Sienna Vale picked up her knife and fork and began eating.
Harold and the others also started, but their speed was slow and careful. Only Wood and Stone ate like starving wolves, their mouths moving fast, chewing loudly. It was obvious Mirella always gave them larger portions than the rest. Their bodies were huge, and their strength demanded more food.
The meal itself was plain, but Sienna Vale had to admit Mirella's cooking was decent. The bread was warm, the vegetables were properly seasoned, and the meat wasn't tough. It didn't compare to the food of her old world, but in a ruined castle on the edge of a wasteland, this was already more than acceptable.
Sienna Vale ate quickly. She was still getting used to knife and fork, but hunger made her adapt faster than pride. By the time she finished, Harold had already stopped eating as well and was standing at the side, watching her like a servant waiting for orders.
Sienna Vale frowned slightly. She didn't like it, but she also knew Harold's habits wouldn't change overnight. Decades of etiquette couldn't be erased in a day.
Mirella and Tiara cleared the plates, then returned with a pot of steaming drink. The smell rose the moment it was placed on the table. Sienna Vale recognized it from Sienna's memories.
Keya.
A drink similar to coffee, popular among nobles.
Harold poured Sienna Vale a cup immediately. Sienna Vale took a sip. The taste was bitter but rich, and the warmth spread through her chest. She nodded unconsciously, then reached out and poured a cup for Harold herself.
After that, Sienna Vale pointed to the chair beside her. "Grandpa Harold, sit down. Drink with me. I have things to discuss."
Harold's expression stiffened again. "Young Miss, this old servant cannot. I should stand."
Sienna Vale stood up, walked over, and pressed Harold down into the chair with both hands. Her voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.
"Grandpa Harold, you raised me. You watched me grow up. Without you, I wouldn't even be alive right now. The House Vale has already fallen to this state. If you still insist on treating me like some untouchable lord, then we'll all die together. Sit down."
Harold's lips trembled. His eyes reddened instantly, and tears rolled down his wrinkled cheeks. He nodded again and again, choking on his own voice.
"Yes… yes, the old servant will sit. The old servant will sit… The Young Miss has grown up."
Sienna Vale sighed and sat back down. She didn't feel proud. Instead, she felt guilt. Sienna had been so blind that she forced loyal people to live like shadows.
She then spoke softly, "Grandpa Harold, I was wrong before. I caused you trouble. I won't be like that anymore."
Harold shook his head hard, wiping his tears with her sleeve. "No, Young Miss. Don't blame yourself. It was this old servant who failed. If I had protected you better, the House Vale wouldn't have fallen so far."
Sienna Vale smiled bitterly. "How could you stop the emperor? How could you stop the nobles? Even my father couldn't."
She didn't want to sink into regret, so she quickly changed the topic, asking what she truly wanted to know.
"Grandpa Harold," she said, "do you know any beasts that grow quickly, eat anything, and reproduce fast? The kind that can be raised easily."
Harold immediately understood the question and nodded.
"There are many such beasts. The blue-eyed rabbit and long-haired pig we bought are exactly that type. They are both first-level beasts with no attack ability. Blue-eyed rabbits mature in about three months. After that, they can breed once a month, usually giving birth to at least five young each time. Long-haired pigs take longer, about eight to ten months to grow, but after maturity, they can breed every four months. Each litter is usually no less than seven."
Harold paused and added, "These two are the main meat sources for common people on the continent. Many farmers raise them."
Sienna Vale nodded. "Do they eat only grass?"
"The blue-eyed rabbits are herbivores," Harold replied. "They mainly eat leaves and grass. Long-haired pigs are different. They eat almost anything."
Sienna Vale's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. The rabbit sounded almost identical to rabbits on Earth. If they could eat radish leaves, then she could make full use of her future harvest without waste.
She stood up and said, "Grandpa Harold, since we already have blue-eyed rabbits, take me to see them."
Harold quickly shook his head. "Young Miss, it's already late. We can go tomorrow. You should rest early."
Sienna Vale glanced at the dark window and realized Harold was right. If she pushed too hard, it would look strange. She nodded.
"Fine. Tomorrow then."
She paused, remembering something she had noticed earlier, and asked, "By the way, Grandpa Harold, why are so many supplies still piled in the courtyard? Why haven't they been moved inside?"
Harold's expression turned slightly awkward. He coughed lightly before answering.
"It's not that we don't want to move them. The castle storage rooms are limited. There's no place to keep everything. We're having the slaves build wooden sheds to store the supplies properly."
Sienna Vale nodded, then asked another question immediately.
"And the slaves? Do they have proper places to sleep? Rainy season will arrive soon. If they get sick, we'll lose manpower. We have very few people left. In the future, we will rely on them."
Harold froze.
He had been afraid Sienna Vale would ask about the slaves, because many nobles would not care. Some would even throw slaves out of their shelters just to protect supplies. Harold had been worried his Young Miss might return to that kind of thinking.
But Sienna Vale's words hit him like a hammer.
Harold's eyes warmed again, and he quickly replied, "Young Miss, please rest assured. They have shelter. I have arranged it."
Sienna Vale nodded slowly, satisfied. "Good. As long as you're handling things, I can relax."
She stood up and stretched slightly.
"Let's talk more tomorrow. I'm going back to rest."
Then she left the dining hall and returned upstairs.
Downstairs, Mirella and Tiara came out of the kitchen just as Harold was standing there with a strange smile on her face. Mirella narrowed her eyes.
"What's wrong with you, old man? Why are you smiling like that?"
Harold suddenly burst into laughter, louder than he had laughed in a long time. His voice echoed in the empty castle halls.
"The Young Miss has grown up!" he said with excitement. "She understands now! She cares about the family! The heavens haven't abandoned us… the House Vale still has hope!"
Mirella's eyes widened. Then her face softened, and she let out a quiet breath, as if a weight had been lifted from her chest. Harold began telling her what Sienna Vale had asked, how she had cared about food, about livestock, about the slaves, and how she had insisted they eat together.
Mirella listened, then nodded slowly.
"It doesn't matter if we can't return to glory," she said. "As long as the Young Miss stays alive and stops acting foolishly, that's already enough. In the capital, we were too visible. Too bright. That's why we were targeted. Here, we may be poor, but at least we're far from those poisonous people."
Harold smiled and nodded. "Exactly. That's why I bought slaves, men and women. Even if we can't rise again, as long as the family continues, I can die with peace."
Mirella's face carried a rare smile, and even Tiara, standing behind her, showed a faint light in her eyes.
For the first time since their exile, the castle felt slightly warmer.
Upstairs, Sienna Vale heard Harold's laughter through the corridor. She paused near her door and smiled quietly to herself. She understood why Harold was happy. Just a few normal questions, just a little concern, and they acted as if the sky had opened.
That alone proved how terrible Sienna had been.
Sienna Vale entered her room, but she couldn't sleep. Perhaps she had slept too much during the day. Perhaps her mind was too active. She lay on the bed staring at the ceiling, wide awake, until nearly an hour passed.
In the end, she gave up trying.
"Since I can't sleep, I might as well check the farm," she muttered.
With a single thought, she entered the space.
The moment she arrived, Sienna Vale froze.
The radish field looked completely different.
Only a few hours had passed outside, but inside the farm, the sprouts had already grown thick leaves. The Harold was so fresh it almost looked unreal, and the plants stood strong as if they had been growing for days.
Sienna Vale walked closer, disbelief written all over her face.
"This is… too fast."