She pried, but instead of giving her an answer, Luthiel relaxed his head on the edge of the seat and shut his eyes, completely ignoring her.
Yennefer's brows scrunched, and a displeased expression emerged on her face.
"I am talking to you! Are you men in this era always this disrespectful to women?"
She questioned, but immediately realizing that she shouldn't have asked, she quickly covered her mouth and proceeded to avoid eye contact with Luthiel, who slowly blinked his eyes open.
He turned his head and fixed his gaze on her, as though trying to read something.
An unknown glint flickered in his eyes, and without saying a word, he averted his gaze and shut his eyes yet again.
"Whew!" Yennefer rapidly blinked her eyes and returned her attention to him.
A short sigh left her mouth and she lay down on the bed.
She shut her eyes and, as though having gone to sleep, her voice resounded no more.
Luthiel opened his eyes noticed that she had slept and stood up from the chair.
He made his way out and stationed six guards to keep an eye on her and make sure that she didn't pull any funny tricks.
—————
The next day arrived, and the early morning sun rose into the sky.
The harsh sunlight streamed in through the open window, and Yennefer slowly flickered her eyes open.
Her body, which had not had such a peaceful rest since she arrived in this world, arched, and with a smile on her face, she sat up on the bed and stretched her body.
"Rise and shine, my lady." None other than Livia's voice resounded, and Yennefer quickly turned her head to look at her.
"Why are you addressing me like that?" She asked, knowing that only those of noble blood or the emperor's guests were addressed like that. Well, according to the medieval books she had read.
"Eh, you're the king's guest, my lady. We are ordered to address you in this manner."
Livia explained, even though it was still a slightly hard thing for her, including Masha, to do.
I mean, Yennefer had murdered countless souls for six years and she was a criminal that could never be forgiven by the citizens of Gavaria, so it was honestly not okay to have to address someone who was supposed to be a prisoner as my lady.
A slight breath fled her nose and Yennefer, who knew the meaning behind her stare, raised her brow at her.
"Why are you two here?" She asked, and Masha scoffed with a disdained look in her eyes.
"To bath you, obviously. His majesty requires your presence, so please get up from bed, so we can get this over and done with."
She clarified, and Yennefer gazed at her for a few moments before stepping down from the bed.
She walked into the bathroom, and with Livia's help, she slid out of her night dress and slipped into the hot bath.
She relaxed her body, and unlike the last time, they took it easy with bathing her, to avoid leaving bruises on her body.
The bath took a few long minutes, and once they were done, they wrapped her up with a brownish animal skin-textured towel, then wiped her clean.
They walked her into the dressing room and picked out a nice blue dress with flowery patterns on it.
They had her slide into it and, gently, they brushed her hair, letting it fall afterward, then decorated it with a bronze-colored clip with a blue flowery stone on it.
"You look really beautiful," Livia commented with a smile on her face, and Yennefwr stood up from the chair.
She walked towards the long mirror, and the instant she viewed herself, her body stilled as well as went paralyzed for a few seconds in shock.
'She looks exactly like me.' She said to herself and lifted her hand to feel her face.
'It's like another version of myself with white hair...'
A bit scared by all this, she lifted her hand and felt her face, even more, trying to understand if she was dreaming or not.
Well, she's obviously not dreaming, but it still feels... unreal.
It was as though she was in another dimension where she was a totally different person. Another version of that depressed drug addict?
Her jaw fell, and she turned around when she felt Livia and Masha's heavy gazes on her.
"What?"
"Are you shocked by your own beauty or...?"
————
"Good morning, my lord." Luthiel's deep voice, devoid of any emotion, resounded, and William, who was getting dressed up by the maids, turned his head to look at the curtain which was preventing him from viewing Luthiel, and vice versa.
"Luthiel." He called his name, and Luthiel bowed his head in respect.
"Yes, my lord."
"How was your night?" He inquired, and Luthiel took a few moments before replying.
"It was fine. Thank you for asking, my lord." He said, and a slight smile ensued on William's face.
The maids buttoned up his blue shirt and gray pants, and once they were down, he turned around and walked out.
He raised his head and his eyes fell on Luthiel's long silky black hair, which was messily packed in a loose manner.
"Why do you never brush your hair properly?" He asked in curiosity.
"Preference, my lord." He answered in such a small sentence, and William, who was already used to it, nodded his head and strolled towards his study table.
"Well, it will look slightly better if you comb it a little more neatly." He suggested, and Luthiel stared at him, not saying a word.
"Let's go." He perfected his curly brown hair with his hands, clasped his royal necklace given to him by the emperor around his neck, and with Luthiel following behind him, he walked out of his chamber, his escorts following afterward.
They proceeded towards the royal hall, but on their way, they came face to face with Yennefer, who was escorted by eight guards with her wrists chained.
William scrutinized her from head to toe and couldn't help but acknowledge the fact that she was exceptionally beautiful, unlike when she was covered in dirt.
Yennefer gazed at him as well, and a look of hate glinted in her eyes.
"One seems to have no respect, hmm..." Williams abruptly said, clearly displeased that she didn't bow to him.
Yennefer, who knew that he was referring to her, looked at him and suddenly chuckled softly.
"I don't see the necessity, but it seems I have to remind you that I am not a citizen of your empire, nor am I here of my own will, so don't expect respect from me, prince William, as that is something you will never get from me."