Elsprinc 14th, 799 – Morning

You close your eyes. Who's the girl you want to imagine right now?

Your mind is wandering.

At first, you see Amelia.

She always looks cute, especially when she wears glasses. She looks smart and innocent, but at the same time looks very sexy.

But why don’t you imagine the others?

Maybe Hanna.

She’s beautiful and has the most stunning body. Slender, with big breasts. But are you sure you want to imagine her this way?

Arini?

Yes, she’s better. She is such a lovely girl. You think of the time she sat next to you when she took care of your feverish body. She’s so caring. Her body was close to you so you can see her beautiful cleavage. Just a glimpse, but after that moment you always imagined her doing this to you. Kissing you, touching you, and stroking your manhood.

You can feel it’s standing tall now.

The sound of stifled breaths is heard.

Startled, you open your eyes and turn. You see the face of a girl who is standing behind you. She’s covering her mouth with both hands.

Instantly you scream. The girl screams back.

You lose balance. Your body slips and goes into the water without you having time to take a breath. Fortunately, two hands manage to hug and pull your body out of the water.

The girl leans your body back against the wall of the bathtub. She looks scared and about to cry. “Young Master, a-are you all right?”

"I’m okay," you say, trying to contain your emotions.

To be honest, it was your actions that were about to masturbate that made this mess happen. But of course, you don't want to admit it. It’s better if you just pretend you didn't do that, so this girl can pretend not to see you did that too.

The girl quickly pulls her hands and inches backward. “My apologies, Young Master. Please forgive me." Her palms are pressed together in front of her chest as she pleads. “I startled you and almost drowned you. This is my fault. I apologize."

She's crying, and that makes all your annoyance go away.

"It's okay,” you say. “You helped me. I thank you.”

The girl's face lowers. Her shoulders shake.

"Hey, stop your crying. Look at me."

The girl timidly raises her face. Her crying has stopped, but her lips are still trembling and her eyes don't dare meet yours.

You notice her. The girl has short, shoulder-length black hair. Her body is small, and she is wearing a maid uniform which is now soaking wet. Looks like she's your new maid, as Master Harlin said yesterday. So it's natural for her to look confused or scared. It’s unlucky for her because on the first day she has to face an incident like this. She has a cute face actually, almost childlike, if only she weren't crying.

You're stunned when your thoughts get there. Maybe she is still a child!

That’s bad. Did Master Harlin have underage girls work here?

"Are you the new maid? What's your name?"

"Lily, Young Master."

"How old are you?"

"20 years."

"Don’t lie to me. You're like a 13 or 15-year-old."

The girl's face is frightened again. "I am not lying. I am 20 years old."

You shake your head. "I'll check it later. I don't want Master Harlin to hire underage girls here."

"But it’s true! I'm not lying."

"Yeah, we'll see about that. Now, can you explain why you were suddenly behind me?"

"I… I didn't come all of a sudden. I've been here long enough, to do my job, and I've called you many times."

Really?

“May I tell you from the beginning, Young Master? You can punish me if I did something wrong, but I don't want you to misunderstand."

"Well, tell me."

“I came to your room at exactly 6 o'clock, according to the schedule that Master Harlin gave me. I knocked on the door three times according to the rules, and since you didn't answer, I went straight in. I didn't see you in bed, but I saw the bathroom door was open, so I thought you were shaving there. I said hello, but you didn't answer. So I started doing my job. I took your clothes off the floor, made your bed, cleaned all the tables and floors—”

"You don't need to tell me everything."

“Yes … I’m sorry, Young Master. After a while, you still haven't come out of the bathroom. So I went there. I saw you in the bathtub, sleeping with your back to me. I called you. Three times. But you didn't wake up. I didn't dare to touch you, so I continued my work because I thought you'd wake up in a minute. But you didn't. So I came to you again and called again. Twice was enough this time, and you woke up. But, it ended up like this ...”

“Next time, if you want to wake me up, do it from the front. I was shocked because I didn't think anyone was behind me."

"Yes, Young Master. I apologize. It was my fault. You can punish me. I deserve it. But please don't fire me."

Punishing her? That would be interesting.

“Well, you made a big mistake,” you say to scare her.

Lily starts crying again. “Please, Young Master. I need this job.”

"Okay, stop it. I won't get you fired."

“T-thank you, Young Master.” The girl immediately lowers her head deeply to show her gratitude.

"But how can I punish you?"

Lily looks up again and shakes her head in confusion. "I don’t know ..."

"What can you do for me?"

“Do … for you?”

“Do what you think you can do. That's your punishment."

“I… can work for you, if that’s what you mean.”

“You consider your daily work a punishment?”

"No, it is not like that …"

"Think of something else then."

“I… I can't think of anything ...”

"Well, take your time, you can say it later. Today you think about what you can do for me. The best you can do. Tell me in the evening after I come back."

"Y-yes, Young Master."

"Now you may go, and change your clothes. I don't want you to get sick."

The girl rushes out of the bathroom, then out of your room as well.

You shake your head slightly, trying to gather your thoughts.

What did you just do? Do you really mean to punish her, or are you just playing around? Are you going to prank an innocent little girl?

Well, hopefully, this incident does not cause problems.

Such as, what if someone sees the girl coming out of your room wearing a drenched shirt? Lady Winda or Hanna can see her. They might think you've done something really bad, like perverted an underage girl.

Or, what if Lily told this incident to someone else? It could be that she actually saw you masturbating, then she tell her friends about this. They will all laugh at you, mock you from behind. That’s embarrassing!

You should have made peace with that girl in the first place and didn't need to mention punishment, so she wouldn't hate you.

Or maybe the other way around. You should have threatened her so she wouldn't open her mouth and make up some nonsense.

Damn. It looks like you're in trouble this early in the morning.

You get up from the bathtub and suddenly think of something else.

Last night, didn't you read a book here? Where's the book?

You look around. To the table next to you, to the floor, then to the bottom of the bathtub. That’s it! In the water! The book must have fallen out of your hands when you fell asleep last night. It has been there all night.

Panic, you hastily grab it and pull it out of the water. The whole book is wet for sure. When you press it, the water pours out as if you squeeze a cloth. But, maybe it can still be saved. You can still dry this book.

You turn the pages, and you feel like you want to cry. All the writing in the book has disappeared. Gone. There is no trace of ink anymore.

"No, no, no!" You shake your head in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? I haven't read the story, I only read three pages, and now it's all gone?”

This is terrible! You can no longer follow Gerold's adventures.

Amelia will also be angry. She will think you are really bad at keeping her book.

Yes, it is the worst morning that can happen to you.

You try to get rid of your annoyance by taking a shower. The cold water pouring down your head helps you think.

If you think about it, even if the start is bad, it's not necessarily a bad day. There's still a lot you can do today to fix it.

You dry yourself with a towel, then shave in the mirror. Slowly your razor cleans the thin hairs around your chin. Then, suddenly you see something strange. Probably the most unexpected thing this morning.

You see a bulge above your chest, just below your neck. What is that?!

The protrusion is the size of the tip of your thumb. You touch it, then tap it. You don't feel any pain, it's as if that bulge is ordinary flesh or bone on your body. But clearly, this is no ordinary bulge!

You stand in front of the mirror for a while, not knowing what to do. Do you need to see Master Harazi or Arini, and ask them to check this bulge? Better Arini, because she is in the castle.

Or should you not? Maybe it's nothing and you don't have to worry about it, and no one else needs to know either.

You can't decide yet. Right now you're trying to calm down first.

You put on your clothes. After tidying up, you come out of your room.

You walk down the corridor. Lily's door was slightly ajar, and the girl rushes out as soon as she hears your footsteps. She bows to you.

"You can continue cleaning my room," you say.

"Yes, Young Master." Lily takes the equipment from her room and rushes to your room. She seems quite diligent and agile.

Lady Winda's door is wide open. It seems her room is being cleaned. The door to Eamon and Hanna's room is still closed, but like Lady Winda, it seems they have come down to accompany Sir Ezron. The door to the room reserved for Arini is also closed, but you aren't sure if she has rested there.

You go down the stairs. Master Harlin is waiting for you.

"Is Sir Ezron awake?" you ask.

“He woke up last night but was still weak and sleepy. Arini fed him some, then he fell asleep again. Now he's awake more refreshed. Lady Winda, Hanna, and Eamon are with him.”

"How is he?"

"He's been laughing."

"That's good! But where's Arini? Why didn't she wake me last night?"

"She's already resting in her room. Looks like she didn't want to bother you last night."

"But I asked her to wake me up."

"Yes, but you know Arini. She'd rather not disturb people when they're already resting."

You nod in understanding, then remember something else. “Master Harlin, about my new maid, how old is she?”

“Lily? She's 20 years old.”

"Are you sure? Have you checked it out?”

"Of course. I checked everyone who works here, including Lily. I even knew his father. He's a shoemaker in the town. Lily previously worked as a maid at the home of Timo Harner, the mayor of Ellanor. She lost her job after the City Council asked the mayor to reduce the number of his servants, to reduce costs. She's a diligent and obedient girl, so I didn't hesitate to take her here to serve you. But, if you think she's not good enough or doesn't suit you, I can transfer her to another place and I'll give you another maid.”

"No, no, I don't mind. Let her be at my place. I just want to know."

"Of course."

"Now I'm going to see Sir Ezron."

“After you meet him, please go directly to the dining room, Young Master. With all the guests. Breakfast is ready.”

You continue your steps. After crossing the living room you arrive at the guest room. As soon as you enter you immediately feel the joy in there. Sir Ezron is laughing in his bed. Lady Winda, Hanna, and Eamon sit and stand around him. Master Harazi stands some distance away.

Sir Ezron smiles broadly when he sees your arrival. His hand reaches out to you. "This is our favorite boy."

You hug him and grip his palm tightly. You can feel his strength still hasn't recovered like before.

"How are you, old man? What do you feel?" you ask.

“As you can see, boy, I'm well. I'll take a few days off, then get back to work. I've had much worse days than this."

You glance at Master Harazi. The bald old man shakes his head.

"Unfortunately, not so soon, sir," you say to Sir Ezron. "This time you should rest longer."

"He will return to Ettarin today," Lady Winda says firmly. "He's not going to work or going anywhere unless I let him."

You smile at her. “Of course, Lady Winda. You're the boss. Did you hear what she said, Sir Ezron?"

Sir Ezron laughs. “Absolutely. I agree with you that she’s the boss."

"Then go back to Ettarin, sir, and don't think about the troops, training, or anything. Just rest. I will explain everything to my father. I'm sure he'll come to see you later after he comes back from Tiburon.”

Sir Ezron's face turns more serious. “If I shouldn't think about it at home, then I need to talk to you now if you don't mind.”

“Sure.” You turn to the others. “Master Harlin has already prepared breakfast in the dining room. Please, all of you go there and enjoy the breakfast. After talking to Sir Ezron, I'll catch up with you." Seeing that Lady Winda seems a bit hesitant, you smile at her. "Don't worry, my lady. I won't let your husband think too hard."

They greet and walk out of the room.

After they go, Sir Ezron says, "Did Jenn say anything before she left?"

He must have wanted to know about the firearms Jenn brought yesterday.

Jenn said she didn't want to give the firearm to Sir Ezron right away until the man is completely healthy. In your eyes he appears to be in good health, so you can give it to him, and then discuss this important matter with him.

But you have another choice. You don't have to tell him now. You can keep the weapon in your room first, and then give it to him or your father later.