Chapter 28: The Little Prince and the Record of Ravishment (3)

The prince was younger than I had expected.

If this were his previous life, perhaps he wouldn’t even be old enough to enter middle school yet?

His confident tone seemed too youthful to carry any dignity, and the clothes adorned with decorations looked more like fancy dress than ceremonial attire.

This impression of the prince worsened once he opened his mouth.

“So, this is the… club that eats delicious food, right?”

“It is the Royal Gastronomy Association, Your Highness.”

“Gastronomy? Doesn’t that just mean delicious food?”

“Well… yes, but—”

“Then, that’s right! You’re confusing me for no reason!”

“My apologies, Your Highness.”

“So, the food is ready, right? Where is it all?”

“Your Highness, before that, might I report on the activities of the association you sponsor and receive your remarks—”

“Agh, let’s save the formalities for later! I skipped breakfast to come here because I’m hungry and I heard there’s food I haven’t tried!”

“My apologies, Your Highness. But—”

A typical tantrum from a child, leaving the royal servant sweating!

The members of the Gastronomy Association could only roll their eyes at the prince’s behavior, which lacked any formality.

‘Didn’t Martina say she didn’t understand what the prince was thinking?’

This is clearly just a child acting like a child, right?

As I was seriously considering whether the prince’s words were some sort of highly encrypted language, Elder Graham intervened.

“Haha, as His Highness said, let’s put aside the trivial matters for later. We are the Gastronomy Association, and there is no greater honor than having His Highness enjoy our fine dishes.”

“Right! This old man says it like that too!”

“…Yes, Your Highness.”

With the servant’s declaration of surrender, Elder Graham signaled the kitchen.

At that moment, the kitchen staff brought out the dishes, and the prince’s expression brightened.

“This is more like it!”

However, the prince’s good mood didn’t last long.

“For the appetizer, we’ve prepared bruschetta with smoked salmon, cream, and basil on a baguette—”

“This doesn’t look cooked. I won’t eat it!”

“Then, how about this jelly made from tomato and consommé—”

“What’s this? Slime? This doesn’t look like food. Bring something else!”

At the prince’s gesture, dishes were discarded one after another!

As more appetizers came out, the prince eventually shouted.

“Not this kind of thing! Bring proper food! Don’t you know what food is?”

“My apologies, Your Highness. We’ll bring the proper dishes now. Please clear these away!”

Elder Graham, sensing the prince’s displeasure, had the appetizers removed and instructed for the main dishes to be brought out.

Watching this, a group of members murmured with tears in their eyes.

“My… my masterpiece appetizer…”

“I didn’t think he wouldn’t even taste it…”

Were these the gastronomic group who prepared the appetizers?

Other members sent them sympathetic looks while trembling with anxiety.

The fear that they might end up the same way next!

And that fear was becoming more and more real.

Then came the monster dish.

The prince, already in a bad mood, screamed before the dish even reached his table.

“What kind of trash is this?! Take it away at once!”

“Trash… trash, you say…?”

The monster dish attendant collapsed at the prince’s sharp words!

Sensing the atmosphere, the server naturally disposed of the plate in the trash, as if it was always meant to go there, and the monster dish attendant began to cry.

Meat dish.

“This is a T-bone steak, Your Highness. The name T-bone originates from the shape of the bone—”

“The meat is red. Why did you bring me raw meat?”

“It’s cooked medium, Your Highness. Though the color may appear like this, it is fully cooked—”

“Take it away. What’s this?”

“This is the hump of a camel, a creature from the distant Estru Kingdom—”

“It’s all mushy. It’s unpleasant. Bring something else!”

Fish.

“What kind of fish is this?”

“This is flounder, braised with basil and tomatoes, and white wine, Your Highness.”

“Wine? I don’t like alcohol. Bring something else!”

“This is a dish made from cod with a special sauce—”

“It looks like a caterpillar. Bring something else!”

More than half of the main dishes never even reached the prince’s mouth before being sent back to the kitchen.

At this point, a sense of fear spread among the Gastronomy Association members.

“Even Baron Latorre’s dish was rejected. The dish was supposedly sourced from the best restaurant in the East…”

“He didn’t even try it and rejected everything… What can we do?”

“What will happen to the association if he doesn’t eat anything?”

As the atmosphere grew tense, even the elder, who had been trying to maintain a confident expression, had a bead of cold sweat trickle down his forehead.

He quietly approached me and whispered.

“At this rate, he won’t eat anything. Is there anything from the reviews that might be related?”

“Not yet.”

“You said everything was prepared, right?”

“Yes. Should I bring it now?”

“That would be best. Every time a dish is rejected, it feels like our life expectancy is shortening.”

I nodded and returned to the kitchen, where I took the chicken and carefully trimmed the rough parts with the side of the knife before cutting and plating it.

The now perfectly cooked chicken, instead of flowing with juices, revealed a moist texture.

I then added sauce on top, finished the dish, and brought it to the prince.

For the first time, the prince looked at the dish with curious eyes and asked.

“What is this?”

“It’s a dish made with fried chicken and sauce, Your Highness.”

At this, the servant standing next to the prince slightly frowned.

It was as if they were displeased at serving such a common dish to royalty!

But the prince, perhaps intrigued, continued his questioning.

“Chicken? The animal that lays eggs? We eat that too?”

“Yes. It is quite a commonly used ingredient.”

“Really? Then why have I never had it before?”

“It’s quite common. It’s not the kind of ingredient typically found in the royal palace.”

“Then why bring this?”

“Didn’t you come here to try something you’ve never had in the palace?”

At my reply, the servant raised his eyebrows as if to scold me for being rude.

But for the first time, the prince smiled at my words.

“You’re interesting. You actually spoke to me like that.”

“Should I apologize for my rudeness?”

“It’s fine. It’s not wrong, after all.”

The prince said that and picked up the chicken with his fork.

Examining the dish as if it were something fascinating, the prince muttered.

“So, this is food that commoners eat…?”

Well, that’s not quite true.

For a commoner to make such a dish, they would have to save money their whole life.

Of course, even if they saved, they wouldn’t be able to make it because they wouldn’t know how to cook it.

I was debating whether I should correct the misunderstanding, but the prince didn’t give me a chance to speak and put the chicken into his mouth.

“It… it’s going in!”

All eyes from the Gastronomy Association members were on the prince’s mouth.

The food was finally in the prince’s mouth.

Could this unfamiliar dish satisfy the prince?

What if the dish, which was the first to reach the prince, didn’t satisfy him?

Amidst the swirling feelings of expectation and anxiety, the prince chewed on the chicken.

Crunch, crunch, crunch~!

The crisp sound of the fried chicken echoed through the quiet hall!

Then, after a moment, the prince swallowed the chicken, his eyes wide, and he exclaimed.

“Oh, this is delicious!”

It worked!

The Gastronomy Association members silently cheered at the prince’s words!

They clenched their fists or sighed in relief, away from the prince’s gaze.

The prince continued to play with his fork, and the chicken on the plate quickly diminished.

Even the royal servants were teary-eyed at the sight.

“Wow, the prince is eating so much food…!”

It seemed that the prince’s picky eating habits had been a big problem in the royal palace!

Regardless, the prince nearly finished all the chicken, then put down his fork and leaned toward the servant, who wiped his mouth.

With a satisfied expression, the prince exclaimed.

“Good, I liked it! What’s your name?”

“Kyle, Your Highness.”

“Kyle! You’ve satisfied me, so give him a reward. Everyone else, leave!”

The servant, startled by the prince’s words, hesitated.

“Y-Your Highness, that’s—”

“Do I need to say it twice?”

The servant closed his mouth at the prince’s words.

He soon bowed deeply and, with the members of the Gastronomy Association, left the room.

I was a bit confused at that sight.

‘Wait, what do you mean by a reward? Shouldn’t the servant stay if you’re giving a reward?’

But my curiosity quickly faded with the prince’s next words.

“I heard you’ve opened a restaurant, but I didn’t know you could make something this delicious, Eolgwolgeom. No, should I call you Ghost?”

I turned to look at the prince at his words.

And standing there was not the foolish prince from earlier, but a royal figure staring at me with a serious expression.

For a moment, many thoughts raced through my mind.

Was this the side of the second prince, Theodore, that he had been hiding?

Why is he revealing this to me?

Where did he get information about me?

It was as if the prince had read my thoughts, as he casually spoke in a nonchalant voice.

“Don’t worry. I really wanted to reward you, so I asked to meet with you privately. I have no intention of flirting with you, especially considering Lady Rani.”

“Lady Rani…?”

“Yes. She was quite happy when I brought her the crescent flower. She’s the type to fixate on something once she gets interested.”

He even said she was a bit of a mess, though.

Prince Theodore said this and picked up his fork, rolling it in his hand.

He didn’t care at all that the soy sauce on the fork was dripping and staining his clothes, and continued speaking.

“And I got information about you from Martina. Though it was a bit involuntary.”

“Martina has a good sense. I thought I had done everything perfectly, but she caught on, didn’t she? If she had been a little more oblivious, we could have remained as close siblings forever.”

Anyway, with that, all your questions should be answered, right?

After thinking through Theodore’s words, I asked.

“So, what reward am I getting?”

“Peace.”

“Peace…?”

“Yes. You were living a leisurely retirement, weren’t you? I’m offering advice so that you can continue living that life.”

The prince stood up from his seat and approached me.

He gestured for me to bring my ear closer, then whispered very softly.

“Leave the capital. Right now.”

It would be best not to wait until evening.

The prince’s voice was cold, like an ominous prophecy being uttered by a seer.