Chapter 32: Let’s Go Play With ‘Autumn Leaves’

Autumn.

The time when farmers harvest their crops, enjoy a bountiful meal, and prepare for winter.

Of course, that’s what farmers do.

The young lady and I are still spending our peaceful daily lives.

“Mana~ I want pumpkin pie!”

“Yes, yes, I’ll make pumpkin pie for today’s snack.”

“Yay! Thank you, Mana~!”

Seeing the young lady hugging me while reading a book is really… healing.

Such a cute young lady was so prickly at first…

It feels like raising my own little cat.

The young lady buries her face in my chest and makes a “Haaa…” sound.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes… it’s so fluffy and warm…”

She’s such a sleepyhead.

I hug the young lady and pat her back, taking a short nap time.

“Hush~ hush~ our~ baby~”

“…I’m not a baby.”

“You’re like a baby to me. I’ve watched you since you were born, Young Lady.”

“Haaam… I said I’m not…”

Even though she says she’s not, the young lady rubs her face in my arms and gradually falls asleep.

“Mmm… Mana…”

“Hush~ hush~”

There is a special event for the young lady in autumn.

I don’t know if she’ll remember since she came here after she was 4 years old.

“Coo…”

“…Our young lady, I’ll throw you a wonderful birthday party.”

Autumn is the season when the young lady’s birthday is.

I need to diligently prepare for the birthday party, which is about a month away, from now on.

“Mana! I have a wish!”

“Ah, are you going to use one of the two you collected last time now?”

“Yes!!”

The young lady clinged to my leg! And looks at me with sparkling eyes.

“What is it? What is the young lady’s wish?”

“I want to go leaf-peeping with Mana!”

“Leaf-peeping?”

“Yes! At night, not during the day!”

Aha…

It’s a bit of a difficult task, but it’s definitely worth using one of her wishes.

“And I want to go for 1 night and 2 days!”

“Fufu, I understand. I’ll prepare.”

“Really?!”

“Of course. I’m an elite maid, you know? Of course, it’s possible.”

I’ve seen a lot of good places while walking around this mountain. It would be better to go to several places instead of staying in one place.

I feel like it will be a really wonderful… memory for 1 night and 2 days.

“Then shall we go tomorrow?”

“Okay!”

“Well, today, let’s prepare the things we’ll play with and eat while going leaf-peeping with me?”

“Yes! Mana is the best! Thank you!”

You’re welcome~

I hug the young lady and head to the kitchen.

– Smooch!

Oh my?

The young lady kissed me on the cheek.

The young lady smiles brightly and looks at me.

“I like Mana the most!”

“I like you the most too, Young Lady~”

Early morning.

I put a comfortable and neat dress and shoes on the young lady.

“You can go anywhere, but please don’t run too fast, okay?”

“Yes!”

A white brimmed hat and gloves that completely block ultraviolet rays, and a parasol (of course, I, the elite maid, will hold the parasol).

I leave the house with perfect magical items that will allow the young lady to go outside.

“Where are we going?”

“We’re going to a lot of places and having a lot of experiences? First, let’s walk a little and then eat breakfast?”

“Okay! Hehe.. hold my hand!”

“Here you go~.”

A 1 night and 2 day trip with the cute young lady, this is also very exciting.

Of course, there were many things to prepare for UV protection…

“Wow… there are so many reds and yellows!”

“That’s right. They’re all changing colors, one by one.”

“Changing colors!”

Seeing the young lady smiling brightly at the early fallen leaves, my fatigue disappears and my heart is filled with happiness.

“Young Lady.”

“Yes?”

“I’m very happy right now.”

“Me too!”

Crackle crackle, if you walk a little behind the mansion, stepping on the leaves, you’ll come to a flat area where trees are arranged at regular intervals.

“Oh, Young Lady, there’s a squirrel.”

“Where? Where?”

“Over there… ah, it’s a bit far. Shall I catch it?”

“Ah, no. Don’t do that. It’s over there, right?”

“Yes, shall we go closer?”

“Yes!”

Carefully~ If you walk, there are two squirrels busy cracking acorns on a tree.

“Wow… they’re so fast…”

“Squirrels have to prepare for hibernation too. If they don’t eat diligently, it’ll be too cold.”

“I see…”

“So, the young lady should eat diligently too, right?”

“Yes! I’ll eat a lot and grow up!”

The young lady is about 125cm tall now…

She’s a little taller than her peers.

When I first saw her, she was so small, about 118cm…

If she keeps going like this, the young lady might be a little taller than me?

I have to feed her a lot when she’s young so she can grow up.

“Now! Shall we eat breakfast here?”

“Yes!”

A flat area between the trees, I carefully spread a mat there and go up with the young lady.

“What’s for breakfast?!”

“Today’s breakfast is ta-da~ Kimbap!”

“Kimbap..! It’s the first food Mana gave me!”

That’s right. Normally, there’s usually no reason to make it, and above all, there’s no seaweed, you know?

I asked the priest what he was chewing on, and he said it was seaweed he received as a gift, so I got some.

Ta-da~ When I open the lunch box, the pretty kimbap reveals itself.

“Wow… so this is kimbap.”

“Yes, in the East, they pack this when they go on a picnic.”

It’s a very standard and perfectly rolled kimbap.

The difference from modern kimbap is that it has very high-quality sausage instead of ham, and pickled cucumbers with a lot of salt removed instead of sweet radish.

Anyway, this kimbap is eaten with chopsticks.

“Now, say ah~”

“A~~~”

– Chomp!

The young lady snatches the kimbap on the chopsticks like a puppy! And eats it.

– Munch munch munch…

“It’s delicious!!”

“Really? I’m glad. There’s a lot, so eat slowly and a lot, okay?”

“Yes! Mana, you eat too!”

“Okay, then…”

The young lady gives me kimbap with very clumsy chopstick skills.

“Thank you.”

Nom…

…Hmm, it’s just right.

I pour a cup of barley tea from the magic thermos and give it to the young lady, and then I get a cup too..

Haaa…

“Hehe… I’m so happy to be outside eating with Mana… I’m really so so happy!”

“Me too. I’m happy to eat with you in nature like this. Now, ah~”

“Nom!”

Our young lady eats so cutely~

“Nom nom… but Mana, aren’t your arms uncomfortable?”

“Huh? Ah, it’s okay. Holding a parasol is nothing.”

“Hmm… can I hold it with magic?”

“With magic?”

“Yes! I can’t perfectly copy the magic on the parasol and gloves yet, but I can make the parasol float above my head!”

“Wow… magic is really amazing. Then can you do it?”

“Yes! Wait a minute?”

The young lady concentrates, “Hmph!” and quickly creates a magic circle in the air.

“Mana! Put the parasol between the magic circles!”

“Yes!”

“Stay still!”

Flash..!

“Done!”

The parasol floating about 50cm above the young lady’s head.

“..I’ll test it for a moment, Young Lady.”

“Yes!”

This is… how should I put it. It’s not fixed.

If you pull it, it pulls to a certain extent.

“Young Lady, move your head back and forth~.”

“Back and forth~!”

When the young lady’s head position changes, it moves accordingly..

If you press it, it’s pressed, but it returns to its original state, like something caught in a spider web. Or like a magnet floating on a large magnet.

It moves autonomously, but its absolute coordinates are fixed.

“…This should be fine. It’s a really wonderful magic, Young Lady.”

“Yay! Then Mana has one hand free, right?”

“Yes, yes, that’s right.”

“Then hug me!”

..This cute young lady.

You were planning this from the beginning, weren’t you?

I carefully sit back on the mat and hold the young lady on my lap, holding her stomach.

“Like this?”

“Yes!!”

…If you wanted to do this, you should have told me earlier.

I feel relieved when the young lady is in my arms, you know?

“Now, shall we continue eating?”

“Thank you, Mana~”

“You’re welcome. Ah~”

“Nom! Nom nom nom…”

…The young lady is a hundred times cuter than a squirrel.

After finishing breakfast, we take a break lying on the mat.

Of course, the young lady is lying on my lap.

“…It’s… it’s… so nice… what should I do, Mana…”

“Huh? What is it, Young Lady?”

“…I’m so happy… I feel like… I could die like this…”

“That’s not good. The young lady has to grow up to be a wonderful adult, you know?”

“Hehe… okay. Since Mana wants it, I’ll become a wonderful young lady…”

“You can sleep a little if you want, you know?”

“Mmm… just a little..”

The young lady’s small, protruding belly rises and falls leisurely.

Our young lady, I hope you’re always happy.

I gently stroke the hair of the sleeping young lady.

She must be having a good dream…

The young lady smiles, “Hehe..”.

“…It’s troublesome that you’re so cute, Young Lady. I like that you’re growing up, but.. I’m sad too.”

Our cute young lady. I hope you have a good dream.

– Smooch.