I’ve felt this for a long time, but Sylvia is quite a light eater.
Even before my regression, I had quite a few meals with her, but every time, I couldn’t help but wonder, “Can someone really survive on that little food?”
Her appetite was so small that it raised fundamental doubts.
Despite that, she has a subtle gluttonous side, showing immediate interest whenever she sees new food.
If there’s a single flaw in her otherwise saintly and seemingly perfect nature, this might be it.
If you ask why I’m bringing up something so obvious now, it’s because…
“U-Um, Lord Lyard. Does that food look tempting to you by any chance? It looks really delicious.”
“Wow, that dish looks really unique. It somehow seems like something Lord Lyard would enjoy.”
It was blatantly obvious that she had been subtly offering me food every time she found something interesting.
It seemed that since her stomach had limited space, but there were too many delicious-looking foods, she was using me as an excuse to buy them and then only eating a little herself.
The problem was, after experiencing this multiple times today, my stomach was already quite full.
Couldn’t she just buy one and eat an appropriate amount before throwing it away?
Or maybe she felt guilty about eating alone, so she kept offering it to me like this.
“Lady, don’t worry about me. Why don’t you just buy it and eat as much as you like? If it’s about money, I’ll pay for it.”
“Wh-What…!? Ah, you noticed?”
“Wouldn’t it be weirder if I didn’t?”
“Ugh…”
In the end, as I pointed this out sharply, Sylvia lowered her head, trembling slightly, as if embarrassed or dejected.
Did I say it too bluntly?
It felt like I had given her unnecessary embarrassment, and I felt a little guilty.
I didn’t mean to scold her—just to tell her she didn’t need to worry about me and could eat whatever she wanted.
But I guess I made her misunderstand.
“Then… would it be okay if I just bought one of those dumplings?”
Still, my advice seemed to have worked. Sylvia fidgeted with her hands and pointed at a street food stall.
It was a dumpling, a famous staple among the residents of the western region.
Judging by her tone, it seemed like this was her first time seeing one.
“Of course. I’ll pay for it.”
“Oh, no! I have money too!”
Feeling guilty, I tried to pay for it instead, but Sylvia quickly waved her hands and fumbled to take out a wallet from her bag before approaching the stall.
“Could I get just one dumpling, please?”
“Sure! Would you like it spicy or regular?”
It seemed that the dumpling filling could be customized to some extent. The lively vendor asked cheerfully, and Sylvia blinked in confusion before turning to me.
“Which one should I get, Lord Lyard?”
“Well, you should pick whichever you’d like.”
“Th-Then… I’ll try the spicy one.”
With a determined expression, she clenched her fists and declared, “Spicy, please.”
Come to think of it, she had a surprisingly adventurous side when it came to food.
Even before my regression, when we wandered the streets together or visited a new restaurant, she would always enthusiastically try new dishes.
Perhaps she had a hidden gourmet side.
“That’ll be one coin.”
“Here you go.”
“Thank you!”
Since it was a popular street food, it was quite cheap.
Sylvia, finally holding the long-awaited dumpling in her hands, gazed at the steaming food with eyes full of excitement.
Then, without hesitation, she took a big bite.
I worried it might be too hot, but since she didn’t immediately pull away in panic, it seemed manageable.
As she chewed her first bite, suddenly…
“Guh…!?”
“…Lady Eleanor?”
Her face turned bright red, and she started making sounds like a boiling kettle.
For a moment, I wondered if it was poisoned—her reaction was that extreme.
“L-Lyard… W-Water… W-Water, please…”
“You need water? Hold on, I’ll get some right away.”
Barely managing to speak with her tongue seemingly burnt, she desperately asked for water.
I rushed to a nearby shop and bought a bottle.
Gulp. Gulp.
As soon as I handed it to her, she drank it like a traveler lost in the desert.
Then, with a refreshed sigh, she spoke.
“I… I showed you such a disgraceful sight. I’m sorry, Lord Lyard… I didn’t expect it to be this spicy…”
“No, it’s fine. But just how spicy was it?”
I wasn’t particularly bothered—spicy food can do that to people.
But seeing Sylvia react so dramatically made me more curious about the dumpling.
From what I glimpsed earlier, it looked like an ordinary meat dumpling.
Was there some special spice inside?
“If you’re curious, would you like to try it?”
Noticing my interested gaze, Sylvia held out the paper bag with the dumpling.
Since I was already full, buying a new one would be wasteful.
I figured I might as well accept her offer and took a step closer.
“Are you sure? Then, excuse me…”
“H-Huh? L-Lord Lyard…?”
Just like Sylvia had done earlier, I leaned in and took a big bite of the dumpling straight from the paper bag.
But suddenly, Sylvia’s voice, tinged with embarrassment, reached my ears.
With my mouth full, I lifted my head in confusion.
Hmm, it’s not that spicy.
It seems Sylvia just has a low tolerance for spice.
That’s a new thing I learned.
I’ll have to make a mental note of it.
“Uhh…”
“…Lady?”
But why does Sylvia look like that?
Her face was even redder than when she ate the spicy dumpling, and she kept glancing between me and the dumpling.
And then, I realized.
Did I… eat too much of it?
Since she struggled with the spice, I assumed she wouldn’t eat any more and tried to help by finishing it.
But maybe I went overboard.
“I apologize, Lady. It seems I accidentally ate too much. Should I buy you another one…?”
“N-No! This is fine! It’s okay!”
“…What?”
Hurriedly offering an apology, I reached into my pocket to take out my wallet, but Sylvia suddenly grabbed my arm and shook her head.
That left me momentarily dumbfounded.
Did she really prefer what little was left of the food over getting a fresh one? Anyone would say buying a new one would be the better choice.
Only then did Sylvia seem to realize her slip of the tongue. With a startled expression, she waved her hands and quickly tried to correct herself.
“A-Ah, I didn’t mean it like that… I was already full anyway, so I meant that I didn’t need a new one.”
“Well, if that’s the case, I’m relieved…”
Even as she said that, her lingering glances at the remaining dumpling made it obvious she still wanted it.
And when she noticed that I had caught on to her gaze, she panicked, looking flustered before hurriedly stuffing the leftover dumpling into her mouth.
Wait, this scene feels oddly familiar…
“Ugh…!?”
I guess I should buy another bottle of water.
And from tonight, I’ll need to instruct the palace chefs to adjust the spice level in Sylvia’s meals.
By the time Sylvia and I returned to the castle from our outing, it was just about time for dinner.
I hadn’t yet given instructions to the chefs, so I was a little worried that something spicy might be served. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case, so there was no repeat of the earlier spicy dumpling incident.
After finishing dinner, I returned to my room and was about to lie down on my bed when I suddenly heard an urgent voice from somewhere.
“Master! Master! Can you hear me?”
This voice… Is it Primo?
Hearing a voice not with my ears but directly in my head, I focused my mind and activated telepathic magic through the magic circuit connected to Primo.
“Yes, I hear you. Did you find anything?”
“Yeah! I found quite a bit. I actually ran into that annoying-looking old man you showed me!”
“That was fast.”
“Right!? Ehehe, if I put my mind to it, this much is nothing!”
Seeing how smug she was despite not receiving any praise, I decided it would be best not to encourage her too much.
Still, the fact that Primo ran into Creed Eleanor faster than expected was significant.
The important thing now was what information she had gathered afterward.
“So, did he say anything about the term I mentioned?”
“Yeah, he did. Not a lot, but still.”
“Even a little is fine. Tell me everything.”
“Okay, so…”
As Primo’s detailed report continued, my eyes gradually narrowed.
As my suspicions turned into certainty, my gaze grew sharper, as though I was sinking deeper into an abyss.