Regressed Villainous Omega Dreams of Running Away chapter 37

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They were all the things he liked, without exception.

In the past three years living as Count Lucas’ adopted son, he hadn’t properly tasted real food.

He had attended countless banquets, but even there, the servants his stepfather had assigned would watch him like hawks, so all he could do was take a tiny, tiny portion of the food he wanted and only get a taste.

Joel considered taking just a tiny bit of ham, but then decided not to touch any of the food the Crown Prince had laid out.

Perhaps because of his pregnancy, his appetite was frighteningly hard to control, and if he indulged in something tasty, he felt he would lose all self-control and stuff himself until his cheeks bulged, just like he had in front of Robert.

Even though he had already shown the Crown Prince all sorts of shameful sides, he didn’t want to show that kind of ugly gluttony.

Sadly, it seemed better to just stick to eating potatoes, as he usually did.

“I don’t have much of an appetite… I think a few potatoes would be enough. Are there any potatoes?”

“Hmm? You don’t particularly like potato dishes, do you?”

The Crown Prince asked back, puzzled.

He clearly remembered that Joel always had a look of utter weariness whenever he saw potatoes at banquets.

What Joel ate at public meals like banquets was usually just half a boiled potato, but that was merely the customary hypocritical show Omegas often put on at public dining tables.

Joel’s eyes were always on the meat dishes in the center of the table while he ate the potato, so it was obvious that Joel would not even glance at potatoes during a private meal.

He had never once been happy while eating potatoes, and he hadn’t even tasted stews or side dishes containing potatoes, so had Joel suddenly developed a craving for a potato dish?

“That’s not true.”

At Joel’s sullen reply, the Crown Prince, who had deliberately not packed any potato dishes because he thought Joel disliked them, quickly got up.

“Wait just a moment. I think Abe was roasting some potatoes, I’ll bring a few back.”

The Crown Prince, who spoke quickly, ran off somewhere without giving Joel a chance to stop him.

Joel, suddenly left all alone in the forest, wore a look of bewilderment.

He was curious why the Crown Prince was being so kind to him, but as his stomach grumbled—the Crown Prince’s intentions were quickly forgotten.

Even though he wanted to suppress his appetite, his eyes kept automatically drifting to the heap of thinly sliced ham piled high on the silver platter.

The ham, made from cured pig legs, glistened attractively and looked incredibly appetizing.

Just looking at it, he could feel the salty, savory taste on the tip of his tongue.

‘That must be really delicious,’ Joel swallowed his saliva with a gulp.

The white wheat bread placed next to it would surely be savory and chewy.

‘It would be absolutely divine if I cut a large piece of that holey cheese and wedged it in the bread with the ham. And if my mouth got dry from chomping down the greedily-stuffed sandwich, I could just gulp down the whole bottle of this sweet-smelling apple juice…’

Joel’s shiny, glistening eyes busily moved across the silver platter.

The bread and cheese all looked delicious, but the dark red surface of the ham, slick with fat, was particularly tempting.

‘The Crown Prince probably wouldn’t notice if I secretly picked up one slice of ham from the pile.’

Joel thought anxiously.

‘Wouldn’t it be okay to eat just one slice of ham, no more and no less, just one slice, before the Crown Prince returns?’

Hesitating, Joel finally reached out a trembling hand. In truth, it was an instinctive action that occurred before he was even conscious of it.

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The Crown Prince, who returned after snatching the two largest potatoes from Abe, who was diligently roasting them, witnessed the short scene that had unfolded during his brief absence and was forced to stop dead in his tracks.

Just a moment ago, he had claimed to have no appetite, but now Joel was gripping a piece of bread with both hands and stuffing it into his mouth until his cheeks were overflowing.

The ham, salted beef, and boiled eggs that had been piled high on the plate were already nowhere to be found.

It had been enough to feed three people comfortably, and then some.

The Crown Prince rubbed his eyes and looked again, unable to believe the sight before him even with both eyes open.

Not only was it shocking that Joel had devoured such a large amount of food by himself, but Joel’s current state was also utterly bizarre.

The way he was frantically stuffing the large bread into his mouth looked desperate.

Joel looked exactly like someone who had starved for months—no, like a wild animal that had starved for months.

Having devoured the large chunk of bread in an instant, Joel then picked up a pomegranate with trembling hands.

Tearing off the hard peel with his teeth, he even swallowed the pomegranate seeds whole without spitting them out.

It was to the point where one might wonder if a person could become like that just because they were a little hungry.

The Crown Prince immediately tried to approach Joel to stop him, but he had to halt without taking a single step.

The lament of Joel, who had just said he wanted to eat comfortably, echoed in his ears.

Joel was currently devouring the food with a face so desperate and earnest.

‘Did the comfortable meal Joel mentioned just now mean a large meal?’

If so, it seemed like too much food was going into that small body, but he also wanted to let him eat his fill.

The Crown Prince, conflicted over whether to stop Joel, ultimately stood there and watched as Joel hastily finished the food.

In the blink of an eye, the lavish meal laid out on the grass completely disappeared into Joel’s stomach, and only then did Joel slump down, looking like he was finally content.

Gasping for breath, unable to manage his body due to the satiety, Joel suddenly came to his senses.

He felt a sharp gaze and turned his head, seeing the Crown Prince with a look of devastation. Joel froze in place.

‘Devastation… Is the Crown Prince devastated that he momentarily felt affection for a vulgar person like myself?’

Joel had no choice but to hang his head low, feeling as though the Crown Prince was looking at him like a repulsive insect.

Then, his eyes finally caught sight of the silver platters he had messily emptied.

The food that had been piled high on the plates was already gone without a trace.

Pieces of boiled cabbage and pomegranate peels were scattered around untidily, and his hands and mouth were covered in grease.

Realizing how ugly his own state was, Joel felt like he would rather die.

“A-A bear suddenly appeared and ate all the food…”

He tried to excuse himself with tears welling up in his eyes, but it was obvious that he would have been better off keeping his mouth shut.

Footsteps approached with a soft crunch, and the Crown Prince carefully sat down next to him.

Joel, who was bowing his head, shrank even further.

The Crown Prince felt complicated as he looked at Joel, who was trembling and flustered like a child who had committed a sin.

Naturally, he had no intention whatsoever of blaming Joel for his undignified behaviour.

He was just saddened that Joel’s pretty face, which had always shone with arrogance, was now stained with self-loathing and fear.

“Oh dear, did the bear not harm you?”

When he asked, kissing the back of his hand, Joel tried to pull his hand away, avoiding the Prince’s gaze.

But the Crown Prince did not release the hand he held, and Joel gave a small sniffle.

The Crown Prince looked at Joel with pity.

He had thought that Joel had merely pretended to be modest and eaten only potatoes in public, while dining luxuriously like any other noble in the Count’s home—but it seemed Joel had severely restricted his diet regardless of the setting.

He knew that appetite control was a basic virtue expected of refined nobles, and that this virtue was even more harshly demanded of young ladies and Omega sons.

But even so, did he have to starve himself so severely until he reached this state?

A new wave of frustration arose over Joel’s foolishness.

The Crown Prince took a clean cloth from the basket and began wiping the oil from Joel’s mouth and hands.

During this, Joel remained still with a look of resignation.

Slumping his shoulders in depression, he seemed to lack the energy to even offer another excuse.

Feeling sorry for his uncharacteristically subdued appearance, the Crown Prince paused wiping Joel’s hand and said jokingly, “That bear must have a very bloated belly by now, having gobbled up all that food. It must be quite adorable.”

“…That’s not funny.”

He seemed to have failed in cheering Joel up with the joke, but nonetheless, Joel’s pouting expression was cute.

“If the bear ate all the food, you must still be hungry. Would you like a potato?”

The Crown Prince, suddenly remembering Joel’s request for a potato, unrolled the cloth wrapped around the potatoes and spoke.

As the tied cloth was unwrapped, the scent of baked potatoes, along with warm steam, wafted through the air.

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