Robot Protection Zone Chapter 46

My master, who had been staring at me in silence, quietly opened his mouth.

“Didi, get up.”

“Yes…?”

“I need to check where you were hurt.”

My master closed the door and came into the room. He couldn’t possibly feel good seeing my hideous injuries, yet he seemed determined to check them himself. I hesitated before getting up and standing in front of my master.

My master silently examined my body. It wasn’t playful or teasing like usual. The way his serious gaze scanned over my body made me feel strange.

“You’re quite injured.”

The ointment made the areas shine, which seemed to make the injuries stand out even more. My master’s face crumpled as he scanned each and every bruise.

“You’re hurt here too. Why didn’t you put any medicine on it?”

My master’s hand tapped the back of my thigh. At the same time, a throbbing pain spread through it.

Only then did I realize that the spot my master had touched was also injured. I hadn’t applied any ointment because I hadn’t known I was hurt. Seeing as I had missed it when Thomas checked me over, the bruise must have appeared late over time.

“I didn’t know I was hurt…”

As I mumbled as if making an excuse, I heard my master click his tongue. It made me feel even more intimidated for no reason.

“I’m sorry, Master…”

“Why are you apologizing?”

“Because my body has so many blemishes… it’s unsightly.”

“…”

My master didn’t answer at all. He only twisted his face further, as if he disliked even my dispirited reply.

My master let out a short sigh and snatched the ointment from my hand. I looked down at my suddenly empty hand, and then I felt my master’s touch on my wound.

“Eut…”

My master’s fingers rubbed firmly over the injury, spreading the ointment.

A faint groan escaped my lips. Even the slightest brush of skin was stinging, so it felt like he was deliberately applying it painfully.

However, my master didn’t withdraw his hand, even though he knew I was in pain. I wanted to ask him to be a little gentler, but knowing it was my fault, I groaned and endured it.

Only after he had finished applying all the medicine could I finally catch my breath. I noticed that it was already well past my bedtime and led my tired body to my master’s room. As I lay down on the bed, the fatigue I had been holding back washed over me all at once. It felt like I would fall asleep the moment I closed my eyes.

“Good night, Master.”

“You go to sleep first. I still have work to take care of.”

“Okay…”

My master looked at me as I got into bed, then paid me no more mind and left the room.

As I watched my master turn his back coldly and disappear, I once again recalled what he had said to me in the car.

‘Don’t get the wrong idea. How could I know what kind of important information is hidden inside you and just hand that over to someone else?’

I had thought my master and I had gotten a little closer… but because of those words, I felt like the distance between us had grown even wider.

I quietly closed my eyes.

I slept poorly.

I had fallen into a deep sleep as soon as I closed my eyes, but I woke up at dawn, having tossed and turned with groans. My whole body was damp with a cold sweat, as if I’d had a nightmare. I thought I should take a shower and was about to sit up, but something was wrapped around me.

“Ma-Master…?”

I belatedly realized that my master was holding me. I flinched in surprise and called out to him, and my master, awakened by my voice, mumbled in a low, sleep-heavy voice.

“You were being loud, having a nightmare.”

“Ah… I’m sorry…”

“If you’re sorry, then stop tossing and turning and just sleep quietly.”

“Okay…”

So he held me because he saw I was suffering from a nightmare…. Perhaps thanks to that, I couldn’t remember anything that had happened in the dream. Seeing as my whole body was soaked in a cold sweat, it must have been an unpleasant dream, but strangely, the content of the dream didn’t come to mind at all.

When I lay back down on the bed and pulled up the covers, my master’s arm quietly wrapped around me from behind. It was a gentle touch and a warm embrace. It seemed like I would fall asleep easily, but a thought suddenly crossed my mind.

The reason my master is being gentle now is also because there’s something he wants from me, isn’t it?

I, who lacked the ability to fulfill that expectation, didn’t deserve my master’s gentleness. The more I got used to this kind of tenderness, the harder it would be for me later on….

My mind was a jumble of thoughts, and in the end, I couldn’t fall asleep until morning.

Even though I had slept, I arrived at the company feeling even more tired than yesterday. It seemed my master hadn’t slept deeply either, likely because of my tossing and turning all night, as he also looked tired.

I was cautiously observing my master when I remembered the human-bot I had parted with without even a goodbye as he came out of Mr. Thomas’s lab.

I wonder if that human-bot is doing okay?

“Master, may I go to Mr. Thomas’s lab for a moment?”

“No.”

“Okay…”

I had asked in the hopes that I might be able to talk with the human-bot, but the answer was an immediate no. I hid my disappointment and nodded my head sullenly.

And so, time passed again without me doing anything. The time to go home was gradually approaching.

Since I had sat still all day without doing a single thing, I felt like I had become a useless robot that truly didn’t know how to do anything.

Until now, I had thought that quietly waiting for my master was also my role. But now I knew that wasn’t the case. My master brought me to the company so that I could recall some useful memories. Realizing that, a sense of crisis finally washed over me.

The reason my master had been gentle to me all this time was solely to get information out of me. If my master had known that I truly knew nothing, he wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of coming to get me after I was kidnapped. I was certain of that.

Even now, months after meeting my master, I hadn’t recalled anything. No, even the expression ‘hadn’t recalled’ was wrong. I didn’t know a single piece of the information my master wanted in the first place.

What would happen to me when my master found this out? One thing was for sure: there would no longer be a place for me by my master’s side. So, I had to prove my usefulness before he found out that I knew nothing.

Anxiety crushed my entire body. The obsession that I had to do something filled my mind.

Even if my master finds someone else, if I’m useful, I won’t be thrown away, right? If it had been like that in the past, my old master wouldn’t have turned off my power…. I realized it too late.

I rolled up my sleeves and checked the condition of my body. The needle marks on my arm were almost gone now, and though there were some bluish bruises here and there, they weren’t severe. Looking at the speed at which they were fading, they were at a level where they would all heal within a few days.

My master had forbidden me from cleaning until my injuries healed. In that case… wouldn’t it be okay to slowly start cleaning again now?

Having made up my mind, I approached my master, who was sitting at his desk. When I stopped in front of him, my master, who had been looking at some documents, raised his head.

“Master, my arm is better now, so may I do the cleaning on the second floor?”

As I said that, I rolled up my sleeve to show him the faded needle marks. My master frowned and asked.

“Weren’t you giving up on cleaning?”

“Only until my arm healed…”

“Sophia can do it like she has been. Why are youわざわざ stepping up?”

“…”

My master seemed to disapprove of my request to clean. Since I hadn’t done a single thing properly until now, it was only natural that he wouldn’t trust me. But I could do simple cleaning well….

The words rose to the tip of my tongue, but in the end, I couldn’t bring them out. My master stared at me with a frown for a while, then his gaze returned to the documents as he spoke.

“Do as you please.”

“Yes! Then starting this week, I’ll be in charge of cleaning the second floor!”

“…”

There was no reply, but just receiving permission made me feel much more at ease. Even though my master hadn’t acknowledged me, at least I had been given a chance to prove something.

Toward evening, I quietly left my room.

When I came down to the first floor, I saw Sophia in the kitchen preparing dinner. As I approached her from behind, she noticed I was there, turned her head, and greeted me.

“Good evening, Didi.”

“Sophia, may I help with the dinner preparations too?”

I had agreed to take on the cleaning for the second floor, but that alone wasn’t enough. I needed to know how to do more than just simple cleaning. Only then could I prove my usefulness.

After I had returned home, my master had withdrawn his ban on me helping Sophia. Thanks to that, Sophia didn’t refuse my help today either and nodded her head.

Wearing an apron, I began preparing dinner for my master with Sophia.

Since Sophia had already finished a good portion of the dinner preparations, I was in charge of the simple dishes. I warmed some bread, drizzled dressing on a salad, and made scrambled eggs. And finally, with Sophia’s help, I even brewed the coffee my master would drink.

They were all simple things, so I was able to finish the preparations quickly. Just as I was placing the plates neatly on the dining table, my master came down from the second floor.

My master sat down at the table. I quietly glanced at the food I had made and sat down across from my master.