Ch.349Chapter 349 – Breakfast with the Young Noble (1)

When I regained consciousness, it was dawn.

‘My body feels light.’

My physical condition was better than I expected.

Compared to yesterday, my body felt noticeably lighter and my mind clearer.

Breathing was much easier than usual, and I didn’t feel any particular pain around my heart.

I was surprised by my significantly improved condition and tried to move, but unfortunately, that didn’t work out.

“Master Kay…”

It was because Chris was sleeping in my arms.

She looked peaceful, her mouth slightly open as if all tension had left her body.

She was quite cute to begin with, but seeing her relaxed like this made me want to poke her cheek.

“…since she’s a girl… her name would be Rafi…”

‘How far has she progressed in her dream?’

She seemed to have advanced at least to the point of contemplating a daughter’s name.

‘A child.’

It was a future that still felt distant to me.

And considering my physical condition, it was a future that was difficult to dream of right now.

That realization made me feel a little melancholic.

‘Still, dreaming is free.’

I thought I should let her sleep a bit longer to continue her happy dream… but at that moment, I noticed the basket containing Chris’s clothes.

I realized I needed to wake her up.

“Chris?”

“Eek?!”

As soon as I placed my hand gently on her shoulder, Chris opened her eyes.

Then, realizing her situation, she pulled the blanket up to her shoulders and said:

“H-husband, I still haven’t decided on the baby’s name…”

“Come back to reality, Chris.”

Chris rambled incoherently, probably because she had been awakened from a pleasant dream.

Fortunately, she quickly came to her senses and carefully assessed the situation.

“…First, we need to remove the smell, clean up any traces…”

“I need to get you back to your room quickly.”

I said, handing her the basket.

Inside was a nun’s habit that was practically see-through.

Originally, I had put a change of clothes in the basket, but due to Kara’s mischief, only this thin garment remained.

And I knew well from last night that it barely functioned as clothing.

If someone were to see Chris leaving my room in that outfit, or returning to her own room, both of us could face social death.

It might be different if it were just our group, but we were in a situation where Diana and the sailors she brought were also present.

Honestly, I didn’t want others to see Chris in such a state.

“So, cleanup first.”

“I’ll handle that, but first…”

When I spoke, Chris had already put her hands together.

Soon, a golden holy power flowed from her, filling the entire room.

Surprisingly, the hot air that had filled the room instantly disappeared.

“…What’s this?”

“I purified it. …It’s not really meant to be used for this.”

Chris said it was because the situation was urgent.

She immediately got up from the bed, examined her basket, and said with resignation:

“…No matter what, it wouldn’t be right to wear this nun’s habit again, would it?”

“No.”

I quickly scanned the room and handed Chris my shirt that had been removed yesterday.

Thanks to Chris’s purification magic, the shirt was now as clean as if it had just been washed, and since I was bigger than Chris, it would cover her body as much as possible if worn properly.

Chris immediately put on the shirt and said:

“I’ll go quickly before others see me.”

“Let’s go together.”

I opened the door slightly and checked the surroundings.

Confirming that no one was nearby, we carefully moved together.

Fortunately, our group’s cabins were clustered together, so we could quickly reach Chris’s cabin.

Chris opened her cabin door with the key from her basket and looked at me.

“Th-thank you, Master Kay.”

“It’s nothing.”

As I was about to turn around, planning to get the shirt back later when no one was watching…

Chris briefly held me back.

“What is it?”

“Ah, um, before we part.”

Chris turned her head slightly, appearing embarrassed.

“…Could you stay with me just a little longer?”

“What for?”

As I moved closer to Chris, she held my face with both hands.

And then, she kissed me.

I felt Chris’s body heat through her lips again, and then she pulled away and said shyly:

“…S-someday I’ll call for you. So…”

Meeting my gaze carefully,

Chris smiled bashfully.

“…See you later… husband.”

“Sure.”

For a moment, Chris and I smiled at each other.

Soon, seemingly embarrassed by calling me “husband,” Chris quickly retreated inside.

“See you later then.”

After saying this quietly to Chris who had fled inside,

I too quickly returned to my room.

+

To reiterate, the ship we obtained from Princess Gabriella was originally a vessel presented to another princess.

Since this ship was designed with the premise that royalty or nobility would be aboard, it was equipped with excellent basic facilities and had amenities that other ships lacked or had in insufficient quantities.

Although the areas were divided by class, even the lowest-grade cabins had facilities incomparably better than those on ordinary ships. The vessel even had a kitchen where fire could be used safely and a dining hall large enough for many people to eat together.

Considering when this ship was presented, it was somewhat old, but it hadn’t been sailed many times, and Princess Gabriella and Domestica had maintained the interior regularly, so its luxurious interior and facilities remained intact.

‘That’s why the sailors asked if this was what they’d been dreaming of when they came aboard.’

They had been playful out of boredom before, but basically, everyone did their jobs well without complaints.

Through the corridors of this luxurious ship, I was now heading to the dining hall.

Partly because I was hungry, but also because one of the rules we established when boarding this ship was to come for meals at designated times.

The reason was simple—it was because of the sailors.

Since many people were traveling on board, if meal times weren’t fixed, cleanup would become too difficult. This was a request from Diana and the cooks, and since they were helping us travel comfortably, we naturally agreed to their request.

So I was heading to the dining hall, but something seemed strange.

‘…Why is the line so crowded?’

Since our meal times and the sailors’ meal times weren’t specifically separated, the probability of encountering sailors here wasn’t low.

Of course, since we were the owners of the ship, we were supposed to eat in a separate area with a separate line, but meeting sailors in this place itself wasn’t strange.

But I’d never seen it this crowded before.

The meal time wasn’t short, so the sailors usually came at a leisurely pace, and there weren’t many cases where people rushed in as soon as mealtime began.

And since my companions and I were few in number and had agreed to come as early as possible within the designated time to not burden the cooks, there was no reason for many sailors to be present when I arrived.

In short, this was an unusual situation I’d never seen before.

‘Should I ask?’

I’d exchanged greetings with them when we met on the ship, so I didn’t feel burdened about talking to them.

Just as I was thinking that, I suddenly felt a presence behind me and looked back.

“Good morning.”

“Ah…”

At my greeting, Chris blushed slightly and averted her gaze.

It seemed she hadn’t thought she would meet me again so soon after we parted, now that it was mealtime.

And behind Chris, Kara was walking up slowly.

“What are you doing, Chris?”

“Ah, that… well, just…”

Seeing Chris embarrassed, Kara spoke casually.

Then, approaching me, she greeted:

“Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

“…What do you think?”

Judging by that expression, this lady has already figured out everything between Chris and me.

No, rather, she practically orchestrated the whole thing.

Sure enough, in response to my question, that fox smiled broadly and said:

“I think you slept well after sweating a lot from your hip exercises?”

“That doesn’t sound like something a young lady should say.”

Her voice was quiet, so the sailors probably didn’t hear… but should such words come from a young woman’s mouth?

Moreover, her expression looked more like one an old man would make.

“Anyway, you came with Chris.”

“We met on the way. I asked her a bit about last night’s treatment, but she didn’t answer.”

Kara said with a grin.

Chris still couldn’t meet my eyes and was slightly averting her gaze.

I also noticed her hand subtly moving to her waist area, so I carefully asked:

“Chris, you’re not in pain, are you?”

“She’s healthy. Rather, now that she’s unburdened her heart, she’ll become even healthier. Yes indeed.”

I asked Chris, but Kara answered.

Then she looked at me slightly and smiled.

“And you can better guess why her waist hurts. You’re an interesting fellow.”

Kara said this while looking back and forth between Chris and me.

I noticed Chris shrinking slightly whenever Kara’s mischievous eyes landed on her.

“Chris, since you came with that helmet guy anyway, you might as well stick close to him. What’s there to be embarrassed about?”

“No, that’s…”

“This is frustrating. Just be shameless and stick close to him and talk.”

Kara went behind Chris and pushed her slightly.

At first, Chris seemed to resist a little, but then she ended up sticking right next to me.

Finally, Chris turned her head slightly and said:

“…Did you sleep well?”

“Thanks to you.”

When I spoke gently to Chris, she nodded.

“Is something wrong, Chris?”

“No. It’s just, I was suddenly caught off guard seeing you again without mental preparation, and I’m trying to calm down now, and then Kara kept trying to ask about yesterday which made me embarrassed, so…”

Chris’s words became faster and louder.

I noticed some sailors beginning to notice the commotion.

I should calm Chris down first.

“Just calm down for now.”

“…Yes.”

“It’s okay.”

I said to Chris.

“Yesterday wasn’t a dream. It was real, so hold your head high. It’s okay.”

“Y-yes.”

Chris started patting her cheeks a few times.

Soon she was returning to her normal self.

While doing so, she glanced at me reproachfully and said:

“Master Kay, you seem too accustomed to this.”

“Do I?”

“…It seems a bit unfair.”

Chris smiled.

“…Though I’m inexperienced, I’ll be in your care from now on.”

“…Sure.”

But I don’t think she needed to say that here.

Some of the sailors’ expressions changed as if they had caught on to something.

“…Did you hear that?”

“How fresh. I remember being like that with my wife.”

“Wait, wasn’t that man paired with the guild leader?”

“That chest… no. Isn’t that the alchemist lady? I heard she’s doing something amazing inside.”

“And now this lady too?”

“That man has dug his life’s grave three times.”

“If he’s dug it three times, there might be a fourth and fifth.”

“Is he suffering from his wives’ nagging five times a day—morning, noon, evening, night, and dawn? Hahahahaha.”

I can hear everything.

When I turned my gaze toward them, I saw the sailors skillfully averting their eyes.

Their ability to avoid crisis seems to be the most outstanding.

I wanted to tease them a bit, but I didn’t have any cards to play at the moment, so I decided to just remember the face and name of the last person who spoke.

Instead, there was something concerning in what they said, so I decided to ask those men.

“Excuse me.”

“What is it, young man?”

“I could give you tips on handling your wife if you’d like?”

The last comment came from the sailor who had mentioned “five times a day.”

Looking directly at that sailor, I asked:

“I haven’t seen a line like this in the morning before. Is something happening in the dining hall?”

“…Huh? Don’t you know, young man?”

The sailor spoke as if it was strange.

“It was suddenly decided at dawn today. Weren’t you involved?”

“What exactly is happening?”

At my question, Chris and Kara also began to show interest.

And just as the sailor was about to answer:

“Ah, Kay. Here you are.”

“Eve?”

I thought she was already eating or would come later.

Eve appeared, cutting through the line of sailors.

But if that was all, I would have just thought she noticed me and came to get me.

“…An apron?”

“A headscarf?”

Eve was wearing an apron and headscarf as if she had just come from cooking.

‘I’ve never seen this before.’

I’d seen Sarah wearing an apron many times, but seeing Eve in an apron was new to me, so it felt unfamiliar.

It was clear that something was happening.

“You came early.”

“…What’s with that outfit?”

When I immediately asked about Eve’s attire, she smiled and answered:

“As you can see, I just stepped out of the kitchen.”

“Why were you there?”

I meant to ask what she was doing in that outfit, not why she was there.

When I turned my eyes to the sailors, I saw the sailor who had been talking to me avert his gaze, and all of them turning their attention forward.

I could sense their intention to watch from a distance without getting involved.

“You can go straight to the dining hall, but would you like to follow me to the kitchen first?”

Looking at Eve’s smiling face, I immediately realized:

There was no right of refusal.