55. Dinner Party (2)
55. Dinner Party (2)
"Amazing..."
It was Sonia's first time attending a noble's party. No, even without limiting it to a noble's affair, it was her first time attending any gathering at all.
So every sight looked wondrous, and seeing those wondrous sights, she couldn't help but be thrilled.
'So much food I've never seen before... and it all looks delicious...!'
The first thing that caught her eye was not the splendid interior decorations, nor the people dressed in beautiful or dashing clothes, but the vast amount of food that filled most of the banquet hall.
Sonia's senses, once suppressed by mana, had been greatly awakened compared to before, and because of that the scents of the food she was now experiencing were far more varied.
Which meant even the same food felt more appetizing than before—so what would happen when she saw entirely new dishes?
"Try this one too, Sonia."
"Is it really all right for you to keep feeding only me...?"
"Who would dare criticize me for feeding my own lady-in-waiting?"
Libertas, considerate of Sonia, had been bringing food from all around.
To be precise, it was Maria or Shue who fetched the food, while she merely asked them or ordered a servant and then fed Sonia bite by bite.
"Eat plenty, everyone."
"Lady... aren't you eating?"
"Of course I'm eating. But seeing you eat, Shue, brings me more joy."
"Okay... I'll eat a lot."
Western-continent-style 'braised chicken galbi'—chicken thoroughly marinated and reduced in a seasoning blended with this world's garlic, onions, honey, and sugar.
An eastern-style salad from the eastern continent, sprinkled with refreshing fruit juice.
From Hwa-nara of the western continent came 'donburi' and 'ramen,' and even 'tangsuyuk' drizzled with the sweet sauce unique to Shin-nara.
Though the names in this world were different, by the familiar recognition Libertas held, countless dishes bearing those names passed through her hands and into the mouths of Sonia and the rest of the party.
She acted like a person who took more pleasure in feeding her companions than eating herself, and in truth that was exactly the case.
'They're eating well.'
Sonia, who chattered away each time she ate about exactly how delicious each dish was, was adorable.
Shue, who ate everything without discrimination, filling herself to bursting yet never stopping even when more food was brought, was heartwarming to see.
Maria was at least pretending to be demure, but her hand moved subtly fast, making it seem she missed human food just as much.
'When we return I'll have to secure a fair amount of ingredients.'
In any case, hoarding human wealth in the dungeon held little meaning.
She had been saving little by little until now in preparation for other uses, but once they started accepting adventurers more actively, wealth from the human world would only keep piling up.
Sooner or later, they would have to increase the uses for that wealth anyway.
'Though the source of income must be kept secret.'
Putting aside whether the 'people' who discovered the truth about that wealth's source would welcome it—the matter itself was separate.
For Libertas, who possessed a gamer's mindset that wealth could simply be acquired again if needed, being able to expend that wealth for the dungeon's members was yet another joy.
- Dalkak...
It was a secret that Evangeline, who knew Libertas's thoughts on the matter, was secretly racking her brains over it...
'I hope the day comes soon when I can eat together with Eve too.'
...And since fragments of thought like that from Libertas drifted into her mind, it was absolutely something she could not stop either.
Dalgeurak.
Ttakgak.
As empty plates gradually piled up on the table where Libertas and her all-female party were gathered, people's gazes inevitably began to collect as well.
They had disguised themselves—changing hair colors or altering their impressions with simple makeup—but the beauty of their faces was hardly concealed, and it was a scene of beautiful women eating quietly but quickly and in great quantities.
- Oh my, over there...
- They're eating well, those young ladies.
- Hm... Quite uncouth.
Opinions varied by individual, but at any rate, attention was bound to gather.
In the days when she still had objectives to accomplish, Libertas had amplified her senses, and even if she tried to ignore the surrounding gazes, she could not help but be mindful of them.
But now that her task was finished, she had simply turned off her concern for her surroundings and was doing as she pleased.
'No...'
In the end, the only one who suffered an unsolvable headache while watching that scene was Leonis, who was already thinking about how he would have to cover their tracks after they left the city.
'For dungeon residents who gain nothing from drawing attention to act so carelessly.'—that sort of thing.
"What in the world are you doing right now?"
"Leonis. Come here. You seemed quite busy. Has it calmed down?"
With such thoughts, Leonis approached Libertas and whispered as if reproaching her, but the Dungeon Lord merely wore a harmless smile on that fragile-looking face.
She did not appear to be considering any particular countermeasure.
Seuseuseu...
However, the mana summoned by her hand gesture diligently devoured their voices so that they would not spread to the surroundings.
It meant she knew what Leonis was talking about.
"That's not what's important right now, is it. People's attention is gathering."
"So you were worrying about that. Do not fret. I am going to move to this city."
"...Pardon?"
"Huh. Are we moving here?"
Libertas's nonchalant words startled her people.
In truth, what she was talking about was a reorganization of the dungeon, so it was different from an actual move, but since it meant the same 'improvement of living,' she did not add further explanation.
'If things go according to the estimate, it'll become considerably more comfortable for these kids to live.'
The 'estimate' Libertas had asked Scarlet and Mari to arrange beforehand had already arrived around the time they reached this city.
By now the Elder Gremlins would have reached the dungeon and would be preemptively constructing the new dungeon structure. By the time she returned, the dungeon's living environment would already have been greatly improved in a favorable direction.
『Total Wealth - 113,087 V』
It was still impossible to configure everything exactly as desired, but she would do as much as possible within the limits of the available wealth.
The dungeon's current wealth, whether from the demon realm or the human world, was quite substantial, so most of the dungeon's structure would be changed.
It was possible thanks to the sizable compensation obtained from the Marquis Household's apology and the Mammon Company's expression of regret over the fact that the marquis's son had proceeded with the event without consulting the dungeon.
Originally Libertas had intended to act as if she paid no particular mind to this matter, let it pass, and then hold it over them as a 'favor.'
But once the idea for the dungeon's improvement had been finalized, a situation arose where the 'debt' they had not been aware of needed to be converted into material wealth.
"To be precise, I'll simply be purchasing a house."
So even seeing their surprise, she still merely nodded as if nothing were amiss. As if all matters were without problem.
Words like 'I'm going to lure people into traps and invite them to the dungeon' were not things to be said in this place, either.
Witnessing that, Leonis naturally fell into step with his 'master's' mood and became composed.
"What difference does that... Never mind. In any case, you mean there is no need to cover our tracks after the party ends?"
"So you've been fretting over that the whole time. You need not worry."
"That is quite a relief."
"Indeed. ...Ah. The music has changed. It seems the dinner portion is over."
At Libertas's remark, Leonis—who had come to his senses—and the ladies around him noticed the tables that had filled the surroundings being cleared away one by one.
Among them, only two properly understood what that meant.
The servant's face colored with tension, and a smile hung on the master's lips. A spectator's smile, ready to observe a comedy—or a romance.
"Ah..."
"What are you doing? Go and request a dance from her quickly."
"Pardon?"
"There are quite a few men in this hall who would not mind that she is a lady-in-waiting. I saw it myself, so I am not wrong."
At Libertas's words, the mage looked around and confirmed the sight of several men subtly approaching from the vicinity.
People whose attire clearly marked them as nobles or the scions of wealthy families were moving while focusing their gazes on the women here.
At the end of those gazes, the figure of Sonia with her eyes opened wide was also present.
'Oh dear.'
Leonis pressed his lips firmly together.
He approached Sonia and spoke to her.
...No, he intended to.
'...Why?'
When he realized it, he—who had believed he had stepped forward—had not moved an inch from the spot where he had been looking around. As if he were a mannequin frozen solid.
He could not immediately grasp the cause.
And Libertas knew it.
- Just because you failed to protect her once in the face of natural disaster, do you intend not to move at all this time?
- That's...
Words of the soul, transmitted not through the throat but through the contract.
The moment Leonis heard it, his eyes widened as he realized why he had been frozen.
Even though the perpetrator had made the shameless remark of comparing herself to a natural disaster, the mental shock was so great he found it hard to refute.
- If it's not your intention to never move at all, you'd best start moving. Not that I find you reliable, but I have no intention of handing Sonia over to wolves, either.
"I..."
Libertas had no intention of letting him recover from the shock.
Men were already approaching Sonia, seeing her somewhat fragile-seeming impression. Refusing them was not the problem, but would she not be persistently pestered?
"We have a prior engagement. You would do well to seek other young ladies."
"Ah..."
"I, I see. My apologies."
See.
One wave broke away at the firm expression of intent that contrasted her fragile impression, but from beyond, strays with oily smiles fixed on their lips were swarming in again.
'Nothing but dregs.'
Libertas's brow furrowed inwardly as she confirmed that among those men, there was not even a single 'strong soul,' let alone 'outstanding talent.'
She no longer wished to watch over Leonis's actions out of consideration for him.
From the moment he failed to make a decision immediately, he had already been racking up minus points in droves.
- 「Move」.
In the end, she loaded a command into his soul and pushed Leonis's back.
"Wha—!"
"Senior...?"
"...Ahem. Miss Sonia. I..."
Even as he shot a look that simultaneously held the conflicting feelings of resentment and gratitude, Leonis finally mustered his courage before Sonia.
"Uh, um... I say 'gladly'... is that right...?"
"...! Yes!"
And seeing Sonia shyly accept that courage, Libertas smiled.
It was exactly the smile of an elder wishing for the happiness of a younger sibling or daughter.
Wishing for the happiness of others so long as one did not feel unhappy oneself—that was only natural for anyone possessing empathy and intelligence.
"Lady."
"Shue?"
However, that smile was swept away as if by an incoming tide at the astonishing event that occurred the very next moment.
"Would you not grant me the honor of sharing your first dance?"
Libertas saw Shue, who had at some point risen from her seat and knelt respectfully before her, and her eyes flew open wide.