[What the Lord Likes (2)]
Behind the head chef, Brikal, a red soup was simmering.
It was a secret new menu item that had already passed the taste test with the kitchen staff.
‘It’s not that he doesn’t trust me.’
Brikal knew exactly what was going through Aiden’s mind when he decided on his breakfast menu. Even though he had created a dish the North had never seen before, using new ingredients and exotic spices, his lord would never doubt his culinary skills.
It was just that Aiden wasn’t the type to take much interest in food.
And yet, wasn’t he the type of person who always scraped his plate clean, down to the last drop of sauce and the final garnish, whenever Brikal served him?
“Hoo-.”
So, the decision to ask for this damn sandwich again was just that—a decision.
‘I just like things simple. Give me what I usually have.’
Translated, that meant: ‘It’s all the same whether I eat this or that as long as I’m full, so don’t go out of your way to make something complicated for me.’
Well, that was the intention. In a way, it was considerate, and in another, it was a form of kindness.
‘...It’s disappointing, though.’
Brikal remembered the lord chewing on gamey bear meat without a single complaint. He remembered how he never uttered a word of dissatisfaction even when the food was so meager it was pathetic, back when times were tough.
He had been grateful then, but now, he felt a sense of loss. It was quite lonely to realize that even though the circumstances had improved enough to provide something better, the other person expected nothing from him.
“The sandwich is ready, Chef.”
“...Right.”
Disappointment was one thing, but breakfast had to be prepared.
Leaving the spicy-smelling soup behind, Brikal went back to slicing the bread for the sandwich. He buttered the long-cut bread and toasted only one side. As he placed thin slices of cheese on top, they melted into a golden hue in an instant. He added onions, lettuce, pickled olives and pickles, a few bell peppers and tomatoes, and finally, the seasoned, signature chicken.
“I’ll take care of the tea.”
The assistant quickly began steeping a few types of herbs. No sugar or honey was added. Aiden had said that, at the very least, he didn’t want to eat anything sweet for breakfast.
At first, the kitchen staff had assumed that request was born from the lord’s fierce desire to save every penny in their impoverished household, but now, everyone knew better.
‘Ah, our lord? He doesn’t really like sweets.’
If there were both a cake made with precious sugar and salt-cured, smoked jerky, Aiden would reach for the jerky without hesitation. They had wondered if there was anyone who didn’t like sweets, but it turned out there was one right here.
Because of this, Aiden’s tea was usually just scented with herb leaves. He occasionally asked for fruit preserves, but if they made a drink with honey-soaked fruit for breakfast, he would leave half of it behind, so the kitchen now knew to avoid it.
Click.
A plate with a sandwich and a pot of unsweetened tea were placed on the trolley. It was a humble meal, hard to believe it was the breakfast of a lord responsible for an entire region.
As the waiting maid reached to pull the trolley away, Brikal stopped her.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“...Wouldn’t a small bowl of soup be alright?”
The kitchen staff had tried many things before the lord’s meal settled into its current state—a single plate of food and a teapot—for a lord who chanted “Sandwich!” like a broken doll every single time. They had tried placing soup next to the sandwich, slicing fruit, or adding a side of salad or small finger foods. But the result was always the same.
‘I prefer a light breakfast. It’s delicious, but the portion is too big.’
It was a polite but firm refusal, telling them not to do useless things and just bring what he asked for. Aiden was always a light eater. In the end, the kitchen had to accept that he simply didn’t care for appetizers or desserts.
“Oh... shall we, then?”
That was why Brikal adding another bowl of soup was an act that required quite a bit of courage. He knew he would be rejected.
“...Huh.”
Aiden, having finished washing up, let out a breath of surprise as he saw his breakfast laid out on the table in his bedroom, just as it always was.
Under normal circumstances, his routine would have been to push the sandwich plate aside and start by reading the reports that had been neatly organized. He would read the reports, jot down a few notes, and then mindlessly chew on the sandwich with his left hand, not even bothering to check what was inside. That was his ordinary daily life.
Slurp.
That was why it was a radical departure for Aiden to pick up his spoon and start by eating the soup, without even touching the reports.
Clatter.
After one spoonful, Aiden set the spoon down, picked up the bowl, and drank it down in one go. The bright red, spicy flavor rushed down his throat and plunged straight into his stomach.
“Haa-.”
Because it was a small soup bowl, the portion wasn’t much. Feeling a sense of regret, Aiden tapped the bottom of the empty bowl, and finally, as if he had made a decision, he pulled the maid-call cord that hung from the ceiling.
“How was your meal, Administrative Officer?”
A moment later, the maid opened the door and entered. Seeing her slightly ragged breathing, it seemed she had hurried over. That was understandable, as Aiden usually took quite a while to eat his breakfast while working, so the experienced maid had a rough estimate of how long he would take.
“Sorry to interrupt your break.”
Noticing that, Aiden scratched his cheek, looking a bit sheepish.
“Could you perhaps ask the kitchen about this soup...”
“Ah! I’m sorry, was the portion too large?”
“That’s not it...”
“......?”
“Could I have one more bowl? In a slightly larger bowl, if possible.”
“Gasp!”
At Aiden’s unexpected words, the maid in charge covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes widening in shock.
“If it’s not enough, you can just leave it...”
“Oh, no! Not at all! I saw with my own eyes earlier that there was a large pot of it boiling in the kitchen. I’ll bring it right away!”
“Please do.”
It was the first time. It was the first time Aiden had ever requested more food, rather than alcohol or tea.
‘This is unbelievable! I have to tell them...!’
The butler, the head maid, and even the head chef. The three highest-ranking people managing the castle’s household would always worry in unison whenever they gathered, saying the lord seemed to be getting thinner and thinner. It was inevitable, given that he had so much work, didn’t sleep, and didn’t eat.
The butler struggled to reduce the lord’s workload, the head maid burned with the determination to make him get a good night’s sleep, and the head chef researched every cookbook he could find—yet, instead of gaining weight, the lord only grew thinner with every passing season.
“It’s an emergency! An emergency! The lord, the lord...!”
“What about the lord? What happened?”
“He asked for more soup! And a large bowl, at that!”
“What?”
“Is that true?”
“Bring the head chef! Quickly!”
“Chef! Chef!”
The kitchen was turned upside down.
“Oh-ho. So, this is the thing the lord has been so obsessed with lately, is it?”
“That’s what I’m telling you.”
“Are you sure?”
“Geez, if you don’t believe me, don’t drink it.”
“No, no! Who said I didn’t believe you? You’re so impatient!”
A few days later. In a dark, shaded spot under the castle walls. Two men were whispering to each other in low voices.
“It’s just that the head chef’s cooking skills are so superb, I thought perhaps he was just smitten with the taste... you know, that kind of reasonable doubt.”
“That’s true, too. But it’s because of this vegetable. He never eats a dish twice if it doesn’t have this in it!”
“Really?”
“Really!”
Sniff, sniff.
“Whoa, what is this!”
“Heh heh. It’s a spice vegetable from the East, and the smell is intense. No, wait, is it just the smell? The taste is even more intense!”
“...And the lord likes something like that?”
“The kitchen staff have been researching all sorts of things using this. Obviously, we have to taste the food we make, right?”
“That’s true.”
“At first, the taste and smell were so strong it was unbearable, but, you know, once you keep eating it...”
“Once you keep eating it...?”
The man, who clearly worked in the castle kitchen, lowered his voice even further, as if sharing a massive secret. Then, he beckoned, gesturing for the other to bring his ear closer. The other man held his breath in tension and leaned his face forward.
“It comes to mind.”
“......?”
“Over and over again.”
“?”
“Ah, it’s addictive.”
“Ad, addictive...? Isn’t that dangerous? I mean, if the lord is already addicted, isn’t that a big problem?”
“Ah, not that kind of addiction. You know how when you eat something sweet, you keep wanting more?”
“That’s true.”
“It’s like that. It’s a luxury item, but the craving is even worse than sugar.”
“That much?”
“Why else would our lord look for dishes containing this for all three meals? This is a man who used to chew on nothing but dry sandwiches every single day.”
“Hmm-.”
“The head chef is already worried. He’s wondering what to do once this spice we looted from the Lontes warehouse runs out. Even though plenty of merchants have come to the North, spices from the far Eastern continent haven’t arrived yet. What can we do?”
“...I have to try, no, I have to make it happen! You’re saying that if I just manage to get some, the castle will definitely buy it, right?”
“Well, I can’t guarantee it, but it’s highly likely. The lord is head over heels for it, so do you think our butler would be stingy with money for that? Of course, don’t even think about trying to rip us off on the price, or you’ll be the one hanging.”
“Hey, what kind of person do you take me for!”
The other man was a merchant. He dealt in high-quality timber from the North and had a fairly good reputation. However, because timber trading was so bulky, he had been looking for something small, light, and profitable, and had managed to get a lead through this connection with someone working in the castle.
“But if it’s found out that you told me this, won’t you be the one hanging?”
“Don’t you worry about me.”
“But if the source of the information goes wrong, I’ll have restless nights.”
“If this were a true secret, the butler would have issued a notice from the start. The fact that he didn’t means it’s obvious.”
“...You mean he was waiting for someone to leak it outside on purpose?”
“Exactly! Our lord would never go out of his way to ask merchants for favors just because he found something he likes.”
“That means...”
“There might be someone else who passed this information to other merchants besides me.”
“Damn it!”
“So, speed is of the essence.”
“Hah! I’d better hurry!”
He couldn’t buy spices directly from the East. That would take too much time and manpower. ‘Still, opening the floodgates is easy enough!’ It was possible to cut his own profit margin and start trading within a few days. He could just get the goods from a spice shop in a big city and pass them on.
‘Right. I don’t need to make a profit from the start. I have to play the long game!’
If it was a spice as addictive as sugar, it was definitely profitable in the long run to secure the account, even if he didn’t see a profit for a few months—or even if he took a loss. Besides, the merchant had one more thing he believed in.
‘Why are there so many people in line here? It just looks like a street stall...’
‘I told you, it’s not just a street stall!’
‘Then?’
‘Our lord always stops by this stall to buy dumplings and have a beer whenever he steps outside!’
‘...That’s ordinary...?’
‘What did you say, you bastard?’
‘Ah, it’s delicious! I was trying to say it’s delicious, but the words just came out wrong!’
‘That’s what I thought. Haha!’
Everywhere he went, Northerners had the word “Lord” on their lips. The snack shop the lord visited, the general store the lord stopped by, the perfume the lord was said to enjoy...
‘The North is simple. If you just cater to the lord’s taste, that becomes the trend.’
The merchant, who knew the luxury market well from his timber trading, realized it instantly. The lord didn’t just eat it often; he *liked* it. That was a guaranteed success. Yes, absolutely.