Chapter 80 Part 1: There’s an Idiot!

Motifiel’s movements froze instantly, even forgetting to chew the piece of meat in her mouth.

She stared wide-eyed at the neatly arranged knives and forks on the dining table, then looked at how everyone else was holding their utensils, and immediately a fine layer of sweat broke out on her forehead.

Crap, what if they realize I don’t even know basic human common sense and then expose me as a Darkspawn… That’s the kind of thing that must never happen, or else she’d die a terrible death!

“I-I obviously know how to use them!”

Motifiel frantically grabbed the dinner knife but ended up gripping it with the blade facing inward. “It’s just… I’m just too hungry and want to eat quickly…”

Liang Lai watched as Motifiel clumsily tried to cut her meat with knife and fork, only to end up catapulting the entire steak onto Dexilensi’s plate.

Dexilensi wrinkled her nose in disgust, but with Liang Lai present, she still had to put on her gentle façade, so she smiled as she used her fork to pick up the piece of meat and toss it back onto Motifiel’s plate.

But.

“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” Dexilensi threatened in a low voice.

She was already full of pent-up anger with nowhere to vent.

If it hadn’t been for Motifiel suddenly popping up, her Saintess wouldn’t have brought yet another child home to share her affection!

“N-no, I didn’t.”

Motifiel was so anxious her ears turned red, scrambling to explain, only to accidentally stuff her napkin into her mouth.

Motifiel really was just hopelessly clumsy.

“Pfft—”

Dolosa couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing.

She wanted to throw in a few sharp remarks, but when she saw Liang Lai’s worried expression, she smacked her lips and swallowed all her words.

Motifiel wished she could find a hole to crawl into.

She snuck a glance at Liang Lai and found the Saintess looking at her with a thoughtful gaze, making her heart skip a beat.

Had she been found out?

“You poor child, you don’t even know how to use a knife and fork?! You must’ve had a really hard time all these years…”

Unexpectedly, Liang Lai hugged Motifiel tightly with a choked sob.

“Eh?”

Motifiel was stunned.

What was going on here?

“It’s all right.”

The next second, Liang Lai smiled gently. “It’s always awkward the first time you use a knife. Here, let me show you.”

She got up and walked behind Motifiel, gently taking her hands to demonstrate the correct grip.

Motifiel went stiff as a board, feeling the Saintess’s warm breath brush the top of her head, making her both nervous and inexplicably reassured.

“Hold it like this, that’s right, cut slowly,” Liang Lai patiently guided her. “Don’t use too much force~”

Motifiel clumsily mimicked her, finally managing to slice off a small piece of meat.

She breathed a huge sigh of relief, but in her excitement, she accidentally brought the fork up to her nose.

“Ah!” she yelped, clutching her nose as tears welled up in her eyes.

Laughter exploded around the table—even the usually reserved Illucy couldn’t help but curve her lips.

Motifiel’s eyes dimmed a little.

As expected, whether she was adapting to human society or staying with the Darkspawn, she was always the clumsy one, always the one everyone laughed at… she’d always be the joke.

“So stupid.” Dolosa rolled her eyes, but still handed over her napkin.

Motifiel took it, almost moved to tears, until she realized it was meant for wiping her mouth, not for blowing her nose.

She hesitated, but finally pretended not to notice and blew her nose hard.

“Motifiel,” Liang Lai hesitated, “that’s not how you use a napkin…”

Dinner continued in utter chaos.

Motifiel had barely learned how to use knife and fork before she got stuck again—this time by the soup bowl.

She stared at the steaming soup in front of her, unsure whether to pick up the bowl and drink directly or scoop with a spoon.

Sigh, why do humans have so many rules?

“Watch me,” Illucy whispered, elegantly scooping up a spoonful of soup from the inside out.

She was probably the kindest among the children.

Although Astris and Delucia also seemed enthusiastic on the surface, their kindness didn’t come from the heart.

Motifiel nodded gratefully and copied Illucy’s motion, but used too much force and splashed hot soup onto her chest.

“Hot, hot, hot!”

She jumped up, flailing to brush off her clothes, only to accidentally knock over her water glass and spill liquid all over the table.

“Enough!” Dexilensi finally lost her patience and stood up.

“You— …”

She choked back her words halfway.

She’d lost her composure without realizing it—she shouldn’t be like this. In front of Liang Lai, she still had to keep up the act.

Motifiel shrank her neck, looking at Liang Lai with pitiful eyes.

“I—I didn’t mean to…”

She truly wasn’t pretending like the other children; she really was at a loss, unsure what to do next.

Liang Lai sighed.

“It’s all right, go change your clothes. Delucia, take her to the dressing room.”

Delucia nodded and led a dejected Motifiel out of the dining room.

All the way, Motifiel kept blaming herself for her performance.

It was too awful—at this rate, she’d get exposed sooner or later.

“Have you… really never used utensils before?” Delucia suddenly asked.

Motifiel tensed. The Shadowborn were very sensitive to the identities of the Darkspawn—maybe she could be found out that way…

“O-of course I have! It’s just… the utensils where I come from are a bit different…”

“Really?”

Delucia tilted her head at her.

“So what do you use to eat?”

“W-with our hands,” Motifiel blurted out, then immediately realized her slip and hurried to add, “I mean, we use hand-carved wooden spoons! Yes, everyone where I’m from uses wooden spoons!”

Phew~

Motifiel breathed a sigh of relief, silently praising her quick wit and nimble tongue.

Delucia nodded thoughtfully, not pressing further.

When they returned to the dining room with fresh clothes, dessert had already been served. Motifiel looked at the delicate cake in front of her and swallowed hard.

This time, I have to act like a normal person!

She carefully picked up the small fork, copied the others, and cut off a tiny piece. The cake melted in her mouth, the sweet flavor making her squint with happiness.

“So tasty~” she couldn’t help but exclaim. As she spoke, a few crumbs shot from her mouth, landing right on Dolosa’s face.

Dolosa’s expression darkened immediately.

“You—you really are…!” Was this new kid actually an idiot?

“Sorry, sorry!”

Motifiel hurried to wipe Dolosa’s face, but forgot she was still holding the fork and almost poked Dolosa in the eye.

Dolosa: “…”

A wave of exhaustion washed over her.

Forget it, an idiot’s still better than a manipulative psycho like Dexilensi any day.

Liang Lai quickly smoothed things over. “All right, all right, Motifiel just isn’t used to things yet. Little Mo, sit down, don’t try to help anymore.”

She was worried that if Motifiel kept “helping,” Dolosa really would end up blind.

Motifiel shrank into her chair, not daring to move another inch.

After dinner, seeing the heavy mood, Liang Lai decided to lighten things up by suggesting a game.

“Hmph~”

She put her hands on her hips and gave herself a secret thumbs-up for the idea.

Friends…

Aren’t children all like this? After playing together, they become—

Motifiel’s eyes lit up.

Finally, something she was good at! Among the Darkspawn, she was a game master! When playing games, no one ever laughed at her…

“Let’s play hide-and-seek,” she suggested.

Liang Lai smiled and nodded.

“Sure, it’ll help you get familiar with the house.”

The other children:

How childish. Is she really eighteen?

The game began. Motifiel confidently found a corner to hide in. She curled up inside a wardrobe, feeling smug.

As a Darkspawn, her stealth skills were top-notch! But ten minutes later, Dexilensi dragged her out.

“You hid in here?” Dexilensi looked at her in disbelief. “Your feet are sticking out the bottom!”

Motifiel looked down and, sure enough, the tips of her boots were blatantly poking out from under the wardrobe door.

She slapped her forehead in frustration.

When it was Motifiel’s turn to be “it,” things went even worse.

She confidently closed her eyes and started counting—but forgot to ask how high to count.

By the time she got to one hundred and eight, the others were already impatiently waiting.

“Do you even know how to play?” Dolosa emerged from her hiding place, looking annoyed.

“W-we always count to one hundred and eight where I’m from…”

Motifiel mumbled a weak excuse.