~Chapter 103~
Today was the day of the nobles’ meeting.
At last, a smile appeared on Caren’s weary face. For a long time, he had been living through hellish days, because he kept losing to Jerian in the successor competition.
Originally, he had gone to the nobles’ meeting with Duke Huat, but even that position had now been stolen by Jerian.
‘That damn Jerian.’
Jerian was truly vicious. He constantly harassed Caren in all sorts of ways.
‘But today, I’ll finally hear good news.’
Caren’s lips curled into a sly smile.
He pictured Delphina and Elcayan being humiliated in the nobles’ meeting.
He had already heard from Piaje what was going to happen. Since Caren had been struggling so much, Piaje told him to cheer up and revealed the plan.
“Today, the North will suffer a great trial. His Majesty will not send them any aid.”
Piaje promised to let Caren know the meeting’s results by letter.
‘Well, it’s a shame I can’t see them squirm in person, but just knowing they’ll be panicking without aid is satisfying enough. The news alone will make me happy.’
Thinking that Delphina and Elcayan — the two who ruined him — would finally suffer brought him joy.
Caren eagerly awaited Piaje’s letter.
Most of the nobles were already gathered for the meeting. Piaje looked around with dissatisfaction.
‘Duke Rikeion and Duke Huat…’
Those two should have been on his side. But now Piaje understood — they were supporting the North.
With an annoyed tone, he muttered:
“His Majesty will arrive soon. Has Grand Duke Roheim still not come?”
The moment his words ended, Delphina and Elcayan entered the hall.
Piaje quickly closed his mouth in embarrassment. He had wanted to make a fuss, but they showed up at the exact moment, ruining his chance.
‘Even their timing is infuriating…’
Recently, Piaje had been suffering from nerves. Nothing he did was going well. He even began to suspect—
‘As if the god Frad himself is blocking my path.’
Of course, that had to be just his imagination. How could a god target one person like that?
‘Still, it’s like the North has the god’s blessing.’
Once again, he told himself it was nonsense. But he couldn’t shake the ominous feeling — especially because of Northern Chicken’s unstoppable popularity.
‘At this rate, even if we cut off aid, they might not take any real damage.’
That was why he had to act quickly. Before winter came, he had to hit the North while they had spent so much money.
Just then, Elcayan spoke coldly to Piaje.
“I didn’t know you were so eager to see me, Prince Piaje.”
“C-cough.”
Unable to meet Elcayan’s gaze, Piaje lowered his head. He was timid, much like the Emperor himself. Without Yuria at his side, he couldn’t even look Elcayan in the eye.
“His Majesty, the Emperor!”
At the herald’s announcement, the Emperor entered the chamber. Elcayan’s face stiffened.
For some reason, the Emperor’s gaze never left Delphina.
Elcayan stepped in front of her protectively. The boring meeting dragged on.
But the nobles’ eyes stayed fixed on Delphina and Elcayan. In truth, more than any other issue, everyone cared about whether the North would receive aid.
Finally, Piaje opened his mouth.
“Let us now discuss aid for the North.”
The nobles began whispering.
“How much aid will they receive this time?”
“Perhaps the interest will rise. Since they defeated the Hydra, surely they suffered heavy losses.”
“No matter how well Northern Chicken is doing, they can’t possibly cover all those damages.”
Their gazes turned to Elcayan. Normally, he would present the winter damages, then request aid from the Emperor.
But this time, Piaje cut in first.
“We’ll do things differently. Let me announce the aid before hearing about damages.”
He paused deliberately, watching Elcayan and Delphina, hoping to see panic on their faces. Then he declared:
“There will be no aid for the North this winter.”
The chamber erupted in shock.
“No aid?”
The one who looked most furious was Alfonso.
“What do you mean? The North subjugated the Monster Forest — they protected the whole Empire!”
Duke Huat backed him up.
“This is unjust. We should acknowledge the North’s efforts and stand with them in their hardships.”
Both men were powerful nobles, and their words carried weight. Piaje’s face twisted in frustration.
The rest of the nobles stayed quiet, afraid to take sides.
“Ahem, this was His Majesty’s decision.”
Piaje turned an eager look to Elcayan, waiting for his reaction. But Elcayan calmly replied:
“That’s fine.”
Piaje stared in disbelief.
“Th-that’s it?”
“Yes. Do you need me to say more?”
Something was going wrong. Then Elcayan stood and spoke.
“Now, I will explain the North’s damages.”
He smirked.
“The North suffered none. Fortunately, we require no aid at all. In fact, let me state clearly: we will not need aid in the future, either.”
Beside the Emperor, Yuria cried out in shock.
“H-how can that be possible?”
The hall filled with noise. Piaje and Yuria’s faces turned pale. The Emperor’s face twisted in misery.
Since they themselves had declared the end of aid, they could no longer force the North to accept it.
Meanwhile, Delphina tilted her head in puzzlement.
‘Isn’t this going too smoothly?’
Their goal had been to refuse aid anyway — and Piaje had delivered the perfect setup himself.
‘So he dug his own grave.’
Indeed, living kindly brought its own rewards.
<God Frad agrees with Delphina.>
‘But still… why is the Emperor staring at me like that? It’s honestly uncomfortable.’
Delphina glanced at him. From the beginning, his eyes had never left her. If Elcayan hadn’t kept blocking him, it would’ve been unbearable.
Then, as if to answer her doubt, the system displayed a window.
<Emperor> ‘Yangnyeom chicken.’
Delphina frowned.
‘Isn’t the system supposed to show thoughts?’
Yes — sometimes it randomly revealed people’s inner thoughts.
And another window appeared.
<Emperor> ‘I really want to eat it. Is this truly irreversible…? Is this the right thing to do? I need that delicious spicy flavor. I even wanted to try that pork cutlet…’
<Status Effect: Confusion> The Emperor, under dark magic, is in conflict with his own actions and has fallen into a state of confusion. If it is your food, you may calm his confusion. As a member of the *Northern Cuisine Group*, he is in the perfect state to be captivated by your cooking!
Delphina’s eyes widened.
‘What on earth is the Northern Cuisine Group?’
