I Can’t Run Away From the Girl Who Saved Me

10 – housemate (1)

＊

I was able to stay up all night thanks to the commotion last night, but I wasn’t too tired or sleepy, perhaps because the truth about her I learned this time was so shocking.

As the darkness outside the window gradually turned bluish, Sylvia and I silently began to arrange the traces of the previous day on the table.

To wash the dishes, she put the utensils in a bucket of water, then lifted the entire bucket and headed for the riverside, and I wet a cloth and wiped the table.

The remaining meat fat on the table hardened and it took a while to remove it.

As I was erasing the traces of the farewell dinner the previous day, I suddenly burst into laughter.

Even when I spilled that meat fat on this table, I didn’t expect to live here forever, but since Lila’s death, or the death of my parents before that, my fate has been changing so quickly.

“It is said that things in the world are originally unpredictable, but there is a degree to it.”

I groaned lightly in a small voice.

As I told Sylvia, I had no complaints, but it was true that I was anxious because I didn’t know what was going to happen in the future.

But complaining didn’t change anything.

“I have to report to Lila first. My brother is not going anywhere.”

After rinsing the dirty cloth and hanging it by the window, I walked out of the cabin and toward the graveyard.

A cool breeze blowing through the forest, shaking tree branches, gently swaying the wild grasses that grew near the grave.

As I approached Laila’s grave, one of the dragonflies that had been sitting on the cap I had planted flew away.

I slowly sat down in front of Layla’s grave and prayed, holding hands.

The space of the cemetery, which felt so unfamiliar, and the awkward prayer were now familiar.

Only the fact that Layla is dead is still unfamiliar.

“I said I would protect you, I won’t admit it in this form… but I’ll keep an eye on you somehow,”

I finished my prayer and lifted my head.

I am ready to accept life here.

But, how long will it take for me to adapt to life in this forest…

＊

In just three days, I was completely used to life in this cabin in the woods.

Compared to the nervousness and worries, life in the forest really had nothing to do with it, and it was even very leisurely.

Of course, the reason I can feel that way is probably because Sylvia-san hasn’t given me a hard job yet, telling me not to overdo it.

As a result, now I was passing a fairly leisurely time every day.

There was no heavy study or hard work, so I woke up late around lunchtime and started the day by simply washing my body by the river.

After that, the day ends with taking care of Laila’s grave, and also pulling some weeds from other graves, cleaning the cabin, going for a walk, or fishing in the nearby river, then returning around evening to have dinner with Mr. Sylvia. it happened

Even the cleaning was something I barely got because I asked Sylvia for something to do.

The experience of not being able to do anything while my family died left scars in my heart, and I was often dominated by miserable helplessness.

Maybe I didn’t have the energy to endure the intense daily life.

So, the current situation was rather enjoyable and even felt comfortable.

Evening time has come again.

I watched Sylvia as she peeled the baked potatoes while blowing her fingers in front of the table.

Excluding the days I was lying unconscious, I must have spent more than ten days here, but I had only eaten two or three times with her.

Her pretty blonde hair was pulled up in a wild braid and her small, well-shaped lips pursed.

“…hahahaha,”

The daily routine of spending the whole day leisurely and having dinner with a beautiful and strong warrior in the evening.

Who would dare to say that this is the miserable fate of those caught up in the curse?

The slightly open red eyes must be a sign of a curse, but perhaps it was because of the mysterious atmosphere that the eyes of an unusual color gave off, and they were just eating potatoes, but they looked very bewitching.

Suddenly, the image of her naked body that I had seen last time passed by in my mind.

My face heated up for a moment, and I closed my eyes tightly, trying to forget the sight.

What are you thinking while looking at your benefactor, ungratefully,

She must have felt my gaze, but only raised her eyes and made eye contact with me.

“why?”

I stuttered in response to her sudden question.

“Ah, no… uh… Ah, I thought the warrior was hot when peeling the baked potatoes too.”

“Whoa, of course, I get sick when I get hit with a knife, and I get cold when I get stained.”

“Aha… I see.”

“Yeah, uh-huh- uh-huh, all your fingers are going to come off. It’s too hot.”

Saying that, Silvia-san threw the potato onto the plate in a flurry of fuss.

I got up slightly and picked up the potato she had dropped.

“ash? what are you doing…”

“Wait a minute.”

I quickly swiped the crust off the steaming hot potato.

Sylvia asked with a small admiration.

“Isn’t it hot?”

“Be patient. I used to peel potatoes and shrimp for my older sister and younger brother.”

I brushed off the potato skins from my fingers and patted a clean, fleshy potato onto her plate.

She cracked open a potato with a wooden fork, put it comfortably into her mouth, squirmed, and smiled slightly.

“swimming…”

“… Why is that?”

“No, it’s nothing special… it’s delicious.”

“A potato with nothing?”

“Yeah, I already got tired of potatoes a long time ago,”

I stared blankly at the potatoes on my plate.

It’s just that I’m tired of it

There would be no peddlers who dared to visit this place, where people do not reach, so for several years her diet must have been game meat, freshwater fish, and a few crops.

Among the plants growing in the small vegetable garden in the front yard of her cabin, except for medicinal herbs, there were no more than three or four species, including potatoes.

Being from an aristocratic background and having only learned to fight all her life, there would have been only a handful of edible crops that she could distinguish, and even fewer were available, so it was only natural in a way.

Silvia-san looked at me and spoke in a soft voice.

“Even if it doesn’t seem like a big deal, it’s a good trick.”

“yes?”

“It means being patient.”

I responded with a shy smile at her sudden compliment.

“Ah, as far as tricks…”

“Seriously, would you be happy if you did it to the person who will later become your wife?”

“…yes?”

“hmm…? Oh, sorry, I made a mistake.”

I can’t have a wife.

Because I can’t meet anyone in the future.

Silvia quickly admitted her mistake.

Seeing her stiff expression, I replied that I didn’t care.

“Sylvia, do you have any talents that you would show if you had a future husband?”

Her expression, which had hardened at my words, slowly softened.

Over the past days, I’ve figured out that she was the type who secretly enjoys jokes and nonsense, unlike her grandiose title as a warrior.

It must have been the same in those days when he was adventuring as a warrior.

No, maybe he was reticent to protect his charisma during his days as a warrior.

Perhaps because he was neglected in a solitary life with no answers coming back, he might have developed a personality that desperately longed for a conversation.

I did not rush to inquire into her past.

It didn’t matter to me what kind of person the woman in front of me was in the past.

It was important that Mr. Sylvia, at least now, was a person who was good at taking jokes.

And as I thought, she smiled and answered my mischievous question.

“Cooking skills.”

I also laughed and retorted.

“Just grilling and boiling.”

“In a forest like this, once you can make a fire, you’re a master cook.”

“…You can light fire with magic.”

“what. Ash, are you good at cooking?”

I smiled.

A slightly puzzled look appeared on her face.

“…Are you good at cooking?”

“Whoops,”

“…A noble?”

No matter how long she had been adventuring, no matter how long she had been camping in the woods, she was a noble.

It seemed that he had almost no experience in cooking properly in the kitchen, not the simple cooking that was done in camp.

As proof, her dishes were not always well seasoned.

At first, I wondered if she cooked it that way on purpose for me, a patient, but seeing how she didn’t remove the blood from the meat, I was convinced that she was bad at cooking.

On the other hand, I was an aristocrat from a commoner.

Even my father was the chef at the Count’s mansion.

“It’s just fine.”

Even if it was because of the curse, the fact that I was a person who arbitrarily intervened in her nest made me feel slightly uncomfortable.

Even though she had hoped for me to remain lonely, it seemed that the debt in her heart would increase more and more if I stayed like this.

What can I do to repay her?

I was thinking about how to pay the rent of this heart.

I said confidently.

“I will prepare the meal for tomorrow.”

＊

Early the next morning, Sylvia took her bow and dagger and left the cabin.

It was to hunt for meat to eat tonight.

Hunting was something that secretly consumed a lot of stamina.

It wasn’t just that it was difficult to move, it was more exhausting than I thought to relax my whole body, hold my breath, wait for my prey, and pay all my attention to my surroundings.

That’s why Sylvia originally only went hunting once a week.

I had already gone hunting twice this week to commemorate Ash’s recovery and separation, so I was going to take a break for the rest of the day.

However, seeing Ash’s confidence in cooking, I couldn’t help but go hunting.

Cooking was not what I was expecting.

It had been a long time since the pleasure of eating had ceased to give her much happiness, and in the first place she was not very impressed by the taste of food.

but…

“Whoops, it was cute.”

Sylvia smiled lightly, remembering Ash’s confident expression.

If Ash wanted to cook, I wanted to do it somehow.

The poor boy who was forcibly chained to this forest, by her side, because the curse was right.

The boy was so confident, I didn’t want to say no just because he was a little tired.

Besides, this was a little bit.

It was really, really very little.

I also wanted to try his food.

‘Yesterday…why…’

Somehow, it was simply peeling the skin, but strangely, yesterday’s potato felt more delicious than usual.

Then how about a dish you made yourself?

Originally, she wasn’t very happy with her tongue, but it was difficult to say that she wasn’t expecting it.

After two hours of searching for animal tracks, Sylvia found a small rabbit hole.

rabbit meat.

It was a common meat used throughout from high-end restaurants to homes.

In fact, ingredients such as wild boar and deer were far from common home cooking ingredients.

No matter how confident he was in cooking, home cooking would probably be the limit, so rabbit meat would be the meat Ash was familiar with.

It would be fun to watch Ash get flustered by bringing an unfamiliar ingredient, but this time we decided not to be mean.

Ash will be with him for a very long time anyway.

Sylvia smiled pleasantly and snapped her fingers while reciting an incantation.

In an instant, the entrance to the rabbit hole caught fire, and the acrid smoke that rose was sucked into the hole without fanning.

After waiting a moment, a chubby gray rabbit jumped out of the burrow to escape the smoke.

With light movements, Sylvia grabbed the two rabbits as if snatching them up.

“Are there two?”

I lightly squeezed the whining rabbit’s neck to break it, but a small grunt sound came from somewhere.

Apparently, there was one more in the oyster.

“Three will suffice.”

It was noon when Sylvia returned to the cabin from hunting.

Maybe it’s because I’m in a good mood, but today’s weather also looked really good.

Shall we go for a walk together?

With that thought in mind, she slowly opened the cabin door.

“Ash, are you still sleeping?”

Sylvia woke Ash and tried to brag about the rabbit she caught.

When I tried to show off the deer the other day, I was surprised to see him suddenly disappear.

She made a childish promise that this time, she would definitely have to hear a compliment like ‘You’re amazing’.

When I thought of Ash’s face that I would love to see a rabbit, I felt embarrassed for no reason.

“ash?”

Ash was not in the cabin.

Subtly, in this respect, the timing was not right.

“It’s obvious, what?”

Sylvia took the rabbit and headed to the graveyard.

Even thinking about it myself, it was pretty funny.

Because of a sense of debt to the villagers, while staying near the cemetery,

It was the graveyard that he had been reluctant to go near until a few days ago because of the overwhelming sense of guilt and nightmares that arose every night.

But, just because Ash was there, he casually moved his steps.

how much you are like yourself

It was as if my conscience had pricked my chest.

But when I saw his smiling face, I felt like it didn’t matter.

I will live with all the deceased in my heart for the rest of my life, so please allow me to do my best for him who is alive now.

She prayed in her heart.

“ash.”

She called out to Ash and approached Layla’s grave.

“…ash?”

Ash wasn’t even there.

.