Surviving in a Romance Fantasy Novel?
The vegetable garden on a bright spring day, bathed in warm sunlight.
A young lady in a white dress was dancing with a watering can in her hands.
She was getting dirt all over the clothes that had just been freshly washed, toddling around like a little animal. But she looked so happy that it was fine.
“Miss. If you work hard again today, I’ll make you a snack.”
“Yay!”
Tiny green sprouts were poking their heads up in the spinach patch. During the time it took for the sprouts to grow, Andy had made her hamburgers as snacks a few times, and it seemed she had taken quite a liking to them.
She kept humming the boogie boogie song, so he had prepared all the ingredients in the kitchen since early morning before coming out.
Well, there weren’t many children who disliked hamburgers.
And all the children who liked hamburgers were good kids.
‘That’s right. Absolutely.’
At this point, Andy decided to check the young lady’s status window.
Health: 31→37
Strength: 22→28
Agility: 35
Wisdom: 67
Emotion: 10
Charm: 38
Dignity: 24→18
Morality: 3
Faith: 2
Stress: 50%→45%
Karma: 999
Curse Manifestation Rate: 0%
This was the status window compared to when they first met.
Her Dignity stat had dropped quite a bit now that she looked more natural wielding a pitchfork to till the soil, but that could be raised later through etiquette lessons.
Her Health was approaching 40, and her Strength was steadily increasing as well.
Everything was going smoothly, but there was one small thing that bothered him.
Stress: +8%
This change had occurred last night.
Stress: +5%
This one was from the night before last.
Stress: +10%
And this from the night before that.
‘Her stress rises by about five to ten percent every single night.’
Feeding her hamburgers lowered it by even more, so it wasn’t something to worry too much about, but it still weighed on his mind.
Once Stress reached 100%, the young lady would fall ill or act out impulsively. He remembered that the original Cream had always maintained a high stress level, which led to frequent psychotic behavior. Things like self-harm.
‘Is she having trouble sleeping at night?’
He’d have to check on her bedtime routine later. Her room was tucked away in a corner and musty, so it made sense.
There was one other thing that concerned him.
Her highest stat, Wisdom, had remained exactly at 67 since the first day. Although she spoke a bit awkwardly, he had been teaching her sentences after farm work, and she was picking them up quickly.
Maybe it was because the knowledge was too basic.
“Ah, Miss! You touched the dirt, so you need to wash your hands!”
Or perhaps it was simply because she was still so young.
Look at her now— the moment she finished tending the garden, she was already running toward the mansion.
Andy scooped Cream up and carried her to the communal washbasin. Since she was so small, he held her up so she could wash her hands while still in his arms.
“You have to wash thoroughly, even under your fingernails.”
“Yeees…”
When he set her down, she scampered off on her short legs toward the inside of the kitchen—only to suddenly stop and glance back at him.
“Um… Teacher. Mister Teacher.”
“Yes?”
“Um, well…”
“Yes, Miss. Please speak comfortably.”
“Just… thank you for always being with me…”
She mumbled shyly, then let out a bright “Ehehe!” and trotted off again with quick little steps.
For a child like her to grow up into a witch… the world truly was coming to an end.
‘…As long as her potential doesn’t head in a strange direction.’
A remarkable young lady with Morality at 3, Faith at 2, and Karma at 999.
It was good to pursue being different from others, but he hoped that difference would lean toward the side of goodness. Still, after spending a few days with her, it seemed there wouldn’t be any major problems.
She lived with gratitude and apologies always on her lips, to the point that Andy sometimes forgot to check her stats.
‘Still, I need to lower that Karma somehow.’
Even if the current Cream was a good child who didn’t commit evil deeds, leaving such a high Karma score alone couldn’t lead to anything good. There was no telling how things might twist later.
He really should take her to the temple sometime. In this world, doing bad things raised Karma, while doing good deeds lowered it. It was only natural.
Since she was brighter than the timid girl from the original story, she should be able to handle volunteer work without difficulty.
“…Miss?”
He was following her into the kitchen while organizing his childcare plans when Cream’s small back came into view.
The girl stood in front of the counter. Her hair looked like fluffy cotton candy.
In front of her were the ingredients Andy had prepared in advance.
But why was she just standing there motionless? She had run inside so excitedly just moments ago.
She should have been jumping around in front of her favorite snack or looking back at him with an impatient expression, saying “Hurry up, pleeease!!” Yet here she was, standing so quietly.
Sensing something was off, he quickly approached.
“…Ha.”
No wonder she had gone still.
Sand had been sprinkled all over the bread.
Leaves and twigs were mixed into the minced meat, and there were wriggling bugs crawling on the lettuce.
The tomatoes were crushed so badly they might as well have been turned into juice.
The ingredients had been deliberately ruined with such malice that it went beyond viciousness and even felt childish.
“Who did this?”
Andy immediately looked around the kitchen.
No wonder the kitchen staff had been avoiding eye contact more than usual today. These were the same people who normally treated both Cream and Andy like they didn’t exist and simply went about their own tasks.
“These were ingredients prepared specifically for the young lady. Who did this?”
…
“If you confess right now, I can let you off with an appropriate punishment.”
…
“If it continues like this, I’ll have no choice but to hold the entire kitchen staff collectively responsible. It’s unfortunate, but the attitude of those serving nobility is truly—”
“W-we don’t know anything either! We finished preparing lunch in the banquet hall and came back to find it like this!”
The moment he mentioned collective responsibility, an answer finally came from one of the servants across from him.
“You’re saying the ingredients were ruined while you were away preparing lunch?”
“Y-yes, that’s right!”
Andy had prepared the ingredients that morning and then gone out to the garden with Cream. At that time, the servants had been in the kitchen.
After that, they had gone to the banquet hall to set up lunch, and when they returned at noon, everything was already in this state.
“We only did our jobs diligently. We really have nothing to do with this. Please believe us!”
Everyone’s faces had turned pale, and they were trembling.
Seeing them so terrified, it didn’t seem like they were people on the madam’s side. Even if they were caught, they probably wouldn’t receive proper punishment anyway, so there was no need to be this scared.
Of course, one could never be too sure.
“Since this happened in the kitchen, I have no choice but to suspect all of you for now…”
“W-wait a moment! There was an outsider who came in!”
“An outsider?”
“Yes! Today several people who had requested vacation overlapped, so we asked the mansion’s maintenance staff for help…! While we were at the banquet hall, they must have been cleaning up the kitchen…”
“How many people came to help?”
“About three…”
“Do you remember who they were?”
“Yes. Barrett, Will, and… Ah, there she is. She’s just passing by.”
At the servant’s direction, Andy turned his head and saw a familiar maid walking past the kitchen door.
That petty little mouth.
So it’s you again.
“Miss Kanel! Could you come here for a moment!”
“What is it?”
“You and some other staff came to help in the kitchen today, right? Could you gather those people?”
“I’m asking what this is about.”
The maid Kanel glanced at the servant and leisurely entered the kitchen.
Her face held a strange smile. The corners of her eyes crinkled as they curved upward in a twisted way.
“W-well, the ingredients the teacher prepared for the young lady have been ruined. It happened while we were away from the kitchen, so we were wondering if you might know anything…”
“Oh dear. Is it those two again?”
Her tone suggested this was just another problem.
That unpleasant smile.
The moment he saw it, Andy knew.
“Really, you two just attract trouble wherever you go…”
The way she appeared at the perfect timing as if she had been waiting and muttered those words made Andy’s eyes narrow.
“…Miss Kanel. I heard you stayed here while the kitchen staff went to the banquet hall. Is there anything that comes to mind?”
“I really wouldn’t know. I was already busy, and having to help in the kitchen on top of that left me quite distracted.”
“Are you certain there’s nothing?”
“There isn’t. Are you perhaps suspecting me?”
“…”
When Andy stared at her silently, Kanel slowly smiled. The usual sullen expression was gone, replaced by one that suggested she had always been a smiling person.
“There were other people besides me, so wouldn’t it be better to ask them?”
“I don’t see the need for that.”
“I did come and go from the kitchen, but there’s no evidence, is there? If you’re that suspicious, why don’t you call the head maid and speak with her?”
It was obvious she had done it, yet she was playing innocent.
Before, she couldn’t even respond properly and had only screamed. Today, since there was no proof that she had done it, she seemed to be acting boldly.
Even if they called the head maid now, it would probably end with insufficient evidence. And since the head maid disliked Cream, she wouldn’t bother trying to catch the real culprit.
“Ah, that’s right. Or perhaps… could it be that the young lady played a prank in secret?”
Above all, shifting the blame onto someone else would neatly end the matter.
“The young lady was with me the entire day. Are you trying to frame her with baseless accusations?”
“I was simply suggesting a possibility. She is still very young, after all.”
“…”
“In any case, I truly know nothing about this. I’m quite busy, so I’ll be on my way. If you need to call anyone again, please make sure to call the head maid as well.”
With a calm expression as if she had finally gotten revenge for her previous humiliation, Kanel turned around confidently and left the kitchen.
The servant who had been watching asked, “S-should I call the other staff as well?” but Andy told him it was fine.
What had happened had happened. Right now, everything else could be set aside—Cream’s feelings came first.
She must be so upset that she couldn’t eat the snack she loved so much. How shocked she must have been watching those ugly adults.
“Miss—”
Andy, who had been about to check on Cream’s complexion, suddenly froze.
The young lady was unnaturally quiet.
Even after such an argument, she remained with her back turned, completely still. So quiet it was almost eerie.
“…Miss?”
Her gaze was fixed on the door through which the maid had left.
As if she had understood everything—the ruined ingredients, the mocking maid, her intentions, and the cause and effect.
As if she had never expected anything from adults in the first place. Without crying or throwing a tantrum, she simply remained silent.
Stress: 45%→75%
“…Miss.”
“…”
Andy quickly dismissed the notification about the massive stress increase and called out to her again, but she simply hugged the bowl containing the ruined ingredients to her chest and walked out of the kitchen.
“Cream!”
Even though he followed right after, she had already disappeared—perhaps she had thrown herself out the window.
She had laughed it off when served cold tea or given dirty clothes, but this time she was truly angry. It only showed how precious those burgers and this snack time had been to her.
If he wanted to properly raise their simple young lady, it seemed he would have to deal with that maid first.
Andy didn’t care if he himself was insulted. To a certain extent, he could let things slide and move on peacefully.
But when it came to touching the young lady, it was a different story.
It had been the same on the day she poured tea on the maid, and it was the same today.
He wanted Cream to grow up properly, but not like a pushover.
The original young lady had been timid and starved for love, always enduring everything. Now that he was by her side, he was more than willing to take care of any noise coming from her surroundings.
No matter what happened, he would handle it with his own hands.
Having finished his thoughts, Andy suppressed an unknown anxiety and quietly moved forward.
To get straight to the point, the plan Andy had devised to remove the maid Kanel ended in failure.
There was only one reason for the failure.
The very next day, before he could even make a move, news arrived that Kanel had gone missing.
Wisdom: 67→68
Morality: 3→2
Stress: 75%→20%
