"Better?" Ethan asked after the first bite.
Lia nodded, swallowing the bite and glancing up at him shyly. "It's… good. Thank you."
Ethan chuckled softly. "Don't thank me. You're the one who went and got it."
The two of them ate in silence for a while, the room filled only with the soft clinking of dishes. As they finished the meal, Ethan leaned back in his chair and finally addressed the elephant in the room.
"About the class… I think once your level is high enough you can change it or upgrade it or something? It should be possible, don't you think so?" Lia looked confused.
"Right, there is also the summoner's contract." Ethan continued.
"I can try to nullify the contract right now but I have a feeling you might lose your class if I do it so soon. Maybe it's better to wait a little bit. If you don't mind we can head out to some place nearby and get a few levels under our belt. Then I can try undoing the summoner contract. What do you think?"
Lia blinked, still looking confused.
"Ok. If it bothers you too much, I can do it right now. I already promised that you are free. Its a bit risky but I will undo the contract. Hopefully, you still have the class and then you are a free bird. No one should be able to call you a slave anymore."
Lia's eyes widened in shock as she finally understood what he was saying. "What are you… saying? Master… please… If I have done something wrong, please punish me. Master please… don't say things like this." She started panicking, her hazel eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
She gripped the edge of the table tightly, her knuckles turning white, and shook her head vehemently. "Please, Master… I don't understand. Why would you even suggest such a thing?"
Umm? Ethan was speechless. Did he say something wrong?
Then it struck him. She was probably worried that if he left her, then her life might return back to the same hell. It was understandable. It was probably better not to bring all of this up now and let things cool down for a while.
He immediately raised his hands in surrender and tried to calm her down. "Sorry sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. You haven't done anything wrong, I promise. I'm not leaving you, and nothing bad is going to happen. Let's forget I said anything for now. Take a deep breath, okay?"
Lia hesitated, her grip on the table loosening slightly. She looked at Ethan, searching his face for reassurance, and slowly nodded. Her breaths came out uneven, but she was trying to calm herself.
Ethan gave her a warm smile, leaning forward just enough to show he wasn't going anywhere. "I didn't mean to scare you," he continued softly. "I was just thinking out loud, that's all. We don't have to decide anything right now. We'll take it one day at a time.
Her shoulders sagged slightly as the tension began to leave her body. She wiped at her eyes with trembling hands, a fragile smile flickering across her face. "Thank you," she murmured, her voice barely audible. "Forgive me, master. I made a mess of everything and inconvenienced you."
She looked very restless and quickly started cleaning up the spilled water glass and the table which was in disarray. Ethan was going to stop her or help her but it was clear that doing so would only make her more comfortable.
"I guess I have my own personal butler now." He shook his head helplessly and stepped aside to give her room to gather herself.
A few minutes later when everything was done, Lia returned to the room with a nice smile on her face. Ethan let out a sigh and smiled back at her. "Alright, everything done? Can you please sit down now? I need to talk to you about somethings."
He saw a slight panic in her eyes again and immediately added. "No. No. This is about something else. I am very curious to know about your background." Ethan started. "Are you from here? Where did you grow up? Do you know this place at all? Please feel free to answer me only if it's okay with you."
Lia nodded. "Master, I was born here in a nearby settlement. My parents belong to the Ka Tu village. I was one of the village elder's daughters." She started speaking, her eyes betraying her sadness.
"Ka Tu is a small village, not far from here, tucked away in the woods. We weren't rich, but we were happy. My father was a respected man, and our people were tight-knit. My mom loved me very much. But… everything changed when I turned eighteen years and it was time for awakening."