In Renji’s mansion.
For the cat race, climbing up a three-story villa was quite easy. Ashe, under the cover of night, after her “secret meeting” with the revolution army, quickly returned to Renji’s place.
The Catgirl, who slipped into her room through the window, saw everything inside was as it was, and there were no signs of her locked door being opened. Ashe let out a sigh of relief, her two cat ears, which had been tense, finally relaxed.
However, before Ashe could do anything else, a series of knocking sounds at the door made her jump. The guilty Catgirl’s tail straightened up in fear, and her first thought was,
‘Oh no, was I discovered?’
Trying to calm herself and not wanting to delay, she nervously opened the door.
Thankfully, it was the strange maid standing outside.
“Miss Ashe, it’s time for dinner. Number 86 can’t wait to secure her position as the head maid through her culinary skills” the maid said.
‘Was it already time for dinner?’
Ashe felt relieved that she wasn’t discovered for returning late.
As she hurriedly agreed and descended the stairs, Ashe thought about her role in the revolution army, where she cared for children and helped with simple meals. But she knew nothing about high-end cooking.
‘What do i do now…?’
‘Eh?’
‘What’s this aroma?’
Ashe, not yet in the dining room, already sensed something unusual. And when the maid led her to the dining room, the Catgirl was stunned to see a table full of meticulously cooked dishes, from appetizers like bread and cold dishes to main courses of chicken breast with foie gras, roast duck, and steamed fish.
Not to mention, there were many more seemingly ordinary home-cooked dishes, yet they were prepared with vibrant colors and tempting sauces.
‘This… everything is already prepared’
‘Then why was I called here? ‘
As Ashe was puzzled, she noticed four chairs around the dining table. The maid and Eileen, who had returned home, occupied two of them. The remaining two, one obviously at the head of the table, and the last one,
‘could it be…’
Gulp.
Ashe’s throat involuntarily moved, and her stomach seemed to be protesting subtly.
Usually, in the revolution army, it was mostly potato porridge, with a few vegetable leaves on occasion. Getting a fried dish with oil was like a New Year’s feast, let alone meat.
Demi human generally have a larger appetite than humans, especially those like Ashe in their developmental period. Faced with such a huge temptation, her long-repressed instincts started to stir.
The most torturous thing for a hungry person isn’t watching delicious food but watching others savoring it with relish!
Okay then.
Describing Eileen’s current state at the dining table as ‘savoring with relish’ would be too mild. More accurately, the girl was eating voraciously, wishing she had four hands to enjoy the feast.
After becoming an Eclipse, Eileen’s appetite had indeed increased dramatically. And considering that her background was similar to Ashe’s, coming from the slums, she had never seen such a lavish and luxurious dinner before.
Gulp, gulp*
Ashe’s salivary glands were secreting mucus furiously, as if whispers from the devil kept urging her to take the remaining chair at the dining table.
By the time Ashe regained her composure, she… she had already taken the seat!…
“Don’t be so hesitant! Come on, this, this, and these, eat more… can’t let me be the only one getting fat” Eileen, after pulling Ashe to her seat, started to fill the plates in front of Ashe with food.
If not for the last sentence spoken in a guilty whisper, it would have been quite commendable.
Unfortunately, before Ashe could even start eating, her attempt was halted by Number 86.
[Stoneface*. Master has ordered that Miss Ashe is not yet allowed to eat these]
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Ashe apologized in panic, quickly putting down her guilty chopsticks and preparing to stand up from the chair, like a slave should, standing outside, watching her masters eat.
But before she could finish, footsteps approached from behind. Turning around, Ashe saw the mansion’s owner, the noble young man.
Renji, now wearing a kitchen apron and oven mitts, carried a small clay pot of porridge. He came to Ashe’s side, replacing her dish of food with the pot of porridge.
“This is for you.” With this simple sentence, Renji returned to the head of the table to enjoy his dinner.
‘This is mine?’
Ashe looked at the young man who had just cooked, and then at the pot in front of her. She felt her worldview being severely challenged, an indescribable emotion uncontrollably emerging from her heart.
Because…
‘A master cook… for a slave?’
If that wasn’t shocking enough, the maid beside her began to explain, [Based on my calculations and analysis, a sudden change in Miss Ashe’s diet and the intake of too many fats is not advisable. The guidance suggests continuing a light diet, gradually adding eggs, dairy, and meat until the body fully adapts. This porridge was voluntarily prepared by master specifically for Miss Ashe’s nourishment, * Number 86 explained, helping her cool and aloof master*]
Ashe: “…”
She carefully opened the lid of the clay pot, and a white steam rose up, followed by the strong aroma of the porridge. The porridge was rich with various ingredients like barley, vegetables, shredded meat, and yam. The more complex the porridge, the more difficult and energy-consuming it is to prepare.
Now, it actually wasn’t about the porridge anymore.
It was more about the meaning behind this bowl of porridge.
‘When was the last time someone cared and paid attention to me like this?’
‘Ah, I remembered…’
Blurry images surfaced. She was only a few years old at the time. The dining table wasn’t as beautiful then, and the food wasn’t as plentiful and delicious. But they were happy because she could get her father to feed her by acting cute, and her mother would spend hours baking her younger sister’s favorite cookies.
Until a fire ravaged their lives, human soldiers invaded, and under a night sky stained red by flames, her people were captured, caged, and collared. She and her sister could only hide in the trees, helplessly watching everything unfold.
Later, to survive, she and her sister began to wander, even getting separated. Fortunately, at her most desperate moment, she found the revolutionaries.
Although her time with the revolutionaries was short, just half a year, her hard work and endurance quickly earned her a place and trust among them. But precisely because of this, Ashe could feel the oppressive atmosphere in the revolutionaries more acutely.
On the surface, everyone encouraged and helped each other, but Ashe, sensitive as she was, knew these were mere facades, fragile and easily broken. As the revolutionaries’ situation worsened, internal conflicts and disputes became more frequent, and no real way out seemed visible. They called themselves “revolution army” but they were just a group of people clinging to each other in desperation.
Drip, drip*
Ashe didn’t know why, but her vision blurred, a thick mist of tears clouding her sight, with some drops falling into her porridge.
She hated this side of herself, especially when she thought of the revolutionaries depending on her, it filled her with guilt. Yet, in moments like these, with Eileen, the strange maid, and her new master showing care in their ways, Ashe wished time could freeze.
They say a hundred bucks can buy a desperate beggar, and everyone thinks it’s too easy, right? But in reality, who would actually do it?
At least for Ashe, Renji was the first. Not just as a human noble, but the first person since the loss of her parents to cook a meal just for her.
Even if it was just a pot of porridge.
Ashe buried her head into the porridge, clutching the wooden spoon tightly, spooning it into her mouth, hoping to hide her tear-streaked face this way.
‘Master’s porridge…’
‘It tasted so good’
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