayette didn’t have to look back to feel his approach. She was watching with [Maidsense], moving just enough for him to catch up. But what did he feel like?

He wasn’t quite a master, but he wasn’t a servant either. More like… a grey area in between. Fayette found that most people fit into that area—the black-and-white distinctions were the rare ones.

“I said stop!”

Fayette looked back, met his eyes for just a moment—

Then she opened a door and stepped through to an empty classroom. A small room, with a chair, board and desk for the lecture holder and a single wooden bench for their students. Fayette walked to the far wall, toward the windows, the broom in her hands swishing busily on the floor.

As if she were just a normal [Maid], hurrying to her cleaning work. It was almost convincing, and the Cadeau even stopped at the door for a second, suddenly just a hint unsure about what he was doing.

But he only stopped for a second. Face resolving back to self-importance and annoyance, he stepped through—

And closed the door behind him.

Fayette was amazed and let out a tense breath—was it really this easy? He followed me to an empty room, just like that? I could just…

She could call the knife to her hand right now or do about twenty-three other things. But not yet. She had the opportunity now, so she wanted to be sure.

Cadeau was staring. “You’re that [Maid] who was working as a hunter in Bienvenizze!”

Slowly, like an artist unveiling their masterpiece, Fayette turned around and looked him right in the face. She let her face relax and nodded once.

“Yes.”

A simple answer, an honest answer.

He was sent off-balance for a moment, surprised at Fayette so openly admitting to it. His eyes squinted in suspicion. “What are you—?”

“Wait! Please!” Fayette suddenly shouted, waving her hands in a panic. “Please don’t tell anyone!”

He blinked. “What?”

Fayette sighed dramatically, then sat down on the bench behind her, trying her best at an apologetic smile. Not a [Disarming Smile]—she was trying to get rid of that skill.

“Sorry, it’s just…” Fayette looked up at him, pleading in her eyes. “I’ve quit that old job—it was foolish. I’m just trying to be a normal [Maid], and I don’t want anyone here finding out about that dark history. It’s embarrassing for a girl, you know?”

It was probably the least honest thing that Fayette had ever said in her life. Her tone was so relaxed and normal, that on Fayette’s lips, it was downright unsettling. Normally, there would be no reason for it to be even halfway convincing, but it wasn’t just a lie—it was [Lying].

Fayette had picked up a new skill for her general slots to help with the mission.

And, with the skill working as a bit of grease, Cadeau just—stared, unsure how to react. Fayette wasn’t quite attempting puppy-dog eyes, as her last attempt at that had made Hailey cry for three hours, so she was only trying for an honest-straightforward look. C’mon… stop being on guard…

But the [Mage] was still hesitating. Like a frog staring at a bug, trying to guess whether it contained poison.

Fayette cursed internally, her smile almost twitching right off her face. Do I really have to say those cliché magic words? Fine… I’ll do it.

She bowed her head. “Please, I’ll do anything!”

Honestly, it was too easy. Cadeau was just that sort of person, hearing those four words from a young servant’s mouth, an admission of being under his power, it set an unsettling smile right to his face.

And Fayette almost found her answer right then and there. Her fingers twitched to grab for the knife, but not… yet. Just a bit more.

“Anything, you say?”

Fayette rolled her eyes, unseen, but kept her tone level. “Yes sir, please, you can’t tell anyone!”

She peeked up and saw that Cadeau was smiling all satisfied-like and stroking his beard. “I’m sure we can arrange something,” he was saying, thinking to himself.

Fayette sighed with genuine relief, then straightened herself, and stood up from the bench. “Thank you, sir.”

He flinched back reflexively, as Fayette hadn’t quite managed to keep all the menace out of her voice, but when he looked back, Fayette was smiling almost amiably.

“You’re a lot more… obedient than you were then… and is it really—”

Oh no, can’t let him think this thing through, umm, how should I… quick—

He wasn’t that on-guard anymore, but Fayette wasn’t quite sure how to get her answer. Cadeau had acted an instrumental role to do horrible things during the plague, especially regarding Olivia, but to her understanding, he had been following orders the whole time.

It wasn’t an excuse, but it wasn’t nothing either. It felt important. How sharp would her knife be? Or was the question how sharp should it be? She didn’t really understand the skill fully yet, it was a harder one to practice, but…

“Sorry, but back in the city, with the plague—!” Fayette blurted out.

He flinched, then nodded, “Yes, what is it?”

Fayette turned to look out the window and began shifting the curtains as if to clean them, while carefully leaving them shut behind. “You were working under the [Grand Magus] then, right? The principal here?”

A faint hint of annoyance came to his eyes at the remark about working under someone, but Cadeau didn’t deny it. “Yes, I am one of his prime advisors, and took a leave from here to help.”

Fayette shut another curtain, dimming the room further while keeping a side-eye on him. He’s being awfully helpful, answering me like this… maybe I can…

“Nobody else came from here?”

“What? No—it was a military matter.”

So you’re the only risk factor then, aren’t you? With you gone…

Fayette shut another curtain. There was only one left. Her hand lingered, a nibbling anticipation building at her fingertips. She found her voice growing soft. “Back then—”

He was beginning to turn around, “I’ve got to go attend to matters, I’ll be in touch...”

Fayette turned. “Wait, just one moment!”

He turned back, hand on the doorhandle. “What?”

[Eavesdrop] told her the hallway outside was empty, so Fayette closed the last of the curtains, then stepped forward. She had thought it over, and come to a simple conclusion. A way to figure out what was right. She was watching the [Mage’s] face carefully, and something in her eyes made the man pause.

“It was good work back then, with the plague.” Fayette lied.

Then she saw it, in the man’s eyes.

A small glow of pride.

It was her answer, she didn’t even need to hear him speak. Yes, he had been following an order, but it had been enthusiastic, hadn't it? He was proud of having done it all. Was that the key factor?

Fayette felt a cool certainty slip into place, and then she was walking forward. She had left the broom leaning against the bench, and her right hand was hidden behind her back. There was a knife in it.

Cadeau was still too, more confused than anything else, captured by Fayette’s icy eyes. He wasn’t alarmed or anything of the sort, after all, he was a man alone in a room with a [Maid]. Why would there be danger?

But why was the look in the [Maid’s] eyes so unsettling?

Just at the last moment, when Fayette was a few paces away, he began to take the hint and shifted to the side. “You—”

But Fayette suddenly dashed forward, right hand forward, bringing something shiny up and up—

The [Blade of Servant’s Judgement] was sharp. The knife hit his neck, and cut through skin like butter. It was a moment frozen in time. It bit into his airway, he was stumbling back—

And then the knife passed out, sending a bright spray of blood all over the wall’s tapestries.

Cadeau, leaning against the wall, had a hole in his neck, and was choking on blood. His eyes were wide with surprise and disbelief. He couldn’t scream, no air would pass.

And Fayette stepped in, bringing her knife back in for a second cut—

But then magic was surging on the [Mage's] skin, illuminating a bright pattern of red tattoos. Fayette tasted fire on the air. It was gathering at his hand, into a bright spot—

Fayette brought her left hand over it. She felt the heat, but not a burning one.

She had activated a magic of her own.

A corked bottle was on the floor below her, empty, and over Fayette’s left hand…

There was a coating of water, like a shimmering glover, it covered her left hand, and was smothering the fire magic before it could begin.

Fayette had also been practicing. She met the man’s eyes, and finally saw fear there. She gripped his hand into an iron grip, interlocking fingers, and his fire magic collapsed.

“Shhh, die quietly as you should,” she whispered.

And she stabbed down with her right, holding him in place—deep into his neck, until she felt the spine snap like a twig.

It wasn't a fight. There was no contest, no chance to it.

This was murder.

The light faded from the man’s eyes. And Fayette—

Stabbed him six more times just to be thorough.

Stab stab stab.

Before his body could fall to the ground properly.

Heart, eye, liver, neck again, elbow, top of the head—

She snapped out of it when her next cut hit only the air. Fayette stared at the body below her, kneeling as if in prayer, and pooling blood onto the floor.

[Good work cleaning out the deserving!]

[Progress to next level: 60%!]

Oh, nice. That was a decent bit.

Fayette blinked.

Then she took one step back, and her boot left a bloody footprint on the floor. Fayette looked at her hands, quickly dismissed her knife when she noticed it dripping blood on them, wiped it off with her magic-water-glove and dismissed that too... and then surveyed her handiwork.

If she was an [Abstract Painter], she might have done a really good job. Fayette looked at the stained wall, with four different bloodsprays painted onto it. The pool of blood on the floor was growing. The dead body on the floor tilted to the side, then fell down on its face.

She activated [Eavesdrop] and heard footsteps approaching from the hallway outside. She called the knife back in her hand and waited—

And the footsteps passed by the door, disappearing into the distance.

Fayette waited a moment, let out the breath she had been holding, looked down at the ground, then fumbled for her apron. Her hand hit the central pocket's bottom, and she remembered it was a normal one. She blinked again.

Right, I left my [Apron of Holding] back with the others because we were trying to be lowkey on our first day here…

She looked at the bloody mess below her and sighed. Killing one of the teachers on the first day of the job wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but it was probably somewhere up there, in at least the…

Top fifties maybe? At least there’s no fire…

She didn’t add ‘yet’ in her mind. Trying to jinx it would be too far, even for her.

Fayette sighed again, brought a hand to her forming headache, flinched back at the wet sensation, then finally let a bit of frustration through and stomped on the ground. A splash of blood hit her skirt.

Right—this was why I started out mainly using my broom instead of my knife…

She carefully opened the door, peeked outside, picked up something up from beside the door, and then set the "cleaning in progress"-sign on the door.