To You, Who Will Die Alone in Paradise Chapter 17

Kellewen gave an awkward laugh.

“There are no resident attendants. I requested that no one come unless I call for them.”

“Why is that?”

“It is because I want to do my own work myself. I am not mobility-impaired, nor am I a more extraordinary being than others. Receiving help from others is merely uncomfortable.”

“I see.”

He had heard that there were almost no classes in elven society. So it was possible to think that way, but given what the Elven Forest had done, Dandeleon’s thoughts also flowed in a negative direction.

Perhaps Kellewen had been educated from the beginning to do his own work himself so that he would not grow attached to his attendants. After all, an attendant is someone with whom you spend more time than your own family. If not that, then perhaps it was to minimize the number of people who could access private spaces like the bedroom or bathroom….

Dandeleon paused mid-thought.

“Then how do you…?”

He had been excitedly writing down the food he wanted to eat, so it felt rather perplexing that there were no attendants. Wondering if Kellewen meant to make it himself, he looked at him, and Kellewen laughed.

“If I have a request, I am to put a piece of paper in the box at the main gate. Then, if I ring the bell hanging next to it, the attendants are to come and check the request.”

“…You seem like a real misanthrope.”

“What did you say?”

“I said I’m all done. Here.”

With that method, the attendants would have to be on standby in a place where they could hear the bell 24 hours a day. For a moment, he felt sorry for the attendants, but it was only for a very brief moment. It was because the unpleasant voice of the attendant he had met in the morning came to mind.

‘Come to think of it, we only spoke from outside then, too. It seems he was only monitoring to prevent others from entering while the High Elf was away.’

It would have been more comfortable for them to work normally. But what could they do? If the High Elf says so, they must do it.

“Then I will be back shortly.”

Kellewen took the paper Dandeleon handed him and disappeared outside. A moment later, a clear bell sound was heard, and soon Kellewen returned.

“Now then, may I look at your injury?”

“What? Ah, yes….”

Come to think of it, the reason he had come here in the first place was to get his injury treated. What was more, he had pressed his cheek earlier to pretend to cry, so the inside had burst open again. Having no more reason to refuse, Dandeleon quietly entrusted his face to Kellewen’s hands.

“It may hurt. But it will be over soon, so please think of something happy and bear with it for just a little while.”

Kellewen said in a gentle tone as he applied medicine to the cheek.

‘He’s treating me like a seven-year-old child.’

Dandeleon was dumbfounded, but he could not open his mouth as his face was being held. All he could do was blankly observe Kellewen’s side profile.

Seen up close, his was an even more beautiful face. It was a completely different type of beauty from Dandeleon, who was often told he looked like a doll. Dark eyebrows were thick above a brow bone carved like a coastal cliff, and the nose extending below it was as straight as a pine tree. Shifting his gaze slightly to the side, ears that were longer and more pointed than a human’s were covered by his hair.

“There.”

Kellewen’s hand left his cheek. He placed gauze on both of Dandeleon’s cheeks, then carefully examined them to see if anything was amiss. Seemingly finding nothing wrong, Kellewen nodded and smiled at Dandeleon.

In that moment, Dandeleon’s heart sank with an unsettling thud.

Dandeleon turned his head. He could not keep looking at Kellewen’s face. He did not feel very good. His stomach churned as if he were seasick. It felt as if something unknowable was shaking Dandeleon from the inside.

“You look tired. Would you like to rest a little?”

Kellewen asked in a soft, gentle, and slightly worried voice.

How kind of him, Dandeleon thought. If he said he would rest, Kellewen seemed ready to leave the room at once. Even though Kellewen himself was the owner of this room.

“No, I am fine.”

Dandeleon shook his head. For some reason, he was afraid to accept his kindness.

Kellewen and Dandeleon moved to the living room and chatted for a while.

Dandeleon pretended to be interested in Kellewen’s pilgrimage and asked a great deal of things he had been curious about. What he did in his leisure time, whether he had any objects he particularly cherished or was attached to. He even asked, a bit bluntly, if he had ever once deviated from his path.

“Well, if I had to pick one, I think this time with you, Your Highness, is the biggest deviation.”

But there was no great gain. Because every answer was like this.

Anyone else might have thought he was trying to seduce him with a clumsy attempt, but coming from this speaker, it did not sound that way. It was just frustrating.

As they talked, the attendants soon arrived with the food. Dandeleon tried to find the man he had met in the morning among the attendants carrying plates with both hands, but he could not spot him in the end.

‘Whatever, it’s not like I was subjected to some great insult.’

Dandeleon dismissed the thought of the attendant and turned his gaze to the table.

More than ten plates held sumptuous food, showing off their dazzling splendor. The stimulating aroma tickling the tip of his nose made Dandeleon’s mouth water on its own. It had been worth it to diligently and specifically write down the names of the dishes.

“Please do not hold back and eat, Your Highness.”

“Thank you.”

Dandeleon grinned and picked up a fork and knife. He then sliced a piece of the large steak placed in the center of the table and speared it with his fork.

“Mr. Kellewen.”

“Yes?”

Dandeleon held up the fork and extended it to Kellewen.

“Say ahhh.”

It took Kellewen a little time to understand those words. After a moment long enough to blink a couple of times, Kellewen’s face flushed red.

“I appreciate the thought, but I am perfectly capable of eating on my own.”

“Of course, I know. This is just an expression of intimacy….”

Dandeleon had not expected Kellewen to accept it right away. He looked at Kellewen, widened his eyes, and then put on an exaggeratedly sullen expression.

“Ah, I see. I was being presumptuous, not knowing my place.”

“Pardon?”

Kellewen looked at Dandeleon, flustered. Dandeleon put down the fork and bowed his head.

“I apologize. Unlike me, you are a person of noble birth, High Elf, and for someone like me to dare to do something that only friends do to a High Elf….”

If you were to stop a passerby in the Benoit Royal Palace and say such a thing, eleven out of ten people would answer that it was sarcasm. But Kellewen, who had grown up purely in the giant greenhouse that was the Elven Forest, did not take Dandeleon’s words that way.

“I have never thought that way! I am simply unfamiliar with this kind of act….”

As expected, he fretted and tried to soothe Dandeleon. Dandeleon, who had been watching for the right moment, picked up the fork again and brought it to Kellewen’s lips.

“Then please have just one bite.”

Kellewen’s gaze fell on the tip of the fork. He hesitated for a moment upon seeing the large piece of meat, but soon, with a resolute expression, he accepted the meat Dandeleon offered.

“How is it?”

Dandeleon asked in a tone full of expectation as he watched Kellewen chew.

Contrary to human prejudice, elves are not vegetarians. It seemed Kellewen had no experience eating meat, but once he tasted it, he might open his eyes to a new world. After all, Benoit’s beef was a popular ingredient with any country, any race.

‘Now, how is it? The taste of the forbidden…!’

After chewing for a long while, Kellewen finally swallowed the piece of meat. Was it his imagination, or did Kellewen’s face look a little more tired than before?

“It is very… stimulating.”

“Pardon?”

“It is too greasy, so the feeling in my mouth is strange. The seasoning is also very strong, so for my taste, it is a bit….”

‘This doesn’t work?’

Noticing Dandeleon’s bewildered expression, Kellewen waved his hand and made excuses.

“I am not disparaging Benoit’s food. I meant that since it is such an unfamiliar food, it will likely take time to get used to it.”

“…Of course, I know exactly what you mean. Do not worry, I am not misunderstanding.”

Dandeleon quickly put on a smiling face and replied.

Was the first attempt too much of an adventure? Dandeleon quickly scanned the table with his eyes, then picked up the fork again.

“Then how about this one?”

What Dandeleon chose this time was sea bass steamed with herbs. Kellewen still seemed to have an aversion to the act of being fed, but when Dandeleon sent him a look full of expectation, he put the fish in his mouth as if he had no choice.

“The scent is too strong, it makes my stomach feel queasy.”

“…You do not like herbs?”

“It is not that, but with so many different kinds used, I cannot tell what the original scent is….”

“I see… you are really picky, no, delicate.”

“I am sorry that there are so many foods I cannot eat. Please do not mind me anymore and take your time….”

“Wait a moment! This one, how about this one? Please try it one last time!”

After that, Dandeleon shoved food into Kellewen’s mouth at random.

But the word “good” never came from Kellewen’s lips. He disliked meat for being greasy and fish for being fishy, and if there was even a little dairy in it, he would make a queasy face.

In the end, the only thing Kellewen said suited his taste and gave a good review to was the parsley that had come out as a garnish.

‘What an absurdly picky palate…!’

In the meantime, Dandeleon experienced the feeling of his known common sense collapsing several times.

Was not taste an instinct? No matter how much one restrained oneself, one could not suppress instinctual preferences. On the contrary, he had thought that because he had restrained himself for so long, once he tasted it, he would fall for it without knowing where the bottom was.

But why, why this result?

“Th-then, High Elf….”

It was when Dandeleon, holding on to his last remaining hope, reached for a cake piled high with fruit.

“You should eat too, Your Highness.”

A white plate appeared in front of Dandeleon. When he came to his senses, he saw that Kellewen had scooped up a spoonful of food and was offering it to him.

“You have barely eaten at all, Your Highness, while urging me to eat, so it feels like the roles have been reversed.”

‘That is because I did not order it for myself to eat.’

The nasty words that had risen to the tip of his tongue slid back down the moment he saw Kellewen’s face.

Without realizing it, Dandeleon opened his mouth and accepted the food from Kellewen.

He had not realized it earlier because he was only thinking of feeding him, but this was a rather amusing act. A grown man like a baby bird receiving food from its mother…. Dandeleon blushed slightly in embarrassment, but Kellewen watched him eat and smiled contentedly.

“It does not suit my taste, but does it suit your palate, Your Highness?”

“…Yes.”

“I am glad. There is plenty, so please eat. I shall eat as well.”

Dandeleon thought he was just being polite.

But surprisingly, Kellewen kept his word. Even while saying that nothing suited his taste, he brought food to his mouth, little by little, while Dandeleon ate. Even while sometimes grimacing at the smell of the food, even while sometimes swallowing almost without chewing.