Now —she was being relied upon by the person she admired.
Alisha needed Lotte.
So this was why she wanted to make her her personal maid —to make requests like this.
Hadn’t she considered the possibility of being disillusioned? Or perhaps this meant she trusted Lotte completely, even to that extent.
Faced with this situation, Lotte felt a certain exhilaration.
How much time had passed? The two facing each other remained motionless.
　Eventually, Lotte spoke quietly.

“…If I agree to Lady Alisha’s request, you won’t ask anyone else, correct?”
“Ah! Of course not. After all, I’m asking you.”
“…Is that so? Then —give me your command.”
“—Command?”

At Lotte’s words, Alisha showed a slightly surprised expression.

“Yes, an order. I am a maid serving Lady Alisha… If you state it is an order, I shall obey.”

That was Lotte’s conclusion —meaning she would accept it as work if it came as an order from Alisha.
Whether she could truly compartmentalise it remained uncertain —yet it was the answer Lotte had arrived at now.

“…An order. So if it’s an order, you’ll do as you’re told?”
“Yes.”

Lotte nodded at Alisha’s questioning tone.
—It was rather odd to be ordered to ‘push someone down’, but Alisha seemed pleased by Lotte’s suggestion.

“Very well. Lotte, will you push me down? This is your order.”
“…Understood. If Lady Alisha desires it so —I shall push you down.”
“! Really…?”

When Lotte answered, Alisha somehow looked slightly surprised.

“Why are you surprised, Alisha-sama?”
“B-but… I still think it’s a strange request.”
“That’s true. That’s precisely why I’m asking you to give the order.”

It meant treating it purely as a job.

“Honestly, I thought you might refuse.”
“…I’m still hesitating.”
“But you’ll do it, then?”
“Yes. If it means I can protect Lady Alisha.”

Yes —this was necessary to protect Alisha.
All Lotte needed to do was nod —it was all for Alisha’s sake.

“…Thank you. I was right to rely on you after all.”

Alisha wore a genuinely delighted expression as she took Lotte’s hand.
Lotte felt a touch of self-mockery at her own heart, which reacted to each of Alisha’s actions.
Lotte had promised to pin Alisha down.
Things having come to this, there was no escaping now —she had to steel herself.

“Well then, may I ask you to do it right away?”
“R-right now?”
“Because I want it now.”

There seemed to be no time to prepare herself mentally.
Lotte, led by Alisha’s hand, found herself returning to the bed once more.
Alisha sat down on the bed, and Lotte stood before her.

“Right then, I’ll ask you to do it.”

Saying that, Alisha waited, remaining seated.

“Er, just to confirm one more time, I just need to push you down, right…?”

She never imagined she’d have to ask such a thing.

“Yes. I saw it in a bed scene.”

Alisha answered Lotte’s question casually.

“A, a bed scene…!? Uh, well, I should probably mention first that I am interested, but it’s not like I’m particularly knowledgeable or anything…”

Lotte said, as if making excuses.
In the books she read in her spare time, there were plenty of scenes involving pushing someone down.
That sort of thing —it exists in all sorts of popular reading material.
But the books Alisha was reading must have been rather extreme.
　It probably wasn’t just the ones bought from Lotte’s shop.
From what she’d heard, it seemed she’d been buying books wherever she travelled.
Was she hiding the books she bought somewhere in this room? —Lotte even found herself pondering such a vulgar thought.
Naturally, Lotte didn’t know every single book Alisha read.
Therefore, she didn’t precisely understand what Alisha was seeking.

“But you are interested, aren’t you?”
“F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F-F

“Just being interested is enough.”
“My knowledge is only about as extensive as general common sense.”
“Would you show me that general common sense?”

Using the term ‘general common sense’ might have been a mistake.
After all, Lotte had no idea what extent of knowledge was actually considered ‘general’.

“——”

Lotte found herself falling silent.
Whatever she said now, there was no turning back—she simply had to do it.
　Her palms felt terribly sweaty —Lotte wiped them on her apron.
Closing her eyes quietly, she took repeated deep breaths, her face tense.

(I have to do this, I have to… This is work.)

Lotte repeated it over and over in her mind, as if talking herself into it.
As if casting a spell —she kept repeating it, matter-of-factly.
　The person she was about to push down was someone Lotte admired —honestly, she wasn’t sure her heart could take it.
She’d never even imagined such a situation.
Suddenly, she opened her eyes —and there was Alisha, her expression full of expectation.
Lotte had seen Alisha wielding a sword, fighting to protect people.
The Alisha who had saved her back then had been incredibly cool.
　I wanted to be useful to her, and finally the time had come when I could be —but the girl before me now was different from the one who had protected me.
Driven by the desire to be pinned down, and the expectation that it would soon be fulfilled —she even seemed to be inviting Lotte.

“—What sort of expression is that? You’re the Princess Knight everyone admires.”

The words spilled naturally from Lotte’s mouth.