[Null POV] Year 0, Day 2

  "Hold on," Spy's voice cut through sharply. "You two brainies... you're not forgetting something?"

  Null skidded to a stop, sand spraying. Void circled back, landing beside her.

  "What?" Null asked.

  "Two things, actually. First: you're both walking around in full Legend-class equipment. Void literally had a religious experience when he saw a single piece of it. You saw how the caravan survivors reacted when they heard the Divine System announcements about legendary gear being claimed. Now imagine walking into a city looking like this."

  Null looked down at herself. Full set of EX-tier gear, all Legend-class in this world. Void standing next to her in his transformed outfit, holding a Legend-class staff.

  "Point taken."

  "Every appraiser, adventurer, noble, and power-seeker will notice immediately. You'll be swarmed, challenged, recruited, or attacked. It's like showing up to a medieval village wearing a crown made of diamonds and carrying a neon sign that says 'I'm incredibly powerful and valuable.'"

  "Honored Spy is correct, Great One. Legend-class equipment draws... significant attention. Wars have been fought over single pieces. Two individuals carrying multiple such items would cause chaos."

  "So what do we do? Store it? Wear something else?"

  Void hesitated. "Actually, Great One... I've read that it should be possible to suppress the apparent level of Legend-class equipment. Similar to how you authorized me to use the staff—it's a matter of will and intent. The owner can choose whether the equipment displays its true nature or appears mundane to appraisal skills and magical detection."

  "People can do that?"

  "Theoretically, yes. Though most owners never do. Having visible Legend-class equipment is a status symbol, an intimidation factor, a mark of respect and power. Why hide it when you want everyone to know you're dangerous?"

  "But we want to NOT draw attention."

  "Precisely. If you will your equipment to appear as common gear, it should respond. The power remains, but observers would see nothing remarkable."

  Null focused on her robes, her boots, the rapiers at her belt. Hide. Appear normal. Don't show what you are.

  She felt something shift. The connection to her equipment adjusting, a veil sliding into place.

  "Did it work?"

  Void studied her with his appraisal skill, then nodded. "Yes, Great One. To my eyes, you now appear to be wearing decent but unremarkable traveling gear. Well-made, but nothing exceptional. The true nature is concealed."

  "Good. You do the same with your stuff."

  "At once, Great One."

  Void concentrated, and Null watched as his outfit seemed to... settle. Still the same dark adventurer's attire, but somehow less impressive. The staff in his hands looked like good craftsmanship rather than divine artifact.

  "That solves problem one. Now problem two: language."

  Null grimaced. "Right. I can't understand a word anyone says."

  "And Void translating everything telepathically for you will be incredibly obvious. 'Why is that person just standing there silently while her companion seems to know exactly what she wants without her saying anything?' It's weird. Suspicious. Combined with suppressed legendary equipment, you'll stand out for different reasons."

  "So what do we do?" Null asked. "Learn the language? That'll take forever."

  "Translation magic items?" Spy suggested.

  "Rare and expensive, Honored Spy. And often unreliable—they work poorly for complex concepts or idioms. Also, using one would be noticeable to anyone with magical sensitivity."

  "Stay silent and mysterious?"

  "That draws even MORE attention, Great One. People become curious about the strange silent foreigner with the unusual companion."

  They stood in silence for a moment, thinking.

  Null noticed Void shifting uncomfortably, his expression troubled.

  "Void, you have an idea."

  "I... no, Great One. I wouldn't presume to—"

  "You're holding something back. I can feel it through the connection. Spit it out."

  "It's... inappropriate for me to suggest, Great One. Extremely inappropriate."

  "Void, just say it. We need solutions, not propriety."

  The elf looked profoundly uncomfortable. "There is... a tradition. In polite society, when a master and servant travel together, you never speak directly to the servant. It's considered extremely rude to the master—it implies you don't respect their authority or their right to speak for their household."

  "All conversation goes through the master. The servant only speaks when the master permits or directs them. To address a servant directly while their master is present is a serious breach of etiquette."

  Null considered this. "So if we travel as master and servant, everyone talks to me. Which is bad because I can't speak the language."

  "Correct, Great One."

  "But if we... reversed it. If you pretended to be the master and I pretended to be the servant. Then everyone would talk to you, and I could stay silent because that's expected."

  "Yes." Void looked miserable. "But Great One, I cannot—I would never presume—it's incredibly disrespectful for me to even suggest—"

  "I don't care about respect or status," Null said flatly. "It's practical. Solves the problem. I'm fine with it."

  "But—"

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  "Void, I'm ordering you to stop worrying about propriety and focus on what works. If pretending you're the master and I'm the servant gets us into civilization without issues, then that's what we do."

  "I... yes, Great One. As you command." He still looked profoundly unhappy about it.

  "So how does this work? How should a master-servant pair look? What would people expect to see?"

  Void took a breath, clearly gathering himself. "It depends on the relationship. A merchant with a bodyguard. A noble with an attendant. A wealthy traveler with a guide. Each has different expectations, different behaviors."

  "But if I'm playing the role of a young master traveling with a powerful servant..."

  He trailed off, looking even more uncomfortable.

  "What?"

  "The most common configuration would be... a battlemaid."

  Null blinked. "A what?"

  "Why specifically that?" Spy asked.

  Void's discomfort intensified. "Battlemaids are... a special type of servant used by those of noble birth or excessive wealth. The process of creating them is... disturbing. Cruel, even by this world's standards."

  "Explain."

  "Noble families or wealthy individuals search for commoner children with exceptional gifts or talents. Usually as babies or very young children. They purchase them from desperate families, or simply take them if the family has no power to resist."

  "Then they train them. With absolutely no restraint on resources or methods. The best weapons, the best instructors, the most dangerous techniques. Magical enhancement, physical conditioning, combat training that would break most adults. And simultaneously, they psychologically condition them—brainwash them to believe their only purpose in life is serving their master. That they have no value beyond that service. That their master's will is their entire existence."

  "The training is brutal. Extreme. Lethal. Most children don't survive it. Perhaps one in ten makes it to adulthood. But those who do..." Void's expression darkened. "They become genuine monsters. Incredibly powerful, impossibly skilled, capable of things that shouldn't be possible. They often develop rare, bizarre abilities due to the extreme training methods—things that normal people never achieve because normal people have limits, have self-preservation instincts. Battlemaids have neither."

  "Fuck," Null muttered.

  "The result is a servant who is completely devoted to their master, incredibly powerful in combat, and very unstable psychologically. They act like gentle kittens around their master—sweet, obedient, eager to please. But when the master isn't present?" Void shook his head. "They're absolute dangers to everyone and everything. Violent, unpredictable, paranoid. People are terrified of them."

  "I was in a household where the eldest son married a girl from a wealthy family. She came with a battlemaid as part of her dowry. That creature was... a real monster. Sweet as honey when her mistress was present, but the moment she left the room? Terror. She'd kill servants for imagined slights. Break things that displeased her. Attack anyone who looked at her wrong. By the end, even the head of the family—a Count, a man who'd commanded armies—used bodyguards in his own home because he was afraid of that thing. We all were."

  "And you're suggesting I pretend to be one of these?"

  "I'm suggesting that if you dress and act like a battlemaid, it explains everything. People will be too intimidated to speak to you. Nobody questions why a battlemaid doesn't talk—they're relieved when battlemaids stay quiet. Everyone naturally directs conversation to the master. Your power level makes perfect sense—battlemaids are expected to be monsters. Any strange behavior or odd reactions make sense because battlemaids are unstable. The legendary equipment makes sense because nobles spare no expense on battlemaids."

  "It's... perfect cover. Which is why I'm deeply ashamed to suggest it."

  Null considered this. "So I just need to look intimidating and stay quiet?"

  "Essentially, yes. Project danger. Stay close to me as your 'master.' Don't speak. React to threats with obvious menace. People will assume you're a battlemaid and give you a wide berth."

  "Host," Spy said carefully, "are you sure you want to pretend to be a brainwashed slave soldier? That's... kind of dark."

  "It's practical. And temporary. Besides, I don't have emotions to care about the implications." Null shrugged. "If it gets us into civilization without drawing excessive attention, I'm fine with it."

  "You're... certain, Great One? I can try to think of another solution—"

  "No. This works. You play young master, I play dangerous battlemaid, everyone talks to you, nobody bothers me, we blend in and gather information." Null paused. "Do I need different clothes? A uniform or something?"

  "Battlemaids typically wear... maid uniforms, actually." Void looked even more embarrassed. "Most of them are obsessed with their uniforms—it becomes part of their identity. The conditioning makes them fixate on it. They take immense pride in maintaining it, keeping it perfect. It's... one of the more disturbing aspects of their psychology."

  Null blinked. "Maid uniforms? Like actual maid outfits?"

  "Yes, Great One. Usually customized with the family crest, specific colors, sometimes armor elements integrated into the design. But fundamentally, yes—maid uniforms."

  "Huh." Null opened her item box, scanning through her equipment. "Actually... I have one of those."

  "You have a maid uniform?" Spy sounded surprised.

  "Yeah. Never thought this thing would actually be useful." Null pulled out a black and white outfit. "There was this tournament—the All Maids Tournament. Only rule was you had to wear a maid uniform. It was super popular—people loved watching the spectacle. All those elaborately-dressed players killing each other. Ridiculous premise, but entertaining."

  "You... participated in such an event?" Void asked carefully.

  "I won it. Also got voted as having the most 'boring' uniform." Null examined the outfit. "Most participants just wanted to show off—frills, ribbons, elaborate designs. I wore something practical. Wasn't that many high-level PvP players competing, so winning wasn't that hard."

  "The prize was that the devs would upgrade your equipment. There's normally a limit to how strong you can make EX-tier gear—materials, craftsman skill, all that. But tournament winners got dev-level upgrades, which pushed past those limits. Not much, just one or two percent. But it adds up."

  "Wait," Spy interjected. "How many tournament wins did you have?"

  "Twenty-eight total. These rapiers I've been using? Upgraded twenty-seven times. Same items, over and over. The devs got pretty mad about me always selecting the same gear. Said I was breaking their progression system."

  "So they used the maid uniform to mess with you?"

  "Yep. Made it more... 'kinky.' Very close to something you'd actually wear in a strip club rather than a proper maid outfit. And they gave it a totally useless bonus. Just to spite me."

  Void looked profoundly uncomfortable with this entire conversation.

  "Wait," Spy said suddenly. "Does that maid uniform have THAT bonus?"

  Null paused, looking at the equipment details. "Oh. Right. Yeah, it does."

  "What bonus, Great One?"

  "Invulnerability to holy element damage. The devs said it was 'nice for my racial build.' Actually totally useless in practice—nobody used holy element attacks in PvP. Holy magic was weak, slow, and ineffective against most builds. So giving me immunity to it was just their way of giving me nothing while pretending they'd upgraded the item."

  There was a long silence.

  "Host," Spy said carefully. "You have a piece of equipment that makes you completely immune to holy damage. Your one major weakness. The thing that could actually hurt you in this world."

  "...Huh. Yeah, I guess that's different here."

  "The devs accidentally gave you the single most valuable property for your current situation while trying to troll you."

  "Great One," Void said slowly, "you're saying this uniform grants complete immunity to divine magic? Holy power? Light-based attacks?"

  "That's what it says. 'Invulnerability to Holy Element.'"

  "That's... Great One, that's not a minor advantage. That's immunity to your only significant weakness. Priests, paladins, holy warriors—they couldn't harm you at all while wearing that. Divine magic would be completely ineffective."

  "Guess the devs' trolling backfired." Null examined the uniform more closely. Black and white, definitely more revealing than practical, but it was still functional armor beneath the aesthetic. "Though I'm going to look ridiculous."

  "You're going to look like a battlemaid," Spy corrected. "Which is exactly what we want. And you'll be immune to the one thing that could actually threaten you."

  "Also," Void added carefully, "battlemaids often do wear... unconventional uniforms. Part of the psychological conditioning is making them comfortable with objectification, with being displayed as both servant and weapon. A uniform that's both functional and... provocative... is actually quite common for battlemaids belonging to wealthy masters. It sends multiple messages."

  "Great. So I look the part AND become immune to holy magic. Win-win."

  Null stored her current outfit and—

  Nothing happened.

  She tried again. Store current equipment. Equip maid uniform.

  Still nothing.

  "...How do I change clothes?"

  "What?"

  "In the game it was just click-click, menu selection, instant swap. Here there's no menu. No interface. How do I actually... physically change equipment?"