“I was… a bit too sensitive, I guess. Even though I knew you were worried, I got irritated and said some harsh things without realizing it. The thought that you were acting like a child… I did think that, but only a little, and I’m not thinking that way now.”
She let out a deep sigh and rubbed her eyes again, a habit when she felt embarrassed or uncomfortable.
“I hope you can forget what I said earlier. It was just said in the heat of the moment… Anyway, I’m really sorry.”
Sitting alone on the grass, pondering, she had decided that it was best to apologize quickly. Since she was at fault, it was the natural thing to do. And then, the thought struck her.
What if they parted ways without her being able to apologize…
Not just the fairies, but she had grown fond of him too, and the thought of parting ways troubled her.
Even if he were angry and told her to leave, she wanted to apologize.
Looking down, unable to raise her turquoise head, Felix finally replied after a moment’s delay.
“I’m… I’m sorry too.”
Surprised by his unexpected response, Sylvia quickly lifted her head. Felix, unwittingly smiling, covered his mouth with his hand and slightly bowed his head to look at her.
The tension that had been building, the constant throbbing in his heart, seemed to return to its regular rhythm.
“No, I’m the one who should be sorry. Why are you apologizing?”
Sylvia countered, shaking her head. Determined not to be outdone, Felix also shook his head.
“No, I was too harsh. I knew you weren’t feeling well, but I pressed too hard. I won’t do it again.”
His tone carried a hint of gentleness. Sylvia lowered her eyes and mumbled.
“Okay… then, let’s say we both made mistakes and apologized to each other. Okay?”
Hearing her proposal for a compromise, Felix’s smile grew wider. His lips, hidden behind his palm, curved into a graceful smile.
Though he covered his mouth, his eyes, which also curved in amusement, could not be hidden. His appearance was so beautiful, he himself might not realize it.
Sylvia, blushing, bowed her head again, this time rubbing her eyes out of embarrassment. Watching her rub her eyes with her slender fingers, Felix lowered his hand from his mouth and gently grasped her wrist, pulling it slightly.
He stared at her reddened eyes for a moment before slowly leaning forward to blow gently on them. The cool breath reminded him of how his mother used to comfort him when he was a child.
Feeling the breeze, Sylvia fluttered her eyelashes and closed her eyes, trusting her face to him. After blowing a few times, Felix slowly blinked.
Somehow, his face seemed to heat up along with hers.
Feeling his heart beating fast again left him perplexed. He couldn’t understand why his heart fluttered so much whenever he saw her. After a couple more breaths, Felix straightened up.
“I’ll go check the surroundings for a while, so you stay here with the fairies.”
He said quickly, trying to calm his oddly racing heart. Sylvia, feeling his hand release her wrist, nodded gently. She opened her eyes slightly but was too embarrassed to meet his gaze directly.
Felix sensed something was a bit off with her but hurriedly left. His face felt warm and his breath became rough. Convinced that it was just his heart acting up, he walked quickly towards where his men were.
He had to fulfill the purpose of their visit here. They needed to find anyone who might be hiding. As he moved, Felix stopped and called out to Eryngium and Clover, who had been circling the area.
“Like last time, go down to the bottom of the lake and check if there’s a path leading elsewhere.”
[Okay, Felix!]
[Che, got it.]
Eryngium grumbled reluctantly but soon found itself being dragged by Clover into the lake.
“I’ll scout the area.”
At Felix’s command, the mercenaries moved in an organized manner, mounting their horses and splitting into groups.
Sylvia felt her face growing hotter by the moment due to his recent actions. Having Felix in front of her had somehow made it bearable, forcing her to hold back.
As the sound of horse hooves faded, Sylvia fanned her rapidly reddening face with her hand.
“Ah, this is crazy.”
She couldn’t understand why Felix had suddenly blown on her face.
How embarrassing the situation had been screamed inside her mind. But what was even more ridiculous was how she endured it, barely holding herself back.
“This is really crazy.”
Muttering to herself, Sylvia flopped down on the grass again. After all, his face was too handsome, making it unfair to get so close with that kind of good looks.
No, to be precise, his face was more beautiful.
The idea of a man with such a pure beauty blowing on her was…
“Wow…”
Her heart felt like it couldn’t take much more.
Taking deep breaths, Sylvia gently slapped her cheeks.
[Sylvia, what’s wrong with you?]
[Are you hurt?]
[We need to get Felix to blow on you again!]
Trying to forget, Sylvia choked at the fairies’ comments.
“No, I’m okay.”
She hastily responded and stood up. While the mercenaries were scouting, she had work to do. Despite feeling down about Calmia and Lupinus disappearing, the discovery of the rockfish had lifted her spirits.
And those yellow leaves…
“That definitely tasted like mustard. Ah, this author… It’s not soy sauce and wasabi, but mustard, huh?”
She was starting to understand. Despite living here, the beginning was clearly a novel. Thus, she was certain these elements were set by the author who wrote it.
And the author is Korean…
Then, like the persimmon vinegar for whitefish sashimi, it means soy sauce. Certainly, it was a setting filled with personal preferences.
Mustard, not wasabi…
“That’s a bit tricky… Mustard is better with fish cake soup. Well, everyone has their own tastes. Wasabi can be grown easily!”
If the lake continued, there would likely be more ingredients that paired well together. Shaking off her gloomy mood, Sylvia plucked a leaf and chewed on it again.
“Yikes! Spicy. It really does taste like mustard.”
Shivering from the spice, she shook her head violently and took out a large glass bottle to collect the soy sauce after making a hole in the tree.
“Okay, securing food first!”
Though the fairies didn’t understand her words, they were happy to see her energized. They expressed their joy, circling around her.
Approaching the pink lake, Sylvia peered into its depths. Surprised by the larger number of fish than expected, she called the fairies.
“Hey, can you check how many fish are in there?”
She wanted to dive in herself but, recalling Felix’s anger last time, opted to ask for help instead.
[Okay!]
[Wait for us!]
[Asta will go too!]
Daisy, Poppy, and Asta dived into the water with cheerful splashes. Meanwhile, Sylvia used wind magic to pluck all the mustard-tasting leaves and stored them in her spatial bag.
The tree, now devoid of its leaves, looked quite bare.
“Did I go too far?”
Wondering if she had stripped the tree too bare, she tilted her head thoughtfully. Then, from the deep bronze branches, bright yellow buds began to sprout as if making a popping sound.
“Huh?”
Pop, pop, pop, new buds emerged rapidly.
“Wow, it’s regrowing?”
The area around the lake was indeed very different, not just from outside the castle but also from within its walls. She had a hunch from the previous encounter with the persimmon tree, but seeing it with her own eyes was fascinating.
“Then, even if we catch all the rockfish, more will come back.”
Although finding out whether there were people hiding was a priority, she was diligently gathering food supplies.
★★46. If you were to choose the most detested being in the world?★★
Diligently moving about, Sylvia had gathered plenty and more of rockfish, mustard-flavored leaves, and soy sauce before the mercenary group returned. Meanwhile, she also prepared a simple meal.
She seasoned minced pork and beef with chopped onions, salt, and pepper. After mixing well, she shaped them into round patties and cooked them in a pan with butter.
She cut bread the size of a palm into round shapes and grilled it on butter. After flipping the cooked patty, she generously sprinkled cheese on top. Meanwhile, she finely chopped cabbage and mixed it well with ketchup and mayonnaise.
She spread pineapple jam generously on one side of the cooked bread, placed the patty on top, and then piled a generous amount of cabbage on the patty. Lastly, by placing the remaining piece of bread on top, a very simple burger was made.
She stirred a generous amount of previously made green grape syrup into sparkling water. After storing the completed food in a subspace bag, she waited for her companions to arrive.
Wandering around nearby, Sylvia rediscovered the colorful mushrooms she had seen earlier. With the knowledge from her youth, she knew that brightly colored mushrooms were poisonous, but she wondered if it was the same here.
Thinking about tasting just a bit, she decided against it, not wanting to repeat the same mistake she made in front of Felix earlier.
However, curiosity got the better of her, and she collected some mushrooms into her bag first.
As she completed a round around the lake, she suddenly remembered the appearance of this lake. From afar, the lake had the fluffy appearance of cotton candy.
“Cotton candy, huh… The color might not be great, but should I try making some?”
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