Chapter 46 — Is This Perhaps a Childcare Story?
Thankfully, the situation she had worried about didn’t happen. It turned out to be a surprisingly peaceful outing.
‘Wait, I need to stay focused! This isn’t a fun trip!’
Mesmerized by the scenery around her, Miela quickly snapped herself out of it.
‘Whew, I almost forgot my duties as the future Lady of the Domain!’
‘But still… the scenery is just so beautiful…’
Indeed, the Balrua territory was a truly pleasant place to live. Fertile land for farming, a river with clear water flowing endlessly, and the chirping of birds cutting through the blue sky.
‘Maybe this place really is heaven…’
Miela felt once again that she had made the right decision in coming to Balrua, holding Estin’s hand. If she had let her fears and uncertainty make her give up, nothing would have changed.
She would’ve ended up living a hard, lonely life in a village where no one was on her side — not even Estin.
‘But here in Balrua, there are so many people who truly care about me.’
From Estin, to the Duke and Duchess, to the steward, the head maid, the knights, and all the other servants in the household.
‘That’s why I want to be more helpful to the Duke’s family. I don’t want to just sit around as a symbolic Lady of the Domain. Even if I’m only a “future” one for now.’
With that resolve, Miela’s eyes sparkled with determination.
‘I want to try something. Anything I can do.’
But even the firmest resolve melted helplessly before the fragrant, sweet smell of delicious food!
“Wow, what is that smell? Something smells incredibly sweet!”
Just then, the three of them had entered the busiest street in the Balrua territory.
Vendors were bustling about in front of their shops trying to attract customers, passersby were weaving through the crowd, and customers were browsing goods. But Miela’s attention was fixed solely on one thing — food, snacks, and more food.
“That’s a sugar cookie. Made by melting and hardening sugar. It’s hard, but sticky.”
Estin glanced at where Miela was looking and explained. He was about to add that it wasn’t the healthiest thing, but Miela was already swallowing her saliva. Watching her, the Duke swiftly stepped forward.
“Two silver. I’ll take two sugar cookies.”
“Yes, sir! Right away!”
The vendor beamed with joy at the brisk customer who handed over the money without any haggling.
“Here you go, Miela.”
“Wow! Thank you! I’ll enjoy it!”
Grinning from ear to ear, Miela bit into the sugar cookie that Yurhan had handed her. It had a different charm from the desserts at the Duke’s mansion, but it was still so delicious!
‘If Mom were still alive, she would’ve scolded me for eating this. Said it would rot my teeth.’
She had always honored her mother’s words. But ever since meeting Titi, she had unintentionally kept eating sweets. Even when she tried to avoid them, she couldn’t resist. It was only now that she realized how many delicious things existed in the world.
‘Hehe… I feel like a mouse hiding in a hole, secretly nibbling on cheese.’
Meanwhile, Estin muttered in an unimpressed tone.
“This isn’t good, Father. Mother’s going to scold you if she finds out.”
Rightfully so. Regina was always very particular about hygiene. If she saw someone using a ladle coated in hardened sugar to scoop out syrup like this, she would absolutely flip out.
But Yurhan nonchalantly replied, pretending nothing was wrong, and instead warned Estin to keep quiet.
“Shh. As long as you keep your mouth shut, no one gets scolded. Got it?”
“What do you mean…? Trying to bribe me with a sugar cookie won’t wor—mph!”
Yurhan shoved the leftover cookie into Estin’s mouth, effectively silencing him. It was a surprisingly forceful way to say “zip it.”
‘Really, Father? I’m not a kid. As if I’d fall for someth—’
And yet… the cookie was sweet. Incredibly sweet. So sweet it made his head tingle.
‘Guess it’s a good thing Miela likes sweets.’
Meanwhile, Miela glanced at Yurhan mid-bite. Estin had a cookie, and she had one too — but Yurhan didn’t. That didn’t sit right with her.
“Um… Lord Yurhan?”
There weren’t many people nearby at the moment, so she whispered quietly. Yurhan looked down at her curiously, not catching on at all.
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s just…”
She wanted to do what the Duke had done to Estin earlier — feed him a cookie bite directly. But there was a big problem. The height difference between her and Yurhan was… massive.
Even if she tiptoed and stretched as far as she could, she wouldn’t be able to reach!
“Go ahead and say it. You have something to tell me, right?”
Just then, Yurhan suddenly knelt on one knee to match her eye level.
‘Oh! Now we’re eye to eye!’
Miela seized the moment and popped a piece of cookie into Yurhan’s mouth.
“It’s nothing big. I just thought you should try it too. Hehe.”
“…Thank you. It’s quite tasty.”
The sudden sweetness in his mouth made the Duke’s brows furrow. He didn’t like sweet things and had deliberately not bought one for himself. But he couldn’t very well reject Miela’s sweet gesture. It put him in a tight spot.
“Miela.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“…It’s nothing.”
Estin sulked a bit. He was low-key upset that Miela had given a surprise treat only to his father.
He had a mouth too, after all. Sure, he already had a cookie in his hand — maybe that’s why she didn’t feed him — but still. He understood it in his head, but his heart still felt a little left out.
“Huh? What’s that over there?”
Miela’s attention had already moved on again.
“That’s cotton candy,” Estin explained.
“Wow! It looks just like a cloud. So cool!”
Hearing the kids’ conversation, the Duke jumped at the chance and quickly paid for the cotton candy. Before they knew it, Miela’s hands were full of various little treats.
“Hey, doesn’t that guy look like His Grace, the Duke?”
“No way. His Grace has black hair. Besides, he’s a busy man. Why would he be here?”
“Pfft. You don’t know, do you? His Grace often disguises himself to inspect the territory like this.”
Just then, the voices of two passersby floated over — it seemed they had started to notice.
“…Tch.”
Even with plain clothes and a changed appearance, it was hard to fully disguise someone with such a striking figure and height.
Anyone with sharp eyes could easily realize that this was none other than Yurhan, the Duke of Balrua.
‘Miela’s here too. Better not cause a scene. This should be the end of our little stroll.’
He would’ve liked to buy her more snacks, but alas.
Suppressing his regret, the Duke led the two children out of the bustling street. At the same time, he briefly explained the purpose of today’s visit.
“A few months ago, there was an accident here. A wagon collided with a pedestrian because some vendors had illegally extended their stalls onto the road. Fortunately, the area has been restored since we ordered the correction.”
While Miela was happily enjoying the market, it seemed Yurhan had already finished his inspection.
“So, are we heading back to the mansion now?” Miela asked.
Yurhan shook his head. It was just past noon, still early, and there were more places to visit.
“No. Next, we’ll stop by the poorhouse.”
“…The poorhouse?”
At the mention of that word, Miela’s back stiffened.
In the original story, a poorhouse in the capital was a den of corruption and abuse until the heroine, a priestess, visited and cleaned it up.
‘Don’t tell me… the one in Balrua is the same?’
Just as worry started to settle in, Yurhan continued.
“Miela. On the way here, did you see any beggars? Or any broken or crumbling homes?”
“Huh? Umm… No, I didn’t.”
She tried to recall the places they had passed, but nothing like that came to mind.
“Exactly. It’d be hard to find such things. That’s because in the Duchy of Balrua, we have systems in place to support the poor and the sick.”
