Freedom's Heart

Chapter 21

It is not a lie to say I am both looking forward to today and feeling anxious at the same time. On the one hand, it seems like fun, but on the other, it feels embarrassing to be the only girl in this outfit. It didn't help that most of the other people here were either gossiping or staring at me when I arrived. Only the game's heroine returns my greeting as she enters the café wearing a maid's outfit.

It suits her. It is not like the bonus unlockable maid outfit, which is more reviling and sexy than cute, but it definitely looks better on her. The cute frills and heart-shaped embroideries decorating the apron and sleeves really help to bring out Ellis's natural charm. I have a feeling if the game makers chose this outfit over the sexy one, more people would have worked to unlock the outfit. The blush on her cheeks really helps sell the outfit.

"Um... can you please not stare, lady Angelina?" Stare? Whoops, I didn't even realise I had been staring at her.

"Oh, sorry..." I feel my cheeks heat up as I look away. "That outfit really suits you."

"Tha... thankyou..." Ellis smiles bashfully. "I am sure you will look even better once you get changed, lady Angelina."

Oh, right, I have to get changed into that. I don't know why but when I joined this club, everyone insisted I wear the butlers uniform inside of a maid's one. At first, I thought they might have been bullying me, but after seeing their reaction when I tried on a butlers suit, I doubted that was the case. I excuse myself to get dressed, leaving the heroine still blushing. What is wrong with me? I have never stared at my family's maids like that before.

My outfit is pretty neat. A white undershirt, black jacket and trousers, black shoes and tie with golden buttons. It fits me so while. I am surprised that they managed to find an outfit this perfect for me. Looking in the mirror, I catch a few eyes peeking in from the door, but they are gone when I turn around. How long were they there? While they looked like girls, I will be more careful next time.

"Lady Angelina..." Ellis gasps when I return. "It really does suit you."

Why do I feel that she would have collapsed with a noise bleed if this was anime as soon as I returned? While she is not the only one who would have. I can see several other girls in the same state while nearly every boy glares daggers at me.

Now our club activities have begun, and things quickly get busy. Like a few others, our club is allowed to serve members of the public from outside of the school. Most of them are the grandparents of my fellow club members. Still, there are others such as parents who bring their children who wish to study here one day for a tour and friends of the teaching staff here for a visit. It is something to complain about, but I am happy as it stops people from focusing too much on me.

The work isn't hard once I get used to it. The menu is simple, with only a few items prepared by both the cooking and backing clubs, so it was easy to memorise. The only problem I had was turning down requests by several girls that I fed them. The girls from our school and the older ones were easy to deal with once I said it was against the club's policy. Still, I did start to feel worried when a few people started to sound like they were planning to change that policy. The hard ones to deal with were the little kids and one spoiled brat who refused to take no for an answer. The kids would cry and beg, but their parents understood my position and calmed them down. That spoiled brat was a different story. She made a big scene about how her family would crush me if I didn't do what she said, but she soon stopped when I told her about my family and future husband. Being from a grand family sure has its perks.

Still, despite the occasional problem customers, I had fun. Miss Erlis and Sara ate together during lunch, and the girls in my club all warmed up to be by when the time came to take a break. The boys still hate me. They glared at me all day and didn't stop even when I caught a girl who slipped in my arm, sparing her from injuries and saving the food on the tray she was carrying. Only wish Ellis wouldn't have shot a stern look my way she saw that. It scared the girl I caught away and had me worrying about being executed in the future.

By the time lunch came around, I was starving. A bad thing about this club is that it is hard not to eat the delicious-looking dishes being served. But it is not all bad. We have a free meal, and we get to eat in a comfortable breakroom. The chairs are nice and soft, and the room is spacious enough to hold our club and the cooking and baking club members. Unfortunately, I can't enjoy the space, and multiple girls from the cooking club ask me to try their food and girls from the baking club hands me bags of cookies and brownies.

"Please try this. I am sure I managed to replicate my mother's cooking,"

"Please accept these. My friends and I worked hard on backing them,"

Needless to say, by the time lunch was over, I was so full it was hard to move. I just couldn't say no to them when they looked so happy and earnest while giving me their presents. At least I avoided eating the baked goods with the promise that I would try them later. But two problems arose in the afternoon. The first is Ellis. She kept glaring my way and muttering about me being too popular. The second problem was worse and took up my entire afternoon, and it came in the form of a particular small dragon.

"Bozzair! Stop!" I yell as I hold onto his tail as he flies towards a large cake the bakery club just brought out. Unfortunately, he is much stronger than I realised. I am being dragged across the floor with my heels leaving deep lines floor behind me. "That cake isn't yours!"

People are watching, and some of the kids are laughing and cheering for the mischievous dragon. He is giving me no choice but to use this. In a split second, I activate my body enhancement spell significantly increases my strength, allowing me to pull him back. Now, no matter how hard he beats his wings or pushes himself, he can't match my strength. I get booed by the children, but some of the bakery club members thank me as I drag Bozzair into an empty room to lock him inside. They were kind enough to let me purchase a cake for Bozzair, so I hope he will behave himself from now on. After thinking about it for a minute, I decided to pay to have a cake prepared for Bozzair every week.