Chapter 85: An Invitation
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༺ An Invitation ༻
"Are you done taking a bath?"
"Hiik!"
Lulu emerged from the bathroom after having immersed herself in the warm bathwater mixed with high quality potions. Frey glanced at her as he strolled through the hallway and inquired.
"It looks like your wounds haven't fully healed yet, you should stay in there longer."
"I…that…that's…"
Lulu, who was only wearing a towel, blushed heavily as Frey approached her.
"Come here. I'll wrap your arm with the bandage again."
"M-My clothes…"
"Hmm?"
"I-It's nothing."
It was impossible to discern whether or not Frey noticed Lulu's embarrassment as he wore a nonchalant expression. He suddenly took out a bandage and reached out to Lulu's arm.
"Maybe it's because you had too many injuries, but not even the high quality potions were sufficient in healing your arm."
Frey caressed Lulu's scarred arm gently as he spoke.
It was a stark contrast to Frey's usual demeanor. He was often found cursing at people on a regular basis and brutally assaulting Kania.
"Ow."
"What's wrong, does it hurt?"
Frey gently caressed her arm for some time before she released a pained groan as he touched his arm. He questioned her with worry embedded in his voice.
"I-It's nothing. This much pain is…"
"Kania, bring some medicine here."
Lulu's firm desire was to quickly go change as she was wrapped in only a bath towel. However, Frey persisted in grasping her arm and provided Kania with a command.
"I knew you would ask for it, so I already brought over some medicine in advance…"
Kania, who had been on standby in the hallway, appeared with a bottle of medicine. She froze when she noticed the nearly naked Lulu.
"Kania. The medicine."
"Y-Yes I understand."
Kania quickly handed the vial to Frey after overcoming her shock. Her actions hastened due to Frey's frigid glare and she quickly descended the stairs afterwards.
"Master Frey, your concern is appreciated, but please let me wear some cloth…heut!"
Lulu's trembling words were cut off when she felt Frey applying ointment to her arm. The cold feeling of the ointment induced a shiver in her body.
"From now on, I'll be the one to apply medicine to your arm."
Frey smiled gently and spoke as he applied the ointment to Lulu's arm.
"…..I understand."
Lulu decided to agree to all of Frey's demands upon seeing his benign smile. After all, having her wounds be treated was advantageous for herself as well.
"So, from now on, don't hurt yourself. Alright?"
Frey spoke with a worried expression on his face as he finished applying the ointment and started wrapping a bandage around Lulu's slender arm.
"Ugh…"
"Oh, my apologies. It's cold right? Let me take you to your room."
As Lulu continued to tremble at the mysterious sensation induced by the medicine and the bandage brought, Frey spoke swiftly and grasped onto her hand. He dragged her towards the hallway and began walking.
"Master Frey, this isn't the way to my room."
However, the direction Frey began walking towards, was in the complete opposite direction of where Lulu's room was.
"Just a while ago, you would've been correct, but not anymore."
"Huh?"
Lulu tilted her head in confusion in response to the eerie reply.
"From now on, this is the room you'll be staying in."
"Haa…."
Lulu could only understand the meaning of his words once Frey came to a halt and opened the door to a room.
"How is it? Do you like it?"
The room was several times larger than the dormitory she had been living in, and was decorated luxuriously.
"Then…from now on, will I be living with the other servants?"
Lulu scanned the room in shock and noticed all her belongings had been brought here.
"No, this is a room just for you."
"What!?"
Lulu's eyes widened in shock as Frey responded with a calm expression on his face.
"Well then, I'll take my leave."
"Wa-Wait…"
Lulu could only watch as Frey left the room before she could even speak. Soon silence descended upon the room.
"W-What's going on?."
The only words that resonated in the room was Lulu's dumbfounded murmuring.
.
.
.
.
Time passed and the sun was beginning to set.
"Phew…"
Lulu laid on her new bed and recollected all the events of the past day.
"…Dinner was delicious too."
The meals she ate with Frey were two of the most exquisite meals in Lulu's life. Her typical meals consisted of white rice porridge or stale bread offered at free food stations.
Instead of porridge, she was provided a warm soup with crayfish, and instead of bread hard enough to break a tooth, she was provided warm creamy bread.
Not only that, but the mountains of colorful seafood that Lulu thought she would never be able to eat in her lifetime came as a great shock to her.
"And, Frey's attitude…"
The luxurious food wasn't the only source of bewilderment.
It was quite unbelievable that Frey would glance at her with soft eyes and a gentle smile. Just today alone, he had verbally abused and assaulted the staff dozens of times.
That individual cared for her well-being.
Didn't he apply medicine directly to my wound and even helped bandage it?
Kania and Irina's minor mistakes were met with verbal rebukes and assault. In contrast, whenever he encountered Lulu, he would smile gently and stroke her hair.
For Lulu, who had never received gentle human contact nor a warm gaze, this was an unforgettable experience. Throughout her miserable life, only Frey has ever provided her with these experiences.
'No. Frey is still a villain.'
Lulu lay on her bed staring at the ceiling and recalled Kania and Irina's conversation she had overheard earlier.
"Kania, is it your turn tonight?"
"…I believe so. How terrible."
"I wonder if and when we can escape this hell…"
Kania and Irina embraced each other with pale faces as they conversed.
"You must not go in here."
"H-huh?
After eating with Frey, Lulu had received permission to wander the mansion. She encountered Kania at the entrance to the basement.
"…Because it's a place where the young master enjoys his entertainment."
Kania shook in terror as she spoke, as if the acts performed within the basement were too fearful to imagine.
'After all, the rumors were right.'
Lulu was well aware of the rumors about Frey's lewd nightlife that had permeated the Empire.
'Now that I've had a good time … it should be about time for my misfortune to set in.'
Lulu's stigma would not allow her to have a single day of bliss. The rest of her day would be brimming with misfortunes.
If Lulu is right, that would be…
– Creaaaak…
"…Heup."
The terrified Lulu turned pale in response to the creaking sound of the door opening, as quickly sat up on her bed.
"Hello, Lulu."
"…Ah…"
Lulu trembled with a frightened expression on her face when Frey entered the room smiling while only wearing a white robe.
'After all… this is what it means to be his pet.'
It was clear that all the terrible rumors that occurred in the cellar of the Starlight Mansion stemmed from Frey's actions.
From this moment forward, she would be thoroughly dominated by Frey.
"Ple-Please…"
But, there was nothing she could do.
If she resisted, she would be abandoned by Frey, and everything she had endured thus far would be rendered meaningless.
So no matter how badly she was abused by him, she had to endure.
"…Please be gentle."
Lulu made up her mind and got on her knees, begging as she shut her eyes firmly.
-Clack, Clack.
Frey's footsteps and the rustling of his loose robes brushing against itself became more and more audible as he approached.
"…Hmm."
The rustling of his robes and his footprints came to a stop right in front of her. Lulu swallowed her saliva and began to silently wait for Frey's touch.
"Alright, how's the room? Is there anything not to your liking?"
However, her fears never became reality.
Frey gently stroked Lulu's head as he spoke.
"Uh… huh?"
"What's wrong, Lulu?"
Lulu glanced at Frey with an expression of incomprehensibility and carefully inquired.
"W-Why are you stroking my hair?"
"Huh? Didn't you say to be gentle?"
Frey asked with a confused expression on his face, and Lulu, who was befuddled, responded by asking a crude question without realizing it.
"Aren't you going to force yourself on me?"
"…Pffft!"
Frey burst out laughing, then spoke with a smile plastered on his face.
"Why would I do that?"
"Huh? B-But…"
"You are my pet. What kind of an owner would copulate with their pet?"
A puzzled expression emerged on Lulu's face and Frey gently stroked her head before continuing.
"It's like raising a dog or a cat. I thought you were cute, so I made you my pet, Lulu."
"A dog or… a cat?"
"Yes, I just did that earlier to check if you would rebel."
The corner of Frey's lips lifted into a smile and he added a frigid statement.
"And for 'that' role, Kania, Irina, and the people in the cellar are enough."
In response to his chilling statement, Lulu stared at him with a terrified expression. Frey only glanced at her with curious eyes and spoke in a soft voice.
"Anyway, the attitude you displayed was very good. I'll compliment you for that."
"Yes…"
"Lulu, what should you do if you receive a compliment?"
"Uh, say… thank you?"
Lulu looked into Frey's eyes as she responded unconfidently. Frey glanced back with satisfaction in his eyes and spoke.
"Good girl. Even if I don't give you a command, you'll behave well, right?"
"…Yes."
"That's right. Good girl."
Lulu questioned him in a quiet voice as Frey smiled again.
"But… why are you here then?"
"I just came to say good night before going to bed."
Frey gently laid Lulu on the bed, kissed her on the lips, and whispered alluringly.
"Good night, Lulu."
Having said so with a smile, Frey turned around and began to leave the room.
'Wait… Then, what's the next misfortune?'
Lulu began to panic in confusion..
She expected herself to be sadistically tortured and cruelly harassed, but nothing like that occurred. Now, she was awaiting a misfortune to occur that she could not foresee.
'What… what… what's going on…'
Despite experiencing the greatest bliss in her life, Lulu began to panic again.
– Crunch, crunch.
She attempted to draw her knife out of habit, but remembered that Frey had removed any sharp objects on her person. She resorted to biting her nails instead.
"Cough! Cough! Ugh…"
"…Ahh."
Frey, who had yet to step outside of her room, suddenly stopped walking and coughed. Lulu stopped biting her nails and stared at him blankly.
"…Ughh."
Frey flinched for a brief moment at the sight of his own hand after his spasm of coughing came to a conclusion. He silently retrieved a handkerchief from his pocket.
– Creaak…
Frey wiped his hands off with his handkerchief and quietly opened the door before walking out. Lulu's blank expression transformed into one of horror as she fell deep into thought.
"…It can't be, right?"
Her eyes trembled as she spoke. .
.
.
.
.
.
"Whew…"
Frey was exhausted from a day filled with acting.
He teamed up with Kania and Irina to set up a performance. He even gave one of the chefs he hired some money to play along and also showered Lulu with love.
It was quite difficult to keep up the act, but if doing so could save that poor child, it's definitely something he had to do.
– Creaak..
"Now, I have to contemplate what to do for my birthday…"
I opened the door to my room and laid on my bed exhausted. I tried to fall asleep as I organized my thoughts. However…
"Hooot!!"
"Hiss!!"
"…What is this nonsense…"
When I came to the realization that my room had transformed into a battlefield, I stared blankly for some time.
"Meow…! Meow…!"
The cat doll, who was constantly being pecked by Serena's white owl, cried out and grasped my leg.
"If you keep doing this it won't… Huh?"
I attempted to reason with the owl who was assaulting the cat doll but noticed a letter on my desk. I hastened my steps towards my desk with widened eyes.
'What could be written here? New information? A new plan? Or…'
I finally grabbed the letter and tore open the envelope as my thoughts raced ceaselessly.
"…Eh?"
Disappointment grew on his face when he noticed that there was only a since there was only a single miniscule note in the envelope..
'Well, Serena is also very busy these days.'
I knew exactly how busy Serena was currently.
She has to determine the location of the runaway Secret Head, work on the foundations to completely acquire the Moonlight Family, and also worry about the contents of the letter from Clana.
Therefore, a note of this size wasn't out of the ordinary.
"Huh…?"
I immediately froze as I tried to calm myself down and read the contents of the note.
My parents aren't home.
Clearly, I have to go out tonight.
You can read 505 episodes for $10. p.*atreon.com/Astrid02