<Chapter 85>
#9. Each One’s Role (9)
Melty looked down at his hands. He hadn’t had reason to use it lately so he’d forgotten, but his gift was the ability to know what food someone wanted. To be more precise, that was the ability Melty had believed he possessed until recently.
‘I know that’s not it, but….’
After the small test he had done with Calix at the mansion, he realized he had misunderstood his gift. Instead of becoming Calix’s personal chef as originally planned, he was now working as an assistant, and with a steady income, there was no need to use his gift. Naturally, while he was curious about what his gift actually was, he hadn’t felt the need to investigate it himself.
‘Maybe I could be of some help…?’
Melty swallowed hard as he looked at the boy who was still sobbing with his head hung low. The food revealed when using his gift might not be what the boy wanted to eat, but Melty wanted to help in any way he could. Until now, he had used his gift to prepare food for many people, and no one had disliked it.
Melty placed his hand on the boy’s arm stretched out on the bed. Then, closing his eyes, he tried to imagine what food the boy might want to eat, just as he always did when using his gift. Soon, items needed for cooking appeared in Melty’s mind. His eyes widened at the unexpected images that came to him.
***
Knock knock.
Melty, who had been sitting curled up with his knees pulled to his chest, looked toward the door. He didn’t need to ask who it was; he already knew. There was only one person who would come here at such a late hour.
“Come in.”
Though Melty’s response was soft, Calix somehow heard it and carefully opened the door to enter. Though it was evening, Calix frowned at the sight of Melty sitting in the darkness without a single light on. He quickly moved his hand to brighten the room and approached Melty.
“Sorry I’m late. Things didn’t go as smoothly as expected.”
Calix lowered himself in one swift motion to meet Melty’s eyes and offered an apology first. A sigh naturally escaped Calix’s lips. Normally, he would have returned early to do his best to interfere with the bastard son’s advances on Melty. Though unexpected situations could always arise in the field, he hadn’t anticipated this particular issue.
Moreover, the downpour that started in the late afternoon inevitably delayed his return journey. After arriving at the mansion completely soaked, Calix received a report from Pel about what had happened that day, and only after finishing his shower was he able to come here.
“…Your hair is wet.”
“It’s fine, it’ll dry quickly.”
Melty reached out slightly and fingered Calix’s damp hair. Fearing that the chill might transfer to Melty’s hand, Calix hurriedly reclaimed his hair and covered Melty’s hand with his own.
“So I heard you went out today? Why do you look so gloomy?”
“…Hmm.”
Melty’s mood was notably downcast when he should have been bouncing around energetically as usual. Calix had already heard from Pel that Melty’s low spirits seemed to be due to something that had happened today, but he wanted to know the exact cause. As Melty hesitated to answer, Calix gently cupped his cheek.
“Today, you know… On our way out of the temple, a child came up to Johaim-ssi, clinging to him and begging for help. He said his father was very ill and asked for assistance. So I went with Johaim-ssi to the house where the child lived.”
The story Melty was telling was already something Calix had heard from Pel’s report, but he pretended not to know and nodded earnestly, listening attentively.
“…And as I was looking at the child and his father, I started missing my family.”
“Your family?”
While it was natural to miss one’s family at any time, the sudden connection to this particular story wasn’t easy to understand. Melty seemed to notice the many unspoken questions in Calix’s query, and looked up at him with a small smile.
“Yes, my family. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them.”
“…I suppose that’s true.”
Though his face was full of the question ‘How did the conversation turn to this?’, Calix nodded with effort. Melty let out another small laugh at Calix’s expression and continued his story, lost in memories.
“The child’s father lying in that bed reminded me of myself. When I was young, I was really sick a lot.”
“…Was it that bad?”
Calix straightened up from his stooped position and sat down beside Melty before asking.
“Well… I didn’t have any major illness, but my body couldn’t fight off even small diseases. So I was severely ill quite often. Actually, the doctors said I wouldn’t live long.”
“Which bastard said that?!”
Melty responded with a “pfft” laugh when Calix frowned deeply and raised his voice. He turned his head, which was resting on his knees.
“So many doctors said that… Actually, my family reacted just like you, Calix-ssi. My brothers would get angry saying they’d teach those quacks a lesson, and my sisters would shout that if they were going to talk nonsense, they should leave immediately.”
As if wanting to imitate his family from back then, Melty made a fierce expression and waved his hands. Looking at his limp arms that carried no strength, Calix quietly agreed.
“Of course, that’s natural. Tell me who they are as much as you can remember.”
Melty let out a faint laugh at Calix’s words, which were accompanied by exaggerated movements as he squared his shoulders. In truth, he couldn’t clearly remember the faces of the doctors who had said such things. His vision was always hazily blurred, and when he came to his senses, he had been crying almost every day. When he was suffering like that, a cool hand would appear to hold his hand, stroke his forehead, and rub his back. He had good family members who constantly talked to him.
Melty’s chattering continued for quite some time, like taking a journey through memories. After hearing stories all the way to how the room across from Melty’s would occasionally be filled with snow or flowers after he complained about not being able to go outside like the rest of his family, Calix carefully stroked Melty’s hair.
“Strangely, my body became fine from the day of my coming-of-age ceremony. My family was really worried, but even after visiting the temple, I didn’t get sick. All my family cried so much then.”
As Melty giggled, his ears that had perked up wiggled from side to side. While it was nice to hear about how much Melty was loved by his family, Calix was starting to feel a tickle in his throat. Having snatched away a cherished younger brother, he strongly felt that he might be murdered sometime soon.
“So when I went to that house, I kept thinking about the old days. Thinking that my brothers, sisters, and parents were just like that.”
“Hmm….”
As Calix calmly listened to Melty’s story, his expression gradually became more concerned. If it was simply reminiscing about family, that would be fine, but if Melty was developing homesickness, it would be a serious problem. Calix had no immediate way to summon someone from the well-hidden Crosel family.
“…So I used my gift.”
Melty carefully said while discreetly checking Calix’s reaction. Calix, who hadn’t been able to keep up with Melty’s sudden change of subject from family anecdotes, blinked blankly.
“Your gift?”
“Well… He couldn’t even swallow soup. Johaim-ssi said his body was already too weak, and even with medicine, he wouldn’t last more than a few days.”
“And then?”
Melty calmly explained the situation again in response to Calix’s question as he tilted his head with a puzzled expression. When the story reached the point where Melty had used his gift “just in case,” Calix pinched his cheek lightly and said:
“But why? Did your face appear again?”
“Why are you being mean?”
Melty swatted away Calix’s hand and protected his cheek that had been tormented. Perhaps because he had poured out his story, his face looked much better than when Calix had first entered the room, which made Calix feel a small sense of relief as he asked another question.
“Okay, okay. I won’t tease you, so tell me. If it wasn’t your face that appeared, what was the problem?”
Melty, who had been glaring at Calix’s mischievous face with pouting lips, recalled that moment again. In all his times using his gift, the only instance where no food had appeared was when he met Calix. Because of that, he had firmly believed that something helpful for the two would appear.
“…I don’t know the name because I’ve never seen it before.”
“Really? What kind was it that you’ve never seen it before?”
In response to Calix’s question, Melty carefully opened his mouth.
“A plant.”
“A plant?”
“To be precise, it was a flower… I asked Johaim-ssi and Pel-ssi, but they said they’ve never seen anything like it.”
It was a flower he’d never seen before, so he couldn’t even know its name. Fortunately, he hadn’t said anything about potentially being able to help.
“What did this flower look like?”
At Calix’s question, Melty grabbed his hand and pulled it close. Then he began to explain while drawing on Calix’s palm.
“It was a yellow and white flower, but it looked a bit unusual. The petals were plumply inflated. They were hollow inside, and it had two layers like this.”
“Hmm, hmm…”
Ignoring the ticklish sensation, Calix nodded repeatedly and fell into thought for a moment. Melty muttered dejectedly that he had hoped his gift might be of some help, which caused wrinkles to form between Calix’s brows.
“…Plump petals?”
