* * *

‘My head feels clear these past few days.’

Serena thought as she started her meal with a pleasant expression.

Serena’s meal portions are quite large. It’s because she’s the type to think a lot, so even just using her brain consumes a lot of calories.

On the contrary, Magnus was becoming more exhausted day by day.

‘…It’s good, everything’s good… but I just can’t sleep.’

He thought about the past week when he couldn’t sleep despite trying various methods.

“Your expression hasn’t been good lately. Is it because you can’t sleep because of me?”

“Not at all.”

Magnus answered with a stiff expression.

He didn’t want to appear weak, and he was also concerned that if he told the truth, she might blame herself.

What Magnus learned during the week of being by Serena’s side is that she uses the phrase ‘someone like me’ more often than he thought.

He was a bit surprised, since he had never thought her self-esteem would be this low.

“Where are you planning to go today?”

“Ah… well. The items are about to be commercialized, so I’m going to the association briefly to check on that……”

“……”

Magnus fell silent.

He pondered for a moment. Of course, here, as the older and more mature one, as a husband, it would be right to trust her and let her go.

‘I can trust Serena, but I can’t trust that guy.’

So Magnus attached a reason to something else.

“And I’m thinking of visiting places like iron mills or blacksmiths.”

“Iron mills or blacksmiths?”

His eyes widened slightly at the unexpected locations.

“Oh, um. Yes. I’m thinking about something… I need to check if it’s possible.”

“Would you hate it if I came along?”

Magnus asked carefully.

Serena rolled her eyes.

He now knows that this is her gesture when she’s contemplating.

But it’s the gesture she makes when contemplating something she’s not too keen on.

‘Still a long way to go.’

Can’t be helped.

He decided to back off for now, since Drukan was there.

This was because Drukan, after hearing the situation from Pamel, had subtly advised that it wouldn’t be good to push too hard.

“Aren’t you busy?”

Just as he was about to say it was fine, Serena’s lips parted.

“Not particularly. I don’t find the time I spend on you wasteful at all.”

“……”

Serena’s face flushed red once again.

“I don’t understand why you keep saying such strange things to someone like me……”

She lightly pressed her cheek with the back of her hand and then nodded.

“If you’re not busy, I don’t mind. The divorce was canceled anyway.”

Magnus recalled how he had gone to the Crown Prince early the next morning after getting her permission to request the cancellation.

Of course, all of this was done by Magnus, who hadn’t slept all night and entered the palace before she woke up, so when Serena opened her eyes, she had quite a shocked expression.

‘It was good to do it quickly.’

Otherwise, he would have surely heard unnecessary words like asking to think about it once more.

He nodded with satisfaction, rarely praising his own foresight.

“But can’t you tell me why you’re going to the iron mill?”

“Well… have you heard of ergonomics?”

“No.”

“What about magical engineering?”

“You mean things like making magic stones or magical items?”

“Well… it’s similar, I guess.”

Serena nodded.

“It’s engineering that applies that to the human body… for example, like prosthetic limbs.”

“Prosthetic limbs? You mean those made of wood?”

“Yes, but making them out of metal and connecting them to nerves with magic stones so that they can move down to the fingertips.”

“Attaching iron to arms?”

Just hearing it, it sounded incredibly inefficient.

Serena glanced at him cautiously.

“I’m just going to check it out……”

Magnus looked at Serena.

Now that they’ve become closer, Serena pays a lot of attention to Magnus’s reactions.

“Well, you always bring interesting things, so I’m sure you can do it.”

Serena scratched her cheek.

She felt a bit embarrassed.

Usually when she said something like this, the other person would point out everything that was wrong and then give dozens of pieces of advice.

Serena experienced being acknowledged immediately for the first time in her life.

“Then, let’s go after we finish our meal.”

“Alright.”

The two resumed their paused meal.

* * *

“Lady Serena, some letters have arrived for you.”

“Mmm, thank you.”

Serena received several letters brought by his guard knight Drukan.

Upon checking, they were about the cosmetics that had started commercialization with Bartolin.

‘…How thorough.’

He didn’t need to report on things like this.

Because Serena had no intention of getting involved in this business at all.

But the other party was more proactive than expected.

There was a guide sheet with various instructions including sales methods and promotional methods.

After that, there were various questions written as if they were some kind of question mark killer¹a phrase often used metaphorically to describe someone who asks an excessive number of questions, especially in rapid succession or in a way that feels overwhelming or relentless.

All of it seemed to be content for dealing with customers or handling after sales and claims.

But…

‘It’s… it’s troublesome…’

Serena found it bothersome.

She had left everything to them because she didn’t want to do this kind of thing.

However, Serena was the only one in this world who knew about this information.

‘I wish I had an assistant…’

Serena was startled as she thought that.

‘I think I just had the same thought as Lemerun…’

Serena shook her head vigorously.

It was when she had finished checking the letters and picked up her pen,

“Madam, have some snacks. And the master requested you to check these documents.”

A servant who had been speaking to her more often lately entered.

Serena, who was using the office next to Magnus’s, nodded at the entering servant.

“O-okay…”

The documents on this side are also piling up like a mountain.

‘…Why did I start two businesses?’

She thought with somewhat depressed eyes.

“Are you very tired, Madam?”

“Huh? Ah, no. I’m fine. Don’t worry about it and get out right now.”

“Yes~ Please don’t overwork yourself and make sure to have at least some snacks while working.”

“I told you to get out when I said I understood!”

Even when she spoke with force in her eyes, the servant was no longer afraid of her like before.

They just smiled faintly and bowed politely before leaving.

‘…What’s going on?’

People around her had been strange lately.

‘I… want to live as a villainess.’

Of course, they still move quickly and attentively.

But if there’s a problem, it’s that their lips are subtly curled up or they look like they’re in a good mood.

Well, it’s not a problem for people to be in a good mood, but…

In the middle of her thoughts, Black Rabbit jumped up from below and held out a notebook.

These days, Black Rabbit even spreads out a blanket nearby and sleeps soundly while she works.

Although its once round body has become a bit more slender, its gluttony and desire for sleep haven’t disappeared.

‘…Something is annoying.’

She didn’t think this way when they slept together, but seeing it sleep alone while she’s busy makes her feel a bit…

[I’m hungry! Serena! Give me food, food!]

Black Rabbit jumped up and down.

“Make it yourself.”

[The vegetables you give me are delightfully delicious! Today, cabbage and carrots would be good!]

“There’s a vegetable garden outside!”

[Serena has to pick them……]

Serena clenched her fist at the sparkling eyes looking up at her like some abandoned puppy.

‘Now that it’s a real rabbit, I can’t even throw it…’

When it was a doll, she threw it without hesitation, but now that it’s a real rabbit, she couldn’t throw it.

Serena had no choice but to get up from her seat, leaving behind the mountain of documents.

She headed to the greenhouse. When she picked some well-grown carrots and cabbage from the vegetable garden in a corner of the greenhouse and threw them in front of Black Rabbit, it started eating with a small fork, plate, and knife that it had brought from somewhere, as if it was in a restaurant.

That sight looked elegant again on its own, making Serena frown as she rolled up her sleeves.

“Since I’m here, I might as well take care of things a bit before leaving.”

Serena scanned the modestly sized greenhouse once and headed towards the herb garden.

She pulled out and discarded leaves that looked like they were rotting, and removed any weeds that had grown.

This greenhouse was something that Magnus had whipped up in a week when he found out that Serena was looking for a house to use as a workshop.

Of course, it wasn’t Magnus who built it, but the hired workers.

The fact that they could build a glass greenhouse of this size in just a week showed how much money and manpower Magnus had poured into this greenhouse.

And Serena understood the feelings of those workers.