Customs and Complexities

"Yes, that's correct," Sebas replied. "At first, we thought you were a woman, so we had considered Lupusregina for a particular matter... but after the doctor mentioned you might be male, we decided to put those plans on hold. Now that we've cleared things up, we'll have to rethink the whole situation, including other related issues."

So that's how it was, Damien thought. He still hadn't even met this Lupusregina, but he felt a bit guilty for causing such a stir around her.

"Master Damien," Sebas continued, "there's the matter of your attire that needs to be addressed as well."

"My attire…? Oh, you mean clothes?"

Were they going to provide him with new clothes? That would be a relief, considering his current situation.

"I'll have all the new garments being made remade from scratch," Theo instructed, his tone firm. "For now, use second-hand clothes. Sebas, handle the details."

"As you wish," Sebas replied with a respectful bow.

Wait, what?!

"Y-you don't need to remake them!" Damien protested, panicking. "It's wasteful! I'm fine with them as they are."

It was one thing to find out that they were making him new clothes, but to remake everything was just absurd.

"But… they were all designed as women's clothing," Theo pointed out, clearly perplexed by Damien's reaction.

Oh… right. They had thought he was a girl.

"…Sorry. Please, go ahead and remake them," Damien said, feeling a bit awkward. "But actually, if there are second-hand clothes available, I'm totally fine with those!"

He would feel much better wearing second-hand clothes than having them go to the trouble of making new ones just for him. However, Theo's expression darkened at the suggestion. He clearly didn't like the idea, and Damien could tell he was uncomfortable with it. But he couldn't help feeling guilty about getting new clothes made just for him.

"Master Damien," Sebas spoke up, addressing Damien again.

Damien looked at him, determined not to back down.

"Regarding your attire, this is simply how things are done," Sebas said firmly.

"How things are done?" Damien echoed.

There were all sorts of reasons tied into the decision, but the end result was clear—they had to make new clothes for him, and it was just how things were.

"Ah… I understand," Damien replied, finally giving in. If that's what Sebas said, and given how much Theo had already done for him, he couldn't exactly argue.

Even though they'd only met a day ago, Sebas already seemed to understand exactly how to handle Damien.

The conversation then shifted to matters like decorations, furniture, perfumes, and other things concerning Damien's surroundings, but every time he gave an opinion, it was dismissed with a polite "That's just how things are." Even Theo joined in by the end, and Damien found himself powerless to argue, lacking any understanding of this world's customs.

He was starting to realize that he had unknowingly opened a door to a whole set of complexities.

...

After they finished discussing Damien's immediate surroundings, it was decided that the plans for the next few days would be addressed during dinner and it will set to take place in two hours. For now, the tea party came to an end.

Although Damien felt uneasy about not knowing what awaited him in the days to come, he understood that everyone, including Theo, likely had things to take care of before dinner.

Theo had seemed a bit frustrated toward the end, clearly unsatisfied that the conversation had shifted to more serious matters, leaving little time for him to explore the intriguing items from Damien's world. However, Sebas gently reprimanded him, and Theo eventually relented.

For a moment, Damien considered offering to lend him something—though his original suggestion of giving everything to Theo had been firmly rejected. But Damien quickly dismissed the idea, knowing that if he did, he'd be dragged into a lengthy explanation. He could already see how tiresome that would be.

It might have been a chance to bond with Theo, but Damien knew he didn't have the energy to deal with his intense enthusiasm today.

For now, it seemed best to stay quietly in his room until dinner.

"Until later, then, Damien," Theo said as he left, looking visibly dejected.

Seeing Theo like that almost made Damien want to spend a bit more time with him. But he was at his limit today, so he decided to make it up to Theo another time.

"Yes, until dinner… Oh, wait."

As he prepared to bid farewell to Theo's group, a thought occurred to him.

"By the way, is there any chance I could take a bath?" Damien asked, turning to Sebas. If nothing else, it would be nice to wash off the sweat before dinner.

Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure if this world had baths.

"A bath, sir? My deepest apologies, but we haven't prepared a change of clothes for you yet. We'll have something ready after dinner, so if you could wait until then…"

Ah, right, Damien remembered. They still didn't have spare clothes for him.

But he really wanted to wash up.

"Ah, well, what if I just put on this uniform again afterward? I'm starting to feel pretty uncomfortable. Even if I don't get new clothes right away, I'd really appreciate just being able to clean myself up."

"If that's the case, there's no problem at all. I'm truly sorry for any inconvenience you've experienced," Sebas said with a bow.

"No, no, I'm the one being taken care of here. I really appreciate all you've done for me," Damien replied.

After all, it was thanks to Theo and the others that Damien could live in this strange world without too much discomfort.

For that, he truly was grateful.

…Though, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous about what the price for all this would be.

"Then, we'll prepare someone to guide you shortly, so please wait a moment," Sebas said.

Damien thought for a second that he didn't really need someone to guide him, but then realized he had no idea what baths were like in this world. Given that the baths here might be entirely different from what he imagined, having someone explain things would definitely be necessary.