Chapter 2642 – 2642. Dark Moon

Yuria collected the alchemical blood from Jonas’s corpse.

It wasn’t for nothing that she’d hacked him to death. She planned to siphon off about half of the alchemical blood and offer it to Eugene. The other half would remain with the corpse. This was a kind of evaluation, so she couldn’t just openly steal it.

‘Alphatier is so interested in alchemical blood that they’re dispatching corporate agents to Neo London. My master will surely be pleased if I offer it to him.’

Yuria exited the building. As she stood still at the entrance, a maid and a butler, a man and a woman, appeared from the alley. They were the eyes and ears dispatched by Maria, the head of the Maid Academy.

“You’ve done well, Miss Yuria.”

“Did you take care of Jonas?”

Yuria nodded in response to their questions.

“Yes. The body is inside. The targets he was trying to deal with were Alphatier corporate agents. They’ve been taken care of as well.”

The butler sighed softly.

“So, a major corporation was involved. However, we won’t be able to pressure them over this. If they’re corporate agents, they’ll have cleaned up the mess thoroughly. Even if we investigate the bodies, it’s highly likely that other fake identities will surface.”

The butler seemed to have dealt with corporate agents quite a bit. Yuria didn’t say anything but agreed. There was no way a major corporation wouldn’t have prepared for failure. They wouldn’t be fazed by easily caught underlings.

The maid hesitated for a moment before asking,

“Miss Yuria, I saw darkness descend around this building just now. Is that perhaps your unique skill? Ah, it’s a personal question, so you don’t have to answer.”

Did she not know that personal questions themselves were poison? Or was she asking with an intention? Either way, Maria Hilton would surely be disappointed in this maid if she knew.

Yuria answered plainly.

“Yes. It’s my unique skill. I’m afraid I can’t go into detail.”

Yuria had used her unique skill partly to deceive them. She didn’t think they would see it as just a way to obscure their vision with darkness.

The butler, who had been watching with a subtle curiosity, nudged the maid’s shoulder.

“Enough with the rudeness, and let’s go inside. Miss Yuria, please leave the cleanup to us and return to the academy. Madam Maria will be waiting for you.”

“Understood. I’ll return now.”

Yuria calmly walked forward. Her ears, those of a 7th-grade transcendent, picked up the voices of the maid and butler chattering behind her.

“To ask such a question there. Is that just like you?”

“I was curious. It’s my first time seeing a 7th-grade transcendent’s unique skill that I’ve only heard about. You were just watching from the side, so don’t make me out to be the bad one.”

“Well, I understand. Unique skills aren’t used often by 7th-grades unless it’s crucial. Still, be careful with your words. Unique skills are related to one’s inner self, so most 7th-grades don’t like others talking about their unique skills. It’s fortunate that Miss Yuria has a good personality. If it were another 7th-grade, you might have lost an arm?”

“Miss Yuria is famous for her good personality. I thought nothing would happen. But Miss Yuria’s unique skill is a bit… off, regardless of her personality. That darkness… it’s excessively dark.”

“Miss Yuria’s ability is shadow manipulation… so it must be influenced by that. Besides, judging a unique skill by its appearance is foolish.”

“Ugh. Jonas? The corpse is a mess.”

“The corporate agents’ corpses are clean. Did they fail to subdue Jonas in one go?”

“If you look closely at the corporate agents’ bodies, there are wounds. Unlike their seemingly intact exteriors, their insides are a mess. Blood vessels, muscles, organs. All neatly twisted. They extracted information through torture. But what kind of monstrous skill is this….”

“Even a professional torturer wouldn’t be this good…. She’s a scary woman. Even though she looks normal, is her mind messed up? They say most 7th-grades aren’t normal… maybe that’s true.”

“More importantly, let’s deal with Jonas’s corpse. We need to extract some alchemical blood and give it to Madam Maria.”

“…If an opportunity like this arises, does Madam Maria also embezzle corporate assets? I thought Madam Maria was on the side of justice.”

“Ha. You don’t know much because you haven’t done this job many times, do you? Madam Maria’s justice is strictly for her master. Do you know what Madam Maria’s nickname was in her younger days?”

“…The Queen’s hunting dog. I forgot for a moment since Madam Maria doesn’t do much public activity these days. But she doesn’t have a master to serve anymore, does she?”

“Officially, that’s right.”

“You mean unofficially, she does?”

“I don’t know the details. But I know she has connections with the royal family. Maybe she’s still the Queen’s hunting dog. Hey, this conversation is a secret. Got it?”

“That’s what I wanted to say. Your mouth is looser than mine. If this story leaks out, it’s not just your reputation that’ll be ruined. So, keep your mouth shut.”

Yuria stopped eavesdropping on their conversation. Unlike what she had expected, it was just ordinary gossip.

• • •

Maria welcomed Yuria back to the academy.

“You’ve done well, Miss Yuria. Your handling of the matter was perfect. Swift, quiet, and certain.”

“I’m glad you were pleased with my work. May I hear my evaluation score?”

“A+. Full marks.”

No evaluation report was given. From the start, it wasn’t a matter that could be openly documented.

“Then, may I go back and rest? It’s been a long and busy outing, so I’m a bit tired.”

“Miss Yuria, the 94th class will be graduating soon. While servants aiming for the Prime certification need to prove themselves for several more years, you have proven your talent and power by reaching the 7th grade. After graduation, you will be working at the academy and will have a rather difficult daily life.”

“Yes. It’s something I was prepared for.”

“If you continue to receive the highest evaluations like you do now… in half a year, you will be able to start the final test. You will work as a direct maid of the royal family, more precisely, of Her Majesty the Queen, for 100 days. Her Majesty the Queen will decide whether you pass or not.”

It meant it was up to the Queen’s discretion.

The Queen could fail her if she didn’t like her. Of course, that wouldn’t happen. The current Queen, Victoria VI, was an extremely fair-minded individual. She wouldn’t make a foolish choice that would undermine her own authority.

Even if the Queen were to oppose her for some reason, she would just have to achieve accomplishments that couldn’t be denied.

“Yes. I will continue to strive until that day comes.”

“I would like you to be the representative of the graduating class at this graduation ceremony. It’s a formality, so there isn’t much to do. And you will receive the Superior certification at the graduation ceremony, so please be aware of that.”

“…I didn’t know I would receive the Superior certification at the graduation ceremony. Hasn’t this never happened before?”

“Yes. Even Florence, the only Prime-level maid, graduated from the academy with a Flower-level certification. The Superior level is the first in history, so you can be proud. All the instructors, including myself, have acknowledged you.”

“More than anything, I’m happy to be acknowledged. Thank you.”

Yuria smiled and bowed her head.

Of course, she wasn’t genuinely happy. It wasn’t because she was used to the grand title of being the first in history. It was just that, for her, praise from anyone other than her master meant nothing. A single word from her master, saying she was pretty, was more pleasing to Yuria than a hundred praises and awards.

“After the graduation ceremony, the Maid Academy will be closed for a month. You can consider it a vacation. Please make sure to relieve all the fatigue you’ve accumulated during that time.”

Yuria smiled genuinely this time.

“Yes, Headmistress.”

• • •

Unlike the entrance ceremony, the graduation ceremony was held quietly in the morning.

The reason it wasn’t held publicly like the entrance ceremony was because a huge crowd would gather if it were public. From nobles and corporate personnel managers to reporters, soldiers, mercenaries, and civic groups, all sorts of people would gather. Their purpose was to recruit graduates from the Maid Academy. There had been problems because of this, so at some point, the graduation ceremony became unofficial.

Wasn’t it a shame for the graduates whose goal was employment? Graduating from the Maid Academy meant they were recognized as elites. They could choose to work for any major corporation in Neo London.

There were 37 graduates in the 94th class of the Maid Academy.

Their representative was Yuria.

The graduation ceremony itself was nothing special.

After listening to Headmistress Maria’s address, Yuria gave a short speech as the representative of the graduating class. After that, each graduate went up to the platform and received their graduation certificate and maid certification from Headmistress Maria, and a badge proving their maid certification was attached to their collar.

Yuria attached a rhombus badge with a cross on it to her collar. From today, she was a Superior-level maid, the fifth of the seven grades of maids.

After exchanging greetings with Headmistress Maria, she said her final goodbyes to her classmates.

“It’s a shame to part ways with you like this, Miss Yuria. But it’s not the end forever. Miss Yuria, we’ll still be friends in the future, right?”

A woman with slightly dark gray silver hair and red eyes said.

Lydia Metcalfe. The daughter of the Metcalfe Earl and Yuria’s classmate who had obtained a triple certification this time.

“Of course, Miss Lydia. I heard you’ll be working for the royal family, at Buckingham Palace no less? You’ve achieved your dream.”

“…I’m embarrassed to say, but I received a little help from my family. Still, I plan to do my best since the royal family chose me. Miss Yuria, please feel free to contact me anytime if you need my help.”

Yuria exchanged pleasantries with her classmates and parted ways on good terms. Then, she boarded the carriage that Eugene had sent, along with her classmate, Juliet.

Juliet Bond. A double-level maid who had been hired by the Meyer Mansion this time.

She was a woman from outside Neo London and Yuria’s next-door neighbor in the dormitory. She was quite lucky. If Yuria hadn’t been there, she would have surely failed to adapt to the academy and been dismissed.

“That I’m going to work for the Meyer Earl’s family… will I be able to do well?”

Just a year ago, the name of the Meyer Earl wasn’t well-known. But now, the Meyer Earl was being hailed as a promising new power. He was making waves in the world with superconductors, so there was no way he wouldn’t be promising.

“It’s okay, Juliet. I vouch for your skills.”

“If Yuria says so…. Ugh. I’m still nervous.”

Juliet was a double-level maid. Her specialties were accounting and agriculture. Yuria had personally taught her accounting. It was to use her, and it had gone according to plan. However, Juliet herself didn’t yet know how capable she was in the field of accounting.

As the carriage got closer to the Meyer Mansion, the smile on Yuria’s face gradually deepened.

‘My master is preparing to move in a hurry, I hear.’

The old mansion in Zone G. It was a mansion with a classic charm, but it was a shabby mansion compared to Eugene’s current reputation.

For nobles, a mansion itself symbolized authority. Unless they were attached to their mansion, it was natural to change their residence.

The zone Eugene was moving to this time was Zone D. The place where the true elites of Neo London lived.

‘It’s the perfect timing for a big clean-up. From the mansion to the items, and even the people. My master is rather indifferent to the inner workings, so I’ll have to check everything myself.’

She had a month.

A month was plenty of time to clean the mansion for her master.

Juliet trembled slightly as she looked at Yuria, who was smiling silently.

“Yuria, is something bothering you? You seem a little different than usual.”

“How could I be bothered when I’m returning to my master? I’m happier than ever.”

“I must have been mistaken. Hehe.”