Chapter 71
Chapter 71
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: The Man Who Drinks Snacks Like Water (4)
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Dalia hesitated for a moment before shyly extending her arm. Her short arm didn't quite reach me. In her hand was the snack she'd been eating.
"Big brother, you eat some too."
"......"
Dalia hopped up from her seat and shoved the snack into my mouth. Shoved it in, really. There wasn't a shred of the Duke's Lady's elegance to be seen in this little kid.
"Is it tasty? Is it tasty? It's tasty to me!"
"Yeah."
Dalia beamed and waved a snack at Pippin too. She looked just like a tourist feeding seagulls.
"Miss! Wow, cookies from the lady herself. Thank you. They're tasty. Tasty, yes. Please stop asking. They're really tasty. I swear they're tasty. No, they are tasty. Sorry they're so tasty......"
I chewed on the cookie in my mouth, savoring the flavor. It was sweet and rich. I couldn't quite place the taste. The snacks from before seemed tastier somehow. These were supposed to be more expensive and better. Why had those tasted so good?
"We apologize for the wait."
The servers appeared, wheeling in ornately decorated trolleys. One wasn't enough; at least ten trolleys came in one after another like a train. Cookies, cakes, and unidentified desserts piled up on the table. The snacks stacked up neatly like building blocks.
Dandel, who had been standing politely, grabbed Pippin and Enbi by the scruffs of their necks and dragged them over.
"What are all these fish? No eyes, no gills! Ah! They've been sliced up nice and easy to eat!"
Enbi started grabbing desserts with his bare hands and stuffing them in his mouth. Pippin stood beside him, sneaking glances at me. He looked like a large dog who'd been told to wait in front of food.
"Pippin. Go ahead and eat."
Pippin's face lit up instantly. He sat down on a small chair that didn't suit his large frame and picked up a snack. Even the way he shoved it into his mouth without admiring the dainty decorations reminded me of a dog...
"Dalia. Let's eat a bit more elegantly. Got it... ha."
I turned to look at Dalia, but my five-year-old at home was no better than a beast. She held a fork in her left hand while grabbing snacks with her right. At least she knew to use a fork, which put her a step above the other two animals.
"Just... do whatever you want."
I had Dandel clear out all the surrounding servers. I didn't particularly want to show Enbi's gluttony to everyone else. No need to advertise that the Duke's guests included such low-class sea idiots.
"......"
Dandel stood quietly behind me even after carrying out my orders.
"Dandel, you should have some too."
Only then did Dandel timidly move at my permission. Among my beasts, Dandel had the most dignity. He portioned out enough on his own plate and quietly savored his snacks a few steps back.
"Ahahahaha! Fish that turns to powder in your mouth!"
Enbi laughed uproariously with his mouth stuffed full of snacks.
"Ah! I was gonna eat that one!"
Pippin and Enbi looked like contestants in an eating contest. Pippin poured snacks into his mouth while shoving a fancy tray toward Dalia to keep Enbi's hands off it. It was consideration for Dalia, who ate much more slowly.
I scooted closer to Dalia. The chaos over there seemed balanced enough by Pippin on his own, and Dandel was well-behaved, so no need to worry about him.
"Dalia, try this one. How is it?"
I split a tart topped with sugar artwork and handed it to her. Dalia puffed out her cheeks like a squirrel and munched away happily.
"Good eater. Try this too. Tasty?"
I handed her various things, watching her reactions. Dalia's expressions changed by the moment. She scrunched her brows at the tangy tart, and she chewed extra vigorously on the chocolate.
"Big brother. This one."
Dalia offered me the snack she'd been eating. Wasn't it good? I took a bite, but it wasn't bad. Actually seemed tasty.
Servers wheeled in new trolleys right after.
"We've brought freshly baked cakes of various kinds."
The table was quickly cleared and refilled with new desserts. Most were types I didn't recognize.
'I need to figure out what Dalia likes so I can order them next time too......'
I grabbed one of the servers who was about to leave.
"Explain every dessert on this table."
"It's an honor to introduce our Nubes Patisserie to Gluttony Duke."
The server guessed and described the desserts based on the mess Enbi had left behind. I'd glossed over it before, but each piece of sugar art had its own meaning.
"We use only milk and butter from the time-honored Wellsy Ranch. The sugar is sourced from Namire......"
The server's face flushed with excitement as he explained. He clearly took great pride in the products on display. Unfortunately, his guests didn't match the delicacy of his explanation.
"Weird taste! You can eat this too? Ahahaha!"
Enbi grabbed the tablecloth and shoved it toward his mouth. The server didn't flinch, calmly saying, "My apologies. You can't eat the tablecloth." While Pippin held back the reckless Enbi, Dandel whispered to me.
"I'll gather all the information on today's desserts and deliver it separately. Any more exposure of the guests'... aggressive behavior would be......"
"You're right."
Dandel tactfully led the servers away. Meanwhile, Pippin and Enbi bickered and continued their barbaric feast.
"You fish bastard, eating like that so messily! Ah, jam splattered on me!"
Dalia giggled watching Pippin and Enbi. Her laughter was contagious, even to me.
"I've never seen anyone drink snacks like water before."
Dandel, who had returned unnoticed, stood behind me gauging my mood. In a good mood, I pulled out a chair for him too.
"Don't hold back. Eat."
"Thank you for your consideration."
"Order whatever you want. Those guys are wrecking the table, so you probably couldn't get what you wanted anyway. I'm taking care of Dalia."
Dandel rolled his eyes cautiously. Had this guy always been this timid? He hesitated, acting all careful.
"Th-thank you."
"Dandel."
I tossed the bell for calling servers into his lap.
"Demand whatever you want."
"Ah......"
"Once you're my man, no more acting all meek and shrinking away."
Dandel nodded awkwardly. I flashed a friendly smile and greeted Enbi too.
"Lady Enbi, please eat as much as you like."
"Great! Great! Ahahaha!"
Enbi guffawed and grabbed a cake with his hand, scooping it up whole. Dandel calmly said, "I'll order a new one of those." Yeah, good idea. I nodded.
"Yeah, yeah. Eat your fill."
Was this how the witch felt feeding Hansel and Gretel the gingerbread house?
Enbi needed to stuff himself silly until he was happy. That's how the favorability event would trigger. Dandel called servers for more snacks and cakes. The sound of trolleys never stopped on the terrace.
Amid the endless dessert parade, Dalia tugged at my clothes. Her pupils shook.
"Big brother. Those two... have you been starving them until now?"
"No. No, not at all......"
I wiped the snack crumbs from Dalia's mouth and smiled. They did eat like people who'd gone days without food.
While the chaotic snack festival raged, Dandel was still peeking timidly. He was busy guarding Dalia's share amid Pippin and Enbi's bingeing, but with him acting up too, my nerves frayed.
"Dandel, what's the problem? Why've you been like this? Do you want to chow down on snacks like Pippin but you're holding back? I won't look."
"It's not that. It's just... Duke......"
"Then what? How do you plan to survive this harsh world without any backbone?"
At my nonsensical scolding, Dandel blushed. He fidgeted embarrassedly, then mustered courage to meet my eyes. The timid light in Dandel's eyes oddly resembled Alberto's pale gaze.
"Aren't you eating, Duke?"
"What are you talking about? I am eating."
I crunched into a snack. The runny jam filled my mouth. I furrowed my brows, pushing the sweetness back down my throat, and Dandel added flatly.
"You've only been eating what Dalia Miss has left behind since earlier."
"Huh?"
I glanced at my plate absentmindedly, and amid the chaos, it was spotless. I looked at Dalia. She nodded.
"Uh......"
Come to think of it, yeah. I hadn't bothered picking out desserts for myself. Eating what Dalia left after a bite was enough.
I remembered what Dalia liked, what faces she made, whether she finished it all, but not what I'd eaten.
'Yeah. What did any of that taste like?'
The table looked unusually long. Across from me, Enbi was chomping through a whole tart platter. They'd brought two platters of that tart. I'd given one piece to Dalia, who took only a bite, so I ate the rest. It'd felt natural...
Was this stuff important?
"We can eat or throw away what the lady leaves. Especially with someone here shoving whole plates into their mouth."
Just then, Pippin and Enbi were fighting over a pastry like dogs. I stared blankly before turning to Dandel.
"So...... eat whatever dessert you want, Duke."
Clink. A snack landed on my plate. Dalia had put it there. The server's long explanation from earlier rolled around in my head. I'd eaten it before, but couldn't recall the taste.
"Hm."
I leaned back on the sofa and took a breath. My mind was a bit muddled, but it wasn't serious worrying.
"Whatever."
I popped the snack Dalia had given me into my mouth whole, then glared at Dandel.
"What am I?"
"Pardon? I just thought... you should eat what you like too."
"Who are you to tell me what to do?"
"My apologies, Duke. I'm sorry."
"If it's for my sake, don't apologize. Push harder with some stubbornness. That's a true loyal retainer."
"Sorry... no, understood."
I moistened my mouth with bitter tea. My vision swam before the mountain of desserts.
Then Dalia climbed onto the sofa and approached me. Was she worried? Her default blank face made it hard to tell her mood. Her hand on my shoulder was tiny.
"Dalia. Don't worry about it. Was it tasty? If you liked it, that's enough."
Dalia leaned toward me with a smile. Her fluffy breath tickled my ear.
"So I picked only the tasty ones and took a bite each before giving them to you. Big brother, you've only eaten tasty things so far."
The ever-blank Dalia grinned triumphantly, flashing her rice-grain front teeth.
Dalia had deliberately bitten only the snacks she thought were tasty and passed them to me. Ah, so I'd only eaten what Dalia thought was tasty all this time.
"......Then the bad ones?"
"I gave the bad ones to Pipi."
Dalia pointed at Pippin. Pippin, who was grabbing Enbi by the collar, blinked blankly over here.
"Big brother, were the snacks tasty today? What was the tastiest?"
Lost for words, I stroked Dalia's head instead. It felt like petting a soft, tiny puppy.
"I......"
As I pondered my answer, a massive burp shook the table like thunder. Enbi sprawled long on the sofa, wiping snack crumbs from his mouth after belching like a foghorn.
"Ah~ that was nasty."
"What?"
Utter deflation. Rage beyond that surged to the top of my head.