At the dining table, the two were preparing to enjoy today’s breakfast. Nolan sat obediently, like a good child listening in class. Vivian served two bowls of thick oatmeal.
“Don’t look at its appearance, the taste is actually okay,” she said, offering a forced smile as a comfort.
After speaking, she scooped a spoonful of the thick porridge. Seeming to want to verify her own claim, she impatiently sent the porridge into her mouth. A rich, burnt flavor exploded from the tip of her tongue, rushing straight to her head.
“Uh… I think we should just throw this away…” Vivian chuckled awkwardly as she picked up the bowl, making a move to stand up and dump it.
“It’s fine. If you don’t like it, give it to me,” Nolan blocked her.
Vivian turned back hesitantly, only to discover with surprise that although only a small moment had passed, Nolan had already finished the bowl of porridge in front of him. His expression was normal, without a hint of disgust. There was even a slight look of wanting more.
This made the guilt in Vivian’s heart even stronger.
‘Is this stuff really edible?’
She stared at the bowl in her hand in silence. For a moment, Vivian couldn’t tell if Nolan was just trying to spare her feelings or if he truly thought it was delicious. Thinking about it carefully, it was likely the former.
Alas…
She let out a soft sigh and handed the bowl in her hand to Nolan. Slowly sitting down, she propped her hands on the dining table, cupping her small face. She watched in silence as Nolan ate heartily, seemingly lost in thought.
‘I thought I would insist on throwing the porridge away… That way, I could avoid Nolan suffering just to spare my feelings. But in the end, I chose to give the porridge to him. Why did I do that? Was it to fulfill his heart’s desire to look after me?’
Vivian’s thoughts were as messy as weeds.
‘Will this make him feel better? I don’t know… But as the one being cared for by him, I truly felt it. I felt that tiny sensation of being cherished by someone else. Just consider it for his sake, and for my own as well.’
The result was Nolan eating two bowls of thick porridge that didn’t taste very pleasant.
‘If only I had made breakfast a bit better, this wouldn’t have happened.’
Vivian sighed again, her heart full of self-reproach.
*Clang*
Nolan placed the empty wooden bowl heavily on the dining table.
“Thank you for the meal.” He licked the corner of his mouth with satisfaction.
Vivian got up to pack the bowls, chopsticks, and spatula. Seeing this, Nolan followed close behind.
“You’re an injured patient; you should stay in bed,” Vivian said, glancing at Nolan’s pale face.
“I’m not so weak that I can’t do this.” Nolan shook his head with a smile.
Vivian didn’t insist on persuading him and remained silent. Neither of them spoke, quietly tidying up the housework. After a while, only the sound of flowing water from washing dishes remained in the small house.
“Hey—Nolan.” Vivian set down the last wooden bowl and suddenly turned her head.
“What is it, my Vivian?”
“I will compensate you with a satisfying feast!” she said resolutely, raising her voice. “I definitely will!”
Failing to let Nolan eat a satisfying meal filled her heart with guilt. For Nolan’s sake, and for her own. Er… and for their future children. Improving her cooking skills was imperative!
‘I am a person with a family now; I must take on my responsibility as a wife. I can’t be like when I lived alone, just boiling a pot of mush every time I ate and settling things hastily.’
Vivian clenched her fists, a flame burning in the depths of her eyes. Now, her fighting spirit was rekindled.
‘I, Vivian, will surely climb to the peak of housewives! I will achieve that unprecedented great undertaking!’
“Alright, I’ll look forward to your feast,” Nolan said with a light chuckle.
***
The two chatted at the dining table for a while longer. Vivian felt the time was about right, so she stood up and said, “I’m going out now. You have a good rest at home.”
After speaking, she transformed into a bat and flew into her coffin. She took off her pajamas and changed into an ordinary black dress. Finally, she pinned a small bat-styled hairpin to the top of her head. She bid farewell to Nolan and walked out the door.
Today was not for work, but for slacking off. After all, she had just gone on a long trip, so she definitely had to give herself a few days of vacation. Vivian found an impeccable excuse for her laziness in her heart.
Then, a ball of fresh blood emerged from her palm. The blood continued to extend upward, finally bursting over her head. From a distance, it looked like a blooming Lycoris radiata, bright and deadly. It formed a sunshade umbrella topped with a bat head.
“First, I’ll go collect the bounty for the Demon hunt,” she muttered, picking up her pace.
She walked toward the market area of the Rust Hammer District.
Ruins of the Boiling Blood Bakery.
Vivian walked slowly for about 20 minutes before arriving in front of Blake’s bakery.
‘I remember now, the bakery seems to have been punched out of existence by me…’
She looked toward the ruins. Several brawny men with broad shoulders and thick arms were working bare-chested, their dark skin tanned to a shine. Sweat slid down their backs as they swung tools with all their might, clearing the ruins.
Vivian stepped forward, catching the man closest to her and asking, “Where did Blake go?”
The man pointed behind the ruins. “Walk back. The place with a table full of bread in front is it.”
Vivian thanked him and walked toward the location he mentioned.
She saw a simple small wooden shack built next to the ruins. In front of the shack was a large table, with several rows of baked bread neatly arranged on it. The back rows were steaming, as if they had just come out of the oven.
“Blake, I’m here for the money! Where are you?” Vivian shouted toward the shack.
“Coming.”
A series of clanging sounds from kitchen utensils came from inside the shack. Blake lifted the door curtain and walked out, holding a coin pouch.
“Catch!” He tossed the pouch to Vivian.
Vivian caught the pouch and weighed it in her hand. “It’s quite heavy.”
She smiled and tucked the pouch into her bosom.
“The bounty was 10 gold coins in total. The City Lord took 2 gold coins as tax. The remaining 8 were split between us,” Blake said.
Hearing this, Vivian’s eyes instantly widened, and her mouth fell open. “What! There are taxes!?”
‘No one told me when I took the mission that there was a damn tax!’
“Isn’t having taxes only natural? Or is it that you’ve never paid taxes, Vivian?” Blake was somewhat confused seeing her extreme reaction.
‘That’s actually true. I thought there were no taxes in an isekai world…’
But Vivian couldn’t possibly say those words aloud. If someone with bad intentions heard them and reported her to the church, her legal identity would be revoked. That would be the end of everything!
“How is that possible? I’ve always been a good citizen of the Kingdom who pays taxes properly! I just didn’t expect to receive so much, that’s all… Don’t talk about that. Just tell me directly how much I have in my hand.” Vivian waved her hand.
“According to the rules, you put in the most effort, so you get the lion’s share, while Nolan and I take the smaller portions. 4 gold coins are yours, and the other 2 belong to Nolan. There’s also a miscellaneous 200 copper coins; that’s the medical fee I owe you. So, there’s a total of 6 gold coins and 200 copper coins in that bag,” Blake said calmly.
“Fine, then this matter is settled. Also…” Vivian pointed to the bread on the table and asked, “How much are the Parker breads?”
Vivian hadn’t forgotten the original purpose of her going to hunt the Demon: to bring down the price of her favorite Parker bread.
“2 copper coins a piece,” Blake said.
“It’s actually that cheap!?” Vivian covered her mouth in surprise.
She remembered clearly that when she first arrived, Parker bread was 3 copper coins. After the Demon attack incident occurred, it rose to 30 copper coins. Now that the incident was over, the bread was actually only selling for 2 copper coins.
“Do you remember President Cole of the Blue Whale Chamber of Commerce? I ran into him in the market this morning while purchasing flour. Then, he expressed his willingness to provide me with the highest quality flour at the lowest price. That’s why my bread prices dropped. Anyway, you’ve got your money. I need to get back to making my bread.”
After Blake finished explaining to Vivian, he turned and walked toward the shack.
“Oh, right.” After lifting the curtain, Blake suddenly turned around as if remembering something. “Whatever bread you want to eat, Vivian, just take it yourself. No charge, from now on.”
With that, his figure disappeared behind the curtain. Vivian’s eyes lit up with joy, and she shouted toward the shack, “Don’t regret it if I take too much!”
A response came from inside the shack. “I won’t…”
‘Hooray! I have free bread to eat from now on.’
Vivian was ecstatic.