There was porridge in the small bowl. White steam rose from the porridge, and she smelled the savory scent.
Gurgle-
It occurred to her that she was hungry. There was a thundering sound in her stomach, and she felt some pain. She felt like her body was urging her to eat something quickly.
Ingrid took a spoon after enjoying the scent for a while. Even though it was not a heavy spoon, her hands trembled. But Ingrid did not loosen up.
She scooped out a spoonful and brought it to her mouth.
"Ah, it's hot!"
Ingrid unconsciously covered her mouth, and I looked for water. It was only after drinking the water that was handed to her by the person next to that her mouth calmed down. This time, when she carefully put the porridge in her mouth after cooling it down for a while, it crumbled and spread softly in her mouth. The taste was light and slightly greasy, and the aftertaste was savory.
"You can make things like this with peanuts."
In admiration, she took out the second spoon. She was starving the whole time, and as the food went into her stomach, the sound of grumbling subsided. Instead, a feeling of satisfaction began to fill the void.
The warm air warmed the cold insides.
Tsss-
Something warm fell on his hand, holding the spoon. Ingrid soon realized what it was. Tears that had dried up for a long time were falling. At first, a drop or two of tears began to fall, but the tears gradually increased, and her vision blurred. But she didn't stop eating.
Although she cried and was sad, she emptied the bowl. Holding the bowl with both hands, she shed tears. She cried properly for the first time when she came to the Empire. Luana took Ingrid's hand and held it by her side.
Knowing that she could not walk the same path, she was unconsciously comforted by her body temperature.
"The porridge... do you have more?"
"Yes."
Luana smiled and brought back a new bowl. The bowl was bigger this time.
"I can't eat this much."
"No, you can eat it. My cooking is the best!"
"What is that?"
Ingrid burst out laughing. She emptied the bowl more vigorously than before. In conclusion, Luana was right. She emptied the second bowl as well.
'My sister's cooking is the best.'
***
That's a relief. Luana stroked her chest. When she first saw her, she thought Ingrid would die. She thought she was seeing a mummy because she was so skinny than the last time she saw her.
Still, it was not difficult to recognize her beauty because it did not go anywhere, but now her beauty felt different. She had a soft and gentle beauty in the past, but now it felt more poisonous and exhausting. She looked like she was going to die at any moment.
But that shouldn't be the case.
'Ingrid must not die here!'
What will happen to the world when the heroine of this story dies? I didn't know. That's why Luana desperately racked her brain. She wanted to save Ingrid and wanted her to suffer less.
So, she helped her. After making her less suffering and making the dish as delicious as possible, she talked to Ingrid. She was encouraging revenge, telling her story of the past. Fortunately, Ingrid was an understanding person. He recognized and understood the difference between herself and Luana.
'A normal person wouldn't be able to do this.'
She'll only think about herself, but this lovely person tried to understand others. That's why she's the heroine. Luana thought so when she saw Ingrid crying while eating the porridge.
She felt sorry for Ingrid's crying. She wanted to put her mind at ease even for a moment, if she could. So she took her hand and comforted her. Even though she knew how the story would unfold, she couldn't keep my cool.
After eating three bowls of porridge, Ingrid fell asleep holding Luana's hand. As if she hadn't slept properly, she fell deeply asleep. Every time she tried to gently pull her hand away, her pretty eyebrows twitched, so she couldn't bear to move.
The maid, who came in for a while, looked surprised when she saw Luana and Ingrid, and she went back. Then the emperor appeared.
'Ugh, I don't want to see the emperor now.'
No matter how much he was the main character in the novel, he was the one who made Ingrid suffer. Luana didn't want to see him now even though she knew it was going well later. So Luana turned her head away, but it didn't work because the emperor was near.
He looked at Ingrid, who was asleep and reached out. He looked like he was trying to touch her face, but Luana got in the way.
"Sister is sleeping."
The emperor, who looked at the blocked hand for a while, looked at Luana with an unknown expression.
"I am the emperor."
As an emperor, he has never failed to achieve anything he wanted. That's what he meant, but Luana was adamant.
"But I've put her to sleep."
As she spoke firmly, the emperor smirked and tried to say something, but this time again, Luana put her finger on his lips and emphasized silence.
The Emperor took a step back and folded his arms. He doesn't know how the duke treats her and that she is arrogant. Her courage was skyrocketing, even if it looked blurry.
'What do you believe in?'
Do you believe in the duke? Because he needs Luana to break the curse. But even so, she was royal. Somehow, she was said to be of a higher rank than the duke.
"If you don't have any business, leave. You'll wake her up."
Now she was waving her hands as if chasing a bug. It was an amazing sight. However, the emperor didn't want to raise his volume when hr saw Ingrid sleeping for the first time in a while.
'How did you do it?'
In the end, the emperor was pushed out of the room. As soon as he came out, he touched his forehead and clicked his tongue.
"Why is there such a thing?"
While he was thinking about going back in and grabbing her hair, the duke appeared from the other side of the hallway.
"Is she done?"
"Not yet. But what on earth did you believe that she turned out to be so arrogant?"
He was born to be the highest, and never before had he been treated like this anywhere. He was valued everywhere and respected even when he was not present. That's why the emperor was an amazing beauty and charismatic. Besides, he knew it himself. He knew what he had been up to without looking at it.
"Is she being arrogant?"
"Very much."
The duke, who had been worried for a moment at the emperor's words, bowed his head.
"I apologized. She is still immature."
"Why does Sir Legion apologize for that?"
"Because she's my person now."
He felt more annoyed.
'Hold it in.'
But he had to put up with it. She already tamed the duke, and it will only backfire if he takes Luana away from the Duke.
"Enough; I'll forgive you this time since she hasn't been able to learn properly until now."
She said she was an abandoned princess, so she probably didn't know anything. That attitude might be possible. What does the duke see in her since she didn't know anything and lived only in the abandoned palace?
"Thank you."
The duke thanked the emperor.
"That's enough. Take her when she's done and educate her properly."
"I will do as Your Majesty said."
The duke stood in front of Ingrid's door and waited for Luana. He then sent the maid to call her back. The maid cautiously entered, and shortly afterward, Luana peeked through the door.
"Sir Legion, can I sleep here tonight?"
"Is there any reason to sleep here?"
"Hmm..."
Luana looked inside and turned her head again.
"No."
"Then come out."
"Yes."
Luana quietly came out of the room and followed the duke.
"Did you make any mistake to His Majesty?"
"Mistake?"
Luana traced her memory. Then she pouted her lips and said,
"I think I did a little."
Ingrid barely slept, but he was mean that he was a little bit on edge. However, Luana knew that her life was valuable, so she did not actively fight back. However, it seemed that he found fault with it.
'He is so stingy!'
"Be careful in the future. His Majesty may appear gentle on the outside, but he is not so on the inside."
"Yes."
Luana knew the fact that the male lead was a psycho! Or the fact that he would bring a woman by destroying her kingdom? Ordinary people won't do that. The emperor was a man who could do anything to get his hands on what he wanted. Besides, many people around him could do it for him.
"I'll be careful."
Because Luana didn't want her throat to be cut off, if possible, it was best not to come to the imperial palace anymore. But still...
'Ingrid is being locked in.'
It has been heartbreaking to leave her alone in this wide palace where there was no one she knew.
'But there's nothing I can do.'
Because that's what the novel was all about. Luana sighed and made her steps a little faster. It was already dark, so she had to hurry up and cook as soon as she got home. That way, she'll be able to feed the duke.
"You haven't had dinner yet, have you?"
"Yes."
As expected, he felt like he hadn't eaten anything yet.
'Should I have brought the leftover peanut porridge?' Luana left the palace with regret.
She never thought that she would be able to come back soon.