Chapter 83

The Reincarnated Young Girl Is Adored by the Spirits She Helped in Her Previous Life :

Sara, Darw, and I decided to head to the dining hall.

Before leaving her room, Sara adjusted the blanket over the wooden doll lying on her bed.

We brought Darw along because it’s hard to carry food.
Since Darw is big, naturally, he eats a lot.

Looking out the hallway window, I saw the rain was coming down even harder.

“Rain… I wonder if the goats and birds will be okay?”

Sara gazed worriedly at the rain clouds.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine. Their fur and feathers repel water.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

When we arrived at the dining hall, Mother and the maid were already waiting for us.

Sitting across from Mother, Sara and I sat side by side and said, “Itadakimasu.”

“Today’s breakfast is croissants!”

“Croissants?”

“They’re crescent-shaped bread! Super tasty.”

There were croissants, fried eggs, sausages, and more.

It was a simpler and less labor-intensive menu compared to our usual breakfast.

Since there was no chef at the current lakeside villa, and only one maid to serve, this was only natural.

“Delicious! Right, Sara?”

“Yummy! I love croissants!”

Since we were hungry, the food tasted especially good.
After all, we’d rescued Loa in the middle of the night and sneaked into the kitchen early in the morning.

“So good, so good!”

“Luria.”

I suddenly noticed Mother staring intently at me.
It was then that I realized she hadn’t taken a single bite of her breakfast.

“Huh? Mother, what’s wrong?”

“Where are Carro and Koruko?”

“They’re napping.”

“Without eating?”

Carro and Koruko always looked forward to meals, so she must’ve found it odd.

“Yeah. That’s why I’ll bring their food later.”

Mother kept staring at me. Was she suspicious of something?

No, that wasn’t it.

At dinner yesterday, she had reminded me not to drop food on the floor.

Without Carro and Koruko to eat what fell, it must’ve been on her mind.

“…I really shouldn’t drop food on the floor,” I said, and with that, Mother started eating.

It seemed she was more concerned about whether I was eating properly than anything else.

If she wasn’t suspicious, it was time to execute my plan to show how cute dragons are.

“Mother, what kind of animals do you like?”

“Why do you ask so suddenly?”

“No reason, just curious.”

If I could make Mother think having a dragon was a good idea, my plan would succeed.

“Hmm, I like dogs and cats. What about you, Sara?”

“I like dogs and cats too! Oh, and prairie dogs and chickens!”

“Yes, Carro and Koruko are adorable too.”

“Yeah. Hehe, hehe.”

Sara smiled happily, and I used a napkin to wipe the jam from her mouth.

“…And you, Luria? What other creatures do you like besides Darw and the others?”

“Besides Darw and the others, huh…”

“Yes. Excluding the birds in the aviary like the owls and hawks, and the goats from yesterday.”

“Hmm, that’s tough…”

“…Maybe you like really big insects?”

Mother stared directly into my eyes.

“I don’t particularly like insects,” I replied.

“I see. …Then perhaps snakes?”

“I don’t really like snakes either.”

At that, Mother looked somewhat relieved.

I didn’t know why, but now that she seemed at ease, it was the perfect time to start promoting how cute dragons are.

“Other than Darw and the others, I like dragons!”

“Huh? Dragons?”

Mother seemed startled.

“Right, Sara? You like dragons too, don’t you?”

“Yeah! I like dragons. Hehe, they’re so cute.”

“Dragons are great—they flap their wings adorably, and their tails are cute too.”

“…”

Even though I was trying to talk about how cute dragons are, Mother silently stared at me.

“…No way.”

Suddenly, Mother stood up, leaving her meal unfinished, and started walking toward the dining hall exit.

“Madam?”

“I’m going to Luria’s room. Surely you’re not hiding a dragon in there, are you?”

“What?!”
“Eeek!”
“Waf!”

Sara, Darw, and I cried out in shock at the same time.

Sara and Darw’s tails stiffened.

“M-Mother, wh-what are you talking about all of a sudden?”

I was so shocked that I couldn’t get the words out properly.

“Leave the food as it is. Don’t clean up yet,” Mother said to the maid before quickly walking toward my room.

Sara, Darw, and I hurriedly followed after her.

“Mother? Let’s eat breakfast, okay?”

“Luria. You went into the kitchen, didn’t you?”

“Eh? Uh…”

“Luckily, since food deliveries are handled outside, it wasn’t a major problem.”

Apparently, the staff from the main estate deliver supplies to the front of the villa and leave without entering. It’s the attendants quarantined with us who bring the supplies into the villa.

“Luria, I told you not to go into restricted areas, didn’t I?”

“I’m sorry.”

I had no choice but to apologize.

This time, nothing serious happened, but if the staff from the main estate had come inside, they would have been quarantined with us.
And if they had left without realizing, it could’ve turned into a disaster.

Maybe they avoided entering the villa just in case I might do something reckless.

“You’ve done something very unacceptable. Prepare yourself for punishment later.”

“Okay.”

“Um, it’s not Luria’s fault! It’s Sara’s fault!”
“Wuff wuff!”

Sara and Darw tried to defend me.

Darw lay on his back right in front of Mother, showing his belly and almost getting stepped on. Mother stopped just short of him and looked at me.

“Is that true, Luria?”

“No. Sara and Darw didn’t do anything wrong. It’s my fault.”

“Sara and Darw only helped, didn’t they?”

It seemed she had also noticed that they had stalled her earlier.

Mother stepped around Darw and continued walking.

“N-no, it’s because Sara was hungry…”
“Wuff wuff!”

“Did Sara eat raw eggs, bread, sausages, and nuts?”

“Eh?”
“Eek?”
“Wuff!”

She even knew what kinds of food we had taken from the kitchen.

“All the supplies are accounted for down to the last item. Didn’t you know that?”

“…I-I didn’t know.”

“While bread, sausages, and nuts are one thing, neither you nor Sara would eat four raw eggs, would you?”

“Um…”

I was about to say Darw would eat them but stopped, realizing it would sound like I was blaming him.
Even if it was to hide Loa, I couldn’t do something so wrong.

“I thought it might be a large carnivorous insect-type monster or a snake.”

Those creatures would certainly eat raw eggs.

“But it turned out to be a dragon…”

“…”

We were nearing the door to my room.

I caught a glimpse of Kuro peeking his upper body out from behind the door before hastily retreating back inside.

‘Mother is here! Hurry and hide!’

From inside the room, I could hear the sounds of Kuro, Carro, and Koruko scrambling in a panic.
With my heightened hearing ability, I could make it out, but Mother likely didn’t hear anything.

“Luria, you promised me, didn’t you? You said you’d always tell me if you brought something home.”

“…I’m sorry.”

When we reached the door, Mother immediately opened it.