Chapter 8 : Like a little thing?

“Ugh…”
“…Roland?”

I set Freesia down beside me and scratched my chin.
The storage in a guest room had this kind of stuff, so asking for something else didn’t seem likely to yield much better.

Fine for me, but… I want Freesia to eat something at least a little nicer.

With that thought, I closed the storage door.

“…Huh?”

Freesia’s eyes, staring up at me, met mine.

“Freesia, what’s wrong?”
“…Belly, weird.”
“What? How’s your belly weird?”

It hasn’t even been a day—could this be a side effect from her experiments?
My face stiffened, and as I knelt, a sound came.

Grrrr—
“…Grrrr, sound.”
“Pfft, you’re just hungry?”

I burst out laughing and stood back up.

“…Weird, thing?”
“No, no. It’s something that goes away once you eat.”

As I patted her head, covering it with my palm—

Tilt—
“…The stuff, you looked at?”
“We’re gonna eat something tastier than that. Just wait a bit.”

Freesia, peeking up through my hand, nodded. I picked up the terminal again.

Ring, ring…
—Lord Roland? What’s the matter? I’m a bit busy…
“Yeah, the stuff in the storage doesn’t look edible.”
—…Storage? You mean the refrigerator?
“That’s what it’s called? Anyway, I’m fine, but can you get something good for… the girl?”
—Good stuff…

Kang Rimun went quiet for a moment before speaking again.

—Do you want the absolute best, or something decent but not top-tier?

The way he asked suggested my choice would affect what I’d have to do.
I’d hoped it might be free, but no such luck. Or maybe good food’s just that valuable here.

“What’s the absolute best?”
—For the best, I’d provide the girl’s meals until tomorrow morning, but you’d need to take on a simple job in return.
“What? A job for just two meals? Isn’t that a bit much?”

I don’t know this world’s sense of money, but…

Pat, pat—
“…Like…”

Still, if one job is worth only two meals for this tiny girl whose head fits in my hand, everyone here must be starving.
At least no one’s living off jobs alone, right?

—I said the best. It’s made with natural ingredients, and even then, it’s a steal compared to the job you’d do.
“Natural ingredients…?”

So, there are artificial ingredients too?
I recalled the stuff in the refrigerator.

That weird feeling—it was artificial ingredients?

—Yes. Rare natural ingredients, plus the even rarer cost of a chef who can handle them. Since we have a Wuryuseong chef, we skipped the labor cost.
“Huh…”

Artificial ingredients seem harder to make, yet natural ones are so valuable?

“Hm, I don’t quite get why it’s so pricey…”

Kang Rimun wouldn’t lie, and since it’s Freesia’s first proper meal, I want it to be good.

“Fine. What’s the job?”
—A delivery task. I’ll explain it tomorrow morning before you leave.
“Sounds good.”
—The girl’s meal will arrive in an hour. Tomorrow’s breakfast will be ready on time. Anything else?
“Nope.”
—Then, see you tomorrow for real.
Click—

Setting the terminal down, Freesia tapped my leg, looking up.

“…Good stuff, why?”
“Growing kids need to eat well to grow big.”

I kept patting her head. This is addictive.

Tilt—
“…Me, grow?”
“Yup, you’ll shoot up.”
“…Like, Roland?”
“Uh, like me?”

That might be a stretch.
Hmm…

I closed my eyes, trying to picture a grown Freesia, but it wouldn’t come.
Her growing like me? Even harder to imagine.

“Why like me?”
“…Roland, beside. …Stay, with.”
“What? Hahaha—no need to grow that much for that.”

I stopped patting and laughed, lifting her up.

“I like Freesia as she is now.”
“…Small, better?”
“Uh? No, not that. Grow however you want.”

Flustered, I patted her again.

“…Even, like Roland?”
“Of course. Though I might not be able to carry you like this then.”
“…!”

I said it casually, but she jolted, looking up.

“…Grow, just enough.”
“You can grow a lot.”
“…No, wanna be carried. Even, grown.”
“Alright, I’ll keep carrying you.”

I savored the feel of her hair, patting away.

An hour later.

Knock, knock.
“Oh, it’s here.”

Opening the door, a stranger held a steaming bowl of rice, a clear seaweed-like soup, stir-fried mushrooms, a salad-like dish, and some unidentifiable items on a tray.
I thanked them, and they bowed quietly before leaving.

Closing the door, I sniffed. The aroma was great.
…Different from what I ate back home, but not bad for Freesia.

“Freesia, let’s eat before it gets cold. Looks delicious.”
“…Okay.”

I set the tray on the table, placed utensils beside it, and—

Flinch.
“Eek—”

I lifted Freesia by the waist onto a chair. She flinched, and I wondered if I shouldn’t, but when I let go, she grabbed my hand, looking reluctant—like she actually liked it.

“Hm, Freesia, know how to use utensils?”
“…Utensils, these?”

She pointed at the spoon, fork, and… chopsticks, right?

“Yeah, I’ll show you.”
Nod, nod—
“…Okay.”

I demonstrated with the spoon and fork.

“Hmm…”

Now she was glaring at the chopsticks.
In my world, I’d heard they used these in the far east and seen them, but never how to use them.

“Like… this?”

I tried holding them, but it felt wrong.

“Freesia, wanna stick to spoon and fork for now?”
“…Okay.”

Staring at my fumbling, she grabbed the spoon and scooped some rice. Steam burst out as she lifted it.

“…Hot.”
“You’ll burn yourself if you eat it now. Careful.”
“…Okay.”

Still struggling with chopsticks, I watched, worried she’d burn herself. But she skillfully scooped smaller portions, blew on them, and nibbled like a squirrel, making me smile.

“Try the others too. I don’t know what they are, but they’re probably tasty.”

Her tiny mouth chewing was adorable, like a chipmunk.

Nod, nod—
“…These grains, yummy.”
“The rice?”

It does look like grains.
…Thinking of it as eggs makes it unappetizing, but Freesia’s eating well. Good enough.

“…Rice, called?”
“That’s what I heard. Never tried it myself.”
“…!”

Focused on chopsticks, I said it casually, but Freesia, mid-chew, looked up.

“…Roland, wanna try?”
“I’m good. Eat lots, Freesia.”
Steam—

Feeling something hot, I turned. Freesia held out a spoonful of rice, trembling from the effort.

“…Roland, eat. Then, I eat.”
“So I eat, then you eat?”
Nod, nod.

Her outstretched arm shook, so I quickly took a bite, realizing something I’d missed despite seeing earlier.

Hoo, ha—
“…! Rol, Roland. Hot?”

I’d seen the steam when she scooped it but ate carelessly.

“It’s fine, fine.”
“…Really?”

I nearly burned myself, but using aura to shield my palate, I cooled it enough to eat.

Chew, chew—
“It’s fine. Hot makes it tastier.”

The slightly cooled, fluffy rice grains released more warmth and a nutty flavor as I chewed—delicious.

“…Sorry.”
“I’m really fine, so don’t worry and eat. Lots of side dishes left.”

I used my barely functional chopsticks to pick up the salad-like dish, which seemed a bit different.

“Freesia, ah—”
“…Ah—?”

She tilted her head but opened her mouth, and I popped it in.

“…!”
Chew, chew—

Her half-closed eyes widened slightly, her blank face twitching as if to frown, then chewing slowly, savoring it.

“…Taste, weird.”
“Yeah? Can I try?”
Nod, nod.

I ate some. A salty, bitter taste hit first, then a crisp stem and soft leaf gave way to a gentle sweetness.

“Tasty. More of this, or something else?”
“…Something else.”

I chuckled, thinking kids are kids. After a moment, I picked up the stir-fried mushrooms.

“Here, ah—”
“…Looks, weird.”
“Come on, it’s fine. Gotta eat variety to grow.”
“…!”
“Eh.”

She didn’t want to grow too much, right?
Hmm…

“If you don’t eat this, you won’t grow at all.”
“…!!”

Hiding a grin and lowering my voice to tease, she shook her head vigorously, then opened her mouth like a baby bird.

Pop, chew, chew—
“…Weird.”
“Not good?”
Nod, nod—
“Really?”

Strange, mushrooms are usually good. Is this one bad?

“Can I try it?”
“…No, don’t.”
“Huh?”
“…Taste, bad.”

Her unexpected refusal startled me, but looking at her, I laughed. She was worried about me eating it.

“I’m fine, so can I?”
“…Careful.”
Pfft—
“Hahaha—okay, I’ll be careful.”

I stifled my laughter, bringing the mushrooms to my mouth. Freesia stopped eating, eyes locked on my chopsticks, fist clenched.

Chew, chew.
“It’s good?”
“…?!”

Shocked, she dropped her spoon, her face barely changing but clearly stunned.

“Even if it’s bad, you gotta eat variety.”
“…Uh, yeah?”

I grinned, picking up more mushrooms.

“Here, ah—”
“…No, don’t.”
“…Ah, ah…”

I mercilessly popped it in.