CH 78

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“Wow…”

A variety of food filled the long table in abundance. All this while, Canaren was treated to great meals, but today it looked more special and splendid than usual.

Canaren exhaled in admiration without realizing it, and then licked her lips. She then looked at Yulif, who was on the other side.

There were several pretty candlesticks with flickering candles between them, and a few flower baskets decorated with ribbons. By exaggerating just how long the table was, Yulif’s face looked the size of a fist. Although Yulif’s face was originally small.

It seemed that it would be difficult not only to see Yulif’s handsome face, but also to have a conversation. Canaren ate her soup slowly with a sullen face. Then… her face sparkled! It became bright.

“Delicious…”

The gaze of Yulif as he tilted the teacup quietly turned to Canaren. He was worried that her shoulders would sag as he continued to look at her, but she was just excited to eat, and his heart was relieved.

Yulif stood at a distance and quietly called the waiting attendant.

“There must be food that she particularly likes. Figure it out and report it. Then pass it on to the chef.”

“Yes.”

Canaren was busy having a happy time. This dish was delicious, that one was great too, and it was all so yummy that she felt like her tongue would melt. In fact, it was the food that melted as soon as it touched the tongue, but the taste was so ecstatic that it felt like that.

There were so many varieties that she was full after eating just one bite of each. Canaren glanced across Yulif while muttering a salad with a refreshing sauce.

Yulif was drinking tea. Even the simple movement of holding the teacup was imbued with elegance.

Canaren looked down at her own hand that grabbed a fork. She wasn’t particularly flawed in dining etiquette, but she wasn’t confident that she could eat gracefully like Yulif did. Since to begin with, she was not a noble.

‘Am I supposed to learn etiquette from now on? Earlier, Roana also said that to be a duchess, I must show dignity…’

“Yulif.”

Yulif put down the teacup. Even when he was far away from her, Canaren could feel his purple eyes staring at her, so her face warmed slightly. There was no piece of emotion in his eyes, but her heart was pounding on its own.

“If there’s anything I need to learn, please let me know. I mean, um… I don’t know if I can say this, but to meet the standard of a duchess…”

Towards the end, her voice got smaller and smaller. It was because yesterday’s prank at the bell tower had gnawed at her courage. Canaren looked at Yulif’s eyes.

What if she just offended him with her words? If he tells her to go away and ask Muasa again… 

“Didn’t I say this many times?”

At Yulif’s dry voice, Canaren flinched. She gripped the napkin with both her hands on her lap. She squeezed her eyes shut to bear the sentence that would pierce her heart.

“If there is something you want to do, you can do anything. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

It was different from what she expected. Perhaps it was because she was so prepared for painful words, she could even hear the words affectionately. Canaren opened her eyes and answered meekly.

“But…”

“You can’t just do what you want to do?”

She remembered saying that while talking to him one day. When was it? It seems like a long time ago. It was probably a conversation at the palace, but she couldn’t remember the exact time or content. Canaren was amazed at Yulif, who remembered what she had completely forgotten.

“Remember? How? Is that magic?”

“I suddenly remembered. I don’t use magic in such trivial places.”

The expression ‘trivial place’ engraved on her heart. Still, it was much better than to ask someone else.

“Don’t worry about it, as the duchess, you will seldom do anything outside.”

“Oh, really? What about a ball, a tea party… I heard that there are a lot of gatherings between nobles, is it okay if I don’t go?”

“If you want to go, go. I won’t stop you.”

“Yes…”

At this point, Canaren was confused about what to do. It was difficult to understand Yulif’s intentions whether he meant for her to go or not to go. Could she really do whatever she wanted?

To be honest, she didn’t want to go to a gathering of nobles. She did not know who was who, nor did she know about the circumstances of the nobles, so she was likely to make a fatal mistake. Even if Roana would go with her, she would have limited access to her help.

In fact, Canaren wanted to be with Yulif instead of going to such places. No matter how busy he was, he wouldn’t be working all day. She wanted to be with Yulif during his break. She is his wife, so she can ask for this! She wanted to be brazen and squeeze in the seat next to him.

“Did you finish eating?”

“Oh, yes. I’m done eating…… I-I didn’t mean that. Um, not yet.”

Canaren quickly changed her words. If she said she was done, it was obvious that Yulif would get up right away and leave the dining hall. Yulif’s eyebrows, which could not be seen from where he was sitting, seemed to twitch and soar upward. Canaren hurriedly put the food closest to her into her mouth.

But unfortunately, her stomach soon came to a limit. She felt that the food had reached her throat, and she had no choice but to put the fork down. As if waiting, the servants quickly removed the food.

Like the empty table, Canaren’s mind was also empty. The meeting with Yulif, which was only allowed once a day, ended too quickly.

“Excuse me, my lord, but I have one thing for you…”

Someone approached Yulif and spoke carefully. A kitchen hat was held in both hands, carefully gathered in front of him. A middle-aged man with a generous body was the chef in charge of the kitchen.

After listening to the chef’s whisper, Yulif nodded his head lightly. The chef, who had requested to leave, disappeared for a while, then reappeared, pushing a large serving cart.

“Hello, Madam Canaren. My name is George. I am the chef in charge of the food in the castle.”

Canaren pondered for a moment what to call George. George was too old to be called by name like Roana, so she was reluctant. He deserves a title, to show her respect and gratitude that he made the delicious food…

“You mean Sir George made all these dishes? That’s great. It was really delicious. It was the best food I have ever eaten.”

“Oh, I’m so flattered! There’s still a lot of room for improvement.”

Sir! George, a commoner, had never been called by the title of ‘Sir’. On top of that, the person was the duchess. The new madam of the castle recognized his talent.

George was struggling in the waves of emotion, unaware that the owner of the castle and the duchess’s husband were staring at him with cold eyes.

“Chef, I’m sure you have something else to do.”

“Oh! Of course! I’m glad that Madam Canaren complimented me… I’d like to bring you some desserts as a finishing touch, but they’re currently in development. If you don’t mind, I’m here to ask you to try it and give me your opinion.”

“If you don’t mind, I’ll help you as much as I want.”

“Thank you! Then let’s start with this…”

There were three desserts that George had prepared. Finely grounded raspberries and peaches sprinkled on frozen milk, crème brûlée with lemon juice and fresh cream, and finally, a cake with a rich chocolate flavor. All of them were luxurious and suited the taste of Canaren, who likes sweet things.

Canaren smiled hesitantly as she savored the unsweetened black tea. Her cheeks were dyed red with satisfaction from the delicious desserts.

“Sir George, I’m sorry. All three were so delicious that I ate them all before I even thought of giving you an opinion.”

“Oh no. Oh, no… It is all right with me. I am happy as it is.”

George wept with joy inside as he saw Canaren, who became a very happy squirrel. He thought Derek and Roana, who said she was an angel, were out of their minds because it sounded too excessive, but they were not. They were more aware of the nature of Canaren than anyone else. Since they were the first to be treated by an angel.

“If you had to pick one thing that was the most delicious, which one would you choose?”

“Well, …the second thing I ate. The lemon-flavored dessert.”

“Crème brûléee! That is my ambition. Since I was young, making crème brûlée has been my dream. Crème brûlée is difficult to make, it’s tough to keep the inside soft while baking the outside crispy…”

“Sir George.”

“Yes… Yes? Did you call me, my lord?”

“Is there another Sir George here?”

Yulif put on a faint smile. George felt an indescribably clear threat to his life.

“You seem to have a lot of time to spare from the busy kitchen. You certainly seem to have the time to explain everything, Sir George.”

“…I-I, how could it be! Thank you so much for your time, Madam Canaren. I should get going now. Thank you for enjoying the meal and having a great time with our lord! Yes!”

George, who poured out his words without a break, cleared the table at the same speed as lightning and disappeared from the dining hall. Canaren tilted her head towards George’s disappearance.

“Sir George must be very busy. After all, it would be difficult to cook all of these dishes every time, right?”

“Are you worried?”

Is that so? Was she worried? If Sir George disappears, she would not be able to eat such delicious food, so it seemed right to worry. Canaren nodded her head. Yulif murmured in a low voice.

“Then I should ease you of your worries.”

At that time, George was preaching to the kitchen staff, spluttering about how sweet and angelic the new duchess was, with no thought of what was going to happen a few hours later.

A few hours later, notices were posted all over Pionia with the seal of Duke Rubius.