96: As You Wish, My Little Pet

As You Wish, My Little Pet

Arlan stepped out of the bed and straightened his messy bed hair.1

"You may go," he said in a clipped tone.

"My Lord?" 

Seeing those beautiful eyes widening in fear, his little attendant obviously misunderstood his intentions.

"Since I caused you to sleep on the cold, hard floor," Arlan started with heavy emphasis, "then as your master, I am rewarding you with a well-deserved break. You don't have to serve me this morning. Go rest or do whatever you do in your spare time."

Oriana blinked a few times, wondering whether her ears heard it right. Was this bratty lord showing care for her? 

'Is it the effect of the nightmare? Perhaps his brain is not working right.'

Seeing her not responding, the pair of blue eyes moved back towards her silly form. "Along with your legs, did your brain go numb from sleeping on the floor?"

"Ah, no. I understood."

Arlan approached the wall and pulled the string near the bed that would call other servants to his chamber. "How long are you planning to stay on the carpet?"

She immediately tried to get up and somehow managed to stand on her feet. She bowed to him. "Thank you for your reward, my Lord." 

Oriana let out a silent sigh of relief. When Arlan spoke the words 'you may go', her initial thought was that he was dismissing her because he found her unpleasant. She feared that the kindness she had shown him last night would turn out to be in vain. 

Fortunately, Arlan appreciated her effort, even allowing her to rest.

'What I did was a little impressive, right? I should do more stuff like that to gain his favorability…' Cheered by these thoughts, Oriana took a few steps forward, but one of her shoes snagged the edge of the carpet, causing her to fall forward., 

"Oh—whew, that was close!"

Just as she was about to completely lose balance, she felt a force steadying her body back. 

She turned her head to look over her shoulder, intending to thank Arlan, but the man was no longer there. She saw the curtain on the doorway slightly swaying and realized that her master had probably entered the side chamber while she was lost in her thoughts earlier.

'Nobody pulled me up?' Shrugging off her confusion, she walked back to her room. 'I guess I balanced myself on instinct? Am I still half-asleep?' She gave herself a long stretch, even letting out a yawn. 'That must be it.'

Of course, Oriana was wrong.

Arlan, who disappeared into the bath, was looking at the golden scales slowly fading away from his right hand. He breathed deeply with his eyes closed. When he opened his eyes, their initial blue color was still flashing between red to gold.

'Such an clumsy idiot. I am an idiot as well for saving her out of instinct with my powers. Ever since I've met her, I have been using it more often than I like. If I had not disappeared quickly, she would have found out about me.'

Eyes like crimson blood, scales like that of a reptile instead of human skin…

Similar to that of the ferocious creature plaguing his nightmares.

Arlan balled his hands into fists.

'Though her scent helps me control that thing living inside me, there is no need for a foolish village girl I've barely known to discover my deepest secret. The only thing that matters is that I keep her by my side, and for that, I will make sure to pay her well and allow her entire family to live a good life.

'As long as she stays by my side…'

Just then, he heard Oriana mumbling and his ears twitched.

"...so unlucky. Yesterday could be considered a coincidence, but to trip twice in a row…could it be coming to the city turned me clumsy? Sigh. My arms and legs seem to have lost life. Ahh…well, luckily, I can rest…no, wait! This isn't the time to be lazy. I have to work harder to impress that brat. I only have a few days left, but here I am, doing nothing but wasting my time. How can I make him bring me along with him to the palace…?"

Arlan clearly heard this. 

'Palace? As you wish, my little pet.'

With the help of other servants, Arlan began to start his morning routine. Oriana, despite her reluctance, left Arlan's chamber to dine in the common area of the servant quarters. 

When she returned to his bedchamber, Arlan was busy with work in his temporary study, and she proceeded with her usual chores. 

While she was bringing his dirty clothes to the laundry maids, she happened to notice something on his white shirt. 

'Blood? How did he get blood on his clothes? Is he hurt? Didn't seem like it when I saw him in the morning. If he was hurt, being his personal servant, I should be informed. 

'Wait, even the previous day, I thought I smelled blood on him… so it really was blood? I thought the capital is the safest city in the kingdom. Did he get attacked or did he attack someone?'

As the only healer in a village of hunters, she was quite sensitive to blood and injuries. 

'When I washed his body yesterday, he was not injured. It should be someone else's blood. What does this lord exactly do every night? I thought he went around having fun in brothels but that doesn't seem to be the case.'

After handing over clothes to the laundry servants, she then went to the kitchen to get tea for Arlan. Just as she entered the study, she heard a conversation that caused her heart to skip a beat. 

"...Arrangement had been made for us to leave the Ahrens and move to the palace. We can leave as per your orders."

'Palace?' Oriana's ears twitched, the word catching her interest. 'Is the Lord returning to the palace already?!'

"After finishing this last work, we can leave today," she heard Arlan say.

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