At first, Zoemi rolled his eyes and was going to shoot down Reo’s question, but once he realized that – Because I am a reincarnated person from another world – doesn’t actually speak against him, and maybe even gives it a little bit more validity…

He WAS born again, he didn’t just pop into existence out of a thin air.

He did have a mother, although memories of a three-year-old child couldn’t be said to be vivid.

Back then, Zoemi wasn’t even properly aware that he was a reincarnated person, he was just a child who had strange dreams about living a different life and nothing else.

He lived with his mother in the slums, thinking how much better the life of the boy named Kuro Aku was.

If only the black-haired boy could remember the name of his mother, that would make everything so much easier – but the problem was that he always called her just mom, mommy, like any child his age would.

To his defense, he also didn’t remember the name she was calling him with – although he remembered that calling him by it made her smile no matter how sad and depressed she was.

”…”

Zoemi furrowed his brows and looked to the side with confusion.

He could remember such an obscure thing as his mother being happy about saying his name but couldn’t remember it? What was that about? Ridiculous. The black-haired boy felt ashamed of himself for being unable to recall just the most basic information about his life in that world before he met Mizoe and Miriette.

”Zoemi? By any chance did you recall something that proves my point…?”

Reo started slowly straightening his back while putting down his hands and asked with a hesitant but extremely curious voice.

”No. I didn’t recall anything important, but I realized that there indeed is no proof that I am not the possible heir… My past can be difficult to track sometimes…”

The black-haired attendant glanced at the green-haired boy and shrugged his shoulders dismissively.

It really wasn’t the right time and place to start being curious about a topic that might have turned dangerous for them extremely fast.

”…just curious… but… on a chance that you are the real heir… would you still be keen on giving up the territory to the disposition of the crown…?”

”…”

Still, Reo didn’t seem to catch on Zoemi’s unwillingness to continue the subject and innocently asked tilting his head while gazing at the black-haired boy with his big green eyes.

”I wou…”

Once again, Zoemi opened his mouth the clear the older boy’s doubts but got doubtful himself.

Wouldn’t actually owning a territory open so many new doors for him?

Of course, the responsibility would also be tremendous but…

For just a split second a vision of him in a carriage together with Miriette flashed in his mind – he and the dark-haired girl, not as a servant and master but as two aristocrats of equal standing traveling together to his territory…

Zoemi didn’t have a chance to properly talk with Miriette before going to the Banemor territory, so he couldn’t really confirm Horeo’s shocking news about Miriette reciprocating the feelings her attendant had for her.

Zoemi tried to contact her with a message spell once but… he clearly picked a bad moment despite trying to contact her before supper, where she should be free which earned him a horrible scolding.

Back then Miriette said that he is banned from contacting her first, and the black-haired boy followed her order as an attendant should, no matter how much he wanted to talk to her.

…she didn’t contact him since then…

…could it be that she didn’t want to talk to him because she actually hated him…?

”Zoemi…?”

”…!”

Reo’s concerned voice brought the black-haired boy right back from the depths of his own mind, aking his shook his head and looking back at the green-haired boy.

”What would you do if I didn’t? I could end up kidnapping you, and make it as if your plan had never happened. You know that the first prince is my friend.”

”…”

The black-haired boy felt slightly embarrassed and felt the need to tease the other boy to hide his own feelings but, that didn’t exactly go as he thought it would – mainly because Reo’s eyes widened and he lowered his head with a timid blush.

”That… that would be nice too… if you would want to keep me by your side…”

The green-haired capture target murmured while fidgeting, leaving Zoemi stunned.

”Wh-what…?”

”What?”

Zoemi stuttered when his teasing attempt backfired splendidly but instead of following up with a punchline, Reo just flinched, straightening his back, and blushed heavily while attempting to keep a straight face and not look away.

”The meal is ready!”

”!!!”

”!!!”

Benevirau ended up returning with the first dish at a perfect moment to break the silence that befell the two boys, making both of them panic slightly as they remembered their actual objective.

”Please, enjoy your meal, young master, master’s friend!”

The overjoyed dark-blue-haired butler whose reddened eyes clearly suggested that he must have gotten emotional on his way back to the dining room served the plates to Zoemi and Reo before bowing his way right back to keep an eye on the main dish.

Neither of the boys was in a hurry to return to the subject and just got busy with the food in front of them – similarly, the rest of the meal passed like that.

The only difference was that after serving the dessert, Benevirau didn’t return to the kitchen and instead was waiting by the door, with his face turned towards Zoemi as if he was tasked with an observation duty.

”…”

|Alright… he either wants to get praised for the food he prepared or there is something with this meal particular dish that he wants to witness me react to…|

Zoemi didn’t say anything but the behavior of the young-looking butler certainly didn’t go unnoticed.

The caramelized apple slices themselves looked normal.

Actually, of anything that particular dish looked much simpler than the fancy food served moments earlier…

|Are Desserts out of his realm of expertise or is it the moment that he will start to make things difficult for us…?|

Zoemi thought to himself with looking over the bright-faced butler when…

”URGHH…!”

”!!!”

Reo suddenly le out a retching noise and reached for the napkin to spit out the piece of caramelized apple.

|Oh, so it’s time for making life difficult for us. Noted.|

Zoemi took a deep breath when he assumed that one of the scenarios he prepared for began to play out.

Still, he had to give it to the misty-gray-eyed man, at least he fed them normal food first and not just straight up tormented them with either something disgusting or straight-up poison under the guise of hospitality.

Maybe Benevirau was just starting slow to not overdo things and actually harming the guests since that could result in actual repercussion towards the entire territory, but still.

|I wonder what could he do to the caramelized apple…? there isn’t that much that he could do without making it seem too obvious…|

The black-haired boy thought to himself, curiously stabbing a slice off of his plate with a provided toothpick, raising it to his mouth.

”Z-Zoemi…? I might have overreacted, but you might hold on to those, they are extremely bitter…!”

”…”

Reo leaned towards him and tried to whisper conspicuously, but there was no way that Benevirau didn’t hear him do that, despite showing no reaction whatsoever.

”Just that? Well, well, well, someone has a really childish palate.”

Zoemi raised his brow and snickered – for a change making sure that his whisper would be picked up by the dark-blue-haired butler – and put the caramelized apple slice to his mouth without hesitation.

Because what could have happened?

A little bitterness couldn’t possibly have an effect on someone who used to eat literal trash to survi…

”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

As the bitterness of the burnt caramelized apple that had clearly been left on the flame for too long spread through his mouth, a single memory cleared out drawn out by the smell and taste filling his mouth and nose.

****

A sickly-skinny black-haired woman was shaking from a horrible cough by the flimsy table in the small but clean kitchen.

The coughing fit was continuing for terrifyingly long, and the woman didn’t even notice a small, black-haired child trodding his way towards the table where a few pieces of a caramelized apple were sprawled as if being the leftovers after the failed cooking…

…because that was exactly what they were…

Still, the unaware boy led by the enticing smell stood up on his tiptoes and reached up for one piece snatching it up.

”GHUGH…! N-GHOUGH-no…! Sweetie, don’t! Mommy messed those up again, don’t eat them, they are -GHOUGH- really-GHOUGH-awful..!”

The terribly pale woman noticed the child and tried to stop him, but she ended up being too late.

”!!!”

The small boy flinched and trembled and his eyes teared up from the bitterness.

”GHOUGH…! Sweetie…! Mommy is sorry! GHOUGH! Quick! GHOUGH! Spit it out!”

The woman rushed to her child even though she was barely in a state to move, and gasped, moving her hand towards the boy’s mouth but…

”I-ish good…!”

The boy shook his head and swallowed the whole slice, braving through the bitterness.

He didn’t take the caramelized apple from the table because he was hungry or a glutton.

His mother would always smile when he ate the food she made for him, and he wanted to make her feel better that day since her health was getting really bad.

”…!”

Seeing him forcing himself to smile even though the bitterness was squeezing the tears out of his eyes made the woman tear up.

”My silly boy…”

She sniffled and hugged him doing her best to smile too despite the horrible cough messing with her lungs already corroded by the darkness attribute mana.

****