The Archmage’s Restaurant

# 30

Chapter.8 Grace City’s Feast

In the study of the lord’s castle, Duke Taemuran, the crown prince, and Grace sat side by side. Behind him stood a wizard who could be said to be the duke’s bodyguard. Standing motionless, she reminds me of a tombstone.

“Is the Count still the same?”

“Yes, unfortunately.”

The Gray boy answered with a gloomy face. Of course, I know very well that this question is just a pretense. But still, when I think of my father, I always feel frustrated and depressed.

He was a healthier and more caring father than anyone else.

The Gray boy couldn’t hide his gloomy face, but even then, his eyes were rolling as he looked at the Duke and the Crown Prince.

“Well, by the way, this is your territory. “Ah, isn’t this your territory yet?”

“Of course, that part is still my father’s territory. “It is true that I am acting on behalf of the lord.”

“That’s annoying. Isn’t it obvious to anyone that it will soon become your territory? So, I will just call it your territory.”

The duke said that and gazed intently at Gray. The crown prince was just sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed.

The handsome man with long blond hair seemed completely uninterested in the conversation between the Duke and the Gray Boy.

“More than that, Count Gray was definitely under the Marquis of Serin, right?”

“Maybe so. But communication has been cut off for a long time. “I’ve never even met him.”

“is it? In that case, I guess I should take this opportunity to change the master I serve. “It is especially difficult for a territory like this to run properly without help from the central government.”

Duke Taemuran finally got to the point. His tone was so firm that even the Gray boy could understand the hidden meaning.

Are you asking me to come under you? But is that all? The Gray boy tilted his head and asked himself a question.

“What do you mean?”

“Are you oblivious or are you doing this on purpose? Do I have to speak clearly for you to understand? Tsk tsk, I’m telling you to come under me. In that case, this territory will be firmly protected, and you should not be satisfied with just this territory, but move up to the center, right?”

“that… “I’ve never thought about it.”

The duke frowned at Grace’s answer. Because I didn’t like the answer at all. It was very annoying for the young guy to talk back, so he immediately resumed his threats.

“But you will have to make a choice. “Marquis Serin has also been sick and has been bedridden for a long time.”

“Is that so?”

This was also my first time hearing it. Although this was all new to the Gray boy, who had very little information.

“Well, that’s it, there’s another story.”

“yes?”

The Duke changed his crossed legs. And then he opened his mouth in a slightly lower voice.

“There’s a lot of work involved in the civil war in the kingdom next to the large-scale flood control project. “Greek City will also have to pay more taxes.”

“that!”

It’s so straightforward. The Gray boy was astonished to discover the true intention of the Duke’s visit. Do you want to participate in flood control construction or civil war? It has nothing to do with the territory. This was a demand for increased taxes disguised as a justification.

Literally tyranny. This was like a declaration that they would start squeezing out territory that had not been managed so far.

For their own pockets.

“Is that the official position of the central government?”

Gray asked, swallowing hard. Then the Duke begins to laugh.

“It can’t be like that, right? “It is up to the lord to tame the people.”

That means it is a tax that cannot be disclosed publicly. This is the part where the purpose of the inspection initiated by the duke appears.

A declaration of war to begin in earnest to squeeze out each territory that had been neglected for a while after the war against monsters. There was also the idea of increasing the size of the nobles under him by even a little.

Otherwise, there would be no need for the duke to tour the county in person. Even the crown prince accompanied him. Well, the prince said he wanted to have fun and came along.

Anyway, the Duke didn’t like the way the little guy tried to hold on without immediately lowering his tail.

“I don’t think it’s something I can answer right away.”

The duke lost his temper. You’re giving a cheeky answer again. To the Gray boy, these words were barely uttered while his whole body was covered in cold sweat, but to the Duke, they were just annoying words.

“What’s wrong?”

The Duke, who was so dumbfounded that he was silent for a moment, finally raised his eyebrows and shouted, and the Gray boy stamped his foot and shook his head.

What should I do? What should I do? Feeling like my head is spinning.

If the Duke’s words were true, the citizens of Gray would have to pay several times the amount of taxes they were currently paying. It must absolutely be stopped.

But how?

This kind of tyranny always comes back to nobles who get in line wrong. And that burden falls entirely on the citizens.

The Gray boy had not yet realized that law. But I knew that I had to stop it, so I jumped up and shouted at the duke.

“I’ll prepare a feast for dinner! “I will answer you on the spot!”

This is the maximum that Gray can do. When the moment became urgent, the only thing that came to Graeck’s mind was El.

When El came to mind, my teacher’s cooking naturally came to mind, so as a last resort, I ate dinner.

The intention was to somehow pass the time, but the duke only frowned more.

“feast? How can you eat anything better than the imperial palace’s cuisine in a remote area like this? “I think I’m just losing my appetite.”

Strangely, the Crown Prince, who had been quiet until then, reacted to the word dinner and joined the conversation between the Duke and the Gray Boy.

“majesty! no. “I will prepare the best dish for you.”

The Gray boy didn’t know what was going on, but he thought it was an opportunity and quickly shouted at the prince.

“What if you don’t like it?”

“yes?”

“What do I do if I don’t like cooking?”

The crown prince touched his beautiful eyebrows and said. But the Gray boy couldn’t give any particular answer.

“I don’t think that’s possible. We have some pretty good chefs.”

I had no choice but to give a general answer, but the crown prince was not satisfied.

“Are you saying you are that confident? I’m so sick of it. The imperial palace is a boring daily life. I followed the duke to many other estates, but none of them could ease my boredom. Cooking is also the same every day. Anything presented as a delicacy of the mountains and seas is met with snorts. So, if you are truly confident that you can satisfy me, why not make a bet with me?”

“What kind of bet are you talking about?”

Graeke wondered what the prince wanted to say, but asked without showing it as best as he could. Then the crown prince thought for a moment, then touched his palms and opened his mouth.

“Um yeah! How about the loser take off his clothes and take a walk around Grace City? If I lose, I will take my clothes off too. how is it? “Isn’t that a fair bet?”

No matter how you look at it, there is not even the slightest hint of seriousness. Take off your clothes and walk around town. What on earth is that… The Gray boy felt like shaking his head.

Since I couldn’t do that, I clicked my tongue and thought about what to say in response. Anyway, I am confident in cooking. Confidence in the cooking skills of a teacher.

That’s why I nodded my head. In any case, it was a situation where it was necessary to take time to think of a way to escape the duke’s clutches.

“If you say that, what can I do? “I will do so.”

When the Gray boy answered suddenly, the Duke grew angry. Sprinkling ashes on cooked rice was because there was no such ashes.

The duke looked at the crown prince with an expression asking why he was interfering and making things complicated. But first of all, he is his superior. I had no choice but to open my mouth to Gray.

“Well, that’s good. Would you wait for a good answer at the dinner party? Oh, and that’s it. Just know that if you reject my offer, Great City will be isolated. “You know what will happen if the logistics don’t work out right, right?”

The duke said this while crossing his arms.

***

“Your Highness, what kind of bet are you making? “What are you going to do if you lose?”

“There’s no way something like that could happen, right? If you say it’s a dish from a territory like this, that’s it. Besides, even if you satisfy me just by chance, it’s okay if I don’t acknowledge it.”

“That’s true, but… .”

The Duke looked at the Crown Prince and shook his head inwardly. A prince who only likes playing. Well, the better it is because it is easier to control. Still, it was true that I didn’t like it.

Of course, the crown prince had other thoughts, as he always did. I did not like the idea of threatening even the central imperial authority at all.

His real purpose in pretending to be a playful prince was something else. The real reason I followed him on inspection tours of numerous counties, including Gray City, was because he wanted to have fun.

“Rather than that, just tell me about that time. “Was that story fun?”

“What story are you talking about?”

The Duke looked at the Crown Prince with a look in his eyes as if he was wondering what he should talk about this time.

“The wizard that even Abama couldn’t move.”

“that… . This is something that should never be said in the imperial palace. majesty.”

“Isn’t this the imperial palace?”

The crown prince smiled and opened his mouth.

The duke was troubled as to what this guy was thinking of bringing up that story again. The more this happened, the more the crown prince looked at the duke as if he was laughing at him.

He didn’t stop there, but asked the wizard who was still standing like a tombstone behind the duke.

“yes! You explain. “I heard you once operated with that wizard?”

The Duke’s chief wizard. Medrine, one of the best magicians in the empire who achieved the 7th class magic and was given the title of count, slowly opened her mouth.

“I don’t dare speak ill of him. Even His Majesty is troubled. majesty.”

In a way, it was a remark that was both insulting to both the emperor and the duke, but the duke did not respond at all. No, I couldn’t.

“Has the duke ever seen him?”

“I don’t have any.”

The duke was in a foreign country when the wizard was active. For the multinational conference due to the monster war.

So I never saw his face. However, it was clear why he couldn’t complain about his direct subordinate keeping quiet about the wizard. Because I learned too much about that absolute power.

“The Duke’s subordinates seem to respect him very much, don’t you think?”

“Well, you can’t stop a feeling like that. Moreover, the other person is a person who cannot be said to be in the category of human beings.”

The crown prince smiled while subtly belittling the duke.

However, perhaps because of the crown prince’s usual behavior, the duke just shook his head, thinking that he was interested in something useless.