Chapter 7
Chapter 7: Wipe It. Touch It.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself quite taken aback.
I'd gotten up first thing in the morning just to give her a Potion, only to feel a heavy weight on my chest—and when I found Amelia sleeping soundly nestled against me, I barely managed to swallow the scream rising in my throat.
'...Sleepwalking...? No, that can't be it.'
Confused as I was, I carefully lifted her and carried her back to bed. Once I laid her down and pulled the blanket over her, the tension eased from her face. Only then did it make sense.
'Did she have a nightmare, maybe.'
She must have tossed and turned quite a bit—her top had ridden up all the way, leaving her navel exposed. I paused for a moment at the sight of that pale skin, then quickly pulled her shirt back down and tucked the blanket in.
Now, to let go of the hand I was holding—
"....?"
I couldn't let go.
The tighter I tried to pull free... the harder her grip became in response.
After a 30-minute struggle, I finally managed to pry myself loose.
'...Should I lock my bedroom door starting tomorrow?'
At this rate, there's no telling what I'll walk into the next day.
The next day.
"...."
I woke up and had to experience the sensation of my sanity taking a walk.
My chest felt heavy again—and there was Amelia. This time I'd made absolutely sure to lock the door... so how did she get in here?
What I found most incomprehensible above all else was that she simply would not let go of my hand.
'....Is she keeping watch over me?'
Growing increasingly unnerved, I made up my mind to just disappear entirely.
'Somewhere completely safe...'
Having made my decision, once the sun went down I stacked chairs one on top of another against the lock and retreated to the bathroom. Given how luxurious the manor was, I was confident I could sleep perfectly fine in the bathroom. On top of that, with the chairs piled up, if I locked the door from the inside, nobody could possibly get in.
The next morning. I was finally able to start the day as normal. Whether it was because blocking the door had worked, Amelia was nowhere to be seen.
'...Starting tomorrow, I'll sleep in here.'
What's wrong with sleeping in the bathroom? It's a hundred times better than sleeping in a stable. And it doesn't smell.
No more need to sleep in anxious dread.
I was calmly making my way toward the lock in good spirits—
-Grab.
"...!?"
It happened in an instant.
By the time I blinked my eyes open, a pale white hand was already threading its fingers between mine.
Amelia, who had been waiting at the door, had shoved her hand in the moment it opened.
"...Ah."
Freeze— I was completely rooted to the spot.
"Wh, what... what..."
Amelia pressed herself flat against the door, and the moment it swung open, she yanked my hand toward her.
My center of gravity lurched forward and I stumbled—falling straight into her arms.
"..."
The girl's eyes, languid as a cat's, carried an air of quiet satisfaction.
As if she had been counting on exactly this.
She ran a slender finger along the corner of her lips, then twirled the end of her ebony hair and smiled, all innocence.
"Good morning."
Her face was visible through the half-open gap in the door.
Through that gap, Amelia's ears and the nape of her neck looked flushed—or maybe it was just my imagination.
...What a spectacular way to start the morning.
[ !!!!Target's Rampage Gauge drops from 66% ---> 0%! ((1-day advance notice)) ]
[ <<Target: Amelia>>'s expectations have reached a certain threshold. ]
[ Trait: Innate Talent unlocked. ]
I'd barely processed that morning when my gaze was drawn to the notification window that had appeared over the Status Window.
'...Innate Talent, huh.'
The Amelia depicted in the original work was not only a beauty of remarkable appearance—she was described as an absolute Genius in every regard: magic theory, swordsmanship, and everything else besides.
Since the original story wasn't told from Amelia's point of view, I couldn't quite grasp the full extent of it, but...
'This is good news. It means that the moment she's fully healed, she'll be able to pick up anything at all instantly.'
Amelia's physical condition right now is poor. Think of it as someone confined to an intensive care ward. Given that she'd been hovering between life and death, that was only natural. On top of that, with the goal of rehabilitating her right arm, I had to keep in mind that her growth would be slower than others'.
'...She's probably weaker than the protagonist at this point in the story. She looks like she could collapse at any moment... and yet every morning she shows up with those sharp, alive eyes.'
Mana breathing...?
No, surely she hasn't grasped something like that already.
Mana breathing isn't something just anyone can do. It was only natural that one couldn't learn it without being the caliber of someone from the Knight Order stationed at Ravencourt.
She would have had no opportunity to learn it, so it made sense she couldn't use it. Therefore, the most likely explanation was simply that she was making it here on willpower alone.
There was one problem, though,
—as I thought that, I reached out toward Amelia's Collarbone.
"Does it hurt?"
"No. You may touch me whenever you like, Master."
Amelia neither shrank back nor pulled away at the sight of my hand. Without changing her expression, she accepted it calmly.
And that was how it was.
Since becoming mine, Amelia had been so guarded that she even avoided physical contact with others—but there was exactly 1 exception.
On the contrary, she went out of her way to move closer of her own accord, to the point of relocating her sleeping arrangements, and she seized every opportunity to take hold of my hand.
Even when Meteor accidentally unwound her bandages, far from being bothered, she simply held his hand and smiled.
By any measure, she treated him as a special case.
"Why am I unwrapping the bandages, you ask? Well... it's a rare chance to hold Master's hand—I can't let something trivial like this get in the way. That much is obvious."
"...No, even so—"
"—My left hand is almost fully healed. So there's no problem. I believe this time with Master is worth more than any pain."
At first I'd taken it as a way to pass the time, but as time went on my thinking changed.
This isn't rational affection.
/
I had already decided long ago what to do with Amelia.
First, I'd make her a Maid here at Ravencourt.
My exclusive Maid, naturally.
Having her attached to me all day is a burden, but it's a hundred times better than keeping her out of sight and having to worry about her causing trouble.
Amelia's identity won't be an issue. Thanks to the Monster attack that occurred recently, there are quite a few people who suffered trauma and lost their memories. Amelia would be counted as one of them. The story we agreed to go with was that she'd nearly been attacked by a Monster and I had barely managed to save her and bring her here.
An Illegitimate Daughter expelled from her family—that background might be fine on its own, but the fact that she was being hunted could invite some troublesome complications.
In the first place, whatever I—who had possessed the body of a notorious troublemaker—chose to do largely went unnoticed, and that was one of the few advantages of the character I'd taken over.
However, there was exactly 1 problem.
Most tasks could be left to the Maids without any issue. Things like clearing dishes. Cleaning.
But.
'Giving her Potions and checking her wounds every day.'
This wasn't something I could entrust to just anyone. I didn't deeply trust the Physician I had called in on the first day. Much as I'd like to trust them, going on blind faith without solid grounds could lead to trouble.
The moment they saw her wounds, they'd start prying into how she could possibly have healed this much already. And once they heard that high-grade Potions had been used, they'd go straight to the head of the household with a report.
I had no desire for anyone to discover Amelia's true identity.
Just as I was following that line of thought, a voice came from ahead.
"...I feel sticky."
"...?"
"My body is soaked in sweat."
"Well, with bandages wrapped like that, it's only natural..."
In that instant, I understood what that meant.
Right—since she couldn't step into the bath to shower, at the very least wiping her body down like this fell to me.
And I was also the one who told her not to show her wounds to others carelessly.
The blanket that had slid up slowly fell back down, and Amelia's large chest pressed against my arm.
Enough that I could see quite clearly the shape of her chest—substantial yet not excessive, perfectly balanced.
'...She really is beautiful.'
Every time I caught sight of Amelia's body, I found myself marveling inwardly.
Right—Amelia had been depicted as having the appearance of a true heroine. That loveliness hadn't gone anywhere.
Whether it was that the bandages didn't cover enough, or whether she'd wrapped them that way on purpose—
Amelia's gaze dropped the moment she noticed my eyes drifting toward her chest.
She wrapped her arms around her own chest, turned her back to me and sat that way. Though covering herself with her arms didn't fully cover everything.
Truthfully, the view from behind was no less striking. Thanks to her only covering the front, the sensuous curves of her figure were now entirely on display from this angle.
"..."
The moment our eyes met, Amelia's ears flushed red to the tips.
It wasn't that she felt no embarrassment at all. It was simply that she was a bit slow to recognize it, and being an emotion she'd rarely experienced, she just didn't know how to make sense of it.
Even she turned red-faced in situations that would embarrass anyone.
Confirming that reaction from Amelia, I began wiping down her body with a towel.
I kept talking to her without pause, determined not to let things get awkward. Otherwise, I felt like I might die.
"You studied magic theory? At your age?"
"I didn't get very far. I don't have much knowledge when it comes to magic."
Amelia was the daughter of a noble family. Reading and writing went without saying, and having a basic grasp of etiquette and general knowledge was a given. It seemed she had also studied some magic theory.
"How did you learn swordsmanship? Did your family teach you directly?"
"I swung by instinct. Lately, I feel that sense has grown even sharper."
"......You mentioned you could have joined the Royal Court Knight Order, didn't you?"
"Until a few weeks ago, I had reached the level where I could wield Mana."
"...."
The ability to channel Mana through a blade?
That's Level 4. Something that only proper members of the Royal Court Knight Order tend to be capable of.
"—Wait."
Just as I was inwardly marveling at that—
She suddenly grabbed my hand and pressed it against her chest.
Thump, thump,
As if asking me to feel it, she stayed perfectly still without a word.
Because of that, our bodies drew closer than necessary.
We were close enough to feel each other's breath.
The more that happened, the tighter she held my wrist.
Her pulse beat beneath my palm.
'...Hold on, this... the flow of Mana is...'
This is Mana breathing, isn't it?
Amelia, having checked my expression, held my hand and smiled softly.
As if my reaction—not disappointment but surprise—pleased her greatly.
It was only natural.
There was only 1 person who truly understood her efforts.
"I... to get better... I will really, try very hard."
"...."
"So... if you give me just a little time... I will meet your expectations."