Leon, who was lowering his head, only raised his head in surprise at the hand that was reaching out to him. Then he regretted it. It was because he wasn’t prepared to see Adele’s face yet.

So he closed his eyes tightly. Then he heard a kind voice. “Leon, let’s go together.”

Where?

However, Leon couldn’t bear to ask the question and clumsily grabbed Adele’s hand. As soon as her soft and warm hand touched his, somehow, the tension that had enveloped him subsided.

“Where is the kitchen?”

“I know,” Leon answered in a low voice. Then, he headed to the kitchen.

It isn’t meal prep time, so most of the workers are taking a break.

-knock knock.

“Can I borrow the kitchen for a moment?”

The cook quickly recognized Adele, who had recently been rumored in the mansion. She is the first woman the owner of the mansion brings.

Although she is a mother of a child, she is enough to draw everyone’s curiosity.

“There is still time until we prepare the meal, so you can use it.”

“I’ll also borrow some ingredients.”

“What do you need?”

“A little bread, two eggs, milk, sugar, and maybe a banana or an apple if you have one?”

These are fruits that are difficult to eat unless you live in a nice house to some extent. So Adele has never tasted it in her present life. Because she is very poor.

“There are no bananas now, but there are many apples.”

However, the cook was mistaken when she calmly asked for sugar, milk, and fruit. It sounds like she was born into a better family than he thought.

The glow of her shiny skin from eating well recently, her calm tone of voice, and her gentle gestures were enough to cause misunderstanding.

“I will prepare all of it.”

“Thank you.”

“No, this is nothing.”

As soon as the ingredients were ready, Adele turned to the children.

She said, “Okay then, would you like to wash your hands? You know how to wash your hands, don’t you, gentlemen?”

“I-I know!”

“I know it very well.”

The two wash their hands competitively. Adele handed out a loaf of bread and a large bowl for the children who had dried their hands with clean towels.

“Can you tear the bread first?”

The first to touch the bread was Ronschka. He tore the bread apart as if he was sure he was doing what his mother said right. The fine white bread was torn like a chicken breast.

Then Leon picked up the remaining bread, and he imitated Ronshka.

“You two did well!”

Even though it was a trivial compliment, Ronschka grinned. Leon, for some reason, felt relaxed too.

The bread they happily tore went into the bowl.

“Let’s spread the bread on the baking pan. Yes, like that.”

Then, a previously prepared mixture of milk, sugar, and eggs was poured. This time they placed the sliced apple on top.

The pounding heart was now beating calmly. It was a little difficult for Leon to tell if this was a dream or not.

I thought I would be scolded for sure, but why am I cooking here with Ronschka’s mom?

But he doesn’t hate it. Rather, it’s fun.

He asked Adele, “Shall I add more apples?”

“Let’s add another layer of bread first.”

“Yes.”

Leon’s mouth, which had been tightly shut the whole time, drew an arc softly, and his blue eyes twinkled like stars.

Ronschka also looked very excited. He was working hard to help Adele as if he had forgotten that he had fought with Leon a moment ago.

“Now then, shall we put this in the oven?”

As soon as the baking pan was in the oven, Adele served warm milk to the children sitting around the small table in the kitchen.

Leon wrapped his hand around the warm cup and tasted a little of his milk.

Sweet and delicious. It’s like the taste of the milk Master gives me sometimes when I can’t sleep.

-plip.

Tears like peas fell from Leon’s eyes.

“Sob sob.”

Hearing his sobs, the cooks glanced at him but didn’t speak a word. It was because they guessed something must have happened between the children.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I was wrong,” said Leon with tears dripping down his face.

Now I understand. I envy Ronschka.

Even if he doesn’t have parents, he has a teacher. He thought he just had to work hard to rebuild his family in the future.

Leon sniveled and continued, “I envy you. I-I don’t have a mother.”

He tried to stop his crying, but the child who only knew how to cry silently only looked pitiful.

“Leon.”

Adele carefully reached out and stroked Leon’s hair.

“It’s okay, Leon.”

Ronschka liked his sweet mother, but now he somehow hates the situation.

‘Don’t pet Leon!’

His stomach is burning. Ronschka immediately approached Adele, grabbed her skirt, and clung to her legs.

“Ronschka?”

“I-I hate it! Don’t touch him!”

His little body trembled slightly.

So far, she’s tried to pour her love into him, but it seems her son is still worried. Seeing this, Adele smiled gently and bent down.

“Ronschka, why is that?”

“I-I hate it when Mom touches Leon!”

“I see.”

She would obviously do anything for Ronschka. However, she was unable to comply with this request.

“Will you listen to Mom?”

He does not live alone in the world. One day Ronschka had to come out of his shell and look outside like a bird hatching from its egg.

“Ronschka, I want you to be friendly with someone else.”

“W-why?”

His expression seems to say ‘All I need is my mother.’

Blind affection is indeed very beautiful, but at the same time it also hurts your heart.

“Because I want Ronschka to be happy. I want Ronschka’s world to be wider. I hope you learn to communicate with others as well.”

“W-why should I?”

“That will make Ronschka happier.”

Ronschka calmed down hearing his mother speak in a friendly voice. He doesn’t understand everything yet, but he believes everything his mother says.

“T-then just a little bit,” said Ronschka, raising his bowed head.

Her son learned to yield for the first time. It was so special that Adele hugged Ronschka tightly. Then she turned around and looked at Leon again.

Leon was still crying. The snow might melt from his tears.

“Leon.”

Adele went up to Leon and hugged him just like she did to Ronschka.

“Stop crying. This will make your eyes puffy.”

“But!”

“It’s fine. Originally, children grow up fighting. Instead, make sure to apologize after a fight if you feel that you have done something wrong.”

At those words, Leon turned to Ronschka, still crying. He said, “I’m sorry, Ronschka.”

Ronschka’s face was full of displeasure, but he accepted his apology.

Adele wiped Leon’s face clean with a wet towel. In the process, Ronschka whined some more, but eventually accepted it anyway.

Meanwhile, the bread pudding she had left in the oven was browning. Carefully taking it out, Adele scooped it up with a large spoon and transferred it to small bowls.

Steam rose from the deliciously baked pudding. When she put two small bowls down in front of the children, their eyes twinkle.

“Now, shall we eat?”

“Yes.”

Leon took a spoonful of bread pudding. The soft, warm bread pudding smelled faintly of apples. As if Ronschka didn’t want to lose, he scooped up the bread pudding and put it in his mouth.

“Oh! Let it cool down first, Ronschka.”

The startled Ronschka calmed down only after drinking the water Adele gave him. Leon saw it and stopped the spoon he was about to put in his mouth and blew on it.

‘I can’t wait to put it in my mouth.’

He blew on it to cool it then put it in his mouth. The sweet taste of bread pudding filled his mouth.

“Is it delicious?”

“It is.”

Leon ate heartily.

Meanwhile, Ronschka held out his empty bowl to ask for more. Even though it’s not a big deal, seeing the children eating so well made Adele happy.

“It’s really tasty.”

Leon couldn’t stop saying that it was delicious the entire time he ate it.

Weird. I think I ate a lot of expensive and good food with my teacher, but this was more delicious.

For a while, a warm atmosphere pervaded the kitchen.

Leon and Ronschka apologized to each other, and it felt like they were growing closer.

Though still grumbling, Ronschka didn’t move away from Leon. Of course, when Leon approached Adele, his mother, he grumbled again, but at least it wasn’t as bad as before.

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