TOYLCG 34 🍒

Chapter  — 34

It was her second long-distance trip.

Because Daniel said he couldn’t leave the Demetra territory for long, Rosebell also moved quickly to prepare.

The road itself was no different from last time, but this time the luggage was much lighter. She had decided to go without Maria and take only Aren with her.

“Miss, are you really sure you’ll be fine without me?” Maria asked anxiously.

“I’m old enough to manage on my own. Why are you so worried?”

“But still…”

“If I’m not wearing a corset, there’s no need for you to suffer by coming along. And this time, the Viscount of Demetra said it was fine to come lightly.”

Maria was deeply worried about not going with her.

But unlike Maria’s concern, the soul inside Rosebell was that of a woman in her twenties who knew how to do everything by herself.

Seeing Maria worry over someone with the soul of an adult almost made Rosebell feel sorry for her.

“Take good care of the vegetable garden while I’m gone.”

“That won’t be hard at all…”

“I mean just watch it. That’s all, okay?”

“…Yes.”

Maria looked clearly dissatisfied, but Rosebell lightly ignored it.

Perhaps she was happy about being able to travel in lighter clothes than before, because a laugh escaped her lips.

“Pfft. What’s with you?” Rosebell asked.

“I’m just dressed lightly. Is there a problem?” Aren replied.

Unlike Maria’s worries, Aren looked unhappy for a completely different reason, and Rosebell couldn’t stop laughing.

“No, even so, that outfit is a bit…”

“Stop laughing. It’s not like I wanted to dress like this. And have you forgotten who picked these clothes for me?”

When Aren’s voice lowered, Rosebell stopped laughing and cleared her throat. She hadn’t expected him to wear the clothes she bought in the Demetra territory exactly as they were. Maybe he felt a little embarrassed, because the strings were pulled so tight that the clothes were wrinkled.

“Still, you should dress properly. What is that?”

“The one who bought clothes just because they were ‘pretty,’ without thinking about the wearer, was none other than you, Miss.”

When Aren spoke politely, Rosebell awkwardly scratched her cheek and looked away.

He wasn’t wrong.

There was a saying in her past life: ‘Fashion is completed by the face.’ It hadn’t existed for no reason.

Every time Rosebell looked at Aren, she felt the urge to dress him up properly. Whenever she saw nice clothes, she bought them first and made him wear them—a bad habit she had developed.

Of course, the person wearing them seemed to find it quite burdensome and unpleasant.

“Ahem. I gave it to you because I thought it would suit you. Anyway, let’s go.”

When Rosebell went toward the carriage, the coachman opened the door. Aren hesitated, unsure where he should sit, when she shouted,

“What are you doing? Get in already!”

“Are we riding together?”

“Of course. Where else would you ride? Are you planning to walk all the way to Demetra?”

At her joke, Aren let out an exasperated sigh.

“What about the Viscount?”

“He’ll ride his own carriage. Why? Do you want to ride with him?”

When Rosebell asked with a strange look, Aren frowned. He didn’t know what to be dissatisfied about. His sulky expression was cute, but it felt like he was thinking something odd.

“No, I was just asking. What are you unhappy about?”

“Nothing. Get in. We’re leaving.”

Once Aren got into the carriage, the door closed. The difference from last time was that the Duke wasn’t there.

She knew that he had an urgent matter and had apologized to Daniel the day before.

Still, it was a little disappointing that he couldn’t even see his beloved daughter off when she was traveling such a long distance.

“What could be so urgent?” Aren muttered.

“He’s always been busy. Why are you suddenly like this?”

“…I was just a bit disappointed. I understand, but I guess feelings don’t always follow logic.”

“Are you a kid?”

Rosebell was speechless when the word kid came out of Aren’s mouth. She was just talking about how she felt—did he really need to say that?

“Do you have to say it like that? It’s normal to feel this way.”

“Well… lately, when I look at you, it feels like you’ve been acting more spoiled.”

“That’s because I’m with you!”

Aren looked completely confused.

Rosebell felt truly troubled. Both Daniel and Aren were more mature than most people their age.

But she wasn’t.

Being with them, she felt her mental age slowly regressing.

Even when she tried to think rationally, her emotions would suddenly pop out.

It wasn’t a pleasant feeling. She was afraid she might turn back into the foolish person she had been when she lost her memories.

“What? You’re not saying I’m some childish brat, are you?”

“Yes, I am.”

At Rosebell’s quick answer, Aren was shocked. Even the Duke was said to be mature for his age, yet she was calling herself a child—it was confusing.

“I’ve never been called a childish brat before.”

“No matter how impressive you are, you’re still a kid. What are you talking about?”

It wasn’t wrong, but hearing it from Rosebell made the mental shock feel twice as strong.

Unlike before, the carriage was uncomfortably quiet.

Rosebell nervously watched Aren and pretended to read a book she couldn’t even focus on.

She had no idea how many times she had reread the same sentence when a welcome sound reached her ears.

The carriage had stopped. They had arrived at the midway point for a meal.

Aren got down first and held out his hand to Rosebell. He didn’t say anything, but the fact that he quietly did what needed to be done made her even more aware of him.

“This place is different from last time.”

“We followed Lord Daniel’s carriage, so it seems we came here. It’s closer to the territory than the place we visited before.”

“How do you know that?”

“Remembering roads is usually a human instinct.”

At Aren’s words, Rosebell fell silent. She had never felt the need to remember roads.

At that moment, she realized something about herself.

If something wasn’t necessary for her, she paid no attention to it.

If someone else could do it for her, she simply didn’t bother.

“Rosebell? What’s wrong with your face?”

“Huh? Oh… nothing. I was just thinking that I live quite carelessly.”

“What a pointless worry. Just make the people around you do it. That’s all.”

Aren said it lightly, but Rosebell didn’t feel the same.

If she got used to ordering people around, she felt she would become selfish.

This was already a class-based society. If she lost her balance any further, she might return to the kind of person she used to be.

She needed to be careful not to get too used to this life. At least it was a relief that she hadn’t participated in social gatherings—that was how she had managed so far.

Information was important, but if she mixed with vain people for too long, she felt she would become just like them without realizing it.

Humans were deeply influenced by the people around them, so choosing who to associate with was important.

And that applied regardless of age.

“Rosebell!”

While she was lost in thought, Daniel came running from the front carriage. Even though it had only been a few hours, he greeted her as if they hadn’t met in days.

“Daniel, where is this place?”

“Ah, this is a small village called Litten. We deliver bread from our territory all the way here.”

“Really? I’ve been craving bread from your territory! That’s great!”

As she responded cheerfully, Rosebell reaffirmed her resolve to be careful about her behavior.

Daniel led the way, and the two followed him while sightseeing in Litten. It was a small, charming village that looked like something straight out of a fairy tale.

Children’s laughter echoed everywhere, and the people’s expressions were gentle.

What stood out most were the shop signs. They weren’t just pretty—they were beautiful.

“The signs are really beautiful.”

“I was thinking the same thing. They feel… sparkly.”

Hearing them, Daniel smiled brightly.

“It’s the local specialty. They decorate them using a special dye. Just like other places, it isn’t well promoted, so many people don’t even know it exists.”

“Can you buy it?”

“You can buy it over there.”

Daniel pointed to a shop with an especially flashy sign. Rosebell was drawn to it as if enchanted.

She wasn’t planning to write letters with sparkling ink, but there was a saying, wasn’t there?

Pretty trash.

Useless, but pretty—so you buy it.

For the first time, Rosebell felt a strong desire to spend money on something that wasn’t related to farming tools or seeds.

In her past life, she had loved stationery.

No one really understood the hobby, but the happiness she felt at the moment of buying it was impossible to put into words.

“A gift to myself!”

When Rosebell declared it proudly, Aren let out a small laugh. This was the first time he had seen her this focused on something other than farming.

Seeing her uninterested in jewels and dresses but deeply absorbed in something else felt surprisingly new to him.