Bab 6: Chapter 5

"You know my origins. It puts me at ease and makes me less lonely in this unfamiliar land," Zach said. However, that was not the main reason he wanted to stay.

"That certainly sounds good for you, but not for me." Sonia leaned back on the chair and crossed her arms. "I treat my home as a sanctuary. It's one of the places where I feel safest and at peace, so I don't want a man I'm completely unfamiliar with in it."

"I apologize for disturbing your peace of mind, but I assure you that I will do you no harm, and right now, it's not like I can."

She drank a sip of strawberry juice and set the glass down. Her gaze traveled to his stoic face, his upright posture, and his regulated movements. "Exactly, right now you can't. Haven't you heard the saying 'An injured beast is a dangerous beast, so its better to keep them at bay or you'll be eaten when you least expect?'"

He flinched. "Miss Sonia, is that how I appear to you?" he asked unsure if he should be pleased or not.

"That's the kind of presence you emit." She tapped the table in discomfort, unable to cast away the dread she has been feeling ever since he arrived. "Will you deny it?"

Zach took a deep breath. "No, but my lady, I mean miss Sonia. There's also a saying that states, 'You'll be safer with an absolute monster who doesn't act monstrously than be with a harmless man who can't govern himself.'"

"Ahem," he coughed when he realized he got too greedy earlier, to the point his shadow came out. "I... I can tell you about myself if that's one of your concerns."

Sonia stood and started cleaning up the dining table. "Then tell me, what was that earlier? That sudden shift in your character."

She stared at his pressed lips. "You can't tell me?"

"Pardon me, for that miss Sonia. He's my shadow. I hope he didn't put you in much discomfort."

"What's a shadow?" Sonia asked, making Zach froze in place.

"Right, this is a different world," he muttered.

"Shadows exist here too, but it seems like our concept differs. Shadows are casted when light sources are blocked by people or objects," Sonia said.

"We have that concept too, miss Sonia, but everyone in my world has a shadow integrated in them. A functional personality, less bound to moral constraints. They carry the repressed qualities of a person. Often, their strengths and weaknesses, their untapped potential, or parts of themselves they have denied."

"I see, then your shadow's quite imaginative. Shameless too," Sonia said while remembering the words he uttered earlier.

"I apologize" he said as he shrank back with a blush on his face.

"Hmm, I'm not sure if I should accept that apology or not, but with regards your stay, I might reconsider it if you offer me something of value."

"Zach, you understand, right... I didn't summon you or even wish for your arrival, so I don't have to be responsible for you. If you can't offer me something I'd like, I'll find you a place and provide your needs for a year in consideration of your circumstances."

"Thank you for your generosity, Miss Sonia. Then, if it's alright, may I ask for a hint of what I can offer?" he asked while fumbling for his pouch.

"I don't want anything material," she said, so he stopped.

'I see. She can probably afford all her material needs and wants, so she's telling me to offer her a service. In that case, what should I offer?'

"Bzzt... Bzzzt..."

"Hello?" Sonia replied while looking at Zach's baffled expression.

"My princess, I've returned just as you said, but no one's opening the door for me." An enthusiastic voice replied.

"I'll be there in a moment." Sonia turned off the call and placed the phone down. "Zach, let's continue our discussion later. Ok," she said and left.

Once she opened the door, Adam greeted her with a smile, melting her stoic expression.

"Good girl." He patted her head, so she closed her eyes in peace and rubbed her head against his palm.

"Thank you for letting this older brother in," he said before following her to the dining room. 'Did she perhaps dismiss the employees for a while? But why?'

Adam paused when he saw Zach. 'Ah, is it because of him? I can't believe she bought another man home, he thought while placing his bag down. 'Should I inform Luke?'

'But maybe it would be better if he found out himself. I wonder how he'll react if he knew his precious little sister finally bought another man home.'

"Are you listening?"

"Ah yes, my princess, what is it?" Adam said before smiling. His pearly white teeth contrasted with his raven hair but it blended well with his clothes.

"This is Zachary, my guest," Sonia said. Her dominant hand on Zach's shoulder as she stood behind him.

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Adam." He extended his hand for a shake and retracted it back when Zach nodded.

'That was thoughtless of me. Maybe he's completely blind.' Adam glanced at Zach's eyes once more before focusing on the scattered hickeys on his neck. Then he looked at Sonia, who didn't even try to cover it up. "My, is he really just a guest?"

"He is."

Sonia tapped Zach's shoulder. "Zach, he's my older brother's only friend. He's a doctor, so can you allow him to look at your injured hand?"

"Alright," he said, so Adam sat beside him and examined his hand.

'She did tell me I'm going to treat burns and cuts, but what's with his hand?' he asked. Then he squinted when he noticed a bandage underneath Zach's cuff. "May I look at your wrist, too?"

Instead of speaking, Zach pulled his right sleeve upward, so Adam unwrapped the bandage.

When he saw fresh claw marks and bluish spots on Zach's wrist, his expression darkened. "You did nothing bad, right, my little princess?" He gave her a knowing look. "Right?" he asked, before smiling.

"I… I nearly did."

"How far did you go?"

"I pinned him on the bed."

"And?" Adam asked.

"She ate me up a little," Zach said. "Ah, I mean…"

"I did just as he said, nothing else." Sonia, strode across them and sat.

"Then everything's fine," Adam replied, understanding what she meant.

'If Sonia drank from him, she'd be holed up in her room cursing herself till she'd fall asleep. Even I or his brother wouldn't be able to console her in that state. But still... what does he mean by ate?' he asked while treating Zach.

'Ate... ate... ate... how could our little girl agree to a joke like that? But logically speaking, Sonia is already old enough to have several children, we are just used to treating her like a child.'

After tending Zach's wounds, Adam gave after care instructions and fixed his tools.

"My princess, shouldn't you brew me your favorite coffee? You know I enjoy drinking coffee while listening to your stories, right?"

"Ok, I'll brew one for you." Sonia stood and approached Zach. "I'll guide you upstairs first."

"Mm," he nodded, understanding he mustn't hear what they're going to discuss.

When they arrived at her room, Zach stopped. "Will you converse with him for long?"

"No, his wife and kids are probably waiting for him at home, so he won't chat with me for long." Sonia ushered him onto the couch beside the window and left.

When silence reigned, Zach simulated the pathways they walked from the dining room till the couch ten times. Then he stood and walked until he reached the door. 'Her bed was this way right,' he thought while shifting slightly on his left.

'I should be close to it now.' Once his knee hit the edge of the bed, he stretched his left hand forward and touched the sheet. 'I remembered it right. Then if I turn this way and walk for a bit... I should reach the bathroom.'

Zach fumbled for the knob and opened a door. "I must've gone in the wrong direction," he said while taking in a woody and earthy scent. He took a step forward and stopped before taking a step back. 'Better not, we're still discussing my stay. If I accidentally broke something, it wouldn't be good for me.' He retreated to the couch and sighed.

'What should I offer? If it's a service that could please a woman, I do know one.'

He closed his eyes and leaned on the couch to ease the throbbing pain that has spread in his upper body since Adam started treating him.

'Before the incident, several women lurked by my side hoping I'll pledge to defend and protect them with my power for the rest of their life, but I never made that pledge. Offering it right now would be meaningless though. Not when I'm this weak and Miss Sonia's that strong.'

'Then what else can I offer?'

"My lady, the keeper of my heart. It would be my greatest honor to be your hands and feet. I swear to always make you smile and carry out any task you give me to the best of my abilities…" Zach shuddered before he could finish reciting the passage.

'My female relatives told me that oath always pleased them, but it's not like I was bewitched by miss Sonia, and just what kind of dumb man would even make that oath?'

Zach sat upright. 'It's not like I'm her lapdog or something. I swear, I would never utter those words for a woman,' he thought, fully unaware of what the future holds or maybe he just didn't know the kind of man he really is.