I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince

Chapter 384

‘The Harlequin Queen’s lair is in the grand hall of the abandoned church. If you try to leave, she’ll likely do whatever she can to drag you back inside, so at first, it’s best to just go along with what the monster says.’

“Since no monsters are appearing, should we head back?”

“W-Why don’t we wait just a little longer? It’s barely been 10 minutes since we came in, Lord Ethan.”

“Alright, let’s wait a bit longer then.”

Recalling his conversation with Lilith before entering the abandoned church, Ethan pretended to listen to the monster's words obediently.

Meanwhile, inside Lilith’s body, the Harlequin Queen was watching Ethan’s reactions closely while battling the still-conscious Lilith internally.

‘You wretched bitch, trying to steal my body without a second thought? Do you want to die?’

‘What is this person? Why is her consciousness so strong? Normally, women pass out the moment I possess them...’

The grand hall of the abandoned church was her lair, a place where adventurers regularly came to try and defeat her. Whenever a pair of a man and a woman entered, she would possess the woman’s body and use it to engage with the man. This had been her favorite pastime ever since her death.

‘I’m merely helping continue the relationships of couples who are too shy to admit their feelings. It’s a miracle that I can still perform after death.’

Of course, the Harlequin Queen also enjoyed this activity herself, though only "a little." One of her personal rules was that she would only possess women who were attracted to the men she was engaging with. This was her last remaining bit of conscience, having lived her entire life as a nun.

‘I could tell as soon as they entered that this Lilith woman is attracted to the man called Ethan. And from her outfit, she’s clearly a maid, calling him "Young Master," which means this Ethan must be a noble. A forbidden love between a noble young master and his personal maid... how beautiful and destined! This is the kind of love I’m here to help with.’

When the Harlequin Queen seduced men, she often read the memories of the body she possessed to guide the conversation in the best way possible. She would recall insignificant things women often overlooked and use them to understand the man's interests or even hidden desires, seducing him with that knowledge.

‘Give me back my body! You filthy, wretched hag! Get away from Ethan, you piece of trash!!’

‘Your resistance is quite intense. I didn’t expect this...’

In cases where the original host’s mental strength remained intact, the Harlequin Queen couldn’t access their memories. This left her relying on visible information alone to assess her relationship with the man before her.

‘It’s obvious this Ethan man is attracted to her too. The affection in his gaze is clear for anyone to see.’

With this realization, she thought it might be easy to make Ethan initiate physical contact first. Given the difference in their statuses—him being a young master and her a maid—it seemed likely he would be hesitant but susceptible to seduction. She carefully initiated physical contact with him.

-Grasp.

“…Huh?”

“…Mmh.”

The first step was a sudden hand-hold.

The Harlequin Queen couldn’t be sure of the depth of the relationship between Lilith and Ethan, but she assumed it probably hadn’t progressed much further than hand-holding. After all, the status difference between a noble young master and his personal maid would normally prevent them from engaging in physical relations. Plus, from the way they had looked at each other before she possessed Lilith, it seemed like the innocent feelings of a first love were in the air.

Even though she wasn’t sure about Lilith, the purity in Ethan’s gaze indicated he was likely a virgin who had barely had any physical contact with the opposite sex.

‘Men without experience tend to get flustered even with such small gestures.’

Expecting a flustered reaction, she gave him a coy smile as she held his hand, but Ethan’s response was calmer than she had anticipated. The Harlequin Queen quickly deduced that they had held hands before and shifted her tactics.

-Stumble.

“Ow, ow!”

Pretending to trip and twist her ankle, she let out a small cry.

Reacting to her voice, Ethan quickly caught her before she fell.

“What’s wrong?!”

“S-Sorry... I think I twisted my ankle for a moment...”

“Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself badly?”

“N-No, it’s not too bad. I just slightly sprained it...”

-Thud.

Without hesitation, Ethan sat down on the floor and turned his back to her, offering to carry her.

The Harlequin Queen smiled inwardly at his chivalrous, considerate behavior—so typical of an academy student and noble young master, unlike the rough adventurers she had often encountered.

‘What a pure soul he has. If only I could move freely, I’d love to visit the academy and help even more couples like him.’

Though she longed to lean into his broad back, she knew that if she did, he would likely carry her straight out of the church. As a spirit tied to this place for centuries, she couldn’t leave the abandoned church, so she had no choice but to hold back her tears and decline his offer.

“Why aren’t you getting on?”

“N-No, it would be too much of a burden on you, Lord Ethan...”

“It’s fine. I’m strong enough to carry you.”

“But... there are still many monsters outside the grand hall. It could be dangerous if your arms are occupied carrying me. Why don’t we rest over there for a bit? I’m sure I’ll feel better after a short break, Lord Ethan.”

Pointing to a bench in the grand hall, the Harlequin Queen subtly lured him into resting.

Ethan hesitated for a moment but decided to follow Lilith’s advice to play along with her act a little longer.

“Alright, let’s do that.”

“C-Could you help me over there, Lord Ethan?”

“…Lean on me.”

The Harlequin Queen leaned into him, attempting to increase their physical contact as much as possible. She made sure to use Lilith’s body’s natural assets, brushing her chest against him, and she quickly noticed Ethan’s face reddening.

‘His reaction is promising. I was worried they might be in some sort of improper relationship, like a noble and his personal maid performing... indecent duties, but if that were the case, he wouldn’t blush over something as simple as this.’

Misinterpreting the relationship between Lilith and Ethan, the Harlequin Queen had no way of realizing her error. The only way to correct it would be by reading Lilith’s memories, but Lilith’s mental resistance was still too strong, fiercely fighting against her.

‘Give me back my body, you bitch!! Get away from Ethan, you slut!!!’

‘For someone with such a gentle appearance, your language is truly vile.’

The Harlequin Queen assumed that Lilith was simply flustered, worried that she might ruin their pure relationship. In her mind, Lilith would surely be grateful once she and Ethan confessed their feelings to each other.

Even with such misunderstandings, the Harlequin Queen didn’t stop, increasing her efforts to seduce Ethan.

“Here, sit down.”

“Thank you, Lord Ethan.”

“How’s your ankle? Do you think it will get better if you rest a bit?”

“…I’m not sure. It still hurts a little. Could you take a look at it, Lord Ethan?”

“…Alright.”

The Harlequin Queen was slightly surprised by Ethan’s calm reaction. She had expected him to be a little more embarrassed, but it seemed his concern for Lilith outweighed his discomfort, making him appear even more pure-hearted in her eyes.

‘She’s wearing stockings with a garter belt… I could use this to seduce him in a different way.’

With that thought in mind, she began to lift her skirt slightly, catching Ethan’s gaze. Then, feigning embarrassment, she quickly lowered her skirt again, playing up her bashfulness.

“Wh-Why are you staring at me like that, Lord Ethan? I feel a little shy when you look at me so intently…”

“…Sorry, I’ll look away.”

Having fallen for the Harlequin Queen’s act, Ethan quickly turned his gaze away.

She found it slightly strange that he had been staring so intently as she tried to remove her stockings, but the fact that he had averted his gaze belatedly suggested that he had simply been too flustered to control himself.

Perhaps this was the first time he had seen a girl undress in front of him.

‘With this kind of pure reaction, he’s probably never had sex. He might not have even seen a woman’s chest before.’

And yet, he had such a beautiful, voluptuous maid by his side.

How pure and respectful must he be to have never crossed the line with her?

‘I have no choice. For the sake of this young master who loves her so much, I’ll have to teach him what it means to be with a woman.’

The Harlequin Queen didn’t have a particular preference for experienced men or women, but if she had to choose, she much preferred the innocence of a virgin. Watching Ethan’s pure reactions only excited her further.

…Though Ethan had already experienced everything there was to experience with Lilith, including intimate acts far more lewd than anything the Harlequin Queen could imagine, she remained blissfully unaware of that fact.