***
***
“I couldn’t trust you.”
Reinhardt’s smile deepened as he rested his chin on his hand.
He did not respond to those words. He just smiled, got up from his seat, and walked over to Valletta with a broad stride.
“It’s a mess, Master.”
Reinhardt fixed her crooked robe, and after sitting her down on a chair, he went into the bathroom and came out with a towel.
“Your hair isn’t very dry either.”
He gently dried Valletta’s hair with the towel. His touch was very careful. Reinhardt, who was clumsy at first, got used to it over time.
“I thought you’d use magic to dry it.”
“I like this better than that.”
“You’re strange, really.”
Reinhardt removed the water left on her hair, brought a brush, and combed her hair.
Valletta was familiar with it.
“Master seems to be good at everything, but she is certainly Count’s daughter in this respect.”
“If you’re going to curse, go away. I’ll do it.”
“It’s not a curse, it’s a compliment.”
“Think about what you said. Where is the nuance of praise?”
At Valletta’s growl, Reinhardt burst into a low laugh. He was really good at only one thing: laughing. She couldn’t help but laugh a little and her mouth hurt like a cramp.
“Everything.”
As she tilted her head and looked at his face, Valletta stood up.
Reinhardt, still smiling, brushed off her robe and then stepped back.
“Doesn’t your cheeks hurt when you smile so much?”
“Yes, but this is the best expression to use on my face.”
“It’s good that you’ve grown up so well. So where are you going to use it?
“To seduce Master?”
Valletta gulped at the face that was suddenly pushed in right in front of her. She swallowed her breath and pushed his shoulder out, and Reinhardt was meekly pushed out of the way. He chuckled as he flicked his fingers and got dressed.
“Shall we go?”
“Are you going too?”
Valletta asked with a sullen expression and Reinhardt nodded as if it was natural. Snorta bounced up and naturally hung on her shoulder.
“I’m going to eat.”
“Then let’s eat together. I think there’s a diner down here.”
In spite of the fact that they were going to a crowded place, Reinhardt nodded pleasantly without any change in expression.
“Come to think of it, Snorta needs to be fed, too. We also have to buy feed, but I don’t know what else to feed it.”
She felt like she was a little dim for trying to raise them without any common sense. But it’s still cute…….
Above all, she didn’t want to forcibly remove a child who was so tangled up.
‘Was it awful for Therion?’
‘I guess my attitude was a bit cold hearted when it came to trying to relate to Snorta. I should have been a little better with my words.’
‘In the end, I went to Duke’s house without saying a word.’
‘I didn’t mind that I didn’t say goodbye to him. I was the main character and I saw the future, so I wondered if I was really doing well. I didn’t think much of it after I left, but now I care about it.’
“Snorta is basically an omnivore, so you can give it raw meat. The meat will be even more palatable than feed.”
“…… Oh, really?”
“Yes. And I’m an omnivore too, Master.”
Valletta glared at Reinhardt and walked out of the room.
Reinhardt locked the door and followed her downstairs.
“…….”
* * * *
There was a line of people at the diner. Valletta turned her head with a gloomy gaze.
Reinhardt’s gaze moved slowly.
“Well, should we kill them all?”
“Are you crazy?”
“What about kicking everyone out or putting them to sleep?”
He seemed to be out of the normal range in his own way, but if the people were all put to sleep, who would take orders and cook? Valletta was a little disappointed as the delicious smell made her hungry, but not enough to make her wait in this line to eat.
“Okay, let’s go outside and buy some apples.”
“Okay…….”
Reinhardt didn’t seem to like it, so he took one look at the diner and obediently followed her.
“Huh? Mr wizard?”
A voice that sounded familiar made Valletta stop in her tracks. It was a small voice, but the person seemed to know Reinhardt was a wizard.
“I met you yesterday at the fountain, remember?”
“Oh …….”
He was the man from that time. The man’s dark blue eyes were filled with joy as Valletta nodded in understanding. The man with the wavering light sky-blue hair took two more steps closer, as if to show his familiarity.
“Are you planning to dine?”
“Yes, but for some reason the line is so long so I was going to go somewhere else.”
“Oh, in that case, we made a reservation yesterday when we entered the room. Would you like to join us?”
The young man’s voice was low, hushed, and very clear. He wasn’t coughing like yesterday. His skin was still pale, but his complexion was brighter.
“I’d say you’re a different person than yesterday.”
Not that this cheerful mood had changed, of course.
As Valletta was about to shake her head to refuse the invitation, Reinhardt smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her from behind.
“Then can I ask you a favor? My Valletta doesn’t eat properly.”
“You…”
Reinhardt lightly patted her shoulder as if he was soothing her.
“Of course! My party is inside already, let’s go. Oh my name is Desilian.”
The man’s sparkling eyes were a great burden. Valletta’s expression darkened when she saw the eyes that were as blue as if they were inside a jewel. Valletta, who was looking at Desilian’s neat face, eventually opened her mouth.
“I’m Valletta.”
“You can call me Rein. I am Lady Valletta’s squire.”
“Wow, a squire, you two seem to be very close.”
“We’ve been together since we were children.”
Valletta and Reinhardt followed Desilian, whose eyes sparkled with envy. He talked a bit with the waitress and was shown to his seat, wondering if it was true that he had made a reservation.
“Well, actually my party is my squire as well. I asked her to be my friend, but she said that’s a bad idea even if I were dead.”
The well spoken Desilian’s voice was surprisingly unobtrusive. In fact, it was surprisingly catchy.
“It’s just like Elise’s.’
‘When was the last time I didn’t mind people making noise?’
“Master Desilian! Where have you been?”
The woman who had been sitting in her seat in frustration stood up and shouted. There were worries in her brown eyes.
Every time she moved, her hair, which was in a ponytail, swung from side to side.
“Oh, I met them yesterday in front of the fountain yesterday.”
“Yesterday, that person..That wizard?
Yes. This one is the wizard, Mr. Rein, and this one is Valletta. Rein is Miss Valletta’s squire.”
“The wizard is the squire?”
The woman questioned suspiciously, then she stared at Reinhardt and Valletta.
Reinhardt looked at her with a sly smile.
“Ah, Mr. Rein, Miss Valletta. This is my squire, Lynn.”
“Lynn?”
“Yes, my original name was Zenith. He calls me by my nickname.”
Valletta nodded, looking at the smile on her face. Zenith greeted by bowing lightly to her.
Desilian was surprised and hurried them to sit down.
“I didn’t know this was a place where you had to make a reservation.”
Reinhardt said as he moved the chair out and sat Valletta down, then he sat down after her.
Valletta looked at Reinhardt with curious eyes and tilted her head.
‘Sometimes this guy seems to be more social than I am.’
The waitress brought out two menus and placed each in front of them. Then she walked away, saying to call her when they were ready to order.
“There’s a special lunch-only menu here, and it’s really good. Originally, reservations were not available, but they do accept reservations for guests only.”
“Hmmm………”
Listening to Desilian’s explanation, Reinhardt slowly skimmed through the menu. The lunch-only menu at the very beginning seemed to be the dish the man in front of him was talking about.
Looking through the food descriptions, Reinhardt quickly moved on to the next section with an interesting glance. After looking at some of the food, he turned his head to the side and looked at Valletta. Valletta’s brows furrowed very faintly as she read the description of the limited lunch menu.
“Shall we have some of this special home cooked meal? Actually no….” (Reinhardt)
“What? Why not? The lunch menu is the best here!” (Desilian)
Valletta also turned her face at Reinhardt’s words and looked at him. Naturally, she thought he would say, “Shall we have some of this too?”
“You don’t like fried fish.”
“How did you know?”
“There’s no way that I don’t know anything about you, Master.”
Reinhardt smiled and closed the menu. Valletta also folded the menu and handed it to him. He took it naturally and smiled at her.
“You two are really close.” (Desilian)
“Is that so?”
Valletta replied indifferently. It wasn’t as noisy in the dining room as she thought, unlike the row of people outside. At least not to the point where they couldn’t hear each other’s conversations.
***