Chapter 20

The young master said no words when he entered his room. He seemed resigned. Tired of something that clearly frustrated him. His red eyes were deeper, almost black when he didn't sleep enough and as if to prove it they were currently almost without a glint of red.

I walked past him. Filling his bath with water that had been heated for him. Taps were something commoners never really touched unless for a nobles use. I had always admired the patterns in which the water which fell from it looked, but today my mind just stared at it absently as it reflected on what had happened. On everything that had happened.

I would much prefer to sleep after all that.

When the water was full I added the scented oil and herbal salt to the bath. The scent of pine made me relax as I stood up and turned to the young master who sat on his bed. He was already in his robe and just watched me the whole time it seemed.

"Your bath is ready", I said while shutting my eyes as he moved to the water.

I heard a breath of pleasure escape him as he settled in the water and felt my brow twitch in envy.

What I wouldn't give for a bath…

I didn't ready baths often for the young master. As a child he would adamantly refuse and say it was embarrassing. I was glad that he thought that in all honesty. I had given it to him once and it resulted in the both of us being covered in water and soaked through

It was never a fun thing after the duchess passed.

It would be another torture method as he would have me raise the temperature to ridiculous lengths and have me test it with my hands. This time he didn't bother, in fact, lately, he treated me rather nicely. That didn't mean he was kind, but he didn't do any strange torture methods.

"Don't you hate him?" I heard him say. His voice was neither condescending nor scheming. It was a question of simple curiosity.

"Who do you mean, young master?" I knew who it was, but I knew nobles liked to trick servants into sentencing their own deaths by asking easily misunderstood questions.

"My father", he spat as if the word was poison.

I paused before I answered. Should I be truthful? No. That would be insane. But If I had to speak of who I hated more than the duke himself without openly hating the duke then…

"I despise my father a lot. He abandoned my mother with me and made enough mess of things to make it hard for my mother to raise us. I think I hate him more than anyone. I hate that I look like him. I hate that people say my actions resemble his. If I had a choice I'd wish everyone forgot about him. He seems to be the root of all problems.", it wasn't what he asked but I did hate the man and he was the reason I hated the duke.

"That's a lie".

I flinched at his words.

"Young"-

"You liked hearing that you were similar to him. You liked it when my mother said you had his eyes and his charisma. I remember that", his words made me feel a strange nostalgia. The fact that those memories of mine weren't just my own was somehow comforting, but it made me feel strange that the person that shared them with me was him.

"I did. But it's only ever got me beaten so I don't feel the same anymore", I wasn't sure what compelled me to expose myself like that, but it might've been because I never got to speak about my father with anyone.

Angela had another father. So she only felt annoyed when people recalled who my dad was and nobody spoke much of hers. Mother said it was because my father left a rather big impression on everyone, but the only person Angela's father left an impression was well… mother.

After she passed I never got to speak of him. And after the duchess passed he was never mentioned positively.

"Can you show me your body. I was rather rough with my words earlier but I want to see the scars. Only if that's okay with you", his words made my eyes have a mini seizure.

The young master is asking for my opinion?!

"Earlier?" As I traces my mind I recalled how he asked me to strip. He was less angrier now but he still sounded rather mad. I noted his silence as a way to wait for my answer and for the first time in my life I was given a choice between something that wouldn't have a ridiculous impact on my life.

For a moment I felt like a fearsome lion was at my beck and call. That smidge of what I would call power was quickly smashed by myself when I reflected on what he asked of me.

I could never show anyone my scars. They were disgusting. They showed what I truly was.

A slave.

"Please forgive me, young master. But I would never show anyone such a revolting sight", I answered him.

He didn't say anything.

Not even long after when he finished his bath and dried up.

He excused me with a gesture and finally just before I shut the door he spoke.

"Go straight to bed".

I did as told. But as I walked to my new room in the servants quarter I felt rather strange. I felt kind of… warm?