Everything is prepared, Young Master," she said, her voice slightly warmer now, though she maintained the same respectful tone.
He started to take off his shirt with a sigh but stopped when he realized a presence behind him. With hesitation he turned to her. "Hmmm what are you still doing here". His voice clad in confusion.
The maid cocked her head to the side as if confused by the question.
"To assist you with your bath?" she said, her voice genuine and innocent.
For a brief moment, he froze.
'Assist? Did she mean—?'
His mind whirled as her words sank in.
'No way.'
The image of this graceful, delicate maid helping him in the bath was too much for him to handle. This was not how things were supposed to go! He was stuck in a new world, yes, but there were boundaries. He wasn't ready for this kind of personal interaction, not from someone he had just met.
His face flushed with panic.
"H-Hell no!" he screamed, his voice high-pitched and desperate. He could feel his heart race, his thoughts becoming a jumble of embarrassment and confusion.
The maid blinked, clearly startled by his outburst, but her expression never wavered. She didn't seem offended, just... surprised.
He quickly composed himself, his hands shaking slightly as he took a deep breath.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout," he muttered, lowering his gaze. "I... I can bathe myself. I'll be fine on my own."
There was a long pause as the maid considered him. The silence between them felt like an eternity, the air thick with the tension of his awkwardness.
"Y-young l-lord did I offend you". Her voice cracked and her eyes were quickly filled with unshed tears, before he could answer she dropped to her feet and spoke in her shaky voice. "Young Lord if I have offended you in anywhere please forgive me, I didn't mean to do whatsoever I did, please have mercy".
He was dumbstruck at the scene, she didn't even allow him to talk and kept apologizing. He stood perplexed as he looked at her.
"You didn't do anything wrong, please stop apologizing". He was dumbfunded by the scene. 'does she what to bath me that bad, what if I allow her, how would her hands feel on my skin, what if she want to clean my lowe-'. He immediately stopped thinking and and turned around quickly, eager to hide his growing appendage from sight.
"I-i just want to have a moment of silence". He tried to strengthen his shaky voice as he tried to think of positive thoughts.
The maid raised her head and looked at him for a moment, confused by his sudden turn around finally, the maid stood up and bowed, her smile soft and understanding. "Very well, Young Master. I will leave you to your privacy. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to call."
With that, she turned, her footsteps soft as she exited the room, leaving him alone with the massive, luxurious bathroom.
As the door closed behind her, he let out a long, drawn-out sigh, his heart still racing.
This was real. All of it. The bathroom. The maid. The strange new world he was in.
He looked back at the tub, its smooth black surface gleaming in the dim light, and finally, after a moment of hesitation, he walked toward it.
The world outside may have been strange, but at least in here, he could find some semblance of control.
After the maid left, the bathroom was finally his to navigate, and though his mind was still reeling from the awkward interaction, he forced himself to take one step at a time. The steam rising from the tub was inviting, and he needed to wash away the confusion, the panic, and the disbelief that had been weighing him down since he arrived in this foreign world.
He slowly undressed, glancing around to make sure he was truly alone. He still wasn't used to the idea of someone else being so close to him in such an intimate setting, even if they were just offering assistance. But now that he had privacy, he could breathe a little easier.
The warm water, tinted faintly with a golden glow, lapped gently at the edges of the large tub. The air smelled faintly of lavender and rose petals, the scent mixed with the slight herbal undertones of the soap and oils on the vanity. With a small sigh, he carefully stepped into the bath, the heat immediately enveloping him, soothing his tense muscles.
The water was perfectly warm, not too hot but just right, and it was easy to sink into its embrace. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the heat take over his senses, washing away the residual tension in his body. His thoughts were momentarily quiet as he let the unfamiliar warmth calm his nerves.
But as he leaned back, closing his eyes and sinking deeper into the tub, his hand brushed against the mirror in front of him. The surface of the water shifted slightly, and he noticed the large mirror mounted on the wall above the vanity. The reflection caught his attention unexpectedly, and his eyes shot open, drawn to it.
He was taken aback.
The face staring back at him wasn't his own—at least, not in the way he had remembered it. His features were... completely different. The reflection showed a young man with red hair, vibrant and almost fiery, falling messily around his face in soft waves. His eyes were red, bright and striking, standing out against the silvery-white skin that seemed almost ethereal, like it was made of moonlight itself.
For a moment, he was frozen, staring at the reflection in shock.
Is that really me?
The boy in the mirror looked younger than he felt, but there was an undeniable strength in his gaze. His hair, though messy from the effects of the water, had a certain wildness to it that seemed to suit his current state—confused, lost, and a little bit afraid.
But his features—there was something regal about the way they were sculpted. Despite the shock, despite the unfamiliarity of it all, something about the face before him felt… right.
But then reality crashed back in. This wasn't his body.
This body belonged to the person whose mark of existence is the pain he suffered upon arrival, the person who had lived here in this world long before him, whose memories still flickered in the back of his mind. He wasn't sure if the body's owner was still present somewhere in his consciousness, but for now, it seemed quiet, as if giving him space to adjust.
(Author note: I want to thank Ashley_ Jordan 3638 for the motivation of a power stone. Means a lot)
[See what I did with the title].