# Enhanced Translation
True to Tilles' reputation for fine cuisine, the meal Maria prepared was elegant but not modest. In other words, expensive items were served in small portions, frequently, and beautifully presented. (Yu-jin shouted that it was like Elang mainland fine dining.)
How unnecessary.
Ivan was not accustomed to this type of culture. He quickly devoured the thumb-sized filet mignon that disappeared after just two stabs of his fork, then waited for the next dish.
"No, Mom. That's what I'm saying. They released orcs into the mountains! Thirty of them! I had broken my arm at the time...!"
"Oh my."
While listening to Isabelle's passionate explanation, Maria continued to smile gently.
Noticing that Ivan's plate was empty, Maria blushed slightly and tapped the table quietly. Soon, a maid approached to clear Ivan's dish and serve the next course.
It was a small finger food of blini with caviar and soft-boiled eggs. A quality red wine was paired with it.
This time too, of course, it was small enough to disappear in one bite. All kinds of flavors danced in his mouth.
Ivan, who was extremely strict about taste, did not enjoy such complicated dishes. He preferred simple flavors. He was beginning to miss the corn tea from the director's office.
"And then suddenly everyone rushed out and started applauding. Wow. Do you know? That's when I fainted?"
"Oh my. How about that. So they were watching the whole time for about five days?"
"That's what makes them so vicious!!"
"Thankfully so."
"...??"
Isabelle's expression cracked with confusion. Her face seemed to ask, "What on earth did I just hear?"
Maria, still wearing a warm smile, turned her gaze to Ivan.
"You personally provided guidance. I'm grateful for that."
"It was my duty."
"Is the food to your liking?"
"...Yes, I'm enjoying it with gratitude."
"It's not much as we prepared it in a hurry. Please let me know if you need anything."
"Yes, ma'am."
Seeing that Ivan's dish was empty again, Maria slightly waved her hand to call the maid. She whispered softly into the maid's ear.
Ivan's hearing could pick up the sound of a mouse's footsteps passing between closed windows. Even without enhancing it with magic, a trained agent wouldn't miss a small conversation at this distance.
"You should set the table before the guest's dish is empty, Lucia."
"I'm sorry, ma'am... but, but table manners..."
"Etiquette isn't made to discriminate against people. It's made to make people more comfortable. What are you saying in front of someone from another country? Are you really going to embarrass me?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am."
The meal generally proceeded in this manner. A bite-sized dish would be served. He would silently swallow it. Another would be served, and he would swallow it again.
In Tilles, there is a dish called foie gras. It's prepared in the same way as on Earth. By forcibly inserting a funnel into a goose's mouth and stuffing it with food.
Perhaps that's why, unlike Krasilov where abundant food is laid out for people to serve themselves and then cleaned up afterward, Tilles served tiny portions of barely noticeable food in small dishes, as if testing one's palate.
It was not a particularly appealing method. Ivan put more food in his mouth.
"And then he didn't even visit me in the hospital, and suddenly said he was going to meet dwarves?"
"Dwarves?"
"Yes! And then he got all injured and was bedridden for days again!"
"My goodness, Krasilov seems... quite harsh on its people."
The time passed as if the words "meal time" had been stretched out syllable by syllable. The students, moderately full, were guided to their bedrooms by a maid.
Ivan also unpacked and waited for a while. He was passing time by organizing his weapons and setting up simple traps near the bed.
-Knock knock.
-Lord Petrovich, the lady is looking for you.
"Hmm."
After an appropriate amount of time had passed in the early evening, Ivan headed to the garden following the maid's message.
"Was the meal to your liking? I wasn't sure what foods you prefer... so I prepared what I could in a hurry."
"It was a sufficiently luxurious experience. Thank you, ma'am."
In the center of a modest garden surrounded by shrubs, a white table was set with simple desserts and wine.
Ivan sat across from Maria at her gesture. The maid standing beside him poured wine into an empty glass.
Maria made a small gesture toward the maid.
"Would you give us some privacy for a moment?"
"B-but ma'am..."
"Please. It would be troublesome if nasty rumors started circulating. Can you keep this a secret?"
"...!! Yes, I understand, ma'am!"
After the maid left with a slight smile and light footsteps, Ivan glanced behind him and quietly asked.
"Do you need an investigation?"
"That won't be necessary. I know who sent her. By tomorrow morning, today's 'nasty rumors' will be circulating in Baron Gramont's salon."
"Shall I handle it quietly?"
"Is that Krasilov's 'secret service'? As fearsome as I've heard!"
Maria chuckled, covering her mouth.
"It's fine. That girl merely delivers information, she doesn't make judgments. She's not a cunning child. She has to take care of three younger siblings and a sick mother. Fortunately, spreading 'rumors' at an appropriate level is something I can manage myself."
Hypocrisy.
Ivan thought as he tilted his glass. The world is full of such small hypocrites.
Perhaps that's why the world still appears peaceful, at least on the surface.
After composing himself, Ivan quietly spoke.
"What is Gil Bert doing? Before the princes' dispute reached this point, he should have settled the succession rights."
"He certainly did. Duke Etakrihi supports the First Prince. If none of the princes stand out as exceptional talents, having the eldest son succeed would be the cleanest solution with the least controversy."
"Then why...?"
"In this country's politics, supporting someone means it becomes difficult to refuse that person's 'requests.'"
Publicly refusing a request from a prince whose support has been declared could be perceived externally as a risk that shakes one's internal foundation.
In that case, it could severely damage the authority of the First Prince that had been carefully established. The other princes, backed by the great nobles, wouldn't miss such an opportunity.
Therefore, 'requests' officially made by the First Prince cannot be easily refused. Especially if there's justification behind them.
"The First Prince asked Duke Etakrihi to subjugate a dragon. There were reports of a dragon appearing in the northeastern Bernina Mountains. Several villages were actually burned, and investigations confirmed they were indeed ravaged by a dragon."
"I see."
Hunting was both a hobby for nobles and, depending on the prey, the easiest way to elevate a noble's prestige.
While no one in this country doubted Gil Bert's prowess, a dragon's corpse would bring an even greater visual impact.
The First Prince wouldn't want to miss this opportunity to solidify his succession rights. Who would dare challenge him if he could claim the subjugation of a dragon as his achievement?
So he dispatched Gil Bert. He sent the Guardian Knight and his vassals away from the city. And then...
"The three counts approached the three princes. Simultaneously with Duke Etakrihi's absence. The three counts now act as if they hold this country in their hands. All three behaving as if they were each the king, constantly plotting against each other while occasionally willingly joining hands."
"How did the First Prince respond?"
"If he refused, who would protect him? Until Duke Etakrihi returns, who indeed."
"What is it that you wish for, ma'am?"
There would be roughly three solutions, Ivan briefly organized his thoughts.
Kill all three counts.
Kill or imprison all three princes.
Or detain them all and hand them over to Gil Bert when he returns.
Thinking that Elizabeta would have whimpered and clutched her forehead if she heard this, Ivan looked up.
"You speak as if you would do anything."
"If that is your wish, it shall be done."
"My goodness, that's not an appropriate thing to say to a married woman, Lord Petrovich. They say you've become a knight, but you speak like a man from Tilles."
Maria chuckled and spoke as if joking.
"Did you seduce my daughter the same way?"
"...Pardon?"
Ivan rarely asks for clarification. His hearing can detect even the flutter of a passing butterfly's wings. While there may be people who misspeak in front of him, he rarely mishears. (Those who misspeak tend to become sincere through appropriate correction.)
But this time, he had to ask. This kind of malicious rumor needed to be eradicated with strict facts.
"My daughter seems to have fallen hard for you. A mother's eyes cannot be deceived."
"You misunderstand."
"Really?"
"Sincerely."
A mother's eyes cannot be deceived? It's an amusing statement, though perhaps somewhat rude to say to Maria. She too must be an inevitable pre-modern citizen.
Generally, mothers tend to be quite insensitive to these kinds of intuitions. Kim Seon-woo could testify to this. Because his mother would ask "Are you Seon-woo's girlfriend?" whenever he walked with a woman, he had never succeeded in dating.
Kim Seon-woo fell silent with tears. Ivan gladly agreed with his sentiment and shook his head briefly.
At this, Maria chuckled.
With a face full of mischief, in a light tone, and with somewhat more serious eyes looking at Ivan.
"Please help Duke Etakrihi. Help him catch the dragon. So that the hunt doesn't drag on any longer, please restore this country's balance."
As if it was such a difficult request that she would laugh it off as a joke if he refused.
But still, pleading with a sincerity that was bubbling up.
"I will do so."
Because it was such an easy request, Ivan did not hesitate.
After all, hunting was his domain.
Gil Bert is a knight. He wouldn't understand the process of tracking, traversing the terrain, and cornering prey to capture it. If he were that kind of man, he wouldn't have been cutting through the sky in the middle of enemy territory.
Hunting was always his responsibility. Quietly tracking, sniffing out traces, tightening the noose.
The gloomy and "boring" tasks that a Hero Party couldn't do were always his role. He was the scout. He was closer to being the hunting dog of the Hero Party.
Even after that, though the hand holding the leash changed, his role always remained the same. Someone's hunting dog. Consistently so until his retirement.
Fortunately, his retirement came later than the Hero Party's. Since the days of working directly in the field weren't that long ago, he could still be considered active.
So, hunting is his domain. Moreover, fortunately, it's a request with less burden than assassinating each of the great nobles one by one.
"Are you serious? A dragon?"
"I've done it before."
Ivan tidied up and stood. Maria didn't blame him for the rudeness. She just stared blankly, then muttered absently.
"You'd make a good son-in-law."
Wondering what to do since the Krasilov princess would strongly object.
Episode 20. Autumn in Tilles.