"How is it?" Zechs asked as he watched Pudding unwrap the bandages around his body and examine his injuries.
"Your wounds… yes, they seem to have healed a little," Pudding said with a nod.
As she traced her fingers lightly over his body, he suddenly clenched his teeth, "Hiss…"
"S-sorry!" she apologized quickly, pulling her hand back. After a moment, she added, "The outer injuries obviously haven't healed yet, but the internal injuries have probably improved a little."
"That means your efforts in the past four days haven't been in vain," he said teasingly.
Pudding immediately blushed. After all, the method of healing had been rather unusual and had required her participation. She had helped him spurt out his load and also let him suck her vitality through deep kisses, and seeing the results now proved that her efforts had not been wasted.
Embarrassed, she cleared her throat. "Ahem… but it's still nowhere near enough to say that you're completely healed."
"I know…" Zechs sighed.
The problem was that Pudding herself wasn't particularly strong physically. At best, she had slightly above-average fitness, which meant the amount of vitality she could provide was limited.
If Linlin had been here instead of Pudding, he could have drawn far more vitality at once and greatly accelerated his recovery. Unfortunately, it wasn't Linlin serving him; it was her daughter.
Of course, if he truly wanted to, he could drain all of Pudding's vitality at once. But doing so would rapidly age her and might even kill her, something he had no intention of doing. Besides, he wasn't even sure whether draining her completely would be enough to heal him fully.
Since he never intended to do that anyway, there was no point in dwelling on the possibility.
As things stood, because of Pudding's limited physical strength, Zechs could only absorb small amounts of vitality each day.
Even so, over the past four days, since the first time she stroked his cock, his condition had improved slightly. Because of that, he said, "Well, now that you've checked me… do I finally have the permission to move around a little? It's exhausting and boring lying here all the time… and I also want to take a bath."
"I'm still against it," Pudding replied immediately. "You can't even stand on your own right now."
"I can fly," he answered.
"And how is that supposed to help you take a bath?" Pudding argued.
"Maybe it won't help with bathing," he admitted, "but I can still move around the island by flying."
Pudding shook her head. "The creatures on this island will attack you."
"That's not a problem," he said with a shrug. "Even in my injured state, I'm still the strongest presence on this island. The creatures here can sense that, which is why none of them have tried to approach this area. And even if something does try… a burst of my Conqueror's Haki would be enough to overwhelm them."
Pudding couldn't really argue with that, though she still hesitated. "Even so… taking a bath…"
"I'm sorry, Pudding-chan, but I really can't take it anymore. I need to clean myself," he said firmly, clearly unwilling to entertain any further objections.
It had been more than ten days since his last bath, back when he was still aboard his pirate ship. Under normal circumstances, ten days without bathing wouldn't be a big issue for a pirate. Fresh water on a ship was limited, and it was rarely used for bathing.
But Zechs was accustomed to keeping himself clean. It helped him avoid diseases and, more importantly, the unpleasant smells of sweat, salt, and musk. After all, he doesn't want the women he fucks to think that he smells bad.
Of course, just because he is used to bathing doesn't mean he couldn't go without a bath when necessary. In emergencies, he had no choice but to endure it. Normally, he would have managed just fine, but given everything that had happened recently…
'Although… I did get the bath of a lifetime while trying to save Pudding-chan…' he thought sarcastically, before shaking his head.
Still, considering the miserable conditions of the camp and the increasingly strong, fishy smell of musk lingering from all the hand jobs Pudding had been giving him, he felt a pressing need to bathe.
"Will you really be able to bathe yourself?" Pudding asked worriedly. If not for his condition, where even a light touch on his skin made him hiss in pain, she wouldn't have been so concerned.
"Who said I was going to bathe myself? You're going to help me." Zechs stated.
"I'm going to help you?" she blinked, taken aback as she pointed at herself.
"Of course. I'm injured and need someone to assist me. And who else would help me if not my maid?" he pointed out matter-of-factly.
"Oh… r-right…" she nodded, realizing that as his maid it was indeed her duty to help him bathe. The thought of assisting him like that made her cheeks flush. Then again, she had already helped him in many ways over the past few days. Compared to the sexual favors, helping him bathe isn't such a big deal.
Just as she was about to agree, he added pointedly, "Besides, you haven't properly cleaned yourself since arriving on this island either, have you?"
Pudding froze. To say that she had been having a proper bath these days would be a lie. She had only been washing her hands, feet, face, and… um… a certain part of her body.
Suddenly, she became self-conscious, imagining that she must smell terrible, and the thought embarrassed her deeply. As a girl, the idea of smelling unpleasant, especially while being around the man she loves, made her extremely uncomfortable.
Until now, she hadn't paid attention to such things because she had been too worried about his injuries and their survival on the island.
There was also another reason for her hesitation; she was a little afraid of entering the water alone.
After being swept into the ocean, nearly drowning in the depths, and being torn apart by those terrible currents, the thought of stepping into deep water made her nervous. Her Devil Fruit power only made things worse. The river nearby was fairly deep, and once she entered it, her strength would weaken significantly. Although Meg-chan was nearby and could rescue her if something happened, the idea of submerging herself in the water still made her uneasy.
But now that the topic had come up, and now that he has to bathe too, she couldn't simply ignore it. "O-okay …" she said quickly, nodding. "Let's take a bath."
Since Pudding agreed, Zechs looked satisfied and said, "Well then… would you mind helping me up?"
"Ah… yes… of course…" she nodded. She slid one arm around his neck and wrapped the other around his chest.
As she tightened her grip to lift him, Zechs suddenly clenched his teeth.
"Ouch…"
Pudding immediately faltered. "S-sorry…" she said, about to pull her hands away.
Zechs stopped her. "Don't worry about it. It's just a little pain."
"A-are you sure?" she asked hesitantly.
"What does my face say?" he replied.
Pudding paused for a moment, then answered honestly. "It says you're in a lot of pain… and that you shouldn't be getting up."
Zechs' lips twitched for a moment, but he quickly denied it. "No… that's not what my face says. It says I'm looking forward to my maid diligently washing my body. I'm just excited."
Pudding looked at him silently, her expression clearly asking, Are you sure about that?
Zechs returned the look as if to say, Please don't make me admit it.
Pudding let out a small sigh. "Alright…" Despite knowing how painful it must be for him, she steadied herself and lifted his upper body with a firm motion.
Pain shot through him immediately. It hurt like hell, but Zechs endured it, clenching his teeth as he thought to himself, 'I really need to take this bath to clean myself up…'
[Host, be honest. Aren't you just looking for another excuse to do perverted things with her?] Miss System remarked.
'Miss System, do you get some kind of bonus for commenting on everything I do?' Zechs complained inwardly.
[Haaa… so you're not denying it,] Miss System pointed out.
'And you're not denying it either,' Zechs shot back.
[…]
'…'
Both of them fell silent as Pudding helped him sit up.
"This much should be fine…" he said, breathing heavily. Sitting up was also painful as fuck, his broken bones really made things difficult for him. But Zechs didn't care and manifested his Incubus wings.
Pudding released him and stood up.
At the same time, Zechs spread his wings and gave them a powerful flap. A strong gust burst outward, tearing apart the fragile shelter they had built.
"Ha—!" Pudding gasped. Startled by the sudden wind, she lost her footing and slipped. Before she could fall, however, Zechs' tail quickly coiled around her waist and steadied her.
But she hardly noticed that. Her attention was fixed on the shelter that had just been blown apart.
"H-hey… Zechs-sama… w-what did you do?" she exclaimed. "The shelter… It's gone. Where are we going to spend the night now?"
She wasn't just worried, she was angry. After all, she had spent a great deal of effort building it. It wasn't perfect. The shelter was small, it leaked whenever it rained, and it was made only from leaves and thin wooden branches she could gather or break with her little strength.
Still, she had built it carefully so that they, especially him, would at least have a roof over their heads and wouldn't have to get soaked whenever the rain came, which happened every few hours on this island.
"I'm… sorry, Pudding-chan…" Zechs said quietly. Seeing how upset she was, he didn't try to make any excuses.
Pudding sighed in resignation. "I guess… I'll just have to build another shelter."
It had been difficult enough to construct the first one, and now she had to start all over again. The thought made her feel somewhat helpless.
'I guess,' she told herself, 'now that I don't have to spend all my time searching for medicinal herbs, it should still be fine…'
"I'll help you…" Zechs added.
Pudding looked at him silently. If he had been in perfect condition, she would have believed him without question. Heck, not only believed him, she'd have left the entire matter upon him. But seeing his current injuries, she didn't want him to push himself. Still, she didn't reject his offer, afraid that it'd wound his pride.
Men seem to care a lot about their pride, and she didn't want to say anything that'd hurt him. So, she simply changed the subject, "Let's just go to the river."
Zechs understood what she was trying to do but didn't comment on it. Instead, he flapped his wings and began to rise into the air, "Yeah, let's go…"
Since his tail was still coiled around Pudding's waist, her feet lifted off the ground as well. Startled, she exclaimed again, "Hey—! You still haven't let go of me!"
"Yeah, I know. I'll take you there myself," Zechs replied as they continued to rise.
"I-I can walk there on my own…" she protested.
"That would be too slow. Just leave it to me," he answered calmly, and without letting her raise any complaints, shot towards the sky.
Pudding wanted to argue further, but as their altitude increased and the ground moved farther away beneath them, she realized it was already too late. She simply accepted this turn of events and quickly grabbed onto his tail to steady herself.
After rising high enough, Zechs narrowed his eyes and searched for the direction of the river. He spotted it soon enough and flapped his wings again, flying toward it.
Pudding spoke up with concern. "Zechs-sama… I hope you're not pushing yourself too much."
"This is nothing…" he replied, trying not to wince.
In fact, flapping his wings hurt a great deal. The movement strained his injured back muscles, sending sharp waves of pain through his body. On top of that, the wind brushing against his wounded skin only made the pain worse.
Even so, Zechs endured it, repeating a simple phrase again and again, "I'm going to take a bath with Pudding-chan… I'm going to take a bath with Pudding-chan… I'm going to take a bath with Pudding-chan."
He was indeed very excited. After all, bathing together also meant the chance to do some ecchi things. Of course, they had already been doing such things over the past few days, so it wouldn't be anything new with Pudding. The real issue was that both of them had been rather dirty during that time. Because of that, Zechs had restrained himself and limited things to simple hand jobs from her.
But handjobs alone weren't enough for him. He felt pent-up, frustrated, and deprived of many things he was used to enjoying on a regular basis.
Yes, he wanted to do far more with her than just that. He wanted her to give him blowjobs, he wanted to suck on her breasts, to slide his fingers between her thighs, to taste her pussy, to take her virginity, even to explore her ass.
That was one of the main reasons he felt so eager to bathe. If they bathed together, there would certainly be opportunities to indulge in a few ecchi activities there. And of course, once the bath was over, there would be even more possibilities afterward.
"Fufufufu…"
Pudding had clearly heard his quiet chanting, and she couldn't help but blush. It was obvious that, in his mind, the bath was meant for far more than simply washing themselves clean.
"P-pervert!" she stammered, huffing like a tsundere.
Of course, that was only how she sounded on the surface. In reality, her heartbeat had begun racing. A mixture of nervousness and anticipation filled her. Countless possible scenarios flashed through her mind as steam started rising from her head.
'N-no… how could I be thinking of all those ecchi things?' She quickly shook her head, trying to drive those thoughts away. If she kept imagining things like that, she felt as though she might faint from embarrassment.
Yet no matter how hard she tried to suppress them, the thoughts refused to disappear completely, and deep down, a part of her was even secretly looking forward to what would happen next.
Being an Incubus, Zechs easily sensed Pudding's excitement, and a faint smile curved his lips. He could tell she wasn't opposed to whatever he had in mind. That only made him more eager. He quickened his pace, ignoring the pain in his body as he hurried toward the river, searching for a good spot, somewhere the water would be shallow enough.
As they descended, he noticed the dorsal fin of the Mackerel Shark cutting through the water below. "That Megalodon really seems to be sticking around…"
He hadn't expected the Megalodon to remain with them for so long. At most, he had assumed the shark would spit them out on some island and then swim away. Instead, it had stayed nearby the entire time.
"Meg-chan has been a big help," Pudding replied with a smile. Without that shark, many things would have been far more difficult for her.
"Hmm…" Zechs murmured.
Just then, as if sensing their presence, the Megalodon lifted its head from the water and looked around. It quickly spotted Zechs and Pudding in the sky and began swimming beneath them, following their movement.
Pudding waved happily. "Meg-chan!"
"Zoooo~," the shark responded and continued following them.
Zechs stopped in midair and spoke firmly. "Don't follow us. Go hunt some fish or something for my dinner."
"Zoo?" The shark tilted its head in confusion for a moment, then seemed to nod. "Zoooo~."
With that, it dove back into the river and swam away to hunt.
Creatures in this world were surprisingly intelligent. Normally, it would be impossible for a shark to understand human speech, at least without extensive training. Yet the Megalodon seemed capable of grasping his words and readily accepted the task.
"Why did you send it away?" Pudding asked. "Meg-chan was excited to see you. I've been very worried about you."
"It would be a little strange to have such a giant fish hanging around while we bathe," Zechs replied casually. Then he curved his lips in a faint smile and added, "Besides, I doubt you'd want that shark watching your expression at that moment, right?"
"Ah—! N-no…" Pudding stammered as she realized what he meant. Her face flushed red again.
'Am I… really going to… lose it today?' she thought, swallowing nervously as her breathing grew slightly uneven.
Just then, another thought crossed her mind. 'B-but if that happens… won't he see my body too?' The idea made her suddenly anxious.
Zechs, however, didn't notice the thought that had just flashed through her mind and continued flying toward the river.
…
Soon, they found the perfect spot. It lay deeper within the island, near a small waterfall.
"I didn't know there was a waterfall here…" Pudding murmured, admiring how beautiful it looked.
"You never came this far?" Zechs asked casually.
Pudding shook her head. "I didn't dare go too deep into the island." It would have been dangerous for someone like her, who didn't have much strength to protect herself.
"I see…" Zechs nodded in understanding and glanced around the area again.
The water here wasn't very deep; at most, it would reach Pudding's waist, and the current was gentle. There were also several rocky formations nearby that could be useful.
As for dangerous creatures, none seemed to be around. The nearby fish and animals had already fled after sensing Zechs' strong presence.
Overall, it was an ideal place for a bath.
"Here should be fine," Zechs said as he descended toward the water.
First, he carefully lowered Pudding onto a small rock. Then, with her help, he slowly lay back in the water. Since he kept his wings spread, they helped him stay afloat on the surface.
As for sitting or standing… that was impossible. With several broken bones, he simply couldn't manage it.
'Damn… if only I could find some milk on this island…' he thought. Milk would help his bones recover faster, though finding it here would likely require some effort. He would probably have to search for a pregnant animal and see if its milk was drinkable.
Of course, another possibility crossed his mind. Thinking about it, he briefly glanced at Pudding… but then let out a small sigh. That option was unlikely to happen anytime soon.
In the end, he simply shook his head and temporarily dismissed the thought.
Putting that aside, once he was lying in the water, Pudding knelt beside him and began removing the bandages and wrappings from his body. One by one, she stripped them away and put them on the rocks until he was completely bare, floating in the water.
She was about to begin washing him when Zechs suddenly spoke, "You should undress too."
"Do… I really have to?" Pudding asked hesitantly.
Zechs assumed she was simply shy and smiled. "You've been seeing me naked every day. So it's only fair that I get to see you naked too, right?"
Pudding didn't find his demand to be unreasonable, but still hesitated.
Thinking she was just embarrassed, Zechs spoke more gently. "I want to see you, Pudding-chan. Will you let me?"
"I…" She trembled slightly. Looking down, she bit her lip and murmured, "M-maybe this isn't such a good idea…"
Zechs blinked, not expecting that response. At the same time, he sensed something different in her, she seemed more afraid than shy.
'Wasn't she excited earlier?' he wondered.
It was possible that she had simply grown nervous about what might happen next. That wouldn't have been surprising, after all, she was a young woman, and it was perfectly natural for someone to get cold feet at such a moment. Still, Zechs felt the situation wasn't quite that simple.
Even so, he knew how to deal with it. He controlled his tail, which was still wrapped around Pudding's waist, and pulled her toward him.
The girl gasped in surprise but was helpless to resist. In the next moment, she found herself straddling his stomach.
"Hiss…" Zechs winced in pain. Her weight wasn't much, but it was enough to make him grit his teeth.
Startled, Pudding immediately tried to get off him. "Z-Zechs-sama—"
But Zechs stopped her. "Don't move."
"B-but it's hurting you… I shouldn't be…" she began anxiously.
"Don't worry about it," he interrupted. Then he looked at her and asked quietly, "Tell me, why are you feeling afraid?"
"I… I'm not afraid," she tried to deny.
"Pudding-chan," Zechs said calmly, "there's a particular variation of Observation Haki that allows users to sense the emotions of others. I think you already know about it. And to be honest, I'm quite proficient at sensing emotions. That's why I can clearly feel what you're experiencing right now… and I know that you're afraid."
Normally, Pudding, who had excellent control over her emotions, was very difficult for most people to read. However, in front of Zechs, she lowered her guard completely. Because of that, he could read her emotions almost like an open book.
That was why he was certain she was feeling afraid.
Looking at her gently, he asked again, "Are you afraid of me?"
"N-no… Zechs-sama… how could I be afraid of you? Especially now…" she replied immediately, not wanting him to misunderstand. To emphasize her point, she pressed a fingertip against one of his wounds.
"Hiss—!"
Zechs immediately trembled in pain, shooting her a complaining look as if to say she didn't need to prove her point like that.
Pudding giggled softly and quickly apologized. "I'm sorry…"
"Then what is it? Are you afraid of what might happen after this?" he asked, doing his best to endure the lingering pain.
"That… m-maybe…" she murmured, lowering her gaze. "I… I'm just…"
But Zechs spoke again before she could finish.
"No… that's not it either. You're not really afraid of what might happen later." He studied her carefully. "There's anticipation in your heart and desire in your eyes. I can see that clearly. You're afraid of something else."
He paused, considering another possibility. 'Is it guilt… because of Linlin?'
That seemed plausible for a moment. But after thinking about it, he felt that wasn't the true reason for her fear. Something else was troubling her, something connected to the idea of him seeing her naked.
His gaze shifted to the torn parts of her clothing, where bits of skin were visible beneath the fabric. There were scars and wounds there.
A realization began to form in his mind. "…Is it the wounds and scars on your body?" he asked gently.
She didn't answer. But the way her body trembled at the question told him everything he needed to know. Quietly, he asked again, "Pudding-chan… I want to see you."
"Please don't…" she choked out, tears gathering in her eyes. "I… I really don't want you to see my ugly body, Zechs-sama…"
Once again, insecurity and fear overwhelmed her. This time, however, it wasn't about her third eye; it was about her body. It now bore many scars and marks from her wounds, and she feared that if he saw them, he would find her disgusting.
She wasn't a warrior who would consider scars a badge of honor. To her, they were simply ugly marks. It might have been only a matter of outward beauty, but to her, it mattered deeply.
Zechs had been the only person who didn't find her third eye repulsive. But that was one thing. The scars covering her body were another. They made her feel unattractive and difficult to look at, and she feared that even he, who had called her beautiful despite her third eye, might no longer see her that way.
That was a possibility she didn't want to face.
Gently, Zechs stroked her back with the tip of his tail.
He didn't want to say something hypocritical like claiming he didn't mind her scars at all. While scars could sometimes look impressive or even cool, the truth was that they usually didn't look good. Saying he didn't mind them would only be a lie meant to comfort her, and honestly, it wouldn't really comfort her, but actually make her feel more painful.
Moreover, he wasn't the kind of person who would hide behind empty words. So he didn't say any of that. Instead, he spoke something else, yet it was something she'd definitely want to hear at the moment, "Pudding-chan… I have a way to heal those scars."
As expected, it produced exactly the reaction he had anticipated. Pudding froze and looked at him, "Y-you have a way to heal them?"
Zechs nodded. "Yeah."
She trembled slightly. "Zechs-sama… y-you're not lying, right?"
"Do I have any reason to lie to you about something like that?" he asked.
She bit her lip and thought about it for a moment. 'Yes… Zechs-sama really has no reason to lie to me…'
As she reflected further, she remembered that when she had first awakened on the island, many of her internal injuries had already improved. That recovery had been what allowed her to move around at all. At the time, she had assumed it must have something to do with him, so she asked about it.
Zechs answered calmly, "That was just vitality transfer. You were on the verge of death, so I transferred some of my vitality into your body. Unlike you, I wouldn't have died even if I lost a large portion of my vitality. At worst, I would have fallen into a comatose state… which is what actually happened. But you would have died if I hadn't done it."
He paused before continuing. "As for healing those scars… It's not exactly the same as vitality transfer. It's more like a form of beautification. It can remove all the scars on your body, both new and old."
Pudding stared at him in shock. "You… you have an ability like that too?"
"Fufufu…" Zechs simply chuckled in affirmation.
In truth, he hadn't possessed this ability until recently; it was only two days ago that he acquired it as his Incubus bloodline leveled up, from 8 to 9. That growth had happened thanks to the Bloodline Points he had accumulated over the past four days, thanks to Pudding giving him daily handjobs.
Each time the level of his bloodline advances, he awakens a new racial trait. Upon reaching Level 9, he had awakened one called 'Beauty.'
As the name suggested, it was a trait that could enhance a person's appearance, and more importantly, remove every scar from their body.
Through the 'Beauty' trait, Zechs was confident that all the scars on her body could be healed.
"How about it? Are you interested, Pudding-chan?" he asked, already certain she would be.
As expected, Pudding nodded quickly. "Y-yes…"
"In that case, come closer. I'll whisper the method into your ear," he said.
She immediately leaned forward and brought her ear close to his lips. Zechs lowered his voice and whispered the method to her, "You'll have to drink my cum."
"What?!" Pudding gasped, startled by what she had heard. She immediately pulled back and looked at him suspiciously, her face flushing red. "You're lying, aren't you? H-how could your… s-semen… drinking it possibly heal the scars on my body?"
She felt as though he might be teasing her again, perhaps even taking advantage of her insecurity and vulnerability. She wondered whether she should press her finger against one of his wounds again.
"I'm not lying, Pudding-chan, my semen has a beautifying effect for women," Zechs said with a shrug. "Whether you choose to believe me or not is up to you."
His calm expression and confident tone made her hesitate.
'Is Zechs-sama… really not lying?' she wondered.
Thinking it through again, she realized he had no real reason to lie to her.
She wasn't even opposed to granting him such a request if he asked for it. She hadn't done something like that for him in the past four days, but if he truly wanted it, she would probably agree.
And he should already know that.
So, unless he was deliberately trying to tease her or make a fool of her, there was little reason for him to lie about something like that.
In this regard, however, she felt it was different. Zechs might enjoy teasing her, but not like this. He usually teased her about her bashful, tsun-tsun personality, not about something tied to her deepest insecurities.
'But this is still absurd…!' she thought, unable to fully believe it.
Then again, when she considered everything he had already done, maybe it wasn't so absurd after all. What was truly more unbelievable, bringing her fifty years into the past, or the fact that his semen had a beautifying effect?
Pudding had to admit it was definitely the former.
Compared to that, this was merely weird and perverted… and sex related. And when she considered his race…
'Right… he's an Incubus. There are probably many perverted, sex-related traits he possesses. Maybe this really isn't that absurd for someone of his race,' she concluded.
"It seems you believe me now," Zechs said, noticing that she appeared to have accepted his explanation.
Pudding hesitated before replying softly, "I… I guess."
Zechs smiled. "So… will you let me see your body now? I can heal your scars."
He had the feeling she probably wouldn't refuse anymore.
But Pudding had something else in mind. "I… I'd rather show you my body after the scars are healed."
Zechs pouted. "The treatment will take several days. Are you really going to make me wait that long?" Then he added more gently, "Besides… you don't need to feel so insecure in front of me."
"I-It's not just about insecurity… It's also about first impressions. I want to look my best when you see me like that, not someone scarred and wounded…" she said with a deep blush, lowering her gaze as she pleaded softly, "P-please…"
Seeing how reluctant she was, Zechs could only sigh and give in. "Fine… I suppose." Then he added, "But in that case, you'll have to work diligently for your Beautifying Potion."
"Mmm… I understand," she replied, blushing as she bit her lip. Although doing something like that was shameful, she wasn't unwilling to serve him. Besides, now there was an added benefit for her as well, so she truly didn't mind.
"Fine then… I'll leave myself in your care. Make sure to wash my body… and don't forget to work for your Beautifying Potion," he said. With that, he gently lifted her off his body and lowered her into the water.
"Umm…" she murmured in agreement, holding onto him for support. At the moment, the water reached up to her waist, leaving her body weak and unsteady. Without support, she might have collapsed. Fortunately, his tail remained coiled around her waist, keeping her firmly in place.
Anyway, trying to ignore the weakness in her body, she began gently washing him. Before doing anything else, she knew she had to clean him properly. Only after that would she be able to do what was needed to obtain the white Beautifying Potion.
With that in mind, she carefully worked over his skin.
Since they had no soap or body wash available, Pudding could only rely on water to clean his body. Even so, it was enough for now. Although it couldn't provide a thorough cleaning, the water could at least wash away most of the dirt and filth.
Her fingers occasionally made him hiss in pain, which caused her to bite her lip and become even more careful, slowing down as she continued her work. Every movement grew gentler, as if she were afraid of hurting him again.
Zechs tried to relax through it all, but the lingering pain made it difficult.
'I need a distraction…' he thought. Simply lying there wouldn't help him endure it. He needed something to take his mind elsewhere.
There were a few options. He could stare up at the clouds drifting across the sky… but although he smoked a lot, he wasn't that lazy Nara with pineapple head whose hobby was cloud-watching.
No, his way of distracting himself was different, and he already knew exactly what to do.
'Fufufu…' he chuckled inwardly with a mischievous smile and decided to carry out some Operation Distraction.
[That's a very poor name for it, host…] Miss System commented.
'I don't need commentary right now, Miss System,' he replied calmly, cutting the conversation short.
[…] Miss System pouted as her host proceeded with Operation Distraction.
Keeping the middle of his tail wrapped around Pudding to steady her, he slowly moved the tip of it and dipped it into the water.
Plop!
Since he intentionally made no effort to hide the movement, Pudding immediately noticed.
"Hm?" She glanced at the tail as it slipped beneath the surface and paused her hands for a moment to look at him. But Zechs kept his eyes closed, his expression unchanged. Unable to guess what he was doing or why the tip of his tail had entered the water, she simply ignored it and resumed helping him bathe.
As for the tail, it slowly slithered along the long black skirt she was wearing and slipped underneath.
At the moment, it happened to brush lightly against her calf—
"!!!" Pudding jolted in surprise.
For a moment, she thought it might be a fish or even a snake, but when she looked down, she realized it was the very tail that had dipped into the water earlier. She could feel it sliding along her leg, moving past her calf to her knee, and then further up her inner thigh.
"Z-Zechs-sama… w-what are you doing?" she asked, her voice trembling with embarrassment and nervousness.
"Hm? What am I doing? What do you mean, Pudding-chan?" he asked, feigning confusion.
"Y-your tail… w-why is it…?" she stammered, pointing down into the water.
"Oh, that?" he replied with an innocent expression. "I'm just protecting you from any fish or snakes that might try to attack you."
If she hadn't been able to feel his tail continuously slithering higher along her legs, she might have believed both his words and that innocent look. But knowing the bastard and perverted nature of her master and stepfather, she understood perfectly well that what she truly needed protection from wasn't fish or snakes. It was the very tail that was supposedly 'guarding' her.
As she felt the tail continuing to slide along her thighs, Pudding's blush deepened, 'N-no… at this rate… it'll reach my!!!" Instinctively, she clamped her legs together, trying to stop it from moving any farther.
If it climbed any higher, it would reach her hidden garden, and the thought alone made her both nervous and afraid.
After all, that place had never been explored before. The idea of letting a large, black, slithering tail reach it made her heart race with anxiousness and embarrassment.
Her tightly pressed legs slowed the slippery tail for a moment, trapping it between them, preventing it from rising any higher. But with half her body submerged in the water, she didn't have enough strength to hold it there for long as it kept struggling to slither past it.
Eventually, the tail managed to slip past her grip and slid higher until it encountered a layer of white cloth guarding her hidden garden like an iron fence. Yet the shameless tail paid the barrier no mind. Even through the fabric, it flicked lightly against the most secret spot.
"Hnnn…" An almost involuntary moan escaped her lips.
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Drop more Power Stones. The next PS goal is to reach 240 PS within the next 24 hours.
And don't forget to leave comments and reviews to keep me motivated.
Of course, if the readers wish, they can certainly read up to 20 advanced Chapters on p-a-t-r-e-o-n: Knockturn_Alley