When I finished eating my breakfast as it was, I left Melissa in charge of this place and headed back to the school with Bridgette.
It was good that I was on my way, but Bridgette didn’t appear to want to leave me at all.
If we both were to go to school together, I have no idea what people might think. Because of my notoriety, there is a high possibility that Bridgette would get subjected to abusive language, slander, and other forms of harassment.
“You know what? Maybe it’s time for us to keep our distance?”
“… Ey? Why do you say so?”
When we were close to school, I asked Bridgette to separate from me, but she tilted her head back with a, ‘I don’t understand why you’re asking me to leave,’ expression on her face, and then she just replied with her own words.
“Well, Bridgette, you wouldn’t like to be seen going to school with me, right? I don’t want to force you to do something you don’t want to do just because you’re a slave, which I don’t think I’ve to remind you again.”
“…? T-then it’s okay to go to school together!”
Something is not right.
Yes, we are supposed to be speaking in the common language in the empire, but I don’t feel like we are having a conversation.
“If I go to school with you, you might get dragged into the trouble I face daily, Bridgette, you know?”
“What if they start an impossible rumour that I’m making you do this or that because I have your weakness?”
“Oh, that’s convenient for me too, so I’ll just let it slide. I’ll do this or that thing tonight to make the rumours true!”
“Why do you look so happy? I mean— You’re close, too close, don’t push your chest against me!”
“Seriously, what are you so shy about, Master? If you are afraid of your first time, why don’t you just say so? It’s all right. Because it’s my first time too!”
“No! We were just classmates sitting next to each other until now, so why is this happening today?”
“Ey? Because yesterday, Master told me that I should enjoy my school life the way I like it.”
Misinterpretation.
Miscommunication.
Misperception.
I’m no longer surprised at how I always got reminded to report, contact, and consult, no matter how old I was…
I didn’t mean it as a stranger, but as ‘just another classmate’ like before. That, however, didn’t seem to be the case for Bridgette.
My stomach hurts.
This makes me scratch my head and wonder how this happened.