episode_0458

The moment when I felt embarrassed by the dog food bowl that Ethan put on the floor… no, the food in my bowl.

I looked up at him, wondering if this was really my ‘breakfast’, but he seemed to be waiting for me to eat without saying anything.

“Master Ethan?”

“Eat quickly. You have a lot to do today.”

“… … .”

… For now, I’ll just be quiet and do whatever Ethan says.

Somehow, I felt like resisting any longer wouldn’t make a difference, and I needed a little more information to figure out how the situation had developed into this in the first place.

In order to recover the memories of a year that had suddenly disappeared, it seemed better to act cooperatively with him for now.

“Okay, Master Ethan. To be honest, I still don’t know why Master Ethan is asking me to do this, but if that’s what Master Ethan wants, I’ll do it.”

“… You’re suddenly saying something similar to what you said the first day, Lilith.”

“… … .”

Ethan’s words flowed in and out, and at that moment, he was about to start eating something that was visible.

“… … ?”

It was only after that that I realized that he had only put down the rice bowl and not given me any other utensils.

“Master Ethan.”

“Yeah, release.”

“I don’t think I’ve received a spoon or fork yet, but if you don’t mind, could you please hand me one?”

“… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yes?”

“Release Have you ever seen a dog or a cat eat with a fork or spoon? I remember telling you this story on the first day.”

… Yeah, I kind of had a feeling that would be the case. But I just asked just in case.

Since it seemed certain that I would be eating here with my head down, I obediently followed Ethan’s words and buried my face in my food bowl.

“… sigh.”

“… … .”

“Haheup… . Haheup… .”

“… … .”

Fuck. This is so fucking uncomfortable.

It was inevitable. The human body was not structured to walk on four legs in the first place.

Even if you serve food in a dog bowl like this, there’s no way a real dog can eat it skillfully. At least give them a spoon.

‘Still, it’s a luxurious meal for dog food.’

At first glance, it looked like the leftover food had been swept up in a hurry, but surprisingly, the plate contained a fairly balanced meal.

The top layer is a lettuce salad drizzled with oil dressing. The middle layer is a three-section arrangement of chicken risotto, buttered baguette, and cube steak.

Of course, since it was in one bowl, there was bound to be some mixing, but even considering that, it was a great meal. It was probably about the same as Ethan’s breakfast put into one bowl.

In addition, I felt an unexpected consideration in the fact that there was no soup or dessert at all. If this meal had been mixed with something like a sticky soup or cream cake, it would have been even harder to eat.

“… … .”

It would have been much better if Ethan hadn’t been there watching me eat so silently that it was almost embarrassing, but I guess that can’t be helped.

After I emptied the bowl as much as I could, I carefully watched his expression.

“Did you eat it all?”

“… Yes.”

“I ate pretty well. Was it delicious?”

“… Yes.”

“Thank goodness. Here, water.”

-Crunch, crunch.

“… Thank you, Ethan.”

Ethan, who insists on putting the water he brought in a pitcher into a dog food bowl and offering it to me.

Perhaps the first bowl I found was a water bowl. Of course, rice bowls need to be washed every day for hygiene reasons.

-Gulp, gulp.

“… … .”

I could have just held it in my hand and drank it, but I guess Ethan wanted me to act like a dog, so I just quietly put my face in the bowl and quenched my thirst like he wanted. Right now, Ethan was literally holding my ‘leash’.

I lie down on all fours, put my lips on the corner, and tilt the bowl slightly to pour the water down my throat.

It was probably my first time drinking water like this, but it was surprisingly easy to do.

“Ugh, huuuu… .”

“Okay, release. Face this way.”

“… … Yes.”

-Urgh, urgh.

Finally, Ethan finishes the meal by wiping my mouth with a napkin.

I couldn’t be happy with my situation, even though I was under the service of the next Lord Blackwood.

“Isabel. Katharina. Are you outside?”

-Bam!

“Yes, yes…! Ka, it’s Katarina, do, do-ryeon… !”

The red-haired maid hurriedly opened the door and entered the room as soon as Ethan called.

Ethan, who appeared quickly as if he had been on standby, naturally handed her the pitcher containing my empty bowl.

“Please bring this to the kitchen.”

“Yes!”

“And today, I will tell the butler to not let anyone else come to the 4th floor besides you and Isabel.”

“Oh, I see!”

… I really knew that, I think it’s true.

Katarina, who was staring at me locked up in an iron cage, took the plate as if it were a natural sight.

I was watching her with a dumbfounded expression, really not understanding English, when my eyes suddenly met Katarina’s.

“Ah, Release… .”

“… … .”

“Oh, do your best today, Lilith!”

“… … ?”

Katarina hurriedly walked out of the room, saying something incomprehensible until the end.

Honestly, until just a moment ago, I couldn’t believe that Isabelle and Katharina knew about my situation, but when I saw Katharina like that, I was really embarrassed.

‘If Katarina reacts so calmly, could it be that Isabel too…?’

…not Isabel, right?

No matter what, he’s my best friend. He’s the friend I’ve known the longest in this world, and he’s helped me since I couldn’t even use magic properly.

As I moved my gaze from Katarina, who was somehow spinning a circuit of hope in her mind, to Ethan, he was untying my leash from the iron bars.

-Charung, charung.

The chains slowly come loose, clinking against the iron bars.

It seemed like this was probably their usual routine. They would chain them up and lock them up while they sleep, and then let them go free after breakfast.

Well, even if it was Ethan, there was no way he would have locked me in a cage 24 hours a day. In that sense, it was somewhat reasonable.

“Okay, Release. Now that we’ve eaten, let’s go for a walk.”

“Yes, Master Ethan.”

The leash was still around his neck, but at least he could escape the bars.

With that in mind, I walked quietly this time as well, but Ethan just glared at me from the room entrance as if he didn’t like my behavior.

“Master Ethan?”

“… Release, I told you to go for a walk.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But why are you following me on two feet? You did it just yesterday. Did you forget the rules again?”

“… What are you saying, Master Ethan?”

“Release is my pet, so you shouldn’t walk around on two legs like this. Go back inside and crawl out on all fours.”

… No, no matter what, that’s a bit much.

To be honest, I’m giving them a lot of concessions just by going outside with a leash on, but you want me to crawl out on all fours?

I was being quiet, but it seemed like he was really going to do whatever he wanted, so now it was time to start restraining Ethan’s reckless behavior.

“You’re talking nonsense that’s not even funny.”

“… Release?”

“What? Crawl on all fours? Are you kidding me? If that’s the case, why don’t you just tell me to crawl under your legs? Huh?”

“… … .”

“You keep putting up with me, so do you think I’m your real slave? You should know how to restrain yourself when hanging out with me. It’s not like I’m some kind of a loser, what the hell is this?”

For the first time in a long time, I was able to let out some serious verbal abuse at Ethan.

I tried my best to hold back from swearing at Ethan because he seemed to have become more reserved and less mischievous for a while, but if he starts acting like a mischievous dog again, of course my mouth will open again.

It was appropriate to respond with an eye for an eye and bullshit for bullshit.

“Whew. Okay. That’s your answer, Lilith.”

“Which girl would respond well to you coming out like this? Stop talking nonsense and just let go of the leash. Starting today, I’m going to throw away all your exclusive maids and everything. This is so fucked up I can’t eat it, really.”

Up until now, I had been tolerating it to some extent to understand the situation, but my patience was slowly reaching its limit.

Even though it was me, I couldn’t tolerate Ethan treating me like a pet like this.

To be exact, it’s not that I don’t like being treated like a pet, but I hate it when people look down on me and treat me badly for no reason.

The reason I acted cute last time with the cat headband and tail was because I did something wrong to Ethan that day, and more than anything, it was Ethan’s reward for his victory over Harold, so I held back.

I absolutely could not tolerate this kind of relationship where I was treated like a slave without any reason.

“This is how it should be released. I thought you’d been too quiet lately, but you were just pretending to be quiet.”

“Stop acting like a fucking piece of shit and just take off this leash. Or I’ll fucking shoot some magic here… .”

“Try it. Try magic barrage or whatever.”

“… … What?”

Ethan calmly smiles and glares at me as I tell him that I will use magic spamming, even though he knows my magical power.

-Whoaaah!!

“… … Huh?”

… I was taken aback by that reaction and paused for a moment, when the clothes I was wearing were torn off by his hands.