Chapter 38: Some Promotion

Chapter 38: Some Promotion

It might've been because I had gotten really used to eating normal food, so noble food tasted far better to me. However, it wasn't as though I hadn't eaten that kind of food at all. While the food nobles were served wasn't bad by any means, there was still a clear difference between the two.

Damn, I guess when I first tried it, my cooking skills must've been pretty bad. Well, to be fair I didn't even add salt, but still.

While I was stunned, the Head of the Darcy Family pointed at me accusingly.

"See! It is indeed poisoned! How dare you?"

However, unlike her father, Raisa noticed that my eyes had widened in surprise. She took a step closer and looked at what I was eating more closely.

As for me, while it was probably more pressing to focus on the guy who had a lot of power and yelling at me, I still didn't. Instead, I couldn't really stop myself from taking another bite and smacking my lips.

This only served to make the Head of the Darcy Family even angrier, and understandably so.

"Are you listening to me?!"

It was at this point that Raisa suddenly snatched the plate and fork from me while I was eating and took a bite as well. My eyelid twitched in displeasure.

"Hey! I wasn't done with that!"

Raisa stuck out her tongue before taking a bite.

"You said you wanted to let me try it! Stop being so stingy."

After sobering up a bit and realizing the situation I was in, I came to realize that everyone here was indeed looking. In fact, Raisa's father was angry, but once he saw Raisa snatch the plate out of my hands and take a bite, he was shocked speechless.

In the end, the entire place was incredibly quiet, with only the sounds of Raisa chewing lightly. Her eyes opened in shock as she looked back at me.

"How were you able to make this? I-I'm ashamed to have even suggested showing you the best cuisine, you clearly already have it!"

I blinked a few times and pointed at her accusingly, ignoring all of her compliments.

"Hey, I already used that fork."

Raisa blushed rather hard but put on a stubborn front.

"S-So what? I'm using this fork from now on."

My eyelid twitched. I never expected her to stoop down to... that kind of perversion. Though I wanted to ask for it back, that would sound bad, like I was actually that kind of pervert that wanted used forks.

While I was in my inner conflict, her father shouted at a nearby servant.

"Bring me a plate and fork."

The servant hurriedly did so, and he himself came down to retrieve one of the steaks himself. I cleared my throat after he did so, raising a finger.

"This is being offered for the experience, so at most one per person."

The Head of the Darcy Family was clearly still quite disgruntled with me but took the steak anyway. He cut it with a knife, taking a small piece, almost like he was too shy to try more.

When he did end up putting it in his mouth, he couldn't help but gasp. Since he still had food in his mouth, he almost choked, but it was too small for him to actually do that. He went for the knife for cutting, but then decided against it and directly took a bite from it after picking it up with a fork.

Several shocked gasps resounded. I heard several murmurs around the crowd.

"What? Was the meat not poisonous?"

"Eh? The archduke actually ate it! I-Is it actually a luxury?"

"Of course it is! The archduke had forgotten noble manners after just one bite!"

They gradually became louder and louder. As for the archduke himself, after finishing the steak he gave a small bow to me.

"...It appears I have misjudged you. May I know how you acquire such pigs?"

I waved my hand dismissively.

"It's not all that complicated, nor will it be very restrictive. My original plan was only to publicize it to a few people, but it appears the situation has escalated slightly." n--o/-v)(e--l/-b--1-.n

Douglas had his eyebrow raised, though there was still a cocky smile on his face.

"Would you mind if I had one of these as well?"

I let out a chuckle.

"As long as I still have them available, then anyone can try. However, for today it will only be one per person."

He motioned towards a servant, who hurriedly also got a plate, sheepishly took a steak from the supply, and headed back up to Douglas. After that, Douglas took a bite and was similarly surprised as the rest.

"Hahaha, you must let me know what the secret to this is in private, Bryson is it?"

I waved my hand casually.

"In reality, the process itself is incredibly simple. There is no special pig for this, but rather, a way of preparing meat that allows any ordinary pig to reach this level. At least within this kingdom, it shouldn't be too expensive. I have no plans of keeping any secrets."

Douglas narrowed his eyes slightly. It definitely looked like he was a bit angry, but didn't show it directly.

"But I must insist! Even if simply, something like this must be properly treasured!"

I held out my hand with a bitter smile.

"Unfortunately, it will be difficult to keep it a secret, due to the nature of the said secret. Perhaps after my explanation, you will understand."

Douglas took a second to respond.

"Very well then. Though I must say, I couldn't help but recall the Arden family always leaves my ball the first chance they get without so much socializing! Yet, you now have the audacity to call for the attention of all my guests!"

A bitter smile formed on my face.

"Apologies, my intention was to keep this a relatively small event, but it appears unforeseen events have led to this blowing up in precedence."

Douglas fell silent once more, seemingly thinking about something. Yet, whatever it was, he seemed to have dropped it.

"Very well, let me hear the explanation."

I nodded.

"Ah, before I begin, the others should feel free to take more if they so wish. However, the same rule applies, only one per person."

Douglas made a gesture, as did the last archduke which had been silent until now. As for the dukes, they hesitated, but in the end, didn't send anybody to get them.

After finishing hers, Raisa whispered to me.

"Hey, can I have a second one since we're friends?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Friends or not, the rules are rules."

She pouted.

"But you made the rules! Besides, you already ate some of that, unless you throw it back up for me, it won't be fair!"

My eyelid twitched as I resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of my nose.

"I'll get some for you later, alright?"

In the end, all of the steaks were distributed among the archdukes and those below them.

I didn't say anything about it though, since it didn't break any rules I had set. More importantly, I had to make an explanation.

"One of my close confidants had rescued a commoner from a killer. This confidant of mine realized something about the person he had saved. Following the advice of said person, he stabbed his own heart with a knife."

Several people were shocked, but others looked at me as though I was bullshitting. Then, I raised a finger.

"And miraculously, this person found himself able to manipulate blood and rapidly heal his own injury. It appears his powers allow him to immediately extract the blood out of a living being's body, killing them effectively instantly."

I paused for a moment, letting it sink in among all the people that Edward could indeed instantly kill someone, and that there was no clear way to go against it. Of course, there were more limitations than just that, or else he would easily be the hardest final boss.

Regardless, a bit of fear implanted in everyone's mind was definitely useful so they wouldn't do anything stupid.

After feeling everyone process what I said, I continued.

"However, he has decided not to use his powers to kill, but instead help my confidant. If he uses his magic on animals, he will prepare this very meat, which some of you have tasted today. The blood mage has sworn to only work for him, and said that it extends to me as well."

I held out my hands with a smile on his face.

"He will be selling a large amount of said prepared meat at his store. It currently needs work on stock, but it will not be sold for too high of a price as it is widely available, so there is no need to rush over to purchase any. This store will be located near the center of the southern slums."

Douglas rubbed his chin in thought before speaking out with a smile.

"Moderating the supply would surely increase the profits several times over. If you wish to work with me, then I can guarantee that you won't regret it."

Almost immediately, I knew what this guy wanted. Before, I remember hearing some story Nathan told me about some nobles. Where said nobles were living, corals were rather rare as they were quite far from the seaside. The prices for said corals then shot up and having one was a show of pride.

A merchant had seen the opportunity and tried to bring a large amount of coral over and sell it. However, it did not take long for him to be directly killed.

This was because the nobles wanted the corals because they were rare, not because they actually liked them. It was a kind of show of status, similar to why certain paintings cost a fortune, even if the drawing itself was somewhat poor.

It was because they were considered one of a kind, and when the artist in question died it was considered even rarer since more variations of art from that artist would be cut off.

That was why the prices of many different art pieces only rose after death. There were multiple famous composers that weren't actually famous until they died. The reason they had gotten famous in the first place was actually that they were dead.

That shallow way of thinking was just the culture among the rich.

I was pretty sure Douglas knew about that and wanted to take advantage of it to gather more money. Going directly against him would be a bad idea, so I decided to split the responsibility between me and Nathan.

I sighed helplessly.

"Unfortunately, I do not have that much control over the specific processes. I've actually wanted to do other things, but they were rather stubborn people that are hard to get across. Regardless, they did accept my proposal of promotion here, else it may have taken a while for any of you to realize this type of meat exists."

Douglas narrowed his eyes slightly before letting out a sigh.

"I suppose it can't be helped then."

However, while he said that, it wasn't hard to tell that he hadn't yet given up on it yet.