novelraw Chapter 175 : Three Days! A Full Three Days! Do You Know How I Spent These Three Days!
Chapter 175 : Three Days! A Full Three Days! Do You Know How I Spent These Three Days!
It was now the sixth month of the star (equivalent to November on Earth), approaching early winter. The mornings had become quite cold,
Just lifting the blanket brought a sense of resistance,
In the early morning, Elsa woke from a hazy consciousness.
Elsa habitually reached out to her side, but only felt the cold, empty sheets.
This finally jolted her, who had been somewhat drowsy, into full wakefulness.
Because the usual warmth was not by her side.
At this time in the past, she would always wake up in that person's embrace, then lean against the soft chest, listening to the steady heartbeat from the other's chest cavity, blissfully dozing off for a while, which for Elsa was the perfect morning.
But today her hands and feet were ice-cold, today she was awakened by the cold, which made her feel quite unaccustomed.
Due to her constitution, even the warmest quilt couldn't heat up her body, she needed someone to embrace her to help maintain her body temperature in the cold season,
Generally, this task was left to Evie to complete,
Is she hiding somewhere in the mansion?
Elsa began her search in the mansion.
—Office area
Not here...
—Reception room
Not here...
She wasn't anywhere,
Having almost turned the entire estate upside down,
Yet still no sign of her anywhere.
It felt as if even her scent in the space had faded somewhat.
A sense of panic began to fill her heart
Without her presence, she had become alone again.
As an ominous feeling spread in her heart, she quickened her pace.
"Miss Elsa!! What are you doing so early in the morning?!"
Noticing Elsa in her nightgown looking lost and distracted, Parcy hurriedly came forward to stop her.
"Parcy...!"
Seeing the family maid, Elsa quickly approached to inquire,
"You've come at the right time, have you seen Evie?"
Her eyes were red, as if she might cry at any moment,
Miss Elsa's mental state doesn't seem very good?
Parcy initially had some doubts about this question, but quickly realized:
"Could it be you've forgotten? Today is the day for the palace audience, the Young Miss has already left."
"Ah—"
Elsa finally remembered, and immediately let out a sigh of relief,
Today was the monthly routine day for nobles to attend the palace audience.
Seeing Elsa's lost and distracted appearance, Parcy softened her voice considerately:
"The Young Miss left very early this morning. Young Master Garth from the Leinster Duchy came to pick her up. I heard that internal affairs are tense this month... so there are many matters to handle, all the members of the council chamber were called over..."
"I see..."
After sighing in relief, Elsa almost collapsed to the ground in tears,
She had thought it was all just a dream.
After relaxing, her body felt waves of heat,
...How embarrassing!
Was it because she wasn't fully awake... it was truly humiliating.
"Then... how long exactly will it take?"
"Hmm... Young Master Garth said it might take more than three days."
"What—three days??"
Hearing this number, Elsa nearly fainted.
Three days... actually three days!!
How am I supposed to get through these three days~~~~!!
Although Yvonne had regained her noble title, Elsa herself was not born with a silver spoon and couldn't enter the palace casually, so she could only honestly wait at home,
I miss her so much!
Thinking of this, she felt aggrieved and depressed.
Come to think of it, since she and Yvonne had been together, they hadn't really been apart for such a long time. The two were almost always together every day, so Elsa had come to think of it as a matter of course.
But she really is... not telling me, and rushing off alone early in the morning. She really has the potential to be a workaholic...
"Perhaps seeing you sleeping so soundly, she couldn't bear to wake you?"
Parcy smiled wryly, trying to explain on behalf of her mistress.
"Ah~ There's really nothing to be done..."
Elsa made a helpless expression, trying hard not to let the things in her eyes escape.
Who asked her beloved to be so excellent.
Better consider today's arrangements.
Elsa comforted herself, tied on an apron and headscarf, preparing to find something to do.
She joined the maids in cleaning the house thoroughly.
When Evie comes back and sees the house cleaned spotlessly, she'll surely praise me!
Saying 'well done' and patting my head, best of all would be a reward of kisses and hugs~
Just thinking about it filled her with motivation!
"Miss Elsa!! We can handle this..."
The maids looked somewhat anxiously at Elsa standing on a stool cleaning the windows.
"It's fine, more people means it gets done faster—"
If it's about being a maid, she's a professional!
And... indeed, finding something to do made her feel calmer
"Miss Elsa is amazing..."
The observing maids all expressed their astonishment.
What excellent use of magic!
The small tornado was like a miniature vacuum cleaner, sucking in all the dust and dirt along its path of movement.
These small techniques of controlling minute amounts of magic were really useful, like for cleaning dust in corners and crevices, cobwebs on the ceiling... all very practical.
"Miss Elsa! I also have an affinity for wind magic, can I learn this too?"
"Of course~ It's actually quite simple—just imagine you're holding a rope of magical power in your hand."
"It's so difficult..."
"Hahaha, with more practice you'll master it, it's not a very difficult magic."
Come to think of it, this little technique was taught to her by Yvonne before.
Recalling that scene,
Elsa was somewhat lost in memories, completely unaware of the maid nearby preparing to take out the trash bag.
As a result, the tornado vacuum she was controlling accidentally caught the dust-filled bag, unable to control the force properly, and in an instant, it was as if a dust storm had been kicked up, smoke rising everywhere—
"Cough cough, cough cough cough—!"
"I'm so sorry! Lady Elsa—"
Originally wanting to help, but ended up making things worse.
And now covered in dust...
After cleaning up the mess, she silently sighed, dragging her steps that had become heavy after messing up, preparing to go wash herself,
Just then, Elsa noticed something tugging at the hem of her clothes.
"—Mama~"
A small voice came from below,
"Ah, Bebe? What's the matter?"
Seeing Bebe, Elsa's face immediately broke into a full smile,
When facing children, one must try to maintain an expression that puts them at ease—this was a principle Elsa only realized after becoming a parent.
"Well..."
"Mm-hmm?"
The little one was fidgeting, seeming to have something she wanted to say,
She hugged the little dog doll that Linda had sewn for her from wool before, her little face red as she looked up at Elsa.
"I'm hungry."
Ha...
Elsa let out a sigh of relief.
She thought it was something else, but it turns out she was just hungry...
"If you're hungry, you can tell the maid sisters, and have the kitchen make something for you, right?"
"But I want to eat what Mama makes—"
She said with pouting lips,
"The head chef and maid sisters can't make it taste like what Mama makes!"
Come to think of it, Evie would often make sweets for Bebe whenever she had time.
That person spoils the child even more than I imagined!
"What does she usually make?"
"Um... baked cookies, pies, and pudding-like things?"
Bebe counted on her fingers, calculating the delicious snacks Yvonne had personally made for her before.
Hearing the familiar list of dishes, Elsa suddenly realized these were also the snacks Evie usually prepared for her.
"Are there no more cookies?"
She remembered making a large jar last time, and she hadn't eaten many herself.
"Ate... ate them all, hehe~"
Bebe looked a bit embarrassed, seeming to have some awareness that her appetite was a bit large.
"............"
Cookies are usually baked in large batches, but today they happened to be all gone.
Come to think of it... I seem to have eaten some before too, baked crispy and fragrant butter cookies.
But the difficulty seems quite high...
Maybe we should wait for Yvonne to come back and make them together?
"Bebe, eating too many snacks isn't good for your teeth, you know?"
But the little one just pouted at her
"Mama Elsa... could it be you don't know how to make snacks?"
"Ha—How could that be?!"
This instantly sparked her competitive spirit,
"—Of course I can! I've always helped Evie! I've learned just by watching!"
"Ooh ooh~~!"
......
How did things turn out like this?
It's the same recipe, the same steps, and the same baking time,
But why...
Looking at the blackened product in the baking tray, Elsa felt a wave of defeat wash over her.
She remembered the ingredients and recipe well enough, but for some reason, the cookies Elsa made were either overbaked and burnt, or soft and not crispy at all.
"They're all black..."
Puff—
Bebe's words dealt Elsa the final heavy blow.
Although they were still edible, it was precisely this mediocre 'not tasty' that made Elsa feel discouraged.
"Mama... don't be discouraged! There's still 'ginger milk pudding'~"
Right, this is the simplest, just need to prepare ground ginger juice and heated milk to make it.
But there's only a little buffalo milk left...
Hope it doesn't fail... hope it doesn't fail!!
This time, Elsa was especially careful, pouring in the ginger juice,
Then, following Yvonne's instructions, she only stirred clockwise three times, then withdrew the spoon.
Quietly waiting for the moment when the milk would solidify.
After an unknown amount of time, probably about two minutes, both Elsa and Bebe, who was standing on tiptoes peering over the edge of the table, were very nervous.
"...It should be ready now!"
However, when she put the spoon back in, the milk flower in the cup had scattered.
"Ah~~~~"
Elsa hugged her head and let out a prairie dog-like scream,
Why~~ Why is it like this---!!
When Evie makes it, she can make beautiful milk pudding that can hold a spoon on top,
Why does it fail so miserably when I do it?
"Uwah..."
She began to doubt her life,
Without Evie, had she really become a useless person who couldn't do anything right?
"Gulp gulp gulp~~"
Just as she was feeling dejected, Bebe picked up the cup and tilted her head back to drink the ginger-flavored milk flower.
"Wait! Bebe, you can't..."
But it was too late to stop her, Bebe had already finished drinking, and put the empty cup back.
"It's sweet and tasty! Mama didn't fail—"
With white milk flower still around her mouth, Bebe looked at her seriously.
Seeing this scene, Elsa couldn't help but hug her adorable little angel.
Without realizing it, she had become a good child just like her mama, so understanding.
"...Eating sweets really does make a difference, huh? Your little mouth is so sweet, hmm?"
She hugged and patted Bebe's head,
"Uhehe~~"
"Shall we make more snacks then?"
Bebe shook her head, her droopy ears swaying along,
"No, need to save room for dinner!"
"Good girl."
"Will Mama Yvonne come back to eat?"
"............"
At this, Elsa's eyes dimmed.
"Well... Bebe, Yvonne probably won't be coming back today... she has work that must be done,"
The little one nodded thoughtfully.
"Bebe will wait patiently!"
Elsa was first stunned, then quickly returned to her usual demeanor.
"...Good child."
Even a child can handle this situation, why can't I?
I should be like this child, waiting patiently.
......
However, just after giving herself a pep talk, as evening approached, Elsa was still listlessly sprawled on the table like she had run out of battery.
Exhausted...
Evie energy completely depleted...
Thinking that she still had to endure two more days like this, Elsa felt life was not worth living.
I want to see her...
I want to talk to her...
Without her presence, every minute and second seemed so long,
In this world, the one she loved most was still Yvonne.
Separation was truly too painful a thing,
Longing had become so sour and bitter,
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but cry out her inner thoughts.
"Hurry up and come back~~~ Evie, you workaholic idiot!!"
"—Calling someone an idiot just because they didn't come home for one day is really too much."
"?!"
Hearing the familiar voice, she turned her head in delighted surprise.
Wearing formal attire, her face flushed from the cold wind during her rush, she smiled helplessly.
Biting her teeth to remove her gloves, she grasped Elsa's hand with fingers that were cold but palms already warming,
"You... really can't manage without me, can you?"
"——"
She didn't deny it, but instead directly threw herself into that embrace.
At this moment, feeling the warmth from her body, it was as if everything was alright, all anxieties were relieved.
Wanting to feel her love, her cherishing, her support's warmth, wanting to experience the fact of her existence by her side.
"You really are hopeless..."
Compared to Bebe, it's hard to say who's the child.
For now, she'll let her be spoiled.
"Indeed... it's better if we don't separate."
Buried in her embrace, she mumbled.
"We won't separate."