As a result of my successful negotiations with Acting President Lydia, which had drastically improved the quality of the paper.
“…Krrr, this is it!”
My work efficiency skyrocketed to an absolutely insane degree.
The nib no longer caught on the rough surface and splattered ink, and the density was perfect, so nothing showed through even when I filled both sides with drawings.
The pen drew lines as if it were gliding over ice.
— Scratch, scratch.
A pleasing sound of friction echoed through the quiet room.
On top of that, the drawing skills that had belonged to the original owner of this body seemed to have been multiplied as well.
The frills of the maid outfit, neat yet somehow precarious, were being brought vividly to life.
The wrinkles of fabric clinging tightly to the body, the harmony of slightly exposed thighs and garter belts!
“As expected, this level of detail is essential for any otaku.”
After all, arousal itself had been my fandom.
It wasn’t simply about drawing lewd pictures of women, but something that made the heart boil over while satisfying everyone’s needs.
Erotic manga was already, in itself, a splendid realm of art.
“Hmm… I feel like Estelle was a bit more voluptuous here.”
The part I was especially pouring my heart into today was the details of the maid outfit. The fullness of the frills, the crisp texture of the apron, and the taut wrinkles that formed when someone forcibly pulled it up with their hand—those were the core of this episode.
I moved my pen while letting out sounds of admiration, but at some point, my hand stopped with a tap.
“Ah… the detail’s a little lacking.”
There was a limit to reproducing the wrinkles of clothing through imagination alone.
The tension when the fabric of the skirt was pulled taut, the subtle shadow between the white stockings and the inside of the skirt.
A single pen stroke could change the direction of eroticism.
For things like this, only direct observation with one’s own eyes could make a perfect depiction come alive.
“It’d be nice if I had a model.”
Should I ask Estelle?
After all, she was the motif for the heroine of this doujinshi, so there couldn’t be a more reliable model!
However.
“……”
The moment I imagined the expression she would make upon hearing my request, solution number one was immediately discarded.
The Estelle in my imagination was already looking down on me as if I were trash!
“She absolutely, absolutely wouldn’t agree.”
For some reason, ever since meeting Acting President Lydia of the Daily Cagliora, she had felt much colder and pricklier than before.
I clicked my tongue in regret and was just about to grip my pen again, resigning myself to relying on my imagination.
Knock, knock.
“Young Master. A guest has come to see you.”
Estelle reported to me in a voice as cold as ice.
By the way.
“A guest? For me?”
◆
When I went down to the drawing room, a familiar face was waiting for me.
“Ian! Have you been well? It’s been so long!”
Neat, tidy-looking brown bobbed hair.
Green eyes shining with vitality.
She was Lena Youngston, the eldest daughter of the Youngston County, a family closely acquainted with the Ash Viscount House, and Ian’s longtime childhood friend.
“Long? We saw each other a week ago.”
“Isn’t that long enough?”
Somehow, I had ended up becoming close to her just as the original owner of this body had been.
And perhaps because she was a childhood friend, she was incredibly kind.
On the table beside Lena was a large basket that looked quite heavy.
Through the gaps in the basket drifted the sweet scent of freshly baked, high-quality bread and fresh fruit.
She knew better than anyone that the Ash Viscount House was suffering from a terrible financial crisis, so she had clearly brought a pile of food on purpose.
“And I heard you’ve been holed up in your room lately. What’s with your complexion? Eat some of this. I just bought too much on the way here and brought the leftovers, that’s all. Don’t misunderstand!”
One thing that put my mind at ease was that this girl seemed to have not a shred of romantic feeling toward Ian Ash.
Otherwise, she really wouldn’t have brought a half-eaten sandwich like that.
Since even her behavior was comfortable, like an old buddy, I could naturally relax around her too.
“Ahem, ahem.”
Lena cleared her throat lightly.
Come to think of it, her attitude was a bit strange today.
“Why are you dragging it out? If you’ve got something to say, just say it.”
“Hah? How can you say something so inconsiderate to a lady! Ladies might all be secretly harboring a little love in some corner of their hearts, you know?”
“Sure, from someone who brings a sandwich like this. And can a woman with a mouth this big really be called a lady?”
When I picked up the sandwich she had brought, matched my mouth to the bite mark, and chomped at the air, she burst into giggles.
“You’re seriously insane!”
“Don’t worry, Lena. I like women with big mouths. Ehehe.”
“Ah, you lunatic, don’t laugh like that!”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ll take responsibility someday.”
Thump, thump.
After letting myself get hit a few times by the cushion she threw, Lena finally caught her breath and wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes.
“No matter how I look at it, Ian, you’ve changed.”
Hmm. Did I go too far?
Still, at times like this, there was no choice but to slip out of it with a shameless grin.
“Perhaps the lady’s heart has changed? Maybe you’ve begun harboring affection.”
“Bullshit!”
When I acted out falling backward after being hit by the cushion Lena threw, she giggled once more, then suddenly changed to a serious expression.
“Anyway, Ian, how long are you going to keep this up? It’s about time you returned to the academy.”
“The academy?”
For a moment, without realizing it, I let out something stupid.
“Are you kidding me? You’re on leave after causing trouble, you idiot! You’re not some poet, so how long are you planning to shut yourself away in your room?”
Lena shouted in disbelief.
Ah, was that so? Ian Ash was affiliated with the academy?
I quickly searched through my memories.
The Imperial Academy was located at the center of the capital, Cagliora, clustered together with the Imperial Palace, the Magic Tower, and the Imperial Library. It was the heart of the empire’s politics and culture, and also the main stage of the original romance fantasy novel I had transmigrated into, Golden Chains.
It was also a social arena where major main-cast figures, including the crown prince and the saintess, as well as the princess, the master of the Magic Tower, the Grand Duke of the North, and so on, gathered in droves to build connections.
Although I had read the original work before transmigrating, Ian Ash was a thorough extra who quietly exited midway through the story, so such detailed settings weren’t in my head.
I did vaguely recall that even when he attended the academy, he had been treated like a penniless beggar and lived without much presence.
“Absolutely not. I’d have to be crazy to go there.”
I firmly shook my head.
My long-term goal in this other world was extremely clear.
To interfere with the original story as little as possible, watch from the sidelines, sell erotic comics to make money, and quietly reach a peaceful ending.
There was not a single reason to walk into a tiger’s den crawling with the strongest beings in the setting, like the crown prince, the saintess, and the Grand Duke of the North, of my own accord.
“I’m not going. I have absolutely no intention of returning to the academy.”
“What? Why! Are you going to keep living like a shut-in wreck in your room? What are you planning to live on later!”
Lena sprang up from her seat.
Her green eyes, always so confident, trembled finely with bewilderment.
“Living like this suits me. I’m actually pretty busy, too.”
“Hah, seriously! You really…! Don’t you know that at this rate, your family is going to go completely bankrupt?!”
After shouting, Lena covered her mouth with her hand as if realizing she had misspoken.
“Sorry.”
“No. It’s not like you’re wrong.”
“S-still. That was rude of me.”
Lena, fidgeting anxiously, clenched her fist with a look of determination as if to make up for it.
“T-then let’s do this! If you come back to the academy, I’ll grant you one thing you want. Anything!”
It was a tearjerking explosion of childhood-friend power.
Her devoted effort to drag me somehow into the sunlight and make me function like a proper human being was admirable.
“This isn’t bad either.”
After maids, should my next theme be childhood friends?
Just thinking about it already made my mouth water.
Lena seemed to misunderstand that.
“…What? Are you going to ask for food?”
“No. Surely not.”
I stroked my chin and sank into thought for a moment.
And as my pondering gaze wandered, Lena’s figure entered my eyes.
Although she herself didn’t seem aware of it, the curves of her body were rather well formed, befitting a noble young lady.
“Wait. With that body type…”
A flash of inspiration, no, a work-related desire brimming with ulterior motives, passed through my mind.
I slowly looked Lena up and down, then spoke with a relaxed, mischievous smile at the corners of my mouth.
“Then, could you wear a maid outfit for me just once?”
In that instant, the cheerful air of the drawing room froze cold.
Lena’s face flushed tomato-red all the way to the tips of her hair, and her mouth fell open.
“Wh-wh-wh-what?! Y-you crazy…!”
And just as she was about to scream.
Clang—!
“Ugh!”
With a dull sound, stars flashed before my eyes.
A heavy pain arrived belatedly.
“Ah! The back of my head, the back of my head!”
With a strangled cry, I turned around, and there stood Estelle, holding a silver tray high, looking down at me with an expressionless face like the bitter wind of midwinter.
“Young Master. Please refrain from making such vulgar jokes in front of guests. The dignity of the Ash family will fall to the floor.”
But it wasn’t a joke!
Estelle’s cool, flawless voice, without even a hint of a smile in her eyes, stabbed coldly into the crown of my head.
◆
After Lena, her face red enough to burst, fled the viscount’s residence while leaving behind the cry, “Y-you pervert! Deal with the academy yourself!”
I sat in front of Estelle while rubbing the throbbing back of my head.
“This won’t do.”
Estelle was not being cooperative.
This was a serious problem.
In order to pioneer the first erotic manga market in another world and support my family, I absolutely needed the cooperation of Estelle, who controlled my space more perfectly than anyone.
Right now, she was practically my hands and feet.
So.
Let’s be honest and confess.
“Estelle.”
I steeled my heart and opened my mouth.
“Lift your dress. I want to draw your garter belt.”
“…Hah?”