The Burden of Other Joys

“Dyeing?”

“Yes.”

Sian nodded, looking quite excited. However, Theodore asked back with a face of incomprehension.

“Why do I have to change my hair color?”

“Well… about that.”

After a year of inquiries, they finally found the herbs to dye Theodore’s hair.

Kalli made the dye with those herbs, and as soon as Sian received it, he laid out a lot of tools on the drawing-room table to dye Theodore’s hair.

“As you know, not many people in the Outer Chamber have bright hair colors.

If you meet other people as you are, you’ll stand out too much.”

“Do I have to meet those people?”

“Ah, right.”

Come to think of it, he hadn’t told Theodore that there were people living in the village below the mountain.

He thought he would tell him after finding the herbs and making the dye, but it seemed too sudden from Theodore’s perspective. Sian looked into Theodore’s eyes and said.

“There are a lot of people living on the lower side of the mountain. Wouldn’t you like to go visit them?”

“Hmm…”

“……?”

Theodore, who was expected to be delighted, showed a rather gloomy expression. Unable to understand why, Sian tilted his head, and Theodore, hesitating, parted his lips.

“Master is going too, right?”

“……!”

Sian, looking at Theodore’s anxiously wavering pupils, realized it belatedly. And he recalled what had happened when Theodore first came here.

<Am… am I being kicked out?>

<Are you going to abandon me?>

Those were the words Theodore had said after hearing the conversation with Kalli while inquiring about the Dane Merchant Group.

It seemed that Theodore had interpreted the words ‘going to visit the village below the mountain’ a little differently.

Sian, feeling sympathetic for Theodore’s anxiety, also felt a lump in his heart.

“Of course, Master is going with you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Only after receiving Sian’s confirmation several times did Theodore’s face brighten.

He had thought he had cared for him with all his love until now, but he didn’t know why he was still so anxious.

Sian now picked up the tools he had laid out one by one again.

In fact, Sian had never dyed his hair before. He could have had some escapades during his time in Korea before the transmigration, but he wasn’t very keen on them then. So he had lived with black hair all along.

Fortunately, it felt familiar because the body he was in had black hair, which was good, but seeing Theodore’s shining golden hair made him think that it would have been nice to dye it at least once.

Moreover, because he had never dyed his hair, he couldn’t figure out how to do it, even though he had heard the dyeing instructions from Kalli. Sian frowned and picked up various things.

“So… mix this with this, and then this is…”

“……”

Theodore quietly watched Sian. Sian’s flustered appearance was new.

Master Sian had always shown a perfect appearance in front of Theodore.

It was a new side of Sian, who was sometimes strict and sometimes kind.

“Um, if I spread this on the hair well now…”

“……?”

Sian, after finally mixing the ingredients, sat Theodore down in front of him. And he applied the dye all over his hair.

The dark-colored dye covered Theodore’s hair.

Now he had to brush it delicately to make the dye soak into all parts of the hair, but Sian’s touch was extremely clumsy.

The dye splattered here and there due to the bad brushing. But Theodore was just happy, as if he was playing house with Sian.

“Phew… it’s done.”

“Is it all done?”

“No. You have to wait a little and wash your hair now.”

“Yes.”

Theodore tilted his head at the unfamiliar sensation.

He couldn’t see his own appearance because there was no mirror, but he could tell that Sian had applied a lot of sticky stuff to his hair for quite a long time.

It felt cold at first, but it gradually got warmer as time passed. But it wasn’t that hot.

“Do you feel uncomfortable? Does anything bother you?”

“No, I’m okay.”

Sian asked, sensitively sensing Theodore’s expression.

But Theodore shook his head indifferently.

Sian keenly observed Theodore and timed it.

He said that the dye was so strong that it was not good to leave it on for too long.

But he also said that if he washed it off right away, the effect wouldn’t be noticeable, so he had to wait for the right timing.

“Let’s wash it now.”

“Yes.”

Sian, as time had passed, lifted Theodore’s body. Theodore, who had been obedient, held Sian’s hand and went into the bathroom to wash his hair. Sian did the hair washing himself.

At first, he didn’t understand why he had to do this, so it was a little awkward, but not anymore. Theodore was satisfied, receiving Sian’s soft touch.

“Theo, does your head itch or feel uncomfortable?”

“Yes, it’s fine.”

Seeing the wet hair briefly, the hair did get a lot darker, but he still couldn’t tell how it would turn out.

“Then let’s dry it now.”

Sian sat Theodore down in front of him again and stretched out his hands. Warm air came out of Sian’s hands and dried Theodore’s hair.

“Oh…”

Theodore’s fluffy hair had a dark color. Of course, it was still bright compared to others, but it had gotten a lot darker considering his original hair color.

But it seemed like he had to practice applying the dye more. Right now, the dye wasn’t evenly applied, and there were some areas where the color was strange. Sian hesitated for a moment and put a hat on Theodore.

“You can go out like this.”

“Um.”

“Is it uncomfortable?”

“No, it’s okay.”

Theodore, who was awkwardly stroking the edge of the hat, smiled brightly at Sian. The parts that the hat couldn’t cover were fortunately a dark brown color. He thought that other people wouldn’t think it was strange at this level.

Finally, he slightly applied a light refraction magic to Theodore’s eyes. It was perfect.

There were no lenses in this world, so he had to use magic to change the eye color, and Theodore was basically a body that didn’t take well to magic.

So he couldn’t completely change the color, and he only refracted the light and made a slight change from the original color.

“Shall we go now?”

“Yes!”

Theodore, who answered energetically, took Sian’s hand. The two of them smiled at each other. They felt like they were going on a picnic.

Soon, the figures of the two disappeared from the mansion. When he closed his eyes and opened them, a completely different landscape spread before Theodore.

“Wow.”

Theodore couldn’t help but admire. It was because he could see unexpected sights.

Colorful houses were lined up in front of Theodore. It wasn’t that impressive, but the little houses were clustered together, which seemed a little strange.

In addition, the people bustling around were unfamiliar to Theodore. Theodore blinked his wide eyes, looking around.

“Lord Dragon, have you come?”

“Yes.”

“And this child is…?”

The villagers, now used to it, weren’t surprised to see Sian suddenly appear.

But he seemed to be curious about the young child who was clinging to Sian. Sian shrugged and answered.

“My disciple. His name is Theodore.”

“Hello…”

“Hello, but isn’t the hat a bit big for him?”

“Uh… his skin is a bit sensitive to sunlight, so he has to wear a big hat.”

“I see.”

The passing villager understood and waved at Theodore. Soon, he went somewhere at a brisk pace.

It seemed like he was in the middle of farming, as it was that time of day. Sian, still looking around, held Theodore’s hand and walked forward.

“Good morning, Lord Dragon!”

“Yes.”

“Have a good afternoon, Lord Dragon!”

“Yes.”

The people passing by greeted Sian with bright smiles. Sian nodded to them as if he was used to it.

Theodore, gradually adapting to the surrounding scenery, looked at the villagers and Sian alternately.

“Are you doing well with the farming?”

“We’re preparing the land… to be honest, I don’t know yet.”

“Hmm, try to do your best.”

“Yes!”

Although the wildflowers were blooming, the land hadn’t been completely purified yet.

It seemed that the dandelions in this world were particularly strong.

They were trying to farm more in addition to the emergency crops they had been cultivating, but he couldn’t be sure of the results yet. However, Sian just nodded, watching the enthusiastic villagers.

“……”

Theodore stared blankly at that sight. For some reason, his heart felt strangely agitated. But he couldn’t figure out the reason, so he held his chest with one hand. His chest kept pricking.

“Theo, why are you like that?”

“Ah, no. It’s nothing.”

“……?”

Sian looked down at the hesitant Theodore with a puzzled expression. But soon, he turned his head reflexively as someone called him. Theodore frowned, looking at Sian.

‘The only one who is precious to me is Master.’

The only person who was important in Theodore’s little world was Sian. He didn’t care about anyone else. But Theodore was the only one who thought that.

‘Master has other precious things besides me.’

Theodore’s eyes darkened, looking at Sian.

The emotions that he hadn’t named clearly yet continued to confuse Theodore’s heart.

Theodore just pressed his chest, which was fluttering.