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Life in Another World as a Maid Mage
Volume 1 - Daily Life of A Maid Mage

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17 – Fighting among comrades is not acceptable (2)

Translator: KynKatan | Proofreader: lynn

Announcement: Due to some situations on real life I will be only updating this novel once a week (on Saturday) until further notice. I apologize for the inconvenience.

Author's Note: Please note that the content related to occupational disdain and bullying may be a tad painful and unpleasant to describe.

"… It's not pretty."

Nadia snorted. Linus and Ellen's faces also looked troubled.

Shiori went out of the city, probably because she received a quest. The women who are following her also proceeded without hesitation.

"They went out of town, right? What are they going to do? Those girls"

"They wouldn't harm her, would they?"

"… I don't want to think that they are stupid enough to go that far."

As she was speaking, a little bit of anxiety also seeped into Nadia's voice. It was probably because she remembered that there were people who did "harm" Shiori.

Adventurers were more than just about fighting, but many are bloodthirsty. According to the rules of the guild, private fights between adventurers were forbidden. However, minor and trivial disputes would often lead to sword wounds due to them carrying out their own techniques on each other.

And unfortunately, due to jealousy of their active colleagues or contempt of those with inferior abilities, it was not at all uncommon for people to resort foolishly to harassment. The "Dawn" case was an incident that could be considered as a result from that.

At the corner of our vision; Shiori left the roadway and entered a small pathway leading into the forest. The girls hesitated, perhaps because they were afraid they would stand out if they entered a small pathway, where not many people walked, instead of the crowded roadway. However, they seemed to have decided to proceed as they stepped onto the pathway. They looked around for a while, and then went to hide in the bushes on the side.

"By the looks of it, I'm sure they're going to do something against her!"

"More importantly, those gals don't seem to notice that… they're being followed"

I wondered how competent they were considering that they were still developing, but they wouldn't be able to notice a monster approaching like this. I couldn't help but be amazed. Moreover, I couldn't decide if they had been too lucky or too unlucky, or perhaps they just happened to have a series of fortunate events. Either way, there was no telling what to expect.

"You're not even a greenhorn anymore, you're too careless."

"Shiori seems to be aware of them. Maybe of us as well."

An extremely faint and tiny net of magical power could only be noticed if one observed closely and had some level of magical knowledge. Perhaps when she goes out alone, she is looking for approaching signals with the usual surveying magic. It was the maximum precaution within the range that would not cause the complete loss of magic power.

There was an obvious difference between the skilled (Shiori) and the upstart lassies. They weren't being cautious since they were overconfident in their own strength. But they would get hurt sooner or later like that.

The girls were not aware that they were being followed while being criticized by their seniors. The girls didn't even seem to notice them, and were just chasing Shiori.

Shiori stopped in an open area of the forest.

However without caring about protecting her back, she crouched down on the spot and seemed to start collecting something. Probably autumn berries pickings.

She continued to collect for a while, but eventually came to a stop, stood up, and turned around and looked behind her. That was the direction where the girls were hiding. The girls seemed a little upset, perhaps they didn't think Shiori was aware of them.

As usual, the girls did not seem to notice us, even when we were quite close. Did they take for granted that it was a nearby forest and were careless? Or, maybe the thought of being cautious never crossed their mind in the first place.

Alex had already lost interest in these girls. Their level was too low to be mentioned. Their quality as adventurers, as well as their humanity, was questionable.

As a matter of fact, for some reason the guild surprisingly allowed many such poor-quality adventurers. And those people were naturally weeded out.

In the first place, anyone could reach C-rank unless they were very incompetent. The value of an adventurer was determined by whether or not he or she could surpass that point.

Newcomers had no way of knowing this, but there was something like a 'wall' between C and B ranks that could rarely be crossed. It would take a considerable amount of effort to overcome it. It was not a world where you could compete and survive only with what your parents gave you. The only exception to this was the adventurers of the Empire, where the aristocracy had infiltrated the adventurers' guild.

I managed to move to a place where I could hear their voices while keeping Shiori and the girls in my peripheral. In the event of an emergency, I should be able to stop them. But I should avoid interfering with them as much as possible. Shiori also has the pride of being a mid-level adventurer. Just protecting her would only hurt her pride.

Certainly, Shiori is inferior to these girls in pure combat power. However, it might be unexpectedly easy to handle. That was how I felt. She was not by no means a helpless woman. The other day's lost child uproar made that abundantly clear.

Suddenly, Rurie turned its body around. I wasn't sure which one was its back or front, but it was probably looking at me, which I could sense from the atmosphere. Then it immediately turned around again.

"You did well to notice. Even if rotten, you are still a B-rank old maiden"

The mage girl, who emerged from the bushes, spoke in a tone that was clearly meant to taunt. The other two also chuckled and laughed unpleasantly.

"Do you need something?"

In contrast, Shiori's expression remained composed, and the tone of voice just as steady. The girls must have not liked it and harshened their attitude.

"It's just that you seem to be on a roll lately."

"We are a little skeptical that Miss Old Maid is B-ranked. She has almost no magical power even though she is a mage. What she is doing is more akin to a maid, right? That's why B rank is strange."

Linus sighed at the girls' statement.

"So, you know… that being an adventurer isn't only going to the front lines and fighting…"

He muttered to himself, but I completely agreed.

Everyone has their unique fighting style. Familiarize yourself with each other's fighting style and respect it, so you can complement and support each other. That's the way to accomplish difficult tasks. The way adventurers should act. Unless you understand that, there is no way for those girls to get promoted.

"… So, what can I do for you specifically?"

Shiori replied in an extremely calm voice to the girls' roundabout way of speaking. Perhaps she was used to dealing with these kinds of opponents.

The girls finally had enough when they saw that she wasn't affected.

"I don't know! Has her brain gone senile because she's an old maiden?"

"We'll see if she really deserves a B rank!"

The mage girl and the archer girl placed their hands in their weapons meaningfully. And the mage girl raised her staff in front of Shiori to flaunt.

"No, thank you. I don't think I can be evaluated fairly by you people who are obviously harboring wicked intentions. In the first place, you know that I am a non-combatant. When three combatants take on one non-combatant, you can't complain even if you are misunderstood to have harmful intentions. I'm sure you're aware that the guild rules prohibit private fights between adventurers."

Shiori's tone remained unaffected, though her words were firm. It appeared to be a bit of a baseless statement. Unexpectedly, this could be her own taunt.

As a result, the girls became enraged. Perhaps they were displeased with the fact that they were being treated so casually (wow!), even though they were supposed to have an overwhelming advantage. The spellblade girl finally pulled out her sword, and the archer and mage also pointed their weapons at Shiori.

At that moment, Rurie's body color turned red, a terrible ominous bloody color. As a precaution, Alex and the others reached for their weapons when they noticed the usually lovely Rurie undergoing the physical change.

"You are being cheeky for a maid who can't even fight!"

"Anyway, didn't Zach promote you to the next level because you were making eyes at him? Even Clemens seems to get along with you! You're getting senior adventurers to sweeten your assessment by flirting!"

"You're even making eyes at Alex these days! This old maiden's habit is disgusting even if she were young!"

The girls appeared to be momentarily frightened by Rurie, who was dyed red, but they were aiming their verbal abuse at Shiori. They intended to provoke her, but on the contrary, they were the ones provoked. Alex was inwardly surprised at the mention of his name, but he braced himself when he noticed that Shiori's behavior had changed.

A tingling and stinging sensation hit his skin. Shiori's magical power was stirred. An indescribable anger seeped into her normally calm face.

"Take that back."

Any politeness that was previously held in that tone of voice completely collapsed.

"Those people are not so cheap to be fooled by flirting. Don't you understand? You just disgraced those people indirectly by trying to offend me."

The girls seemed to have touched her nerves. They insulted those who were close to her instead of herself. That was what the gentle Shiori couldn't stand.

"Those people take pride in their work. I'm proud to do my job. People like you who can look down on others, without hesitation, are not allowed to disgrace them."

A stinging, even painful, aggressive presence filled the area.

The girls flinched. They were unable to respond to the changes and became confused.

On the other side of the bushes where Alex and the others hid, Linus shuddered again.

"…What's this all about? There's no sign that a non-combatant could give off … this"

Nadia gazed at Linus with a bewitching and terrifying smile , causing him to let out a moane.

"Look. Shiori knows how to use her magic effectively. It's more than enough to make up for the low magical power."

The ground under Shiori's feet cracked, the pebbles and the leaves on the trees surrounding her flew off. Branches of trees snapped and fell with a disturbing sound. The hair strings that bound her black dark ripped. The anger-filled force swirling around her made her black hair dance.

"Eep"

A squeal escaped from one of the girls. It seemed that the pressure was overwhelming. The archer girl, half confused, held up her bow and aimed it at Shiori.

Shiori's eyes stared at the girls. The dark-colored eyes that look jet-black were taken over by tranquil anger and dark madness. Swirling. The whirlpool of magical power that covered her was pitch black as it reached out to the girls like tentacles.

"…!"

The mage girl dropped to her knees and fell on her ass on the spot. Slowly, something warm flowed out from between her legs, creating a stain on the ground. As if on cue, the other girls let out an inaudible scream and ran off.

"No … Wait … Hey … Hold on … Heey!"

The mage who was left behind crawled away from the Shiori. Somehow, she managed to get up from her crawling position and ran away with her wet clothes. The hint of bloodlust, unleashed ominously and demonically like a monster, dissipated.

— The girls' escaping silhouettes faded beyond the forest.

In an instant, the silence returned. Rurie returned to her original lapis lazuli color, and Shiori stood there looking the same as usual. The area showed the usual calm forest scenery as if nothing had happened.

The ground that should have been cracked remained intact, the branches of the trees that should have been broken off stayed in one piece extending toward the sky and were blowing in the breeze, ruffling its leaves. Shiori's black hair, which should have been untidy and disturbed, was still glossy and tidy as if nothing had happened. Rurie returned to her usual lapis lazuli color and quivered with a smirk.

"... As expected"

Alex's eyes widened in amazement and praised her with simple words. After all, there was no need to meddle. It was a very easy way to get rid of an opponent who was overwhelmingly superior in terms of offensive power.

"Right? A combination of magic power release and illusionary magic."

Nadia also nodded with satisfaction. Ellen was impressed.

"Eh … That … was an illusion!?"

Linus, the only one here who could not sense the flow of magic, loudly raised his voice .

"The magical power was mixed with the bloodlust, spread and covered the perimeter like a web to create a murderously atmosphere, and all other phenomena, including sound, were recreated with illusionary magic. It's brilliant. She's probably pretty good at translating the images she envisioned on her head with magical power."

"Eeh…"

Linus exclaimed and turned his attention back to Siori.

"So, is that why Rurie turned red?"

"No… that wasn't an illusion. It really turned red."

Nadia frowned and spat out an explanation.

"Rurie sees, when someone with a murderous intent approaches Shiori, it'll turn red as a warning. Perhaps those idiots were planning to kill Shiori at that moment."

It would be better to report it to the guild, the corners of Nadia lips twisted up in displeasure as she continued

"… Like I thought, it seems they were the type of people who are prone to illusions."

I heard Shiori's voice. It seemed that she was talking to her partner Rurie.

"That type of people who are overconfident in themselves, tend to neglect threat counter measurements. Because of their overwhelming lack of knowledge about all kinds of dangers, they can't anticipate the risks. It's amusing how they were fooled."

Rurie bounced in agreement.

That is exactly correct. There are many adventurers who are too overconfident in their own abilities and neglect to take precautions against dangers, eventually losing their lives to by low-ranking monsters and small traps. Those girls were the best example. They engaged in the provocation of the other party without any hesitation. They were easily entrapped in the illusion. 'If you don't learn, you'll be dead sooner or later'.

"… But, I wonder if I should listen to their words that I seem to be on a roll lately, even the cheeky part"

Suddenly Shiori's voice turned stiff and I couldn't help staring at her face. It could be my imagination but her face, which I see through the bushes, looked slightly pale. When I saw her hold her chest and bend forward slightly, I quickly stepped forward but Nadia gently stopped me with her arms.

"We've been watching silently up to this point, so you can pretend you don't know what's going on here. If you show up now, you'll only hurt that child's pride, right?"

"But…"

"… Even for women, they have things they don't want men to see. Men also have things like that."

That's why.

"…Leave it alone. Just for now."

The golden-brown eyes that wistfully sway, but carry a strong, commanding light.

"… I understand."

It was not that he didn't have counter arguments. But it was understandable. Alex nodded.

"…Thankies"

Nadia gently narrowed her eyes, quietly urged Linus and Ellen. The two of them were somewhat hesitant, but they must have understood what Nadia was trying to say. They nodded, looked at Shiori for a moment, then turned their heels and started walking. Nadia followed suit.

Once again, I looked back at Shiori. The figure that remained standing with her head lowered seemingly to endure something on her own. While suppressing the urge to hug her back, I somewhat endured it.

I started walking towards the city.

And so, after we had walked away from her for a while .

— I felt as if I had heard, a woman wailing in pain.

Author's Note: Some jobs don't get a lot of recognition compared to other jobs. I think many people feel bad about that.

As they say, no job is worthless, but it is true that some jobs are highly prejudiced. But no matter what kind of work it is, there are people who will speak ill of it in a particularly bad way, well, I guess it's not too far-fetched.

Next time, it will be this same story from Shiori's perspective.

TL Note: Nadia ends her sentences on "ne" which is basically a playful, casual way to add intonation, it is somewhat common among young people. The most accurate translation would be an exclamation mark but sometimes it doesn't quite convey the same meaning, I have been adjusting it as I see fit but I thought I might be a good idea to mention it.

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