CH 62

The frightening thing about Black Death Oat is that, aside from its color, it tastes just like regular barley.

Black death oat once began as a single barley plant.

Except for the fact that it was harder and darker in color than other wheat, it grew to a large size and tasted the same, so farmers began to grow black death oat all over the country.

As the wheat fields turned from golden to black and people became accustomed to cheap black bread, a strange disease broke out in the area.

First, small blisters appeared on the hands and feet.

The peasants paid no attention to them, thinking they were insect bites or rashes from leaves, but when they eventually spread to the rest of the body, and some died of severe pain, the cause of the disease was investigated.

At first, river water was suspected.

However, the disease spread beyond those who drank the river water.

Next, the disease was assumed to be contagious, and those who showed symptoms were quarantined and their entire villages were burned to the ground.

Even so, the disease continued to spread.

Eventually, they realized that even in the hardest-hit areas, there were those who showed no symptoms.

They hated black bread and ate only white bread, even if it was a little more expensive.

When the cause was finally discovered, many people were already dying from the black barley.

All black barley, which then became known as Black Death Oat, was burned and its cultivation was banned.

Originally, it was a mutated variety of ordinary wheat. Once they were all eradicated, they would never reappear.

That was the plan.

"Cultivation of Black Death Oats should be a capital offence in any country. Where did you get this?"

Renato stared at the Black Death Oat with a stern face, but Cedric did not answer immediately and turned his attention to Mariabelle.

"I caught it the other day as it was about to be brought into the Berkeley's territory."

Surprised, Mariabelle muttered, "Who in the world...?" and looked back at Cedric as if something had occurred to her.

"Is it the Duke of Danzel?"

"I didn't have anything to identify him, but I think it probably is. I think he was going to mix it in with the wheat before milling. I'm glad it wasn't a lethal dose, but just to be safe, I've asked Julian to check to see if it has already been mixed in. I've also told him to be careful with travelers and bards for the time being, so don't worry."

Cedric, who tilted his head and looked up at Mariabelle, looked his age as he did so.

She was a little saddened by Cedric's mature demeanor ever since they entered the library, and was slightly relieved to see his unchanged expression, then felt sorry for not allowing Cedric to remain a child of his age.

She was still older than Cedric, even though she was not an adult yet.

She should be in a position to protect Cedric, but she is being protected in this way.

"I have to be stronger.'

For the first time in her life, she made up her mind to do so.

"Fortunately, it seems that His Majesty's consumption of black death barley was not too much, so I think he will recover if he recuperates for a while."

"The amount of black death barley ingested would determine whether he would live or die. The king had blisters on his hands and feet and felt pain in his body, but fortunately it did not seem to be life-threatening."

"Thank goodness... Has anyone else had symptoms?"

"No one else seems to have had any symptoms. That's strange, even for..."

"You think so, too?"

"Yes. I don't know what they put the Black Death Oats in, but if they are making it in the palace kitchens, it would be strange if there weren't other people with symptoms. I wonder if the poisoners are showing any symptoms."

"He said he didn't take a lot, so he only had a few blisters on his feet. I'm glad we caught it early."

"What were the Black Death Oats in?"

"I think it was probably the canulé that was presented to His Majesty at the... Kingdom Festival."

During the Kingdom Festival, which celebrates the day the ancient kingdom united the continent, the people toast with wine and eat a pastry called a canulé.

A canulé is a baked pastry with a black browning on the outside.

In ancient kingdoms, people drank wine instead of water.

To remove the lees from the wine, egg whites from chicken eggs were used, but this left a large amount of unused egg yolks. The idea was to use the egg yolks to make a baked pastry called canulé, which is made from egg yolks and barley.

The kingdom that claimed to be the successor to the ancient kingdom celebrated the founding day of the ancient kingdom as the "Kingdom Festival," with wine and canulé, the symbols of the ancient kingdom.

"What His Majesty is supposed to eat is a canulé made with carefully selected ingredients, but how on earth did the black death barley get mixed in...?"

Everything the royal family eats is produced on their own farms and ranches. No other ingredients are allowed.

"There are newly discovered ruins of ancient kingdoms, and in one of the murals, there is a picture of a man eating a black canulé, not only on the outside, but also inside."

"The surface of the canulé appears black with burnt beeswax, but the inside is moist and honey-colored."

"I have never seen a canulé that is also black inside.*

"No way..."

"Yes, I have. In the ancient kingdom, black canulé was eaten at the founding ceremony. It was... who proposed to revive it."

"So it was the Duke of Danzel."

"Yes. And we also retrieved the canulé that was presented to His Majesty and found evidence that it was made of black death barley. With this, we can now condemn the Duke of Danzel."

Cedric looked at Mariabelle and then at Renato with intense eyes.