Sylvia said this to the people who were just swallowing their saliva while looking at the food.
“Since you must be hungry, please go ahead and eat!”
The people glanced at each other before hesitantly picking up their forks. Just as they were about to reach for the food, Sylvia shouted.
“Just a moment!”
Sylvia, unable to sit still, was busy moving back and forth. She checked for any missing dishes and made sure there was enough rice for everyone before she finally noticed.
The people’s hands were very dirty. Not just their hands; they were dirty all over. Although the children had been washed by Sylvia and were clean, the adults were different. The hardships of life were evident in them.
“Please wait a moment. It’s good to get into the habit of washing your hands before eating. Eating with dirty hands can cause problems. It’s even more important to pay attention to this when you are not at home.”
She continued her speech carefully, hoping they wouldn’t take offense.
“When handling food or ingredients, you must wash your hands thoroughly and clean the surroundings before starting to cook. If you cook with poorly washed ingredients or cook them inadequately, it can lead to seRios problems.”
After finishing her speech, Sylvia cleaned their exposed skin with water and wind magic. The people were surprised to see their hands suddenly clean.
“Now, let’s eat together! Bon appétit!”
Sylvia then returned to her place. She was starving after preparing so much food in such a short time. The use of magic and constant movement had left her famished.
Felix, naturally sitting beside her, handed her a spoon.
“Thank you, Felix!”
He had hoped she would use the nickname, but she simply responded with the usual call, causing his lips to twitch.
“It’s okay.”
Sylvia didn’t fully hear his indifferent tone as she started to sip the clear oyster soup.
“Ah…”
It was incredibly refreshing. The broth was cool and savory, almost making her exclaim in delight. It would have been perfect with some kimchi.
‘Maybe I should try making some dongchimi first?’
As she scooped up the rice and continued to eat, Sylvia pondered.
The people hesitantly began to eat the flesh of the creature they had thought was a demon beast. In their current situation, they were not in a position to be picky about cold or hot soup.
However, by evening, the initial stark wariness had significantly softened.
Sylvia’s care for the children and the mercenaries’ help with hard work and maintaining the surroundings had somewhat dulled their sharpness.
Chewing on the white and tender meat, Noel’s father was enraptured by the burst of umami and sweetness in his mouth. It was a texture and taste he had never experienced before, almost miraculous.
“Really… it’s really delicious.”
His hand, holding the fork, trembled. Not only because it was his first proper meal in a long time but also because of a deep sorrow welling up in his throat.
“Sniff, it’s, it’s delicious.”
Starting with Noel’s father, his wife, and others also began to tearfully eat their food.
“Sniff, sob, ugh.”
The sight of many people crying while eating was somewhat surreal. Sylvia, frozen with a spoon in hand, pressed down the rising emotions.
Felix looked around at the people with a subdued expression. His firmly closed lips reflected his thoughts. His slightly downcast eyes briefly scanned the table.
Vegetables, fruits, the caught coconut crabs, oysters, mussels, and a variety of other foods were laid out.
Glancing down, he looked at Sylvia. Her eyes, reddened, were also watching the people. Normally, she would be diving into the meal, not losing to any of the mercenaries, but now she sat upright, solely focusing on the people.
He was obligated as the Crown Prince to take care of them, but she was not. He admired the altruistic demeanor of a woman who wasn’t even from the Kingdom of Capitis.
And he was truly grateful.
Meeting her was, perhaps, one of the few fortunes in his life he once again realized. Not just any fortune, but a very precious one that could change his life.
“Really, it’s delicious!”
“Thank you!”
“Sniff, it’s tasty!”
“It melts in your mouth, you can taste the flavor!”
Sylvia bit her lips hard upon hearing people’s cries of gratitude. Her eyes reddened as she squinted them. She forced a smile, not wanting to show her tears, and merely nodded. It would be a lie to say there was no sympathy or compassion, but she did not want to show it.
When she was a wanderer, she had realized something. When she suddenly became an orphan, she felt grateful for those who comforted her in person, but another feeling came first.
Saying “poor you” to a pitiful person only reaffirms that the person is indeed pitiful.
Knowing she was pitiful but having others confirm it felt crueler than she thought.
She deliberately spoke up cheerfully to explain to the people.
“There’s still a lot of food left. It might be a burden to suddenly eat a lot, but what the heck! Eat slowly and a lot over a long time. That should be fine! Come on, let’s eat more heartily!”
Sylvia, who had been putting her spoon down unlike usual, conspicuously moved her spoon and scooped up rice to eat. Felix then picked up his fork again and poked at the crab meat to put it in his mouth. It was still incredibly delicious.
***
The next day, Sylvia woke up in the makeshift house, yawning long and getting up. After eating dinner the night before, she had cleaned up and checked on people’s conditions.
She checked if anyone had indigestion or diarrhea from suddenly eating food, or if anyone showed allergic reactions to shellfish.
Wondering what to eat for breakfast, Sylvia washed herself with magic. Then, she remembered those who hadn’t washed properly. It could be dangerous to go near the lake because there might be coconut crabs.
Thinking of what to do, she put on a robe. The robe Felix gave her felt really cool and comfortable.
“Ah, nice.”
She prepared beef radish soup for breakfast. She put the beef in water and boiled it vigorously, then added radish cut into thin slices in a 1:1 ratio with water. Sylvia liked radish in beef radish soup more than the meat. The right size of radish melting in her mouth was incredibly delicious.
She prepared spicy cucumber salad, chive salad, dried radish salad, and dried persimmon salad, and also made sweet egg rolls for the children. She added chopped green onions to the beef radish soup at the last minute and sprinkled pepper. After stirring the rice, she left the makeshift house.
Sylvia approached Noel’s father, who looked better than yesterday, to greet him.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Oh, yes. Magician.”
Noel’s father came out of the hut and greeted Sylvia. She was about to enter the hut, cuRios about the children’s condition.
“Are the children better? Has the fever gone down?”
She had checked before going to bed last night, but she was cuRios if they had slept safely through the night. Noel’s father nodded his head vigorously with a bright expression.
“Yes! Really. It’s like the fever that was burning like a fireball was a lie, it disappeared. It’s all thanks to the magician.”
He bowed deeply, and Sylvia, feeling shy, grabbed his shoulder to raise him.
“Oh, no need to go that far… Rather, please gather everyone. It’s time for breakfast!”
“Huh?”
Noel’s father looked at her with a dumbfounded expression. He thought that after having a rich dinner last night, they would be well-off for a few days…
But breakfast?
Unaware of his circumstances, Sylvia entered the hut. Puzzled by her disappearance, he shook his head and then started to move obediently to her request.
“Hey, Rio, call the people.”
“Hey, why are you like this? Your face is all red as if you’re shocked! What happened to Noel?”
“No, it’s not that. The magician said… said let’s have breakfast!”
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