By Zephyria 
Having safely returned, avoiding Asella’s burdensome gaze, the room was quiet.
I sighed inwardly and passed through several arches, faintly hearing the sound of a pen scratching against paper. I leaned my shoulder against the wall and watched Aska, who was sitting at the desk in an upright posture, writing something.
He clearly knew I was here, but no matter how long I waited, Aska didn’t even lift his head once.
“Is it that interesting?”
“Do I study because it’s fun? I’m just looking at it because I’m curious.”
Aska had started reading and copying the children’s books I had brought back from my Stealth mission like crazy. Some days, he would stay up all night reading, his eyes bloodshot, and he would doze off while eating.
He says he’s just looking at it because he’s curious, but from my perspective, Aska seemed very interested in learning things. Not just language, common sense, or culture, but also things like history and mathematics.
I was a little taken aback because I didn’t expect him to get so absorbed. When did he ever throw a fit about not wanting to study…? And it was the same with eating.
Aska, who had been wailing about how he could possibly starve, had actually managed to survive a week with such ease once he started drinking blood. He didn’t seem haggard from thirst or hunger, and he didn’t seem to have any weakness or other abnormal symptoms.
Just like someone who eats three square meals a day, Aska was able to go about his daily life for a week with just a few sips of my blood.
This led to the conclusion that Aska didn’t need to eat or drink like humans at all, as long as he had blood. It was too early to jump to conclusions after only a week of experimentation, but this alone was enough to prove that Aska was not human.
In fact, until the moment he drank blood and his wounds healed, I suspected that Aska could easily deceive me if he wanted to, but now all those doubts had disappeared.
So, what on earth is he? It was too much to simply dismiss him as a monster, as he resembled humans far too closely, and his learning ability was also outstanding. He also possessed reason and emotions, and judging by the way he read my expressions and conversed, he seemed perfectly capable of forming social relationships.
I got a little creeped out when I first realized all this…
“What?”
“……”
I was lost in thought when Aska frowned and looked at me. I snapped out of it and tilted my head.
“Why?”
“Why do you keep staring at me like that?”
“I’m just looking around?”
“Why are you looking around? Have you never seen someone reading a book before?”
“Yeah.”
It wasn’t a lie, since I had never observed someone reading a book so closely before. At my answer, Aska’s expression twisted as if he had seen something strange, and at the same time, I heard a knock.
I glanced at Aska, who was still frowning, gave him a small smile, and then passed through the arch again and arrived at the door. The room was excessively large and the layout was inefficient, but I planned to continue living here with Aska in the future, in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
When I opened the door, the Servant was waiting with a tray full of food. I stepped aside slightly, and the food began to be placed one by one on the large table.
I stood next to him, watching quietly, and our eyes met. The Servant smiled lightly, bowed his head, and said to me as he pushed the empty tray away.
“Chef put his heart and soul into making today’s dessert.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I hope you enjoy it.”
The Servant bowed his head again and went outside. I stared at the closed door for a moment, and then I heard footsteps behind me. I turned my head and saw that Aska was already close by. He sat down in a chair and immediately picked up a fork, stabbing it into the middle of a large piece of meat.
His table manners were still a mess, but he didn’t pick up anything with his hands like he used to. I approached Aska, who was eating diligently, and sat down next to him.
“What’s this?”
Then Aska poked at the green grapes with his fork and asked.
“Try it.”
“No.”
“Is there anything you don’t like?”
He used to put anything in his mouth and swallow it as long as he could eat it, so this was unusual. Aska shrugged and shook his head, then pushed the plate of grapes away altogether.
“It looks weird.”
What looked weird about it? I brought a whole bunch of grapes and examined them closely. There was nothing particularly strange about them, and they were perfectly fresh.
I took one of the grapes, put it in my mouth, and chewed. It was moderately soft and crunchy, and the juice was plentiful. Above all, the skin was so thin that it didn’t feel rough in my mouth.
I took another grape, put it in my mouth, and chewed, and then I met Aska’s eyes. He looked at me as if I were eating a poisonous mushroom, so I picked up a grape and pressed it against Aska’s lips.
I naturally expected him to turn his head away, but Aska hesitated for a moment and then slowly opened his lips. The grape was quite large, so one of his cheeks bulged out when the whole thing went into his mouth.
I chuckled at the sight, and Aska’s brow furrowed. Seeing that, I suddenly became curious. Why does he frown every time I laugh?
“Chew it. It’s not going to melt if you just keep it in your mouth. It’s not a candy.”
At my words, Aska finally pursed his lips with a determined expression. His jaw, which had been moving slowly, soon began to move faster, and Aska’s expression also brightened.
“It’s good.”
“Why are you discriminating against fruit based on its appearance? The grapes are going to feel bad.”
I put another grape in his mouth and said. He was too busy eating to reply to my words, and he was diligently moving his mouth.
“Oh, right. There’s a banquet coming up soon, and you’ll probably have to go with me.”
I handed the bunch of grapes I was holding to Aska and said.
“You remember what I told you, right? When there are other people around, you have to pretend to be weak and sick.”
“Mmh.”
His pronunciation was slurred because his mouth was full of grapes. I almost laughed again because it was funny, but I managed to hold it in.
“Anyway, no one’s going to talk to you, but… if you do have to say something, cover your mouth and cough softly. Don’t even think about talking.”
Just imagining what kind of ridiculous things would come out of his mouth gave me a headache. Even if I made him memorize a script or something, I couldn’t possibly predict every situation… It would be better if he just didn’t talk at all.
“Okay.”
“And don’t take off your veil whenever you feel like it because it’s annoying. And don’t kick or break anything when you’re angry. And don’t run for food when you see it.”
“Okay, I get it. Are we going today?”
“No, there’s still… about a month or two left?”
I was counting the days in my head when Aska’s expression twisted.
“Then why are you nagging me already?”
“I have to tell you until you’re sick of hearing it, or I don’t think you’ll understand.”
I sighed and said, but Aska didn’t seem to be reflecting at all, and he was just as confident as ever. I felt disheartened as I watched him focus solely on eating.
Was this how Mahir felt every time he looked at me? Lately, I felt like I was understanding Mahir’s feelings more and more.
“Why is he so disobedient?”
“What did I do?”
“I told you not to go out several times, but you’re not listening at all.”
At my words, Aska muttered with a wronged expression.
“I’ve only gone out twice.”
“It’s five times.”
“Three times I just went out the window for a little bit because the breeze was nice!”
“Whether it was a little bit or not, you still went out.”
He was so nimble and sensitive to movement that it didn’t seem like he would be caught by anyone, but there was still a chance. Besides, if he got into the habit of going out alone, there was the problem that he might run away someday.
I had briefly taken in and raised a stray cat when I was young. That cat had also gone out through an open window one day and never returned, so I was even more worried.
“Anyway, this is your last warning. If you go out without saying anything one more time, I’m going to put shackles on your ankles, so keep that in mind.”
“Then is it okay if I go out after telling you?”
“Do you think it’ll be okay?”
I asked back with a dumbfounded expression, and Aska clicked his tongue. But he didn’t say anything else, so it seemed like he had understood me properly.
“……”
I definitely thought so…
I couldn’t help but feel dumbfounded as I stared blankly at the wide-open window, where a cold wind was blowing in.
Aska had suddenly jumped up in his sleep, opened the window before I could say anything, and dashed out.
What on earth is going on? Is this a dream?
My mind was still hazy from sleep, so I lightly tapped my head. Then I slowly got up and approached the window, staring at the courtyard, which was shrouded in dark shadows and where nothing could be seen.
“Haa…”
Shackles… It seemed like I would have to prepare some shackles or a collar.