Chapter 5 – Adaptation (Part 11)

At the same time, outside the communal dining hall for administrative staff, employees who couldn’t enter the dining hall gathered in small groups, grumbling and complaining.

“Ah… I’m hungry. When will we eat if we miss this time?”

“Why did they suddenly come here? Who did they fall for this time? The dining hall chef? Or the newly hired secretary?”

“Don’t you have any sense? It’s obviously the person they’re having a private meeting with right now.”

“The person inside right now is… gasp! Of all people?”

While such conversations were happening outside, Princess Karinsa was seated at the central table of the spacious dining hall. A little distance away, two knights from the Princess’s palace and one head maid were standing by.

Opposite Princess Karinsa sat the Duke, with a usual expression but feeling quite awkward, and behind him stood Aaron, who couldn’t hide his discomfort.

Princess Karinsa smiled brightly, like the midday sun, while sitting across from the Duke in the Administrative Palace’s communal dining hall.

“I’ve always wanted to tour the Administrative Palace, and today I felt strangely compelled to visit, not knowing it was the day the Duke would be here. They say the meals here are lacking, so the kitchen prepared a special meal for me. Coincidentally, since the Duke is here, please join me for lunch.”

As Princess Karinsa clapped her hands, a line of carts carrying covered meals entered from the other side of the dining hall. The people pushing the carts were all head chefs and servants from the Princess’s palace.

“Thank you for taking care of a mere minister like this. However, the Administrative Palace is also a place of concern for His Majesty the King of Brunchia, and the meals here are sufficiently excellent, so there’s no need to worry. I will find and severely punish those who spread such false rumors to the Princess.”

Meanwhile, the dining staff from the Princess’s palace were setting up the prepared meal on the table. Cassius stood up.

“It seems I ended up here unexpectedly, and I apologize. I will leave so as not to disturb your meal, Princess.”

Cassius walked towards the dining hall entrance without looking back. Surprised by the Duke’s unexpected reaction, Princess Karinsa was left speechless with her mouth agape. Aaron followed the Duke, worried about whether it was acceptable to treat the Princess this way.

***

The employees waiting outside the dining hall briefly hoped they could finally enter for lunch when they saw the Duke coming out. However, they despaired once more at the shout coming from behind them.

“His Majesty King Clois de Brunchia is arriving!”

Following that, the royal guards rushed in to clear the way. Although they weren’t running to maintain their dignity, King Clois was walking with such tremendous speed and momentum that it seemed as if he was running.

“Well… It’s over. With His Majesty here, there’s no chance of having lunch in the dining hall today.”

“Let’s head to the food cart by the back gate.”

“Today’s menu was steak with apple sauce…”

The employees dispersed in small groups, looking very disappointed. The King, who was about to enter the dining hall, saw Cassius walking out and was about to pass by but changed his mind.

“You there, wait here.”

Aaron couldn’t hide his disappointment and was left waiting with the Duke.

‘Looks like lunch is out of the question today.’

***

Inside the dining hall, Princess Karinsa was pacing back and forth, consulting with her head maid about what to do next.

“What should I do? Should I follow him out now? Should I go out and say that the meal was actually prepared for the Duke? Should I have stopped him from leaving earlier? Why didn’t you tell me to stop him? Why didn’t you give me a hint?”

The Princess took out her frustration on the innocent head maid, who replied with a soulless expression.

“Yes, Princess. It’s all my unworthy fault.”

Just as Karinsa decided she had to run out, the announcement of the King’s arrival was heard in the dining hall. Before the announcement even ended, King Clois, with a fearsome expression, entered the dining hall.

“Oh, brother…”

“Ka, rin, sa, de, a, Bru, nch, ia! Do you have no awareness of your position?”

At the King’s roar, which was close to a bellow, Karinsa flinched, clasped her hands together, and began to fidget, soon showing tears.

“Brother yelled at me… Neither Mother nor Father ever did that… Brother…”

At Karinsa’s tears, the King of Brunchia softened his anger.

‘Damn, I meant to scold her, but now…’

The head maid and knights standing behind Princess Karinsa began counting in their minds.

‘One, two… three!’

“Waaah, Mother! Father! I miss you so much! Sob, brother just yells at me… Why did you leave me… like this, waaah…”

To stop Princess Karinsa from wailing as if the world had ended, even King Clois had to soothe her by admitting it was his fault.

‘When will she stop crying to avoid scolding? She’s not that young anymore; perhaps I should be stern this time…’

King Clois briefly thought so but then shook his head. He remembered Karinsa’s state after the passing of the former King and Queen, when she had shut herself in her room, refusing food and living like a recluse. Thinking of his sister lying in bed with empty eyes, like a dead person, Clois softened his anger.

‘It’s better to see her throwing a tantrum. She can change gradually.’

“Karinsa, stop crying. The food will get cold. Let’s eat first, and then you can cry. Let’s see, what delicious dishes have been prepared today?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the head chef and attendants unveiled the appetizing dishes. When Clois kindly offered her food, Karinsa, thinking this was enough and feeling hungry, stopped crying. However, her sulky expression remained.

King Clois sat down first, picked up his utensils, and was about to take a bite when Princess Karinsa sidled up and tugged at his sleeve.

“This was prepared for Cassius…”

Clois felt his appetite vanish as he put down his utensils and instructed his escort standing beside him.

“Bring Duke Grendel from outside.”

***

Inside the dining hall, Aaron stood with the King’s escorts, feeling as if he was getting indigestion without having eaten anything. He thought it would be better to starve than eat in this atmosphere. It was truly impressive how the Duke could eat so calmly in such a setting.

In the dining hall, only Princess Karinsa, King Clois sitting next to her, and the Duke sitting across from the Princess were dining. The problem was that Princess Karinsa and Cassius were eating the meal prepared by the Princess’s palace, while King Clois was having the regular meal from the Administrative Palace’s dining hall.

The head chef of the Administrative Palace, suddenly caught up in serving the King’s meal, stood there desperately trying to hide his anxiety. The reason King Clois ended up having the lowest-grade meal was due to the situation right after his escort went outside to bring in Duke Cassius.

If there had been any time, the head chef of the Administrative Palace could have quickly prepared another dish to present, but due to the immediate order to serve the meal, they had no choice but to serve the regular meal given to the staff. The head chef was engulfed in fear, wondering if this would be his last meal preparation in his life.

King Clois poked at each dish with curiosity, commenting on them as if they were fascinating, while Princess Karinsa gazed intently at Cassius with sparkling eyes. However, Cassius, who was dining in what anyone would consider the most awkward position, ate his meal with an unaffected expression.

“Do you remember? Was it when I was fifteen? We sneaked into the Administrative Palace dining hall because I was curious about it and secretly ate the food here. It seems much tastier now than back then.”

Cassius replied to King Clois, who was reminiscing about the past with a joyful expression.

“Yes, back then, you unknowingly ate what was set aside for disposal and ended up with a stomachache. Now you’re eating proper food, so it’s naturally much better.”

At those words, the King looked sheepish. Because of that incident, the head chef and all the cooks of the Administrative Palace were dismissed, and the dining hall was closed for a week.

Cassius, younger than Clois, was so ill from the food they ate together that he couldn’t enter the palace for a while. Even after recovering, he was severely scolded by his father, the former Duke, for not properly attending to the Crown Prince. King Clois learned from that incident just how much his childish actions, no matter how trivial, could affect others.

Having brought up a story that was embarrassing even to himself and not getting anything out of it, Clois cleared his throat awkwardly.

‘Karinsa’s mood should be better by now, and it’s best not to trouble anyone else.’

The King signaled the end of the meal by setting down his utensils and slowly stood up. Princess Karinsa and the Duke also stopped eating and stood up. Karinsa desperately shot pleading looks at her brother, but Clois pretended not to notice and instructed his escorts.

“Let’s head back. Princess Karinsa, join the Queen and me for tea after a long time. And Duke, you may leave for the day.”

“I will finish my work as usual and leave.”

“No. Leave right now. It’s best if you don’t stay in the palace any longer.”

With those words, Cassius had no choice but to bow and leave the dining hall with Aaron.

“Brother…”

Ignoring the pleading look from the Princess, the King also headed towards his palace.