Elia applied the care oil evenly to each of Kiz’s fingers before gently massaging the skin around her nails.
As Elia massaged her, Kiz felt a ticklish, numbing sensation.
She bit her lip, trying her best not to let any strange sounds escape her throat.
“Hey, is it sore here?” Elia asked, pressing the joint of her right thumb.
“…A little.”
“You use a lot of strength here… The main issue is that your grip on the sword isn’t quite standard. Over time, it could damage your joints.”
Kiz was taken aback and asked, “How do you know my grip posture…?”
“I saw how you held it during practice last time. All the power in your hand was concentrated on your thumb and index finger… The correct way should use the strength of the entire palm, with the thumb only acting as support.”
As she spoke, she continued to massage the joints of Kiz’s hand.
“Remember to adjust your posture when you practice from now on… Though, I don’t actually recommend you practice with a sword. Don’t you have a Scythe? Wouldn’t it be better to stick with that? Besides, your Blood Clan has a special talent for weapons like scythes.”
Elia remembered the people from the Church describing the Blood Princess.
They mentioned how she would either use Dark Magic to rain down destruction on the battlefield or charge into a crowd with a massive scythe, stirring up a storm of blood.
“…Fine, okay,” Kiz said with a nod.
After a while, Elia wiped away some sweat and said, “Okay, I’m finally finished. I’m exhausted…”
However, the look in Kiz’s eyes at that moment was somewhat complicated.
Elia looked up and met her gaze. “What is it?”
Kiz looked away and said, “I just feel… you are actually quite reliable sometimes.”
“Oh? Only sometimes?”
“…Most of the time, you’re very annoying.”
“Then what is the ratio of you finding me reliable versus finding me annoying?”
Kiz thought about it seriously. “Three to seven.”
“Three to seven? So that means 70% of the time, you hate me?”
Elia nodded gently, then suddenly smeared more care oil onto the back of Kiz’s hand.
“Hey! What are you doing!”
“Increasing the annoying ratio. It’s 80% now.”
Fuming, Kiz immediately tried to pull her hand back.
“Don’t move, I’m not finished yet.”
“You… you just said you were finished!”
“That was then. Now I’m re-applying it.”
Elia held up her wet hand.
“You’re doing this on purpose!”
“Yes.”
Kiz glared at her, but she still couldn’t break free from Elia’s grip.
Feeling helpless, she could only pout like a pufferfish while this devil continued to apply the oil.
Afterward, Elia spread the care oil evenly, moving from the back of the hand to the wrist, and then from the wrist to the forearm.
“Is it sore here, too?” she asked, pressing on Kiz’s elbow.
“…A little,” Kiz said, pursing her lips.
“Your body has quite a lot of issues…”
Kiz stopped talking.
“And here.” Elia pressed gently on the back of Kiz’s neck.
At that moment, Kiz was so comfortable she almost hummed out loud. She bit her lip, desperately trying to hold it in.
But Elia still heard her stifled breathing. She smiled and asked, “Hmm? It feels good, doesn’t it?”
“I… how… no… well, it is very comfortable…” After hesitating for a moment, Kiz lowered her head and whispered the truth.
“Then I’ll help you massage it every day from now on,” Elia added.
“You… you don’t have to… You don’t need to work so hard…”
“This isn’t for you. It’s for me.”
Hearing this, Kiz’s eyes widened. “Huh? Why?”
“Because your body is mine. I obviously have a responsibility to maintain my own property, right Little Princess Kiz?”
Kiz: “…”
She knew it! How could this devil ever be gentle with her!
But strangely… she didn’t hate that reason.
“Alright, that’s enough for today,” Elia said, letting go of her hand.
Coming back to her senses, Kiz looked down at her hands and then brought them to her nose to sniff… There was a faint scent of roses. It was completely different from the scent she usually used.
“Did you change the care oil?” she asked.
“Yes. The old bottle was too fragrant; I didn’t like it.”
“How did you know where the care oil was?”
“Just two days ago, I had a maid take me to the warehouse to pick it out… I chose several kinds! In the end, I settled on this scent! You don’t like it?”
Kiz shook her head and said, “No, it smells quite nice…”
“Well, I’m going to head out for a stroll. Are you coming?” Elia asked.
Kiz hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “I’ll go.”
In the corridor, several maids hurried to bow the moment they saw them. Once they were far away, the maids began to gossip in low voices.
“Hey, hey, did you see that? The Princess and the Saint have the same nail color!”
“I saw it ages ago… and I heard that the care oil the Saint is using now is the Princess’s own special stock!”
“Also, I went to the warehouse two days ago and saw the Saint picking out care oil. She smelled every single one and spent an entire afternoon choosing…”
“Really?”
“Of course it’s true! She even asked so many questions!”
The sounds of their discussion were gradually scattered by the wind.
They were back in that familiar Garden.
Elia picked a Black Rose and tucked it behind Kiz’s ear. “This one is blooming better than the one yesterday.”
“…Mm.”
“I’ll change it for a new one every day from now on.”
“You don’t have to do it every day…”
“I want to change it for you every day. Do you have an objection?”
Kiz fell silent for a few seconds before she could only say, “No…”
“Then… it’s settled!”
Kiz didn’t speak again. But the slight curve of her lips was far more moving than the Black Rose.
The setting sun stretched their shadows out, overlapping them until they looked like a single person from a distance.
In the evening, Kiz was in the study handling the last few documents. Elia sat by the window, using the moonlight to read the Vampire History Book.
This time, she wasn’t holding it upside down.
“Kiz, is that Life Spring Water Laura sent really effective for recovery after detoxification?” Elia suddenly asked, looking up.
The tip of Kiz’s pen paused. “Yes.”
“So, did you drink it?”
“I did… How should I put it… I feel like my stamina recovers a bit faster.”
“Oh…” Elia lowered her head and continued reading.
“So why are you asking?” Kiz questioned.
“Nothing, just confirming if that thing is actually useful… By the way, I’m going to visit the Elves tomorrow.”
Kiz was stunned by those words. She hurriedly asked, “You… what are you going to the Elves for?”