I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince

Chapter 370

After completing three days of humanities research classes, we boarded the carriages we had arrived in and headed back to the academy.

This task had been at least two to three times harder than the game’s original difficulty.

I couldn’t help but wonder how the eight members of the hero party would have managed without Ethan and me. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t picture them defeating Hankerton and Mel on their own.

‘From what I heard later, the village chief Rombel’s side was at least spared a boss battle.’

The twin bandit bosses Ockam and King of Bandits Huma had already died during the bandit raid event, so it made sense that they didn’t reappear as bosses. Unless Rombel suddenly turned out to be a necromancer, there was no way someone who had died could pop back up as a boss.

Still, the narrative didn’t change much: Rombel was ultimately betrayed and killed by the remaining bandits. In the end, none of the three collaborators in Bridget Village met a pleasant end.

‘I’m so exhausted.’

But at least no one died this time. That was a relief.

As for the grade reports and bandit bounties, we found them outside the inn door when we woke up. The professor hadn’t shown his face once, even at the very end.

「Class Results – Everyone: A+」

「Reason for Grade: Difficulty adjustment error」

「Upon review, I, the professor, have determined that this class suffered from an error in difficulty adjustment, making it impossible for the current academy students to complete. As such, all students who completed the primary task and survived will receive this grade. Class dismissed.」

「Bandit Bounty」

「King of Bandits Huma – 100 gold coins」@@@@

「Ockam Twins – 50 gold coins」

「Human Hunter Berry (alias Hankerton) – 80 gold coins」

「Black Vixen Ranathel (alias Mel) – 50 gold coins」

「Other bandit bounties – 20 gold coins」

「The bounty will be distributed among the party members based on individual contributions. The professor will not intervene in the distribution.」

...I was momentarily furious that the professor didn’t even show his face after nearly getting us all killed, but the heavy pouch of 300 gold coins in my hands was enough to calm my anger.

Money always has a way of making things right. Plus, normally, we’d have had to go through the hassle of identifying which bandits had bounties, bringing their heads to the guild, and collecting the rewards. The professor had saved us that trouble.

I almost felt like bowing to the professor in gratitude. Though, with my injured calf, I couldn’t physically manage it even if I tried.

It seemed nearly dying had given him a lot to think about.

‘It almost feels like Ethan and I are part of the hero’s party now.’

Honestly, based on our actions in the past few days, there wasn’t much difference between us and the actual members of the hero party.

The men and women had separated into different tents, shared information and held strategy meetings, cooperated in battle, and received healing together from Celestia afterward.

In the original game, the hero’s party was limited to eight members for balance reasons, but now that we were in the real world, there was no such restriction.

‘Not to mention, in a world where multiple bosses appear at once, how are eight people supposed to handle it?’

At least there weren’t any more multi-boss scenarios after the fourth act, but the problem was this third act, with its multiple story branches and boss fights every semester.

We had barely survived this time, with two bosses at once. Next time, we’d have to be even more prepared.

‘Maybe I should shadow Gepmajo’s movements more closely, even if it’s a bit reckless.’

But if I made it too obvious that I was following the hero’s courses, Ethan might get suspicious.

Still, leaving the hero party to face similar dangers without any help wasn’t an option either.

‘Well, there’s still time before the next semester. I’ll figure it out then.’

With that thought, I began unpacking supplies from the carriage to prepare for dinner, when the pink-haired devil... I mean, Saintess Celestia, quietly approached me.

“L-Lady Lilith... I-I mean, Lady Rosewood, I found you...”

“...Saintess Celestia?”

“I-I was wondering if you could help with dinner tonight? Lady Agnes and Miss Silena mentioned they really wanted to try the meal you made last time...”

“I don’t mind, but do we have the ingredients? I’ll need chicken and garlic to make the same dish as before...”

“We w-we got some supplies before we left Bridget Village... A-and we have plenty of rice as well...”

“Alright then. I’ll prepare the same meal as before, and while I’m at it, I can teach you how to make it. It might come in handy if you ever need to cook for the hero.”

“Ah, y-yes, please! Thank you so much...”

For now, I’d be content with the peace we had earned without anyone dying.

No point in worrying about problems that hadn’t happened yet. All that would do is waste time.