Chapter 7

“If you let your mana out like that, wouldn’t Jayna have a hard time? Can’t you tell? That’s why I didn’t do that even for a minute or two.”

“Don’t call her name.”

“And why should I obey your words? She asked me to call her that first. Right, Jayna?”

Hilvenzia stroked Jayna’s soft hair as if to show off.

Michael’s eyes dimmed by the blatant show of affection, but he did not emit as much mana as he did before.

“Isn’t this what you wanted from me anyway? Yesterday, you said that she can’t leave leftovers. I’m just making sure of it.”

That said, Jayna recalled that Hilvenzia was looking at her yesterday.

“Yesterday, I remember using soundproofing magic in an uninhibited corner… Yet, you still overheard what we’ve talked about. What a shady old lady you are.”

“The restaurant is my territory. It can’t be helped that I overheard the conversation.”

Hilvenzia’s voice was drowsy, but that did not mean that her momentum is weak. She was not lagging behind Michael at all.

‘It’s seems I made a mistake in not leaving and now I’m stuck.’

I thought, after getting tired of my short and gloomy responses, Michael would get bored and leave. I also didn’t expect that I would be given a chance to meet Hilvenzia because she is always cooped up on the kitchen. But with the current situation I’m facing, it is totally unexpected.

‘Well, I don’t have to worry about it.’

Jayna recalled in the novel, The Sword of Revenge, that the two were not deeply intertwined, although their relationship was bad.

‘It must be just a brief bump. Both of them have jobs at the tower and are busy, so they won’t meet that much in the future.’

Soon, the relationship between the two will go back to normal. Now, it’s just because both of them are offended.

Jayna decided not to pay attention to them anymore and do what she came here for.

“I’m sorry, but I would like to have more lunch. Can I leave for a while?”

It may have been a lot in the eyes of others, but it was not enough for Jayna.

As Jayna got up from her seat, the air which was filled with tension, eased for a moment.

“Oh, don’t mind me. And continue your conversation.”

Jayna got up and took more food.

The menu I picked was the white bread that I had yesterday.

The amount of food I eat is huge so even if I brought a lot of it, it always gets eaten quickly. It was cumbersome to have to go back and forth so many times, but I couldn’t help it because of my small physique.

“I’m back. I’m sorry to disturb you.”

Jayna sat down and took some bread, while the two of them said in a somewhat bored voice.

“Jayna is… a very rare child, as I felt earlier. It’s not usually easy for me to act like this in front of kid.”

“Are you insensitive, or just plain stupid that you don’t know what fear is? It’s different from being happy when you eat bread.”

Jayna blinked at the words said by the two. But soon, she returned her attention back to the bread on her plate.

This and that wasn’t more important than bread that smelled delicious in front of her.

“But why is it the same white bread as yesterday?” (Michael)

Before I knew it, the tension between Michael and Hilvenzia had cooled down.

Michael was bored with his chin on the table. Hilbenzia shrugged and laughed.

“Yes, thank you for enjoying the bread, but there are many other dishes, so why don’t you try it?” (Hilvenzia)

“The food in the restaurant changes every day. Today’s menu is seafood.”(Jayna)

“Why? Do you hate seafood?” (Hilvenzia)

“That’s not it.”

Jayna looked where the foods was placed and said,

“I don’t know how to cook or eat that.”

Yesterday I was thrilled with just the bread, so I couldn’t think of other foods, but today I wanted to taste other foods as well.

I was very curious because the seafoods that were savory, spicy, and exuding various delicious smells were cooked in various ways.

However, seafoods were covered with hard shells.

It looks similar to that of a Korean dish, but since I haven’t encountered expensive seafood in my previous life, I couldn’t figure out how to eat it.

“Is that why you only ate that white bread yesterday?”

“That’s true, but that bread was enough for me. It was really delicious.”

Yeah, that was really enough.

I had no intention of being greedy. If you are greedy, you will want one or two more, and your regrets about life will increase.

She was in a position where she had nowhere to go. Now I was entrusted to the tower, but I didn’t know when I would be kicked out. But in the midst of all this, should I enjoy experiencing rich luxury like that? It was a nonsensical idea.

No matter how I long for high-end cooking, what will happen to my taste buds if I ever happened to catch Diamide’s attention? Unpredictable events can always happen take for instance the chance encounter with Hilvenzia today.

So, I had to keep it ‘simple’ up to the end.

“……”

“……”

Somehow, I still don’t know anything about Michael and Hilvenzia.

I’m not sure with Hilvenzia but I know Michael is just talking to me because I seem interesting to him. He will soon get tired of me once his curiosity is quenched.

As Jayna was reflecting on whether there was anything strange in her answer, Michael said in a serious voice.

“Hey. But still, it will soon get better. There’s no way that the Towerlord will keep you like this”

For some reason, Michael’s voice was a little softer than before.

“Really. It’s going to be hard now, but it’s only temporary.”

Is it because of the mood? It sounded like a comfort.

But Michael, who had been bullying her since she came to the tower, can’t be comforting her.

Next to him, Hilvenzia also said, following Michael.

“Yes, Master would never let you live like this for the rest of your life.”

Michael and Hilvenzia didn’t make it clear what was going on. But Jayna already deciphered what they’re talking about.

‘You two think Diamide’s going to change.’

But after reading the novel she already knew.

Diamide will not accept Jayna as her daughter until the end.

Even though he has the power to protect her, he cruelly turned away from her and eventually let her to be killed.

But even so, Jayna couldn’t respond for a while because the two seemed to be concerned about her.

‘It seems that a corner of my heart feels tickled.’

I thought about it when I came to the tower.

Since she was neglected even by her father, she could not have a deep relationship with anyone.

However, it is also convenient because there will be no one to bother her.

An existence that no one cares about.

‘I thought that my way of life was the most rational decision I choose, but why suddenly…’

I’ve been thinking for a while.

For a moment I was lost in thought, Jayna laughed in her heart.

I seemed to be acting way too serious right now.

To Michael and Hilvenzia, I don’t think I mean that much.

‘They think of me as a toy or a material anyway.’

I shouldn’t trust others.

Whenever she wanted to lean on someone, or every time she wanted to be childish, Jayna used to reflect on herself.

‘I’m the only one who can protect myself.’

Jayna resolutely clenched her small hands. She was completely alone.

I should never forget it.

***

As time passes by.

Jayna thought her life at the tower would be quiet and calm.

There was no assumption of having someone on the small luxury she wished for. In my imagination, I was always alone

However…

“Hey. You haven’t been scared or crying in front of me, so don’t do that in front of others. I must always be first. Okay?”

“You said to Hilvenzia the other day, you don’t want to bully me anymore?”

“Ah, you’re noisy. Yes I said that but I changed my mind. Hmm, what should I do?”

Michael would often appear in front of Jayna and argue with her without any rhyme or reason.

I couldn’t make fun of myself, so I should just do it to others.

Diamide’s disciple would be very busy, but he was leaving to say this.

It was really childish.

‘What a weird human being. I don’t really want to understand him.’

And Hilvenzia also came to visit Jayna from time to time.

She is known to bother her if she leaves leftovers, but in fact it was a request for research cooperation, and she said herself that she was not a bad person.

She even said, “It’s a food made with sincerity, but wouldn’t it hurt if you didn’t finish it all?” She also added, “You have to pay for it of course.  I mean. Jayna, Are you thinking of wasting food?”

“The food that Hilvenzia-sama made is always delicious.”

Hilvenzia pretended to be touched, saying, ‘That’s so touching,’ but in Jayna’s eyes she didn’t look very sincere.

While Jayna was receiving a lot of attention from Michael and Hilvenzia, she soon became a famous figure in the tower.

At first, she drew attention since she was a little girl who was a rare being to see on the tower, but now I could feel people eyes staring at me wherever I went.

And among them was Moben, who offered to help her at the library.

“…..”

Since working at the library, he hasn’t spoken to Jayna, but he used to stare at a distance and disappear.

‘Is this the end of my interaction with this person?’

When I asked what he had with Michael, he replied that he was just being an older brother to her, and after that, he continued to stick to her unintentionally.

Jayna cleared her thoughts about Moben and looked around.

The deadline for submitting the research was just around the corner. It was a time when all the wizards of the tower were busy.

Michael, a disciple of the Towerlord, and Hilvenzia, the best alchemist of the tower, also seemed to be busy with various tasks.

‘But I have nothing to do.’

Jayna, who had been doing housework since childhood, was now very awkward with this relaxation.

In her previous life, when she wandered between relatives and was left to her biological father, and even in her present life, where she lived in the Dragon village, she had a habit of thinking about what to do every morning.

But I had nothing to do now. No one asked me to do anything.

‘Should I clean my room?’