Chapter 76: Chapter 76

"I didn’t say you weren’t allowed to do it. But you really didn’t have to," Sylas continued.

He gently pulled the slave to his feet. "Don’t kneel in front of me," he said, guiding him out of the bathroom.

Kai walked slowly and carefully. He only obeyed when Sylas gently pushed him to sit on the sofa.

"I’m going to take a shower. Wait here. You can bathe after me, and then we’ll have dinner," Sylas said.

Kai bowed his head and nodded obediently. He sat quietly on the sofa, glancing up when several servants entered the bathroom. Then, a handsome servant walked behind Sylas.

In a separate area of the room, away from the sofa and out of sight of the guards, Sylas stood in front of a large mirror and stretched out his arms.

The handsome servant carefully removed Sylas’ clothes, revealing the prince’s well-toned and flawless body.

Kai unconsciously swallowed hard. His eyes followed the curves of Sylas’ body, which, for some reason, seemed hypnotizing. He had never seen a body so perfect—broad chest, defined arms and abs, a smooth and clean back.

Not even the most handsome trainer in Omino had body like that.

Kai was mesmerized. His heart started beating strangely. He had to lower his gaze to calm himself.

Sylas walked toward the bathroom in a bathrobe, glancing at the sofa and smiling at Kai, who sat quietly, eyes cast down.

Half an hour later, Sylas returned in his nightwear. He asked the servant to leave after preparing warm water for Kai.

He then told Sean to bring some clothes for Kai from the court taylor, something comfortable for daily use, along with shoes, since the slave had never worn footwear before.

Sylas asked Kai to stand, holding the clothes up to measure them against the boy’s body. It was better than letting him wear oversized clothes again.

Kai caught the scent of Sylas’ fragrance. The man was now so close. Kai bowed his head nervously. He shouldn’t be thinking such things about his master.

"What do you think, Kai? Do you like them?" Sylas asked, pointing to several garments in light and dark colors.

Kai nodded. Of course he was happy. He rarely received new clothes. More often than not, he was completely naked.

Sylas smiled and reached into a small box beside the pile of clothes. He pulled out a short piece of fabric with elegant embroidery.

The cloth was white, trimmed with blue embroidery around the edges and golden accents.

He took Kai’s hands and wrapped the fabric around each of his wrists, perfectly covering the numbers tattooed there.

"You can wear these whenever you want. They’ll be better. I also had a pair made in black." Sylas showed him the other set. Now Kai had two pairs to cover the marks on his wrists.

Kai raised his hands, staring at the soft fabric. He ran his fingers over it. The cloth was slightly thick but gentle against his skin.

He smiled faintly. It was beautiful—especially because it was a gift from his master.

He looked at Sylas with eyes full of gratitude. This was the first gift he had ever received from a master. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novel⸺fire.net

Sylas smiled but paused, surprised by how happy Kai was over something so simple. The slave’s reaction was beyond his expectations.

"You should take them off for now. You can wear them when you leave the room," Sylas said, noticing Kai still holding the bracelets in his hands.

Kai nodded and carefully placed the fabric back into the box.

"Go take a bath," Sylas said.

Kai nodded obediently and limped toward the bathroom.

Sylas asked the kitchen staff to set the food on the table, then called Amos to check on Kai.

"Can you help him bathe?" Sylas asked. He knew Kai could bathe himself now—his wounds were healing well. But he wanted Amos to make sure the boy understood how to use the bathing tools.

Amos nodded and headed to the bathroom.

The door wasn’t closed. Kai stood in the middle of the bathroom. The first thing Amos saw was Kai pulling down his pants.

Kai looked up and saw Amos standing in the doorway, staring with wide eyes.

For a few seconds, Amos felt his soul leave his body.

There, a young man with an innocent face stood completely naked, staring back at him with calm eyes.

The next second, Amos snapped out of it. His heart pounded. He quickly turned his head away, spun around, and shut the door.

The door slammed loudly. Amos had shut it with more force than he intended.

Sylas jumped at the sound and turned toward Amos, who was still holding the door handle. The guard’s normally expressionless face was pale, as if he’d seen a ghost.

Sylas looked concerned. "What’s wrong?" He feared Kai might be hurt.

Amos swallowed hard and let go of the handle, his hands slightly shaking.

"H-he was naked," Amos said awkwardly.

Sylas furrowed his brows. Kai was about to bathe—of course he was naked.

"What do you mean, Amos?" Sylas couldn’t help but laugh as he walked toward the bathroom. He had only asked Amos to check if Kai was okay—not to traumatize him.

"Don’t tell me you’ve never seen a naked man before, Amos," Sylas teased with a chuckle as he passed him and opened the bathroom door.

Amos lowered his head. Of course he had seen naked men before—he was a guard, after all. But not in the prince’s private bathroom. And not like that.

Sylas led Kai to the bathtub, already filled with warm, fragrant water.

"If you need anything, just call my name," he said softly, handing Kai a washcloth.

Before leaving, Sylas checked the wound on Kai’s ear. It had dried a little. He gently patted the slave’s head and smiled.

"Hurry and finish your bath. We’ll eat after," he whispered.

Kai nodded, his face flushing with a strange, warm feeling of happiness.

Sylas walked out, passing Amos, who still stood outside the bathroom.

"Go rest, Amos. I’m not going anywhere tonight," Sylas said.

Amos nodded and made sure no one else was nearby before leaving the room. His head was still spinning from the image of Kai’s body—its unexpected masculinity burned into his memory.

He shook his head repeatedly, trying to erase it.

Inside King Adrien’s room...

Elias paused, his hand resting on Adrien’s chest, when he noticed an odd mark.

"What is this, Your Majesty?"