Chapter 65

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I plan to update twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays, starting from February.

As Misaki deepened her friendship with the bed and the Ice Wheel, the door to the room was knocked on.

The one seeking permission to enter was not Lala, who had gone out, but Utsunomiya.

"Master, may I come in?"

"Yes, it's fine... but... if you get too close, it might be a problem..."

"You mean I shouldn't get too close, right?"

"Yes, that would be better..."

In response to the call from outside the door, it seemed like something was happening outside. The door was then opened forcefully, and a golden-haired chick was wriggling, held by the neck.

"Talk! Utsunomiya, talk!"

"No, that's not good! If I let go, Regulus will jump on Master. If he catches a cold, Master will be worried."

"Ugh! Hold me! Nii-nii, hold me!"

Today, he's being particularly disobedient and clingy. Usually, he calms down with just a "No."

As I twisted my neck in thought, a cold breeze blew, and the Ice Wheel sat on the bed. Regulus's eyes widened, and he wriggled even more.

"Your brother seems to sense my presence."

I was surprised by the sneaky laugh that echoed directly in my head. The Ice Wheel had said that he usually can't be seen by people, so can Regulus see him?

Reading my thoughts, the Ice Wheel slowly shook his head.

"He can't see me. He just senses that something unusual is nearby."

I see.

Since I couldn't voice my admiration, I opened my arms in response to the chick's request.

Noticing the "come here" gesture, Regulus approached and climbed onto the bed. The Ice Wheel chuckled again and stood up.

"I'll leave for today."

I can't entertain you.

In response to my mental reply, the Ice Wheel swirled his cloak and disappeared into the darkness of the room. Regulus, who had been staring in that direction, hugged me tightly.

Maybe he sensed the Ice Wheel's presence when his mother died, which is why he's a bit nervous. As I hugged Regulus, who clung to me with all his might, Utsunomiya bowed apologetically.

"I'm sorry. Utsunomiya, I need to clean Regulus's room now..."

"Yes, go ahead. Regulus will stay with me quietly."

"Um... no, yes! Regulus, I brought medicine!"

Regulus's face lit up.

Ah, the chick is so cute. As I petted his fluffy golden hair, he laughed in his high, childlike voice. Then, a knock came from the already open door.

"I'm coming in, Mammaran. I've prepared the medicinal tea, so please drink it."

"Medicinal tea..."

Medicinal tea is made by crushing and boiling herbs, and it sounds bitter just from the name. When I received the cup, which looked like a teacup on a saucer, from Lala and peeked inside, the color was indeed intense.

It looked like green juice, super green. It was so green it was scary.

This is not good.

Just how bad it was, even Regulus, who peeked inside, let out a small scream, "Hie!?"

"... I understand your feelings, but if you don't drink it, you won't get better."

"H-hai..."

With determination, I put the cup to my lips, and Regulus watched me, holding his breath. As I tilted the cup, the green, foul-smelling liquid... no, gel, flowed into my mouth. It wasn't easy to swallow a fluid like this. As I struggled, it kept piling up on my tongue, and the bitterness and foul taste filled my mouth.

If I don't swallow it, my taste buds will die.

"Brother, try hard!"

"Guh... guff...!"

With Regulus's encouragement, I managed to drink it all. The aftertaste was so terrible that I almost rolled my eyes. After enduring the violence to my taste buds, I placed the empty cup on the saucer. Lala immediately popped a candy into my mouth.

"It's a candy made from the nectar of the Tempest Killer Bee. Does it help your mouth feel better?"

"Yes, somehow..."

"Oh, the medicine seems to be working quickly. Your runny nose and cough have stopped."

"Ah, really."

Before that, the Ice Wheel had eased my symptoms, but they felt even better now. However, in exchange, I felt quite sleepy. By the time I finished licking the candy, I had fallen asleep while holding Regulus.

It seems that my consecutive late nights had accumulated fatigue, and I ended up sleeping until snack time. My inability to wake up, even when shaken or called, had apparently become a traumatic experience for the people in the mansion, including Rottemeyer. When I finally woke up, Rottemeyer had told Utsunomiya that it was okay to run in the hallway. Lala told me this with a wry smile.

Hmm, I messed up. I got carried away with the Ice Wheel's performance and ended up holding a one-man musical, but I shouldn't let my health suffer because of it. By the time I had the milky porridge made by the head chef for lunch, my fever had completely gone down. With Lala's permission, I started knitting on the bed. Regulus went to practice magic with Kousuke, who had come to play. Since Regulus started playing with Kousuke, he has developed a competitive spirit and a sense of independence, and he now does things like changing clothes by himself. It's a bit sad to think that he's gradually becoming more independent, but it's for the best.

I wound the yarn around my fingertips and inserted it into the knitting needles. I was knitting a neck warmer for Lala. The yarn was made from the wool of silk-haired sheep, which has the softness of silk and the warmth of wool, and is said to have cold resistance and ice resistance.

The habitat of the silk-haired sheep is a cold region where blizzards are rare. There are also ice storm wolves and ice storm bears, but the strongest is the silk-haired sheep. Why? Because its body is four times the size of an ice storm bear, and it can spit lightning from its mouth. That's why it's so strong.

"Despite its gentle nature, it's a match for Mammaran."

"Um, I don't really feel happy about that."

The nature of the silk-haired sheep is gentle, and even in the wild, they can be tamed by humans and allow their high-quality wool to be sheared. Lala had this yarn because she completed a difficult request in a village where the sheep shearers lived during the shearing season.

As I moved the knitting needles, I felt like humming a tune.

── Love is a gentle flower by the roadside

── A flower that withers in the summer sun

── With a heart full of passion

── I will not let the frost of doubt touch me in winter

── You are the only one in my heart

By the time I finished the first verse, the neck warmer was complete. After finishing the last bit of yarn, I said I wanted to iron it, and Lala used magic to do it for me.

"Here, it's done."

"Yes, thank you. I'll use it right away."

"If there are any issues, please let me know, and I'll fix them."

I also offered to do maintenance. Lala put on the neck warmer.

"This is... amazing. It's incredibly warm."

"I'm glad you like it."

It seems she was pleased. As I relaxed, I heard a knock on the closed door. Rottemeyer informed me that Professor Romanov and Viktor had returned. I nodded, and Lala opened the door. They appeared immediately.

"We're back."

"We're back!"

"Welcome back, both of you. Thank you for representing me."

As I thanked them, they nodded and smiled. However, when they saw the neck warmer around Lala's neck, especially Viktor, they narrowed their eyes.

"Maybe it was for the best that you couldn't go to the audience because you had a cold."

"Yes, really."

At their ambiguous words, Lala and I exchanged glances and tilted our heads.

The lyrics in the story are "Love is a gentle flower by the roadside" (I checked, and it seems there are no copyright issues).

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