1 Welcome home, Master

I let out a tired yawn, stretching my arms above my head. It had been another sleepless night.

"Staying up all night again, Sorata-san?"

"Satsuki-san? Yeah... I couldn't help it. I got hooked on this new visual novel Eroge game called 'Maid in Fantasy'.

The story revolves around a protagonist who becomes a master and is surrounded by various charming maids. It's not just about the 18+ scenes, but rather the way the story delves into their individual lives and how they interact with the protagonist.

Each maid has her unique personality, some are clumsy, serious, shy, or happy. And you know what? They all look absolutely stunning in their maid outfits, especially with glasses and wearing pantyhose or stockings.

He shrugged, "Well, to each their own. You know me, I'm into stories with incest themes, particularly involving little sisters."

"Sis-con..."

He rolled my eyes playfully, retorting, "Shut up."

As my friend and I walked to our classroom, the morning class was about, to begin with the usual homeroom session. I took my seat on the left side of the window, which offered a great view of the entire track and field outside.

The teacher, Kuba Akiko, tapped the wooden podium to get everyone's attention. "Okay, everyone! Remember to take notes for your quiz at Friday in Literature subject."

In unison, the class replied with a half-hearted "yes" before groaning in response to the upcoming quiz.

"What's with all of you?" Ms. Akiko sighed, who is clearly not amused by the lack of enthusiasm.

Ms. Akiko, our adviser, and the literature subject teacher, was single and 25 years old. I heard rumors that she had been unlucky in her relationships with men, constantly getting deceived by them.

I couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards her. "Please, Lord, give this teacher a boyfriend so she can be happy," I quietly whispered to myself, clapping my hands once and closing my eyes in a brief prayer.

"Oh? Sorata-kun, aren't you praying early?" Ms. Akiko's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"Yes, I'm praying. Please don't disturb me."

"Hmmm~ Praying for a passing grade?"

shook my head. "No, ma'am. I'm praying so you can find a loving husband."

Without warning, I felt a piece of chalk hitting my head, "Ow!?"

Opening my eyes, I looked at Ms. Akiko, who seemed both amused and annoyed. I could practically feel her bloodlust emanating from her gaze.

"Maybe I should have kept that last part to myself," I muttered.

"Sorata-kun...~ How about I give you the most challenging questions, hmmm?~" Ms. Akiko teased with a playful glint in her eyes.

My face went pale as I smiled nervously. "N-No, ma'am, your subject is already hard for me."

It was the truth; English had always been my weakness, even though I was half Japanese and half Russian. The literature subject seemed to be my Achilles' heel, and I often found myself struggling to keep up. Thankfully, I managed to fare better in other subjects.

"Anyway, all of you! Make sure you guys review, or else I'll call your parents!" Ms. Akiko warned the class sternly before walking to the door and opening it, only to slam it shut.

The classroom instantly became noisy with chatter as everyone discussed their thoughts on the quiz.

As for me, I couldn't help but feel apprehensive; I knew I hadn't prepared enough, and failing seemed inevitable.

Trying to distract myself from the impending doom, I took out my phone and started playing a visual novel for mobile called "Maid Master."

Another game, yes, but this one was an action-packed adventure where the protagonist leads a team of MAIDs to battle against the NURSEs and protect humanity.

"Maid Master." It was a nice escape from reality at least.

"Oh, there's a new MAID?" I thought with excitement. Luckily, I had saved enough in-game currency for the new banner.

Just as I was about to pull for a new maid character in the game, a voicemail notification popped up, and I saw that it was from my father.

Knowing my father, it was likely to be another message about assassinations. My family had a complicated background, and my father's work involved matters that were better left undisclosed.

"Urgk, I have a bad feeling about this," I muttered to myself, contemplating whether to listen to the message right away or not.

Feeling uneasy, I stood up and opened the door to the classroom. Just then, Satsuki called out to me.

"Hey, where are you going? The math class teacher is about to come to our classroom, you know?"

"Toilet."

"Ah, alright," Satsuki responded before turning back to his friends, probably discussing their favorite little sister stories again.

I couldn't help but sigh at the thought of Satsuki's influence on the other boys in the class.

Walking briskly, I made my way out of the classroom and headed toward the boy's bathroom.

"Now then, what did my father send to me?" I opened the message and clicked "play" on the voicemail.

"Ryo-kun, I will be out for a year. You already know that our family is known for assassination, except it's not known to the public yet. There's a shadow war going on right now, and the government tasked our family to handle this and deploy us to the United States," my father's voice explained.

But then, a familiar female voice chimed in, "Ryo-chan, if you feel lonely~ Don't worry! We're sending some maids to the household~"

Maids?!

"Fufufu~ knowing you, I'm sure you love maids~"

How did she know that?!

"Anyway~ Goodbye, dear~" The voicemail ended.

"Seriously! Mom!" I gritted my teeth, clenching my hand, but then sighed and looked at myself in the mirror. "Maids... huh..."

I couldn't believe this was real. A maid in our household? It felt like a fantasy come to life, and my heart was already racing with excitement and nervousness.

I didn't know what to do or how to act around them. Should I try to impress them? Should I borrow Satsuki-san's perfume to seem more sophisticated?

Then, a rather inappropriate thought from an eroge scene popped into my head, and I blushed, feeling embarrassed about my imagination running wild.

"Great, just great," I muttered to myself, trying to push those thoughts aside.

This is a serious situation, and I needed to approach it with maturity.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to compose myself and think about the reality of the situation. Having maids in the household was not something I had ever expected.

But, ultimately, it was also an opportunity to experience something new and perhaps learn from the maids' presence.

"Alright...!" I clapped both my cheeks and shook my head, trying to clear my mind from any inappropriate thoughts.

For now... I should check my room for hidden cameras or wiretaps.

I headed back to the classroom, opened the door, and stepped inside. The teacher's glare met my eyes as she questioned, "Sorata-kun, why are you late?"

"Toilet."

"Hmph, get back to your seat. For now, I'll let you off with a warning," she said sternly.

I nodded, returning to my desk, I looked outside the window

Ahh, please let this school day end soon...

The lunchtime bell chimed, and our math teacher reminded us to complete our homework before leaving the classroom.

As the teacher departed, my classmates gathered around their desks, eagerly opening their bento boxes to enjoy their lunches.

Satsuki approached me. "Sorata-san, wanna go get lunch?"

"Yeah... But first... Do you mind lending me your perfume?"

"Huh? Why?" Satsuki raised an eyebrow, clearly puzzled.

"Just give it to me."

"F-Fine... Geez, don't rush me," he said, walking back to his desk. He opened his bag and grabbed the perfume before tossing it to me, and I managed to catch it.

I wanted to borrow the perfume to make a good impression when the maids arrived at our home.

It might sound silly, but I wanted to present myself in the best way possible.

"Thank you, Satsuki," I said, expressing my gratitude for lending me the perfume.

"Y-Yeah... Can we go to the cafeteria already?"

"Yeah, let's go," I agreed, following him towards the cafeteria.

As we entered, the cafeteria was as busy and bustling as ever, filled with students chatting and enjoying their lunches.

"Damn, we're late!"

"Late for what?"

"The matcha paste bun is gone..." he sighed, looking downcast.

"Matcha paste bun? I didn't know they had that here."

"Yeah, it's my favorite, but they always run out quickly."

"Maybe next time you'll get lucky and they'll have more."

"Yeah, hopefully."

We had a normal lunchtime, chatting and enjoying our time together. As the afternoon classes passed by, I felt a growing sense of excitement to get back home

When the final bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, I immediately stood up and headed to the classroom door.

"Hm? Sorata-san, wanna go to the arcade?"

"Not now."

"Eh? Why?" Satsuki seemed puzzled.

"I have some business to attend to."

"Oh, I see... Go on, I guess... But don't forget the perfume!"

"Yeah! I'll give it back tomorrow," I assured him, before rushing off.

Without wasting any time, I ran down the hallway, hoping to reach the open window on the second floor, which would allow me to make a quick exit. A teacher spotted me and yelled, "Hey! Don't run in the hallway!"

"Sorry! I'm in a hurry!" I quickly apologized before continuing my dash to the window.

As I reached the open window, I jumped out, hearing the teacher yelling, "THIS IS THE SECOND FLOOR!!" But I was prepared and gracefully rolled as I landed on the ground.

"Ah, yikes, this fence is tall," I muttered to myself, assessing my surroundings. Without missing a beat, I jumped onto the top of a car and then leaped over the fence, making it to the other side.

"Phew!" I exhaled with relief and started running again, heading towards my house.

My father's insistence on training and practicing parkour with him came in handy now, as it allowed me to navigate these unconventional paths with ease.

Using my parkour skills, I jumped from one roof to another, ran along the side of fences, and climbed over obstacles as I made my way to my house.

The adrenaline rushing through my veins reminded me of how exhilarating it was to move this way, even though it had been a while since I had done it from school to home.

Finally, I reached my house, and I couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. Sweeping the sweat from my forehead, I chuckled to myself, "Well, that wasn't so bad. It's been a while since I parkoured all the way here from school!"

I grabbed the perfume and used it, taking a moment to sniff its pleasant scent. "I'm... sure this is good," I thought to myself before opening the gate and entering the front yard.

As I approached the front door, I noticed someone staring at me from the window. "Hm?" I tilted my head in confusion, but then shook it off and continued towards the door.

Taking a deep breath, I arrived at my front door. "Here it is..." I murmured, slowly opening the door.

However, to my surprise, a knife came flying towards me, and I immediately ducked down to avoid it. "What the!?"

As I glanced towards the front, I saw ten maids standing there. I couldn't help but wonder if one of them had thrown the knife at me.

Their sudden appearance and strange behavior puzzled me.

I kept my guard up as I cautiously entered the house, but the door closed on its own, causing a shiver to run down my spine. "Now that I think about it... Why would my father hire maids? To pamper me? Take care of me while they're gone? No... That's not what my father would do... These maids are...!"

Before I could finish my thought, a cold yet soft voice interrupted. "That's right, Ryo-sama," she said as she slowly revealed herself, walking towards me. "My name is Kawai Suzume. I am the chief maid. A pleasure to meet you."

With a snap of her fingers, more maids appeared, revealing themselves one by one.

"Welcome home, Master," they all said in unison.

These maids... are assassins!