Chapter 4 - Chapter 4

[E/N: Although a little unclear, Bella doesn't know Kiel's name yet.]

Bella devised a couple of strategies to successfully live in the human world as she headed to the inn.

'Let's eat first.'

Her stomach growled after hours of starving.

"If you're hungry, why don't you eat this kid?"

"Please shut up. If you aren't quiet, just turn around."

Zhanbar couldn't comprehend Bella's eccentric behavior.

'If she's hungry, why doesn't she just eat what's before her?'

Kiel's pale skin and amber eyes looked like they'd be rather sweet.

Bella glared at Zhanbar and took Kiel's hand.

'Don't worry. Even if there are demons from the demon world, police officers will protect citizens like you!'

Zhanbar couldn't help but think, 'It looks like he has a very strong heart, too. The boy doesn't look bad for a servant.'

Although Zhanbar hungrily gazed at Kiel, his expression remained stoic.

"Do you want to be my servant?" Bella asked.

Kiel eagerly nodded as if he had been waiting for her to ask.

'He doesn't look like he has anywhere to go, but he has to work hard.'

Kiel was the first person Bella had met in this world.

If she was able to get along with this kid, she'd probably do well in the human world.

* * *

Bella held Kiel's hand until she exited the Wizard' Tower and went to town.

"Do you want to be my servant?" Bella asked again.

Kiel nodded once more.

I knew he had a large future ahead of him.

In the past, he had struggled to make a living on his own.

The only reason Kiel was able to survive on his own was because of his divine power.

Bella thought it would be safer to travel with him, someone who could control divine power.

Although she had an adult guardian—the leopard—she still wanted to bring Kiel along.

'If you call me princess, you'll have to face the consequences.'

However, as far as Kiel remembered, nothing like this had happened in the past.

But maybe, this path would be a better one to walk down.

He didn't want to suffer through hell again, not when a new opportunity like this presented itself to him.

'I've got to stay with her until I'm able to stand on my own.'

* * *

At last, Bella arrived at the inn she had been searching for.

[The largest inn in Aloha! Have a shower!]

As soon as Bella opened the door of the inn, the quiet inn because noisy.

"Are you going to eat?" a waiter asked Zhanvar, but Bella replied to him.

"We'll have the most expensive meal for three people and two rooms."

The waitress was able to tell that this was a young noble lady and her guardian just by looking at the atmosphere. Hence, the waitress prepared the best room and meals without questioning them.

Bella, Kiel, and Zhanbar sat at a round table, and eventually, their hot meat and soup came out together.

'Oh, my God—this is the meat I've only been able to see in cartoons.'

It was more commonly known as 'magic meat'.

Bella wanted to pick up the meat with both hands, but because it was so hot, she worked with a knife.

"I don't know why humans bother to eat."

"Don't talk to me. I'm in a bad mood." Bella glared at Zhanbar before returning her focus to her meal. She relished in the aroma and the texture of the meat that melted on the tongue.

Bella felt like she'd curry from the joy.

"I'm going to dip it in the soup."

It looked so delicious that Zhanbar's mouth began to salivate.

"You're going to dip it in there?"

Zhanbar's pupils dilated as Bella shoved the meat into his mouth.

"Mmmm!"

"Delicious, huh?"

"It's amazing."

"Is it better than eating people?"

Zhanbar didn't answer, but he began to gobble down the meat at an alarming rate.

'Why isn't the boy eating any?'

Kiel had been silently watching them eat, despite the growling of his stomach.

With a fork, Bella dipped a piece of meat into the soup and put it up to Kiel's mouth.

"He said it's delicious. You should try it, too."

Kiel slightly opened his mouth as he looked at Bella.

"Good job. Eat it up. You don't know how to use a fork?"

Kiel flushed at Bella's words, so she grabbed Kiel's right hand and handed him the fork.

"Come on. Forks are pretty simple."

Bella grabbed Kiel's right hand and pulled it up to his mouth.

"This is how you use it."

Kiel hesitated before opening his mouth and taking the meat into his mouth.

"Well done, my servant."

When Bella patted Kiel's head, Zhanbar grumbled unhappily.

"Why do you need a servant that can't even use a fork?"

"It looks like he's an orphan. I doubt anyone taught him. He'll be a fine servant," Bella gritted as she stared at Zhanbar. "He'll learn by living."

"We knew everything as soon as we were born," Zhanbar retorted.

"Wait! Don't throw up on me!"

* * *

True to the sign, this inn was the largest in the village.

There was a co-op public shower room for washing.

Unlike Bella, who was excited, Zhanbar frowned at the sight of the strange facility.

"What the hell is this place?"

"Where you shower."

"Shower? Where's the blood?"

Wait a minute.

"Have you guys been showering in blood?"

No wonder demons smelled so horrible.

Bella entered the shower, looked around, and turned the handle, allowing warm water to flow from the long hose.

"Use water to wash instead of blood. Take the boy with you and wash him."

"I'll just wash using the little boy's blood—"

"If something happens to him, I'll kill you."

Under the pressure of Bella's threat, Zhanbar grumbled at took the little boy out of the room.

Bella sighed and quietly enjoyed the water,

'This feels amazing.'

If Bella had spent another day on horseback, she would've gone mad.

But now, she was surrounded by delicious food, fragrant smells, and warm showers.

Even if she didn't live like an aristocrat, she was still happy to be in the human world.

'After I become an adult, I'll only live for four more years.'

Although her death was in the distant future, Bella still had to prepare for it.

"Let's find out if there is a way to enter the human world after becoming an adult."

After the shower, Bella changed into new clothes given to her by the inn.

"I never thought I'd appreciate such little things."

The scent of freshly washed clothes gave Bella peace of mind as she came out of the little shower room to see Zhanbar wearing a nasty t-shirt,

It said, 'I will eat humans and shower in blood'.

"Miss Bellatrix, I can't wash without blood."

Bella, who had been enjoying peace, became annoyed.

It was unsettling to read the words on Zhanbar's shirt.

"Hey, if you won't listen to me, go back home. If you're going to be here, act like a human."

"But I don't know—"

"Then go home."

"…I'll be back after washing up."

Zhanbar unhappily turned around, and Bella pinched the depressed little boy's cheeks.

"I'm not mad at you. By the way, how old are you? Five years old?"

Instead of talking, Kiel carefully folded down his thumbs on both hands.

"Eight years old?" Bellas asked as she looked at his fingers.

The kid nodded his fingers.

He was so small!

Seeing that he couldn't eat or speak properly, Bella could see how poor his living conditions had been.

"Let's eat a lot of delicious food from now on. By the way, do you have a name?"

If not, Bella wanted to name him after her nephew in her previous life. "What's your name?"

Kiel hesitated before writing his name down on Bella's palm.

"Kie—"

The color drained from Bella's face.

She laughed and asked, "Your name is Kiel?"

* * *

Bella paced back and forth in her room and bit her nails.

'Okay, Kiel will be 18-years-old in 1163, and this year is 1153.'

Bella sat on the bed, crossed one leg, and anxiously tapped her foot.

An ominous intuition crept up on her.

The boy had the same name as the male lead, white hair, amber eyes, and thin skin.

What were the odds?

After sitting in silence, Bella took out her phone.

'He can't be him. I have to check.'

Bella quickly searched for the childhood of the main character of the novel.

There were lots of search results, and Bella looked through all of them, pressing the 'next' button until my thumbs fell out.

As Bella sat on the bed, she heard a knock on the board.

"Kiel, come here."

Kiel, who stood in front of the door, crept up and sat down beside her.

Bella took a deep breath and asked Kiel the results of her search result.

"Kiel, did you nearly drown when you were a kid? Have you ever been bitten by a puppy?"

The more Bella asked the more her heart began to pound.

'No, these things could happen to anyone.'

Bella had to ask questions that only the male lead in the novel could answer, not general questions.

"When my mother died, she left behind some belongings."

Bella noticed Kiel's pendant.

She pointed to the pendant, straightened her neck, and asked again, "Is this your mother's?"

Kiel hesitated before nodding, and Bell asked her final question.

"D-Did your uncle ever send you to an evil wizard?"

When she saw the surprise on Kiel's face, the sinister foreboding that had been eating away at Bella began to swallow her whole.

This was definitely Kiel from the novel.

He was an orphan, pale, and had a pendant given to him by his mother as a keepsake.

Childhood abuse was briefly mentioned in the novel, and it mentioned he was sold to a wizard.

This couldn't be a coincidence.

Bella pulled Kiel's head onto her lap.

Kiel looked like he had already fallen asleep as Bella touched his hair.

'Does this mean I'm a successful fan?'

She was happy to see the male lead, but she wasn't sure if it was true.

Their encounter made Bella's heart feel heavy.

'You have a long way to go.'

Kiel was rather sinister until he became a prince and was even kidnapped because of his pretty face.

If she wanted to go back to the original, she had to throw him away.

'I should go, right?'