"Ah, such mercy...! The Princess is as merciful as she is lovely." He leaned back as best as he could in this body, a dramatic half-swoon.

"...And please, have you got any idea how often I get the same thing, looking the way I do compared to how people with pull are depicted in picture books?"

He sat upright. "I think so far I've been called a homunculus and a party clown. The opposite of handy, and very annoying."