Weiss’s family, the Hamiltons, was a historied line of nobility. The mansion itself was as old as it was impressive, and it had secret passages to boot, which was where Weiss’s ancestors had hidden their fortune. The problem was that the only ones who knew about said fortune were those who ascended to the position of lord.
In the game, Firis, Weiss’s adopted sister and one of the main heroines, knew about this hidden passage. The hero’s party used this knowledge to infiltrate the mansion, and on the way, they discovered some rare equipment on top of the hidden fortune. This would become the basis of their war chest as they managed the territory. The reason Weiss never used that money was probably just that he didn’t know about it; he was never supposed to be the next lord.
“It’s rough having such a talented little sister.”
I smiled bitterly as I equipped some leather armor and a sword, then made my way toward the meeting spot. The aching in my chest was all my own; in my previous life, I’d dealt with having a talented little sister. Weiss struggling with the same issue that I did was part of why he became my fave.
By the way, the reason I was armed was because the hidden passage didn’t get much use, meaning it was inhabited by monsters. Since I’d asked Rosalia to gather some trustworthy soldiers, we’d probably be fine. With their help, I’d be able to pay back the loan.
Or so I thought.
“Wait, what? Am I really that unpopular?” I couldn’t help but raise my voice pathetically at the sight in front of me.
There was nobody waiting at the meeting spot. No, that wasn’t quite right. Rosalia was there, but she was the only one.
What am I going to do?
“Hey, Rosalia, do I really have no soldiers I can trust?”
“Um, you have a personality prone to being misunderstood, not to mention, you have been rather violent as of late…”
“Seriously?! It’s actually that bad?”
That loyalty score of ten wasn’t for nothing! I really was walking a fine line at the moment. I couldn’t afford any screwups.
“Well, there is one person you can trust, but he’s busy at the moment… Plus, fear not. You have me!” Rosalia said, puffing up with pride. This also caused her chest to bounce for a moment.
Nobody would blame me for getting momentarily distracted, right?
“Look, I know I can trust you, but we’re going to be fighting monsters down there, so… Actually, wait a sec.”
I thought back on the game’s story. In the boss fight against Weiss, you had to face Rosalia as well, and she used magic and a spear to make things difficult for the player. In fact, she was insanely strong for a boss character in the opening hours of the game.
Right. If I can check my own status like in the game, maybe I can check hers.
“Sorry, pardon me.”
“Um, Lord Weiss? I know you’re lonely, but—ah, actually, if that is what you desire, then I…”
I had no idea why Rosalia was turning bright red, but I nonetheless put my hands on her shoulders and stared straight at her. She closed her eyes. Was something the matter? I wasn’t quite following, but I figured this was my chance to act, so I took a peek at her status. In the game itself, putting the cursor over a character allowed you to look at some of the character’s stats, so this seemed close enough.
Rosalia
Occupation: Maid
Alias: The Murderous Ice Princess
Loyalty to Her Master: 100
Affection: 100
Strength: 60
Magic Power: 80
Intelligence: 62
Skills:
Ice Magic Lv 3
High-Class Spear Technique Lv 3
Unique Skills:
Devotion to Her Master Lv 3: Receives a 30% increase to stats when fighting for her master.
Weiss’s maid. She feels indebted ever since he saved her life. She cares for him more than herself and wishes for his happiness.
Holy crap, her stats are super high! Did the game designers just set her numbers like this because she’s a boss character? And what do you mean, “Murderous Ice Princess”? She must have a crazy backstory. Was she always this much of a standout character?
No wonder I had struggled in the fight against her. At least with stats like this on my side, we’d be fine. As long as she was with me, we’d be able to defeat any of the monsters in the secret passage. Even Weiss had stats higher than the hero since he was an enemy character, so it all lined up.
“Mrrrm,” Rosalia muttered.
“Huh? What’s wrong?” I asked, blinking at her. “You turned super unhappy.”
“It’s nothing! I’m just glad you’re feeling better.”
While I was still mulling over Rosalia’s stats, she narrowed her eyes at me, displeased for some reason. It wasn’t long before she was wearing a smile again, however.
“Do not worry. I will protect you no matter what, Lord Weiss!”
Thus, the two of us descended into the hidden passage.