Perhaps because of what happened yesterday, today Arthur insisted on bringing Mia along even for his work outings.
It just felt a bit strange—why did it take an hour's horseback ride to leave their own home?
Arthur's destination wasn't far, just a villa in the city. However, what surprised Mia was that Moore Manor was already so vast and spacious—why go through the trouble of setting up a business villa outside the manor? Wouldn't it be more convenient to conduct business directly at Moore Manor? It would save time, effort, and space.
As soon as Arthur arrived, he was whisked away by a crowd to handle business matters elsewhere, leaving Mia to ask Tina and Jenny, who were accompanying her.
"Miss Mia, business is business, and home is home. Isn't it better to keep them separate?" Tina didn't find anything odd about it.
"But Moore Manor is so big. It takes over an hour every day to get to the villa. Isn't that exhausting and inconvenient?"
"It's not like this every day," Jenny explained with a gentle smile. "It's just that business has been particularly busy lately, with many urgent matters that require the leader's personal attention. That's why he comes here to handle things nearby. Otherwise, documents are usually sent back to the manor for him to review."
"I see," Mia nodded, understanding. "So, what should we do now?"
"Do?" Tina asked, puzzled. "Miss Mia, aren't we working right now?"
Working?! Mia looked utterly confused. Sitting around drinking tea and chatting was considered work?!
Exactly! Right now, Mia, Tina, and Jenny were sitting in the villa's garden, munching on sunflower seeds and chatting aimlessly, bored out of their minds. And Tina called this tedious activity work?! Then what was all the labor they used to do at the Ivan household? Wasted energy…?
Jenny burst into laughter at the dumbfounded exchange between Mia and Tina, then said to Mia, "Miss Mia, for the leader, as long as you're happily sitting here eating something that might make you gain a little weight, that's enough. He can handle his business—you don't need to worry about it." Jenny had picked up on Mia's concern for Arthur.
"But, but… knowing Arthur is swamped with work while I'm just sitting here idly eating these…" How could she possibly enjoy it?
"How about this, Miss Mia? Why don't we take a walk? Since we're out here, we could stroll around the city," Jenny suggested, hoping to distract her from overthinking.
"Great idea!" Tina chimed in, enthusiastically raising both hands in agreement.
"You two can go if you want, but I'm not going!" Mia replied. Wouldn't that make her seem even more idle? Going out to have fun while Arthur was at his busiest…
"Miss Mia…" Hearing her say this, Tina's playful mood vanished completely.
The surroundings fell into a quiet hush, with Tina and Jenny exchanging helpless glances.
Mia, who had been silently looking down, suddenly raised her head, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm as she asked Jenny, "Jenny, what do you think I could do to help Arthur?"
"Well… you'd have to ask the leader about that. He'll tell you," Jenny replied. According to the leader's instructions, Miss Mia's only job was to eat well, have fun, and rest well—nothing else. Their task was to make sure she did just that.
"Why is it like this?!" Mia said, clearly dissatisfied.
What difference was there between her and a useless person? They wouldn't let her do anything, only saying they weren't in charge. It was as if they wanted her to be a freeloader, a parasite—like those mistresses kept by wealthy men. She absolutely refused!
"Then when will Arthur be back?" There was no point in making things difficult for Tina and Jenny; they were just following orders. But this time, she was determined to make Arthur let her do some work!
"The leader said he'd come back for lunch with you. It's not far from lunchtime now, so he and the others might arrive soon," Jenny answered.
"Lunch… lunch!" Mia, who had been muttering, suddenly lit up with an idea. "I know what I should do!"
Tina and Jenny were startled by Mia's excited tone and quickly stood up, trying to preempt any impulsive actions she might take.
"I'm going to make lunch for Arthur!" This was something she could handle.
"No way / You can't…" Tina and Jenny objected in unison, their voices overlapping.
"Why not?" Mia stood up too, her eyes filled with unwavering determination. "What's wrong with cooking for the most important person in your life? Even nobles do it!"
"But, but…" Tina tried to protest.
"Don't worry, Tina. Arthur won't mind this time—he'll definitely be thrilled to eat the lunch I make for him!" Mia was confident in her cooking skills. After all, she had worked in the kitchen at the Ivan household. Sure, it was mostly large-scale meals, but cooking was cooking, wasn't it?
"But…" Now it was Jenny's turn to speak up. No matter what, she and Tina were under strict orders to ensure Mia didn't do any work. If something went wrong, even a dozen lives wouldn't be enough to make up for it.
Mia sighed in exasperation. "Jenny! Tina! The kitchen isn't a battlefield. What are you so worried about? Cooking a few dishes won't kill me! Relax, I've handled work a hundred times harder than this before, and I was fine. So, this lunch—I'm making it, and that's final!"
Tina and Jenny were speechless. They had never seen Mia so resolute. They could only watch as she stood there, radiating determination, looking like she wouldn't take no for an answer.
Arthur walked toward the villa's kitchen with a grim expression.
He had expected to see Mia as soon as he returned after a busy morning, but not only was she nowhere to be found, someone had informed him that she was in the kitchen making lunch!
Although the informant had explained why Mia was cooking, the kitchen was no place for her…
Tina and Jenny, who had been kicked out by Mia, stood like gatekeepers beside the kitchen door. When they saw Arthur approaching with a stormy look on his face, their legs turned to jelly, nearly collapsing under them.
Arthur didn't even glance at them, but the icy aura radiating from him as he passed by left Tina and Jenny frozen in place. "We're done for, done for, done for!" they thought. They should never have listened to Miss Mia. Now, they had no idea what desolate place they'd be banished to! The thought drained the color from their faces, leaving them ashen…