Chapter 256: A Visit
“Ahhh! Rachel…!”
“—Mmph!”
It only took one look, and before Rachel could react, she was already pulled into a big, tight hug.
“Are… are you okay? I mean—were you badly hurt? You’re still alive, right?!”
The one who rushed over so anxiously was Salana, daughter of Carle.
Ever since Rachel went missing, Salana had been so worried she couldn’t sleep. Not wanting to worry her parents, she pretended to lie quietly in bed every night. But from her dark eye circles and the untouched meals that were taken away almost untouched, it was obvious that she’d been deeply worried about Rachel.
It wasn’t until two days ago, when Carle told her that Rachel had woken up safe and sound, that Salana finally relaxed a little. With her mother accompanying her, she finally got a proper night’s sleep, for a whole day straight.
The next day, she woke up full of energy. Once Carle confirmed that Armand was also fine and his estate was open for visits again, Salana quickly got in a carriage with her mother, Melian, and came to see Armand’s place.
As for Carle himself, he’d probably have to wait until after his duties with the knight order were done before checking on Armand.
Although the old butler had already told Rachel that her little friend Salana would be visiting, she hadn’t expected the girl to be this enthusiastic, running up to her the moment she saw her and hugging her tightly.
Rachel wasn’t like Evelia, who struggled with expressing emotions, but she also wasn’t the warm or energetic type. Her usual cute and innocent behavior, along with her childlike playfulness, was mostly for adults who had sharp eyes and high standards. In truth, Rachel had always been a little reserved and introverted. She didn’t really know how to handle someone like Salana, who was full of genuine, lively energy.
—But strangely, Rachel felt happy.
Just like how she had felt when Armand truly accepted her as a daughter, Rachel didn’t resist being cared for. She actually enjoyed this feeling of being accepted.
Unlike Evelia, who due to her complex situation, struggled to fully accept emotions like this, Rachel could understand the warmth behind them. She could feel the kindness people showed her.
Just like now, when that small Salana was hugging her, Rachel could smile freely, genuinely enjoying the warmth from a girl over a hundred years younger than herself.
“Of course I’m still alive. See? I’m just fine.”
Maybe it was only when facing a pure, innocent child like this that Rachel could let her true self show. Like an old soul, she gently patted Salana on the back to comfort her.
“Uu… Rachel, I’m sorry… I couldn’t help you at all…”
Maybe she inherited her father’s strong sense of responsibility, Salana didn’t fully calm down until Rachel was in her arms. And even though Rachel seemed fine now, Salana kept checking on her and blaming herself for not being able to do anything to help.
“Ah—don’t cry! I’m totally fine! You’ve done great, Salana. You should be more confident!”
“R-Really? Rachel’s not mad at me…?”
“How could I be mad at you? Salana, you’ve done really, really well!”
As she said that, Rachel kept patting Salana’s back, trying her best to reassure her.
She wasn’t just saying that to be nice, it was the truth.
For a child Salana’s age, she didn’t need to do anything heroic. Not getting in the way was already a huge help. The fact that she had followed instructions and safely made it out of that alley already made her far more reliable than most kids her age.
Rachel didn’t really know how she was brought back. When she woke up, she had already been picked up by members of the knight order.
But thinking about it, since Evelia had followed her all the way there, that meant she wasn’t the one who called the knights. So the only one who could’ve sent word must have been that kid, Salana.
In a way, Salana had really saved the day. If she had also disappeared in that alley, it might’ve taken a long time for Rachel to escape.
Even though Evelia did come after her, if the knights hadn’t stepped in to bring her out, cleaning up the mess would’ve been a lot harder. Thanks to them, things were wrapped up neatly.
The knight order…
Well, they could be considered her backup now.
But with so many weird people around lately, Rachel felt like Carle was the most normal person she’d met in a long time. And Salana, being Carle’s daughter, definitely lived up to that reputation. She was so much more reliable than all the others...
Honestly, sometimes even Evelia felt less reliable than Salana...
That thought alone made Rachel feel mentally exhausted.
No, more like raising a child is exhausting.
At this point, it wasn’t even Evelia raising Rachel anymore. It was Rachel who had to think about how to survive under Evelia, how to take care of her, how to find a place to work on her alchemy, how to keep an eye on Armand’s health, and how to create opportunities for Evelia and Armand to get closer...
Good grief... so tiring.
Just thinking about everything piling up made Rachel’s face go blank with fatigue.
“Rachel... are you feeling sick?”
Salana had noticed the change in Rachel’s expression and got worried again.
Salana’s dad, Carle, had a sharp tongue but didn’t show much emotion on his face. He always looked serious even when he said nonsense, which made him hard to read. You could never tell if he was joking or serious.
At home, of course, he softened a little, but even then, he didn’t show strong emotions. Like people had said before, Carle was someone with a strong sense of responsibility.
As the head of the family, he carried the weight of protecting his wife and daughter all on his own. He only showed his cheerful side to his family. The stress and pressure, he kept hidden inside. In that way, he was actually a bit similar to Armand.
But unlike the seemingly lonely Armand, Carle had a wife and daughter who, while part of his stress, were also his source of comfort.
Because her father always hid his real emotions, Salana, his little sweetheart, gradually learned to read other people’s feelings. She could always sense when someone was hurting and be there to comfort them.
Just like now.
Even though Rachel’s expression had only changed a little from being stressed, Salana instantly picked up on it and anxiously asked if something was wrong.
But don’t worry, Salana’s kindness wasn’t a burden. She was Carle’s daughter, after all. Not only did she inherit his sense of duty, she also inherited his personality of “only minding what’s worth minding.”
She knew exactly who to care about and who didn’t need her attention, and if she really couldn’t figure it out—
‘Just throw money at it.’
That’s what her dad always told her. Their family might be lacking in some things, but money wasn’t one of them. If money could solve it, then it wasn’t a real problem.
If Rachel ever heard something like that, she’d probably be incredibly jealous of Salana’s life.
After all, Rachel was the exact opposite. She could use alchemy to make a lot of useful things, but the one thing she didn’t have was money to buy alchemy ingredients.
Sure, alchemy could extract rare materials from the most ordinary things, but poor-quality items only produced tiny amounts, and buying lots of junk cost almost the same as buying a few good ones.
So yes, as the saying goes, “Even heroes can’t function without money.” No matter how skilled Rachel was, if she didn’t have money for materials, she couldn’t do anything.
“No, I'm not feeling sick… It's just that… thinking about money gives me a headache...”
“Money?”
“—Uh?”
Noticing that she had accidentally let it slip, Rachel quickly shook her head. How could she explain the complicated, messy world of adult money problems to the sweet and innocent Salana?
“No—it’s nothing, Salana. I was just talking about… um…”
But in her panic, Rachel had no idea how to cover up what she’d just said. Still, since Salana was just a kid, maybe she could just make something up.
“I meant the kind of money like—”
“Do you need money?”
“...Huh?”
Plop.
Rachel suddenly felt something placed into her hand.
When she looked down, it wasn’t silver coins or gold, not even paper bills. It was a simple card with the Morr family crest printed on it.
“—?!”
Rachel stared at what looked exactly like one of those legendary “rich people do-it-all black cards,” and nearly bit her tongue in shock.
She quickly glanced toward Salana’s mother, and thankfully saw Lady Melian chatting casually with Armand nearby. Only then did she let out a breath of relief and hurriedly shoved the card back into Salana’s bag.
“What’s wrong, Rachel? Didn’t you say you needed money? Dad puts all my allowance on that card, so you can use it if you want.”
“I—I can’t take your money! You little rascal, you better take care of it yourself...!”
“It’s okay, Rachel.”
Salana spoke with a bright and gentle smile.
“Daddy said the one thing our family never runs out of is money. So don’t worry, just use it if you need to!”
That radiant glow coming off a rich kid made Rachel squint in emotional pain.
She’d heard before that Armand sometimes used Carle’s card when buying things, but was she really about to use Salana’s card now? Was everyone in the Morr family this generous?!
If Rachel knew just how much Anna had handed over to Clund not long ago, she’d probably have a heart attack from how filthy rich this whole family was.
Even Carle’s wife, Lady Melian, was the same. If Anna weren’t already Evelia’s personal designer, Melian would definitely treat Evelia as Armand’s future wife, meaning Evelia would never have to pay a cent when shopping.
To people like her, small amounts of money didn’t matter. It was better to be kind and make life easier for her husband’s sworn brother.
After all, back in the war, Armand had saved Carle’s life more than once. So there was no way they’d be stingy now.
Honestly, anyone related to the Morr family name seemed to have this same generous streak when it came to spending.
“So here, take it, Rachel.” Salana cheerfully offered the card again. “Think of it as my friendship gift!”
Salana didn’t really understand the value of money, but she felt guilty about not being able to help Rachel.
If Rachel actually accepted the card, then Salana would feel at least a little better inside.