Chapter 25: Morning Antics and Brewing Bonds

After sending Elin away, I opened the inventory.

As expected, Dien was still fast asleep, wrapped in her hair like a cocoon with her eyes covered by a sleep mask.

With this setup, how could she possibly notice Elin sneaking out every night?

Thunk.

Out of misplaced annoyance, I gave a light flick to the top of Dien’s head.

“Wha—what?!”

Woken rudely, Dien glared at me through half-closed, sleepy eyes.

“It’s morning, senior.”

“Mmm… really? Good morning.”

She lazily wriggled and wrapped herself more tightly in her hair.

Snore…

The steady rhythm of her breathing quickly returned, prompting me to grab her cheek and give it a pull.

“Ow, ow, ow! Stop it!”

“‘Good morning’ isn’t something you say while still sleeping.”

“Alright, alright! Let go!”

I finally let go of her soft, stretchy cheek. It felt on par or even smoother than Elin’s.

“Geez… you promised not to bother me in the morning, remember?”

Dien wiped away the tears that had formed at the corner of her eyes.

“So, why did you wake me up?”

She held both her cheeks protectively, wary of another attack.

“When do you plan to leave?”

“Leave? Where?”

“Where else? Are you planning to live in the inventory forever?”

It had been several days since I’d let her sleep in the inventory.

—Which meant several days of Elin sneaking into my bed.

“Well, I’m supposed to monitor for side effects, remember?”

That had been her excuse to stay here this whole time.

“Don’t you think it’s safe now, considering nothing’s happened?”

But that was just an excuse. Aside from the first day, she hadn’t had any trouble drinking potions.

Dien was merely lounging around, taking up space in the inventory.

“You’re just too lazy to leave, aren’t you?”

“N-no! I’m waiting for the ingredients Ranian promised me!”

“Alchemical ingredients?”

“Y-yeah, that’s it! I’ll leave once I get them, okay? Just until then, please?”

Dien looked up at me with the desperate eyes of a tenant overdue on rent by three months.

“Do you find the inventory that comfortable?”

“Of course! There’s no quieter place anywhere.”

“Fine, but leave as soon as you get the ingredients. It’ll get tricky to let you stay here once I leave the prison.”

“Okay!”

Dien excitedly cocooned herself back in her hair, as if my reluctant agreement were her green light.

As I thought…

“But.”

“…But?”

Dien swallowed nervously at my ominous tone.

“If you’re staying, you can at least make some coffee.”

“Huh? Coffee?”

“I haven’t had any for over a week, and it’s killing me. Look at this.”

I held out my trembling hands for emphasis.

“There should be ingredients in the inventory.”

“Then why didn’t you make it yourself?”

“Because of the smell. If the only prisoner in this place starts making coffee, it’ll draw attention.”

But Dien could prepare it without anyone noticing inside the inventory.

“Alright, fine. But don’t wake me up from my naps anymore, deal? Call?”

“Call.”

Thus, an unconventional pact was struck.

Dien busily began making coffee.

Sip.

The caffeine slid down my throat for the first time in a week.

“Ah…”

The sensation jolted my brain awake, enough to make me let out a strange noise.

“How is it?”

“You should open a café, senior. What alchemy?”

The coffee she made was perfect.

“Well, only a skilled alchemist could get this perfect blend!”

“Sigh… You’re the best, senior.”

“W-well, it’s not that great…”

Flattered, Dien seemed momentarily taken aback.

“…Are you okay? Your eyes look a bit… off.”

“Of course. I’m thinking about how I can turn you into a coffee-making machine, senior.”

“Eek!”

Dien retreated into the inventory in mock fright.

Guess I’ll just make her my personal barista from now on. She doesn’t seem to have much else to do anyway—

Ping!

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a communication scroll alert.

Bringing myself back to reality, I grabbed the letter.

<Finished eating. Open the portal, teacher.>

<Understood.>

Shwoosh.

The portal opened, and Elin hopped through energetically.

“You must’ve enjoyed your meal; it’s all over your face.”

I wiped the cream soup from the corner of her mouth.

“Yeah, it was great! Did you have something delicious too, teacher?”

“How could you tell?”

“You seem happy.”

As expected of Elin, she picked up on subtle changes right away.

“I just had some coffee, thanks to my senior.”

“Coffee? Is it that good?”

“Of course.”

“Then I wanna try it too!”

“That’s not possible.”

“Why not?”

“You’re still growing. Wait until you’re an adult.”

“What kind of reason is that?”

She pouted in frustration but quickly brushed it off.

“Fine. Let’s start the lesson, then!”

Elin eagerly clung to my side, swaying her little tuft of hair.

Lessons were important, yes, but—

“Before that, did you take your potion?”

The most crucial part of the day was ensuring Elin drank her potion three times.

“Yep, I took it.”

“Look me in the eyes and say that.”

“I really did.”

Though she said so, her eyes darted away nervously.

“You can’t skip it, no matter how much you dislike it.”

“But I took it last night, so it should be fine…”

“What if you get sick again?”

“Ugh…”

Cornered, Elin made a face like she was about to cry.

Taking the chance, I handed her the open potion bottle.

“The smell alone makes me wanna throw up.”

“If you finish it, you’ll get a reward.”

“A reward? Like what?”

“I’ll let you decide—Oh, you’re already done.”

Before I finished speaking, she gulped down the potion.

“Ugh…”

While she didn’t gag like the first time, her face twisted into a grimace.

“Open wide.”

I popped a grape-flavoured candy into her slightly open mouth.

Dien had made them out of pity after watching Elin struggle every day.

“Good job. What reward do you want?”

“A hug.”

“That’s an easy one.”

It wasn’t like sneaking into my bed at night—this kind of cute request was welcome.

“Pat my back too.”

“Great job handling that nasty potion.”

I gently patted her back.

“Now stroke my hair.”

I ruffled her soft hair.

“You just have to endure this two more times today.”

“…You don’t have to remind me.”

Elin glared at me, enjoying the attention but clearly annoyed.

“Well then, potion done. Time for today’s lesson.”

“Oh, by the way.”

As if remembering something, Elin spoke up.

“My brother came by this morning.”

“Your brother? Lord Gerald?”

Why would he visit so suddenly? Surely, he wasn’t concerned about his ailing sister.

“So, I gave him some water.”

“Wait, what? That’s it? You skipped a lot of details.”

What had Gerald come for exactly?

“Well…”

Elin began recounting her story, starting from this morning when—