Chapter Four: A Seraph’s Job

After I agreed to be Himeko’s Seraph, she promptly took me to her room.

“Well then, what shall I ask you to do first?”

We were in François House, the dorm that housed the second-year Societal Arts students. Unlike the Domestic Arts students, who all shared a single dormitory, they had one for each year group. However, the size of each building was not that different from ours. In fact, Himeko’s room was even larger than the one I was sharing with three other students; she had a kitchen, a living room, and a bedroom all to herself.

I started wondering at the excess of it all, but I quickly stopped myself. This is all paid for by donations from the Societal Arts students’ families, after all. I can’t exactly complain. Besides, our rooms were more than spacious enough. If I had all this to myself, I wouldn’t have known what to do with it.

After a few moments’ careful thought in the living room area, Himeko turned to me with a charming smile and said, “Oh, I know! First, you can help me get changed.”

However, I couldn’t agree to her request.

It wasn’t that I had a particular aversion to helping her get changed. Just that there was a bigger problem to deal with first. A much bigger problem.

I decided I had to address the elephant in the room. “Um, can I ask you something?”

“By all means,” she replied, apparently unconcerned by the horror of it all.

I spun all the way around to take in the whole room, then threw up my hands in despair. “Himeko, what the hell is up with all this garbage?!”

“Hmm?”

Unlike me, Himeko apparently had no trouble at all filling all this vast amount of space. It was like she was some kind of hoarder. There were mountains of cardboard boxes and paper bags piled up all over the room.

At least half of this 400-square-foot room was crammed full. There was barely any room to walk. The boxes and paper bags looked like the kinds that clothes and books might have come in.

“How did your room end up this messy? Don’t you Societal Arts students get your rooms cleaned on a regular basis? What is your maid doing?” This bothered me enough that I couldn’t help hounding her for answers.

“I don’t let anyone come in here for cleaning. The Domestic Arts students are forced to do it, but we’re allowed to refuse.” She shrank back a little when she replied. It was possible I had come across as a little threatening.

“Why, because they might mistake it for you wanting to make them your Seraph?”

“Yes.”

“Even so, you could at least have someone in here to tidy up! Or, you know, if you really don’t want anyone coming in, you could clean up after yourself.”

“I don’t think it’s that bad.”

“Are you kidding me?!”

There was something very odd about her if she didn’t think there was anything wrong with the state of her room.

“Forget about that. I said I want to get changed! You’re going to help me! It’s an order from your mistress!”

“An order?”

“Come on, hurry up.”

She held her arms out wide and urged me to take her clothes off.

Well, it’s not like I have to live here, I guess. If she’s okay with it, maybe it’s not that bad... Uh, nope. I can’t. It really is that bad.

As Himeko’s Seraph, I was sure I’d have to come here pretty frequently. I didn’t want to have to keep dealing with a room in such terrible shape. It absolutely, definitely needed to be cleaned up.

“All right, then. You got it.” I pretended to obey for the moment and began stripping Himeko of her school uniform. “You’re the deputy chairman, and people call you a celestial. I’d never have expected you to be this lazy.”

“It’s hard work always being perfect in front of everyone. Can’t I at least do what I want in my own room?”

“Yeah, sure. Wait, is this a corset?”

After taking off her jacket, I figured her skirt would be next, but when I untucked her blouse, I noticed an unfamiliar sight. She appeared to be wearing a garment made up of a skirt and corset in one. Below that, she was wearing a hoop skirt.

“Is this the uniform all the Societal Arts students wear?”

“That’s right. Your uniform is designed for ease of movement, but for us, appearance is everything.”

Hmm, I see. It drew in her waist and made it look very slim, but it looked quite constricting. My uniform’s skirt was kind of plain, but I was sure it was far more comfortable.

Above all, putting this on in the morning probably took a lot of time.

“So, uh, how do I get this off?”

“Loosen the strings at the front, then undo the zipper in the back.”

“Aah, got it. So that’s how it works.”

“It’s designed to be put on without anyone else’s help.”

I can see how it would be a problem if she couldn’t get dressed on her own. No matter how much regular maid service your room is getting, they can’t come by every morning.

I removed it from her just as she explained, revealing her pure white panties and her seductive thighs.

Her legs are so toned and slender. They’re beautiful.

When I really thought about it, it was quite incredible to be undressing a gorgeous girl like this with my own two hands.

“Great! Now take off my blouse,” she said with a cheerful air, putting her arms out again. It seemed she didn’t care one bit about me seeing her underwear.

I was a little nervous as I untied the ribbon on her chest and reached for the buttons on her blouse.

You know, undressing someone else is harder than I expected. It doesn’t work the same way as taking off my own clothes. It might take me a while to get the hang of it.

After a bit of fumbling, I successfully unfastened all the buttons and removed her blouse.

“There. All done.”

“Teehee. Thank you.”

Now stripped to her underwear both above and below, Himeko began to spin around joyously in the center of the living room. Her long hair fanned out as she rotated. It was quite amusing to look at.

“Having a Seraph’s pretty great!”

“It sounds like you kind of wanted it after all.”

“A little bit. I mean, all my friends have lovely little maids taking care of their every whim. I try not to be jealous, but I can’t help it.”

“I can see why. It must be really nice.” It sounded like she’d had to struggle quite a bit in her own way.

“It is nice! Oh, now you need to dress me in something comfortable. Hmm, what shall I go for today?”

Now’s my chance!

Watching her buoyant sentiment, I decided it was time to execute my dastardly plan.

“Um, if you don’t mind, I could choose an outfit for you.”

“Oh, you want to do that?”

“Absolutely! Just leave it to me,” I replied cheerfully, careful to ensure she could see nothing of my true intentions.

“Then I’ll let you take care of it, I guess. My clothes are all in the bedroom.”

“Got it. I’ll go and look.”

I left the living room area and went into the bedroom. It was filled to the brim as well, of course—no surprise there. Honestly, it seemed like a huge waste for all these clothes to be piled up unworn like yesterday’s trash.

I bet there are a ton of things in here that she’s never even worn!

Everywhere I looked, I saw expensive-looking designer clothes. But none of it fit the bill at this present moment. I was looking for something very specific.

I chuckled to myself. “Found it!”

I didn’t have to look far to find what I was looking for piled haphazardly on top of a rack with a bunch of other clothes. It appeared to be made of finer fabric, but otherwise it was basically identical to the one I normally wore.

With the garment in hand, I returned to the living room. I couldn’t wait to see Himeko’s reaction.

“Why don’t you put this on, Himeko?” With a smile of self-satisfaction, I showed her what I held in my hands.

She let out a tiny shriek. “Why on earth did you pick that out? There must have been tons of better options!”

“Right now, nothing’ll suit you better.” I held up the school’s designated tracksuit in front of her and steadily drew closer.

“No, I’m not putting that on. We’re celebrating your first day as a Seraph. I want to put on a casual dress or something and have a nice chat over tea!”

“We already talked and drank tea and had tasty donuts back at the Sky Salon. What we need to do now is clean up your room. I can’t treat you like a proper lady until that’s over and done with.”

“I don’t wanna! We can clean up some other time. Please, at least for today, I want you to do what I tell you.”

“No way. If you keep putting it off until later, it’ll never get done. Come on, I’ll help you. We can do it together.”

I wasn’t going to budge on this no matter what Himeko said. She looked absolutely repulsed, but she ended up wearing that tracksuit.

✤

Still unwilling to give in, Himeko clung tightly to the sofa, shaking her head from side to side.

“Seriously? I went to all that trouble to help you. I expected gratitude, not revenge!”

“What do you mean? Helping you clean up your room is my way of thanking you. Look, all you have to do is pick up all the paper bags and put them in a garbage bag. I’ll flatten all the boxes. A lot of them are empty, right?”

“Yes, but not all of them.” As she replied, she reluctantly began to move at last.

So I have to check inside every single one? Ugh, what a pain.

“My father sends me new clothes every month. Opening them all takes forever, and after a while I ran out of places to put them all, so I started just leaving them in the boxes.”

“Right, fair enough.”

It was a setback, but not a devastating one. For now, I opened each box and just tucked the non-empty ones away into a corner. The ones that were empty, I flattened with my feet.

Himeko spent a while absorbed in her own task, then she suddenly shot up. “Misaki! I just remembered I have some things to give you.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. An apron and a headpiece. Now, where did I put them?” She started looking around the room.

“The school already gave me an apron.” I hadn’t had a chance to use it in class yet, but a brand-new apron was ready and waiting in my room.

“That’s for normal students. Sky Salon maids get a special kind of apron. Every salon has its own design, in fact. That way everyone knows what salon you belong to.”

“Wow, I had no idea.” So I’ll get one of those aprons the other maids at the Sky Salon were wearing?

“Found it! Here, give them a try.”

“All right.”

I took the apron and headpiece, then unwrapped them and quickly put them on.

The apron looked similar to mine—both were embroidered with the school logo—but it hung down lower at the front and had larger frills. The lacy, ruffled headpiece had triangular points with stars at the tips.

I laughed awkwardly. This was my first time fully dressed up as a maid, so I was a little embarrassed. “How do I look?”

“Positively adorable! They really suit you. Hey, wouldn’t it be such a waste if you got your brand-new apron dirty? Why don’t we call it a day for now?”

“The whole point is that this gets dirty instead of my uniform. Let’s stay focused and get your room clean!”

“Oh, fine.”

Himeko’s momentary hopes of slacking off were quickly dashed. She resigned herself with a sigh and carried on picking up the paper bags.

Not long afterward, when we were finally about halfway done, the bell rang to signal that it was six o’clock.

“I guess we can stop here for today. I have to get back to my dorm at some point.”

Himeko sighed with exhaustion. “It’s certainly much tidier than it was. I’m totally fine with leaving it like this forever.”

“Well, I’m not! We’re going to pick it back up tomorrow. I have class in the afternoon from now on, so I won’t really have time until after that. That means we’ll have to work even harder. No time to sit around and drink tea at the Sky Salon.” I had to head off Himeko’s other plans so she couldn’t wheedle her way out of this.

In a fed-up tone, she grumbled, “How’d I end up with a Seraph who’s so mean to her mistress? It’s like I have a demon maid!”

“If your room’s a mess, I can’t take proper care of you. As soon as we’re done cleaning, I’ll do whatever you want, so let’s give it our all and get it finished.”

“Really? Whatever I want?”

“That’s what I said.”

“Then I’ll work as hard as I can. In the meantime, I’ll start writing a list of everything I want you to do when we’re done.”

“Sure, whatever works.”

Looks like Himeko’s pretty excited about finally getting a Seraph. She’s more into the idea than I thought. I guess she has had to deal with everything on her own so far.

I was going to get paid for being her Seraph, so I didn’t have any objection to being nice and helping her out. It would just have to come after we got her room cleaned up.

“Anyway, since I’m leaving, I’ll take the trash out.” I hoisted up the four garbage bags full of paper and cardboard.

I knew I couldn’t give the trash to Himeko and make her carry it outside. Rumors would start spreading that I was a terrible maid who was forcing my mistress to do all the work. Then I’d probably get expelled. Besides, it was all just paper at the end of the day. The bags weren’t so heavy that I couldn’t lift them on my own.

Himeko opened the door for me. After taking one step through, I turned around. I suppose I should say something. It wouldn’t hurt to try to sound a little bit like a maid, right?

“Uhm, I realize I’m leaving kind of early.” When I was done with that preamble, I smiled at Himeko as charmingly as I could manage. “But I hope you have a good evening, milady.”

Remembering Himeko’s reaction afterward made me grin to myself. Her whole face lit up with a smile so broad that I felt a little bashful looking at her.

✤

Wearily, I opened the door and called out a greeting to my roommates. The day’s events hadn’t been physically exhausting, but they had still taken a toll on me.

I knew Kirara would want to hear all about the Sky Salon. What I didn’t anticipate was locking eyes with her the moment I stepped inside. She had just seemingly come out of the bathroom.

“Oh! Kirara!”

I didn’t have time to fit in another word before she ran over to me with such intensity that I thought she was going to grab me. “I see what you’re wearing! Ugh, I’m so jealous!”

Then, she really did grab me.

“Hey! Wait! Stop!”

“Those are the special apron and headpiece that only Sky Salon maids get to wear, right? I knew it! I knew you’d get them!”

I realized I should have taken them off before I got home. No wonder people were staring at me when I arrived back at the dorm. I replied with a vague agreement, and she held me by the scruff of the neck and shook me back and forth.

“What was the Sky Salon like? Did you meet Lady Kagura? Is anyone looking for a new Seraph?”

“Look, calm down, okay?” If she kept shaking me, I wasn’t sure I’d stay conscious.

“I am calm! Now, spit out everything you know about the Sky Salon and everyone in it! Have you been there this whole time?”

There was nothing I could do to get Kirara’s burning curiosity under control. I was reduced to a human bobblehead until one of our other roommates heard the noise and came to my rescue.

✤

“But that’s INSANE!”

When I told Kirara about my visits to the Sky Salon and Himeko’s dorm room, she practically exploded. I had a vague sense of déjà vu.

“Not only did you get treated to tea and donuts at the Sky Salon, but Lady Himeko invited you to her room afterward?!”

“Um, yeah. That’s right.”

Kirara was trembling all over. She seemed more than a little jealous.

I decided not to tell her that I made Himeko clean up her own room. I had the feeling she’d slap me, then slap me again for good measure.

“It was tough to believe, but I guess you really are a celestial now, Misaki.” She stared into the distance. “My best friend, a celestial.”

I’m her best friend now?

“That still makes me sound way more important than I am. It sounds like I’m basically just going to be serving tea up there.”

“It doesn’t matter what you’re doing there. If you’re allowed in, you’re a celestial.”

“Fair enough,” I said, thinking better of disagreeing any further. This whole subject seemed to make Kirara very agitated. The thought of becoming a Seraph, especially to the kind of high-class lady I was now the servant of, really got her fired up.

“Now you’ll be hanging out in the Sky Salon every day after school, right?”

“Maybe. I dunno. It looks like I’ll mostly be going to Himeko’s room this week.”

“Huh? What are you doing in there?”

“Oh, uh, well...”

I can’t tell her that I’m helping Himeko clean up her pigsty of a room. If she finds out what a slob Himeko is, it’ll shatter all her illusions.

“You know, chatting. Getting to know each other better. I have to learn all the little details about Himeko’s lifestyle.”

I’d just said the first thing that came into my head, but Kirara looked back with a very serious expression. “Hmm, yeah. That’s really important. Sounds like you’re taking the job pretty seriously considering you had no interest in being a maid to begin with.”

“Yeah, I suppose. You know what they say—when in Rome, do as the Romans do. I’ve been given the honor of being Himeko’s Seraph, so I’m going to give it my all.”

“That’s the spirit! You should be ready to work your fingers to the bone to make your mistress happy!”

After a pause, I said, “Sure!”

“Gah, it still makes me so jealous, though. You’re the first girl in our year to get a special apron! It’s so unfair!”

Until we went to bed, Kirara spent the rest of the evening looking at me and occasionally muttering, “It’s so unfair.”

✤

After class the next day, I returned to Himeko’s room as promised.

“Do I really have to wear this again?” She looked up at me with puppy dog eyes.

“Of course. I told you, we’re going to keep working at this until your room’s all clean. That’s what you agreed to.”

“Fine. I get it.” Himeko pouted, but she acquiesced.

After helping her get changed a second time, I felt like I was getting a little more used to it. Maybe a tracksuit’s easier than other clothes, though. I tried to imagine what it would be like putting her in a dress—which I was sure I’d have a chance to do soon. Despite myself, I hoped I’d get a chance to dress up my mistress in something really stunning. I bet being dressed to the nines would really suit her.

“Now, let’s see if we can get it all done today.”

“Sounds good!”

Himeko worked a lot more actively this time, so our progress was much quicker. Soon enough, all the boxes and paper bags were cleared out of the living room, which was restored to the wide-open space it was supposed to be. “Today” was a bit ambitious, but it definitely wasn’t going to take all week.

“By the way, is there anyone else from the Sky Salon who’s looking for a Seraph?”

“Huh? You’re bored with being mine already?”

“No, no, no. It’s about my roommate. She really wants to be a Seraph. It’s basically all she lives for. Last night, she kept staring at me and muttering about how unfair it is that I’m a Seraph and she isn’t.” It was like she was cursing me under her breath.

“I see. Well, that’s the same goal all the Domestic Arts students have.” Teasingly, she added, “Except you, I guess.”

“Look, uh, let’s focus on my roommate, all right? She especially wants to serve one of the young ladies from the Sky Salon. I have to at least ask.”

“Fair enough. Hmm, I think she might be out of luck, though. They all have Seraphs already. It is possible Kagura will let some new members join, and they would then need Seraphs. That’s probably your friend’s only hope.”

“Oh.” Kirara’s going to be disappointed.

“I mean, it’s not like there’s a rule that you can only have one Seraph. There might be someone who’s thinking of choosing another one.”

“Now that I think about it, Kagura has two, right? The Ayakas are both her Seraphs.”

“Yeah. Some people have even been known to have five Seraphs. No one in the Sky Salon, though.”

“Wow, that’s a lot.”

“That way, they can have all kinds of different maids lined up. A housemaid, a kitchen maid, and so on.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

Maybe all hope wasn’t lost for Kirara after all. It would be nice to have her there at the Sky Salon too. It’s kind of daunting to be the only first-year student. Plus, it would make her get over this crazy jealous streak. Hopefully.

✤

On the third day, the end of our quest was in sight at last. We had already thrown out all the garbage the day before, so it was just a matter of cleaning the floor.

I didn’t need Himeko to help with this part. It wasn’t a particularly time-consuming task, and I had a plan in mind that required Himeko to be out of the room. With an upbeat “Don’t worry, I’ll handle the rest!” I sent Himeko out to have dinner while I stayed behind.

It should be about thirty minutes to an hour before she gets back.

I cleaned the floor in a few minutes and walked over to the kitchen area. It didn’t have much of a lived-in feel. Most likely, she’d hardly ever used it. Still, it had all the necessary equipment.

The dorm was outfitted with cafes and restaurants, so there wasn’t really any need for the students to do their own cooking. The thing I was about to make was readily available to buy, as well. You could easily get tastier ones than mine.

Nevertheless, I had to show Himeko my gratitude. She’d really helped me out. Kirara had said so as well. Not only had Himeko prevented me from being expelled, but making me into her Seraph had given me all kinds of special advantages. Originally, it had seemed like more trouble than it was worth, but now I was pretty content. Not that many people would have been as considerate as she was.

That was why I wanted to show my gratitude by making her some homemade donuts.

I just hope she likes them.

I opened the refrigerator and took out the batter I’d sneakily stowed there. I’d done all the prep work in my room beforehand.

The ingredients had come from a little supermarket on campus. I didn’t have any money to pay for them, of course, so I’d borrowed some from Kirara.

She said I could repay her by introducing her to young ladies looking for new Seraphs, but that’s not looking all that likely, so I’d better pay her back as soon as I can.

“Right!”

I had to get them fried before Himeko came back, so I got started right away. I’ll shape the donuts while the oil is heating.

I couldn’t make the kinds of elaborate donuts you’d get in a store—they were going to be old-fashioned donuts that were more like cookies—but I was confident in myself. I knew they’d be delicious.

Once I’d fried them to a beautiful golden brown, I covered them in a warmed-up chocolate sauce. Then I arranged them neatly on a plate and put them on the table just as I heard the door opening.

She’s back!

“Welcome home,” I said, hurrying over to greet her.

She looked at me with a measure of surprise. “Oh. Thanks.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m just not used to having someone here when I get back. It’s been a long time since I heard someone say ‘welcome home.’”

She smiled as she spoke. I hadn’t realized that something so small would make her so happy. Her reaction made me feel all warm and fuzzy as well.

“Something smells nice.”

“Oh, right! Um, I made you some donuts. You’re not too full from dinner, are you?”

“You made them for me? Don’t worry, I never stuff myself too much. Besides, there’s always room for dessert.” Himeko gave a lighthearted wink.

“Thank goodness! I’ll make tea, so go ahead and sit down.”

“Sure thing.” She took one step through the door, then suddenly said, “That reminds me! Now that the cleaning’s finished, that means you’re going to start treating me like your mistress, right?”

“Yup.”

That was what I’d promised her. Himeko had also said she’d write a list of things she wanted me to do, so I was going to do my best to fulfill her wishes.

“In that case, there’s one thing I’d really like you to do.”

“Tell me.”

“Well, basically...” Even though we were alone in her room, Himeko leaned forward and whispered it into my ear.

“Gosh! I never took you for that kind of person. I guess you really like being treated like a queen.”

“No! It’s not like that! It’s just the new in thing, so I hear. They call it the ‘sacred vow.’ Supposedly, it strengthens the bond between a mistress and her Seraph.” She turned bright red as she fought to justify her request.

“I don’t mind. We can’t do it right in front of the door, though. It won’t have the right atmosphere. Let’s go into the living room.”

“Good idea.”

We went inside and I turned to face her. I’m starting to blush already. It’s a special request from Himeko, though. I have to do it.

I looked directly into her eyes. This was our true beginning. I was going to serve her for a year. She would be my one and only mistress.

She had given me the golden badge that showed I was her Seraph, and this was my repayment for that. The proof of my sworn allegiance to her.

I kneeled and lowered my head.

“Misaki Hotaru, do you acknowledge me as your mistress and swear to accompany me through life at the academy?”

“Yes. I swear.”

Himeko offered her right hand. I respectfully took it in both of mine and brought it up to my lips.

Now I had sworn to her. I had officially accepted becoming Himeko’s Seraph.

“I am at your command, milady.”

“Excellent.” She smiled like a true lady and nodded in a satisfied manner.

Himeko’s like a queen—and the academy is a kingdom of girls.