Carol Cat used the skill "Acting Cute," it was super effective!
...Ideals and reality always differ. I don't deny that Carol Cat's cuteness has the powerful destructive force to give countless male players heart attacks. But perhaps because I've become a girl, I feel like I've gained natural resistance to moe attacks. I wonder if the game developers even bothered setting up trivial things like hormones?
However, I'm not opposed to helping Carol Cat—it's just a simple favor.
The law Carol Cat violated was most likely walking around the village at night without carrying a torch. Many adventurers unconsciously ignore curfew regulations. It's not a serious offense, but lowering [Reputation] with the guards is still troublesome.
I moved my body away from blocking the front door, silently gesturing for Carol Cat to enter.
"Thank you nya!"
But I didn't close the door. Instead, I waited for the patrolling guards to leave before politely issuing an eviction notice to Carol Cat, who had already started looking around the house.
"Alright, please go back now."
"Nya nya nya???"
"The gentlemen outside have already left."
This isn't a shelter, and setting aside simple favors, I have no obligation to provide room and board.
"No way, it's already dark, and it's dangerous to leave a helpless girl outside nya..."
"But don't you have a longbow on your back?"
Although not all adventurers excel at combat, beastkin are the most martial race, and Arcadia is the only country where becoming a national leader requires fighting with real weapons in an arena. Moreover, the "beast" characteristic gives beastkin natural wildness—they're born as a warrior race.
Longbows are relatively rare weapons among beastkin, so it seems Carol Cat is an adventurer who specializes in archery.
She definitely couldn't be a helpless weak woman. However, directly kicking someone out would be too rude, so I didn't issue any further verbal eviction orders.
I took out an item from my storage space: dried fish.
The moment she smelled the dried fish's aroma, Carol Cat's nimble cat tail straightened up.
I seized the opportunity to throw the dried fish into the air over the front yard. Carol Cat reflexively pounced out with the posture of a hungry cat catching food, and I immediately closed the door.
All in one smooth motion, resolved in less than three seconds.
I should go take a bath and then accompany Lily to sleep.
Knock knock knock~
Again?
Even though I, as a maid, wouldn't feel impatient, what reason could make Carol Cat so persistent that she'd risk being arrested by guards for violating curfew laws?
When I opened the door again, I actually had to look down to see Carol Cat.
"..."
In just a few seconds, Carol Cat had somehow obtained a cardboard box. Her petite body was curled up inside the box, looking at me with pitiful eyes. Around her jade-white neck hung a small wooden sign with large characters: "Please take in this homeless little cat girl."
The upper right corner of the wooden block even had a cute Q-version cat paw drawing.
Carol Cat left me both amused and exasperated, but I had to admit that the current Carol Cat was much more interesting than before. However, I still didn't understand the reason for her persistence.
"Miss Carol Cat, why put yourself through this?"
"A wanderer in a foreign land has nowhere to go nya... I can do anything! I can help catch fish!"
"My fishing level is Lv.Max."
"I'm good at exterminating pests!"
"Not allowing any pests near my master is a maid's sacred duty."
"I, I can help run errands nya..."
"I can get from Rothschild to Baron Hurst's territory in one minute."
Am I dampening Miss Carol Cat's enthusiasm too much? But I'm truly sorry—maids have pride in daily skills that cannot lose to anyone.
Carol Cat's cat ears began to droop dejectedly as she muttered things like "I can't possibly warm the bed nya." Actually, even my bed-warming skill is at Lv. Max, but I'd better not say that and further discourage Miss Carol Cat.
Give up—when it comes to bed-warming, you can't beat me.
Just as the patrolling guards were about to return, I was preparing to remind Miss Carol Cat.
"Actually! Actually, I'm a fan of Miss Anna nya!"
Carol Cat blurted out a statement that was quite shocking to me.
Eh?
I actually... have female fans?
All this time, the adventurers blocking Rothschild's entrance have been male. The game doesn't allow cross-gender account creation, so all male adventurers must be male players.
The gender bias is unavoidable—after all, I possess three characteristics that clearly target male players: huge breasts, big oppai, and an ample chest. Young Miss used to consider girls with these traits as mortal enemies, so I was starting to think I was completely invisible to female players.
Although it looks like Carol Cat only became a fan as a last resort when she had nowhere else to go, that doesn't matter.
"Come in."
I temporarily changed my mind and decided to try taking in Carol Cat for now.
From a game management perspective, it's unlikely they'd restrict the affection system by gender.
In other words, female players should also be able to respond to my affection system, but no female players have come forward proactively. All members of Anna's Support Group are also male, and I don't seem to have any fanatical female fans—though I can't rule out the possibility that some are still on their way.
Although I don't currently feel any increase in affection toward Carol Cat, as they say, familiarity breeds fondness. After spending time together, affection will eventually increase. As for how a girl maxes out another girl's affection... I'll think about that later.