Chapter 18: A Night of Healing Each Other’s Wounds

Puff, puff.

Late at night, an unexpected cloud of steam filled the bathroom.

Unlike the lively garden outside, the small, serene bathroom on the third floor of the mansion felt like a different world.

Though unused for a long time, it was spotless, with no sign of grime.

In the center of the bathroom, Esil sat idly in a wooden tub that came up to her chest.

She seemed dazed, yet there was no sign of sadness or grief on her face.

It felt as if she had brushed past hell itself.

Or perhaps, it felt like hell had just begun but abruptly ended. Such were the 65 long and arduous days spent in the underground prison.

For that reason, she didn’t feel sad, resentful, or pitiful anymore.

Of course, there were still two days left of the banquet.

She didn’t know what new hell awaited during those two days, but strangely, she didn’t feel much fear.

Perhaps it was because her trust in her master had grown stronger.

It felt like he—Duke Rosel—would prove that his promise to protect her wasn’t just empty words.

She had seen it.

She had witnessed everything with her own eyes.

She saw Roden deliberately stumble into Countess Rubran in the garden that seemed frozen in time.

She also saw Duke Rosel shield Roden by confronting the all-powerful Bricall, even sacrificing his own hand in the process.

Esil had seen it all.

Especially, the moment when Rosel crushed the wine bottle with his bare hands before it struck Roden’s head had burned itself into her memory.

Even though the act left his palm bleeding, he had protected Roden at the cost of his own injury.

‘…I didn’t know Master could wield magic.’

Esil also understood why Rosel had placed his hand on Roden’s shoulder—to ensure the boy didn’t pass out when mana was forcibly infused into his body.

She had even seen the black mana briefly bloom from Rosel’s hand.

It was all shocking in many ways.

Seeing Rosel sacrifice himself for someone as insignificant as Roden, just one of the many servants in the mansion, was beyond comprehension.

Thus, Esil realized that all his words…

…were not mere exaggerations or empty boasts.

They were genuine truths, and because of this, Esil found herself developing an unshakable faith in him—so much so that she felt she could even face death if it was for his words.

‘Incredible…’

The awe she felt melted away her grief, and Esil sank deeper into thought as she soaked in the warm bath.

It was all thanks to that boy.

And it was thanks to her master as well.

She was incredibly grateful.

She was deeply touched by those who sacrificed themselves for someone as insignificant as her, a lowly slave.

‘…I want to thank them.’

With that thought, Esil resolved to express her gratitude to Roden and her master. As she picked up the floating ladle from the water—

Knock, knock.

A familiar sound echoed.

The door opened immediately, and Celia walked in.

“Hero~ I snuck out, hehe.”

“L-Lady Celia.”

Startled by the sudden visit, Esil quickly rose from the tub. Splash! Her full chest heaved dramatically, and Celia’s pupils widened just as much.

It was Celia’s first time seeing the naked body of a fully matured woman.

Clap, clap.

Involuntarily, Celia clapped in admiration at Esil’s figure, once again realizing how extraordinary her “hero” truly was.

Celia’s gaze naturally drifted downward.

And there, she saw Esil’s lush golden bush, vibrant like sprouting grass under the morning sun, and found herself once more amazed.

“W-Wow. Incredible.”

“Ah… I-I’m sorry…!”

Realizing she was completely naked, Esil hurriedly sat back down, causing the bathwater to splash over the tub.

The blush on her cheeks, already tinted from the bath’s warmth, deepened further.

It was the first time since arriving in this world that someone had seen her naked.

Fortunately, all her scars had disappeared.

Had they still been there, she might have caused great distress to Celia, who idolized her.

Avoiding Celia’s curious gaze, Esil apologized.

“…I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”

“Oh, no, it’s fine. But… you’re really big in person…”

“W-What do you mean?”

“Your chest, Hero. It’s so pretty, like a drop of water.”

Esil’s face turned even redder at the sudden and bold compliment.

She couldn’t even remember the last time she had been complimented.

Perhaps the last time was when Daltan had said, ‘Good job,’ after she defeated the Demon King.

Though even that didn’t feel much like praise.

“Th-Thank you…”

“It’s my first time seeing another woman’s chest, especially a mature one.”

Celia glanced down at her own chest.

Then, looking back at Esil’s, she compared her own shallow slopes to Esil’s full curves.

…Will I ever grow that big?

“F-First time…?”

“Yes. I wash myself now, but even when the maids helped me before, they always stayed clothed, so I never saw anything.”

“Oh…”

Esil, now realizing she was her master’s daughter’s first, found herself flustered.

Then she noticed a faint sadness appear on Celia’s face.

She wondered if there was something wrong with her chest, but soon she understood the reason for Celia’s melancholy.

Duke Rosel was still unmarried.

Celia was his adopted daughter, and for some reason, she never spoke of her biological parents.

Esil’s chest must have reminded Celia of the mother she missed from her memories—though unintentionally.

…How sad.

Feeling sorry, Esil decided to offer something.

Though she could never replace Celia’s mother, she hoped to help her feel a bit of that motherly warmth.

“L-Lady Celia…”

“Yes?”

“…D-Do you want to… touch it? My chest…”

It was a bold and unexpected suggestion.

Squeeze, squeeze.

How did it come to this?

The small wooden tub, clearly meant for one person, now seemed even smaller.

The water, which had reached just below Esil’s chest earlier, now rose to the middle of it.

Did they add more water?

No, the volume inside the tub had simply increased.

And the reason…

Squeeze, squeeze.

Celia, now dressed in nothing but a bathrobe, had slipped into the cramped tub with Esil.

This wasn’t Esil’s original intention.

However, she couldn’t bring herself to reject Celia’s suggestion to bathe together.

Initially, Esil had protested.

What kind of master would bathe with a servant?

What if someone saw them? Surely, there would be harsh consequences.

But Celia’s words had left her defenseless.

“I’ve never bathed with my mom… I just want to feel what it’s like to enjoy bathing together.”

And so, here they were.

Squeeze, squeeze.

Celia, sitting in the tub with only her bathrobe, was eagerly touching Esil’s chest.

“Wow… So this is a mature woman’s chest… It’s so soft. Amazing…”

Celia pressed, poked, and squeezed curiously, while Esil, her cheeks flushed, silently allowed her chest to be explored.

If it made Celia happy, that was enough for her.

“Thank you… I’ve been really curious. But I couldn’t exactly ask the maids to show me…”

Curiosity naturally grows at Celia’s age.

Esil remembered asking her own mother such private and silly questions when she was young. Knowing this, she had made her bold suggestion to Celia.

After playing with Esil’s chest to her heart’s content, Celia smiled and turned around, sitting on the tub’s floor.

Then, without warning, she leaned her head against Esil’s chest.

The steam rose from the bathtub as they continued their bath late into the night, comforting each other’s wounds.

“…What is this, where have you gone?”

At that moment, Zicel, who had knocked on Cilia’s door, looked around the corridor when no sound came from inside.

It had been less than ten minutes since she had re-entered the room, so it was unlikely she had fallen asleep.

“Hmm… It’s quiet.”

It was also unlikely that she had gone down to the second floor.

She must be somewhere on the third floor…

Then, Zicel’s eyes caught the faint glow of light coming from the bathroom.

On the third floor, where Cilia and Rossel stayed, each bedroom had its own bathroom.

The bathroom at the end of the hallway was an emergency bathroom.

It was used when the personal bathrooms of the bedrooms were unavailable.

Today, Esil, the slave, was washing herself there under the orders of the head of the house.

“Could it be… over there?”

Zicel knew that Cilia was friendly towards Esil.

However, she thought it wouldn’t be good for them to become too close.

Zicel immediately moved towards the bathroom.

And now, it was time to rest for the night in preparation for tomorrow.

Since it was already past a reasonable time, she needed to make sure Cilia went to bed.

But then…

“This feels so good… it’s like being in my mother’s arms…”

“Ah…”

“…You can borrow it whenever you need it. My arms.”

“Really?” Hehe,

“Yes. If it’s Cilia, I can lend it anytime.”

“The best! Hehe, just hold me like this for a while. It’s so nice. Is it because you have big breasts? Maybe my mom had big breasts too. When I feel your arms like this, Hero…”

“Yes, yes? Does it… really feel like that?”

Zicel, about to open the door, froze at the conversation between the two and listened carefully.

She heard the conversation between a master and a slave.

Her heart skipped a beat, and worried that something might have happened to Cilia, she slowly opened the door.

What Zicel saw made her doubt her eyes.

Inside the narrow tub, Cilia was sitting closely, resting her head against Esil’s chest and laughing happily.

“…Y-Young Lady…”

She had thought that Cilia had matured and become more composed, but now, with her head resting on Esil’s chest, Cilia looked just like any other little girl.

“Ah…?”

Seeing this, Zicel thought to herself.

At first, she had planned to tell the head of the house.

That she was worried about how close Cilia and Esil had become.

But seeing Cilia, so happily playing in the water, leaning into Esil’s arms, she looked so content.

Yes, at 13, Cilia was still a child.

She had forgotten that.

The young Lady, Cilia, still needed someone to comfort her.

“Big breasts really are the best!” Hehe!

“No. Too big isn’t good…”

“The size of the Hero’s chest?”

“…That size is fine.”

Zicel couldn’t help but smile warmly at Cilia’s laughing face.

And she thought again.

Although they were master and slave, their bond seemed so beautiful.

With that, Zicel set aside her unnecessary worries and carefully closed the door.

She did it so quietly, hoping not to disturb Cilia’s laughter.

And so, Zicel decided to bury the events of this night in her heart.