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"Let's eat together. Are you hungry?"
It is said that when mealtime comes, the servants eat at the Samsam restaurant according to the schedule given by the butler. I haven't been to the restaurant for three days. Just, what I've eaten so far...
'I'm pretty hungry.'
A slice of steak eaten next to Noel, a sip of black tea, and a biscuit obtained from the butler.
'then...'
Noelle wanted me to eat with her. Having not had a proper meal, my stomach was ready for any kind of food.
'Did you leave it until you couldn't stand the hunger anymore and had a meal together?'
Having starved a lot in the slums, I have a stomach that can survive on the bare minimum of food.
That's why I've managed to survive this far. If it were anyone else, I would have greedily devoured the salmon on the fork that Noel just gave me.
'There is no way.'
The butler secretly distributed biscuits and fruits, which was exactly the situation he had secretly condoned.
Because of Amanoel's order, the only opportunity to eat in this mansion was while sitting with her... right now.
"Noel."
"huh?"
"I am your servant. Please stop doing such difficult things."
I calmly took her hand and handed her the fork.
"Then, will you feed it to Tirne?"
I had never imagined this situation. I calmly put the salmon in my mouth, then cut it with a knife and handed it to her.
"delicious."
"That's fortunate."
I wanted to walk without eating, but this terrible stomach seemed to have reached its limit and was throwing a tantrum asking for food.
'Fuck...'
My expression is consistently indifferent. My hands, which are in a hurry to cut the salmon, move the knife quickly as if there is nothing I can do about it.
'ah.'
The salmon sashimi prepared by the Baekjakga's professional chef was ecstatic and damned delicious. The outside was cooked crispy and the texture was alive, and the inside was soft and uncooked, stimulating the morning urge. When I chewed, the slightly chewy outside surface, and the fragrant aroma of the grilled meat and the salty taste that had been seasoned lingered on my tongue.
"...Please eat."
I wanted to stuff the salmon into my mouth with my head still stuck in it, but I put the salmon back in front of the scary person who was staring at me.
"Hmm. This seems like the most delicious salmon in the world."
"It looks like the chef put in quite a bit of effort this time."
"fool."
She laughs like a rascal. I feel uneasy again.
"It's because you gave it to me."
I already knew it, but I didn't want to admit it.
"Yes, thank you."
If you are too rigid, you can arouse suspicion. I am currently a servant and a prisoner, but I am an actor trying to escape from them. I carefully cut the salmon with a look of extreme anxiety and watching the mood.
"Please pour me some more."
White wine. The cork was open again. I don't know what technique she used, but I felt like she would be the best compliment in the social circle where wine was served.
'Thwack!'
I pour her some wine and watch her closely. She doesn't seem to notice that I'm trying to get out of here.
'I need to reassure you.'
Noel just looks at me with a pleased face.
"Oh, first...would you like a drink?"
She nodded. I cautiously took a sip of the white wine.
'It couldn't be poisoned...'
If you think about it for a moment, everything that comes here is strictly controlled by butlers and servants... and it's a large mansion like a prison on the lake, so it's a place where assassins and such can't come. I remember seeing it occasionally when I passed by, but items heading to this castle are brought in after going through strict inspections by soldiers and servants.
'There won't be any gap.'
This is an impossible condition, unless there is an assassin who sneaks into the carriage and poisons Noel's drink.
'and.'
This monstrous monster seemed like it couldn't be killed even by poison.
"No problem, Noel."
"Is it delicious?"
The taste of sweet white wine was a luxurious wine that was enough to melt my tense heart.
"Yes, it's delicious."
"Want to have another sip?"
I obediently poured white wine into a glass and took a sip. At that moment, her lips, which I didn't know when she'd come, touched mine.
'Clang!'
The glass I was holding fell to the floor with a loud noise, and her tongue entered my mouth and slowly and gently plundered the white wine inside my mouth.
"Hmm, is it tasty?"
She was smiling brightly. I looked at her with a face that was burning. I don't know how many times she had already stolen my lips.
"But what should I do? There are no glasses left... I want to enjoy this wine."
It's a situation where you can't tell Noel to 'go to the hospital and get sick'. You have to show your wit.
"First, let me clean up the fallen glasses."
"later."
It was impossible to resist her words. I just sat on the table chair and waited for her order with an anxious face.
"My glass."
She presses her finger to my lips.
"ruler."
When I heard her, she picked up a bottle of white wine and poured it into my mouth. The sweet liquid, along with the savory scent of alcohol, went in, and once again, she began to taste the white wine with her tongue, teasing the inside of my mouth.
'ah...'
My mind is getting hazy again. I need to come to my senses, but the alcohol, Noel's kiss, and the small bumps I feel on her tongue are driving me crazy. The pleasure, greed, and the swampy feeling are weighing down my body.
'Rang!'
The chair tipped over and I fell on it. Noel, who was already on top of me, smiled and slowly pushed his hair behind his ear.
"Tir♡"
I wondered how many times she had called my name until now. Her soft face was buried in my arms and she began to breathe slowly.
"love you."
I had no desire to join in on her love play... but maybe because of the alcohol, I tried hard to hold back from reaching out to her. As a man, I also find it difficult when such a beautiful woman keeps running towards me.
"huh?"
Her question was a look of courtship, as if telling me to give up and be together. Her eyes, which had been like a monster until now, looked like the eyes of a little girl who sees something she wants and tries to get it by any means necessary.
"Noel..."
After calming my mind, I opened my mouth.
"huh."
"It's dinner time. Finish your meal."
"I'm fine..."
"It's because I'm hungry. I haven't eaten anything until now."
"really?"
Is he pretending not to know, or did he really not know? If he really didn't know, then the butler is more likely to be behind me not being able to eat until now.
'then...'
The root of the current imprisonment is not only Noel, but also the butler, which means that he is the culprit. Of course, if I were to give her dinner and come out, the butler could guide her to a restaurant... but I thought it would be better to move according to what they want.
"Yes. I came here and there was a lot to learn, so I didn't really think about eating. I haven't eaten anything for three days, so I'm a little dizzy."
"Oh, no! Sit down!"
For the first time, she saw his puzzled face.
'This is it.'
Here's the hint. When I feel like I'm having a hard time surviving or living... she becomes my ally and somehow meets my demands.
"Yes. Well, I apologize for the inconvenience..."
I slowly got up next to her, pulled up a chair, and sat down on it. The wine bottle was lying there, curled up, and the alcohol was spilling out of it, but... I didn't feel like picking it up.
'I can kiss you again...'
The same situation as before could have been repeated again. I slowly cut the salmon with a fork and knife. And then I looked at her.
"I'm fine. Tir. Eat quickly."
Her face, still embarrassed. She looked cute all over again. It felt like the big monster was anxious that I might do something wrong, and that I might explode if I showed up. She was a woman who only came up to my neck, but she looked so innocent, and seeing her like that made me feel strange.
'Fuck...'
The grilled salmon was delicious, like sweet feed that I would use to treat animals if I were an animal.
"You must have been hungry..."
Her face says she's sorry. However, the moment she starts to insist that I'll starve to death if I stay here, let me go, her eyes will turn back into deep, swamp-like eyes.
"It's okay. In the slums, filling your water bowl with water for a week is the basic condition for survival."
"So that's why you're skinny."
She caresses my cheek. She touches my cheek, chin, and ear cautiously as if she doesn't want to disturb me while I'm eating.
"Hehe...Tir..."
"...Noel..."
"why?"
Her face looked surprised, as if she was wondering if she was naked or if the food didn't suit her taste.
"Excuse me, but I've already spilled the wine... and I have nothing to quench my thirst, so could you go down and get me some water?"
"Oh, are you choking?"
She wakes up in a hurry.
"Noel! I am your servant!"
"wait!"
By the time the wind blew once, she was already gone.
"No, what..."
It's much faster than the incredibly fast deer I've seen before. I met this one when I went out hunting in the forest to fill my hungry stomach. I remember this one that was moving its feet hard to make it my dinner, but it was circling around as if it was teasing me and making me angry.
"here."
The bottle of water and the glass she handed me, her face red with embarrassment.
"thank you..."
I blankly accepted it, and she poured water into my glass. Then, I glanced at the salmon sashimi that was about two-thirds gone.
"Isn't this enough? From now on, tell me clearly that you're hungry. If you tell the butler to prepare food for two, he'll understand."
It seems like it's become a given that she'll eat with me.
'There is no way out...there is no way out.'
Noel's speed was so fast that I couldn't even dare to keep up. Not only was she a specialist in the wine society, but I also had the feeling that if I were to partner with her in pickpocketing, there would be nothing in the world she couldn't steal.
'Fast, strong, and tenacious.'
I briefly listed her characteristics. There was no way to escape. After finishing the calculation, I slowly moistened my throat.
After that, I put down the glass of water and knelt down on one knee in front of her.
"uh?"
"Noel-nim. I am Noel-nim's servant."
"...huh."
"For me, it would be a dereliction of duty and dereliction of duty for the master to bring the servant what he needs. Even if Noel wanted it, I think there should be a distinction between master and servant."
"Tir..."
"Noel, please tell me what you need and I will bring it."
It was a good comment. If she gives me everything I need with her power and her Count's power, I will be nothing more than a bird locked in this cage forever. So, as a servant, I must have a justification for moving for you. That way...
'It is possible to make an excuse that you are going to get something for Noel.'
Locked in the castle... If she listens to everything, when I escape outside, I will be met with all kinds of suspicion. If that happens, I will be caught by soldiers or knights before I even cross the bridge, and I will be raised like a prisoner locked in a cage, not a servant.
"then..."
Noel's answer.
"Why don't you become my husband instead of a servant?"
A question that seems to be obvious.
"No, Noel!"
A jaw-dropping and perfect answer came out. Of course, from my perspective, it was a completely wrong answer.
"why?"
"I'm just a poor person living in the slums! Aren't you the daughter of Count Decker, Noel?"
"So, I can marry the man I want."
The young lady of a regular count's family can't do that. She's just used as material to solidify her thick connections with other nobles who have been in contact for a long time through political marriages.
'ah.'
The fact that the children of the five noble families who have come so far have had their throats cut off. There would be no noble family that would want to take her. Until she wants it, and with whomever she wants it.
'Right now...'
The unknown daughter of the writer Deckard. Even her parents cannot force her to do anything. The current count does not scold or order her around, and he is the one who gets what Noel wants even if it means dragging his sick body. Eliza had a hard time with her, and her younger brother, Curtle, was so scared of her that he could not even show his face.
'If she wants...'
I can easily become the son-in-law of a count. It seems like a dream of rising in social status.
But...
'Locked forever...'
And many lives where wrists and bodies are broken.
"...I'm embarrassed."
Her hand slowly approaches. She touches my cheek shyly and brings her lips to mine for a kiss. My head slowly lowers and I kiss her. This is...
'Marriage Vows?!'
He talked about marriage and kissed me without saying anything. So what could this be? I had to use all my brains to come up with an excuse.
"Hey, adventurer!!!"
"uh?"
The person who came to mind was Sophia. She is currently living as an adventurer.
"Yes! I've always dreamed of being an adventurer. A life as free as the wind! I longed to explore the endless unknown world, and although I wandered around as a pickpocket, that dream still remains in my heart!"
I shouted, hiding my gasping breath. That's why I'd be in trouble if I were to marry her. Noel doesn't like me being in trouble. Therefore...
"no."
"yes?"
"No... It's mine... Finally... It's mine... And you're getting away from me? From me? Why? How come? I treated you well... No... It was your fault for breaking my wrist, right? Huh? Why? ... Why?"
Wrong...I touched it. Her eyes gradually grew dim and she took small steps back.
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