Since it was Liazell’s first outing, she had obviously never been to the square.
Seeing Liazell’s sparkling eyes, Kaien chuckled and nodded.
“Sure, let’s go.”
“Let’s go eat candy and delicious food, Liazell.”
“Sounds good!”
Talking about the next food while eating was enjoyable, regardless of age.
Liazell and Philome smiled brightly and enjoyed the dishes that came out one by one.
“Philome, this is the most famous dish in this restaurant.”
Kaien cut a bite-sized piece of the signature dish and placed it on Philome’s plate.
“Philome, try this. It’s delicious.”
Seeing this, Liazell eagerly placed other foods onto Philome’s plate with her little hands.
Philome took the food Liazell had given her first.
“Mmm, it’s really delicious! Did Liazell recommend it just for my taste?”
“Really? Is it good?”
When Philome praised it, Liazell beamed with joy. It wasn’t that she was excited because Philome ate the food she gave her before Kaien’s.
“Yeah, it’s good. So, Liazell, don’t worry about me and eat a lot.”
Philome said as she pulled her plate a little closer to Liazell.
Since Liazell was in her growth phase, and especially after meeting Philome, her pain had disappeared; she was growing rapidly and eating a lot at every meal.
She ate at least two portions by herself, so considering the amount they had ordered for three people, there was a considerable amount of food. Most of the plates were in front of Liazell.
Seeing Liazell eat so well made Philome feel hungry too, and she turned her head. What she saw was Kaien staring at her with a pouty expression.
“Why?”
“This.”
Kaien pointed to the lone piece left on Philome’s plate.
“I gave it to you first.”
“…Why have you turned into a child since Liazell came?”
Philome popped the food Kaien had given her into her mouth.
After quickly chewing, she said, almost defensively, “It’s fine.”
“You eat well.”
Kaien smiled and placed more food on Philome’s plate.
“Eat more.”
“Don’t worry about me; I can eat well, so you should eat, Duke.”
Kaien casually grabbed some salad nearby and ate it. In between bites, he eagerly filled Philome’s plate.
Even when Philome shot him a sharp look, it was no use.
Kaien barely touched his own food, focusing solely on filling Philome’s plate.
At first, Philome felt burdened, but once she gave up, it became easier.
Suddenly, she asked while looking at the mound of salad on Kaien’s plate, “But why are you only eating salad, Duke? Aren’t you hungry?”
Kaien’s daily schedule included physical training. She couldn’t understand how he had energy eating only such light greens every day.
“It’s a diet I’m used to. If I gain weight, my body feels heavy.”
Philome instinctively lowered her head to look at her own body. Then she felt her stomach.
‘Have I… gained weight recently?’
Now that she thought about it, she did feel heavier every morning when she woke up.
“You haven’t gained weight.”
“Uncle, what about me? Have I gained weight?”
At that question, Kaien turned to look at Liazell.
While Liazell had indeed gained weight since coming to the Duke’s household, she was still underweight.
Moreover, it wasn’t due to snacking; her weight was increasing healthily as her meal portions grew, so there was no need for her to adjust anything.
Most importantly, Liazell, knowing she was thin, was looking forward to gaining weight more than anyone else.
Seeing Liazell’s expectant expression, Kaien nodded.
“Yeah. You’ve gained a lot of weight.”
Philome quickly chimed in.
“Yeah, you’ve really gained a lot!”
At their words, Liazell smiled brightly.
“Really? Then I’ll eat even more!”
“Eat more, finish everything. Should I order something else for you? What was the most delicious?”
After ordering a couple more dishes that Liazell had enjoyed, Philome turned her body.
Philome’s plate, which had been half-empty, was once again filled with food.
Instead of saying anything to Kaien, Philome offered a gentle smile.
“Thank you. But I’m starting to feel full, so you don’t have to give me more.”
“Already? Didn’t you only eat two madeleines before coming here?”
“…How did you know?”
“I know everything about you. That’s why I know you haven’t gained weight.”
Kaien offered her some salad on a new plate.
“But eat your vegetables too. You’re only eating meat.”
“Meat is the most delicious.”
Philome thought that she must have an allergy to green food. Otherwise, there was no way it could taste this bad.
“Liazell eats so well too, doesn’t she?”
Philome rolled her eyes as she watched Liazell nibbling on salad like a rabbit.
“…Liazell is just mature.”
Kaien chuckled and took back the plate of salad he had offered to Philome.
They spent their meal time chatting pleasantly. Mostly, it was Philome and Liazell talking, with Kaien occasionally chiming in.
After finishing their meal, they all headed to the square.
With winter approaching and the sun setting early, there were still many people out despite it being a late lunch hour.
While not as cold as the north, the capital also had distinct seasons, and people reduced their leisure activities in winter.
By next week, the crowd would likely be halved, and the square would only be bustling again around spring.
“Wow!”
Liazell, seeing the square for the first time, sparkled with excitement as she looked around.
“Liazell, let’s go over there.”
Philome grabbed Liazell’s hand and headed toward the chiffon candy shop.
The chiffon candy shop was a large building with three floors. The sign in front featured cute characters along with new ones.
“Oh? It’s a spirit!”
Liazell, having seen spirit characters occasionally, recognized them at a glance.
The spirit characters, each representing a different element, had adorable designs that appealed to both children and adults.
“It feels so real seeing them this big.”
“You’ll be even more surprised once we go inside.”
Kaien was right.
As they entered the chiffon candy shop, candies shaped like the spirit characters lined the shelves. These were the same candies that people had been frequently holding on their way to the shop.
And in front of the spirit candies, there was a phrase that read “1+2.”
“I suggested it, but it’s quite a bold event.”
“I think your suggestion was appropriate. The goal is to get people familiar with it first.”
This was an event proposed by Philome.
Initially, Gio opposed it, but after Philome’s explanation, he nodded in agreement. After all, this wasn’t a business aimed at making money.
It was a stepping stone for the success of the spirit scrolls, so they couldn’t think about running at a loss.
And one more thing was added.
“I won 3rd place!”
While Philome and Kaien were browsing the shop, Liazell, who had bought the spirit candy, jumped up and down upon seeing the candy wrapper.
Philome added one more thing besides the 1+2 event.
That was to hold a prize event.
Under the plastic wrapping, the rankings from 1st to 10th were written, and depending on the rank, participants could choose various types of chiffon candies within their desired price range.
Naturally, it was an event with a high winning rate.
Cheers of joy could be heard from various places as people celebrated winning high ranks.
“I’ll keep it safe and come back to choose later!”
“Yeah. Make sure to keep it safe in your bag, Liazell.”
Liazell carefully put the candy wrapper into her pocket.
The advantage of this event was that most people won, and since they had to bring it back to claim their prize, there was no litter on the streets.
“Philome and Uncle, please have one each.”
“Thank you. Wow, this is Liazell’s first gift for us, isn’t it?”
“I received a lot of allowance, so I can buy anything for you!”
Liazell shouted while lifting a bag full of gold coins.
Since it was her first outing, Kaien gave Liazell some pocket money.
Having tasted the excitement of buying something with her own money for the first time, Liazell insisted on stopping by any shop she saw in the square to buy something.
Seeing this, Philome reluctantly pointed to a child selling flowers on the street.
“I want those flowers. Can you buy them for me?”
“Sure! I’ll buy flowers for Uncle too!”
“For me?”
Liazell dashed over, handed over the money, and brought back two flower stems.
They were yellow and white flowers.
Liazell fidgeted in front of Philome, blinking her large eyes as she looked up.
“I want to pin it right next to your ear, Philome.”
