Chapter 10 : Freesian Thoughts

“…”

Freesia, nestled in Roland’s arms, looked up at his face.

His hair, shimmering under light but now settled into a dark, faintly golden hue in the dimness.
Below, his blue eyes, hidden by closed eyelids.

Rustle—
“…”

Freesia knew that when those blue eyes met hers, they carried a warmth she’d rarely felt.

In the glass tube, or the rare times her feet touched the ground, she saw only irritation at her incomprehensibility, rage at failure, or fear of a monster.
Those were the emotions she knew.
Roland’s were unfamiliar.

Other times, when she was even smaller, she saw only the impure glee and ecstasy of white coats staring at terminals and papers.

“…Rol, land.”

But he saved her without asking for anything, always smiling.
He called it fate, but she didn’t understand.

Just a coincidence—why call it fate?

“…Roland.”

She had no intention of refusing.
She’d repay him, hold onto him.

Freesia nuzzled her head against his chest, clinging tighter, and fell asleep feeling his warmth.

Flash.

I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar ceiling.
I started to rise but paused.

Soft breathing—
“This girl…”

Freesia.

She was so tightly curled against me that standing would surely wake her.
Instead, I stayed lying down, gently stroking her head. She instinctively nuzzled into my palm.

“…Rol, land…?”
“Yeah, Freesia.”

I didn’t mean to wake her, but I did.

“…Roland.”
“Yup.”
“…Roland.”

Her eyes, even more half-closed than yesterday, gazed up as her lips moved faintly.

“…Roland.”
“I’m right here.”

Her usually blank face softened, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly.

“…Okay.”
Nuzzle, nuzzle—

She rubbed her head against me, hugging tighter.
Her arms didn’t even reach around my back, making her cling even more.

“…Like, Roland.”
“I like you too.”
“…Okay.”

As she kept pressing close, I supported her back and sat up.

“Time to get going, so let’s get up.”
“…Okay.”

I thought she’d let go, but I waited.

“…”
“…”

She showed no sign of letting go.

“…Freesia?”
“…Yeah?”
“I need to get up…”
“…Okay.”

I scratched my chin, then eased my hand from her back and started to rise.

Slide—

Despite her grip, her strength faltered, and she slipped, looking up with slightly widened eyes, as if asking why I didn’t hold her.

I chuckled at her expression, sighed, and lifted her back into my arms, supporting her properly.

Well, carrying her’s no issue, and she’s still young.

She’ll grow out of it, I figured, stepping forward.

…Then realized I’d need to set her down to wash.

“Uh, Freesia?”
“…Yeah?”
“We gotta wash, so wanna get down? We can’t wash together.”
“…Can’t, together?”

She tilted her head, looking up.
Yesterday, she was already down and followed my lead. Today, fresh from waking and extra clingy, she must want to stay close.

“You’re still young, but we should wash separately. It, uh… might be embarrassing.”
“…! O-okay.”

Something clicked for her, and her face faintly blushed as she slid to the floor.

“Wanna wash first? I’ll tidy the blankets.”
“…Okay.”

As Freesia entered the bathroom, I folded the pad and blankets, then picked up the terminal.

—Good morning, Lord Roland.
“Morning. When’s breakfast coming?”
—Within 30 minutes.
“What about the area info and the job?”
—Call me five minutes before you finish eating, and I’ll come right over.
“Great, I’ll call then.”
—Enjoy your meal.

My meal’s probably not gonna be “enjoyable,” but I’ll at least taste hers.

…Finding a way back is one thing, but I need to earn money too. I’d like at least one natural-ingredient meal a day.

While Freesia washed, I grimaced through some mystery cubes and rice clumps from the refrigerator.
After washing up myself, a knock came right on time.

“Perfect timing.”

Opening the door, Freesia poked her head out, curious about the tray.
I lowered it for her to see as I carried it in.

“The rice looks different from yesterday—mixed with something.”

What’s this yellow soup?
It looks more solid than liquid.
The side dishes seem mostly vegetables, just cooked differently.

I set the tray down and lifted Freesia onto a chair.
Unlike yesterday, she didn’t squeak, but her faint blush made me wonder if she disliked it.

“…Like.”
“Oh? Yeah.”

…It’s like she reads my mind.
Her random comments always match what I’m thinking.

Snapping out of it, I handed her a spoon.

“…Okay.”
Nod, nod—

She scooped some rice and held it out to me.

“You can take the first bite.”
“…Roland, first.”

Like yesterday, she wasn’t budging until I ate.

“Alright, then…”

I didn’t argue and took the bite, shielding my palate from the heat. After cooling it slightly, I chewed.

“No wonder it looked different.”

A popping texture mixed with the rice’s subtle sweetness and a nutty flavor spread in my mouth.
Different from yesterday’s rice, but just as good.

“How’s it, Freesia?”
Chew, chew—
“…Weird, tasty.”
“Eat lots.”

She ate quickly, clearly enjoying it.
Savoring the rice’s taste, I forgot the awful stuff I’d eaten earlier.

I fed her side dishes with chopsticks, and she ate eagerly until she reached for the soup.

Plop—

The yellow “soup” held the spoon’s shape.

“I thought it was odd for soup—jelly, maybe?”
“…Wanna try?”
“Nah, you first.”
“…”
“Gotta eat first again?”
Nod, nod.

Assuming it’d be like the rice, I took the bite without hesitation.

“This… egg?”

It tasted like egg, but the texture was worlds apart from any egg dish I’d had.
Fried or boiled eggs have some firmness, but this was creamy, almost like a custard, yet springy, dissolving smoothly.

“…Taste bad?”
“No, it’s good. Makes me wonder how it’s made.”

Maybe you whisk eggs and cook them gently?

“It’s really good, so eat up, Freesia.”
“…Okay.”
Plop—

She scooped more of the jelly-like stuff and popped it in her mouth.

“…!”

Her half-closed eyes widened slightly as she chewed.
It melted so fast there was barely chewing, and she scooped more.

“…Tasty.”
“Yeah, it was good.”
“…Roland, eat… more?”
“Pfft—”

I burst out laughing.
Her trembling voice, the anxious glance worrying I’d say yes.

Yet her spoon was ready to scoop if I did.

“Nah, I’m good. Eat lots, Freesia.”
Nod, nod.
“…Okay.”

Relieved, she sped up, devouring the egg custard.

“Eat variety too. Together.”
“…Okay.”

I fed her more side dishes, and she paused her egg obsession to eat them with rice.

Knock, knock—

“Oh, they’re here.”

Right after Freesia finished, a knock came.
He said to call five minutes before, and it’s almost exactly five minutes.

“Lord Roland, how was breakfast—”

Opening the door, Kang Rimun stepped in, then froze, his eyes on my face, visibly startled.

“Kang Rimun?”
“…Ah, apologies. Did you enjoy breakfast?”
“Yeah. What was that yellow soup? She loved it.”
“Soup?”

He looked puzzled, then nodded.

“Oh, you mean egg custard?”
“That’s what it’s called?”

It’s not quite like steaming, but the name fits.

“…Egg custard, tasty.”
“It is, isn’t it? Hard for me to get, but I heard it was common decades ago.”
“Decades ago?”

Were natural ingredients that abundant back then?

“Oh, take a seat. I’ve kept you standing.”
“Thank you, Lord Roland.”

Just a temporary guest myself, I offered him a chair, and we sat.
Kang Rimun, unfamiliar with the terminal, fumbled slightly as he operated it.

Pop—
“Here’s Lake City’s map.”

A massive city’s image rose above the terminal.

“Wow… is this magic?”

I marveled at the city’s scale, even miniaturized, and how vividly the small terminal displayed it.

“Just an old technology now. Let me show our location.”

He spun the circular city, pointing to an area outside a giant ring, near the cliffs’ base.

“This is Cheongdo, Lake City’s eastern district, also an East Asian autonomous zone.”
“Autonomous zone?”

A district within a city having autonomy—that’s new.

He pointed to the cliffs above.

“Where you and the young lady emerged is Nodril, ORRYX’s research district in the northeast.”
“Nodril.”

Could I find clues by barging in?
Probably not.

Thanks to Kang Rimun’s language translator, I can understand this world’s speech and text, but it’s not perfect. Even if I found clues, I wouldn’t know how to use them.
I know nothing about this world—brute force won’t help if I can’t interpret what I find.

Adaptation comes first.