Chapter 19: Give My Touched Feelings Back Already
“Hmm, why make it a question? If you don’t like it, you can tell me. I can call a maid to redo your hair.”
Elise stood up, but Peiya quickly stopped her.
“N-no need, it’s really good. I was just a bit sleepy and talking nonsense. I like it, of course I like it.”
“I see. It’s okay. If I ever do something you don’t like in the future, tell me right away. I’ll try my best to fix it.”
Something she didn’t like?
Peiya thought about it, but she really couldn’t find anything Elise had done wrong.
Elise was clearly caring about her sincerely. Instead, it was Peiya who couldn’t handle it and ran away first.
“No, you’ve been very good to me. It’s just… I don’t know how to repay your kindness.”
“Then what about you helping me just now? How should that count? Or do you think I should be an ungrateful person?”
Elise’s calm and logical reply left Peiya speechless for a moment.
She was used to giving without expecting much in return.
As for making Elise feel deeply grateful, she had never even thought about it.
At this moment, Elise turned her head slightly, her voice showing a bit of uncertainty.
“I don’t know why, but I feel like you’re carrying a lot of burdens. It makes me feel like I have to be very careful when I’m with you. Of course, I’m not blaming you.”
Elise looked seriously into Peiya’s eyes. Her eyes were bright, with a soft blue glow inside.
“Maybe… I guess. You know, I’m just an ordinary person. I’m not like you.”
“Is that what makes you uncomfortable?”
Elise thought about her own identity. She was the daughter of a duke, someone with great status in the kingdom.
That kind of gap could put invisible pressure on Peiya. It explained why many people used to avoid her.
Peiya bit her lip. That wasn’t really the reason. It felt more like Elise was a whirlpool, slowly pulling her in.
“Not really… It’s more my own problem. Maybe I’ll feel better in a few days.”
Peiya pushed those thoughts aside and decided to be a bit more honest.
“I do want to be friends with you. But I also have things I need to do. I hope you can understand.”
After all, even between friends, it’s better to keep some boundaries.
“That’s true. Sorry, I was a bit too pushy. Did you come today to confirm your moving date?”
“Yes. This is my new address. It should be in the next one or two days. I’ll send you a message by carrier pigeon in advance, same as before.”
Elise took the note and looked at it briefly.
“The Adventurers’ Guild? You seem to be close with President Maya.”
“You know President Maya?”
“Yes, we’ve met a few times before. The house you’re staying in is part of her main business. It looks like she values you a lot.”
“I see… then I should thank her properly. Thanks for reminding me.”
Peiya looked like she had just realized something. She hadn’t met President Maya much, but she knew she was very responsible.
“If you’re going to thank her, I’ll go with you.”
“Huh? Why do you want to come for something so small?”
Peiya looked confused.
“Together. It’s decided.”
“Hey, didn’t you just say you’d respect my wishes?”
“I’ll make an exception this time.”
This…
Things changed so suddenly.
Peiya felt a bit lost. So all the emotion she just felt… was it for nothing?
But Elise didn’t continue the topic. Instead, she calmly brought up something else.
“The cookies should be ready by now. Let’s go check. You’ve been busy all afternoon and haven’t eaten, you must be hungry.”
Seeing that Elise didn’t want to explain further, Peiya could only let it go and nodded.
“Okay.”
………………………
When they arrived at the kitchen, a maid stepped forward and gave a polite bow.
“Miss Peiya, you’re here. I’ve already taken the cookies out for you~”
Wearing gloves, the maid pointed at the tray of bear-shaped cookies on the rack. The baked cookies were golden on the surface, and their smiling faces looked even warmer under the sunlight.
“They look really nice.”
Elise also walked out of the room. Seeing Peiya standing by the tray, she simply asked,
“Did it work?”
“Yeah, try some…”
Peiya gave a portion of cookies to Elise.
Even from a short distance away, Elise could clearly smell a sweet milk fragrance.
She took the cookie and gently put it into her mouth. It almost melted instantly, leaving a light sweet taste.
In short, it was very delicious.
The skill was truly impressive.
“It’s really good. Much better than what I made.”
“If you keep practicing, you can do it too. Oh, and don’t just stand there, everyone, come try some.”
Peiya handed a few cookies to the maids outside as well. Desserts were magical. Somehow, the more people shared them, the sweeter they felt.
Even though there wasn’t much sugar, it still felt like eating honey.
“Head maid, go prepare some milk.”
Elise gave a simple order, and the maid quickly went to the cabinet to get freshly collected milk from today.
On the cabinet, each bottle had neat labels with dates. The freshest ones were kept for the young lady, while the older ones were for the servants.
Peiya was very familiar with these rules from when she worked at Anna’s house. So when she received the milk, she felt a little dazed.
It was rare for her to drink fresh milk like this.
She suddenly became curious about how it would taste.
Normally, it was hard to buy fresh milk outside. As technology improved, milk lasted longer, and merchants rarely sold the best quality.
Also, transporting fresh milk was very expensive. Only big noble families like the Anthony family could afford to have fresh milk delivered every day.
There were many costs. People to transport it, organize it, and the amount needed every day. It was not cheap at all.
Even children of small noble families usually lived only slightly better than local rich people. Their food and daily life were mostly the same as ordinary people.
Only their living environment was cleaner, nothing too special beyond that.
Peiya held the bottle and lightly licked a bit of the milk. It tasted sweet and smooth.
To be honest, it wasn’t very different from the milk she usually drank.
But there was still a faint, gentle sweetness that was hard to describe.
It felt like eating a piece of pomelo candy, fresh and pleasant.
“Miss, here is yours as well.” The maid handed another bottle to Elise, but Elise waved her hand.
“I already had some today. Give it all to her.”
“Huh?”
Peiya was surprised. She couldn’t even finish two bottles.
Wasting food wouldn’t be good…
“You can save it for tomorrow morning. And take some of these cookies with you too.” Seeing her hesitation, Elise spoke gently, “I can’t finish them all by myself. Besides, there’s enough bread stored in the cabinet for several days. Don’t worry about me.”
“Okay.”
This time, Peiya didn’t refuse. She took the bread and cookies from the maid and softly said thank you.
“Then I’ll head back now.”
Holding the food in her arms, Peiya suddenly remembered something.
In the past, she could only eat leftovers, and to save money, she rarely bought food for herself.
But today, her arms were full. The smell of food made her smile without thinking.
Just smelling it already felt satisfying.
This is really nice…
Tonight, she probably wouldn’t have to go to bed hungry anymore.