Living Together (1)
Time spent in a hospital bed was sweet, but it was also dreadfully dull.
Though I could only manage porridge, it arrived right on schedule, and it was far tastier than porridge had any right to be. Press a single button, and three nurses would appear ready to help me. The feeling of being waited on like this was something I'd never experienced in my life—and it was genuinely sweet.
The only real inconvenience was that, with my body at ease, the old nightmares came back every night. Even with all this luxury, lying in bed day after day was bound to get boring.
Even for a homebody like me, one bed just isn't enough.
The only person who came to visit during those dull days was the Association President. My damn master showed her face once on the first day and never gave any sign of coming back.
She could at least drop by once in a while…
The Association President first visited about three hours after my master left. He'd finished work for the day, and the first thing he did was apologize.
"It was all my carelessness. Letting my guard down just because the Guardian was dead—I've grown too dull. I'm sorry."
Having the Association President suddenly bow his head like that left me completely flustered.
"No, sir. You didn't do anything wrong."
"Yes, I did. Blame me. A vanguard's job is to personally confirm any danger and take primary responsibility for the team's safety. And I failed to fulfill that role completely."
He clearly had no intention of hearing me out. The saying that Awakened tend to be self-righteous was right on the money. He was a good person, but he seemed to value his own convictions over anyone else's words.
"All right. Then come by now and then and keep me company."
He was the Association President, after all—no harm in getting on good terms with him.
After he left that day, the Association President really did start visiting often. Once a day when he could manage it, and at least once every three days at the latest.
"If you were in a state to eat freely, I would have brought you something. Still stuck on porridge, I see."
"Association President? You're here?"
"You look to be in good spirits, at least. That's a relief."
"Why wouldn't I be? Everyone's taking such good care of me."
"Has Kim Seoyeon not come by?"
Hearing him call my master by her name—Kim Seoyeon—made me curious enough to ask.
"You're not calling her the Black Moon Princess this time?"
"An Awakened's epithet is only used when they're acting in their capacity as an Awakened. Calling each other by epithets in private makes it hard to get close—that's the idea."
Interesting.
So he tries to keep work and personal life separate?
Beyond that, I picked up all sorts of information about how Awakened lived and grew stronger.
"Your stats went up by four each when you leveled up?"
"Yes."
"Then Maid must be a higher-tier class than I thought."
"Higher-tier class?"
"The number of stats that increase per level is fixed by class. Take Farmer, for example—one point per level. Four is quite a lot."
"So does that mean I'm getting stronger too?"
"Honestly, skills and traits matter more than stats, so it won't be easy."
"Is that so?"
"So don't go charging back into a Gate for no reason. Even an A-Class Gate would only net you about five levels."
Huh? I clearly went up twelve levels, though.
When I mentioned that, the Association President thought for a moment, then came up with an answer right away.
"The attack you took in her place at the end was probably recognized as a contribution. A silver lining, I suppose. Still, don't try it again. You could actually die."
What a kind Association President…
"Thank you for worrying about me."
He stayed with me for quite a while before leaving.
After a long stretch of patience, discharge day finally arrived.
"You've recovered almost completely, as expected of an Awakened. Still, you should avoid any intense movement like combat."
"Thank you."
"Not at all. We're just doing the work we were paid for."
"Take care."
"You too. Someone's waiting for you downstairs, by the way."
Someone's waiting? There's no one who'd be waiting for me.
The Association President had already come by yesterday with a discharge gift. I absently fiddled with the bracelet on my wrist.
When I came down to the first floor, my master was standing in the hospital lobby.
Didn't show her face once the entire time I was admitted…
I stood there looking at her, and she clip-clopped over in her heels.
"Siyu, let's go home now."
"I can get home by myself…"
"No, that came out wrong. Let me rephrase. Siyu, let's go to my house now."
For a moment, I couldn't fully process what she'd said.
"Get in."
She dragged me over and shoved me into a flashy sports car.
"The furniture arrived ages ago, and I've already handled the paperwork. All you have to do is come along."
So we're heading to my master's house right now?
She had told me before that the furniture would arrive in about a week. But I never expected to end up at the mansion the moment I was discharged.
Something feels more rushed than before…
After that, she drove on without another word. My master, who normally never stopped needling me from the side, had suddenly gone quiet—and it felt awkward.
Was my collapsing that much of a shock to her?
We arrived at the mansion in that awkward silence. Seen in daylight, the mansion looked far larger than it had the last time, when the sun had already set.
"From now on, you'll be living here. You've been once before, right?"
"Yes. I came once before."
I still couldn't forget it. Being summoned into this mansion without any warning and meeting my master for the first time… It would probably remain a memory I couldn't erase even after a long time.
"Then follow me. Last time it was late, so I barely showed you anything, but today I'll give you a proper tour of the mansion."
She led me slowly through the interior. The mansion was enormous. A kitchen as big as my entire house, more bathrooms than I could count on one hand—a true grand estate. Most of the rooms sat unused, gathering dust.
"If you need more rooms, you're free to use them. Using empty rooms is fine. Just let me know when you do."
As we walked the corridors, she explained which rooms were in use and what each one was for.
What surprised me again was that there were three dressing rooms—and that one of them was for me. My dressing room was right next to the room I'd be staying in, and the inside was still almost empty. All it held were a few maid uniforms and a single formal suit.
"Fill it however you like with the salary I'll be giving you."
Salary?
Even a trash master like her apparently paid wages.
At least she's not stingy with money.
"Shall we go over the house rules now?"
"Huh?"
"We're going to be living together. There should be some rules to follow, don't you think?"
"I suppose so?"
"And since I'm the master of this mansion, I'll be the one setting them."
Honestly, even if she set the rules, there was nothing I could do about it.
She has command authority over me anyway…
"First: from now on, you'll work five days a week, spend one day learning something new, and take one day off."
My breath caught—but the "learning something new" part snagged my attention.
"Something new?"
"While you were in the hospital, I looked into a tutor for you and arranged one."
A tutor…
Someone to teach me housework, most likely.
Skills aren't all-powerful, after all.
My Maid's Techniques skill only worked for cleaning and cooking so far. For everything else, I was no better than an ordinary person.
"Second: don't enter private rooms without permission. Of course, I won't barge into your room either."
That was surprisingly unexpected.
She won't just walk into my room either?
"If I've called you and you don't answer for a long time, or if something urgent comes up, I will go in. But I'll respect your privacy as much as possible."
"Yes."
"And lastly: report any changes in your daily routine immediately. I'm not talking about things like leveling up. Even on your day off, if you need to go out suddenly, leave a message before you leave. And if you're going to do something you don't normally do, report it in advance."
She rattled off the last rule like she was freestyling a rap.
Why the sudden acceleration?
"All right, rules are done. Now, shall we have a proper talk?"
She pulled me over and sat me down at the dining table. Sitting face-to-face with her made me tense for no good reason.
"Siyu. I know you're hiding something from me. I won't demand you tell me everything. But let's get this one thing straight."
Her face turned serious, and her voice dropped.
"Why did you take that attack for me in the Gate? Neither I nor the Association President managed to react in time. That wasn't an attack someone like you should have been able to see coming and block."
Her words left me momentarily speechless.
I don't think I should tell her this…
Laying out the details of Absolute Master Protection!!! felt somehow uncomfortable.
"I don't know either."
Anxiety made me lie.
Well, she won't know the truth anyway.
"Siyu, are you sure?"
"What?"
"Siyu, from now on, you will speak only the truth. That's an 'order.'"
"Uh…"
This was bad. Hoping it would just blow over wasn't going to work—her expression was anything but ordinary.
"Siyu, was there a lie in what you just said?"
I couldn't answer. If I answered, I'd be found out for sure. How was I supposed to reply?
"Siyu… I want to trust you. When you act like this, it puts me in a difficult position."
"Master, that's…"
"Siyu, can't you tell me?"
Looking at her earnest face, I was at a complete loss for words. I had no idea what to do.
If only there were someone who could tell me the right answer…