The peaceful Desmond mansion, today as always.

-Caw!

-Caaaaaaw...

A beautiful day, with birds chirping brightly and the summer breeze blowing gently, was dawning upon Desmond.

And.

"Shut up!!!!"

It was dawning upon Olivia as well.

"Hoooom..."

At the loud noise coming from the kitchen, Rosanna, who was about to go for a walk, poked her head out and looked at the kitchen. And her eyes began to tremble at the sight of the messy kitchen.

"What in the world is going on...?"

Because the utensils in the kitchen were scattered all over the place.

"..."

The culprit who had made a mess of the kitchen looked at Rosanna, blinked her bright eyes, and tilted her head.

"...What are you doing?"

"Hm?"

Olivia, holding a plate in her hand, smiled brightly and replied to Rosanna. Saying that there was only one reason to be in the kitchen.

"I'm going to cook."

"...Cook?"

'Cook.'

Rosanna clutched her heart upon hearing the words that she thought would never come out of Olivia's mouth.

-Mom, I'm hungry.

-Where's Ricardo?

-He went to practice swordsmanship with my brother.

-It's mom, not 'mommy.' And I'm busy right now, so if you're hungry, go to the kitchen and grill some beef.

-Mhm.

-Can you do it?

-Mhm.

Because she remembered Olivia eating raw beef because she was too lazy to cook with her own hands.

Rosanna, who recalled Olivia's eccentric behavior in her childhood, looked at Olivia, who was holding a plate up to the sunlight, and said in a cautious voice.

"Olivia?"

"Hm?"

"Are you hungry?"

She had eaten lunch 30 minutes ago, but knowing that Olivia, who had a gluttonous appetite, would be hungry again soon, she had said this.

Because she herself used to get hungry again after eating when she was young.

The moment Rosanna, who had passed down her excellent genes, rolled up her sleeves to solve Olivia's hunger, Olivia shook her head and replied to Rosanna.

"I'm not hungry."

Rosanna, who heard her daughter's answer, floated a giant question mark above her head and looked at Olivia.

"Then why are you in the kitchen? If you're not hungry...."

"I said I was going to cook."

"So, why is our daughter cooking...."

Rosanna's eyes, who was continuing her words, slowly began to turn red. If she wasn't in the kitchen to eat a snack, there was only one other reason to be there.

"Are you making dinner for mom and dad?"

Olivia nodded her head and smiled.

"I'm making dinner for mommy and daddy."

"Our daughter... it's mom, not 'mommy'."

"Mhm."

"You've really... grown up."

"Mhm. I'm all grown up."

Olivia told Rosanna, who was tearing up, to leave quickly and pushed her back. Because she thought she wouldn't be able to concentrate on cooking if she was next to her.

"I'll make dinner, so wait for me. Got it?"

"Should mom help?"

"No. I'll do it."

"Be careful with the fire."

"Mhm."

"Be careful with the knife."

"Okay."

"And... be careful not to break the plates when you get annoyed."

"Mhm."

Rosanna, who was wiping her tears, told Olivia the location of the utensils and ingredients and then left the kitchen with a worried look.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"Mhm."

"If you think you can't do it alone, call mom...!"

"Mhm."

After Rosanna left.

Olivia, with a serious expression, sat on top of Gomtang and let out a long breath from her nose.

"What should I make...?"

Because she didn't know what to do from now on.

She had thought about what to make for Ricardo when he returned. In fact, it was a lie that she was making dinner for her mom and dad.

"Hiiiing..."

She had already said she would do it, so what could she do. Olivia had decided to make dinner for today as well while she was practicing cooking.

Anyway, Ricardo could come back tomorrow or in 10 days, but she wanted to practice cooking diligently until the day he returned and make it for him.

Not only had he disappeared after writing a strange letter, but he had also made her cry.

Olivia, who wanted to repay the foolish butler for the letter he had written, was in the kitchen for this reason.

'Remorse' was not something that should be done only with the heart.

For that, she had to cook. Olivia, who had decided to make a dish filled with sincerity rather than money, nodded her head and began to rummage through the cupboards. To cook, she first had to prepare the equipment.

"Gom."

-Gom?

"Let's go over there."

-Gom.

Olivia, who had taken out a kitchen knife from the cupboard, began to raise her eyebrows as she blew on the blade to see if it was sharp.

"Hooooong..."

She also checked to see if it was well-honed by holding it up to the sunlight. She cut some of Gomtang's fur and nodded her head.

-Gom?

"It's very sharp."

-Goom?

The kitchen knife was ready, now for the pot.

"Go over there."

Olivia, who had taken out a pot from the right corner, clenched her fist and began to pound on it.

-Clang clang!

"Hk?!"

Olivia was smiling with satisfaction at the hard pot.

Olivia smiled with a pleased expression and pressed the pot on top of her head. Because it was a hassle to move, she thought it would be more efficient to wear it on her head.

"Hmph...!"

Olivia, who had finished her preparations, once again pounded the pot she had pressed on her head with her fist and rolled up her sleeves.

-Clang!! Clang!!

Gomtang, whose fur had been cut, let out a lazy yawn and moved as Olivia ordered.

"Eeeek...?"

Because he was curious about what kind of eccentric behavior the kind master who shared her beef jerky would show today.

With a pot on her head.

"Hoooom..."

Gomtang was amazed at the sight of his mistress, who was looking at a book with a more serious expression than ever before.

Olivia, who was holding a cookbook, pushed up the pot that was sliding down her eyes with the back of her hand and puffed out her cheeks.

She had finished her preparations, but she hadn't decided what dish to make.

"What should I make...?"

She was going to cook for Ricardo, but because her mother had found out, she had to cook enough for the family to eat.

So, a small amount of cooking like a cake was rejected.

She thought it would be good to make a meat dish so that many people could eat it, but she thought she couldn't do it because she felt sorry for the meat with her desperate cooking skills.

One of the things that people instinctively feel is their belief in their own abilities, but Olivia had given up on steak early on because she didn't believe in her cooking skills in the first place.

Besides, wasting meat was something only bad people did, so Olivia, who had decided to be a good person, couldn't do something like wasting meat.

[Steak with a good Maillard reaction]

"This is dangerous."

In the first place, she couldn't stay in front of the fire for a long time, so Olivia decided to give up on meat dishes. Because if she made it, it would definitely become a steak from hell.

"Hoooom..."

There were many dishes in the book.

Western food.

[Orc meat pasta.]

[Slime covered risotto]

[Lizard barbecue, good for stamina]

Eastern food.

[Snake wine, good for energy]

[Orc bone soup]

[Orc tartare]

And tasteless greens.

"This..."

Olivia folded the page with the dish she wanted to eat and smiled. She was thinking of nagging Ricardo to make it for her when he returned.

"Ugh...?"

Olivia, who had lost her mind and only looked for what she wanted to eat, barely came to her senses and swallowed the saliva that had pooled in her mouth. She had been doing a foolish thing instead of studying as she should have.

"Hmph."

She had to think.

A dish that Ricardo liked and was easy to make.

Olivia pondered and thought about a dish that didn't require her to stand in front of the fire like a steak and would be delicious if she just threw all the ingredients into a pot.

-What do you like the most, Ricardo?

-I like you the most, my lady.

-I know.

-That's all that matters.

-I mean... what do you want to eat? We eat what I want to eat every day.

-Hmm...

Ricardo had definitely said something.

"Ughhh"

Olivia, who couldn't remember with her foolish head, let out a deep breath and tapped the pot on her head. She thought it would help her think better.

-Clang!

"Eeeek...!"

-Clang...

"Eeeek..."

-I'm a bear...

"Bear?"

At the word that came to her in a flash, Olivia looked down at the Gomtang that was carrying her.

-Gom...?

-Staaaaare...

-Gom?

Gomtang's legs trembled at his destructive master's gaze, and he began to shake his head from side to side. He didn't know what she was thinking, but with the will that the answer his master had just come up with was not the right one.

"Bear..."

-Gogogom...

"Gomtang?"

-Gom?

"Goom... meat?"

-Gom?!

"Gooooom..."

Olivia, who had been staring at Gomtang for a long time, turned her head with a 'hmph' sound. Since Ricardo had said that Gomtang was not for eating, she thought it probably wasn't a dish related to 'bear'.

Not a bear.... It must be a food that starts with the letter 'G'.

Olivia, who had come up with a keyword, flipped through the cookbook and quickly looked for a dish that started with the pronunciation 'gom'.

[Boiled bear meat.]

[Bear soup.]

[Bear barbecue.]

"Eek?"

-Gom?!"

The more she flipped through, the more Gomtang's cold sweat appeared, so Olivia swallowed a bitter smile and decided to change her course to find an easy dish.

That was.

[Curry.]

Olivia, wearing a pot, began to cook with shining eyes.

"Right."

Along with Gomtang.

*

At the same time.

"Saint."

Elysia, who was preparing to go to the mansion, smiled slightly and asked me a question.

"Is there any dish you would like to eat?"

"Pardon?"

"I was thinking of making it for you when you return."

"Ah..."

I smiled slightly and replied.

"I like a rich gomtang made with beef bones."

For a long time, Olivia had taken 'gom' as in 'simmering' to mean 'gom' as in 'bear'.

"Well then, I'll be off."

Having finished preparing to return to the mansion, I put my bag on my back and bid farewell to Elysia and Hans.

"Shall I take you there?"

Elysia, smiling faintly, said that I shouldn't worry and that she would see me off. With her ability to cross space, it would only take 3 minutes to arrive in front of the mansion.

I was tempted for a moment, but I lightly shook my head at Elysia's words and replied that it was okay. I felt that if I, with my black magic resistance, entered Elysia's space, it would cause various problems.

"Thank you very much, but I'll just accept the thought. I have a rather unusual constitution."

"Certainly, I don't know what would happen if the Saint-nim entered my space."

"Haha... I'll ask you for a favor when there's an emergency."

I expressed my gratitude to the considerate Elysia and smiled at Hans.

"Then Hans-nim, please take good care of the class."

Hans, who heard my farewell, smiled regretfully and bid me farewell. While telling me not to worry and to come back after a good rest.

"The task that the Saint-nim requested has been decided to be carried out with Elysia-nim, so please don't worry and come back after a good rest."

"With Elysia-nim?"

"Yes, Elysia-nim also heard the story and said it sounded fun, so we decided to do it together."

"Haha... both of you are participating."

It seemed like a chaotic scene would unfold in many ways. If the two of them were to get serious, something big could happen.

Well, they'll do fine on their own.

I smiled as I looked at Hans and Elysia standing side by side. Because they were the most reliable people.

Knowing my people, who seemed like they wouldn't fall even if a storm of blood raged, the burden on my shoulders felt lighter today.

"Well then, I'll be off."

It had been about 10 days since I had left the family, so my steps back were light.

Because I hadn't been away for a long time since the young lady had collapsed.

I had been away for a long time when I was young, either to catch slave traders or to kill the villains who would appear in the novel in advance, but this was the first time I had been away for a long time since the young lady had gotten sick, so my steps back to the mansion were more exciting than ever.

*

As the capital drew closer, I smiled faintly and let out a drowsy sigh.

"Just a little more and we'll be there."

In my past life, there was an item called a navigator, but in this world, I had to move by looking at a map, so it was easy to get lost in many ways.

Today, too, it took me 2 hours to get to a place that would have taken 1 hour to run to.

"Can't I make a navigator..."

After letting out a short complaint, I decided to talk to Malik later and focus on the young lady who would be at home.

Because I was curious about what the young lady had been doing while I was away.

If I think about the usual young lady...

-Fly, daddy!!

She would have been playing a game of flying with Darvav, but now Darvav was the busiest person in the empire, so there was a high possibility that he wouldn't be able to play with her.

Then...

"What is she doing..."

I was now worried about leaving the young lady behind. Because she was a young lady who couldn't stand being hungry or bored.

I was worried that the young lady, who couldn't overcome her boredom, would turn into a slime. No matter how much Rosanna, Gomtang, and Tangtang were at the mansion, I didn't think they had the power to satisfy the young lady's boredom.

-Ricardo... I got so bored that I turned into a slime.

"...She wouldn't do this, would she?"

I, who had imagined the young lady turned into a slime, let out a low, faint sigh and hurriedly made my way to the chocolate shop near the capital.

Because it was the first time I was going home in a while, and it was not a butler's virtue to go empty-handed.

"Give me the largest and most expensive one."

"What...?"

"A person's life is at stake."

"...What?"

"My future might disappear if I go back empty-handed. So please give me something fancy and delicious."

"Well... there is a 1000 gold gift set here, but it's too expensive..."

"That's great. Give it to me."

I, who had chosen a gift for the young lady with a large sum of money that I wouldn't have dared to spend in the old days, headed towards the mansion with a giant chocolate teddy bear.

"She probably won't kill me for this."

The mansion can be seen in the distance.

[-Congratulations- Celebrating the Desmunt family's successful subjugation of the ferocious beast.]

The Desmunt mansion, a black fortress-like mansion with a vast site. The mansion of the most notorious family in the empire was slowly getting closer.

Someone might say that the Desmunt mansion in front of me is a demon's den where villains live, but to me, Desmunt was a place more comfortable than any other, like my parents' home.

Of course, the most comfortable place was the young lady's mansion in Hamel, but still, I thought it was good to be back in Desmunt, where my heart found peace.

I approached the ducal residence with light steps, thinking of the young lady who was waiting for me with her neck stretched out.

And.

"Hmm...?"

I looked at the kitchen, where black smoke was billowing out, and smiled awkwardly.

-Hweeeek!!!

It's a fire.

A fire.

-Hweeeek!!!

Why is there a strange sound coming from the kitchen and black smoke billowing out? And why does it smell like burnt food waste?

-Gomtang, eat!

-Gom... (I'll die if I eat it.)

-Eeeeek!! Eat!

-Gooooom!! (Save me, master.)

Whatever it was, I ran towards the sound. Because I heard a familiar voice from inside the kitchen, I felt like I had to run.

And so, one step.

-Eat!

-Gom...

Two steps.

-Eeeeek! Then I'll eat it!

-Gom!!! (Master, you'll die if you eat that.)

After taking a third step, I was able to see the witch sitting sprawled out in the kitchen.

"Huh?"

"...Huh?"

"Uh...?"

Awkward gazes meet.

The young lady, with soot all over her face, was looking at me.

"Eek...?"

And Gomtang's gaze, trembling with fear, met awkwardly in mid-air.

-Gom... (Master...)

I don't know how to describe this situation, but what is certain is that the situation unfolding before my eyes is a scene from hell.

"Sniffle..."

And that the young lady had created this scene from hell.

I slowly raised my head and organized the experimental tools spread out in the kitchen in my head. If she was making biochemicals, I needed to be careful when cleaning them up.

-Boggle... boggle...

A pot boiling something purple.

-Sizzle...

An unidentified purple soup with a lot of solid ingredients in front of Gomtang. And the cutting board and potato peels on the kitchen counter.

'No way...'

The smell was reminiscent of chemicals, but seeing the cutting board and kitchen knife, this was unmistakably 'that.'

Yes, 'that.'

I raised my trembling eyes and was about to speak to the young lady in a choked voice. To ask if she was 'cooking.'

"Young Lady..."

A miraculous thing happened to me, who had given up on ever eating a dish made by the young lady, even if I died and came back to life.

-Boggle... boggle...

Of course, it seemed like my body wouldn't be well if I ate it, but at the situation unfolding before my eyes, I was about to speak with shining eyes.

If I hadn't seen the young lady's strange expression.

"Young Lady...?"

"Sniffle..."

I hadn't said anything, but at the sight of the young lady's eyes, which were becoming moist, I lost my words. Because I didn't know why she was crying.

"I'm... back."

Whether she missed me that much, the young lady, who seemed like she was about to cry, didn't even wipe her running nose.

"Why... are you crying?"

"Sniffle..."

"Ah... no.."

Even at my question, the young lady kept her lips tightly shut and was rubbing the soot on her hands on her face.

"Ricardo...?"

"Yes, it's me."

"...Ricardo?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Yes."

At the sight of the young lady rubbing her eyes, I felt like I was about to burst out laughing.

"...Young Lady's face."

"Sniffle... you shouldn't have come now."

"That's not it, your face."

"I haven't practiced yet."

Looking at the crying young lady's face, it was definitely a moving reunion, but the more she rubbed her eyes, the more soot got on her face, and I felt like I was going to laugh.

Endure it, Ricardo.

"Ugh... you shouldn't have come."

"..."

"Sniffle... can't you go out and come back?"

I shouldn't laugh now.

That was when.

-I'm a panda.

The face of a panda eating bamboo came to mind. I desperately pinched my thigh, bit my lip tightly, and soothed the young lady.

"Young Lady, don't cry. It's been a while since we've seen each other, so isn't it embarrassing for me if you're crying?"

"Uuuu..."

"Why are you crying? Are you upset because I was away for a long time?"

"Uuuuuuuuu..."

"Pfft... no."

I had to either cry or laugh, but at the young lady's unpredictable behavior, the moment I was about to choose laughter.

"Olivia!!!"

With the appearance of Rosanna holding a bucket of water, our reunion after a long time came to an end.

"Huh.."

Because Rosanna, mistaking the soot-covered young lady for an ember, had poured water on her.

"Eek...?"

The young lady, who had suddenly become a drenched rat, looked at me with a dazed expression, bit her lip, and spread her hands.

"Welcome back?"

I looked at the young lady and replied kindly.

"Yes, I'm back."

It seemed like there was a lot to talk about.

First, after cleaning up the kitchen.

*

After Ricardo left, the students, who had free time until lunch for the first time in a while, were enjoying their leisure with happy expressions.

"I wish it was always like this."

"Haa..."

Shuen, who had woken up early in the morning and set her cinnamon roll hair, spoke lowly to Folkner, who was talking with another department.

"Hasn't the green algae woken up yet?"

She was asking where the insolent Luin had gone.

"Luin-sunbaenim? He studied until late last night, so I didn't wake him."

Chartia, who had heard that Luin, who had overdone it by studying until dawn last night, was sleeping, let out a long sigh and shook her head, making a grim face.

"It seems he has finally decided to become one with the river."

Because the green algae was the green algae.

Just when they were wishing for the leisurely time to last forever.

-Ah...

With a cool voice, the students' expressions slowly began to harden.

-Are you having a good 'rest'?

"..."

-We ask for your understanding that the class will start late today because there is a lot to prepare for today's class. We were originally planning to finish it at dawn, but we were late because we wanted to show you a perfect image.

"What is he talking about?"

Malik, who was drying his hair, raised his head and looked at the magic speaker from which the broadcast was coming. He had a bad feeling that they were trying to do something more when he was already satisfied with the current quality.

But as always, bad premonitions were bound to come true.

-From now on, in 30 minutes, the class will begin. Students who are showering or in the bathroom, please change your clothes quickly and wait inside the dormitory.

"..."

The moment 30 minutes passed.

The students opened their eyes in different places.

"What... is this?"

[Siege Team]

In a place where a strange sign was stuck.