Yurina had momentarily forgotten that the boy in front of her was
only 12 years old, so she responded with a guilty look.
The clothes make the man.
Despite being a commoner and raised in the slums, he was already
quite handsome. However, now that he has washed himself and is
nicely dressed in Yurina’s brother’s clothes, Raynard looks more like
a child who grew up nicely in an aristocratic society.
With a complexion that looks whiter after scrubbing off the dead skin
that had accumulated over time; height that is shorter than an
average boy of his age due to poor nourishment; dwarfed but still
naturally formed bones; lightly golden hair that is still glistening from
the bath; deep brilliant ruby eyes; prominent nose, and thick pink
lips. Despite that, his appearance was still slightly flawed. This is
primarily attributed to the fact that the clothes were too big for him
since they were borrowed from her older brother. However, he never
trailed behind the male lead in the novel because even as a
supporting male lead, he was still simply perfect.
Most importantly, it was his pair of brilliant ruby eyes that made him
look even more dignified.
Watching in realization, Yurina’s eyes grew wider. When their eyes
met, Raynard’s made an exaggerated O shape as he stood with his
hands against his waist. He had a smug, triumphant smile… Like a
general who had just won and ended a century-long war.
“I smell pretty good now, huh?”
“I smell pretty good” is an understatement… Who knew he could be
so proud of such a trivial thing.
Up until an hour ago, he had smelt like a cheese that had been
fermented for at least 100 years.
Yurina frowned a bit as she remembered the horrible smell that felt
like it was still stuck in her nose.
Lightly laughing, she responded, “Yes. I think so too.”
“The soap I just used… I think it’s the same one you use. Is that
alright?”
“Soap? What kind of soap?”
“It was yellow and round.”
Remembering the soap she had just used this morning, Yurina
nodded.
“Perhaps it was…”
“Does anyone else use it?”
“No, I don’t think so. Mother and Father use a different kind of soap.
I didn’t like my previous soap, so the one you had used is my new
one. What about it? Ah… Perhaps you don’t like the scent?”
Yurina recalled the last vacation her brothers from the academy had.
They returned to the mansion and cringed at the strong flowery
fragrance of the soap.
“Maybe you dislike sweet scents. If that’s the case, next time I’ll be
sure to ask them to bring the same soap my brother uses.”
“No.”
Raynard, who had been gazing through the window, turned his head
abruptly. He suddenly cleared his throat a few times before speaking
again.
“I’ll use it.”
The way he clearly avoided meeting her gaze was slightly
suspicious, however, Yurina easily dismissed it. She led him to the
table without further questioning.
The two took the seats across from each other and waited for the
maids to finish setting the tableware.
Unlike Yurina who sat poised and calm across from him, Raynard’s
eyes cautiously glanced at the items in front of him. It seemed that
he was trying to appear nonchalant but he simply could not contain
the excitement that was leaking from his voice.
“Why are there four forks? Why are there three knives? Do the
nobles have four hands?!”
Yurina looked at him curiously as she waved her hands in
amusement.
“Nobles aren’t monsters, they can’t have four hands. Each fork and
knife here are used differently depending on the dish.”
“There are multiple dishes?”
“That’s right, and each fork has its own individual use that depends
on the type of food that is being eaten. Don’t look so displeased.
You will also have to learn this soon anyway.”
Glancing at the piece of bread the maid had just served on her plate,
Yurina started to consider acquiring a tutor for him.
In fact, upon arriving here for the first time, she was actually very
worried about eating. But as soon as she sat down, “Yurina’s”
knowledge of dining etiquette slowly flowed into her mind. Perhaps it
was an act of consideration for her after having fallen into such a
strange place.
It wasn’t only dining etiquette, but also the general behaviour and
manners of aristocracy naturally came to her. It made living here
much easier.
That’s what having a cheat is all about. I’m not sure whether I
should laugh or cry.
If she was going to get a cheat, it should’ve been a magic skill cheat
at least or even swordsman skill cheat. That way, at least should
could protect herself.
Yurina internally scoffed at the thought as she used a butter knife to
butter her bread with a practiced ease.
Raynard observed her actions closely. Afterwards, he picked up a
fist-sized loaf and proceeded to roughly spread a substantial
amount of butter on it, and stuffed it into his mouth.
It was a firm piece of bread that crumbled and cracked into pieces
which fell onto his clothes. She heard a sigh of content from him.
His eyes grew wide as the crumbs stuck to his face and all over his
mouth.
“What is this?”
“It’s bread.”
“Bread?”
His face distorted strangely, as if he had been insulted. Then
suddenly, both of his cheeks turned into a flushed pink.
“Don’t you make fun of me! I know for a fact that this isn’t bread.
Real bread would be too chewy.”
“The bread that you know of is like that because the flour is not
properly refined and the dough was not adequately fermented.
Whatever it was that you ate before, and what you are eating now are
both the same bread.”
Yurina explained, but it was clear that he was no longer listening.
He was currently stuffing his mouth with so much bread that his
cheeks was puffed out like a hamster that was forced to stuff itself
with as many sunflower seeds its poor cheeks could handle before
bursting.
To be honest, he looked pretty cute to Yurina. Nevertheless, it made
her sigh.
We’re definitely going to have to get you a tutor.
“Charrion” was knighted shortly after he returned to the Empire from
finishing his studies at the academy. So for Raynard to live as a
nobleman in the future, he had to start his education immediately.
As soon as tomorrow.
He still has a long way to go.
Unaware of Yurina’s inner thoughts, Raynard continued to contently
drink the soup the maid had just served. Although he was using a
spoon, the creamy soup dripped down his chin, onto his chest and
all over the table.
In that moment, Yurina was reminded of a scene from an animation
she had watched when she was a child.
The Beast who had grabbed the bowl and gulped it without the use
of any utensils, and the Beauty who was startled by his behaviour.
The Beauty then decided to place her spoon down, picked up her
bowl and drank it in the same manner so that the Beast would not
feel afraid.
But Yurina was not a good-natured beauty, so she didn’t have the
slightest interest to eat like that for Raynard’s sake.
“Ray”
Instead, she stood up from her chair, walked around the table and
took the seat next to him.
The maid took notice of this and quickly moved Yurina’s table setting
to her new spot.
Yurina used a napkin to clean his face and clothes, and then she
brought the spoon to his hand.
“You are going to learn how to use the spoon again.”
She reached for his rough hand with her other hand before Raynard
could even respond.
She gently rubbed his thumb on his palm, then slowly did the same
with his fingers. With gentle motions, she smoothed out the fingers
he had bent and then placed the spoon in his hand once more.
At first, Raynard tried to imitate Yurina’s motions as she gripped her
spoon. He observed the way she sipped the soup, but at some point,
impatience and hunger took over. He just started to slurp the soup in
his own way.
Yurina worriedly looked at him as he ate the soup thinking he would
break the bowl from vigorously scrapping it with a spoon. She then
pushed her bowl towards him.
“You should eat more. Here, have mine.”
The maid behind her hurriedly spoke.
“No, my Lady. We will bring more soup.”
“It’s fine. I’m not that hungry anyway.”
Wanting him to feel comfortable while eating, Yurina kept everyone
at a distance. Regardless of whether or not Raynard was listening,
Yurina persisted in teaching him how to eat.
It surprised Yurina as she watched Raynard attempt to cut a steak
into bite-sized pieces using a fork.
After the meal had ended, Raynard maintained a look of awe and laid
on the sofa holding his now bulging stomach.
“If this is what heaven feels like, I think I can die now.”
“You can’t die right now. It would be a violation of our contract”
“Contract?”
Raynard asked curiously, as he lifted his head while still remaining in
the same position.
Yurina pulled a chair over and took a seat in front of him.
“I told you. In exchange for saving you today, you must save me in
return.”
“And I told you before too. What if I don’t want to?”
“Well… there’s no way I can force you if you don’t want to.”
She narrowed her eyes and smiled at him mischievously.
Originally, she had wanted to give him a more confident answer.
Something like, ‘Can you even do that?’ but looking at his current
languid figure like a full grown cat, she felt like teasing him instead.
“Are you sure you can say that now? Did you not consider that I
would stop investing in you if you said that you wouldn’t save me?”
“Ah, seriously.”
Raynard shook his head in an attempt to remove the remaining drops
of water from his hair. He sat up on the sofa so that his eyes were
levelled with hers.
“Still, I don’t believe a word you said.”
“Didn’t I say that I would sponsor you? I even swore under the name
of Carthia.”
“That’s not what I meant. You said that I have a talent for magic.”
Now that he was full, his temper was softer. Before they ate, he
spoke haughtily.
“I might not know anything about magic, but I do know it’s a big
deal. You think I’ll become such a great person? That doesn’t make
any sense. Besides, my parents weren’t even mages. So how is it
that I am a mage?”
“Magic abilities aren’t genetic, they’re innate.”
“Innate…? Genetic…? What?”
“If I had magical powers, it would come from me alone, I wouldn’t
have inherited it from my parents. You could say that even if the
parents are mages, there’s a possibility the children might not be. On
the other hand, if the parents aren’t mages, there’s a possibility for
the children to be one.”
Raynard frowned and wrinkled his nose. He was still confused.
“So you’re saying magic is innate? Well, whatever it is… How do you
know that I have magic? Are you a mage?”
“No, I’m just an ordinary person. But when I saw your red eyes, I just
knew that you had to be a mage.”
He stared at Yurina blankly and then suddenly covered his eyes with
his hands. He laid back down on the sofa and Yurina thought that
she might’ve touched a sensitive topic.
He looked like a puppy who after being scolded by its master,
retreated back into his house and wouldn’t come out.
“But everyone said that I have these red eyes because I was cursed
by the Goddess.”
“It’s not a curse, but rather it’s a blessing.”
“But what if you’re wrong?”
“That’s not possible.”
“But…”
He turned his head dejectedly and glanced at Yurina.
“If it turns out that I’m not good with magic, what happens to me
then?”
“Huh?”
“Are you going to give me back to the orphanage?”
So that’s the real reason for this whole conversation.
Unlike the confidence he had at the orphanage before being brought
to the mansion, he has now become anxious at the possibility that
he might be abandoned if he had no talent.
It wouldn’t matter if you had never had a taste of warm treatment.
But once you have had that taste, being rejected after would make
the impact become several times greater.
Yurina was about to say that it didn’t matter if he had talent or not.
Regardless, she would still continue to be his benefactor. However, a
knock interrupted her before she could respond.
“Yurina.”
It was the voice of Marquis Carthia.
Yurina reached for Raynard’s arm, and took him along with her.
“Luckily for you, Ray, there is someone who can prove that you are
indeed gifted.”
