Chapter 21: What’s wrong with?

The heavy clothes felt like shackles, restricting Liliya’s movements.

Even just sitting or standing, she felt as if she needed to do so in a particular way.

Otherwise, with this puffy skirt, she’d likely end up exposing herself, or wrinkling the dress.

She actually didn’t like these clothes, but since Rosalia liked them, she couldn’t bring herself to hate them.

The changes that occurred during this time were so subtle that even Liliya herself didn’t notice them.

At first, during the first two days, her attitude towards these clothes was simply a forced choice between two options, where the other was completely impossible.

But now, she no longer felt that way.

She chose these clothes simply because Rosalia liked them.

Her feelings toward Rosalia had already surpassed the initial control of that crimson, and she was gradually accepting her existence.

A Sword Saint of the Church, someone who should stand in complete opposition to the Blood Clan, had actually fallen into the gentle embrace of the Progenitor of Blood at this very moment.

How ridiculous.

But none of these were the biggest problem.

Liliya felt that after putting on these clothes, she had become like one of those dolls in the shop windows on the street.

There were so many things she couldn’t do; all she could do was quietly sit beside Rosalia and watch her work.

This kind of life was monotonous and dull.

But precisely because of this, Liliya was able to take some time to observe her master.

That calm, beautiful face; the elegant and poised posture as she sat behind her study desk; and the serious look she had when flipping through various dossiers…

There was no sun in the Evernight City, but Rosalia’s study had a glowing, beautiful gem.

That stone emitted a soft light, making the lines of Rosalia’s cheeks look even gentler.

So beautiful.

Liliya’s gaze lingered for a long, long time, until…

She suddenly needed to use the restroom.

A girl’s body structure wasn’t suited for staying in the same place for too long; the bladder’s limited capacity meant they had to go to the bathroom more frequently than boys.

And right now, Liliya was at her limit.

When she first arrived here, she had also worn similar clothes, but she hadn’t put on so many complicated components; overall, it was only a bit more troublesome than the cumbersome outfits from her previous life.

But this time was different.

Every part was worn, with those cute doll accessories and other decorations further restricting her movement.

Her body was already weak, and with these clothes, she could barely move.

“Liliya, is something wrong?”

Perhaps noticing Liliya’s change, Rosalia turned her head, looked at her, and smiled gently.

“I need to use the restroom.”

Liliya hesitated for a moment, but still spoke up.

She didn’t want to wait until she was at her physical limit to bring up such a thing to Rosalia.

“Alright, then I’ll go with you.”

“No need, I can go by myself.”

There was still plenty of time, and she could slowly figure out how to take off all these pieces.

She’d just put them back on after finishing.

“No, I told you before, didn’t I? Liliya can’t leave my sight.”

Rosalia’s voice was gentle, but her tone was unquestionable.

“Really, it’s fine, Lady Rosalia. Please continue working on your documents. I can handle something like this alone.”

Liliya shook her head quickly.

Even if she didn’t mention her forgotten past as a boy, even as an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl, there was no way she could let someone else help her with such a private matter.

It was simply too humiliating.

“Liliya’s being naughty.”

Rosalia’s words carried an almost imperceptible chill.

“I told you, didn’t I? Liliya cannot leave my sight. You may have forgotten, but I remember it clearly… Liliya ran to the forest alone for my sake and ended up getting so badly hurt.”

“You may have forgotten, but at that time, I was so frightened by you, Liliya, that I nearly burst into tears.”

Black.

Rosalia lowered her gaze, her feather pen coming to a halt.

The ink she had dipped began to bleed across the paper, smudging the already beautiful script into a spreading patch of black.

The black continued to spread, gradually drowning out the once delicate characters.

“I have to punish Liliya a little.”

At those words, Liliya’s body trembled.

***

In the next moment, she saw Rosalia’s slender fingers point at her, and with a gentle motion, Liliya suddenly found herself unable to leave the chair.

Her body—

“I won’t do anything else. Today, I’ll just watch Liliya.”

Watch… my appearance?

Liliya silently repeated Rosalia’s words in her heart, then those pitying eyes suddenly narrowed.

“No…”

“No, this is Liliya’s fault. Who told you not to consider my feelings?”

Rosalia had no intention of letting Liliya explain herself. She shook her head, her gaze—as she had said—lingering on Liliya for a long, long time.

She was different from when she’d regained her memories not long ago.

She could still make small movements, but those were extremely limited—at most, a tremble, or speaking.

The discomfort in her body wasn’t obvious at first, and as long as it was dealt with promptly, it wouldn’t have been a problem.

But now, she couldn’t do anything; she could only sit like a doll in the chair.

Under such scrutiny, Rosalia really did just look at her, letting her gaze wander over every inch of Liliya’s skin.

“Liliya is so beautiful. You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.”

“I love seeing Liliya in pretty clothes. I’ve been busy with all sorts of things before and never had time to look at you. Now that I finally have time, I need to take a good look at Liliya.”

She narrowed her eyes, continuing to gaze.

If it were at any other time, Liliya would only be shy at being watched like this by Rosalia.

But under the current circumstances, Liliya did not want to be looked at at all.

“Lady Rosalia, I was wrong…”

“And what did you do wrong?”

Yes, what exactly did she do wrong?

She didn’t know, either.

Just like Rosalia said, she had long forgotten what had happened.

From her perspective, all she had done was make a perfectly normal request.

She was no longer a child, and going to the restroom alone was no problem. Not to mention that Rosalia still had many documents on her desk.

Liliya felt that she was actually being considerate toward Rosalia.

She didn’t want to trouble her master—this master for whom she had slowly begun to develop a faint fondness.

It was just a short departure from her sight.

Even with the size of Rosalia’s castle, it would only take less than ten minutes.

If she was quick, just removing part of the accessories here and running, it would be about five minutes.

That was all.

From Liliya’s point of view, she didn’t see the problem.

But she was not dealing with an ordinary person.

Rosalia looked at Liliya, and what she was thinking was no longer so “simple.”

At least for now, she wouldn’t let Liliya leave her sight.

Liliya had slept for three days, and Rosalia had stayed with her for three days.

During that time, no matter where she went, she brought along her “Sleeping Beauty.”

She didn’t want Liliya to inexplicably reconnect with the Church.

The Sword Spirit had already been destroyed by her, but it was just a Sword Spirit.

Those bastards from the Church, as long as they contacted Liliya once, would surely find a way to create even more connections.

She wouldn’t let her little pet return to those lunatics at the Church.

Liliya was hers—before, now, and for countless years in the future.

She would never let Liliya go.

Even without considering all that, Rosalia felt she needed to “train” Liliya properly.

To keep Liliya by her side, it couldn’t all be sweetness.

“Liliya still doesn’t know what she did wrong.”

She sighed deeply.

“But it’s alright, I have plenty of time—just like when Liliya first woke up.”

At these words, Liliya’s body shuddered, and the feeling that was already overwhelming became even harder to control.

She recalled what happened last time after she misunderstood Rosalia’s intentions.

That sensation of restraint seemed to appear on her body again, and the stimulation made Liliya’s feelings even more intense.

She needed to figure out what she’d done wrong.

In fact, all she had to do was say she shouldn’t have left Rosalia’s sight, shouldn’t have made Rosalia worry.

But…

In this situation, she couldn’t think straight at all.

Shame clouded her thoughts—eighty percent of her mind was occupied by her fear of losing control.

Rosalia was still waiting for Liliya’s answer.

But there was none.

Liliya let out a faint whimper.

She was almost at her limit.

“Liliya wants to use the restroom, doesn’t she?”

“Then I’ll take you.”

Liliya nodded, her cheeks flushed bright red from humiliation.

Rosalia held Liliya close, carrying her to the restroom.

As she helped Liliya remove the cumbersome clothes, she said, “I’ve considered Liliya’s feelings—shouldn’t Liliya consider mine as well?”

Liliya didn’t know what to say anymore.

Her mind was completely overtaken by shame.

Rosalia had already seen her body before, but this time felt different from all those other times.

Voices echoed in the restroom, and once again, Liliya helplessly realized—she really was a pet.

“Lady Rosalia…”

It was almost a plea.

“My little pet isn’t being obedient.”

The chill in Rosalia’s tone was almost impossible to conceal.

“Then let Liliya feel what I feel.”

After helping Liliya put the clothes back on, she looked at Liliya, her crimson eyes shining brighter.

Liliya felt herself growing dazed, and when she came back to her senses…

She discovered that everyone around her was gone.

Only she remained in Rosalia’s castle.

“Lady Rosalia…?”

For some reason, she felt a pang of dread.