[That’s not a button, it’s an accessory.]

[I-I’m sorry!]

[…That string should be loosened on the right, right?]

[I-I’m sorry! I’ll do it right now…]

[…If you pull it that way, it will only tighten the knot… No, wait. It’s fine now. Call another servant.]

[No, please! I’ll handle it!]

[How can you serve me without even looking at me? Why can’t you look straight ahead when you’re helping with my bath?]

At my words, Zetak’s eyes darted around the room. Ah, so this is what the nobles call a glazed look. I realized how much his focus was wandering.

[You can’t find a single button because you’re not looking properly. You’re good at everything else, but when it comes to bathing me, you’re a complete mess].

[I-I’m sorry! But… this is just unavoidable…]

[It was His Highness’s fault.]

I remembered how he had mumbled those cryptic words. In retrospect, he had been quite brave. No matter how many grievances he had, would a servant dare to say something negative to a royal’s face?

“You’re doing better now.”

At my sudden remark, his hands, which had unbuttoned the last clasp of my clothes, hesitated.

“Don’t you remember this? You used to be a complete mess when helping me bathe. It took you over ten minutes just to get my clothes off.”

“…….”

“Now that I think about it, it’s strange. Why did I wait for all of that?”

Just because a servant said that it wasn’t allowed, I didn’t have to obey. If he didn’t like it, he could have called another servant. So why did I put up with it for four years?

Once my top was finally off, Zetak moved to unbuckle my trousers. Although the zipper came down frustratingly slow, it was still a marked improvement from the days when he could barely see. Now, he was looking directly at me as he lowered my trousers. He pulled them down, and as I lifted my feet to step out, he neatly folded them and placed them in the basket beside us.

As he turned away, I couldn’t shake the feeling that his gaze lingered on my body. Could he have started to develop a desire for a human form? The thought crossed my mind, but it might have been just my imagination. He gave no particular reaction as he hooked a finger into my underwear. The cool touch of his serpent-like scales against my skin made me flinch instinctively.

The moment my underwear was pulled down, there was a brief pause. Zetak glanced up at me, but his expression remained neutral, showing no real reaction. His hand, though, seemed to slow slightly as he continued lowering my underwear, yet nothing about it felt particularly unusual. As he undressed me, the magic circle etched into the bathtub heated the water, filling the bathroom with steam. Zetak then began to pour the warm water over me slowly, the gentle stream enveloping me in the rising heat.

[That’s not my shoulder; that’s my face. If you have complaints, don’t express them like this; just speak up.]

[I-I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’ll definitely…!]

[You really should watch where you’re aiming…] No, never mind. It’s not worth it. Just like with other servants… Ugh.]

The water splashed onto my face at just the right moment, leaving me speechless.

[…Was that intentional?]

[Oh, no! That can’t be!]

[No, it seems intentional. The water felt much hotter than before.]

[I think you’re mistaken.]

[Well, it feels like my face is burning hot…!]

[I’m sorry! No, you must be mistaken! If that’s the case, it’s bad for you…!]

The voice seemed to echo through the bathroom. As old memories resurfaced, I found myself confused. If an ordinary attendant had acted that way, I would have reprimanded them immediately. Why had I overlooked his behavior this time?

[It seems you care a lot for that attendant, Your Highness.]

That was the moment I dismissed Zetak. A casual remark, cast aside like my father’s concubine. Did I care about him? Looking back, it’s clear that I had been quite generous with Zetak. He must have felt secure in my favor, which is why he didn’t hesitate to act as he did. He understood the limits of what he was allowed. But that only made it harder to understand. If I had been so kind to him, why?

“…Why didn’t I feel anything when I cast you aside?”

His red eyes looked up at me. It was then that I realized I had unconsciously spoken my thoughts aloud. It was a mistake. To admit that I had done such a thing without feeling guilty was like adding fuel to the fire of his hatred.

But he didn’t seem particularly upset. He looked at me and went on with his work. Zetak carefully poured water over my body. Unlike before, he didn’t make the mistake of looking away and splashing water in my face. His perfumed hands began to move slowly from my shoulders, his small hands moving over me without hesitation, slowly descending from my chest and stroking my stomach.

“You’re getting pretty good at this.”

“…”

“Don’t you remember? Back then, you couldn’t even wash properly; you just ended up breaking the fragrance bottle.”

“You even stepped on it and got cut, Your Highness.”

“Did I? I don’t remember that…”

I blinked in surprise at his reply. Had he just answered me? The emotion that flooded through me was pure shock. Zetak spoke—the child who had lost his tongue had spoken. I looked down at him, but his face was hidden beneath his hair. He showed no interest in my reaction, completely focused on his task as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

“I thought I’d be thrown out because I saw blood on Your Highness’s body. Do you remember when the steward ordered me to be taken away?”

“You…”

Hadn’t his tongue been cut off? I wanted to ask, but the words wouldn’t come out. They say that when a person is too shocked, they lose their ability to speak. Was this one of those moments?

“I clearly remember you saying the child should be left alone because you had broken the glass yourself. You said it without even changing your expression, despite the blood dripping from your foot.”

“…Did I do that?”

“You remember the trivial details well enough, but you can’t recall when you were hurt?”

Despite the five years of silence between us, our conversation flowed naturally. His voice was unusually calm. There was no trace of resentment, but neither was it filled with the affection and warmth it once held. 

Still, I couldn’t take his words at face value. He had always been adept at hiding his hatred toward me. 

“When did you start to be able to speak?”

“…”

“By your reaction, it seems you’ve been able to for quite a while.”

The surprise faded more quickly than I had expected. Perhaps subconsciously I had thought this day would come. In the future, I saw him speak. So, whether it was sooner or later, I knew he would eventually find his voice. But the question remained as to how he had lost his tongue.

“Is it difficult for you to speak?”

“Not right now.”

Had it been difficult for him at first? When did he first manage to speak? Questions swirled in my mind, but I decided not to ask. I was certain he wouldn’t provide an answer.

After applying the scented oil, Zetak poured water over me again to rinse it off. Stepping into the bathtub, he took out a towel and stood beside me.

The occasional sound of falling drops broke the silence. Other than that, it was really quiet. In the past, he had been like a canary, chattering endlessly. But now it was hard to believe he had ever been like that; he was remarkably quiet. The silence was so deep I could even hear him breathing, but it wasn’t an embarrassing silence.

“Was it good?”

He spoke after a long pause. Although his words were short, I understood that he was referring to my sparring session with Bapharos.

If I had continued the sparring, I would have remembered a forgotten thrill – the joy of cutting off my opponent’s breath. But I ended it before I could lose myself in that feeling because Zetak was angry.

Wait a minute. Does this mean that Zetak was angry because I was having fun against Bapharos? Why would he be angry about that? Did he not want to see someone he despised enjoying himself? When I didn’t answer, Zetak didn’t bring up the subject again. It was as if he hadn’t expected me to answer.

After rinsing my hair lightly, he unfolded a towel and approached me. Zetak skillfully dried me off and then picked up the robe hanging on the rack, moving behind me. Once we left the bathroom, he sat me down in a chair and began to dry my hair.

Throughout his actions, Zetak remained silent. That silence didn’t feel awkward.

“I wouldn’t advise meeting Karial.”

“Did you hear what Bapharos said?”

Bapharos had spoken so softly that only I could hear him instruct Karial to teach her how to use a sword. However, it seemed that Zetak, who was standing at the entrance of the training hall, had overheard the comment.

“May I ask why you say that?”

He remained silent for a long time. I sensed a deepening in his red eyes as he pondered something. After a while, he finally spoke, and his words were completely unexpected.

“She resembles me.”

“…”

Does it resemble him? Does this mean that Karial has been tainted by a monster? No, if that were the case, I would have noticed. She was purely human. Besides, she didn’t seem to harbor any hatred or anger that would attract monsters.

“Can you explain what you mean by that?”

“It’s a warning to keep your distance. I don’t want to end up like a specimen trapped in a glass case.”