TOYLCG 25 🍒

Chapter — 25

Meals are meant to be shared.

The sense of stability that comes from eating together cannot be ignored. Yet Rosebell and Aren had no choice but to eat separately.

Even though it was unavoidable, she didn’t like it. So Rosebell packed some bread, butter, and parsley, and called Maria and Aren over.

“Young lady?”

“You probably ate well already, but aren’t you still hungry?”

Aren looked confused, clearly not understanding what she meant, and Maria looked the same. Rosebell gave an awkward smile.

“It’s so hard to see your faces here. Like reaching for stars in the sky.”

“But we see you every day,” Aren replied.

“Are you feeling unwell, young lady?” Maria asked.

“No… it’s just… eating alone in someone else’s house feels a bit… you know!”

Aren thought she was trying to say she felt lonely without saying it directly. But bringing out bread this late at night was amusing.

Just talking together seemed like it would be fun. Still, as she set down the bread and butter, Rosebell muttered,

“If only we had garlic, this would be perfect garlic bread. What a shame.”

“Garlic?” Aren asked.

“Yeah. Then I could make garlic bread for you!”

As soon as Maria heard that, she disappeared somewhere. Aren ended up holding the things she had been carrying.

“How much baguette do you plan to eat to bring this much?”

“The bread here is good.”

Aren nodded in agreement. It was completely different from the bread in the ducal territory. The textures alone were varied.

Some bread was crispy outside and moist inside, while others were soft all the way through. It felt like bread wasn’t just something to fill the stomach.

“Then what exactly is garlic bread?” Aren asked.

“You mix butter, garlic, a bit of honey, and parsley, spread it on a baguette, and bake it!”

“You bake bread that’s already baked?”

Aren tilted his head, clearly confused. Rosebell understood his reaction.

In this era, bread was usually just dipped lightly into soup before a meal. For commoners, it was practically a staple food. But the bread dipped in soup wasn’t soft or crispy like the bread in Demetra—it was more accurate to call it hard.

“Do you think I’d give you something that tastes bad? Trust me a little.”

“No, it’s just strange to bake bread twice.”

Aren wasn’t suspicious—just curious. He didn’t know her cooking skills. At worst, it might be inedible. But whatever it was, it would be the first food she made for him.

He was sure that even if it tasted bad, it would still feel delicious to him.

Just then, Maria returned, slightly out of breath, holding garlic.

There wasn’t much, but these people weren’t Koreans.

Rosebell put the garlic into a bowl, added butter, honey, and dried parsley, and mixed it energetically.

The two watching her were filled with both curiosity and anxiety. Still, Rosebell was certain they would like it once they tasted it.

“But, young lady,” Maria said carefully.

“Yes?”

“You’ve never cooked before, have you?”

Aren stared hard at Maria’s face. Her expression didn’t look too good either.

They were preparing themselves for the worst. But when Rosebell read their faces, she puffed out her cheeks.

“Just try it first! Do you really think I’d feed you something you can’t eat?”

“Well, that’s true, but—”

“I’ll help you,” Maria offered.

“No! I’ll do it myself. You two just stay there!”

Rosebell understood their doubt. She really had never cooked before. But seeing them openly worry made her feel unfairly hurt.

She put firewood into the stove and placed a wide pan on top. She added the remaining butter and waited for it to melt.

The rich scent of butter spread through the room. Rosebell generously spread the garlic butter onto one side of the baguette, ignoring the two shocked faces.

There are many kinds of bread in the world, and how you prepare it completely changes the taste.

At least, that was true in the modern world she once lived in.

“You really don’t need to look so worried,” she said.

The two forced awkward smiles. Rosebell flipped the bread so the garlic-buttered side faced down.

A completely different aroma filled the room. The garlic cooked with the butter, releasing a mouthwatering smell.

“Oh my!” Maria exclaimed.

“It smells better than I expected,” Aren said.

It was clear they had been convinced something terrible would come out.

Drawn in by the sweet, savory scent, the two stepped closer to Rosebell. They looked like baby birds waiting to be fed.

Rosebell flipped the lightly toasted baguette and let the remaining butter soak into the other side. The crackling sound alone was enough to make mouths water.

“It’s good even after it cools a little, but try it while it’s warm first.”

Would baking already-baked bread again really make a difference?

That’s what they thought, but their eyes were fixed on the garlic bread. Their mouths filled with saliva, and the sound of swallowing echoed clearly.

Crunch.

The outside of the baguette became even crispier after being baked again. Aren’s eyes widened as the garlic butter flavor spread through his mouth.

Maria made a big fuss, saying she had never tasted anything like it before. The doubt in their eyes melted into warm smiles.

A quiet, friendly time followed.

It was hard to imagine other nobles doing something like this, but the three of them were happy. With a simple late-night snack and easy jokes between people who knew each other well, Rosebell felt something warm slowly fill her chest.

Bread is delicious.

Eating a lot of delicious food makes you gain weight. That was a rule of the world. It just didn’t show much because of how active they were.

“Don’t you think we’ve gained a lot of weight?” Rosebell asked.

“I feel heavier,” Aren agreed.

“It must be because we eat garlic bread every night. What should we do?” Maria said, holding her cheeks in worry.

No matter what, women were sensitive about their weight.

But Rosebell wasn’t worried about appearance. When she returned, she would have to wear a corset that was almost abusive.

Since she had gained weight, the pressure would definitely feel worse than before. If she tried to go back in comfortable clothes, Maria might grind her teeth and burn all the work clothes instead.

“I need lighter clothes!”

“All of a sudden?” Aren asked.

“Let’s go to the plaza before we leave! We’ve never even been to the Demetra territory plaza, have we?”

“That’s true,” Maria replied.

“And Father asked something of us too. Let’s go to the market!”

Rosebell desperately needed an excuse to escape the corset.

Every time she wore one, only one thought came to mind.

Abuse of a minor.

Compressing the bones of someone whose body hadn’t fully grown yet was physically harmful. People in this world—especially women—were extremely short.

She believed corsets played a big part in that.

“Did the Duke really ask something?” Aren asked.

“He asked us to check if there are seeds we could plant in our territory.”

“Oh my! Then you should have told me,” Maria said, surprised at how relaxed she had been.

But even if Maria went, it wouldn’t solve anything.

She knew nothing about farming. Unless she had been helping with agriculture from the start, there was no way she would discover something new. Her main job had always been dressing Rosebell.

“An expert has to handle it. Honestly, Maria, you’re my styling expert, right?”

“Well…”

“I’m right, aren’t I?”

Maria couldn’t argue. She had spent her entire life making others look their best.

“Yes…”

“What’s wrong? I’m just going to do my job. You just keep dressing me well like you always do. Okay?”

“Young lady…”

Maria looked touched, but Rosebell smiled triumphantly. This should be enough to let her return home in a dress without a corset.

Aren sighed as he listened. He was watching Maria fall straight into Rosebell’s plan in real time.

“Still, if this place is famous for wheat, wouldn’t it be hard to find other things?” Aren said.

“People live here. It’s not like they only eat wheat.”

“That’s true.”

“We’ll find something new. Even better if it’s something we can trade later.”

Rosebell had no intention of making this a one-time exchange. She was sure the Count thought the same.

“It sounds fun!”

“But we don’t know this area well,” Aren pointed out.

“I already asked Daniel to help!”

“When?” Maria asked.

“Earlier, at the fields.”

Maria looked relieved, but Aren frowned.

The honorific was gone.

He didn’t know when they had become close enough to call each other by name. And he hadn’t even heard her call him “Daniel” before.

He thought he hadn’t left her side, yet somehow they had grown closer without him noticing. His head started to ache.

“Rosebell.”

“Yes?”

“You shouldn’t casually call a man by his name.”

“What?”

Rosebell stared at Aren, completely dumbfounded by his ridiculous comment.