Chapter 4

chapter 4

Yurina had momentarily forgotten that the boy in front of her was only 12 years old, so she responded with a guilty look.

The clothes make the man.

Despite being a commoner and raised in the slums, he was already quite handsome. However, now that he has washed himself and is nicely dressed in Yurina’s brother’s clothes, Raynard looks more like a child who grew up nicely in an aristocratic society.

With a complexion that looks whiter after scrubbing off the dead skin that had accumulated over time; height that is shorter than an average boy of his age due to poor nourishment; dwarfed but still naturally formed bones; lightly golden hair that is still glistening from the bath; deep brilliant ruby eyes; prominent nose, and thick pink lips. Despite that, his appearance was still slightly flawed. This is primarily attributed to the fact that the clothes were too big for him since they were borrowed from her older brother. However, he never trailed behind the male lead in the novel because even as a supporting male lead, he was still simply perfect.

Most importantly, it was his pair of brilliant ruby eyes that made him look even more dignified.

Watching in realization, Yurina’s eyes grew wider. When their eyes met, Raynard’s made an exaggerated O shape as he stood with his hands against his waist. He had a smug, triumphant smile… Like a general who had just won and ended a century-long war.

“I smell pretty good now, huh?”

“I smell pretty good” is an understatement… Who knew he could be so proud of such a trivial thing.

Up until an hour ago, he had smelt like a cheese that had been fermented for at least 100 years. Yurina frowned a bit as she remembered the horrible smell that felt like it was still stuck in her nose.

Lightly laughing, she responded, “Yes. I think so too.”

“The soap I just used… I think it’s the same one you use. Is that alright?”

“Soap? What kind of soap?”

“It was yellow and round.”

Remembering the soap she had just used this morning, Yurina nodded.

“Perhaps it was…”

“Does anyone else use it?”

“No, I don’t think so. Mother and Father use a different kind of soap. I didn’t like my previous soap, so the one you had used is my new one. What about it? Ah… Perhaps you don’t like the scent?”

Yurina recalled the last vacation her brothers from the academy had. They returned to the mansion and cringed at the strong flowery fragrance of the soap.

“Maybe you dislike sweet scents. If that’s the case, next time I’ll be sure to ask them to bring the same soap my brother uses.”

“No.”

Raynard, who had been gazing through the window, turned his head abruptly. He suddenly cleared his throat a few times before speaking again.

“I’ll use it.”

The way he clearly avoided meeting her gaze was slightly suspicious, however, Yurina easily dismissed it. She led him to the table without further questioning.

The two took the seats across from each other and waited for the maids to finish setting the tableware.

Unlike Yurina who sat poised and calm across from him, Raynard’s eyes cautiously glanced at the items in front of him. It seemed that he was trying to appear nonchalant but he simply could not contain the excitement that was leaking from his voice.

“Why are there four forks? Why are there three knives? Do the nobles have four hands?!”

Yurina looked at him curiously as she waved her hands in amusement.

“Nobles aren’t monsters, they can’t have four hands. Each fork and knife here are used differently depending on the dish.”

“There are multiple dishes?”

“That’s right, and each fork has its own individual use that depends on the type of food that is being eaten. Don’t look so displeased. You will also have to learn this soon anyway.”

Glancing at the piece of bread the maid had just served on her plate, Yurina started to consider acquiring a tutor for him.

In fact, upon arriving here for the first time, she was actually very worried about eating. But as soon as she sat down, “Yurina’s” knowledge of dining etiquette slowly flowed into her mind. Perhaps it was an act of consideration for her after having fallen into such a strange place.

It wasn’t only dining etiquette, but also the general behaviour and manners of aristocracy naturally came to her. It made living here much easier.

That’s what having a cheat is all about. I’m not sure whether I should laugh or cry.

If she was going to get a cheat, it should’ve been a magic skill cheat at least or even swordsman skill cheat. That way, at least should could protect herself.

Yurina internally scoffed at the thought as she used a butter knife to butter her bread with a practiced ease.

Raynard observed her actions closely. Afterwards, he picked up a fist-sized loaf and proceeded to roughly spread a substantial amount of butter on it, and stuffed it into his mouth.

It was a firm piece of bread that crumbled and cracked into pieces which fell onto his clothes. She heard a sigh of content from him.

His eyes grew wide as the crumbs stuck to his face and all over his mouth.

“What is this?”

“It’s bread.”

“Bread?”

His face distorted strangely, as if he had been insulted. Then suddenly, both of his cheeks turned into a flushed pink.

“Don’t you make fun of me! I know for a fact that this isn’t bread. Real bread would be too chewy.”

“The bread that you know of is like that because the flour is not properly refined and the dough was not adequately fermented. Whatever it was that you ate before, and what you are eating now are both the same bread.”

Yurina explained, but it was clear that he was no longer listening.

He was currently stuffing his mouth with so much bread that his cheeks was puffed out like a hamster that was forced to stuff itself with as many sunflower seeds its poor cheeks could handle before bursting.

To be honest, he looked pretty cute to Yurina. Nevertheless, it made her sigh.

We’re definitely going to have to get you a tutor.

“Charrion” was knighted shortly after he returned to the Empire from finishing his studies at the academy. So for Raynard to live as a nobleman in the future, he had to start his education immediately. As soon as tomorrow.

He still has a long way to go.

Unaware of Yurina’s inner thoughts, Raynard continued to contently drink the soup the maid had just served. Although he was using a spoon, the creamy soup dripped down his chin, onto his chest and all over the table.

In that moment, Yurina was reminded of a scene from an animation she had watched when she was a child.

The Beast who had grabbed the bowl and gulped it without the use of any utensils, and the Beauty who was startled by his behaviour.

The Beauty then decided to place her spoon down, picked up her bowl and drank it in the same manner so that the Beast would not feel afraid.

But Yurina was not a good-natured beauty, so she didn’t have the slightest interest to eat like that for Raynard’s sake.

“Ray”

Instead, she stood up from her chair, walked around the table and took the seat next to him.

The maid took notice of this and quickly moved Yurina’s table setting to her new spot.

Yurina used a napkin to clean his face and clothes, and then she brought the spoon to his hand.

“You are going to learn how to use the spoon again.”

She reached for his rough hand with her other hand before Raynard could even respond.

She gently rubbed his thumb on his palm, then slowly did the same with his fingers. With gentle motions, she smoothed out the fingers he had bent and then placed the spoon in his hand once more.

At first, Raynard tried to imitate Yurina’s motions as she gripped her spoon. He observed the way she sipped the soup, but at some point, impatience and hunger took over. He just started to slurp the soup in his own way.

Yurina worriedly looked at him as he ate the soup thinking he would break the bowl from vigorously scrapping it with a spoon. She then pushed her bowl towards him.

“You should eat more. Here, have mine.”

The maid behind her hurriedly spoke.

“No, my Lady. We will bring more soup.”

“It’s fine. I’m not that hungry anyway.”

Wanting him to feel comfortable while eating, Yurina kept everyone at a distance. Regardless of whether or not Raynard was listening, Yurina persisted in teaching him how to eat.

It surprised Yurina as she watched Raynard attempt to cut a steak into bite-sized pieces using a fork.

After the meal had ended, Raynard maintained a look of awe and laid on the sofa holding his now bulging stomach.

“If this is what heaven feels like, I think I can die now.”

“You can’t die right now. It would be a violation of our contract”

“Contract?”

Raynard asked curiously, as he lifted his head while still remaining in the same position.

Yurina pulled a chair over and took a seat in front of him.

“I told you. In exchange for saving you today, you must save me in return.”

“And I told you before too. What if I don’t want to?”

“Well… there’s no way I can force you if you don’t want to.”

She narrowed her eyes and smiled at him mischievously.

Originally, she had wanted to give him a more confident answer. Something like, ‘Can you even do that?’ but looking at his current languid figure like a full grown cat, she felt like teasing him instead.

“Are you sure you can say that now? Did you not consider that I would stop investing in you if you said that you wouldn’t save me?”

“Ah, seriously.”

Raynard shook his head in an attempt to remove the remaining drops of water from his hair. He sat up on the sofa so that his eyes were levelled with hers.

“Still, I don’t believe a word you said.”

“Didn’t I say that I would sponsor you? I even swore under the name of Carthia.”

“That’s not what I meant. You said that I have a talent for magic.”

Now that he was full, his temper was softer. Before they ate, he spoke haughtily.

“I might not know anything about magic, but I do know it’s a big deal. You think I’ll become such a great person? That doesn’t make any sense. Besides, my parents weren’t even mages. So how is it that I am a mage?”

“Magic abilities aren’t genetic, they’re innate.”

“Innate…? Genetic…? What?”

“If I had magical powers, it would come from me alone, I wouldn’t have inherited it from my parents. You could say that even if the parents are mages, there’s a possibility the children might not be. On the other hand, if the parents aren’t mages, there’s a possibility for the children to be one.”

Raynard frowned and wrinkled his nose. He was still confused.

“So you’re saying magic is innate? Well, whatever it is… How do you know that I have magic? Are you a mage?”

“No, I’m just an ordinary person. But when I saw your red eyes, I just knew that you had to be a mage.”

He stared at Yurina blankly and then suddenly covered his eyes with his hands. He laid back down on the sofa and Yurina thought that she might’ve touched a sensitive topic.

He looked like a puppy who after being scolded by its master, retreated back into his house and wouldn’t come out.

“But everyone said that I have these red eyes because I was cursed by the Goddess.”

“It’s not a curse, but rather it’s a blessing.”

“But what if you’re wrong?”

“That’s not possible.”

“But…”

He turned his head dejectedly and glanced at Yurina.

“If it turns out that I’m not good with magic, what happens to me then?”

“Huh?”

“Are you going to give me back to the orphanage?”

So that’s the real reason for this whole conversation.

Unlike the confidence he had at the orphanage before being brought to the mansion, he has now become anxious at the possibility that he might be abandoned if he had no talent.

It wouldn’t matter if you had never had a taste of warm treatment. But once you have had that taste, being rejected after would make the impact become several times greater.

Yurina was about to say that it didn’t matter if he had talent or not. Regardless, she would still continue to be his benefactor. However, a knock interrupted her before she could respond.

“Yurina.”

It was the voice of Marquis Carthia.

Yurina reached for Raynard’s arm, and took him along with her.

“Luckily for you, Ray, there is someone who can prove that you are indeed gifted.”