ALL NOVEL “Sophia, please…”
“Hehe… Kyle~”
“It’s already 3 AM… get some sleep…”
“No way…”
“Sigh…”
I truly don’t know how I managed to hold back from drinking on a normal day.
It’s surprising how much I drank at the party yet never touched alcohol normally.
If I saw this side of her every day in the castle, I surely would have jumped her by now.
“Let’s have some fun~”
An hour had passed since we returned to the hotel, having loosely set plans with my companions at the table, and I still couldn’t sleep.
It’s all because Sophia was clinging to me.
It felt like my masculinity was being put to the test, but I held back.
But what Sophia was doing didn’t feel like seduction; it was more like a child clinging to a close friend.
However, even so, the temptation emanating from her body was no easy feat.
“When are you going to sleep…?”
“Hmm… If Kyle plays with me?”
“What are we even going to do?”
Reluctantly, I found myself entertaining a drunken Sophia.
Whatever it took, I needed to keep her awake until she fell asleep.
I still had no clue what to entertain her with.
“Eh!”
“?!”
I momentarily lost my words.
Well, that was understandable since Sophia suddenly jumped into my arms.
A pleasant scent enveloped my nose.
“Let’s play like this!”
Where on earth is the fun in this?
I couldn’t understand the behavior pattern of a drunk Sophia.
I was already struggling from spending so much time together lately, and now this was truly challenging.
If she hadn’t drunk today, wouldn’t she have been clinging to me differently?
“Hehe…”
What on earth was so amusing to her? Sophia just smiled.
After ten minutes in that position, she suddenly fell asleep.
Really… what a relief.
Somehow, I managed to push Sophia away and lay her on the bed beside me.
Once I laid her down, her posture looked strangely odd.
She was lying in a way that seemed to be tempting me.
Her hips subtly tilted to the side and her slender waist made it seem like she was inviting me to grab it…
“Ha…”
I should wash my face and hit the hay.
At this rate, I might start having strange thoughts…
“Kyle… I really like you…”
“…..”
What could her sleep talking mean…?
Could she be talking about her little brother, like she mentioned before?
Or was she talking about a man?
I already knew the answer.
Sophia definitely didn’t harbor those kinds of feelings for me.
She always cares for me and looks out for me, but that wasn’t romantic love.
As I said before, it was love in the sense of caring for a brother.
That realization brought me some disappointment.
I had gotten too close to Sophia.
Not on my part, but for Sophia to not see me as a man.
If I were to pounce on the sleeping beauty who couldn’t do anything right now, would she even recognize me as a man?
“Ha…”
That would be a crime, you idiot…
There’s still… plenty of time.
Years, even.
Sophia would always be in the territory, so there was no problem.
If I gradually shifted her perception, it should eventually change.
She still saw me as a kid, but I should be able to change that.
“For now…”
It seemed like I would have trouble sleeping tonight.
*
“Yawn…”
I slept like a baby.
I couldn’t remember when I fell asleep or when I entered the hotel.
This must be what it means to have blank spots.
Even back in my adventurer days, I’d get tipsy after just a little drink, but I completely forgot that yesterday.
Of course, I didn’t always drink this much.
I only did so when I was with Louise or my close friends.
I definitely had no thoughts of getting caught up in a gangbang while completely drunk.
“Young Master…”
As I turned my head to call Kyle, I saw him sleeping with his shirt completely off, like last time.
There was a sweet scent lingering in the air.
“Sniff… sniff…”
Was it because I had been at the party all day yesterday?
I couldn’t remember much about the party.
I only remembered being introduced to this girl called Karin, that was about it.
The rest was a blur.
“Hmm…”
Anyway, it seemed like Kyle might have hit it off with a nice girl at the party.
I really drank too much yesterday.
Originally, I planned to set up a nice connection for Kyle and maybe even a crush for him.
Of course, it shouldn’t be someone who didn’t meet my standards.
She would need to clear certain conditions like meeting Kyle’s preferred looks, personality, behavior, and much more.
If she couldn’t even satisfy that, there’s no way she could become the Eristirol family’s daughter-in-law!
Of course, I was neither Kyle’s parent nor anything more than a servant.
“Hmm…”
Still, don’t I qualify as an honorary sister…? That’s not too much to ask, right?
After all, I’ve been taking care of Kyle since he was 12.
-Crunch
As I stepped out of the tub, I felt the water pooling on the floor.
“Uh…”
Looking at myself in the mirror, I noticed my usually overly large chest.
It was a shame there was no breast reduction technology in this world.
There had been in my previous life.
If there had been, I wouldn’t have had to buy separate underwear and wouldn’t have had to deal with shoulder pain.
And I wouldn’t have to worry about my chest dropping while eating soup occasionally.
Things could’ve been so much better.
Thinking back, I realized I hadn’t brought in any towels or undergarments.
When I stepped out of the bathroom, Kyle was still fast asleep.
I had no idea what time he fell asleep, but it must have been extremely late.
-Drop… Drip…
Water trickled from my hair and body.
If I stood still like this, I’d definitely soak the entire floor.
I pulled out a towel and dried my hair and body.
I didn’t wear anything proper and settled for a shower robe instead.
I couldn’t wear my suit because it was totally crumpled, and I couldn’t find my usual thin clothes.
“Where could they be…?”
I distinctly remembered placing them on the bed before heading out.
Had the room cleaners mistaken them for trash and thrown them away?
Well, it didn’t matter.
I could just go buy some later.
“Wait a minute…”
I couldn’t go out dressed like this.
Plus, my suit was a complete mess.
All my other clothes were packed in the carriage.
Well, I could always ask Kyle for help.
He was a good kid, after all.
Thus, I spent my morning in a shower robe.
Kyle really did sleep in, waking up only after breakfast and well past lunchtime.
“What time is it…?”
“It’s 2 PM, Young Master.”
“Ah…”
Nothing significant happened after that.
Perhaps Kyle was tired; he ordered room service and decided to stay in the hotel room all day.
He mentioned he had a promise to meet with Catherine and Karin a few days later.
I was really surprised to hear that Kyle had set up a date with a girl!
It was shocking since Kyle had never had a relationship with a girl before.
He hardly even chatted with girls outside of me.
Even when Catherine had come over to visit Eristirol Castle, there was barely a semblance of an interesting conversation.
But now?
They had both grown into beautiful young adults.
Meeting an old friend from childhood again as adults brought forth a heart-fluttering development.
Wow…
This is exactly it!
“Hehe…”
“Sophia? Why are you laughing like that?”
“Because of you, Young Master.”
The fact that Kyle had become the kind of guy who could actually talk to girls and set up dates left me unable to quit smiling.
He used to stammer just from talking to me.
He was much too tall now to still call him a kid, though.
Yet to me, he was still a little one.
I would probably need to look after him for a few more years.
I mean, he was still a minor at 17.
I’d have to care for him for a good two to three more years.
After that, Louise would probably step in as the Eristirol Castle’s exclusive magic servant.
“Oh, Young Master.”
“Yes?”
“You still haven’t bathed today, have you? Why don’t we take this opportunity to wash up?”
While there was a pleasant scent around Kyle, I couldn’t recall ever seeing him bathe today.
And given that it had been hours since he woke up, he still hadn’t showered.
“… Right now?”
“Yes. Since you’re in a shower robe, getting damp shouldn’t be a problem. Let’s take it off right here.”
I could just head in to help him change just like this.
This robe wasn’t formal wear and wouldn’t matter if it got wet.
“… I’ll change in there.”
“Isn’t it more convenient to undress here before entering?”
Did I really need to go through the trouble of undressing inside?
Whenever I showered, I usually just stripped down before getting in.
It was more often that I’d walk out with clothes on.
“I’ll be in shortly.”
Kyle said that and grabbed some clothes before entering the bathroom.
I followed his wishes and waited about five minutes before going in.
As I stepped inside, he was already waiting with the water running.
As usual, he was perched on a chair, covering his lower body with a towel as he awaited me.
Honestly, I had no thoughts seeing him, but for a young Kyle, that could be a different story.
“Young Master, you can let the towel down.”
“I’ll handle that part myself.”
As if that was even happening.
Still refusing to show me no matter how old he got.
Wait, do other bath attendants also go through this when they wash him…?