Yayoi Natural's cooking had improved quite a bit compared to a few days ago.
Eating the lunch Yayoi Natural prepared, Mr. C.B. arrived at this conclusion.
But...
Yayoi Natural, sitting beside her, wasn't eating anything similar. She merely took small, careful bites of a rice ball.
"Are you really alright physically?"
As someone who'd thoroughly investigated Tokai Natural's past, Mr. C.B. was quite aware of the girl's fragile health—especially given her frequent illnesses.
Moreover, she'd recently given birth.
Her current condition should naturally be much weaker than usual.
Eating only such minimal food in this state...
This had also worried Maruzensky initially, but as their relationship gradually grew closer, those concerns had faded.
But now, Mr. C.B. was facing the exact same problem.
Yet, just as she'd answered Maruzensky back then, Yayoi Natural replied reassuringly, "I'm fine."
Looking at her like this, Mr. C.B.'s brow furrowed.
"Are you sure? You used to spend over four months a year hospitalized, didn't you?"
Mr. C.B. shifted her chair slightly closer to Yayoi Natural.
As she leaned in, Mr. C.B. noticed more signs clearly—
Her pale complexion, the slightly dry, brittle hair—all indications of poor health.
Yet this girl...
After a few seconds of deep thought, Mr. C.B. stood up abruptly. "I'll be back again tomorrow~"
With those words, Mr. C.B. headed for the door.
Only when she reached the entrance did Mr. C.B. pause, as though remembering something, and looked back at Yayoi Natural:
"That child seems to be receiving Tokai family's full attention now. At least before she's three years old, you probably won't have much to worry about."
With that, Mr. C.B. stepped out of the house.
After taking a few steps forward, Mr. C.B. turned once more, gazing at the house—not too large, not too small.
A few seconds passed before she finally turned away and departed.
...
The next day.
The girl arrived precisely as promised.
Just like before, she carried ingredients for lunch with her.
After ringing the doorbell once again, Mr. C.B. saw the same face as yesterday, though this time Yayoi Natural looked slightly better.
But the dark circles beneath her eyes hadn't improved at all.
Probably from looking after the baby.
After all, newborn infants were indeed troublesome creatures who knew no difference between day and night.
In such circumstances, it would've been stranger if Yayoi Natural had no dark circles at all.
Seeing those circles under Yayoi Natural's eyes, Mr. C.B. tilted her head slightly, "Aren't you letting me in?"
Rather than reply verbally, Yayoi Natural merely opened the door wider, then silently walked away.
Seeing the open door before her, Mr. C.B. quickly stepped inside and repeated yesterday's actions.
She placed the groceries into the kitchen, then took the same seat she'd sat in a day earlier.
After that, silence returned between them again, just like yesterday, without much conversation.
Mr. C.B. didn't mind the silence. She simply observed Yayoi Natural with the interest of an elementary school student watching insects in a glass box.
Nearly half an hour later, Mr. C.B. finally spoke again:
"Yayoi."
She turned her head to face her.
Those blue eyes held visible exhaustion—clearly, she'd been thoroughly worn out by her daughter.
Seeing Yayoi Natural in this state, Mr. C.B.'s original question was cut short.
Though they'd only interacted briefly over two days, Mr. C.B. genuinely sensed something from Yayoi Natural. It wasn't something clearly definable, yet she definitely felt it.
Therefore, Mr. C.B. decided to ask a different question:
"Do you want to see Rudolf?"
Faced with this question, Yayoi Natural's mind briefly flashed back to last year—that solitary day of marital intimacy.
The sparse, fleeting memories quietly flowed through her heart.
When she returned from her thoughts, Mr. C.B.'s face was still before her. Looking into those eyes, Yayoi Natural gently shook her head.
"You don't want to see her, huh... that's good too. After all, Rudolf can't exactly be considered a good person," Mr. C.B. said casually, shifting her gaze away from Yayoi Natural's eyes. "So, what are you planning to cook for lunch?"
Mr. C.B.'s conversational leaps were always quite abrupt.
It left Yayoi Natural struggling to keep up, but fortunately, some questions didn't require answers.
Thus, Yayoi Natural simply shook her head.
"You don't know either, huh? Well, whatever—so long as it's tasty." As she spoke, Mr. C.B. stretched lazily before tossing out another question with feigned casualness:
"Oh, right—"
Looking at Mr. C.B., Yayoi Natural waited for the new question.
"If... if in the future, I visited as your friend, would you welcome me?"
Hearing this, Yayoi Natural slowly raised her head to meet Mr. C.B.'s gaze directly.
Four blue eyes met quietly in the air.
After a few seconds of silence, Yayoi Natural showed a faint, gentle smile. "Yes, I would."
Her smile was mild, unembellished, but it made Mr. C.B. understand clearly why Maruzensky's momentary kindness had turned into long-term shelter. She also understood why she herself kept returning here, despite claiming disinterest.
"...Even though I've essentially forced your hand twice with documents and your child, you'd still see me as a friend."
Saying this, Mr. C.B. lowered her head slightly, using her other hand to obscure her expression. "Although... I suppose that's not such a bad thing."
Standing up, Mr. C.B. spoke again: "About your identity papers—the initial process is basically complete. The rest is just procedural. I'll bring them over personally when they're ready."
"...Thank you."
"Just think of it as an apology for earlier."
After a brief pause, Mr. C.B. added casually: "By the way, have you considered going out to buy clothes or something?"
Yayoi Natural shook her head slightly.
Seeing this response, Mr. C.B. stepped behind Yayoi Natural: "Then, want to go out together and buy some clothes? It's fine—I'll pay."
"I'm sorry..."
"Ah, well, never mind then."