Chapter 379

Chapter 3 What Is He Here For?

“Ka… what?” Carlos was somewhat taken aback.

He walked in front of me. The street lamp cast a dim light, illuminating only half of his bearded face. He looked as if he had just woken up, with no sparkle in his azure eyes. Even though he was wearing a rather formal court attire, it completely failed to hide his lazy demeanor.

“Little Hill, you…”

Carlos drew a circle in the air with his finger, looking at me with his mouth open as if about to say something. But he suddenly froze and then burst out laughing. “Ha! What happened to your nose?”

Nose?

Ah!

My face flushed, and I immediately raised my hand to touch the tip of my nose.

It must have healed by now…

Why can you tell?

“Not there, a bit lower… Yes, there’s some dried blood on your nose… Don’t wipe it anymore, it’s already dry… Hahaha.” The bearded swordsman laughed heartlessly, leaning down to bring his big face close to mine, his eyes filled with curiosity. “What did you do? Did someone punch you in the face? Who dared to do that?”

“…None of your business.”

Annoying!

I pushed his face away, turning my head slightly, unwilling to continue this conversation. I changed the subject. “Carlos, I’m hungry. Buy me something to eat.”

“Hey hey, how can you order people around like that… Didn’t you just come back from outside? There’s a market just two streets away. Why don’t you go buy it yourself? What if I wasn’t here? Would you starve?”

“Oh!”

I pushed Carlos’s chest with both hands, causing him to stagger and stand there, staring at me with wide eyes.

Frustrated, frustrated, frustrated…

If I could buy it myself, why would I bother you!

“It’s been a while, why are you getting more and more irritable…”

Carlos patted the collar of his clothes, smoothing out the wrinkles, frowning as he looked over. Suddenly, as if he realized something, his expression changed.

“Oh~”

He clapped his hands together, squinting his eyes, his expression becoming playful. “Little Hill, you wouldn’t happen to be…”

“Yah——!”

I immediately shouted loudly, not wanting him to finish his sentence.

So annoying, so annoying, so annoying…

What do you want to say! Stupid mouthed man!

I felt both ashamed and angry, wanting to smash Carlos’s head. I lowered my head, starting to look for stones by the roadside… At that moment, my stomach betrayed me with an unseemly gurgle.

I froze mid-bend.

“Pfft…”

The atmosphere became quiet for a moment, and then Carlos let out a soft laugh.

Then he immediately realized the seriousness of the situation. As I glared at him fiercely, he quickly composed himself. “No, I was just thinking… Right, what do you want to eat? I came over in a rush today and didn’t have time to buy anything… How about we go to the market together? They say you’ve been cooped up at home recently, almost going moldy… Go out for a walk?”

“…No.”

“Why not?”

“…People on the street are looking at me like they’re watching a monkey…”

Carlos was taken aback, then his expression turned enlightened.

He clearly had seen the report, but at this moment, he said nothing, only looking at me with gentle eyes. His right hand extended and rested on my head, gently rubbing it, a smile like that of an old father forming at the corners of his mouth.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Cheese,” I said immediately.

Ugh…

Why does he smile so disgustingly…

I couldn’t help but move my fingers slightly. But hesitating for a moment, I finally decided not to push away Carlos’s hand, letting him mess up my hair. Blinking my eyes, I thought for a moment, then started listing things to Carlos.

“Besides cheese, there’s venison and beef. Check the store, buy whatever’s left. Yes… Spices, none left. Pepper, salt, honey, butter, all need to be bought. Then… buy some fruits and vegetables. Mainly oranges and radishes, must buy. Other—”

“Stop.”

Carlos withdrew his hand from my head in one swift motion, stepping back a step, crossing his arms in front of his chest, looking helpless. “I only have two hands, so let’s stop here.

“Go back and wait.”

“Oh… Then, the last one…”

“There isn’t any more.”

Carlos fled in disarray.

But I wouldn’t let him off, shouting towards his retreating figure, “Look for someone, a flirtatious man selling cakes! I still want to eat, Opera almond cake!”

“… He’s gone.”

Carlos waved his hand without looking back.

Did he hear me or not…

I stood there for a while, watching him walk away until he turned the corner out of sight, then I turned and walked toward the iron gate of the mansion.

Orange stewed radish…

What kind of taste would that be?

Throughout my walk through the courtyard, I kept thinking about this question.

After returning home, I lit the candle, opened the living room window to let the fresh night breeze after the rain into the house, feeling the air no longer so stuffy, I went upstairs to the second floor, pushed open the bedroom door, undressed as I walked towards the bathroom, suddenly turning around with the skirt lifted to my belly, and forcefully kicked the door shut before relaxing.

After a simple wash, I walked out of the bathroom bare-bottomed, drying my hair while rummaging through the wardrobe for clean undergarments. I found the padded thick anti-leakage marvel my mother made for me, put it on, and slipped on the undergarment. The towel was tossed onto the bed, and I picked out a comfortable white dress, pulling it over my head. Then I picked up the black stockings and skirt I had thrown on the floor, thought for a moment, and tossed them onto the bed too.

I’ll wash them tomorrow…

If my stomach hurts tomorrow, I’ll wash them the day after…

I stomped down the stairs, ran to the kitchen to drink several big gulps of water, then curled up in the sofa, hugging my knees, finding a comfortable position, and gazing out at the night scenery of the courtyard, quietly waiting for the food to return.

Carlos is so slow…

If he makes me wait another ten minutes, I’ll make him eat orange stewed radish tonight… until he can’t even walk from being full…

Tap tap…

Suddenly, I heard the urgent sound of hooves outside the courtyard, mixed with the neighing of a rhinoceros beast and the creaking of wooden carriage wheels rolling over the road.

Carlos?

The sound seemed to stop in front of No. 3 Mansion.

No…

I immediately jumped up from the sofa, running barefoot to the window, pressing my hands against the windowsill to look out.

“Click,” the iron gate outside the courtyard opened.

A woman in a red dress talked with the driver for a moment, waved her hand, and walked in alone.

Hmm?

It’s Victoria…

Why did she come back so early today?

I hurried to the door, opening it just before she could knock, and looked at the blonde beauty with a stern face who exuded a captivating aura from within her bones.

“Victoria, why are you here!”

“Can’t I come?”

Victoria’s expression was calm, only glancing at me briefly. She didn’t pause, walking straight into the house, brushing past me with a rich and elegant fragrance that was very familiar to me.

“Did you have dinner?”

She acted as naturally as if she were at her own home, taking off her muddy high boots, retrieving slippers from a low cabinet to change into, and hanging her shawl on a rack beside the cabinet as she casually asked me.

“No…”

I answered instinctively.

Eh? When did she put her slippers here…

“Then let’s eat together. I’ll have dinner brought here. There’s something I need to talk to you about.”

“Okay.”

Victoria walked toward the living room. I followed her, dazedly, and then remembered Carlos.

“Oh! I sent Carlos to buy food…”

The words slipped out unconsciously. While I was still pondering whether Victoria had something important to tell me and whether it would be convenient to eat with Carlos, whether I should make orange stewed radish, Victoria suddenly stopped in her tracks. Caught off guard, I bumped into her back.

“Carlos?”

I took a step back, and then saw her turn around, her golden eyes narrowing slightly.

“What does he want?”

Her tone was somewhat unfriendly.