In front of me, I saw a black object on my plate, a lettuce-like wild grass next to it, small pieces of meat floating in my soup, and water in a wooden cup.
ïŒIs it black bread? And⊠is it just me or is this bread smaller than the hard bread I ate this morning? The soup is clear⊠It looks like it was made only from water and salt⊠And the chunks of meat are smallâŠïŒ
Itâs not an appetizing meal.
On the other hand, there was a big chunk of roasted meat in front of Aaron.
ăTodayâs meat is from a deer I hunted in the Denis Forest. The deer was bigger than me, and it could jump a boulder with one leg. I hope you guys enjoy it.ă
After he proudly showed off the roasted meat in front of him, he looked at his son-in-law, Alex, who was sitting next to him.
ăAlex. Eat well and make my daughter pregnant!ă
There was also roasted meat on Alexâs plate.
ăY, Yes, Aaron-sama.ă
He replied to Aaron with an awkward smile.
No. For Mylia, it wasnât an awkward smile⊠It was a creepy smileâŠ
Compared to Aaron, Alex looked weak.
He has pale red hair and freckles on his cheeks.
His appearance looked like a college science student.
However, his skin wasnât white.
Because Aaron always took him hunting with him every day, his skin became a little tanned.
ăBonnie, whatâs wrong? You too. Eat properly and get pregnant already.ă
ăâŠ..Yes, father.ă
Bonnie, who was tired of hearing her father rushing her to get pregnant every day, replied to him with a small voice with a forced smile.
When everyone saw her smiling like that, the atmosphere in the dining room suddenly became tense.
The only one who wasnât aware of it was Aaron.
ăLetâs eat.ă
Saying that, Aaron immediately rapaciously devoured the meat.
He looked like a boss of a mountain bandit rather than an aristocrat.
Also, thereâs no greetings before eating.
When Mylia looked sideways, she saw her mother, Ella, praying in a low voice.
ăăŒăŒCelis-sama, thank you for your blessing.ă
Then, she picked up her spoon and started eating.
The others were also praying.
Except Aaron.
There was no conversation.
The atmosphere was so heavy that a happy family dinner seemed to be just an impossible dream.
ïŒIf he goes hunting every day, why doesnât he let us eat more meat!?ïŒ
While complaining in her head, Mylia took a bite of her black bread.
ïŒHard! What the heck is this? A stone!? HauuâŠ. My teeth hurtâŠïŒ
It was harder than the bread she ate for breakfast.
She tried to soak it in her soup and took a bite.
Still hardâŠ
Then, she had no choice but to put the whole bread into the soup and stirred it around.
If she didnât do this, she wouldnât be able to take a bite.
ăăŒăŒAhem!ă
Suddenly, her mother, who was sitting diagonally on the opposite side of the table, glared at Mylia.
Chloe realized it and hurriedly poked Mylia with her elbow, then finally Mylia raised her face and noticed that what she did was bad manners.
She then immediately stopped stirring the soup.
ïŒEhh⊠Itâs impossible to eat this with the jaw of a little child, thoughâŠïŒ
She decided to leave the black bread soaking in the soup.
No one seemed to be blaming her anyway.
However, Robin, who sat next to Ella, wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and saidăŒ
ăHmph. Disgusting.ă
Then, she took a bite of her hard black bread elegantly.
Her fine dress and black bread made a weird combination.
Mylia found it funny and smirked unintentionally.
ïŒShe looks like a poor woman trying to act like a wealthy lady.ïŒ
Robin saw Myliaâs smirk and squinted.
She then turned to Aaron and saidăŒ
ăFather, donât you think itâs a waste to provide this pipsqueak meals like us? I think one meal every two days is enough for her.ă
ăHm? Ahh.ă
Aaron raised his face while chewing the meat and replied vaguely.
At first glance, it looked like Aaron didnât really hear what Robin said, but actually, he didnât get along with her.
Being surprised by the sudden turn of events, Mylia could only look at Robin and Aaronâs faces alternately.
ïŒEh? Ehhh!? One meal for two days!? Are you kidding me!?ïŒ
ăAm I wrong? A person whoâs not doing anything has no rights to eăŒă
Suddenly, Chloe interrupted Robin with a loud voice.
ăăŒMylia, itâs okay to soak your bread in your soup. I donât want you to hurt your teeth. If you soak it like this, it will RETURN to a soft state.ă
Aaron, Alex, Bonnie, Ella, Robin, Jasmine, and Penelope.
Everyone stared at Chloe all at once because it was rare for her to talk out loud like that.
ăIt will return?ă
Mylia was also surprised and instinctively asked back.
ăYes, it will RETURN to a soft state.ă
After saying that, Chloe glanced at Robin.
The word âreturnâ was kind of forbidden in the Atwood Family.
The reason was Robin has made a very disgraceful record in aristocratic society by âcheating on her husband, divorcing, and returning homeâ.
This fact has not yet been leaked to the royal capital because it was only a marriage between rural aristocrats, but it would eventually spread if they didnât hide it well.
Aristocratic society was full of gossip after all.
ăKhhâŠâŠ..!ă
While biting her bread, Robin trembled with her face bright red.
ăHas your bread RETURNed to a soft state, Mylia?ă
As she tucked her hair behind her ear, Chloe asked Mylia with a smile.
ïŒReturn⊠returnâŠ.. Ah! Return home after divorce?âŠ. So Chloe onee-chan said it out loud on purposeâŠ!?ïŒ
ăUn. It almost RETURNed to a soft state.ă
When I said that, Robin glared at me intimidatingly.
ïŒUwaa⊠she looks so scary⊠we might have angered her too much.ïŒ
ăOi, you two. Stop saying that.ă
Said Aaron as he stabbed his fork into his roasted meat and pointed his knife at Mylia and Chloe.
ăAaron-sama is right. Donât say that so lightly.ă
Said Alex, trying to act like a good son-in-law.
However, he didnât realize that agreeing with Aaron just meant that he acknowledged the scandal Robin made.
Being shamed even more, Robin clicked her tongue out loud.
ăAlex-sama, please be quiet!ă
ăâŠâŠâŠâŠ..ă
Being glared at by Robin, Alex shut his mouth immediately.
ăJust eat quietly.ă
Feeling a little bit uncomfortable, Aaron said so, and then continued eating.
ăIâm sorry. Iâll be careful next time.ă
ăIâm sorryâŠă
Chloe and Mylia apologized, but Robin didnât stop glaring at them.
She seemed to be very annoyed with their perfectly synced actions.
ïŒUhh⊠sheâs still glaring at me⊠Oh well, Iâm glad that it looks like I wonât be starved in the futureâŠïŒ
Thanks to Chloeâs interruption, the discussion about providing Mylia only one meal every two days was averted.
However, the atmosphere in the dining room got even worse after that.
Robin kept glaring with intimidating eyes; Aaron devoured meat like a boss bandit; Alex kept silent after making Robin even madder; Bonnie was depressed; Ella, Jasmine, and Penelope showed no concern from the beginning.
As if the god of death was here, the air around the table was cold as hell.
ïŒEating hard and bad-tasting food in this kind of atmosphere⊠this is the worstâŠïŒ
The lettuce-like grass was very bitter.
The soup was a little salty, and for some reason, an animal-like smell drifted from it.
ïŒAhh⊠I miss the yakiniku I ate with grandma at Jojoen when I was in middle schoolâŠïŒ
Jojoen was the most famous Japanese yakiniku restaurant.
*/jojoen.co.jp (not sponsored btw)
Miria and her grandma had lunch there once.
At that time, Miria was having a hard time in school.
Her grandma took her to the restaurant to make her smile again.
Eating yakiniku at Jojoen was a wonderful experience for Miria.
She could feel heaven in every single bite of meat.
ïŒCompared to that delicious yakiniku⊠I can feel hell in every bite of this meal nowâŠïŒ
Thought Mylia while chewing her soaked black bread with no expression.
Because wheat couldnât be cultivated in this region, people here rarely ate bread.
The ones who could eat bread oftenly were only the Atwood Family.
However, the bread they got wasnât fluffy bread, but hard black objects with nutritious grains mixed in.
Experiencing such a terrible dinner, Myliaâs determination to get out of this family was getting stronger.