CH 9

Thanks to Sophia, we were put up in the guest room at the far end of the palace. According to the palace maid, this room was close to the rooms of the King, Queen, and Sofia of Harkeginia, and only those who were closest to them were allowed to stay there. So the palace maid looked at us curiously, saying that we were a very rare case.

Sera and I put our luggage in our room, sat down on the bed, and got comfortable.

“Finally, we can rest.”

“Yes, I guess so. ……”

“Aren’t you tired?”

“I-I’m fine! Are you tired too, Eric-sama?”

“Yes,……, I’m feeling a little rested after my exchange with Sophia.”

“I see. ……”

In fact, I am very tired. The conversation with Sophia was honestly uncanny and left me with goosebumps.

But I don’t want Sera to see how tired I am. Every time I look at her, the image of the old Eric, who was verbally abusive and terribly hurtful, comes to mind, and I am filled with a desire to protect her more.

But,

“Eric-sama.”

“Yes?”

“Would you mind getting down on your face?”

“Down on the ground? Why?”

“……, please.”

“Y-yeah.”

She says this while intertwining her fingers with a meaningful look on her face, so I conditionally do as she asks and lie on my face on the bed.

Then, the soft touch of her fingers gently traces my shoulder.

“Sera chan?”

“….. don’t you like the fingers of a lowly commoner?”

“……Your massage feels so good, my cute Sera-chan.”

As I gave my honest opinion, Sera-chan climbed on top of me, put pressure on her fingers, and carefully rubbed my shoulders and waist. Then she spoke in a trembling voice.

“In the royal capital, when we were surrounded by people, you embraced me, didn’t you?”

“Oh, yes. Yes, I did.”

“Not as a king, but as a lowly nobleman, the way you protected me …… was so wonderful.”

“Sera is my precious maid. I only did what I had to do.”

“……Eric sama,……”

Sera chan rubs my body and attaches herself to my back. Thanks to this, the soft flesh covers me and a pleasant softness takes over me.

I guess this is Sera’s way of expressing her love for me. To be honest, Sera-chan is as cute as an idol on a Japanese TV show. So this stimulation is more than enough to tickle a man’s heart.

As I was enjoying the feeling of the girl’s soft touch and the ease with which my fatigue was lifted, I gradually became sleepy and drifted off to sleep.

I wondered how long it had been. When I woke up, the sun had long since set and the azure sky was spreading.

“Hnn..”

I rubbed my eyes and woke up, and someone entered the room at the right moment.

“Thank you so much! Thanks to you, my maid degree has gone up!”

“Fufu. Maid’s degree is quite a cute word to use, isn’t it?”

“Ah, Eric-sama, you are awake, aren’t you? Did you wake up?”

Sera-chan came to the room with the royal palace maid.

“I just woke up.”

“How is your health?”

“Thanks to you, I feel better. Thank you, Sera chan.”

“Y-Yes. ……”

The palace maid, who was listening to our exchange beside me, smiled and opened her mouth.

“Really, it’s so nice inside, isn’t it? Fufu…”

We were then led back to the guest room, where we were served a very delicious meal. On the way, we passed the Guard of Honor and other dignitaries of the state, and when I smiled and said hello, they all greeted me back without exception.

After a hearty meal, we washed our bodies in the royal baths and, refreshed, returned to our rooms to make plans for tomorrow.

But, even if I call it a plan, it is not that big of a deal. The most important point was to listen to Sophia carefully.

Monster complainers or not, whoever they are, the bottom line is that you have to be sensitive to their feelings and listen to what they have to say. People have a tendency to say that they are busy or that it’s too much trouble, but they don’t listen to what others have to say. It is such trivial things that start disputes.

If they don’t want to talk to you, let go of your pride and be more approachable to them. This is one of the reasons I was able to get a job at a government office.

“It’s almost time to go to bed,. Let’s sleep.”

“Y-Yes!”

Fortunately, the palace maid brought me a bed for my bed, so I was able to get out of the situation of using the same bed.

“I’ll turn off the light.”

“Yeah, please.”

“Good night, Eric sama.”

“Good night, Sera chan.”

“Fufu.”

Sera-chan crawled under the covers with a smile on her face, and after a few seconds, she was breathing in her sleep.

“So fast to sleep!”

I chuckled and dove under the covers, closing my heavy eyelids. But today, because of the nap I had taken while getting a massage from Sera, it was dawn when I opened my eyes again.

It was about 3 a.m. when I opened my eyes again.

“Let’s go to the bathroom for a while,”

I quietly left the room so as not to wake Sera, who was sleeping soundly, breathing a cute sleep.

This is the innermost part of the palace. Therefore, the room where the king, queen, and Sophia are located is heavily guarded, but other than that, the rest of the room is basically empty.

The royal palace is huge, and the only place I know of is the guest room. So I quicken my pace to use the restroom near the noble guest room.

“Fuaa..”

After doing my business, I was about to return to the room where Sera-chan was, but I heard a mysterious voice from the guest room.

“…..n, nn……n!”

A girl’s wheezing voice. Yes. This is definitely a girl’s wheezing voice. It was late at night. Who on earth is inside?

Should I tell the guards? Or should I pretend not to know? My confused mind is unable to make a decision.

“He is a cunning man …… who has treated me so badly until now, and yet he is so kind to me ……… .”

I honestly can’t hear what he’s saying. But as I got closer, the sound of her voice became clearer and more familiar.

Sophia.

Just a moment ago, I had wanted to run away, but as soon as I realized it was Sophia, my feet were moving on their own.

“Sophia-chan!”

“Hiyah!”

Sophia, illuminated by the moonlight, was leaning her body against the sofa on which I was sitting, gasping for air.

(TL/N : Better not be what I’m thinking)