Chapter 57

# 57

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"Shaving might be a bit difficult now, but I can trim your hair for you."

Schleman broke out in a cold sweat as Nabiya approached him, holding a robe.

"Ah, no, that’s…."

Before he knew it, Schleman was sitting neatly on a stool.

Nabiya placed a footrest and climbed up, dampening Schleman’s hair with water.

Seeing her serious expression in the full-length mirror, he couldn’t bring himself to say that it was too much.

Schleman, with a resigned expression, chuckled and handed over his head.

"Schleman, you’re Nabiya’s first customer. How fitting, it’s quite a milestone."

Margaret and Minerva were giggling on the side.

Schleman felt a bit choked up, but when Margaret offered to pay for the haircut and opened her purse, he decided to go with it.

Nabiya combed his hair with a brush and said,

"I’ll just trim the length a bit."

The scissors in her small hands opened wide like an alligator’s mouth.

Schleman closed his eyes rather than watch.

Rustle—rustle—

Nabiya combed and skillfully trimmed his hair.

Margaret was so surprised by her proficiency that her eyes widened.

Minerva, whose glasses had slipped to the tip of her nose, didn’t notice until she pushed them back up.

'What can’t she do?'

They watched in amazement as Nabiya trimmed Schleman’s hair by about 2 cm and combed it neatly.

"From now on, you won’t need to go outside for a haircut!"

Nabiya put down the brush and scissors and smiled faintly.

"That’s not true."

"There’s no need to be modest. This is definitely worth paying for."

Schleman, hearing the fuss from behind, opened his eyes slightly.

"Hmm?"

He was surprised to see that his reflection in the mirror looked better than expected.

Even when he leaned in close and turned his head from side to side, his hair was neatly trimmed, just like it had been done by a professional.

"Really, is this Nabiya’s skill?"

"Where did she learn such a technique? It’s truly amazing."

Nabiya, unable to say, "In the fifth cycle," laughed awkwardly.

"Hehe, I really like it. It’s the best haircut of my life."

Schleman, who had only had his hair trimmed a bit, kept praising it as the best haircut he had ever had.

Margaret gave Nabiya a generous tip, pretending it was a tip.

Nabiya, needing money for a carriage ride, didn’t refuse.

"Your hair looks great, and we can enjoy tea time even more."

Schleman, who had been tense until now, was now smiling broadly as he showed off the dessert he had brought.

They moved to Nabiya’s room for a proper tea time.

"Here, this is coffee, which is quite popular in the empire these days. Would you like to try it?"

Nabiya took a sip of the coffee Schleman was drinking and started coughing.

"It’s too bitter…."

This made Schleman and the others burst out laughing.

Nabiya, despite her many impressive talents, looked like a child when she stuck out her tongue, saying the coffee was too bitter.

While Nabiya was enjoying a dessert to counter the bitterness, Margaret said,

"Nabiya seems to like sweet things."

'Is that so?'

Nabiya wasn’t sure about her own preferences.

But the lemon syrup cake she was eating seemed to suit her taste.

"That’s true."

'I like sweet things.'

It was a new discovery, as she had never really thought about it, and no one had ever pointed it out to her.

Nabiya suddenly became curious.

"What do you like, Duke?"

The guests looked at each other, unsure how to answer.

They hadn’t seen him eat anything specific.

Margaret, recalling an old memory, said,

"He doesn’t seem to be picky. I’ve never heard him say he dislikes anything."

"I see."

Nabiya nodded and continued,

"I want to use the kitchen."

Everyone looked puzzled, and Nabiya smiled slightly.

"I feel bad just eating all this delicious food. I want to make a simple snack for the Duke."

"Such a considerate gesture… My lord only complained about getting a haircut…."

They immediately moved to the kitchen.

"Shall we make a simple dessert cake? We can add lemon, which Nabiya likes."

Nabiya nodded shyly at Margaret’s suggestion.

"Yes, I like that."

Nabiya didn’t flaunt her cooking skills, but her hands were quick and efficient, and she finished the preparatory work in no time.

"Is there anything else you need me to do?"

"Oh, you’re already done?"

Nabiya had cleaned the fruits, prepared the ingredients, and even set up the tools she wasn’t asked to.

Everyone was amazed by her efficiency.

"Nabiya is really meticulous."

"That’s true."

Nabiya, feeling that her child’s body was less capable of thinking about things, was a bit frustrated.

Margaret baked a cake with a texture enhanced by diced fruits.

Meanwhile, Nabiya made lemon cream cheese.

"Alright, now we just need to spread the cream."

Nabiya spread the cream cheese between the two halves of the cake.

Finally, a snack with both texture and flavor was complete.

Nabiya looked at the half-cut cake and asked,

"Can I give this to the Duke?"

Margaret hesitated, thinking of Lark, who had told her to clear the food.

But Schleman answered,

"I’ll take it to him."

Nabiya, lifting her skirt slightly, bowed.

'Even though it’s nothing special, presenting homemade food definitely has a different meaning.'

She wondered if someone who complained so much in a letter would appreciate the gesture.

Schleman felt very good all day.

He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what made him feel so good, but he was certain of one thing.

'Life feels like life again.'

It had been a long time since this mansion had felt so human.

Even though Nabiya had some inhuman qualities, similar to her lord, it still felt that way.

The child had many wounds.

So, at some point, she sincerely hoped this place would be a haven for her.

Schleman, with a broad smile, visited Lark’s bedroom.

"My lord."

Lark, who had lit the room brightly for the first time in a while, was working at a high table in the middle of the room.

He had tied up his long hair and was organizing documents.

Schleman liked this time when Lark was focused on something.

Lark was currently studying magic.

'No matter what anyone says, he’s definitely from Esselred.'

Although his appearance was more intimidating than scholarly, he was undoubtedly an elite of Esselred.

Schleman, smiling, approached him and touched his own hair.

"My lord, don’t you think I’ve changed somehow?"

Lark, without looking at Schleman, replied,

"Have you gone senile?"

"Senile? My lord, I’m still in my prime."

"You’re definitely senile. I’ll fix your body later, so go away."

Schleman shook his head and said in a subtle voice,

"I’m in awe of your insight. How did you see through Nabiya’s talents and decide to have her cut my hair?"

Lark raised an eyebrow and looked up.

"What?"

"Look at my hair. Nabiya trimmed it."

Lark, looking unimpressed, put down his documents.

If he had ranted about nonsense, he wouldn’t suddenly claim to be skilled at haircuts?

"Interesting."

"She’s a genius with many talents."

"Genius? Not funny."

"It’s true. This is a snack she made for you, my lord."

Schleman, proudly, opened the plate cover to reveal a fruit sheet cake with lemon cream cheese.

"Please try it."

Lark said coldly,

"Take it away."

He picked up his documents and continued writing formulas on a blank sheet.

'He’s writing in ancient script, so I can’t understand what it’s about.'

Schleman glanced at the table, subtly placed the plate, and activated a magic device from his pocket.

"Then I’ll leave."

"Take this…!"

Schleman was already gone.

Lark sighed and muttered,

"I didn’t give you a spatial magic device for this kind of thing."

Schleman was a wind mage.

His ability to hide and teleport was thanks to the magic device Lark had made.

Lark, finding it too troublesome to care, ignored the cake and focused on his research.

He often studied magic when he had spare time.

Actually, it was more like theology than magic.

He was researching how to break the cycle and die permanently.

But since it was an unsolvable problem, he kept recalculating it, and the answer still didn’t exist.

The only conclusion was that he would continue to regress infinitely.

"Damn!"

He threw his pen in frustration and almost overturned the table but stopped when he saw the cake.

He picked up a piece and stared at it.

'Did that kid make this?'