Not the Villainess, but the Maid

Chapter 1: Serve Tea to Lady Ruby!

It was the worst.

Not as the villainess, but as a maid.

Among all possible characters to possess, this was the worst of the worst.

Not the protagonist, not the heroine, but a maid candidate for the villainess.

After possessing this girl’s body, it seemed like she was a child, as my perspective became significantly lower.

Based on information gathered from people around me, I concluded that I was a 13-year-old girl named Amber.

The game I possessed was a yuri visual novel game called [Chronicles of Magical Lily].

It was a masterpiece that combined romance with RPG elements, but due to poor sales, no sequels were ever released.

The reason for its failure was the stark contrast between the bright, hopeful academy sections and the bleak, despair-inducing battle sections.

Dark, shapeless monsters that could only be defeated with magic periodically attacked the city.

In this game, magic could only be used by women.

Thus, regardless of status, all girls, commoners, and nobles alike, entered the academy to learn magic.

For nobles, it was to uphold family honor, and for commoners, it was to fulfill a civic duty.

However, as a commoner orphan and a maid candidate, my immediate concern was the problem right in front of me.

“I must somehow be chosen as Ruby’s exclusive maid…!”

My current position was that of a mere maid candidate for Ruby, which meant I could be eliminated and dismissed at any moment.

For an orphaned commoner like me, leaving the mansion would essentially mean game over—death.

“Next, Candidate Amber. Please step forward.”

The one calling my name was Merilda, the head maid who managed all the servants of the Sarka household.

She was a stern middle-aged woman with graying hair that gave her a fearsome presence.

“Lady Ruby’s room is upstairs. If you become her exclusive maid, you’ll climb these long stairs thousands of times in the future. She’s sensitive to noise, so make sure to step lightly without making loud footfalls.”

“Yes…!”

I was terribly clumsy.

Even before possessing this body, I was the kind of person who constantly dropped things or tripped.

It took me nine tries to barely pass my driver’s license test, three failures being due to not wearing a seatbelt.

Unfortunately, possessing a different body didn’t seem to fix my clumsiness.

Not paying attention to my skirt while walking up the stairs, I tripped spectacularly.

“Ah…!”

Before I could get up, Merilda’s thunderous scolding pierced my ears.

“Amber! You still can’t climb a single flight of stairs properly?”

“Ugh…”

It wasn’t just about adjusting to a shorter height; the cumbersome maid uniform was also extremely uncomfortable.

“How do you expect to become Lady Ruby’s exclusive maid when you can’t even climb stairs properly?”

At her words, the other candidates snickered.

But Merilda silenced them with a sharp glare.

“I don’t believe I was speaking for your amusement. Focus on your own practice.”

“…Yes.”

Merilda was strict with everyone, showing no leniency, even to candidates who performed well.

***

“Possessing someone doesn’t change anything…”

Although my body had become that of a teenage girl, my essence remained the same.

I still froze up when nervous, and my mind still went blank.

Perhaps this girl had a similar nature to mine.

Otherwise, her constant small flaws wouldn’t make sense.

Thinking this way, I felt it was commendable that she even made it to the position of a maid candidate.

“If I falter here, it’s over. Let’s try again.”

I had to steel myself.

This was not a place where clumsy mistakes would be overlooked.

While other candidates had long gone to dinner, I couldn’t leave the stairs.

I climbed up and down repeatedly until I could do it naturally.

The cursed stairs were as grand as one would expect from a noble mansion, so high that their end wasn’t visible from the bottom.

But if I wanted to become Ruby’s maid, I’d have to traverse these stairs dozens of times daily, carrying plates or teacups.

By the time I finished practicing that day and returned, it was long past dinnertime.

***

The next morning, under Merilda’s orders, the candidates bustled around.

Because I had skipped dinner the night before, the dizziness I felt was even worse.

“A maid’s lifeline is speed! Work faster!”

After tidying the bedding and preparing myself according to the manual, the candidates lined up in the hallway in order of who finished first.

Naturally, I was the slowest and the last to arrive.

‘Was tying hair always this hard…?’

According to the rules, the maids of the Sarka household had to tie their hair neatly.

Having tied my hair for the first time in my life, I only managed after several failed attempts.

Merilda glanced over us and nodded.

“It seems everyone is here. Now, pair up in teams of two from the front row.”

“Teams of two?”

The candidates swiftly formed pairs as Merilda instructed.

Being at the back, I naturally paired up with the candidate in front of me.

She was the second-last candidate to leave the dormitory last night, just ahead of me.

“Hello…?”

When I awkwardly greeted her, she replied coldly.

“Don’t talk to me. I don’t plan on getting close to you.”

“…”

‘Wow, that’s harsh…’

I ended up standing there awkwardly without even learning her name.

Merilda handed us plates and teacups, explaining calmly.

“One of you will brew tea for Lady Ruby, and the other will serve it. Depending on the taste of the tea and your manner of serving, Lady Ruby’s impression of you will change significantly.”

I wanted to be the one brewing the tea, but my partner held onto the teacup tightly, refusing to let go.

It seemed I was assigned the role of serving.

“Candidates serving tea must remember this:

Do not upset Lady Ruby under any circumstances. Absolutely not.”

While waiting for my turn, I observed other teams.

Brewing tea seemed fine for everyone, but the problems always arose during serving.

Candidates who brought the tea often left in tears.

“Sniff…”

Crying was the least of it.

Many candidates didn’t even get to see Ruby’s face before being rejected outright.

‘She really must be as sensitive as they say…’

According to Merilda, Ruby would reject tea based solely on its aroma if it didn’t meet her standards.

Ruby Sarka.

From what I overheard last night, Lady Ruby was the same age as me, 13.

In the main game, she was 17, so this was about four years before the events of the game.

Keywords associated with her were all negative.

A contemptuous scowl, hideous scars on her face, an unbearably sensitive and irritable nature, unmatched possessiveness, and even an aversion to animals.

In the game, she was the quintessential villainess.

Her temperament led to her being exposed by the protagonist at the end, punished for her misdeeds.

In most endings, she either died or self-destructed.

Even in the sole ending where she survived, her family’s assets were confiscated, and she was exiled from the country.

It was clear the developers had gone out of their way to create an irredeemable villain.

As my turn approached, my partner handed me the tea she brewed.

When I sniffed it, a sweet aroma tickled my nose.

Even as someone ignorant about tea, it seemed like a good cup.

“You did well. What did you add?”

When I showed interest in what she was hiding behind her back, she flinched and hid it further.

“None of your business…!”

“…”

She could’ve at least shared the recipe.

Thinking she was overly sensitive, I headed to the long staircase.

Balancing the teacup on a plate, I looked up at the stairs.

‘Was it always this high…?’

Perhaps due to nerves, the stairs seemed even taller than before.

I felt everyone’s uneasy gazes on me.

‘…I can do it. I practiced so hard yesterday.’

I had gone up and down the dark stairs countless times, skipping meals.

Muttering self-assurances, I took my first step.

Now that my hands were occupied, a single misstep would’ve shattered the teacup.

Thankfully, my training paid off.

Though I stumbled on my skirt a few times, I quickly regained my balance and reached the upper floor safely.

‘I did it…!’

The tea had grown lukewarm from my slow ascent, but not spilling it was a huge improvement.

Now, I just had to knock on Ruby’s door and enter her room.

‘…Still, I’m nervous. Maybe because she’s that villainess…’

I recalled Ruby’s disdainful expression from the game.

Even through a monitor, that look had sent chills down my spine, and the memory remained vivid.

“I’ve brought tea, Lady Ruby.”

Ruby didn’t respond.

I could see why some candidates hesitated to enter.

She ignored greetings, leading candidates to think they were rejected.

Perhaps she truly was rejecting us.

But I couldn’t back down.

To survive, I had to become Ruby’s exclusive maid.

“…Excuse me, Lady Ruby.”

Finally, I pushed the slightly open door and entered.

Seated in the center of the room, Ruby turned to look at me.

Boldly stepping in, I froze upon seeing her.

‘Is that… Ruby?’

Her appearance was significantly different from the image I had in mind.

Instead of glaring with contemptuous eyes, she gazed at me with an unexpectedly calm expression.

The hideous scar I remembered was absent, and her black hair and red eyes combined to make her strikingly beautiful.

‘…Don’t be fooled by her looks. She’s still the villainess.’

In the academy, she had wielded her power to commit violence, incite murder, blackmail, and extort money without hesitation.

Even if she now wore an innocent expression due to her youth, it was only a matter of time before her true colors surfaced.

Maintaining my guard, I cautiously approached her with the tea.

“I’ve brought tea, so please try some…”

It was then that I stepped wrong.

“…!”

I had let my guard down.

Perhaps it was because I relaxed after entering the room, but I tripped right in front of Ruby.

-Splash.-

And as a result, I ended up spilling the tea all over Ruby.

Drip. Drip.

From where I had fallen, my eyes slowly traveled upward to meet Ruby’s drenched figure, her hair and clothes soaked with tea.

“…”

Despite what had just happened, Ruby didn’t say a word.

She merely stared down at me in silence.

At that moment, I knew.

-I’m going to die now.-