6 The Manor in Loire Valley

If you were to tour around France, aside from the world-famous Paris, most people would recommend you to take a trip to Loire Valley.

But why Loire Valley?

The reason for that was because of the numerous medieval castles and ancient manors that could be found there, making the whole place seem like it came out of a fairytale.

Well, that was until you were sprayed by the lawn sprinklers.

If that wasn't to your taste then, maybe you could go around Strasbourg instead. Bordering between France and Germany, you would be surprised about the blending of the two different cultures. The cute houses and the mysterious, Gothic Cathedral of Notre-Dame are a plus too.

But, that isn't what this chapter is about.

Right now, in a certain manor in Loire Valley, Casimir was walking around the gardens, following behind the gardener when...

Psh!

He was sprayed by the lawn sprinklers.

"Ah! Young master!"

This is gonna be a long day.

...

After following around the gardener for around an hour and being taught how to properly take care and maintain various kinds of plants, Alphonse came to pick him up.

"...What's next in the schedule?" Casimir asked, already feeling tired despite the day having barely started.

" You'll be learning from the chefs in the kitchen, young master." Alphonse said, giving a reassuring smile to Casimir. "After that, we'll be taking half an hour of break time for breakfast."

Finally! I'm already starving! Casimir felt relieved, trying to hide the sound of his excited stomach but failing.

When they arrived in the kitchen which was located on the first floor, Casimir was greeted by the smell of something delicious being cooked.

After smelling it, Casimir's self-confidence deflated.

He used to have confidence in his cooking but, the smell of the food being cooked lessened it significantly.

Just because it smells good doesn't mean it would taste just as good! Casimir tried to comfort himself.

After the chefs were introduced to him, they immediately began to guide and teach him how to cook. Despite already knowing how to cook beforehand, he still listened to their guidance attentively.

Who knows? Maybe he'll be able to improve his cooking this way.

The chefs busied themselves with cooking once again, leaving Casimir looking around boredly.

Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he spotted what looked to be some animal's meat.

Mm... Should I...?

Discretely, Casimir took the meat along with a knife and a chopping board then, began cutting the the meat into cubes.

Let's make stew for breakfast! Given that the only thing he knew how to make was stew, of course, he would be making stew.

Unknown to him though, one of the chefs had caught his actions and was watching him in amusement.

Hmm? Why do I suddenly feel as if I'm being watched? Casimir shivered.

After placing the meat cubes in a pot of water and boiling it, he sneaked around the kitchen and stole a few vegetables. He then proceeded to peel and chop them up, then threw them straight to the pot.

Carrots, potatoes, guarus (radishes), Juhuoms (ginger), quosops (onions), and frudops (banana).

It seems like Casimir forgot that he was in another world and that food ingredients may be different from what he was used to.

Just as the chef was laughing to himself, he suddenly spotted something that made him stop.

Casimir held a jar which contained black powder and was about to dump its contents into the pot.

"Ah! Young master! That's coffee!"

It was too late.

In went the coffee, into the stew.

...

Casimir sat on the dining table, eating his breakfast sulkily.

In the previous world, having plants in one's home was a luxury, let alone constantly taking care and maintaining them and, with his busy schedule, he didn't have enough time to do any proper housework.

The only thing he was good at was cooking and now, he couldn't even do that properly anymore.

He sighed dejectedly.

...

"Young master! Please stay calm!" A rough looking man said in worry, hoping that the creature inside the stable wouldn't harm Casimir. " We'll try to get you out as soon as possible!"

After having finished eating breakfast, Casimir was led to what looked to be an enlarged version of a horse stable, except, it didn't house horses.

Inside it were two rows of spacious, semi-open rooms filled with hay, serving as a home for creatures of various shapes, colors, sizes, and origins.

The stables, with its large size, had a second floor which allowed guests to view the creatures from the top. There, Casimir saw many creatures that he thought were only myths and some which was totally unknown to him.

There were horses with wings and had the head of an eagle, horses made entirely of bones, lions with the tail of a scorpion, and a few more which Casimir had no words to describe.

Suddenly, Casimir spotted a familiar creature in an isolated stable at the farthest corner of the stables, away from the other creatures.

Hey! Isn't that the beast from yesterday? Casimir walked towards back end of the stables, followed by Edgar, a rough looking man who served in the manor as the head caretaker of Lord Proulx's collection of beasts from around the world. Coincidentally, he was also the only servant, aside from Alphonse, who wasn't a squib.

Arriving at the location which was directly above the creature's stable, Casimir turned towards Edgar with a curious expression. "Mr. Edgar, what is this creature called?"

"Young master, this creature is a Skaduwee, a creature which was caught in the Island of Severe in Africa." Edgar answered.

"Oh, I see. Thank you." Casimir smiled gratefully and continued admiring the pitch black Skaduwee below him, leaning dangerously on the rails to try and get a closer look.

As if suddenly remembering something, Edgar shouted to warn Casimir and hastily reached to pull the boy away from the rails. "Young master! Be careful!"

Huh?

Suddenly, the rails creaked and, the next thing he knew, he was already falling towards the stable.

Which led us to our current situation.

Fortunately, there was a pile of hay which cushioned Casimir's fall. Unfortunately, his fall attracted the attention of the Skaduwee.

Just how unlucky could he be on this day?