Volume 3 Chapter 23 Suspicious Person In The Bathroom
In my house, a mysterious beautiful young man is relaxing in a bubble-filled bathtub with a face that seems perfectly normal.
When our eyes meet as I peeked into the bathroom after opening the door, he somehow smiled brightly.
"Lyd-Lyd────."
"A-ah, aahhh...!"
I let out a loud scream, and with a rush, I slammed the door shut and rolled out of the bathroom.
"Tart Tatin!"
"Pumpkin pudding!"
It seems Ms. Famine and Eir-Eir heard my scream and came running with great speed.
I grabbed Eir-Eir and pressed her against my chest, then placed Ms. Famine on my shoulder as I dashed down the stairs.
Still in my fluffy sheep slippers for relaxation and my white dress with fluttering ribbons from after the bath, I looked around, thinking I should ask the neighbors for help.
Just then, I locked eyes with Mx. Margaret, who was lounging outside, crossing their legs and puffing on an aromatic cigarette.
"Oh, Lyd-Lyd. What's with that outfit? But it's just as well, I just got back from the sanatorium, and I was thinking of taking a break and coming to see your face."
"Mx. Margaret, Mx. Margaret! There's a naked handsome guy in my house's bath...!"
"A naked handsome guy, you say!?"
Mx. Margaret widened their eyes, pressed their aromatic cigarette into a makeshift ashtray, and extinguished it.
"It's an intruder, an intruder, Mx. Margaret, an intruder...!"
"Who is it, Lyd-Lyd? Who is that naked handsome guy...!?"
"I don't know, and that's what's scary... he's in my house's bath..."
"Let's go right away!"
Mx. Margaret, who had seemed lethargic just a moment ago, suddenly stood up briskly.
They were really dependable.
I had actually thought about going to Sir Ciel's house for help, but Mx. Margaret pushed my back, saying, "Come on, let's go, Lyd-Lyd," so I took them back to Lobelia.
With Mx. Margaret leading the way, I held Eir-Eir and Ms. Famine in both arms as we headed toward the bathroom.
In front of the bathroom stood a dripping wet man with a towel wrapped around his waist.
A white body with a solid chest and abs, seemingly no excess fat. Drops were dripping from his long, wavy black hair.
His violet eyes were slightly elongated, and he looked gentle, probably because of his slightly droopy eyelids.
"Dripping wet..."
"It's true... there really is a naked handsome guy... hey, who are you? Sneaking into Lyd-Lyd's house like this, it would be a big deal if Ciel or Lucian found out, you've got some guts...!"
"N-no, I'm..."
"Ugh, it's supposed to be a special bubble bath day, and now an intruder has made the bathroom all wet..."
"This scent is the Brilliant Rose I gifted you...! Finally, you decided to add bath salts to your bath and boost your femininity, Lyd-Lyd...! Could it be, love (koi)!?"
"Carp (koi)?"
"Love, Lyd-Lyd. Who is it? Tell me...! I'm so happy, I've been worried about you since I started watching over you, you've been on a straight path to being a lonely girl. They say life is short, so love while you can, right?"
"Mx. Margaret, more than love, right now, it's an intruder."
"That's right. What are you doing!? Sneaking into the bath just because Lyd-Lyd is cute, what kind of hobby is that!?"
"I was told to take a bath, so I just did. Lydia, calm down. It's me."
Even if you say it's you.
I don't know this person.
But now that I think about it, I feel like I recognize the voice.
"Could it be, Dad?"
"If it's the Rest Head Priest, he's probably at the Rest Priest's house behind the Great Temple, flirting with Mrs. Tiansa, I guess."
"Mx. Margaret, I'd rather not hear about my parents like that... but this voice is definitely Dad."
"Pumpkin pudding!"
"Tart Tatin...!"
Eir-Eir and Ms. Famine are threatening the man in my hands.
The man let out a deep sigh and said, "I am your dad, Lydia. Have you forgotten this appearance?".
By the way, I feel like I know this form of Arjuna, my dad.
Only vaguely, but memories that seem to be coming back and not coming back flicker through my mind.
Yes, that was──when I was still very small.
The Rest priest's house felt enormous to me, and since no one paid attention to me, I always wandered around the house, sat at the end of the hallway, or stared blankly at the sky from a bench in the garden.
I was thinking, while looking up at the sky blankly that day, that maybe I was all alone in this world.
Maybe I'm not really a child of this house.
Still, I'm grateful to be allowed to stay in this house. If I'm inside, I don't have to get wet in the rain.
"...I will be your friend."
"Who are you?"
Suddenly, a tall man appeared right in front of me.
I had never seen him before. But he didn't seem too scary.
"Lydia, I am Arjuna. Your friend. I am by your side."
"...I want friends, but I want a father."
My father dislikes me.
That's why I want a father. I want a family.
I would prefer a mother, but since he's a man, he can't be my mother. Probably.
"Then, I will be your father."
"I'd prefer someone fluffier and cuter..."
A big man wouldn't be able to cuddle and sleep, so I'd rather have someone small and fluffy.
"Is this good enough?"
The man fell silent as if thinking for a moment, and in an instant, he disappeared from in front of my eyes.
In place of the man was a small white dog.
"It's a dog."
"I am not a dog, I am your father."
"Dad."
And so, Arjuna became a dog and became my dad.
He disappeared shortly after that, though.
That was because he got caught by Famine, but at that time, I didn't know that, and the white dog seemed like an illusion created by my loneliness, so I pushed Arjuna deep into my memories.
"Dad..."
"Lyd-Lyd, what is a dad!? No way, I won't allow that!"
"What do you mean?"
"You are the star-reading priest Macbeth. Calm down."
"Don't call me by that name!"
"Mx. Margaret, I'm sorry. I misunderstood so much, this person... he is my dad. The dog, Arjuna. He's supposed to be a holy beast."
"I don't understand at all...! But a holy beast? The one that always appears beside a saint? A n*ked suspicious person?"
"He was a dog until just now..."
At my explanation, Mx. Margaret held their head.
Dad Arjuna lightly shook his head and, in an instant, turned back into a dog.
Even as a dog, he was still soaking wet.
Maybe it was a dog's instinct, but he shook his wet body, splattering water everywhere, soaking me, Mx. Margaret, Eir-Eir, and Ms. Famine.
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