Rest
On a bright afternoon, with the warm sunlight pouring down.
"Haaaaahm..."
Rudell stretched, gazing at the vast grasslands passing by outside the carriage window.
"Didn't you sleep again?"
"It's not that, I think I've just been accumulating a lot of fatigue lately."
Rudell shook his head in response to Leje's question.
He had rested well yesterday, but that didn't mean that days of accumulated fatigue would disappear in one go.
"If you're that tired, do you want to take a few days off from the Disciplinary Committee?"
"No, it's not that bad."
Running through the Back Alleys, dealing with the Cult's remnants.
Compared to that, the Disciplinary Committee work was more like a simple walk for him.
"It's good to work hard, but take some rest. You'll wear yourself out."
"Thanks for your concern."
"Concern? What concern. It's just that patrolling is boring without you."
"As if."
Rudell chuckled at her turning her head away with a prim expression.
"Haah... It's nice to be outside for a change, isn't it?"
"Yeah. We've been pretty busy lately."
Rudell nodded at her words and looked out the window.
White clouds drifted across the blue sky, and the sunlight shone brightly.
The sight of the grasslands, fully embracing the breath of spring, felt like it was clearing the stuffiness in his chest just by looking at it.
Meanwhile, the carriage they were riding in gradually began to slow down, and soon they arrived at a certain location.
"My lady! We've arrived!"
"Let's get off quickly!"
Leje got up from her seat at the coachman's call and got out of the carriage, with Rudell following close behind.
"How is it? Not bad, right?"
"If you ask me how it is..."
Rudell trailed off at Leje's question, looking around.
All he could see was a vast expanse of grassland and a low hill.
"There's nothing here?"
"Hehe, I knew you'd say that."
Leje raised her nose with a smug look at Rudell's question.
"Come on! This way!"
"Huh? W-wait a minute!"
Then she grabbed Rudell's hand and started walking.
Naturally, Rudell had no choice but to resist, and he was dragged along by her monstrous strength towards the top of the hill.
Thus, after a short climb up the hill with Leje...
"Ta-da!"
"Oh..."
Reaching the top of the hill, Rudell let out a low exclamation as he looked at the huge tree beside Leje, who was shouting confidently.
A massive tree, so large that it was impossible to tell how many years it had lived.
The lush leaves rustled in the wind, creating gentle sounds.
"Is this what you wanted to show me?"
"Yes! Actually, I wanted to show you sooner, but I didn't have the time."
Leje nodded at Rudell's question and approached the tree.
Then, she took out a small picnic mat from her bag, settled down under the tree, and patted the ground lightly, gesturing for Rudell to sit beside her.
Rudell approached her and sat down...
"You managed to find this place."
It was surprisingly deserted for a place not too far from the Royal Capital, and the height of the hill was just right, providing an open view.
It was the perfect place to spend some time in peace.
"How is it? Do you like it?"
"Yes, very much."
"Hehe..."
Leje chuckled softly at Rudell's sincere answer.
Seeing that, Rudell also smiled faintly.
Just then...
-Growl.
An indescribable sound came from Leje's stomach. Leje stopped moving, blushed, and exclaimed.
"Ah, no, I mean, this isn't because I'm hungry, it's, how should I say..."
"Don't worry about it, I was getting hungry too."
Responding to Leje's reaction, Rudell untied a small pouch from his waist.
It looked like an ordinary pouch, but it was an item enchanted with spatial expansion magic.
In other words, it was a magic item.
"Let's see... Where was it?"
Rudell put his hand inside the pouch and started rummaging through it, muttering to himself.
Soon, he felt something touch his fingertips and pulled it out of the pouch.
"What's that...?"
What came out of the pouch was a large rectangular container.
"You'll see."
Leje's eyes widened at the sight, and Rudell opened the lid with a confident voice.
And...
"What... is this...?"
Leje asked, narrowing her eyes at what was inside.
Inside were various foods, including fried foods, salads, bread, and more.
All of them were made by Rudell himself.
"I showed off my skills for the first time in a while. How is it?"
"Oh my... You made all of this yourself?"
"Of course."
Rudell nodded with a faint smile at Leje's question.
In his first life, he had lived alone for several years.
Of course, he had never properly learned how to cook, so most of his dishes could be considered amateur cooking, but nevertheless, Rudell was confident in his cooking.
"Here. Don't just stare, try some."
"C-cough...!! Well then, I won't refuse..."
Leje cleared her throat at Rudell's offer and picked up a piece of fried food, bringing it to her mouth.
-Crunch.
"It's better than I thought...? No, it's delicious!?"
"Right? I went through a lot of trouble to get the ingredients early this morning."
Rudell chuckled, looking at Leje, who looked surprised.
Cooking is 90% about the quality of the ingredients.
The remaining 10% is the chef's skill, Rudell firmly believed.
"Did you really make this yourself?"
"Of course."
"Oh my..."
Leje nodded at her following question.
And at his answer, Leje widened her eyes and brought another piece of fried food to her mouth.
"You know, you're really unique. A noble who cooks his own food..."
For most nobles, household chores like cooking and cleaning were tasks for their servants.
Even the Weinstein Viscounty, which was only a Viscounty, had at least a maid to take care of basic household chores.
In this world, where such things were common sense and taken for granted, Leje couldn't help but see Rudell as eccentric.
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Yeah, yeah. It's a waste of breath to say more."
Leje said that to Rudell, who was chuckling, and busily moved her hands.
Thus, after a short meal...
"Haaahm... I'm sleepy now that I'm full."
Rudell put the empty lunch box back into his pouch, stretched his arms towards the sky, and let out a short sigh.
He was already tired from waking up early to prepare the food, and now that his stomach was full, the drowsiness that began to pour over him weighed down his eyelids.
"Then how about taking a nap?"
"No, sleeping is enough at night."
Rudell shook his head at Leje's suggestion as she looked at him.
The reason he went out after a long time was to spend time with Leje.
But if he fell asleep, wouldn't that defeat the purpose?
However...
"Come here!"
"Huh? Whoa!?"
Rudell screamed as Leje suddenly grabbed him.
Then he felt something warm and soft touch the back of his head.
"L-Leje...!?"
"Hehe. How is it? A lap pillow personally provided by the princess of the Dukedom?"
Leje chuckled, looking at him with a flustered expression.
"I-I'll get up, so please move!"
"No way."
At the same time, Rudell tried to get up again, but his attempt was easily stopped by one of Leje's fingers.
From the start, if Leje had made up her mind, there was no way for him to escape from her lap.
"I don't know what you've been doing lately, but you look really tired. Did you think I wouldn't notice?"
"That's..."
"Just forget about it for now and get some rest. I was able to rest a lot thanks to you."
Leje put her finger on Rudell's lips as he was about to say something and winked at him.
"..."
At the same time, Rudell felt his heart pounding in his chest.
Leje's appearance, seen from a perspective he had never seen before.
It evoked an indescribable feeling in Rudell.
However, that didn't last long.
The pleasant spring breeze, the shade of the tree blocking the sunlight, and the gentle sound of leaves rustling within it.
All of these gradually began to lead him into the world of sleep.
'I can't fall asleep...'
With that thought, Rudell resisted the overwhelming drowsiness, but it was futile.
Slowly, the strength drained from his body, and as his eyelids closed, Rudell fell into the world of sleep.
A gentle breeze began to blow from somewhere...
"..."
Leje, watching Rudell fall asleep instantly, gently stroked his cheek with a faint smile.
On top of the hill where the large tree stood.
Thus, a peaceful moment passed.
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bro got rizzed
ReplyDeleteI would be too and you would be too
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