I was so embarrassed that my mind went blank and couldn’t react. I’m glad I didn’t take off my underwear, was my last thought.
Thankfully, I had very long hair. It came up to my hips. Besides, my back was turned to him, so he must not have seen much. And anyway, I had done the same last time when I had opened his room door without knocking, and I had seen him half-naked. We were even in that regard. I turned to look over my shoulder at him, who was still frozen in shock at the door.
“Um, Teacher?”
He didn’t respond.
“Don’t you think you should close the door after you and leave at this point?”
Kaichen turned his face away, red to the roots. I thought I wouldn’t know even if he blushed because of his bronze complexion. But I was wrong. Maybe he felt so embarrassed that his blush pierced beyond the color of his skin.
I am the one who was seen naked so why is he the one who is so embarrassed? I could see him very flustered like I had never seen him before. He tried to not spill the water in the basin he carried.
“You don’t even know how to lock the door?!” he shot back.
“There was no lock…”
I could see his jaw clenching. Kaichen, annoyed, almost threw the basin down randomly on the floor, slammed the door after him and left.
I stood there awkwardly. I slowly approached the basin on the floor. There was a towel draped on the side. It seemed he had intended to take care of me today. Was he worried about me? “Pfft,” I scoffed.
He had come to my room because he was worried. Seeing me standing naked would have shocked him so much. His embarrassed and flustered appearance was burned into my mind. I had never seen Kaichen like that before. I couldn’t help but laugh a little.
“What is this? Why are you acting so cute?” If I hadn’t been exhausted from nightmares, I would definitely have laughed a lot.
I had lived alone for a hundred years where nothing mattered. I had even forgotten to knock on doors before entering. But I had never expected Kaichen, who had given me a scolding for doing so, opening my door without knocking. Maybe it was because he had been nursing and treating me for the past ten days and going back and forth between the rooms had become a habit. Habits can be scary. However, I felt thankful because now I didn’t feel as depressed.
I couldn’t forget his blushing face. I laughed as I took my bath. After I was clean and warm, I made my way downstairs. It was already lunchtime. I coughed to declare my presence as I came across Kaichen sitting at the kitchen table with a serious face. He flinched. He must have been very deep in his thoughts. Trying not to laugh out loud, I sat across from him.
“Teacher, did you come to take care of me earlier?”
“No.”
“You came to put a towel on me, right?”
“I told you that’s not true.”
“You don’t have to be embarrassed about it.”
“Aren’t you the one who is supposed to be embarrassed?”
“Really? Why is that?”
“That’s because…!” He caught himself and stopped. It seems he couldn’t say it. He was really embarrassed about the current situation, it seemed. I smiled a little. I suddenly remembered he always used honorifics with me.
“Teacher, why do you use honorifics with me?”
“It’s to be polite. You are of noble birth.”
“But you are my teacher, so there is no need for that. Besides, you are an invaluable mage who works in the Magic Tower! You received the surname of Tenebre. You don’t need to use honorifics towards me.” He looked at me, eyebrows twitching. I wondered if I had offended him again.
I realized that perhaps it’s to do with Dalia’s childhood. They had definitely met before. I wondered what had happened then to make a man so bound. I also felt upset that I couldn’t remember what, supposedly, had been my childhood.
“Teacher, even if I’m a noble, I’m your disciple now. So, you can speak comfortably.”
“I can’t do that because you are not my official disciple.”
“Even if it’s not official, you’re still teaching me, right? Besides, the magic tower’s Tenebre are equal to a Marquis or a Duke. I am just a Countess.”
He was quiet.
“In any case, there is no reason for teacher to use honorifics with me.”
Kaichen stared at me with a disapproving look and sighed briefly. “Is it a problem if I speak politely? It has nothing to do with you.”
“I hate to be addressed like that. I don’t feel like I deserve it,” I said, “You always address me as Countess, or ‘you’, but when I was sick, you always called me Dalia. I was comfortable with that.”
“I’ve never done that. You must be mistaken.” He lied so blatantly. I titled my head to look at him.
“I have a very good memory. I know I was not in a very good condition, didn’t know reality from imagination but I clearly recall you calling me by my name.” I looked at him. “You called me by my name yesterday too. I hope you can keep calling me by my name.”
“What do you think, Teacher?” I asked. Kaichen seemed to be now comfortable with the title of ‘Teacher’. He didn’t protest. Maybe he was always comfortable with calling me by my name but was forcing himself to be polite. In the original novel, I remembered that Kaichen was so cold and standoffish that he often came across as aloof and arrogant, as befit his status as an archmage.
