Chapter 39: Breakfast

Lyriel rounded her mouth into an "O," not knowing what else to say. She was deeply disappointed.

Since Hugo already had a servant, her chances of living in his house were very slim. So did that mean she would have to go back to that forest? She hated the thought of it.

Going to Mira would have been an even better option, but they were not on good terms at the moment.

What would she do now?

She sighed.

“I wouldn't call him a servant, though,” Hugo added. “I hired him to help harvest the fruits from the garden and carry out heavy chores, such as gathering firewood.”

Lyriel nodded sadly as realization dawned on her.

What was she thinking?

Looking over at the pile of fruits stacked in the corner of the house, it was obvious that the old man couldn't possibly have harvested such an amount on his own. He could barely even stand.

“What seems to be the matter, Lyriel?” Hugo asked with concern, noticing that she didn't seem pleased.

“Nothing... I was just curious.” She shrugged.

Lyriel abruptly stood up, clutching her basket and preparing to select the fruits she would take to the market. After all, sitting around and chatting wouldn't do her any good at the moment. She still needed to find a place to stay.

“Don't worry about the fruits, my dear.”

Lyriel looked at him in surprise.

If she didn't sell the fruits, then who would? He needed money, and so did she. The more money she earned, the easier her stay in the human world would be.

“I'm perfectly fine. Let me help you sell the fruits. My customers are waiting for me,” she assured him.

Hugo laughed softly at her gentle yet stubborn nature. He made to stand up from his chair, but she quickly rushed to support him.

“Yes, I know that. But you must have breakfast with me before you leave.”

A smile spread across Lyriel's face as she helped Hugo toward the other side of the room. The mere thought of food made her mouth water. In fact, she hadn't eaten a thing since the incident yesterday, and she was more than hungry. At the rate she was going, she might have ended up eating half the fruits before reaching the market, so Hugo had unknowingly saved her from committing such a crime.

“Thank you so much, Hugo. I'm really hungry,” she beamed, making Hugo chuckle once again.

He led her to the other side of the house, where a long table and three wooden chairs stood—it was his dining area.

“Sit here and wait while I get you some food.”

Lyriel sat quietly as he walked into the kitchen. She could already smell the delicious aroma drifting toward her and could hardly wait for the food to arrive. She wondered what he was preparing. Surely it couldn't be the watery porridge and soup Eli usually cooked for her.

A few minutes later, Hugo returned carrying two bowls filled with steaming chicken. He placed one before Lyriel and kept the other for himself.

“What kind of food is this?” she asked in surprise, staring wide-eyed at the bowl.

“This is chicken soup."

“Chicken soup!” she exclaimed with a smile of satisfaction.

Immediately, she dug into the meal, tearing eagerly at the meat. All the frustration and anger she had felt that morning suddenly disappeared.

“This is very delicious,” she moaned happily.

“Yes, my daughter is an excellent cook,” Hugo said, swelling with pride.

“Daughter?!” Lyriel exclaimed, her mouth still full of meat.

“Yes.”

“Your... your real daughter?” She asked in surprise. She could hardly believe her ears. So the old man actually had a daughter. All this time, she had thought he had no family and was completely alone.

“My adopted daughter,” he corrected.

“Adopted? How did you adopt her?”

“Yes,” he replied. “She was an orphan with no one to care for her, so I took her into my home. Ever since then, she has been my daughter.”

“So she prepared this meal?”

“Yes.”

“Where is she now?” Lyriel asked, glancing around the house to see if the girl was somewhere nearby, perhaps quietly watching them.

“She left very early this morning,” Hugo replied. “You see, she works as a maid in the royal palace.”

“Really?” Lyriel exclaimed. “So she works at the palace? Where your king and queen live?”

“Yes, she does.”

“Wow!” Lyriel exclaimed. She wondered what the royal palace looked like. Eli had promised to take her to a royal banquet at the palace in a few days' time. She wondered if it was this very palace he had been talking about.

“The human palace must be very beautiful. I would love to go there.”

“You will, one day,” Hugo reassured her with a chuckle.

Lyriel picked up another large piece of meat and gazed curiously at the protruding bone.

“Hmm... how did she manage to make food that still looks so much like a bird?”

“Haven't you eaten chicken before?” Hugo asked, equally surprised.

Lyriel wondered what a chicken was. Regardless, the taste alone was heavenly, so she merely shrugged and continued eating.

When she had finished, she drank a large cup of water and let out a loud belch.

“Thank you. This is the best meal I've ever had.”

The old man nodded.

“How is Eli?” he asked. “Is he at home with you?”

Lyriel's cheerful smile disappeared immediately at the mention of Eli. He was nothing but a heartless man who had abandoned her in the middle of the forest—not once, but twice.

“He left me alone in the forest yesterday,” she said with a shrug. “He didn't even tell me where he was going.”

The old man listened attentively while finishing the last piece of meat. Then he set his empty bowl down on the table and said,

“Eli is such a strange man.”

“Strange man?” Lyriel asked, tilting her head.

“Yes, a very strange man. I mean, why would anyone choose to live alone in an abandoned cottage deep in the forest?”

“Abandoned?” Lyriel's eyes widened in shock. “Y-you mean to tell me I live in an abandoned house?”

“Don't panic,” he chuckled. “I was a close friend of the man who used to live there. He built that cottage in the forest to avoid the villagers, who mocked him and called him all sorts of names because he had... a slight mental illness. Even his own family abandoned him. Unfortunately, he died some time later. His body was found in the river near the village.”

“The river?” Lyriel asked in disbelief.

The story sounded strangely similar to the one Fabian had told her about the man who discovered the Fortress of the Watchers.

Now that she thought about it, why was everyone telling her such frightening stories about the village?

She hadn't slept all night, and now she could only wonder what she would do when the sun went down if Eli still hadn't returned. There was no way she was ever setting foot in that cottage again.

Still, she wanted to know more about Eli, and curiosity soon got the better of her.