Chapter 114: Who wouldn’t want to spoil a sleepy saintess?
My bribery was successful.
Whether it was the lingering, pleasant memory of last night when he first tried the drink or maybe a sudden craving for coffee’s weirdly reinvigorating effects, I’d managed to buy the innkeeper’s sympathy with my suggestion.
And if a few coffee beans was all it took, then it was a good trade.
Because now I could prepare a nice, fresh breakfast for Saintess to see right as she wakes up.
An idea I wasted no time putting into motion.
First came a platter on which I would arrange the food. And thankfully, in an inn, there was one pretty much wherever I looked, always at the ready for the servers to carry the meals over into the dining hall.
Then came a staple.
Somehow, despite the successful night, there was still some bread left in the kitchen.
While it wasn’t perfectly fresh, likely baked a day or even two ago, it wasn’t this modern, chemical substitute of bread but a true, heavy sourdough.
"Can you heat it up? Preferably, not directly over the fire. Just to make it warm," I grabbed and passed the half-circle of bread to the innkeeper, already pushing him to actively help me out with the preparations. "And do you maybe have some cheese?"
Preparing the breakfast turned out to be quite a little bit more difficult than I initially expected.
The inn’s pantry was nowhere near as stocked as I assumed it would be. And whenever I encountered a lack of some basic ingredient, I had to turn creative to substitute it with something.
With no meat or proper veggies to put on the bread, I used some scraps of cheese to make toasts instead. A dab of butter per piece worked wonders when gently fried on the hot plate.
Not yet satisfied, I then used some miraculously fresh milk, honey, and tomato-like veggies to whip up a sauce that I later enriched with just a drop of apple vinegar and two drops of one of the innkeeper’s better wines.
Finally, after finishing up the plate with a makeshift salad topped with lard first melted on the pan and then rained over the greens where it could cool down.
For the last part, there was coffee. And after replicating the process from last night, I added a beer’s cup worth of the dark brew with two smaller cups of milk and honey for Selia to mix herself, in whatever proportions she would desire.
Then, to stay true to my word, I set down another cup for the innkeeper to enjoy before grabbing the last cup for myself.
I’d prepared enough food for five Selias to stuff themselves full. Toasts with melted cheese, greens, and a rich sauce to dip them in. And regardless of how good it already smelled... it was more than we could realistically eat, even after all the exercise from last night.
Coffee, however, despite having an entire bag worth of beans, was limited. And unless I wanted to watch Selia risk her life to get more, it would be quite some time before we could try to harvest more of it.
Still, today? For when we woke up tired after all the fun we had which allowed us to release all the stress of what we experienced?
Today was the very kind of day that one would want to start with a solid cup of strong brew!
And now that everything was ready, it was high time for me to reap my rewards—even if they wouldn’t be limited to Selia’s lovable smile in the morning as she would wake up and then fill with appreciation for all the efforts I made to make her morning better.
Coming out of the kitchen, I could already see the innkeeper’s staff approaching, begging for a sip.
The curse of coffee took root in this place far faster than I expected.
Still, right now, I couldn’t care less. Not when I was balancing two huge cups of coffee, two smaller ones with milk and honey, and then a small pyramid of cheesy toasts along with greens and dipping sauce—all the while walking up the stairs!
Before long, I conquered the climb and emerged victorious on the inn’s second floor where I, once again, slowed down and slowly, steadily approached the doors to my room.
’Now, for the hard part,’ I thought, taking in a deep breath before slowly, super carefully opening up the doors.
Once the doors pulled far enough for me to lean in, I confirmed that Selia appeared to still be sleeping. And that gave me just enough confidence to push the doors just a little bit further...
"SCREEETCH"
I closed my eyes and froze.
Because I could already tell.
Given how light of a sleeper Selia was, that sound obviously woke her up, revealing to her how I left her all alone in the bed... after the night when we first united, to boot!
Having no other choice, I slowly pried my eyes open, fully expecting to see Selia sitting on the edge of the bed and giving me weirded-out looks, ready to interrogate me for why I left her all alone in the bed...
And yet, even when I opened up my eyes, nothing happened.
Most likely because Selia still lay down in the bed, her face pressed into the pillow, her back neatly covered by the covers.
’Phew...’
I breathed a sigh of solid relief before squeezing my body through the doors before pulling the full, heavy platter along on an extended arm.
Rather than closing the doors behind me, I moved forward instead, not resting until I set the breakfast down within the room, freeing my hands from the weight and the body from the challenge of keeping the platter stable.
Then and only then did I dare to turn back, grab the doors and then slowly, extremely carefully, close them back.
Seconds passed by. Sweat trickled down my face.
But close the doors I did.
And as I finally started to turn with massive relief causing my body to relax to the point I had to reach out and grab the wall not to fall down to my knees, I saw it.
Selia was still in the bed, the side of her head still pressed into the pillow.
But her eyes were now open.
And after she scanned the emptiness in front of her, where she fully expected to see me, I saw her eyes move as they shot right into my direction.
"Morning," I smiled at the sight, taking a few breaths to calm myself down. "I hope I didn’t wake you."
Selia blinked... before raising on the bed and taking a few silent seconds to gather her sluggish thoughts.
"Were you trying... to leave?" she then asked, the path her eyes went through failing to reach the area where I left the food. And clearly, the part responsible for registering the smells hadn’t woken up yet.
"No, I just came back," I smiled right back before standing up, steadying myself for a bit and then moving straight back to the bed.
Wasting no time at all, I climbed over its edge and, on all fours, moved over to where Selia lay before leaning down and pressing my lips against hers.
Still influenced by the memory of last night, Selia almost instinctively threw herself into the kiss, rejoining my mouth with enthusiasm massive enough to challenge the sloppiness of her tongue and lips.
The kiss, however, didn’t last for long at all.
Because the very moment Selia first pulled back to take a breath, her face suddenly froze.
Then, like a hunting dog, she shot her eyes over to the side, where the platter of freshly prepared food waited to serve its purpose.
"Wait, you didn’t..."
Selia’s eyes widened in surprise, while I merely winked at her before climbing right off the bed.
By the time she managed to raise her upper body upright, I was already there, putting the platter directly onto her blanket-covered lap while using my other hand to steady the cups.
"I figured you would be happy to be served while still in bed, so that you can enjoy some freshly prepared food..." my smile deepened right as Selia’s eyes jumped over to milk, then honey, and finally a huge beer mug filled to two-thirds of its size with thick, black liquid.
"And your first, morning coffee, made in whichever way you would like to drink it."
This was the least I could do after last night. After all that Selia gave me, because of her fate, system, or some crazily fast-grown affection, putting in a tiny bit of effort was the absolute least I should do!
And in all honesty, when watching how Selia’s eyes glistened with excitement as she froze while staring at the food, unsure how she was supposed to react...
Just for the sake of seeing that, all my efforts were paid for in full.
Still, that wasn’t all just yet!
If seeing this meal, recognizing its worth, and then smelling the whiff of the coffee’s distinct aroma was enough to get such a nice reaction, what would happen if...
Pressed by the feeling, I reached out, grabbed a piece of toast with melted cheese on it before lowering it down, dipping it in a small bowl of my handmade sauce and then leaning in while raising the snack up to Selia’s mouth.
"Care to give it a taste?"
Selia slowly turned her head, both to look me directly in the eye and to bring her mouth to where I held the food.
A single tear formed in the corner of her right eye, before sliding down her cheek and dripping down onto the sheets.
"Mhmm..." Selia muttered before pushing her lips open and then just waiting for me to stuff the food in.