Chapter 1909 – Dark Moon
The entrance ceremony ended, and all the guests left the Maid Academy. However, the new students remained in the academy’s entrance hall.
It was cold. The heat of the entrance ceremony had vanished as if it were a lie.
Yuria sat up straight, her back erect. She quietly surveyed her surroundings. There were quite a few others sitting as properly as she was. They were the ones who had received some level of training as servants.
There were also maids who adopted rather poor postures. They were rough. They knew the etiquette but had no intention of practicing it themselves. Their origins were easy to guess. They were likely from mercenary backgrounds. On the other hand, there were a few maids who seemed to be from military backgrounds. And then there were the maids who looked like they knew absolutely nothing. They were excessively nervous.
There was only one goal for the new students here.
A maid’s license.
Senior, Double, Triple, Flower, Superior, Royal, Prime.
A total of seven license grades. Even if you don’t fail and just graduate from the Maid Academy, you can receive a Senior grade license.
Just having this license eliminates any worries about employment. You can get a job at almost any company. This isn’t just the case in Neo London. In other countries and cities, a maid’s license is considered a spec in itself. Perhaps that’s why there were quite a few foreigners.
Triple-grade maids are treated as elites among elites. The higher grades go without saying.
Yuria’s goal was Royal or Prime. The higher her grade as a servant, the higher the status of her master. However, even Yuria couldn’t be sure of achieving Prime grade. No maid had reached Prime grade in the past few years. Perhaps there were other hidden conditions for Prime.
Tap, tap.
The woman with light brown hair sitting next to Yuria gently poked her shoulder with her index finger.
“What is it?”
“Since we’ve met like this, let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Juliet. I came from outside the district.”
“I’m Yuria Grace. I’m from Neo London.”
Yuria answered politely. She had no interest in Juliet, but the social interaction category might be included in the evaluation. If Yuria were the head of the Maid Academy, she would include it in the evaluation.
“I just came up to Neo London, but… is the atmosphere always this grim?”
“I’m not sure… This is my first time at the Maid Academy, so I don’t know.”
“Really? You don’t have to use honorifics. We’re classmates.”
“I’m more comfortable with this.”
“Okay. That’s fine. Let’s try to get through the Maid Academy without getting expelled. By the way, do you know what we’re doing after the entrance ceremony?”
“That would probably be…”
“Quiet!”
A drill instructor shouted loudly. The nervous new students all shut their mouths and looked at the instructor. Yuria and Juliet did the same.
In the now quiet entrance hall, the head of the academy opened her mouth.
“There is an etiquette score in the academy. It’s an item that evaluates your manners. The base score is 10 points, and points will be deducted for using vulgar language or showing frivolous behavior. If you reach 0 points, you will be expelled, so please be careful. Also, the etiquette score will be included in your overall grade.”
Everyone shut their mouths. The faces of the new students who had been talking using vulgar language turned pale. They were mostly from mercenary backgrounds.
“I will now inform you of today’s schedule. Within two hours, we will finish distributing textbooks and uniforms, assigning dormitories, and conducting dining etiquette training. In the evening, we will conduct a dining etiquette evaluation test. Of course, this evaluation will also affect your overall grade.”
“……!!”
Most of the maids were shocked. They hadn’t expected to be trained and tested on their first day. Yuria was also surprised. But the die was already cast. It didn’t seem like protesting would change the schedule. Yuria recalled the dining etiquette of Neo London and simulated it in her head.
“Today, we will train and evaluate you on the Easter dining etiquette of Divine France. Some of you may wonder why maids need to learn the dining etiquette of Divine France. Maids must be able to handle guests in place of their masters when they are not present. We are training you for that eventuality. Do not forget that maids must be perfect.”
Maria Hilton, the head of the Maid Academy, stepped down from the platform and left the entrance hall. Yuria unconsciously observed her gait and nodded. It was flawless.
“Haa. Easter dining etiquette of Divine France? Why do we have to learn that…?”
Juliet muttered with a tearful face.
“Divine France is close to Neo London, so the dining etiquette shouldn’t be too different.”
“Yuria is so relaxed. Do you already know the Easter dining etiquette of Divine France?”
“We’ll learn it soon, so I’ll know.”
“Haa. I envy your relaxed personality.”
Soon, they received textbooks and uniforms from the drill instructors.
Juliet looked like she was about to cry. The textbooks the new students received were over 30, making them difficult to even carry, and the uniforms were all maid uniforms, but there were seven types: going-out, morning, afternoon, exercise, cooking, cleaning, and work uniforms.
The drill instructor said while handing out the clothes.
“Uniform management is also subject to evaluation. If any part of your uniform is torn or not clean, points will be deducted, so please be careful.”
“Wait a minute. I think this size is a bit off?!”
“This is the first task you must solve. Here is a sewing kit. I will show you how to repair it just once, so please repair your afternoon maid uniform and gather in the lecture hall.”
The maids reflexively checked the clock on the wall. There was more than an hour of free time. Still, the anxiety didn’t go away. Most of them knew nothing about sewing.
‘Sewing in this day and age…’
‘Hehe. I’ve been practicing after hearing from the seniors who already graduated.’
‘Ah, damn it. I already want to quit. I just need the license, why sewing…’
Everyone received their sewing kits with different thoughts.
Following that, they were assigned dormitory rooms.
The rooms were small. 3 pyeong. A bed, a wardrobe, a desk, and a chair were all that was in the room. Yuria unpacked her luggage first and started the repair work. It didn’t even take 10 minutes to repair all seven of the maid uniforms she had received, not just the afternoon one.
Knock, knock.
“Yes.”
Yuria opened the door. Juliet was holding her afternoon maid uniform in her hand, looking tearful.
“Juliet, what brings you here?”
“Um, well. If you’re not busy, could you help me? It’s my first time sewing, so… I’m not doing well.”
“I’ll help you. It’s not difficult if you do it slowly.”
“Really? Thank you! But don’t you have to do it too? I’m sorry if I’m bothering you…”
“It’s okay. I’ve finished my work.”
Yuria didn’t just do Juliet’s work for her, but taught her how to do it. She also helped other maids who seemed to be in trouble. It wasn’t an act of pure kindness. This would unknowingly become a debt. They would help her when she was in trouble.
After that, Yuria received a perfect score on the Divine France Easter dining etiquette test and passed.
• • •
A week had passed since the 94th class entered the Maid Academy. The head of the academy and the drill instructors gathered in the conference room. It was the weekly regular meeting.
“How many students have been expelled?”
Maria, the head of the academy, asked calmly.
“35 students.”
“That’s average.”
The first week was the period with the most expulsions at the Maid Academy. The rules were stricter than other places, so some couldn’t adapt. Most of them were from mercenary backgrounds who were used to being free.
“Are there any notable individuals? Do you think this class will produce a Superior-grade maid or higher?”
“Perhaps a Royal-grade maid or higher may emerge.”
Maria’s eyes lit up. It had only been a week, and the drill instructor was already saying this? It meant that an extraordinary talent had entered. There was someone she had in mind.
“I heard that a count’s daughter entered the academy. Is it her?”
Noble children also entered the Maid Academy. There was no law that said you had to become a maid after graduating from the Maid Academy. They were trying to obtain a maid’s license as a kind of spec.
“No. She is also excellent, but… it’s too early to judge her potential.”
“Then who is it?”
“It’s a girl named Yuria Grace. She’s from the Knight Training Center, and she excels not only in combat but also in medical knowledge, culture, etiquette, cooking, appearance, and combat power… There’s nothing she lacks. She has a good reputation among her classmates, and she has received perfect scores on all four tests she has taken so far. This is the first time we’ve had such an outstanding new student.”
“If she’s from the Knight Training Center, then there’s nothing special about her status. Is she suitable to become a royal maid?”
“It’s too early to judge that, but we think she might become more than that. Yuria Grace has not yet shown her limits.”
Maria slowly read the documents containing Yuria’s information. There was nothing problematic. The fact that she was being sponsored by a recent Baron named Eugene Meyer was not a problem either.
“The royal family wants outstanding maids. They need talent. If she maintains her grades like this… she seems qualified to become a royal maid. Can we recruit her?”
“…….”
The drill instructors were not sure.
“We don’t know what Yuria Grace wants. We’ve had several consultations, but she doesn’t reveal her inner thoughts.”
“In my opinion, she doesn’t seem to have any particular aspirations. She said herself that her goal is to graduate from the Maid Academy and obtain a Triple-grade license or higher.”
“Working for the royal family is the best career and an opportunity to become a noble, would she refuse that?”
“Not all maids want to work for the royal family.”
“That’s because you’ve never worked for the royal family, so you don’t know.”
“…I admit that the royal family is great, but large corporations are better in terms of practical work.”
Maria exuded her aura. The drill instructors who had been raising their voices shut their mouths.
“There’s still plenty of time. Let’s watch her for now.”
