‘What the hell is this…?’

The expression on Kael’s face as he chewed and swallowed his food seemed to indicate confusion about what to do with it.

It was the first time he had ever tasted such a flavor in his life.

It wasn’t a matter of whether it had taste or not. He was unsure of how to even describe the taste.

But unlike Kael, Leciel was eating her food without any care in the world.

“…Is it tasty?”

Kael asked, looking at Leciel as if she was an extraterrestrial life form.

It was understandably so as from Kael’s perspective, it was incomprehensible.

How could someone eat this food with such a satisfied expression, chewing happily?

Apart from the fact that watching her eat like a baby bird was endearing.

“It’s delicious.”

“…Your taste buds are strange.”

If she found this thing tasty, it wasn’t just a matter of unusual taste.

“It doesn’t suit your palate?”

Observing that Kael’s plate of food remained largely untouched compared to her own hearty eating, Leciel tilted his head and asked.

“To be honest, I can’t even tell what flavor this is.”

“What kind of flavor? It’s the taste of survival.”

Leciel didn’t genuinely think the food was delicious.

She simply accepted it as such because the food she had eaten when she first opened her eyes here was so terrible that this seemed delicious by comparison.

“…Yes, you have to eat to survive, so it’s not wrong.”

“Well, I understand your point, sir. But you’re missing a very important point.”

“What’s that?”

“If you had collapsed in the monster forest two years ago, you would have had to eat something even more terrible than this.”

“….”

Kael was momentarily speechless.

Something even more terrible than this?

“At that time, there was really nothing, so I had to eat whatever was available.”

“Indeed, I overlooked something important. The fact that this is the monster forest.”

Naturally, things that could be taken for granted outside were not common here.

“…You must have suffered.”

He had vaguely thought it must have been difficult to live alone in the monster forest, but he hadn’t thought about it in detail.

It was unimaginable from Kael’s perspective.

But hearing Leciel’s words made him realize more vividly how difficult life here must have been.

A life where you couldn’t even properly eat basic food.

Now that he thought of it, Leciel’s clothes also looked roughly made of cloth.

Well, it was impossible to get any proper things here as there wouldn’t be anything for humans.

Leciel’s eyes widened at Kael’s words.

She had a face that looked somewhat complicated.

In reality, she was feeling a variety of emotions.

It could have been just a formality. But those words meant a lot to Leciel.

How much hardship she had suffered since opening her eyes here? It would be painful to list them all.

Among them, the hardest part was loneliness.

There was no one to express how difficult it was, no one to work for her when she rested, and no one to welcome her home.

Even if he wanted to be praised for her life so far, there was no one to praise her.

Then she met someone for the first time and heard one of the things she wanted to hear.

It might be nothing to others, but it wasn’t to her.

It felt like a small flower blooming in her heart that didn’t know it was empty and gave her warmth.

Meanwhile, for some reason, Leciel’s surprised expression as she looked at himself with wide eyes suddenly seemed cute to Kael, and he found himself absentmindedly patting Leciel’s head.

It was an action he often did to his son when he was even younger than he was now.

Leciel was momentarily embarrassed by Kael’s touch, but she quietly accepted it.

The man’s touch, careful yet affectionate, felt good to her.

Receiving this touch, she understood why the monsters liked to be petted so much.

It felt warm and gentle.

Because of Kael’s age, it felt like she was receiving praise from her father.

After all, in this world, she was essentially an orphan.

Looking at Leciel receiving his touch while smiling with narrowed eyes, Kael couldn’t help but think that she looked like a contented cat.

If he listened closely, he might hear a cute sound of purring coming from her mouth.

‘She must have suffered a lot.’

A ten-year-old child who had been living alone in a place even adults found difficult to live in.

He found the child in front of him pitiable.

How many trials and tribulations did this child endured when she shouldn’t have gone through it, and how many opportunities and experiences she should have had at that age did she missed out?

Kael was not so kind that he would feel sympathy and pity for a child he didn’t know well, but the child in front of him was an exception.

It could be because she was his lifesaver, because she might have lived a difficult life that could not be compared with others, or because she was a rare and interesting existence.

“Do you really have no memory before waking up here?”

“Yes.”

“Then you don’t even know what the outside world is like.”

“That’s right. I don’t have anyone to tell me.”

Leciel seemed indifferent as she said so. But from Kael’s perspective, that sight seemed even more pitiful.

Anyone who had received affection knew how it felt.

The one who had never received affection didn’t know what affection was, and the one who had never had someone by their side didn’t know what loneliness was.

The child was also like that.

Not because she didn’t care, but simply because she hadn’t experienced it before.

No, perhaps it was because she didn’t have even a small hope or expectation, that was why she was able to show such indifference.

If the child had any hope or expectation of leaving this place, she would have clung to him.

As his savior, begging to be taken away from the monster forest when he left.

But the child didn’t. It was as if she didn’t even entertain such thoughts.

For a moment, the voice of Leciel echoed in Kael’s ears.

“Uncle, what are you thinking?”

“…Hmm.”

“Just now, you have the expression of an old man who has seen everything in the world.”

“Huh?”

After deciding to call himself ‘uncle’, this little girl seemed determined to cling to age altogether.

To think she would describe me as an old man who had seen everything in the world just for feeling pity for the child.

“Maybe you would prefer the title ‘grandfather’ rather than ‘uncle’?”

“…I’m not that old.”

“I assumed you must have lived quite a long time, seeing that you look like an uncle, but maybe you’ve aged more than I thought.”

“I do have a son about your age, but I’m not that old.”

“Oh! I guess that’s why.”

Even though she thought that he might have a child of his own based on age, Leciel never thought that it was true, so she was surprised.

“What?”

“You said that because I reminded you of your son.”

“Is that so?”

“Anyway, you don’t have to feel too sorry for me. I can’t say that my current life is happy or good, but I’ve never thought it’s unhappy either.”

Kael looked silently at her in response to Leciel’s words.

She was astute enough that one would not have expected her to grow up alone in a place like this.

He wasn’t the type to show his emotions outwardly, but seeing how quickly she picked up on his thoughts that others couldn’t easily perceive was remarkable.

“Have you ever thought about leaving this place?”

“I can’t say I’ve never thought about it. But it’s impossible to leave in the first place, and I can’t be sure if life outside would be better than here.”

She had already adapted to life here.

Could she adapt well to the outside world once she left this place?

She had nothing proper to call her own.

Even if she didn’t know what kind of place this world was, it was difficult for someone with nothing to live anywhere.

Therefore, deciding to leave just because she wanted to couldn’t be considered a trivial matter.

“Turns out you’re not just a kid, but a grown-up.”

Kael said with a strange expression to the words that were too mature to be spoken by the 10-year-old child.

Normally at that age, people were full of immaturity, curiosity, and dreams.

But for some reason, both his son and the kid in front of him seemed lacking in some childish aspect.

“I guess being mature is better than being childish.”

Leciel shrugged lightly.

“Well…”

Which one was better?

Children didn’t necessarily have to act like children.

Even if there were privileges only available for that age, everyone’s circumstances were different, and the most important thing was the happiness of the individual.

Just… Leciel’s maturity seemed somewhat bitter, as if it had been forced by circumstances rather than desired.

But there was nothing Kael could do right now.

Although he had become more comfortable around the child than at first and had let go of his guard, taking the child and leaving the monster forest was a different matter altogether.

Especially since it couldn’t be known whether life outside would be better than here, as the child had said.

It was extremely difficult and burdensome for a child without proper guardians to live alone in the world.

If he was to help the child, she could have a much better life, but he couldn’t decide on it readily.

Placing the child under his protection would mean that his family’s name would be attached to the child like a label.

As someone responsible for the family, he couldn’t simply decide on such matters impulsively based on emotions.

Even more so when he didn’t know the child’s true identity.

At least a more certain conviction was needed.

The certainty that placing the child under his family’s name wouldn’t harm the family.

 

* * *

 

Today, Leciel, who woke up while basking in the morning sunlight, seemed particularly reluctant to get up, tossing and turning.

The warmth of Mimi’s embrace was much cozier than her bed, she felt like she could sleep all day.

But she couldn’t do that.

Because there was a mountain of things to do today as well.

Especially, she had to do the piled-up laundry today.

‘I guess household chores are the most annoying after all.’

After tirelessly doing household chores every day for two years and living self-sufficiently, she really longed for rest.

“Mimi, why are you a monster?”

It would have been much better if there was at least a monster with the ability to do her work.

At Leciel’s words, Mimi tilted her head innocently as if she didn’t understand what she meant.

“Yeah, just being able to use you as a substitute for a bed is enough.”

Oddly enough, the monster felt more comfortable than her own bed.

Therefore, she might continue to use her as a substitute for a bed even after Kael returned.

’Oh, right. There’s uncle.’