(Risking My Life) Proposing to Miss Hazel - Chapter 30

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 30

Felix grumbled but didn’t chase me away.

He used a broom to pat down my skirt and swept up the mud that fell with a rustle. His hands seemed quite pleased to be cleaning up after his little sister.

“There are muddy footprints on the floor too! Give me your shoes!”

His nagging was endless though.

“I don’t think those footprints are mine.”

“Stop making excuses and hand them over.”

“Yes sir.”

“Eat lunch before you start working. There’s a lunchbox under the counter.”

“Okay, thanks.”

I obediently handed over my shoes and pulled out the lunchbox from under the counter. I wondered why there was such a delicious smell wafting around – it was the scent of a sandwich Felix had made.

The sandwich with fluffy egg omelet, ham, and cheese was absolutely fantastic. Keeping it free of green things to suit my taste was a stroke of genius.

My feet, dangling above the floor, swayed like they were swimming. Each bite was so delicious I was sad to see it disappear from my mouth.

Felix, having finished cleaning, poked my puffed-out cheeks and asked.

“Is it that good?”

“Yeah. This is the best sandwich you’ve ever made.”

“That’s because there are no vegetables in it.”

“If you know that, I hope you’ll leave them out in the future too.”

“How pitiful that you don’t know the magnificence of broccoli, cucumber, and carrots.”

“I want to be pitiful for life.”

“You would have eaten it just fine today even if I’d put in some carrots. You’re late for lunch.”

Looking at the clock, it was already past 2 o’clock. I must have been lost in the mountains for quite a while.

“You’re right.”

But carrots are still going too far.

Felix took out his own sandwich and ate while expounding on how to make cucumbers and carrots taste good. Something about pickling them in balsamic vinegar and doing something with mustard, but it wasn’t worth listening to so I let it go in one ear and out the other.

Since he didn’t say a word about broccoli, it must be the strongest among the three terrible vegetables.

“So where’s the drawing?”

Felix stopped eating his sandwich and pestered me to show him the drawing.

I was about to confidently open my sketchbook but glanced at Felix’s expression.

Though Felix usually likes my drawings, I was worried about how Felix, who has no artistic insight, would evaluate today’s work.

“Don’t be… honest, just say I drew it well.”

“You always draw well. Hurry up and show me.”

I teased Felix by acting like I would open the sketchbook but not quite doing it, then squeezed my eyes shut and opened to the page with the white claw grass and lamp flowers.

“How is it?”

“…”

I expected at least a perfunctory “wow” of admiration. But Felix had absolutely no reaction, which seemed excessive.

A quiet stillness settled over the shop that had been bustling just moments before. His tightly closed lips curved sadly.

‘Is it too artistic for ordinary people to interpret? He could at least give me some praise.’

Imagining Felix’s somewhat disappointed expression, I gently lifted my eyelids. But-

“…!”

Felix was staring down at the drawing with wide eyes, his expression having forgotten even the timing to be amazed.

Joy and wonder swirled in his sparkling golden eyes.

The sandwich in his hand dropped to the floor with a thud. His slightly parted lips moved slowly.

“Hazel.”

“Y-yeah.”

“Are you a genius?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Maybe you should have gone to art school instead of Matilda. Should we hold an exhibition right now? They say everyone has their own time when their artistic soul blooms…”

Felix shook his head and clapped his hands together.

“Don’t praise me too much.”

It was somewhat embarrassing, but honestly, it felt good. Felix seemed to have misunderstood my words and continued gushing non-stop.

“If this drawing spreads to the city, Hazel will become a famous painter in no time. People wanting your drawings will flock like clouds, and even if you just put a dot on paper, auction prices will hit record highs daily. Maybe it’ll even be in art textbooks someday.”

“Felix.”

“Was that too much?”

“Yeah.”

That’s enough now.

Praise is beautiful when you stop at the first verse.

***

Whirr-, click.

Whirr-, click.

The sound of the magic label printer running pleasantly tickled my ears.

The label printer with drawing scan function and three-color print capability is one of the most expensive items in the general store. Usually it’s displayed on the shelf, but I use it often.

I put the final design of the “Sleep Swoosh” and “Sleep Softly” labels, complete with drawings and text, into the printer and started printing them in a smaller size.

The drawings and text came out cleanly printed on rough yellow paper. Since the design was vintage, yellow paper suited it better than white paper.

“It’s pretty, came out well.”

“Right. I think ‘Sleep Softly’ might be a little prettier.”

“No. To my eyes, ‘Sleep Swoosh’ is prettier.”

Felix lightly shook the printed paper as if drying it in the wind, then used a corner cutter to trim the paper edges into rounded shapes, going tok tok tok tok on all four sides.

I applied glue to a flat stick and spread it widely on the back of the labels.

Since it had been a while, the glue went on unevenly at first, but I quickly got the hang of it and could apply it smoothly.

All that was left was to stick the slightly dried labels onto bottles containing purification water and medicinal herbs.

Felix and I moved as one like cottage industry craftsmen. Our rhythm matched perfectly without needing to coordinate.

I took advantage of Felix being absorbed in the manual work to casually bring up a topic like meaningless chatter.

“Felix, what if, hypothetically.”

“You must be pretty bored with your mouth.”

“Yeah. It’s boring just working with my hands. Anyway, what if monsters appeared in the forest?”

“The forest? You mean the mountain behind the village?”

“Well, roughly.”

Felix spoke smoothly without even thinking.

“Did some kid come for a walk and get lost?”

“…?”

“I’d have to coax them nicely and send them back. If I told them their mom was coming to look for them, they’d probably run away in a panic, right?”

“…”

I was struck speechless by his eerily identical way of thinking to Baron.

I thought these two had nothing in common except for having decent faces, but who knew their thoughts would overlap at such an unexpected point.

“Are you being serious?”

“Yeah. I’ve told you so many times that monsters are actually kind.”

“I naturally thought that was just your drunk rambling.”

Felix chuckled. As he was trimming the label edges, he suddenly spoke up.

“If you ever encounter a monster, don’t touch it.”

“Uh…, why?”

I already touched one, what should I do?

I stopped applying glue and anxiously waited for Felix’s answer.

But the words that came from Felix’s mouth were disappointingly bland.

“They get tired when humans handle them.”

30 bottles of Sleep Swoosh.

30 Sleep-Sleep potions.

The completed prototypes gleamed like lustrous jewels in the evening light. Just looking at them made my purse feel heavier.

“Wow, you finished them all before quitting time.”

“I keep telling you, Hazel is diligent. The person Kaiden sent won’t arrive until tomorrow anyway.”

“That’s exactly why I had to finish today.”

I’m stating the obvious here.

“Hazel, you’re selling that too, right?”

Felix gestured with his chin toward the lampflower bouquet. Thanks to the purification water’s effects, the bouquet was glossy without a single wilted petal.

I gazed at the bouquet from afar and found myself muttering unconsciously.

“Something feels a bit lacking…”

Even with the ribbon and label making it look like a proper product, it somehow lacked that final punch.

Comparing it to the completed purification water beverage prototypes made it even more apparent.

‘Couldn’t I attach a more intriguing description?’

I pondered while comparing the two products, then suddenly my eyes lit up.

“Felix, do you know the flower language of lampflowers?”

“Hmm… I don’t think there is one? They only bloom near our village.”

“Perfect, then let’s create one.”

We put our heads together and whispered, quickly coming up with a flower language for lampflowers.

Whatever anyone says, from today on, this is the flower language of lampflowers.

‘I will be the light that illuminates your path even in darkness, always protecting you.’

It was Felix’s idea.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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