Chapter 14: Our Warm Everyday Life

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Is it… Really alright for me to feel this happy?

Maricle-sama was actually more kind hearted than he looked like. Ever since I injured my finger a little, he had been very concerned with the wellbeing of my limbs. 

Thanks to him casting healing magic on me frequently, no matter how much I did laundry, my hand never turned rough. Even if I got blisters from carrying heavy things, he’d heal them in the blink of an eye. 

Aaaah… It feels so comfortable when you can’t feel any pain on your body…!

Furthermore, he told me I could leave any work that might injure me to the automata controlled by Bhadra-sama.. 

Thanks to that, now my normal job was reduced to only cleaning the areas that the automata had trouble reaching and I had more time to think about cooking, one of my skills I was proud of. 

Not only that.

A big amount of new dresses were brought into the room I was assigned. The amount was enough to fill the closet I had. From work clothes to everyday clothes that a normal noble lady wouldn’t be ashamed to wear… 

“…… I…. I thought you might like something like this…”

While turning his gaze slightly away from me, Maricle-sama prepared clothes made from cotton and silk that felt nice to touch. And as cherry on top, every dress he brought fit me perfectly. 

It’s warm and I can move easily in it…!

At first, I was too afraid to actually wear the dresses. The dress wasn’t as extravagant as the dress I often saw noble women walking out in but the dress still looked so elegant and sophisticated.

However, Maricle-sama always looked somewhat sad when he saw me wearing my usual tattered clothes. Hence why I always tried to wear the clothes he had prepared for me whenever I could. 

『That dress looks good on you, Miltia-sama…. Of course, madam’s old clothes also looked good on you too. 』

I always felt embarrassed whenever Bhadra-sama said that kind of thing. Hearing him said that made me want to take off my clothes right here and then but…. That kind of behaviour was definitely unsuitable for a lady so I ended up suffering in agony myself. 

With all of that commotion going on around me, that letter from my family had momentarily slipped from my mind. And then, Bhadra-sama said…

『I will send a letter to Count Lyran to explain the situations in your stead.』

I felt so relieved when I heard that.

That stepfather and stepmother of mine…?

I felt so relieved because rather than being happy about that letter, I was feeling another set of unknown emotions that turned both my hands and felt cold. I didn’t even know what kind of emotions I was feeling. 

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I was humming to myself while peeling off the shell of the shrimp I had harvested from Maricle-sama. I had stored the freshly obtained shrimp into a box covered with 『ice stone』, a stone which could be easily obtained during winter,  to freeze the shrimp. After the shrimp were frozen, I could easily thaw the frozen shrimp by putting it through running water. 

One of the main reasons why the people in this area rarely ate shrimp was because… Shrimp spoiled quickly. Depending on how you prepared the shrimp, the shrimp could begin to spoil within an hour. Even boiled shrimp could be dangerous if you didn’t eat it as soon as you finished cooking it. 

But, if you stored it with 『ice stone』, a stone with properties to cool down the temperature around its surrounding, you could store the shrimp in frozen state, making it last longer. 

In a high-ranking noble house or a rich person house, they could have an amazing magic tool called 『space-time storage box』. But for a less-fortunate household, 『ice stone』, which could be collected by common people during winter, was their most trusted ally to store food. 

As I was focusing on peeling the shell of the half-thawed shrimp, Bhadra-san came to me. His red eyes wouldn’t stop flickering. 

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T/N: Here’s a pic of Miltia happy face

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