"Huff… finally, I can understand the language," Hinata sighed in relief, flopping down on the creaky wooden bed with a satisfied grin. The Appraisal had finally finished running its course, and now she could grasp the basic words and phrases, enough to hold a decent conversation without sounding like a confused NPC.
After looting the attackers, she and Lilia had made their way to a nearby village. Getting in wasn't too hard; the village leader practically rolled out the red carpet after seeing the shiny coins the former palace maid offered. He even gave them permission to stay in an abandoned house for a few days.
It was thanks to being in the village that Hinata could analyse a wider range of speech patterns, letting her piece together the local language much faster.
Creeeak.
Hinata's ears twitched, and she turned her head toward the door. Lilia stepped inside, carefully balancing a tray with two steaming bowls.
As she placed them on the bed, Hinata noticed the faint aroma of herbs and meat wafting up. The soup was still hot, faint steam curling in the air.
'Ah… so that's what she was doing,' Hinata realised. She had been too busy decoding grammar like a tired linguist to care about the clattering noises from downstairs.
As for Lilia's behaviour, Hinata didn't feel threatened. If the maid really wanted to leave, she would have done so already. The woman wasn't the type to creep around out of fear; more like she was cautiously observing her. And Hinata, for her part, had no intention of coercing anyone unless it was absolutely necessary.
"You should eat…" Lilia said softly, then paused, frowning as she muttered, "He can't understand…" before gesturing awkwardly with her hands, one motion clearly mimicking eating.
Hinata blinked.
'Wait.....she thinks I'm a boy?'
Her eyes widened before a grin crept onto her face, the corners of her lips twitching upward.
Still chuckling internally, Hinata sighed. Her happiness was short-lived; she knew she'd have to come clean sooner or later. With a resigned look, she reached up, pulling down her hood and untying the cloak.
As the robe slipped away, revealing her face and the faint, modest curve of her chest, Lilia froze mid-motion, eyes widening in shock.
"…You're… a girl?"
Her voice trembled slightly, more out of disbelief than fear. It wasn't exactly unheard of for women to be warriors; Lilia herself had once served in the palace guard, after all. But the girl before her looked so young, her frame small and slender, almost delicate. Combined with the loose robe that flattened her chest, it wasn't surprising Lilia had assumed she was a boy.
Hinata blinked at her reaction, scratching her cheek with a hint of embarrassment.
"Yeah… sorry to disappoint," she muttered awkwardly.
Lilia blinked a few times before her expression shifted again, this time to wide-eyed surprise. "You… you can speak the human language?"
Her tone carried genuine shock. Earlier, when Hinata had spoken, the words had sounded completely foreign. Lilia had simply assumed she was using the Beast God tongue or the Demon God tongue. The sudden clarity of Hinata's speech completely caught her off guard.
Hinata tilted her head slightly, amused. "Just learned," she said with a small grin.
Lilia blinked again. "Just… learned?"
Her brows furrowed slightly. Does that mean she didn't know it before? That made no sense. Nobody could just learn a completely new language in a few hours. Yet, looking at Hinata's calm, matter-of-fact expression, Lilia couldn't sense a hint of deceit.
"Have a seat," Hinata said, snapping her out of her thoughts.
Her tone was casual but firm enough to sound like an order wrapped in kindness. Hinata shifted slightly, moving aside on the bed and patting the spot next to her.
Lilia hesitated for a moment, then nodded quietly and sat down.
As Lilia settled beside her, Hinata's gaze shifted toward the tray resting between them.
"You must've worked hard," she said softly, her tone calm but edged with genuine appreciation. "Cooking, fetching water, lighting the fire… then carrying it all the way here."
Her eyes lingered briefly on Lilia's hands, faintly reddened, small traces of effort etched into her skin. "You should rest a little," Hinata added, leaning back against the wall with quiet ease.
Lilia blinked, her breath catching for a moment. The words shouldn't have meant much, yet they did. Her chest felt strangely light, a warmth rising to her cheeks before she quickly forced it down. She couldn't afford to be swayed by sentiment so easily.
"What's your name?" she asked, voice steadier than before.
The question wasn't just out of curiosity; it was a probe, a way to regain footing. Compliments could be dangerous, they dulled the blade of suspicion. And right now, she couldn't afford to lower her guard.
Still, the faint flutter in her chest refused to fade.
"Hinata Sakaguchi." Hearing it, Lilia immediately tried to search for it in her memory but found nothing, which made her even more confused. How can I not know her? She's definitely a saint, and on top of that, so young. I can tell she hasn't even had her fourth birthday yet; she should be well-known.
She could tell from the moment she saw Hinata kill her pursuers that she was far above her own level, far beyond what ordinary training could achieve. She had seen plenty of skilled warriors during her time at the palace, including advanced-ranked swordsmen, and yet Hinata's ability had far surpassed them.
Also, being from the palace had given her access to information far greater than most. Is she from some noble family? Maybe they don't want her identity revealed… but then how did she appear before me?
While she had many questions, Lilia quickly hid them. Experience had taught her that curiosity could be dangerous. She schooled her expression into calm neutrality, pretending not to think too much.
But Hinata noticed the faint flicker of emotion across her face; her heightened senses didn't miss such small details.
"I'm from far away," Hinata said calmly, offering a faint, reassuring smile. "So it's normal that you don't know me."
She understood well that the unknown breeds fear, especially when it comes wrapped in power.
Hinata leaned slightly forward, softening her tone. "Tell me about yourself," she asked, gently steering the conversation away.
Of course, she already knew the broad strokes of Lilia's life from her world's version of events, but this was an alternate timeline. She needed confirmation. The smallest difference could change everything.
Lilia held Hinata's gaze for a long moment before speaking. There was hesitation, but not fear; more like someone deciding which parts of a truth were safe to share.
She began her tale slowly. How her father had seen her as worthless, how she'd once possessed strength but lost it in an accident that changed everything. Her tone was calm, detached, almost as if she were recounting someone else's life.
But Hinata noticed the flicker in her eyes, pain buried deep.
Still, Lilia omitted some things. She said nothing about being a maid to the princess, nor mentioned anything about the palace. Not because she distrusted Hinata, but because she didn't want her saviour dragged into royal matters that could get her killed.
She didn't believe Hinata had anything to do with the attackers. No noble faction would send a hidden ace for someone of her standing.
At least, that's what she wanted to believe.
"Thank you," Lilia said softly after a pause, bowing her head deeply.
"It's okay, it wasn't a big deal," Hinata replied, waving her hands dismissively, assuming the gratitude was for saving her life.
But Lilia's next words quickly corrected that assumption.
"It is for me," she said, lifting her gaze. "Because of you, I can use my strength again."
Her eyes shimmered with genuine gratitude.
Hinata blinked, a small frown forming as the pieces clicked together in her head. So the potion healed her legs, huh…
She remembered Lilia's weakened movements earlier, the stiffness, the hesitation. But wasn't it supposed to be because of poison?
Maybe the poison caused some internal damage.
Still, isn't the potion quite busted? I mean, no one in this world can solve that problem, but a single drink did. Then again, Overlord really has quite a variety of powers.
She exhaled quietly, her expression thoughtful. Well, that's good, I guess.
"Lilia, you said you were a maid before, right?"
"Yes."
"So I would like to hire you to be my maid."
"...."
**********
Potential Maid candidates