Dion sat at the head of the table. Past the corner of the table, Clementina, Berche, and Hamon sat on Dion’s left, while Jeremiah, Lillian, and Vance sat in order on Dion’s right side.

The table was piled high with meat and fruit like mountains, and a large oak barrel filled with Sunny Sherry was placed at one end of the table.

At a glance, it might have seemed like a celebration of a comrade’s return, but the conversation content was nothing short of brutal.

“Argh! Ugh! Let’s go to the Siara Mountains right now.”

Vance spat as he emptied an oak cup filled with Sunny Sherry in one gulp.

“If someone injured a dragon’s wing, they should naturally pay with their life.”

Lillian waved the knife he had been using to cut meat in front of him with wrist strength. Despite his elegant speech, judging by his actions, it didn’t seem like he would only be cutting meat.

“Let’s go immediately.”

Hamon spoke in a languid tone while brushing up his long hair that reached his waist, but fire burned in his eyes.

“Explain in detail.”

Dion handed an oak cup to Jeremiah. The yellow light of Sunny Sherry rippled, reflecting Jeremiah’s anger-filled eyes.

“When I went up following the direction where the Makuro creatures appeared, I came to a gorge. At the end of the gorge was a dry cliff. Their traces ended there.”

After saying that much, Jeremiah gulped down the oak cup.

“The Makuro creatures appeared as if they had literally dropped from the sky. After Dimint and I decided whether to go down the cliff or move to another mountain range, we split up. Dimint headed toward the cliff.”

“How did you know something went wrong?”

“We were supposed to meet at the foot of the Siara Mountains five days after splitting up, but he didn’t show up.”

“Dimint missed the appointment time? That meticulous guy?”

“That’s how I knew something was wrong. I went back to the cliff and followed the path Dimint would likely have taken. Then I found capture ropes and……”

Jeremiah paused briefly, closed his eyes tightly, and bit his lower lip. His lips turned white.

“Several of Lili’s scales were scattered on the ground. There was bl＊＊d too. That’s when I knew something had gone wrong.”

“The fact that capture ropes came flying means they were waiting.”

Berche, who had been quietly listening to his comrades’ stories until now, spoke seriously toward Jeremiah.

“That seems to be what happened. We were ambushed there.”

“Where did you find them?”

“I discovered them downstream of the Siara Mountain river. I moved quietly for five days searching for traces.”

“You did well there.”

“Those sons of bitches. Tearing them to pieces wouldn’t be enough. Those Akarti vermin.”

“We’re not certain yet.”

Dion took a sip of Sunny Sherry and rolled it around in his mouth. They were all too excited right now. Only Dion’s gaze remained cold. He glared at the meat on the table.

“Oh, come on! Of course it must be those Akarti bastards. Khaak, ptui! Those d＊mn bastards, I’ll tear them to pieces. Ugh— Not this cup! Bring me a bigger one! I can’t stand it! Hurry!”

Vance jumped to his feet and headed directly to the kitchen. The footman waiting behind quickly followed.

Berche chewed the meat once or twice, then picked up the oak cup and gulped it all down. He seemed to feel stifled.

“I’ll begin the search with Akarti in mind. If we leave tonight and start searching the Siara Mountain area—”

“What about the Tabopis?”

“There was none. The Makuro didn’t grow in the Siara Mountains. But I found cart wheel tracks. There were deep wheel marks along the path from the gorge to the downstream river. I think they brought the Makuro in cages.”

Jeremiah’s voice was very hoarse.

Clementina, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, took a sip of Sunny Sherry. She hadn’t eaten a single bite of meat, only sipping the drink.

After much hesitation, Clementina gently placed her hand on top of Dion’s.

“How is Lili?”

The strength drained from Dion’s trembling hand. His eyes widened as if just now realizing she was here. He had completely forgotten his anger toward her.

“His wing bone is broken.”

Dion’s voice toward Clementina was gentle.

“Can he not fly?”

“Fortunately, his wing wasn’t torn. We’ve realigned the bone, but whether he can fly again will only be known when he wakes up.”

“That’s fortunate for now. What about Sir Dimint? How is his treatment going?”

“Ha.”

Dion raised his other hand that Clementina wasn’t holding and pressed it against his forehead. A long sigh mixed with anguish and frustration crossed the table. Then he rubbed his face with the hand that had been on his forehead.

“There’s a doctor named Hessen Oldenberg. He’s a somewhat eccentric old man, but his skills are good. There’s no one here who doesn’t owe their life to Hessen. We’ll have to trust him this time too. Dimint will be fleeced by Hessen.”

Dion’s voice sank low. Though he hadn’t easily tired even after working for twenty days without sleep, fatigue had suddenly overwhelmed him in just half a day.

As Dion turned his head from side to side, his eyes fell on Clementina’s plate. He brought a plate with crushed peaches that had been on his right over to Clementina.

“It’s a Drasia specialty. Try it. It’s juicy and sweet, so it’ll taste good.”

“Thank you.”

Clementina put a piece of peach that Dion had handed her into her mouth, chewed it, and swallowed.

“I heard Sir Dimint lost consciousness. What did the doctor say?”

“Hessen said he injured his head. The back of his head was torn, and both legs were broken. For now, he’s temporarily unconscious, but it’s unknown when he’ll wake up.”

When Berche, who was beside Clementina, relayed Hessen’s words, Dion nodded.

“We’ll need to wait until Dimint wakes up to understand the situation.”

Everyone fell silent.

Gulp, gulp. Only the sounds of drinking and meat-chewing were heard across the table. Their eyes sharpened as they all fell into thought.

“We’ll leave early tomorrow morning.”

Dion placed his oak cup on the table. He must have been clenching his molars too hard, as the sound of teeth grinding could be heard.

“That won’t do.”

At that moment, Cherbest, the estate manager standing behind Dion’s left side, threw cold water on the idea.

He personally poured Sunny Sherry into Dion’s oak cup. Given the seriousness of the matter, he seemed to have joined them out of curiosity.

Even though it wasn’t his duty, he willingly served Dion.

“Why?”

Dion became displeased.

“First, you’ve had too much to drink.”

“With this little alcohol! I’m fine. Cherr! Do you know who we are? Hahaha!”

As Vance, holding a cup larger than his face, spat with his reddened face, bits of meat fell everywhere. Lillian frowned and turned his head away.

“Even for the Gold Dragon, you’ve had too much. You’ve already emptied ten oak barrels. And Your Grace has a schedule.”

“What schedule do I have?”

“You’re scheduled to be with the Duchess tomorrow.”

“Me?”

Dion looked at Clementina. She was looking at Cherbest and Dion alternately with wide eyes over the oak cup she was drinking from.

Clementina quietly put down her cup and handed the empty cup to the footman. He placed a new oak cup filled with Sunny Sherry in front of her.

“Did I have a schedule with the Duke?”

“I informed both the Duchess and Your Grace. You have a very important schedule.”

“What is it?”

Dion turned around and looked up at Cherbest. Cherbest approached Dion’s side and cut the meat into small pieces.

“A charity banquet.”

“What’s that?”

“Ah!”

Dion stared at Cherbest with a puzzled expression. When Clementina exclaimed as if she remembered something, Dion looked at her.

“Do you know what it is?”

“I’ve heard of it. Does this mean our honeymoon is over?”

Strictly speaking, the ducal couple’s honeymoon was over, but Clementina had never spent time with her husband during the entire honeymoon.

“Officially, yes, Your Grace.”

Cherbest turned and cut even the meat on Clementina’s plate into small pieces.

“You haven’t eaten any meat.”

“What? You haven’t eaten meat?”

“Haven’t you eaten any meat?”

“Hehe! You haven’t eaten meat?”

Clementina looked around the table, then stabbed a piece of meat with her fork and brought it to her mouth.

“When is it? The charity banquet?”

Clementina smiled and spoke nonchalantly to Cherbest. Having already exposed her true self, she wasn’t easily intimidated.