Chapter 20: Can you, call me Master?

Ah, the brown ceiling.

Lilian lay on the floor, utterly defeated, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Eleanora, cradled in her arms, had stopped crying loudly.

She was just taking deep breaths over and over, seemingly trying to calm herself down.

It’s just…

Could you not breathe so close to me?

It’s so ticklish…

Finally, Eleanora stopped crying.

She got up from Lilian, sniffling.

“Sorry…” Eleanora apologized again.

“Oh, it’s okay.”

Hearing this, Eleanora’s eyes seemed to redden once more.

Lilian felt a bit of scalp tingling—are girls all this troublesome?

Why do they cry at the drop of a hat?

Oh, your brother used to cry all the time too, so it’s fine.

But your brother will definitely never cry in the future.

The thought of herself crying like the little Eleanora did sent a shiver down Lilian’s spine.

Thankfully, Eleanora held it in this time.

When Lilian stood up and dusted off her clothes, Eleanora suddenly hugged her again.

It caught Lilian off guard, and she instinctively raised her hands, freezing in place.

“Sorry.” Eleanora’s voice came softly from her embrace.

“Huh?” Lilian was still a bit stunned.

“Sorry.”

“Oh.” Lilian relaxed.

“Sorry.”

“Hmm.” Lilian thought for a moment, then took the initiative to hug Eleanora.

Eleanora shivered all over, then relaxed completely.

“I lost the bet this time,” she said.

Why just admit defeat so easily?

For the record, Lilian was not a pervert.

Secondly, Lilian was not a foot fetishist.

Lastly, Lilian didn’t like white stockings.

She just hadn’t decided whether to deliberately lose and accept Eleanora’s punishment to gain maid experience points.

But Eleanora admitted defeat.

“As per the agreement, I will grant you one request.”

One request—Lilian fell into deep thought.

She tentatively asked, “Uh… the contract is voided, and I leave the Count’s estate?”

Eleanora said nothing, only hugging tighter.

That was her answer.

Makes sense—judging by Eleanora’s reaction, she cared deeply about Lilian.

There was a reason she went through so much trouble to make her sign the contract.

But why?

For the first time, Lilian questioned this.

First off, it definitely wasn’t because she was after her body; Lilian had already thought about that before.

Eleanora, the Count’s daughter, falling for a mere commoner physician, didn’t need to go through such lengths.

From Eleanora’s perspective, she was especially concerned about someone, wanting their attention, fearing they’d ignore her.

And considering Eleanora’s family background…

There was only one answer—her family.

Count Cohen was away on campaigns for years, and the game never really mentioned Eleanora’s mother, so Eleanora was likely from a single-parent household.

Children from such families usually suffered from lack of love and security.

Maybe she had found the right person in Lilian and wanted her to take the role of family.

The more Lilian thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

From a timing perspective, it was also possible.

At this point, Eleanora hadn’t yet experienced drastic changes in family or status; given her age, a childish streak was normal.

If she were the Demon Lord from the game, there was no way she’d cry like this just because someone ignored her.

Unless that person was truly important.

Luckily, Eleanora was not that future Demon Lord.

She was just a girl lacking love.

Besides, leaving the Count’s estate was the right decision before.

Now, it wasn’t so certain.

Lilian recalled the words the princess said when they parted yesterday.

“We will meet again…”

Would she be dragged in front of her as soon as she left the Count’s estate?

After all, she knew her secret.

Though for some reason, the Second Princess didn’t take her away directly that day…

Now Lilian was a bit at a loss.

She really didn’t have anything she especially wanted.

Wait, wait.

Lilian suddenly remembered—Eleanora, in the game, was famous as the Demon Lord for her outstanding magic.

According to the game’s lore, she mastered fifty sigils, except for a few that were especially broken, she was proficient in nearly all.

She just didn’t know what Eleanora’s current skill level was.

It didn’t really matter.

It would definitely be enough for her to teach Lilian the basics.

Potion Making, strength enhancement—these were important for the plan to leave the Count’s estate, and required Lilian to learn magic and sigils.

So Lilian spoke up, “Then, Miss, could you teach me magic?”

Eleanora was stunned.

Teach Lilian magic…

In her previous life, Lilian seemed to have some talent in this area—though not as strong as the Hero and others, she was considered a powerful figure.

If Eleanora taught her magic now, it might help Lilian’s future strength grow further.

Let this be her way of making amends for her previous behavior.

Also, while teaching Lilian magic, she could think of ways to make Lilian hate her even more.

Eleanora never gave up on her goals.

She absolutely had to make Lilian hate her!

Eleanora looked up, smiling.

She said, “Sure, I know a bit about that.”

Even though Eleanora had just cried and still had tear stains on her face, her smile was overwhelmingly captivating.

Lilian felt her heart beat a little faster.

Silver hair, red eyes, tear-streaked face, smile.

All combined, with Eleanora’s unfairly beautiful looks, it shattered Lilian’s heart’s defenses.

So, so cute…

Lilian raised her hand, intending to stroke Eleanora’s head, but caught herself just in time.

Close call!

Eleanora probably noticed Lilian’s movement; she twitched the corner of her mouth, seeming a bit displeased.

Steeling herself, Lilian thanked her, “Thank you, Miss.”

“…” Eleanora seemed to mumble something.

“What?” Lilian didn’t catch it—it was too quiet.

Eleanora looked a little embarrassed, turning her head and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“I said… could you… call me Master…”

Master, huh…

So Eleanora had that kind of kink.

But from her perspective, if Lilian was her “family,” calling her “Master” actually sounded pretty exciting?

She had called it many times before, so Lilian had no objections.

“All right~” she deliberately used a coaxing tone, “Ma—ster—”

Eleanora’s ears flushed slightly, and she gave a soft “Mm.”

【Make Master happy, experience points +3】

Woohoo, your brother’s business is booming again!

“Um, Master, could you let go of me first…”

Eleanora was still hugging Lilian, and though the feeling was nice, it had been a bit long.

Eleanora hugged tighter and buried her head in Lilian’s chest again.

With her breathing against her, Lilian felt a warmth spread across her chest.

“Master?” Lilian grabbed Eleanora’s shoulders, trying to gently push her away.

“Dummy…” Eleanora spoke, “Let me… hug you a bit more…”

“Oh, okay.” Lilian realized the girl in her arms was still a child lacking love, treating her as “family.”

So she hugged Eleanora back.

【Make Master happy, maid experience points +15】

Happiness…