"Master, are you feeling unwell?"

I slowly opened my eyes.

Standing beside the bed was a red-haired woman in a neatly pressed maid outfit, her hands folded politely in front of her waist. She tilted her head, ruby eyes filled with genuine concern.

"Ah... yeah. I’m fine," I said, rubbing my forehead. "Just thinking about a few things."

She relaxed a little at my answer and turned around, returning a moment later with a cup held carefully in both hands.

"I prepared honey water for you. In case you’re experiencing a hangover."

"...I didn’t drink that much."

Even as I said it, my throat felt dry, and my head was still a little foggy.

"Even so," she replied earnestly, holding the cup closer, "I made it for you, so I would like you to drink it."

Her tone left no room for refusal.

"...Alright. If you insist."

I took the cup from her hands.

The warmth seeped into my fingers first, then into my chest as I took a sip. The honey water was mild, lightly sweet, and oddly comforting. Whatever clutter had been bouncing around my head settled down almost immediately.

"Hm... this actually helps."

"I’m glad," she said, smiling faintly. "It’s filled with my affection. Sticky, slimy affection."

I froze.

"...You didn’t put anything weird in this, right?" I asked cautiously, staring into the cup. "You’re just talking about honey, correct?"

"Of course."

"That’s a relief."

She leaned in slightly, her voice dropping into something far too serious.

"The water filled with the love from my body couldn’t possibly be anything strange, Master."

"Cough—! Hack— hack—!!!"

I nearly spat the drink back into the cup.

She immediately straightened, waving her hands.

"It was a joke," she said quickly. "Please relax. I only added dried pear and honey."

...Damn it.

I wiped my mouth and glared at her, but she was already smiling again, clearly pleased with herself.

The woman standing in front of me was Rose.

The homunculus I had rescued from that dungeon. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

At the time, I hadn’t even planned on bringing her back with me. Things just... happened. And now here she was, standing in my room like she’d always belonged here.

As a side note, when I realized she needed a name, I told her to choose one herself since I was terrible at naming things.

She picked Rose.

Simple. Direct. Almost too fitting.

After the dungeon exploration, she somehow managed to appear at the academy the very next day, completely unbothered by the stares she received. Before I knew it, we were talking, then arguing, and then—somehow—I’d hired her as a maid at the house "for the time being."

That "for the time being" was starting to feel suspiciously permanent.

She watched me quietly as I finished the drink.

"...Do you still feel unwell?" she asked.

"No," I admitted. "My head’s clearer now. Thanks."

Her expression softened.

"I’m happy I could be useful."

She said it so naturally that it caught me off guard.

"...You don’t have to try so hard," I muttered.

"I’m not trying," Rose replied calmly. "I simply want to."

I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I looked away and placed the empty cup on the table.

I let out a long sigh before I even realized I was doing it.

No matter how I looked at it, there was no proper way to place her inside the academy. I couldn’t enroll her as a student, and slipping her in as an inspector or assistant professor was even more unrealistic.

I had tried, though.

When I went to ask my father, I had prepared countless excuses and explanations in advance. I rehearsed them in my head, thinking about how to justify her presence without revealing too much.

In the end, all of that effort became meaningless.

"Do as you wish," he said casually. "But I’d like to have some family time after your exams."

And just like that, he let it slide.

Honestly, I should’ve known it wouldn’t be that simple.

Because the real problem wasn’t my father’s permission—it was her.

She wasn’t exactly normal to begin with, but after putting on the maid uniform, she somehow became even more... suggestive. Dangerously so.

For the record, I did confront her about it.

I asked her why she kept making sexually suggestive remarks every time we spoke.

Her answer was painfully simple.

— I saw it on the internet. Everyone seemed to like it.

That was when I realized my mistake.

I had introduced her to the internet so she could gather information. There were too many gaps between the original world’s knowledge and this one, and I thought it would help her adapt.

No—if I’m being honest, I kind of expected this to happen.

Still.

A part of me genuinely wanted to see it.

A homunculus with rich emotions, learning humor, making jokes, and interacting with people through the internet—it sounded fun in theory.

I couldn’t have been the only one who thought that, right?

I loved characters like that when I read other novels. They were charming. Endearing. Alive.

But actually seeing it unfold in front of me felt completely different.

It was like watching a friend who had spent years locked inside his room suddenly announce that his first part-time job was at a maid café.

"...Well, anyway," I said, forcing my thoughts back on track, "thanks for the honey water."

She tilted her head slightly, smiling brightly.

"Yes. The sticky water filled with my love, right?"

I froze.

"...You didn’t put anything weird in it, did you?!"

Her smile didn’t waver. If anything, it became gentler.

"Of course not. Why would you doubt me?"

That was exactly why.

Her face was undeniably beautiful, but somehow that only made my unease worse. Every word she said felt like it carried hidden intent, even when I knew she probably didn’t mean it that way.

Honestly, it seemed like she was acting like this because she favored me.

I just didn’t expect her affection to be this... direct.

And I didn’t expect myself to react like this to someone being affectionate toward me.

"I told you," she said calmly, "I would stop if you were truly displeased."

She had said that on the day she became a maid.

I remembered it clearly.

"And then you said," I continued slowly, "’However, I won’t be able to do all the things I’ve dreamed of alone for countless years, but that’s not more important than your situation.’ Right?"

"Yes," she replied without hesitation. "I meant it."

I stared at her for a moment.

She wasn’t teasing. She wasn’t joking. There was no exaggeration in her voice.

That sincerity was somehow more dangerous than any flirtatious remark.

"...Fine," I muttered, rubbing my face. "Just... continue."

Her smile softened, just a little.

"As you wish," she said.

And just like that, I knew this situation was only going to get more complicated from here on out.