After playing the “Spirit Carrying Game” for a while, the room started to feel cramped.
“Would we get scolded if we go outside?”
“Woof.”
Since there was no other choice, I ran around the room, throwing spirits diagonally.
In response, Sara also ran along my diagonal path.
As we did this, I began to sweat little by little.
After a while, I started throwing multiple spirits in quick succession, which made me even more tired.
As I ran, Sara touched each spirit I threw with swift movements, without stopping her feet. Then, Carro, running alongside her, caught the spirit and gently floated it upwards.
Then, Daru bounced the spirit off his nose, tossing it back towards me.
I threw the spirit Daru sent back.
Throughout all this, Kuro hovered in the middle of the room, watching over us.
After running around and getting drenched in sweat, a maid came to call us for dinner.
“Your ladies, dinner is ready…”
The maid froze for a moment, seeing me, Sara, and Daru running around.
“Sara, it’s time for dinner!”
“Yeah!”
“Ha, huff, ha!”
Daru, hearing it was dinner time, started circling around the maid, wagging his tail vigorously.
Carro quickly hopped onto my shoulder, silently urging us to go to the dining hall.
It seemed Daru and Carro were both hungry.
“Your ladies are so full of energy…”
“Yeah. It would be nice if we could run outside, though.”
“Outside is dangerous, you know.”
“Yeah. I can’t help it.”
I held Sara’s hand and followed the maid. Sara tightly gripped her stick figure doll.
“…Where’s everyone else?”
As we walked, Sara whispered to me.
The moment the maid appeared, Kuro and the spirits who had been playing with us instantly hid.
“They’re fast at hiding.”
“Yeah.”
“It’s always like that, don’t worry.”
“Okay.”
Sara seemed to feel uneasy when the spirits suddenly disappeared.
“Are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“What does Sara like?”
“Meat.”
“Woof woof.”
Daru was showing that he liked meat too.
When we entered the dining hall, we found Kolko there for some reason.
Kolko ran up to me as soon as she saw me.
“Kolko! What are you doing here?”
“Koo koo.”
Kolko pressed her body against me in a show of affection. I hugged Kolko tightly and gently petted her.
My mother, already in the dining hall, explained,
“Apparently, Kolko got on the food cart without us noticing, and even though we tried to get her off, she wouldn’t budge.”
“Really?”
“Kolko realized that Luria wouldn’t be coming back to the mansion for a while.”
“Thank you for coming, Kolko.”
“Koo.”
After Kolko cuddled with me, she tilted her head when she saw Sara.
“Sara, this is Kolko! She’s Luria’s friend!”
“A chicken?”
“Yeah, she’s a chicken!”
“Kokko.”
“Kolko, this is Sara. Nice to meet you.”
Sara petted Kolko, saying,
“Ko.”
Kolko closed her eyes in contentment as Sara petted her.
“If Kolko came over here, she could have come to Luria’s room too.”
“Koo.”
“Seems like Kolko was circling around the house and the surrounding area.”
Mother told me Kolko had been working.
“I see. She was doing a patrol?”
“Koo.”
“Thanks for that.”
“Here.”
After petting Kolko, we all sat down for dinner. Unlike usual, all the dishes were already set on the table, since there was only one maid, and she couldn’t serve them all at once.
“Luria and Sara… You two are drenched in sweat, huh?”
“We were playing, you know? Right, Sara?”
“Yeah, we played.”
Sara still seems a bit nervous around my mother.
Her tone of voice is a little off.
“Since you might catch a cold, it’s better to take a bath first, but…”
“I’m hungry!”
“Right, if we don’t eat now, the meal will get cold. We’ll take a bath right after eating. Can I count on you?”
“Understood.”
At my mother’s instruction, the maid went to prepare the bath.
Sara and I sat down, facing my mother.
“Luria. Sara. Today, the maids won’t be doing everything as usual.”
“I understand.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s do what we can ourselves.”
“Got it.”
“Yes.”
I start eating the bread.
“It’s delicious. Even without anything on it, it’s good. Sara, do you want some jam?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
I spread some jam on Sara’s bread.
“You should try it, jam makes it taste even better.”
“Thank you… it’s delicious.”
As Sara took a bite of her bread, her tail swayed excitedly.
“Yeah, bread is… so good.”
I don’t know if it’s because bread from this time period is delicious, or if it’s the Duke’s household’s bread, but compared to my past life, it’s just incredibly good.
Today’s bread is small and round.
The scent of butter and wheat, along with a subtle sweetness, spreads in my mouth.
“Croissants are also delicious. They’ll be served eventually.”
“Looking forward to it. Hehe.”
While Sara munched on a small bread with both hands, I ate three.
One without anything on it, the second with butter, and the third with jam.
“Sara, if you use this spoon, it’s easier to drink the soup!”
“Yes.”
Sara spilled some soup, so I wiped it up.
Since Sara is still young, spilling is inevitable.
As an older sister, I have to look after her.
Lydia-neesama also used to do this for me often.
“This meat has bones, but you don’t have to force yourself to eat the bones.”
“Okay.”
Sara’s mouth got dirty, so I wiped it with a napkin.
As her older sister, it’s only natural.
Once, I tried to crack a bone with my teeth and eat the inside, but I was told there was no need to do that.
“Luria. Normally, you don’t try to chew on bones and eat them, you know?”
My mother said with a smile.
“Woof!”
After finishing his own meal, Daru placed his chin on my lap.
“No! You can’t have the bones.”
“Whine.”
“It’s too salty!”
“Peep.”
Daru is sweet, but there are some things he can’t have.
I once tried to give Daru a bone, but my mother told me not to.
Apparently, what tastes good to humans is too strong for dogs.
Also, there are plenty of unseasoned bones around the mansion.
Daru can eat those instead.
“Daru already ate his portion, didn’t you?”
“Whine.”
When Daru realized he couldn’t get bones from me, he went to put his chin on Sara’s lap.
“Sara, be tough.”
“Okay, I’ll try.”
After a while, it seemed like Daru gave up, and he lay down at my feet.
He seemed a little sulky about not getting any bones.
Meanwhile, Carro and Kolko, after finishing their meals, quietly sat at my feet, behaving well.
Sara, despite eating about a third of what I had, stopped eating.
“Sara, you should eat more.”
“Thanks, but I’m full. Hehe.”
Is that really true? Is she just being polite?
While I stuffed my face with meat, I wiped Sara’s mouth.
Since she’s young, her mouth gets dirty quickly.
“You really don’t need to be polite. There’s still plenty left.”
“I’m fine, thank you.”
It seems that Sara is quite a small eater.
“Luria. Normally, a five-year-old would eat that much.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Lydia and Gilberto also ate about as much as Sara did.”
“…Small portions?”
“Rather, it would be more accurate to say that Luria eats a lot.”
“Hmm.”
Whether everyone is a small eater, or if I just eat a lot, I can’t seem to decide.
“Sara, you don’t have to eat everything. If you eat too much, your stomach will hurt.”
“Yes.”
“The food was prepared according to Luria’s standards, so it’s normal if you can’t eat it all. Don’t worry about it.”
“Yes.”
“Hmm~”
With Sara watching over me, I continued to eat greedily.
“Sara, you can leave some. If you leave it, I’ll eat it, as your older sister?”
“As your older sister?”
Sara tilted her head in confusion. She’s so cute.
“Yes, as your older sister.”
“Lydia didn’t eat what Luria left behind, though.”
“Hmm?”
That’s also a tricky question. After all, I don’t leave anything behind.
So, maybe Lydia just didn’t happen to eat what I left.
