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Chapter 9
“Eat as much as you want, Noah.”
Noah’s eyes got wide at the nice meal in front of him. He held his fork and knife, but hesitated.
‘Has he not had a proper meal in years? He’s just looking at the food.’
Instead of telling Noah to hurry and eat, I picked up my own spoon first and took a bite of warm soup.
Noah moved his spoon and tried the soup too.
“We have roast turkey, fresh salad, bacon potato soup, and freshly baked rye bread. After the meal, we’ll serve tea and dessert,”
the servant explained. I added, “I’ll prepare the tea myself.”
Noah ate slowly and stopped a few times, looking like he wanted to say something.
I asked, “Is something wrong? Do you not like the food?”
“…It’s delicious,”
Noah answered quietly and glanced at me. He looked like he wanted to say more, but I pretended not to notice. First, he needed a good meal.
“Try this too.”
I cut the roast turkey into pieces and gave some to Noah.
Noah blinked, surprised that I was serving him myself.
“When you’re with me, you don’t need to be so formal. Food tastes better when you’re relaxed.”
Noah nodded and ate the piece I gave him.
I smiled as I watched his eyes slowly grow bigger.
“It’s good, isn’t it? I asked the head chef especially for this. He usually says no, but I begged him a lot.”
“I hope I didn’t cause any trouble for you.”
“It’s our first date. I have to do at least this much.”
Noah blushed and looked down while drinking his water. I pretended not to notice.
“I’m joking. Did you choke?”
“I’m fine,”
Noah answered with a straight face and covered his mouth with his hand.
‘He’s not very good at hiding his face.’
His cheeks were really red because his skin was so pale.
‘If I tease him again, he might choke for real.’
I waited patiently for Noah to finish breakfast.
“It’s lemon cream cheese pound cake. The young lady prepared the dessert…”
the servant said, then glanced at me.
‘The chef looks worried about the taste, but I wanted Noah to try something new.’
“The ingredients are fermented unsalted butter, cream cheese, white sugar, salt, lemon zest, and powdered sugar. Here’s the recipe—please follow it exactly.”
Yesterday, I went to the head chef and asked for this. He refused at first, but I said, “If it doesn’t taste good, I’ll never ask again.” He finally gave in and made the dessert.
“Why do I have to make such a strange dessert?” he complained, but it turned out perfect.
A little later, the servant whispered to me,
“Miss… the head chef said he’d be happy to make more desserts if you give him recipes.”
“Didn’t he say never to ask again?”
“He said the dessert was so delicious… He said from now on he’ll make anything you want without complaining.”
“Tell him okay. And tell him if he shares the recipes, I’ll cover his next dish in lemons.”
I laughed at how quickly the chef changed his mind and nodded.
Noah looked at me curiously, so I said,
“It’s nothing, just about dessert.”
I asked, “How do you like it?”
Noah wiped his mouth with a napkin and said,
“It’s good.”
“Is that all?”
He paused, then added,
“It looked interesting too. Like…”
He couldn’t find the right word. I smiled and said,
“It’s cube-shaped. Normally, pound cake is flat like bread, but I made it into cubes.”
I was happy I ordered special cube-shaped molds for the cake.
“I see.”
Noah took another bite of cake. His stiff face finally relaxed.
Now, he looked like a boy his age—fresh and cute, which he couldn’t hide.
‘He must like dessert. I’m not a fan of sweets myself.’
In my last life, I only prepared bitter herbs. I never thought about dessert.
‘I thought I knew everything about Noah…’
I sighed inside and brought tea for Noah.
“Try it. This green tea is roasted over a strong fire, so it smells toasty.”
Noah hesitated, then took a sip. He frowned a little.
“It’s a bit…”
Was it not good? Did I burn the tea? I tried to taste it, but then—
“It’s different from the tea I drank when I was little.”
Noah sounded interested. The empire has many types of tea, but hojicha isn’t common. Maybe I’ll try a latte next time.
“Which do you like more?”
Leaning my chin on my hand, I asked Noah.
‘Maybe he likes the one from his childhood more, since it’s the taste of memories.’
Noah stared at me and answered,
“I liked yours better, Miss Rotten.”
He spoke so simply and then took another sip of tea.
“As long as you liked it, that’s good.”
I smiled, and Noah’s cheeks turned red. Even the servant was surprised until Noah cleared his throat.
I tapped the table and thought for a moment.
‘Maybe Noah likes nutty flavors too.’
Maybe he’d like misutgaru. In the hot summer, mixing it with honey and ice is paradise.
‘I wonder if he’d like it…’
I never tried that in my past lives.
‘Should I ask the chef to try making mugwort pound cake? In this world, mugwort is just a weed. They don’t use it much, especially not in desserts.’
Thinking about all this, my tea got cold.
I waved away the servant who wanted to make new tea and just drank it all in one go.
‘It’s lukewarm.’
The servant stared at me, and even Noah couldn’t look away.
“That was a mistake. Please forget it.”
Old habits from drinking soju with grilled intestines came back, but I’m underage now—so I shouldn’t.
“How did you like the room I prepared for you?”
Noah paused, biting his lip.
‘I had them prepare a special guest room on the second floor. Didn’t he like it?’
It was nicer than my own room, but maybe Noah, who once lived richly, didn’t think much of it.
“I like it. Thank you for caring, Miss Rotten.”
He answered with a blank face and bowed his head politely.
“I thought it would suit you perfectly, so I’m glad.”
The servant looked confused.
He didn’t say it out loud, but he looked at me like someone who’s kind to an injured bird and then suddenly turns mean.
“I think so too, Miss Rotten.”
Noah answered with no change in his face.
The servant came over and whispered,
“The count is staying in the attic.”
My face froze, and Noah looked confused.
“…Miss Rotten?”
“The attic.”
I said shortly, and let out a deep sigh.
The servant flinched, thinking I was angry.
“No, you did well to tell me.”
I smiled, brushed my bangs, and looked around with annoyed eyes. When I met Noah’s gaze, I smiled sweetly again.
“Noah, I have a favor to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Please move out of that tiny, old room.”
Noah looked surprised by my sudden request.
He looked like someone who just heard Baron Rotten say, “Son-in-law, stay for about a year before the wedding so we can bond,” even though the wedding isn’t for a while.
“If staying here is uncomfortable, I’ll leave.”
Noah apologized, and I raised my eyebrow.
“Yes, it is uncomfortable. There’s a nice guest room, but you stay in the attic? I can’t accept that.”
I spoke coldly, then went over and took Noah’s wrist.
He stiffened, but I had already made up my mind.
“Get ready to move to your new room, Noah. I’m getting rid of the attic for good.”
I was serious.
If I just made Noah leave the attic, Baron Rotten would force him back. Instead of going back and forth…
“Lem.”
“Yes, miss?”
The servant jumped at his name.
Maybe he thought I didn’t know the names of all the staff, but I do.
“Destroy the attic.”
