My Idle System

In comparison to his sister breaking her promise or that pair from the other world, Sophia's situation was still the lesser problem.

And that made him push it to the back of his mind.

Then, had he spent the past month working hard to address some of their current needs? To solve these issues? Or to properly assess Nina's situation?

Because, after all, he had said it himself.

That he would monitor her… and give his decision regarding his assessment of her later.

Unfortunately, he hadn't done any of these things.

He had just been waiting… idling!

If there was something he did, then it would probably just be him occasionally looking at the records of Nina's behavior through Iris.

Trying to analyze her actions… but brilliantly failing.

As, really… what did she want?

It was impossible that she had no desires.

No human was without wants, after all!

And yet, her robotic behavior, simply carrying out her duties and nothing more, made things far from easy for him.

She never asked for anything. Never showed personal interests. Never strayed from her given role.

Not even once.

… Did she really have nothing she wanted to do, even after being freed from that assassination organization?

Was she purposely acting this way?

Or was she really that empty?

These questions would surface in his mind sometimes, but he never bothered to dig further.

… No, it wasn't because he had no time.

He had plenty of that.

After all, he was idling.

It was just that he hadn't bothered to address this issue. His mind had been occupied elsewhere.

By how he would raise Eva's and his sister's strength.

By the presence of the people from other worlds after that encounter.

And by the many things he was constantly discovering.

At this moment, knowing that everything was going to take a long time, and having already made his decision regarding his future plans, Christian couldn't help but think of finally addressing Sophia's issue.

Because by now, it was no longer just about that past incident. Even her behavior in this house was becoming a little problematic in his eyes.

And no, it wasn't that she had done something specifically wrong. It was just her usual, so-called "normal" behavior.

That aloofness—acting as if she was above the others residing in this house, aside from Eva… and probably him too. Her attitude toward his sister and Nina was simply unacceptable.

He didn't like that.

His sister? That was obvious. But even Nina—who, despite his many thoughts regarding her… he still didn't consider Sophia to be above her.

In fact, Nina, who was much more faithful to her role as a maid of the house, only made Sophia's shortcomings stand out more.

In this situation, where there's two maid around him.

Christian couldn't help but compare them. And in his eyes, Sophia should be taking Nina as her role model.

When in reality, it should be the opposite.

After all, one had been an assassin since birth, while the other had acted as a maid for a long time.

But… had Nina really become that good of a maid?

Not at all.

It was just that her attitude was much more pleasant to look at… in contrast to Sophia's one.

And that contrast only made Sophia's flaws all the more obvious.

Most importantly, she seemed to only follow Eva's orders… and his, on the rare occasions he gave them.

Again, unlike Nina.

Her having touched Essence didn't mean anything either.

He hadn't asked for any advice from her, nor did he plan to.

Her measly strength and limited knowledge weren't of any real help to him, after all.

And it wasn't that he was looking down on her.

He was just stating facts.

He had already acquired far more knowledge than she could ever offer.

And her stagnant strength, which, in the face of true adversity, would be useless, wasn't needed either.

So really, for him, the only criteria to judge her by was her performance as the maid of this house.

But she didn't seem to understand that.

… Or did she?

And just didn't care?

"So, did you come here knowing your presence would be needed right now?" Christian suddenly asked, smirking.

"…Yes."

Lowering her head and hiding her embarrassed expression at what she had just witnessed, Sophia replied.

Stealing glances at the boy… or should she finally acknowledge it? That he was not merely a boy?

But a man.

Especially if he was able to make a scene like this?

So, correcting herself, Sophia looked at the man's visage, not too far from her, and couldn't help but feel it.

The strength gap had decreased once again.

Was it really possible?

To close it this fast?

She couldn't help but wonder how he was bridging the gap in their power so rapidly, and how much longer… would she be able to stand as the strongest one in this household?

… But was she even accurate in her judgment, when her ability to sense his power level was dwindling this much, with his ever-developing ability?

As the silence stretched, and Christian was unable to find the right words to scold her, something suddenly came to his mind.

And so, he asked—

"Who do you work for?"

It was the same question he had once asked Nina.

Now, he was asking Sophia.

He knew he was probably being petty, because, really, at the end of the day, he couldn't fault her too much.

Moreover, he was fine with her focusing on serving just Eva, as she was not obliged to serve him or his sister…

But still!

He wanted to say something.

Her behavior could have proven dangerous for his sister at that time, after all.

… It was a simple question.

But… was it a difficult one for her?

Sophia stayed silent for a while, thinking that even after all these years, she was still faced with situations like this.

In the end, knowing the answer he probably wanted… and the answer that even Eva, the one she serves, wanted, she bit her lip and replied,

"I… I'm a maid of this house."

It was a difficult statement for Sophia to make.

But it had already been more than a month since they came to this house, and even longer since she had come to know Christian.

And she had watched Eva's behavior shift after meeting him.

So, she was forced to accept it.

That things couldn't stay the same as before.

She had tried to ignore the problem for long time already.

…And that was enough.

Christian, satisfied with her answer, said, "Well then, good work."

With a smile adorning his face, he finally went on his way, Eva in his arms, brushing past Sophia as he left the room.