--Lae's pov--

After master went to his room, I went in front of his room and was about to knock and check on him, like I would have usually done, but after I thought again about what he did to that kid, I couldn't knock on that door.

I started walking back and forward in the corridor while thinking.

I always knew David could be quite fierce, but I didn't know he could arrive at that. David had every right to be angry, and I saw much worse, David could even be considered grateful if compared to the guy that protected my brothel back in the slums, but I couldn't get the image of him, torturing a kid with fire while smiling out of my mind.

That image made me incredibly uncomfortable, it made me feel like when I lost my parents. It made me feel like I lost my hero, or that he was never there, to begin with.

I thought that David was like one of the heroes of the legends, gallant, kind, and selfless, I was happy to belong to someone like that, but maybe that was just an illusion, maybe he was just like the thugs back in the slums.

After all, although he showed approval when I helped him, he never showed affection or appreciation to me, I know I was just a commoner and he was a hero, but I hoped he would at least give me some words of kindness from time to time. Instead, he just told me that my dedication was exemplar, or that I was a good servant, all while having his usual expressionless face. I have to say that he also never treated me unfairly, he never used his power to get my body, even if I wouldn't have minded, and never shouted at me or raised his hands on me. It was like he didn't even care if I was there or not, and no matter how much I tried, he didn't notice me.

Now I felt lost, I didn't know what to do. What if he becomes violent? What if he becomes twisted and ends up hurting me? I wondered if I should have tried to flee. No, I couldn't flee from Alua, if I tried I would just die.

I could try to ask Mark if I could become his maid, or maybe Erian.

If I did I would betray master though......... but now I was scared that like this it would be David the one betraying me.

I didn't want to lose my place in the world, not after I just found it, but what if I didn't have it, to begin with? What if it was all a delusion?

But he was still the one who saved me, who was beaten incredibly hard and still managed to rise to his feet for me.

I felt more confused than ever.

I didn't know what to believe.

I continued to walk back and forward in the corridor while thinking for a while, in the meanwhile the other party members went to their rooms.

After a while I took a decision, I needed to face him, I needed to ask him who he was.

I looked at the door.

I stopped, took a deep breath, and knocked on it.

No one answered.

I knocked stronger.

Still no answer.

“Master, may I come in?”

Still only silence.

I wondered if he was sleeping.

The door wasn't locked, I opened the door a little, to peek and see if he was sleeping, he wasn't on the bed.

“Master, may I come in?”

Still no answer.

He probably wasn't here.

I opened the door completely, to confirm his absence, but he was actually there, lying on the floor.

I remained stunned for a few seconds, looking at the pitiful figure of master.

He was unmoving, with his eyes wide open, looking at a bottle of potion, his arms were bent unnaturally, they were probably broken, and his hands were in a miserable state, the skin was peeled off and the fingers were all bent unnaturally.

I panicked, I didn't know what to do, maybe it was better to let him die and then ask to serve Mark.

I thought back at when he faced Ron for me, now that was the image I couldn't get out of my mind, maybe I was too hasty. I now realized that although I didn't know David, that was also the reason why I couldn't abandon him like that, I still wanted t to be with him, but I had to know him better before that.

“Master!”

I hurried to him and checked his breath, to see if he was alive.

He was still breathing.

I took up the potions from the ground and poured them into his arms.

Then I ran to the corridor and called for Erian.

--Erian's pov--

I was trying to sleep in my room, suddenly I heard someone knocking on my door and a voice.

“Erian, please come quickly, master is hurt, I'm afraid he could die.”

I got up in a hurry and opened the door.

“Are we under attack?”

“No, he did everything on his own.”

“What do you mean?”

“Please come see him in person, quick.”

I couldn't get what happened, but I wanted at least to understand the situation.

I followed Lae to David's room and I saw the half-dead body on the ground.

His arms were in a very bad shape, especially his hands, but I could see that a healing potion was poured onto them. I touched his body and felt that his ki and mana were almost completely exhausted. I also used healing magic to analyze his body, there weren't other wounds other than in his arms, but his hands were completely ruined, I wondered how he could reduce himself in this state.

I noticed a bloodstain on the wall, he probably broke his arms by punching repeatedly on the wall, did he want to kill himself or what? And why is his mana empty? I could feel demonic mana in the air, but it didn't seem like he used any spell.

I thought back about how his energy seemed to explode back in the tavern and connected the dot.

“He probably broke his arms while punching the wall in a frenzied state due to Overflow.”

“Can you heal him?”

I thought about not healing him, maybe it would be better like that, he had all the right characteristics to become a true monster if I left him alive, he almost killed me too, after all.

I remembered how I reacted to that, at that moment I wanted him to take my life, I promised myself I would do all I could to help people in need until the very end, but at that moment, I felt like throwing everything away and deny to those that were trying to kill me the satisfaction of taking my life themselves, it was like I went mad for a few moments.

He saw my pitiful self at that moment, if I left him to die I could erase that image from the world, and on top of that, I would prevent a possible monster from being born.

“So, Erian can you heal him?”

Lae was looking at me with a desperate expression, I looked at the body. David had his eyes open, his face was contracted in a pained grin.

At that moment he seemed very pitiful, his face showed some human emotions, unlike usual, his harmless figure reminded me a little of a wounded puppy, I wanted to hug him and tell him that everything would be all right, even if I knew it was a lie.

I sighed.

I guess he was a person in need too.

“I can, go fetch a few mana crystals in my room, I will need more mana.”

I got to work.

--David's pov--

I opened my eyes, I could see a ceiling upon me, I wondered if I died and reincarnated in another world again.

“Master are you all right?”

I looked to my right.

Sitting on the edge of the bed was Lae in her maid outfit, looking at me.

“I'm fine. Were you the one that healed me?”

“I found you, but it was Erian who healed you, she had to spend all her mana and consumed two crystals to heal you completely.”

'She didn't let me die? That girl never ceases to surprise me.'

I was grateful that she did though.

“Thank you Lae, I'm glad you're my maid.”

Lae was stunned for a moment.

“Thank you, master.”

She said while smiling.

I recalled what I thought before fainting, I realized I had to change my ways if I wanted to reach my goal, I guess Lae was the right person from which to start.

I looked Lae in the eyes.

“Lae listen to me, Jane died because of me, I didn't want her to trust me, and she died because of that, I decided I'm not going to do the same mistake again.

Lae you was a wonderful maid, but I had been a bad master, I had been merely a far away idol for you to contemplate until now, but I need to change that. I'm going to go to a dangerous place and I'm going to kill a lot of people, I need to get stronger, so I'm going to participate in the war against Zaven; if you will follow me I promise I will be a good master, I will be there for you, one day I might even become like a family to you.”

Lae looked at me with an incredulous expression.

“Master you.....”

“Yes.....”

“Nothing.”

“You can take your time to decide, if you don't want I can ask them to keep you in the citadel until I return.”

“I'm coming.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

She had a glad expression, I guess the word family had a strong effect on her.

“Well, now I need to convince the others too. Let's go downstairs.”

“No master, you have to rest.”

“What?”

She never retorted to me before.

“You reduced your body to a miserable state, the healing magic might have cured your wounds but you are still low on ki and your body also need some rest, you should sleep more. Also its nighttime now, you would have to wake up everyone”

She got on the bed on her knees, raised my head, and laid it on her thighs.

'Wait is she giving me a thigh pillow? Is this just an excuse to lay her hands on me?'

She continued to talk.

“Here lay here until you fall asleep, back in my home country it was tradition to do this for the one you hold dear. I know you don't like physical contact, but you see, earlier you scared me a lot, so please, let me do this.”

'So it was an excuse.'

“Well, I guess it can't be helped.”

I always wanted to receive a thigh pillow, and I was receiving it from an elf maid, it was the best.

Although the excitement for the body pillow kept me awake for a while, in the end, the tiredness of my body won over my weeb heart and I fell asleep.