Ren Daozhen

In the evening, after sending off all the customers and bidding farewell to Claire, Aliciel closed the shop and began interrogating the green-clad young man.

“Hey, since you’re interrogating me, shouldn’t you be wearing something like an inquisitor’s uniform?”

“I only wear maid outfits. You seem to be in a good mood, still able to joke.”

“Hahaha…”

The green-clad young man forced a smile, tears of regret streaming down his face.

“Name, age, birthplace?”

“Ren Daozhen, twenty years old, born in the Celestial Empire on Earth.”

“Occupation?”

“Student.”

“Oh?”

Aliciel raised her head slightly and looked at the young man named Ren Daozhen with a smile.

“Let me remind you, I can read people. I can tell if you’re lying just by the slight changes in your eyes and the corners of your mouth.”

Aliciel wasn’t trying to scare him. A maid’s duty was to follow her master’s orders, but sometimes she also had to learn to read her master’s thoughts and provide appropriate suggestions. This ability to read people wasn’t just for maids; many high-ranking officials would specifically seek instruction, but whether they could learn it was another matter.

“…Actually, I’m a shut-in, a degenerate, just rotting away at home.”

Faced with Aliciel’s pressure, the young man immediately caved, his face filled with despair as he answered in a low voice.

“So, why did you transmigrate to this world, or rather, what did you experience before you transmigrated?”

“I was passing by a river and saw someone drowning. I subconsciously went to help, but then…”

“Oh, you acted heroically? That’s commendable.”

Ren Daozhen didn’t tell the whole story. He did go to save the drowning person, but when he was about to get in the water, he slipped, hit his head on a rock, and lost consciousness. When he woke up, he had transmigrated to this world.

If he told the truth, what little dignity he had left would be completely shattered.

“So, what did you experience after you transmigrated?”

“Because I was an undocumented person, I was treated as a refugee who had snuck into the city and was sent to prison. Then I was released, penniless and almost starving to death. Fortunately, a kind child saved me. Because a tool called a mobile phone that I was carrying was lost, I went out to look for it and happened to pass by here. Because this shop’s decoration was so different from other shops, I thought the owner was a transmigrator like me, so…”

In a medieval Western fantasy world, a modern maid café suddenly appeared, and the shop was decorated with famous works from Earth. It was no wonder Ren Daozhen had made a mistake.

“I see, I understand.”

“I still don’t understand. If you’re not a transmigrator, why did you design this café? Didn’t you paint the pictures in the shop?”

“The design of this shop was inspired by a senior of mine, including the paintings, which are reproductions.”

“A senior? So… your senior is a transmigrator?”

“Hmm… maybe…”

Aliciel pondered. She had appeared mysteriously and disappeared just as mysteriously. Even House Cosmos couldn’t find out her whereabouts. Maybe she really was a transmigrator from another world. It was a possibility.

Aliciel’s spirits suddenly lifted. She had been searching for news of that Head Maid for a long time, but to no avail. Perhaps this Ren Daozhen could help her.

“Then the phrase ‘thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river,’ did your senior also teach you that?”

“No, isn’t that a famous line from ‘Battle Through the Heavens’?”

Aliciel pointed to the bookshelf on the wall, which was filled with various books for customers to read. A few of them were the aforementioned “Battle Through the Heavens.” Not only that, but there were also web novels like “Perfect World” and “Zhu Xian,” as well as Japanese light novels like “A Certain Magical Index” and “Steins;Gate.” There were even famous works like “Journey to the West,” “Hamlet,” and “One Hundred Years of Solitude.”

Ren Daozhen was dumbfounded. He quickly went over and flipped through the books. They were almost identical to the originals, and even the author’s name was the same. For example, the author of “Battle Through the Heavens” was still a certain Potato.

“About a hundred years ago, dozens of works were published one after another, causing a sensation and even a craze.”

“Because these books had different styles and authors, people didn’t suspect at first that they were all written by the same person.”

“It wasn’t until a fervent fan snuck into a publishing house and found out that all these books were published by the same person that it attracted a lot of attention.”

“Many people tried to investigate the true identity of this mysterious author, but to no avail.”

“It wasn’t until the mysterious author himself sent a letter, stating that he was not the original author of those books, but merely a porter, and that he had donated all the royalties he earned to an orphanage for charity.”

“This, in turn, added a layer of mystery to the author, and people are still searching for his true identity to this day.”

“Is… is that so… It seems this mysterious author is also a transmigrator, and a very moral one at that.”

Ren Daozhen was quite impressed by this transmigrator senior. He didn’t plagiarize, but instead credited the original author and donated all the royalties. He was a breath of fresh air among transmigrators, which made him a little embarrassed to even think about plagiarizing himself.

“Do you think it’s possible that your senior is that mysterious author?”

“Hmm, I thought of that too.”

Considering that in this world, top-tier powerhouses could live for hundreds or even thousands of years, and if they had elven, angel, or other similar bloodlines, their lifespans could be even longer.

That Head Maid senior could very well be that mysterious author.

And that mysterious author was still updating, which meant that the Head Maid senior was probably somewhere. If they investigated the publishing house, they might find some clues.

“Very good.”

Aliciel was in a good mood. After five years, she had finally found a clue.

“Um… may I ask, Miss Maid, what do you plan to do with me?”

“Hmm? Normally, I would send you to the Knights Templar or the church, and they would deal with you. The rest is none of my business.”

“No, I just got out of prison. I don’t want to be sent back in. And is it really okay for you to just abandon me like this? I provided you with important information. And I trusted you so much, you deceived my feelings.”

“…Sir, please don’t make it sound like I’m dumping you.”

“Calling me ‘sir’ already? It was ‘master’ just a moment ago. Don’t be in such a hurry to get rid of me. You like maid outfits, right?”

Seemingly truly worried that Aliciel would send him directly to the church, Ren Daozhen’s mind raced, trying to find a way to persuade her.

“Naturally. Maid outfits are the most beautiful clothes in the world.”

‘So she’s a maid fetishist. This makes things much easier.’

A confident smile appeared on Ren Daozhen’s face.

“The maid outfits you’re wearing are too common. I can design newer and more unique ones for you!”

“Oh?!”