"Ross Byrne."

"Um...Millie Lathan."

Why are you wearing a miniskirt maid outfit? Why can you wear this and still have such a serious expression?

Is he trying to play a trick on me again? Ross thought, tensing up and on guard. But──

"I'm so glad you're okay..."

Meredith took Royce's right hand and rubbed it against her cheek. A look of genuine relief appeared on her face, and tears welled up in her eyes.

“Who are you!?”

Ross couldn't help but yell. If Sharon hadn't been holding him tightly, he would have taken several steps backward at high speed.

"...That's too much...I've been worried about you..."

Tears welled up in her eyes. Her beautiful, blue eyes, the color of the sky, shone even more brightly with sorrow. "Father..." "Lord Royce, treating a lady like this is too much..." Her beloved son and trusted subordinates also stared at her with accusatory eyes.

No one is on my side! My son and my subordinates have been snatched away by the most difficult girl! A look of despair appeared on Ross's face.

"Oh my god~ What are you talking about, Royce? She's still Xiao Mi no matter how you look at her, isn't she?"

"No matter how you look at it, he's not that idiot kid who called me bald."

"I didn't expect you to hold grudges."

Mei said this as she stepped on the struggling Lutilis. Ross glanced at her and rubbed his brow with his fingers.

Along the way, he kept thinking about what he should say as the first thing when he arrived at the Liberator camp.

Especially when he thought about what he had done to the Melkine Pirates ─ Mei'er's family, he couldn't pretend that nothing had happened and call himself a comrade.

He intended to face it with sincerity and was even mentally prepared to be beaten, allowing Mei to beat him until she was satisfied.

I didn't expect that the situation would be like this after a meeting.

What should he do now... Just as Ross was hesitating and at a loss, a new figure appeared at the other end of the corridor.

"Haven't you heard about Meredith's current condition?"

"Hmm? ...Is that Oscar Orcus?"

"Ah, Oscar. Just got back?" Mei waved and greeted him.

Ross searched his memory, also to wake up his still somewhat dull brain.

"So, Leonardo seemed to have said—"

Just as he was about to continue, he was interrupted by a cry of "Ouch!" Looking over, he saw Meredith, wearing a miniskirt maid outfit, throwing herself on Oscar.

At the same time, Ryan Hyde was biting his handkerchief, looking very unwilling.

"...Aoh, welcome back."

"Uh...ah, well, I'm back, Meredith."

“…Hmm, huh…”

Meredith rubbed her cheek against Oscar's chest, looking very comfortable. As for Oscar...his expression looked like that of a monk trying desperately to remain in a state of mindlessness.

"Mr. Oscar! You're always like this, doing this every chance you get! Miss Meredith is an unmarried lady, and as a man, you shouldn't do such shameful things, don't you think!?"

"Ryan Hyde! Don't get excited!"

"No, Master Sharon! As a gentleman, you cannot just sit back and do nothing!"

Ryan Hyde strode towards Oscar without hesitation and demanded, "Where's that tearful worry about me you just had?" Royce thought, his eyes turning blank.

"Alright, Miss Meredith, let him go. I understand that you admire Mr. Oscar as a brother—yes, a brother—but as a lady, you shouldn't behave like this."

Still holding Oscar tightly, Meredith glanced at Ryan Hyde.

"……don't want!"

"Ms. Meredith...! Damn it, even this looks so pitiful!"

"Ryan Hyde! Please return to your original self~!"

Oscar tried to explain, his expression twitching stiffly, as if he were defusing a bomb.

"Uh... Ryanhead, I've explained before that Meredith's current condition is somewhat unusual. Normally, she wouldn't do something like this."

"Your so-called 'normal' state is what you always say—playing tricks on others whenever you get the chance, brazenly claiming you're a genius, beautiful magician, and always being incredibly annoying, right?"

"That's right."

"Please stop mocking Miss Meredith like this!"

"How could you interpret it like that!?"

"How could such a pitiful and kind-hearted woman be so annoying!"

Mr. Ryanhead declared so. Blinded by love, he placed his hands on his chest and, as if speaking to the heavens, he began to rave about Meredith.

At this time, more and more people came over to watch the fun, but he seemed not to notice.

One moment they said that Mireille's graceful and reserved demeanor was like that of a daughter from a distant past, and the next moment they described how beautiful her radiant willpower within her stillness was, and how her occasional displays of childishness could purify a self-destructive heart, like an angel descending to earth...

"Who is he talking about?"

Ross asked Mei'er beside him seriously.

"Of course I'm talking about Xiao Mi."

"What did you do to Ryan Hyde?"

"We are different from the church. We don't engage in brainwashing."

The merciless sarcasm stung Ross's conscience and forced him to shut up. Seeing this, Mei shrugged.

"Nothing, he just fell in love at first sight and experienced the sweetness of first love. But his sweetheart was completely devoted to another man, so—"

"So that's why he's become so troublesome, huh?"

Ross covered his eyes helplessly. It seemed that this man, Ryan Hyde, was more innocent than he had imagined.

"Father, Miss Meredith isn't really an annoying person... On the contrary, she's a quiet and gentle elder sister—"

Sharon looked back and forth between Ross and Mei'er, saying something unbelievable.

Seeing his son's inexplicable admiration for Meredith, Rolls decided to make him wake up as soon as possible.

"You've been deceived. That girl is extremely annoying and the furthest thing from the word 'lady' in this world. If I had the chance, I'd really like to give her a good spanking and teach her the true meaning of humanity."

"Father!?"

Sharon's eyes widened in surprise. Royce pulled him aside and walked towards Lionhead, who was still enthusiastically praising Meredith for being "perfect as an angel."

The onlookers erupted in booing, "Oscar! Stop being such a wimp! Say something back!" "Xiao Mi can't have a boyfriend! I won't allow it!" "Oscar, die!" "Break those treacherous glasses!" "I'll grease your glasses!" "Every man who approaches our leader should be eliminated!" "Hey, why not just stuff them both into a torpedo barrel and shoot them!" Many voices expressed murderous intent. However, Ryanhead remained unfazed and launched his attack.

"To get to the bottom of it, how can you wear a maid outfit with such a short skirt! This is so indecent! You can even see the skin of your thighs! Are you letting Miss Meredith wear something like this to declare that she belongs to you? You, you pervert!"

"I'm not Ryu. I didn't say anything, but you spoke freely—"

"...Do I belong to Ao?"

"Eh? Uh, no, Meredith, you shouldn't take his words at face value—"

“…Isn’t it?”

"Don't look so sad at a time like this!"

"Oscar! You actually made Miss Meredith sad!"

"That's enough! Someone, come and make this guy shut up!"

Oscar raised his head and yelled. At this moment, someone responded to his yell.

"Understood—Soul Calming."

Clear black magic enveloped Ryanhead's entire body. His agitated demeanor gradually calmed down, and his expression suddenly lost its composure.

"Eh? Lord Royce?"

"Silly boy, calm down. Then, face reality—"

Is it really okay to use soul magic like this, having just recovered? Before anyone could raise such a question, Rouse, growing impatient with the situation, reached out to Meredith. Similarly, a night-black magical energy enveloped Meredith's entire body.

In an instant, the onlookers' eyes changed and became full of vigilance.

"Don't worry, this is treatment."

“…Is it cured?”

"I told you, don't worry."

The dismissive response to Oscar's concerns was actually reassuring.

Oscar looked at Meredith, who was still hugging him tightly. She had her eyes narrowed, looking very comfortable, as if she was about to fall asleep at any moment.

To support her body, Oscar reached behind her back and hugged her tightly.

About five minutes passed.

As everyone watched with bated breath, Meredith, completely leaning on Oscar's arms, finally twisted her body. At the same time, Ross also put away the magic light.

"That should be all right now."

"Really? Meredith, how's that?"

Meredith didn't answer, still keeping her face on Oscar's chest... huh?

"Middley? What's wrong with you? You seem to be shaking."

"Lord Royce! Miss Meredith's neck is very red. Could she have a fever?"

The two men's anxious reactions made the onlookers agitated. However—

"Onee-sama! You'll definitely see Mimi being adorable from now on! Please prepare to record it!"

"Leave it to me! I've already started recording!"

Before she knew it, Lutilis had broken free from her restraints, and Mei, who was wearing glasses, stood by with a smile on her face, waiting to see the show.

"Meridi?" Oscar called again. Meridi merely moaned softly and slipped away from Oscar's arms. She kept her head down, her face hidden by her hair, making it impossible to see her expression.

"Are you okay? Meredith, let me hear your voice first."

Oscar squatted down and leaned over to peek at Meredith's expression. What he saw was -

"Ahh."

Meredith's face flushed, her eyes welled with tears, and her whole body trembled, with her hands on her cheeks.

Oscar was stunned by this expression. Then, Meredith met his eyes, and then—

“Ah, ah, ah—”

"What? Meredith, are you really okay—"

"Oh, you're an idiot!!"

Meredith turned suddenly and sprinted at full speed, like a rabbit trying to escape from a beast.

She first pushed Ryan Hyde away and ran past Ross, then used gravity magic to blast the two sisters who loved to make trouble and even wanted to catch her into the ceiling, and escaped at an astonishing speed.

Everyone was stunned. Finally—

"Don't get me wrong! I'm not like that at all!"

Meredith disappeared around the corner, leaving only these words behind.

With a bang, the two sisters fell from the ceiling, bleeding from their noses, and raised their thumbs at the same time.

"You're so cute, Mimi... Oooooooo."

"O-Oscar, please tell me what you think."

"...Anyway, it's great that she's back to normal."

Hearing Oscar's words, Mel's face lit up with a brilliant smile, then she fainted. It seemed Miss Meredith, overwhelmed with shame, was unable to properly restrain her power. The two-person shaped holes in the metal ceiling were irrefutable proof.

The onlookers glared at Oscar with murderous intent. Ryan Hyde remained utterly stunned. Sharon was busy tending to the unconscious Mel and Lutilis. In such a chaotic situation, Oscar decided to thank him first.

"Mr. Ross...? Thank you so much."

"Just call me Ross. No need to thank me... I just can't stand Meredith Lessen's love-struck attitude, that's all."

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