# Chapter 6. The Reckless One and the Shy One’s Cohabitation Life (3)
“Miss, I’ve arrived~”
“Ahh… Bell. Come in quickly….”
Bell’s attitude when dealing with Rab was entirely different.
Having already understood Cecilia’s personality, Bell decided that playing the role of an energetic and talkative character would be best to win the young lady’s heart.
After all, a shy young lady like Cecilia wouldn’t protest much against this kind of approach—she’d just end up flustered.
“Ah, that’s right. By the way, I’ve become your personal maid!”
“Really?! How…?”
“Oh, well, since I had the chance to serve you briefly before, Lord Rab thought it would be best for someone who’s already familiar with you to take on the role of your maid.”
“Lord… Lord Rab?”
“Yes~ Considering his attention to such small details, it seems Lord Rab cares for you very much, doesn’t he?”
As Bell said this and subtly checked the young lady’s reaction, she noticed Cecilia’s cheeks turning bright red, and she fanned herself awkwardly.
Her adorable response made Bell gleefully continue assisting Cecilia with her bath internally, although Cecilia may have briefly felt a chill from Bell’s touch but dismissed it as her imagination.
*
“It’s about time to wrap things up.”
Waiting impatiently for Cecilia’s bath to finish, I muttered under my breath.
While it’s true that women can take a long time in the bath, hasn’t this been excessive?
“Lord, Lord Rab… Have you waited long?”
Finally!
Turning at the sound of Cecilia’s voice, I found—
A fairy.
“Lord Rab?”
The garment she had changed into was a thin indoor dress, similar to silk pajamas. Prioritizing activity, it accentuated her beauty, with the faint peach scent wafting from her. Her hair, still slightly damp at the ends from being freshly dried, added dewy allure to her already radiant beauty.
“Lord Rab?”
“Huh… oh, no, it’s fine. I had some business to take care of, so I didn’t wait long. You don’t need to worry.”
In truth, I had waited here for an hour and a half, but it would be best not to mention that. After all, if gentle-hearted Cecilia realized, she might feel guilty.
“Uh… so… what…should I….”
Apparently uneasy about making me wait even for a short time, I noticed Cecilia’s trembling hand and gently took it, guiding her towards the dining room.
“Have you grown tired from touring the estate? Dinner is prepared—let’s go.”
With her small delicate hand held firmly in mine, Cecilia followed me with quick, small steps, adjusting her pace to match mine as I slowed down accordingly. Her hand, unused to being touched by a man, attempted to withdraw subtly, but I clasped her pale fingers tighter and continued walking towards the dining room.
“Kyaaaa!”
At my bold move, Cecilia let out a small yelp. However, showing proper affection was necessary to alleviate any suspicion from our parents about our relationship.
They must already think I instantly fell in love with her the moment I saw her, and so decided to bring her home. To maintain that impression, subtly demonstrating closeness with Cecilia and lowering their guard would be a better path forward.
As we arrived, a waiting maid gave us a warm smile and gently opened the door for us.
“Heyyy~!”
No sooner had we stepped into the dining room than Cecilia was embraced by my mother.
She clung to Cecilia more than she did her own son; even though these aren’t my biological parents, it stung slightly to be overshadowed this way.
“Go ahead and sit.”
Though his tone was strict, the faint excitement in his voice was plain to hear from our father.
Free-spirited and not prone to overthinking or violence, perhaps they indulged my reckless teenage antics, believing I would grow serious on my own eventually.
As the servants began to bring out the opulent dishes, Cecilia’s eyes sparkled with delight at the sight of the meals before her.
“Miss, let me—”
Carefully, I cut a piece from the edge of the roasted turkey—an easier task for Cecilia given her distance from the dish—and placed it on her plate.
“The distance is far, and cutting it yourself might be difficult, so I prepared it for you.”
“Th… thank you.”
With a face as red as a tomato, Cecilia took tiny bites of the meat.
Seated before us, my mother watched with an approving gleam in her eyes, though her intense gaze felt like it could bore holes into my head.
“I’ll excuse myself momentarily. You must be hungry, so please eat.”
“It’s fine~ Mother is already full.”
Though she hadn’t eaten yet?
Is it because she considers her weight carefully, being the countess?
After making sure Cecilia was taken care of, I sampled the soup in front of me.
Mmm… cinnamon. The aroma of cinnamon mingling with pepper complemented the beef stew perfectly.
But wait, cinnamon?
Recalling the game setup, wasn’t there a food the lady couldn’t eat? And that was…
“Whoo… whooo…”
Turning to Cecilia, I saw her gently blowing on the hot soup before carefully guiding the spoon to her mouth.
Dammit!
SLAP!
CLANG!!
In desperation, I slapped Cecilia’s hand just as the spoon was about to reach her lips, sending it flying across the room, scattering soup along the way.
“…”
“…”
“…”
Sudden silence fell over the dining table, disrupted by my impulsive action.
Thinking I was upset, tears began to well up in Cecilia’s eyes, while the maids serving the food frowned at my behavior. Worst of all, my father stared intently, and my mother’s face scrunched up in displeasure—a situation that required immediate resolution.
“Take this soup away and bring one without cinnamon! The lady is allergic to cinnamon. Go to the kitchen and replace it with beef soup without cinnamon.”
“Ah… yes, my lord!”
A nearby maid quickly understood my request and hurried off with Miss Cecilia’s dish toward the kitchen.
Judging by Cecilia’s wide eyes as she alternated between looking at me and her soup, she appeared startled but seemed to understand the situation.
“Hmph… I understand why you did it, but next time just shout. Your reaction could frighten the young lady.”
Mother’s tone returned to gentleness, though her displeasure at scaring Cecilia lingered.
“… I’m sorry. I panicked and instinctively stopped her from eating it.”
“You’ve apologized to me, but apologize to the lady first.”
“Yes, my apologies, Miss. I acted rudely out of concern.”
“Ah, it’s fine… you were doing it for my sake… it’s alright…”
Thankfully, Cecilia, being kind-hearted, seemed to forgive me right away.
There’s no need to worry about her crying in fear now.
“That said, how did you already know what food the lady cannot eat?”
Startled!
Needless to say, we’ve had no such conversation.
The only talks I’ve had with Cecilia involved stern and unkind reality checks that left her hurt—not intimate chats about her preferences or hobbies.
In other words, there’s no logical way I could know about her allergies.
“Uh… well, that is… yes. This morning, we had a conversation where I asked her about her favorite foods.”
“Wow~ It seems the lady also found Rab quite likable, huh?”
Damn.
She knows I’m lying. If she says we never had such a conversation, I will be questioned further about how I learned this information.
“… Yes. Very much so…”
“Kyaaah~ I’ve raised such a good son~”
“Please stop. If Miss is so upset she falls ill and can’t sleep, what will we do?”
“Speaking of which, I heard the lady’s room isn’t fully prepared yet~”
“Ah, is that so?”
Even with our skilled staff, is it too much to expect a full room setup in a day?
Honestly, cleaning my cramped room in a past life was already exhausting—it must be far more complicated to tidy up an aristocrat’s room.
“Then, I’ll have the lady sleep in my room, and I’ll stay in the servants’ quarters tonight—”
“Ah, so having the two of you sleep together would solve the issue!”
“… Really?”
…What?!
