I collapsed onto the couch, propping my feet up on the coffee table. The leather felt cool against my skin. Heaving out a loud sigh, I began massaging my feet, hoping to knead away the tension that seemed to have taken up permanent residence in my muscles.

"You know," I muttered seemingly to no one in particular, "I've been giving it my all. Really, truly trying my best." I paused, letting the words hang in the air for a moment before continuing my rant. "But somehow, despite all my efforts, I still manage to mess things up. It's like I have a talent for it or something."

I sighed heavily, the weight of my own incompetence pressing down on me like a lead blanket. "I used to rely on my abilities, problematic as they were. But not anymore. No Ma’am, I'm done with that. And yet..." I trailed off, unable to find the words to express my frustration. "Everyone sees me as a freak," I grumbled, my voice tinged with bitterness. "And maybe I am, but dammit, I have a heart too. I want to do good in this world. Is that too much to ask? Well, maybe, but still…"

I glanced over at the person sitting beside me, her presence barely registering until now. "What do you think? What do you think I should do?" I asked, my tone pleading for some semblance of understanding.

Standing beside me, she cast her gaze down at me, a faint smile playing at the corners of her lips. "I wouldn’t know, Mr," she said, her voice cold as expected of her people, "I'm just a maid."

I looked back at the maidly-dressed woman, chuckled, and said, “you’re everything but just a maid. You’re one of Theta’s ascetics.”

“Indeed, I am,” she confirmed almost robotically. “However, it is as a maid that I was sent here by Lord Swartz and Lady Theta,” she promptly explained.

Considering the many levels of control Theta has over her ascetics, this old woman might be believing what she just said, however I was not stupid enough to believe that it was just the case.

I knew for a fact that she was here to keep an eye on me.

Aye, just how low have I fallen? Did I really fall so low that my fellow Dungeon Master thinks I need a baby-sitter to keep an eye on me.

Well, I can’t say I don’t understand why but still it is annoying.

The younger would have without a doubt made sure the “maid’” life would be as miserable as miserable can be but I’ve grown out of that phase. I understand that it won’t help my case, so I’m left with no other choice but bear with her presence and surveillance. However, since we’ve got to this might as well make use of it.

“Come on old woman, you've known me since I was this small, so help me out by answering my question. I know you’re smart; otherwise, you wouldn’t have ever risen to come under her direct orders and been trustworthy enough for him to have you monitor me on his behalf. So… what should I do to look better to the other? Because clearly, the tremendous effort I’ve been deploying these past 15 years hasn’t made any improvement on my image. Dun—I’ve been told to seek counseling, so that’s what I do, you’re the only one available to me now. So, tell me, what can I do?”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

She stared at me with a blank and stoic expression for a long ten seconds before eventually saying, "I am no counselor, nor am I a psychiatrist, which I assume would be what Mr. is in most need of. However, if I were to nonetheless act as a counselor, I would say that your main default is that you're..."

"Yes," I interjected, bracing myself for her assessment.

She heaved a loud sigh before listing, "the most erratic, violent, stubborn—once again violent—specimen I've ever had the chance to witness," she said. Hearing her accusations, I couldn't even bring myself to defend against them; I found myself simply nodding as she continued, "but that's not all. You're also the most irascible, selfish, and for some reason, very reckless, especially at the worst possible timing."

I watched and nodded in silence as I was being slandered to death by the old ascetic. "I am aware that you've worked hard to suppress all these 'aspects' of you these past 15 years; I was there to witness it. While it's commendable, in the end, all you've done is keep those tendencies beneath the surface, so when they resurface, you're back to square one, no different than you were. Which is, I guess, what happened this time, right?"

Remembering how I relied on [Frenzy], planning on taking on Dungeon Master 18 instead of following Dungeon Master 02's suggestion, which I knew was bound to be more logical than mine which would’ve led me engaging in a battle to the death against her—which I could tell would have resulted in the death of yet another Dungeon Master, I acknowledged with a guilty nod.

“If I were to consider what you have a sickness, hiding the symptoms won't make your condition improve; it'll just make it look like it did."

"So what do you suggest I do instead?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"That would be fixing the main cause of the symptoms. Your erraticness, your tendency to be prone to violence, your stubbornness."

I nodded thoughtfully, considering her words. "Fixing those aspects of myself... It's easier said than done, isn't it?"

The old woman's expression softened slightly. "Indeed, it may not be a matter of fixing, per se. It's likely already a part of your nature if it hasn’t alway been. However, it should be possible for you to start cultivating other virtues such as patience, gentleness, and perhaps understanding of others."

Her words lingered in the air, and I found myself pondering their implications. Cultivating virtues... It sounded like a daunting task, but perhaps it was the only way forward.

"That's a good suggestion," I conceded, nodding in agreement. "But how do I do that?"

The old woman shook her head. "I don't know, Mr. That is something I believe is up to you to figure out how to achieve."

I sighed, feeling the weight of the challenge ahead of me. How does one even begin to cultivate virtues they've never truly embraced?

As I began to ponder how I could start this journey, the old woman voiced a suggestion, breaking the silence, "This is just a suggestion, but perhaps taking care of a pet is a good beginning. I've read somewhere that it helps children develop patience, gentleness..."

"A pet, huh?" I mused, the idea sparking a flicker of interest within me.