Nebula had graciously accepted Ein-san’s request, and since our business was concluded, I spent some time making idle small talk with Ein-san to avoid ending things too abruptly.
Nebula stepped out of the room, mentioning she would prepare some of the new tea leaves for her, and a few moments later, Illness-san arrived with a selection of tea snacks.
"My goodness!" Ein-san gasped.
"Ein-san?"
"A Maid Power of 330,000?! I am certain it was 280,000 before. Are you telling me you increased your Maid Power by 50,000 in just a few short months...?"
Oh boy, here she goes again with the weird stuff. If I remembered correctly, Maid Power was the numerical value of the Maidric Aura emitted by a maid who had mastered the fundamentals of heart, technique, and body. It was basically a metric of their skill level.
...I hated that I’d actually committed this nonsensical maid theory to memory.
"How terrifying. Even a value of 280,000 is higher than any existing maid excluding myself, yet for you, that wasn't the ceiling but merely a waypoint... As I suspected, you are truly the supernova of the Maid World! You absolutely must participate in Maid Olympia—"
"I'll pass~"
It seemed Illness-san had indeed grown significantly as a maid, and while a visibly excited Ein-san tried to recruit her for the quadrennial festival of maids, Illness-san flatly refused, completely unfazed by the pressure.
Still, setting the odd terminology aside, did Illness-san’s skills really improve? I felt like she’d been even more impressive than usual lately, so maybe there was something to it.
"What a pity. If you ever change your mind, please contact me. However, to raise one's Maid Power this much in such a short window, you must have acquired one of the specific factors that allows a maid to evolve."
"U-Uh, Ein-san? What are you on about now?"
"As Kaito-sama is well aware, the three essential elements for a first-class maid are a Devoted Heart, Outstanding Technique, and Overwhelming Combat Power."
As if I knew any of that... I could understand the first two, but "overwhelming combat power"? What kind of image does Ein-san have of a "first-class maid"?
"Those three elements can be obtained through a maid’s own discipline; they are merely the basics. However, a maid is never truly complete on her own. Beyond individual effort, there are uncertain factors involving luck and destiny. While they are incredibly difficult to find, acquiring one allows a maid to ascend to the next stage of her existence."
"I-Is that so?"
When it came to the subject of maids, Ein-san’s usual composure vanished, replaced by an unstoppable urge to lecture.
"To give an example, finding a master whom one can serve from the heart and find true happiness in is one such factor. A maid with a worthy master can grow immensely through that connection alone. That said, you have possessed that for quite some time. What you have gained this time is likely... a 'Respectable Friend,' or perhaps a rival. That is another element that triggers significant growth."
"I see~"
"I was able to achieve my current Maid Power of 530,000 not only because of a wonderful master like Chrome-sama, but because I had Shaltier—a rival with whom I could mutually respect and elevate myself."
As Ein-san spoke while clenching her fist with conviction, an exasperated-looking Alice manifested beside me.
"Hey, don't just start making things up. You're the one who keeps calling me your rival and picking fights, Ein-san. I don't remember ever agreeing to that, nor do I have any plans to start."
"I have grown tremendously thanks to our many Maid Battles. It seems you have encountered such an irreplaceable person as well, Illness-san."
"Listen to me! Why are you ignoring me, you Maid Idiot?!"
Alice’s protests aside, the "Respectable Friend" Ein-san mentioned was almost certainly Nebula. Illness-san was constantly praising Nebula and mentioned being surprised by her creativity. The two were very close and were always trying out new things together; that was likely the catalyst for Illness-san’s improvement.
I could understand that much from watching their daily lives... but what kind of monster was Ein-san to figure all that out just by looking at a Maidric Aura?
"Actually, I've been wondering about something," Alice said. "You're always insisting I'm your maid rival and all that... so do I not have that 'Aura of the side that is served' or whatever you mentioned?"
"In your case, I think you are exceptionally well-suited to being a maid, even if you are incredibly picky about your master. Your devotion to Kaito-sama is truly a sight to behold. To begin with, very few people possess either an 'Aura of the side that is served' or an 'Aura of the side that serves.' Most people are neutral... but in your case, despite your lack of honesty, you possess an unparalleled 'Aura of the side that serves' regarding Kaito-sama. It is fueled by an overflowing love—!"
"Right. Outside. Now, you Rotten Maid."
Alice smoothly drew a knife, her voice dropping into a menacing register. However, looking at her from the side, I could see that her ears were glowing bright red.
Serious-senpai: "So you can even tell that much from a Maidric Aura... Maids are terrifying."