Serai, Heat the Bathwater

"Come in, Xia Lun."

Aina snapped her fingers with a crisp sound, and the room was instantly bathed in bright light.

"Welcome back, Master," a crisp, slightly mechanical young girl's voice rang out.

An exquisite magic puppet came forward to greet them.

"It has been thirty-eight years since you last left this place. During the house's maintenance and operation, a total of seventy-six high-tier magic stones have been consumed. The remaining inventory is one thousand nine hundred and twenty-four magic stones... The magic circuits have not experienced any malfunctions, but an inspection and maintenance are still recommended..." the magic puppet, Serry, reported fluently.

Xia Lun looked at this mind-blowing creation before him with great interest, clicking his tongue in wonder.

The magic puppet in front of him was not humanoid, but a precisely structured, smooth four-sided pyramid. Inlaid at its peak was an unknown transparent gemstone with a halo of light flowing inside it, which sparkled as it spoke.

Its base did not touch the ground, floating steadily about a foot in the air without the slightest wobble.

"Unknown lifeform detected accompanying you, Master. Initial assessment indicates potential risk. Should it be added to the friendly list?" The magic puppet turned toward Xia Lun, the gemstone on top flashing red as if warning of danger.

"He is my husband, Xia Lun. Grant him the same highest authority as me," Aina spoke, issuing a clear command.

"Yes, Master." The light from the puppet's gemstone quickly stabilized, turning into a green halo symbolizing safety. "Identifying the new master's biological features... Acquiring pupil sample... Should complete biological information be recorded synchronously?"

"Xia Lun, give it a strand of your hair," Aina waved her hand.

Hearing this, Xia Lun plucked a strand of hair and handed it over. A slender metal tentacle extended from beneath the puppet's base, accurately took the hair, and instantly retracted back into its body.

"Analyzing genetics... No matching information found in the current biological sample database... Extremely high similarity to the human genetic sequence... Categorizing into the human gene pool... Data update complete. New individual: Xia Lun, registration successful."

Xia Lun looked at the new type of magic puppet in front of him with considerable amazement.

This little guy was clearly different from the other magic puppets Xia Lun had encountered before. The ones working in the manor could only perform single, repetitive tasks; the puppet responsible for watering flowers only knew how to water flowers, and the one responsible for cleaning only knew how to clean. They were incapable of other jobs.

But in Aina's apartment, there seemed to be only this one little guy, and it was evidently managing everything all by itself.

It even possessed the ability to communicate with people.

"This little guy is named Serry. I picked it up from the depths of a certain labyrinth. After being modified by the Truth Magic Academy, it can use the magic stones of our world as a driving energy source," Aina voluntarily explained, seeing her husband's confusion. "Thanks to it, our magic puppet technology has greatly improved... However, it might take a few hundred years before there's hope of building a model just like Serry."

Xia Lun couldn't help but reach out his hand to touch Serry's body. It indeed had an icy, metallic texture without the slightest trace of a living creature's body heat.

"Truly incredible," Xia Lun murmured.

Being so smart, he really suspected that there was a person stuffed inside this thing.

"Should an exclusive title be set for the new master?" Serry elegantly floated in a small circle around Xia Lun, the gemstone on top flashing a steady and friendly blue light.

"Just call me by my name..." Xia Lun had just opened his mouth when Aina slyly interrupted him.

"Call him 'Aina's loyal hound'." Aina raised her chin, a mischievous glint shining in her eyes.

"According to the database, the title for the new master carries a derogatory connotation and may affect the harmony of the relationship between individuals. Do you confirm forcing the use of this title?" Serry's top turned into a somewhat glaring orange light again.

"Negative!" Xia Lun immediately stopped Aina's nonsense, while quickly covering Aina's mouth before she could cause any more trouble. "Call me by my name."

"Yes, Master Xia Lun." Serry's light returned to a calm state, quietly floating to the side.

"Aina, you..." Xia Lun glared at her, both annoyed and amused. Aina was always finding new ways to provoke him.

"Is there a problem, Mr. 'Aina's loyal hound'?" Aina pried Xia Lun's hand away, revealing a provocative smile, her lips curling into an alluring arc.

Xia Lun's response was direct and passionate. He firmly pressed Aina's shoulders down, and their figures fell heavily onto the soft sofa.

"Warning, warning. The two masters are suspected to be having a dispute. A physical conflict is imminent..." Serry began flashing red again, wandering blindly around the living room... But because both individuals possessed the highest authority, its core programming left it only able to sound the alarm in vain, unable to make any substantial intervention.

"Shut up, Serry! We are perfectly fine." Aina struggled to turn her head from beneath Xia Lun and loudly commanded the panicked magic puppet, her voice carrying a hint of impatience at being interrupted. "Now, go prepare my bathwater. Until I summon you again, you are forbidden from entering this room!"

"Yes, Master Aina."

With a yellow light flashing on its head, Serry fled the scene, as if it actually knew to give them privacy.

With the nuisance gone, Aina couldn't wait to kiss Xia Lun's lips.

"Aina, Serry is..." Xia Lun was still quite curious about the little robot.

"Shut up, don't worry about it," Aina snorted softly.

The Demon King's wings spread wide, and flames ignited upon their bodies, instantly turning their clothes to ash.

...

Serry extended a mechanical arm and slowly dipped it into the water.

The mechanical arm emitted a faint red glow, and soon, the clear water in the bathtub began to bubble and boil.

"Detected temperature: average of ninety-seven degrees. Temperature too high, unsuitable for bathing... Time is ample, allowing for natural cooling." Serry retracted the mechanical arm.

"Heating bathwater, task completed."

The gemstone atop Serry suddenly lit up with a red light.

"Warning, thermal sensors detect a high-temperature fire source. Suspected fire in the house..."

"Master Aina issued a supreme directive, entry into the living room is forbidden."

"Continuing execution of the current task—heating bathwater."

Serry kept muttering to itself in the bathroom.

"Warning, the two masters are engaging in a physical conflict."

"Warning, Master Aina is suspected to be under attack by Master Xia Lun."

"Master Aina has not called for help. Still following the previous supreme directive... heating bathwater."

"Heating bathwater, task completed... Re-executing task."

Serry extended its mechanical arm again, pulled out the rubber stopper in the bathtub, and a moment later, filled the tub with cold water once more.

"Continuing execution of the current task—heating bathwater."

...