TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 28
A quiet kitchen.
While I was skillfully slicing a paprika, the kitchen knife fell to the floor with a clanging sound.
A voice laced with irritation escaped my lips.
“Ah… It’s happening again.”
I looked at my left hand, which had been holding the paprika.
A perfectly intact left hand without so much as a scratch.
Thankfully, the left hand holding the paprika was unharmed.
If it had been even slightly off, I could have been seriously injured, but I let out a sigh of relief at my left hand, with all five fingers intact.
After confirming the safety of my left hand.
I turned my attention to the problematic right hand.
A slightly trembling right hand.
“Haa.”
A sigh came out involuntarily.
Sometimes, things like this happen.
Moments when my right hand acts out of line and refuses to listen. Not often, just very occasionally.
My right hand doesn’t obey me.
It’s not something dramatic like a Black Flame Dragon or a hidden alternate self. From the fingertips to the entire right arm, it stiffens and refuses to move.
I looked at my trembling right hand. No matter how much force I put into my fingers to make a fist, my right hand wouldn’t budge.
An empty laugh escaped me.
“Seriously, this isn’t easy.”
It was an aftereffect from saving the Young Lady who failed at dark magic, and it wasn’t healing easily.
Sometimes, waves of pain would hit me.
On really bad days, the pain was so intense it felt like my arm might be torn off. But it wasn’t something I worried too much about.
It wasn’t a frequent occurrence.
And raising my Dark Magic Resistance was a good thing.
[Dark Magic Resistance suppresses Necrosis.]
I think of it as an investment for the future.
‘Sss…’
However.
Today, it hurts particularly bad.
“Damn.”
I slumped into a corner of the kitchen and sat down. Hugging my trembling right hand and curling up, the pain subsided a little.
It hurt. How should I describe it?
Pain like bugs gnawing at my flesh?
I think that’s the most accurate description.
Clenching my teeth tightly.
To ensure no sound escaped, I held my breath and waited for the pain to pass.
Even though I had endured this pain dozens of times, I still couldn’t get used to it.
My body trembled slightly.
My lips felt parched.
“Huaa… Hold on… Hold on.”
I struggled to avoid shouting out loud.
I didn’t want to cause unnecessary worry for the Young Lady upstairs.
It’s really nothing.
It does hurt a little.
But it’s pain I can endure. I’m fine.
***
The Young Lady’s Room on the second floor, where I went after preparing the meal.
Looking at the completely burnt steak, I gave an awkward smile.
“Hahaha…”
“…What is this?”
The Young Lady asked me.
She seemed genuinely curious.
Understandably so—because the steak had forgotten its duty as meat and turned into what looked like black charcoal.
Having been stuck in the corner of the kitchen, I completely forgot about the meat left on the fire. Unfortunately, there was no spare meat, so I cautiously brought this instead.
The Young Lady asked me.
“Charcoal?”
I scratched the back of my head awkwardly. A Butler who usually served perfect meals had now brought something inedible. It must have been bewildering.
Considering it was already 9 PM.
I felt sorry for giving such a rock-like thing to the Young Lady, who must have been starving by now, but since there was no extra meat, I couldn’t prepare another meal.
I spoke with an air of apology.
“This is tonight’s dinner.”
“Oh…?”
The Young Lady’s face was filled with numerous Question Marks.
“Dinner?”
Upon understanding the tragic situation, an Exclamation Mark appeared over her head as she spoke.
“Ah, so it’s jerky?”
I shook my head.
“It’s steak made from beef short ribs.”
“Oh…”
The Young Lady brought the plate closer to her nose. Sniffing it, she tilted her head in confusion.
“Hmm.”
She stroked her chin once.
After a moment of serious thought.
-Poke.
She poked it with her finger and licked it.
-Scrape.
She shaved off a small piece and tasted it.
The Young Lady nodded.
It seemed she had reached a conclusion.
With a more serious expression than ever before, the Young Lady spoke to me again.
“…Dinner?”
I nodded.
“Regrettably, yes.”
-Softly.
The Young Lady stared at the plate again.
She seemed to be checking if there were any edible parts.
The Young Lady said.
“If I eat this, I’ll die.”
“You won’t. Remember when we shared that Poisonous Mushroom Soup? You survived just fine.”
“That was pretty, though.”
“This can be pretty too, if you look closely.”
I said, looking at the steak burned blacker than charcoal. Still, if I diligently excavated it with a knife, I might find some edible parts.
Besides, the paprika and broccoli hadn’t burned. If there’s nothing else to eat, at least those could do.
The Young Lady repeated.
“If I eat this, I’ll die.”
“You won’t.”
“I will.”
“Then there’s no choice.”
At my sigh, the Young Lady widened her eyes in surprise.
As a human myself, there are times when I make mistakes in cooking, and during such times, I would prepare the Young Lady’s favorite cake or bring back food from the marketplace.
The Young Lady, knowing this, would look at me with eyes full of anticipation.
“Chocolate Cake?”
“Oh, no way.”
“Then?”
In response to the Young Lady’s intense anticipation, I stabbed a fresh paprika with a fork.
-Squelch.
For a moment, the Young Lady’s expression twisted.
“Why paprika?”
“Because it’s fresh and delicious.”
“That?”
“Yes.”
The Young Lady thought she would have rather eaten the meat that was burned into black soot.
“Ah. Go ahead.”
“No.”
I picked up the fork and, with a “Whoosh~ Airplane taking off” sound, launched Paprika Unit 1. Its destination was the Young Lady’s mouth.
“No.”
This time, she firmly shut her mouth and refused to eat. With coy eyes, she glared at me, making me want to flick her forehead.
Little Kids usually eat when you tell them the airplane is flying. Maybe it doesn’t work here because there are no airplanes in Another World.
I picked up the fork again.
Then this time, I thought, maybe mentioning something from Another World would work.
After gauging the shared sentiment, I launched Unit 2.
“Whoosh~ Dragon Unit 2 is flying!”
The Young Lady showed a proud smile.
“I caught the evil dragon.”
“Oh…!”
I looked at Dragon Unit 2, which had fallen powerlessly to the ground. The paprika, which had valiantly perished without reaching its destination, seemed pitiful.
The Young Lady looked at the crash-landed paprika and said.
“I am a Dragon Slayer.”
‘Heh.’ The Young Lady saw through my little trick with a mocking laugh. Was she saying such tricks wouldn’t work anymore?
I pulled out a new fork.
Fortunately, I had prepared dozens of forks for this very situation.
“Being picky is a bad thing.”
“It’s fine. That was an evil Paprika Dragon.”
“Paprika is not an evil dragon. On the contrary, it’s a good dragon that protects the Young Lady’s health.”
“No, it’s evil.”
The Young Lady furrowed her brows.
“It doesn’t taste good.”
The Young Lady despised paprika.
She complained about its peculiar bitter taste, but I didn’t understand why she hated it.
It’s crunchy and delicious to me…
Actually, I hate it too.
For leftover disposal purposes, I launched Unit 3 into the Young Lady’s mouth.
“Say ah.”
“No.”
“I’ll refuse too, then.”
I forcefully pushed it into the Young Lady’s mouth.
“Ugh.”
“You can’t spit it out.”
“Why?”
“Because paprika is healthy.”
“But my heart isn’t healthy.”
“The paprika will take care of that for you.”
The Young Lady, trying to spit it out without chewing, was made to chew as I held her chin and moved it for her.
The Young Lady’s cat punch flew at me, but it didn’t hurt, so it was fine.
Though I thought she was lifting it to throw, unexpectedly, she began making skewers with the paprika and broccoli on her plate.
-Poke. Poke. Poke.
Did it suit her taste more than expected?
Just as I thought Unit 3 had matured her palate.
“Ah.”
The Young Lady extended the fork toward me.
“Ricardo, eat this.”
“Thank you for offering, but isn’t this a bit much?”
With a cold gaze, the Young Lady said to me.
“You need to stay healthy.”
“I am healthy, though.”
“Be even healthier.”
“But giving me only paprika is abuse, isn’t it? I’ll report this to the Butler Human Rights Committee.”
The Young Lady widened her eyes and asked.
“That exists?”
“No, it doesn’t.”
The Young Lady threw the fork.
After a brief skirmish, we finished the meal by giving the Young Lady a Chocolate Cake.
***
The Young Lady yawned and lay down languidly. I sat at the Young Lady’s bedside, stroking her hair.
“Young Lady.”
“Yes?”
“Did you know I’m on vacation starting tomorrow?”
The Young Lady nodded.
It seemed she was aware of my vacation.
I brought it up, thinking she might have forgotten, but I was just grateful she remembered.
This time, I would need to bring back lots of expensive items from the dungeon. My heart was a mix of worry and anticipation.
The Young Lady said to me.
“Make sure to come back safely.”
“Yes.”
“Didn’t I tell you? Be wary of Bad People and don’t follow anyone who says they’ll buy you delicious food.”
“I know that very well.”
It seemed the Young Lady was worried about me.
She seemed concerned about whether I could navigate this harsh world alone.
It looked like we were both worried about each other.
“And, you know.”
The Young Lady held my hand.
The Young Lady looked at my hand with a somewhat sorrowful gaze. Stroking the back of my hand, she bit her lower lip.
The Young Lady remained silent for a moment.
“Um…”
After hesitating, the Young Lady said.
“When you return from your vacation, there’s something I want to ask you.”
“Something you want to ask me?”
“Yes.”
The Young Lady clenched her fist tightly.
It seemed to be something difficult to answer, something she wanted to ask. Was she planning to ask if I ever had a girlfriend? If that’s the case, she could ask now.
In both my Previous Life and Current Life, I’ve been single since birth.
I said to the Young Lady.
“Why not ask me now?”
The Young Lady shook her head.
“Not yet. I’m not ready.”
“Not ready?”
The Young Lady stared into the Empty Space and said.
“Yes. Not quite yet.”
***
Time passed quickly.
After bidding farewell to the Young Lady who remained at the Estate and generously providing the Honorable Maid with a Bonus, I asked her to take good care of things.
The most important point I emphasized was,
One Chocolate per day.
I didn’t forget to stress that no more than that was allowed.
After exchanging goodbyes with the Honorable Maid, I departed immediately. Now, I’ve arrived at the summit of the Hamel Mountain Range.
The peak, where the vast scenery unfolded before me.
The refreshing air cleared my chest, and the cold wind tousled my Hair, making me feel like I was truly on vacation.
Let’s finish this quickly and head back.
As I thought that and tried to find the entrance to the Dungeon.
“Who do we have here?”
A familiar Voice called out.