~Chapter 100~
Delphina spoke to Sana.
“Let him in.”
Issian entered through the door, his face stiff.
“How did it go, Issian? You don’t look happy… did it not go well? It’s okay, you can speak freely.”
Issian shook his head. His tense face was because he had been in shock for days. With a trembling voice, he said to Delphina:
“Lady Delphina… we succeeded. We succeeded unbelievably well!”
Delphina blinked slowly. She couldn’t imagine how big a “success” Issian was talking about.
Issian’s face turned red. Only after seeing Delphina did it really hit him. They had struck gold. Not just a success, but an overwhelming one. It was as if they were sitting on a mountain of money.
The past few days had been extremely exhausting for him.
No wonder—Northern Chicken’s popularity was overwhelming.
Issian had seen the potential in Delphina’s cooking and Elcayan’s unbelievably handsome face.
The most effective strategy had been the banner advertising with Elcayan’s image.
But the true reason for the huge success was Delphina’s recipes. No matter how fancy the wrapping, if the contents were lacking, customers wouldn’t come back.
But people who ate Delphina’s food experienced an unexplainable pull—so addictive that they returned with a very high probability.
“Your food, Lady Delphina, is unlike anything in the Empire before. And yet it perfectly matches the Empire’s taste. The very fact you created this food is incredible.”
Delphina’s conscience pricked her.
(In truth… these aren’t recipes I invented…)
But in times like this, silence was the best choice.
Issian’s praise continued.
“Even though we prepared plenty of ingredients, everything sold out before noon. So we bought even more… and it was the same again. People waited in line for hours, so much that it even caused problems.”
“…”
“Even His Majesty the Emperor contacted us, saying he wanted to try the food!”
Issian’s face lit up in excitement.
“If the subjugation squad completely clears the Monster Forest this time, then just as you said, Lady Delphina, we can launch the tourism project too!”
He clenched his fists tight.
Thinking of the knights struggling in battle made him feel guilty.
(They must be going through hell. Some of them may not even return alive…)
The joy faded quickly, replaced by worry. Issian shut his eyes tight.
To completely subjugate the Monster Forest, they had to defeat the Great Monster at its center—the Hydra.
The Hydra was like the brain of the monsters, the one commanding them.
And the road to reach it was no less dangerous.
The Grand Lady, Elcayan, Calix, and the northern knights pushed forward into the middle of the forest.
Contrary to the worries back at the Grand Duke’s castle, their faces were bright.
“Wahahaha!”
The Grand Lady swung her sword with joy.
“Were these things always this weak? Too easy, too easy!”
She was the most energetic of them all. Every time she swung her blade, monsters fell like leaves in the wind.
“Hey, Calix! Do these things feel weaker to you too?”
Calix nodded.
“Yes. They were never that threatening to me, but now… they feel almost trivial.”
The Grand Lady burst out laughing.
“Wahaha! Sweet, this is too sweet!”
Normally, reaching the forest center would have been a brutal struggle.
But strangely, it wasn’t that cold, and everyone was full of energy. Calix muttered in awe:
“This too… must be thanks to Lady Delphina.”
Lately, he had treated Delphina’s food with near-religious reverence. Elcayan murmured with relief:
“The knights haven’t suffered heavy losses. Not a single one has died.”
The knights had all come knowing they might die.
Then came a shout.
“The Hydra!”
The Grand Lady and Calix exchanged glances. The Grand Lady spoke first.
“I’ll handle it. None of you lift a finger.”
“No, I will. You stay back and cut down the small fry.”
“Are you picking a fight?”
The knights hesitated, unsure what to say. Caren pressed a hand to his forehead.
(These people…)
Among knights, defeating a powerful monster alone was considered great honor.
The Grand Lady and Calix were fighting over the right to kill the Hydra themselves. Caren tried to stop them.
“You must calm down! Do you realize how worried the people back at the castle are…?”
But no one was listening.
Then the Grand Lady said, as if struck by revelation:
“What if Elcayan slays that beast and uses it to properly propose to Delphina?”
Caren blinked.
“The Grand Duke… facing it himself?”
“Yes. If it’s Elcayan, he can do it.”
“My Lady…”
“He can! Honestly, lately I feel like he’s become even stronger than me. And this is very important.”
“Important?”
“Of course! He’s been engaged to Delphina all this time, but hasn’t given her a proper gift yet.”
Calix nodded in agreement.
The knights, hearing this, shouted joyfully.
“To give her the head of the strongest monster—what a gesture!”
“Lady Delphina will surely love it. Offering such prey is the ultimate sign of love!”
“Then yes, we should let the Grand Duke have the honor.”
The Grand Lady nodded. After all, when she had courted the previous Grand Duke, she had gifted him the head of a tiger monster.
Calix muttered in amazement.
“As expected… only someone with actual romance experience would think of this. No wonder she managed to win over the legendary handsome previous Grand Duke.”
“Hah, I worry Elcayan doesn’t really know how to be affectionate. He should learn from me.”
Caren’s face hardened. But what shocked him more was Elcayan’s reply.
“I’ll do it.”
The knights erupted in cheers.
“Wooooo!”
“As expected of the Grand Duke!”
Caren gave up speaking. He just wanted to escape this group and return to normal people back at the castle.
The North had subjugated the Monster Forest.
No longer would the monsters march down in great waves every winter.
The news reached the imperial palace. The Emperor listened as he bit into a piece of chicken with a crunch.
“Your Majesty, the Hydra has been slain.”
At those words, Yuria’s face froze.
“What were the casualties?”
The Emperor didn’t stop eating. He dipped a piece of tteokbokki and put it in his mouth, closing his eyes.
His expression was serious, savoring the taste.
“We don’t know the exact losses. But the Grand Duke and his knights were seen carrying the Hydra’s head back to the castle.”
“The Hydra’s head?”
“Yes, most likely to raise morale.”
The Emperor popped another bite of tteokbokki into his mouth. The messenger tilted his head in confusion.
The North’s victory was huge news, but the Emperor seemed oddly distracted.
(Almost as if he’s more focused on the food…)
Good food is important after all 😌