Being on the street, you wouldn't notice it—

But leaning on the table like this, looking out the window, you realize the fluttering snowflakes are quite beautiful.

It's a rare moment of daylight at noon, and these cotton-like snowflakes might soon paint the town white.

"It's safe here. You don't need to worry about me. You can rest a little longer. I'll wake you up when Cat Boss has made lunch."

Lanci put down the book in his hand and spoke to Sigrid.

His voice was both careful not to wake the half-conscious Sigrid and carried a hint of command.

Perhaps she could only sleep soundly with a work order.

"Mm."

Sigrid quickly succumbed to her sleepiness, humming softly as she lay on the table.

His already gentle voice was now like a lullaby.

For some reason, she felt like she had just had a dream, a long winter as if eternity had descended. In her hazy memory, she was trekking across the vast snowfields with the person beside her.

But even though they were clearly on the run in the dream, she didn't feel any panic at all.

It really was a dream, a rare, beautiful dream. Even though reality seemed so safe, she had never felt at ease.

It wouldn't be strange if she were caught and killed by vampires any day now.

Sigrid closed her eyes and fell back into sleep.

Even so.

She hoped she could linger in this gentle embrace for just a little longer, even just for a moment.

...

Several tens of minutes later, snow was swirling in Little Night City.

In this cozy living room, the decor seemed a bit rustic but full of charm. Lanci and Sigrid sat at a wooden table.

Several half-empty plates were placed on the table.

Today, Cat Boss's choice of main course was slow-cooked beef short ribs with black truffle and mushroom sauce. It was highly praised in Cat Boss's restaurant for its tender meat and rich, savory flavor. The beef short ribs were slow-cooked to perfection, sprinkled with precious black truffle shavings, and served with sauce, making every bite a feast for the taste buds.

The lemon-flavored salt-baked lobster noodles, the staple food, took the longest time, combining fresh lobster meat with delicate handmade noodles, seasoned with lemon juice and spices, creating a spicy yet refreshing flavor experience.

There was also caramel-roasted duck with roasted pears and black pepper honey sauce, which children preferred, using soft duck meat, roasted to a caramel color on the outside, paired with the sweetness of roasted pears and the slight spiciness of black pepper honey sauce.

"Burp."

Sigrid leaned back in her chair, finishing her lunch much faster than Lanci as always.

She always looked like a ravenous wild child, with no table manners whatsoever.

Of course, it could also be because Lanci indulged her.

Among the precautions that the secretary had given her before departure, there was actually a prohibition against her dining with Lanci in this way.

But after receiving Lanci's personal confirmation, allowing her to do whatever she wanted, she didn't care at all.

Lanci was still eating at his own unhurried pace.

Seeing this, Sigrid took out a piece of stationery and a pen from her luggage.

If she were to enter the Demon Realm with him, she wouldn't be able to find a postman to send letters to the Porant Empire for a long time. Little Night City was the last city-state where she could mail a letter.

Sigrid buried her head and gripped the pen, a look of distress gradually appearing on her face. Her strokes seemed clumsy, and she had to think about how to write each word from time to time.

Her expression was full of self-doubt about her writing, but at the same time, there was a sincerity in her desire to express herself.

Lanci put down his cutlery and lightly dabbed the corners of his mouth with a napkin.

He didn't urge Sigrid, but rather watched her letter with a gentle and interested expression.

"Almost done writing."

Sigrid promised, then scratched her head in frustration because she was stuck.

She had never gone to school, and the only words she knew were taught to her by the nuns at the orphanage.

"Need some help?"

Lanci asked.

"Then help me."

After a moment of confusion, Sigrid finally looked up at Lanci.

This time, she didn't refuse Lanci's help.

"First of all, the purpose of your letter is to convey your thoughts and feelings, and at the same time, you want the recipient to feel all of this. So, if it's just a basic, dry account of what you ate every day, doesn't it seem more like a diary? The other person may not be able to tell whether you're doing well."

Lanci sat across the table. His posture was upright and elegant, and he tapped the table lightly with his fingers, as if thinking about how to inspire Sigrid.

"Indeed..."

Sigrid looked down at her clumsy handwriting, looking a little dejected.

"It's okay, you're very smart, and writing letters is very simple."

Lanci moved his chair and sat next to Sigrid.

His eyes were gentle and focused, looking past the edge of the letter, and his voice was full of encouragement.

Sigrid's small hands were full of frostbite and calluses. She looked up at Lanci again, waiting for him to continue.

"Sigrid, try not to just write down the text you want to say, but write down what's in your heart, the feeling of missing your younger siblings."

Lanci began to speak softly.

After watching Sigrid write letters the past few days, he roughly knew her living situation.

"But, I don't know how to express myself. It's already good enough that I can write a few words."

Sigrid responded, her voice slightly confused.

"Sigrid, everyone's emotions are unique. Your love for them, your longing, these are all yours, no need for fancy words."

Lanci was patient. He slowly and clearly explained to Sigrid how to express herself through words.

"Sometimes when you do things, you don't need to consider doing everything perfectly, but think about doing it to sixty points, and that will make it easier for you to take the first step and start working on what's in front of you. You'll find that when you're worried and hesitant about how to complete a one-hundred-point work, you can confidently start five sixty-point works."

Then, Lanci picked up a pen and demonstrated writing a few words in his notebook.

He wouldn't write for Sigrid, he was just showing her how to write a few words that she couldn't write just now.

In the end, she still had to follow her own ideas.

"..."

Sigrid hesitated for a moment.

"You don't need to worry about me, I'm very safe."

She picked up the pen again and began to write slowly, while reading aloud to Lanci,

"My work is going very well, but without you by my side, I always feel a little empty inside."

Her tone gradually became more confident.

"Good, Sigrid, that's it. Say it from your heart, and I'll teach you the words you don't know."

Lanci encouraged her.

The soft light coming in from the window mingled with the indoor lights, and this quiet, snowy daylight became a witness to their friendly interaction.

Sigrid seemed to gradually put down her protective shell, opened her heart, and her language became more fluent and sincere.

"Sometimes, when I see some beautiful scenery on the road, I think, how happy you would be if you were here to see it."

She wrote, and murmured, reading it to Lanci.

"That's exactly what you should share, Sigrid, the real feelings."

Lanci nodded in agreement.

He was not only teaching language and writing skills, but also sharing his understanding of life and his delicate perception of emotions.

Cat Boss got up from its chair and looked at Sigrid's letter, grabbing the edge of the table.

It found that Lanci seemed to be really good at getting along with children.

For a moment, it even felt like Lanci had become a normal person.

It seemed that the advice that Hugh and himself had given him was effective, and his condition had finally improved.

As long as he doesn't suddenly have an attack and teach children how to make zombies or mummies, it's really good.

(End of this chapter)