Lucino was at the imperial palace, summoned by the crown prince. Guided familiarly to the designated place, he found the crown prince calmly drinking tea.
“You’ve arrived.”
Instead of his usual playful demeanor, the crown prince called him over with a serious expression, making Lucino feel an inexplicable sense of unease.
“I have come to see His Highness, the Crown Prince.”
Observing the formally behaving duke, the crown prince responded.
“Sit down, Duke.”
“Yes.”
As Lucino sat opposite him, the steward poured hot tea into an empty cup. The fragrant aroma rose with the steam.
“Did you find out about the jewel magician?”
The seriousness quickly vanished, replaced by a light tone as the crown prince inquired, staring straight at Lucino.
“Is it true that it’s the Visconti family’s illegitimate child?”
Lucino’s eyebrows twitched at the question full of curiosity.
“Hmm, seems like you didn’t find out properly. Well, that’s not important right now.”
Sitting in a slanted posture, the crown prince smiled and twisted his body.
“You’ll change your mind once you hear what I’ve found out.”
The crown prince continued, addressing Lucino who had opposed attacking the Capitis Kingdom.
“We talked about investigating the movements of the Capitis crown prince, didn’t we?”
“Yes, I mentioned that.”
Putting aside his discomfort, Lucino responded. The crown prince, seemingly amused, laughed and said.
“Would you believe it if I told you that a nation’s crown prince was masquerading as a mercenary?”
The crown prince found it utterly ridiculous. Despite valuing his own life, did he really want to survive so miserably?
“If it were me, I’d just end my own life. Wouldn’t you agree?”
For the crown prince, who only looked down from his secure position, such actions were incomprehensible.
Lucino was surprised by the prince’s words. Why the crown prince disguised himself as a mercenary and how he endured the humiliation was beyond Lucino’s imagination.
“A mercenary? What’s the name of the mercenary group?”
“Felix Aethernum Capitis, currently serving as the captain of the Croban Mercenary Group in another city. And you were looking for the plant magician who moves with that mercenary group, weren’t you?”
Lucino, showing a much more surprised expression than when he heard about the crown prince being a mercenary, delighted the crown prince. The fact that he had obtained information faster than the duke was highly satisfying.
“Oh dear, you’re lagging behind me in information… That’s curious. Well, days like this are necessary. You’ve been too flawless all this time.”
The crown prince elegantly lifted his teacup with a light cluck of his tongue. Savoring the rich aroma of the tea, he observed Lucino, finding pleasure in his perturbed state. He had often been compared to his father, the emperor, because of his public deeds. Thinking he had finally outdone him, the crown prince confidently broached the main subject.
“What power could a crown prince living as a mercenary possibly have left? This is an opportunity. A minor chance to expand the territory of the empire.”
He hadn’t thought that conquering the small Capitis Kingdom, which was not even half the size of the empire, would be a great honor. However, irrespective of its small size, it was worth conquering. Wasn’t it the land once inhabited by the legendary Black Dragon?
The land ruled by the descendants of the Black Dragon, who had protected humans from demonic beasts long ago.
The crown prince coveted that name. To end the lineage of the Black Dragon’s descendants with his own hands and be the crown prince who expanded the empire’s territory after hundreds of years.
Lucino was bewildered by the mention that Sylvia was with that man. Among all the mercenary groups, why did she have to move with the Croban Mercenary Group? The Capitis royal family’s secret, known only to a few as descendants of the legendary Black Dragon.
Although the secret itself was unknown, the royals were aware that the Capitis royal family held something significant. Could that secret be related to Sylvia? Could it be the link between her and the captain of the Croban Mercenary Group? What exactly was her identity?
Lucino pondered these questions, trying to come up with answers.
“So, you bring the Croban Mercenary Group here. Meanwhile, I will take over the Capitis royal palace.”
While Lucino was lost in thought, the crown prince finished explaining.
“What?”
“What did you hear? We need to capture the crown prince.”
The crown prince looked at him as if saying, didn’t you know? Deciding then, Lucino resolved to follow the crown prince’s command, thinking that finding Sylvia might provide some answers.
If the kingdom was already on the verge of collapse, it wouldn’t matter if they absorbed it, he thought complacently.
★
The Croban Mercenary Group, the Sabellis Duchy’s knight order, the Nakri Mercenary Group, and the State’s knight order had all taken adequate rest atop the trees.
Thus, it became an awkward time to move. Felix deemed traveling by night foolish and decided to stay overnight and depart the next day.
The busiest person then was Sylvia. She recreated the space for them to stay in as she had done the night before. Sylvia grew the trees around her, intertwining them with the tree she was on.
She hung round wooden frames from the adjacent trees like fruits. Ethan and Thibault widened their eyes, staring at the round wooden frames.
“Three people per space will do. The sun hasn’t set yet, but let’s have an early dinner.”
Right after arranging sleeping spaces, Sylvia bustled about. From her space bag, she took out a grill pan for charcoal grilling. She lit a fire using dry oak wood.
Lately, considering the stamina and health of her members, Sylvia had mainly chosen meat for the menu. Tonight was no exception.
She took out a barrel containing pork ribs that had been marinated beforehand. Given the large quantity of pork ribs, she had also prepared a large pot for soup or scorched rice.
Sylvia marveled sincerely as she prepared the pork ribs. It wasn’t the ribs she had eaten during her travels in the West. The meat, thickly attached to sturdy bones and remaining plump even after being stripped, promised a great texture.
Anticipating the joy of biting into the ribs, Sylvia’s mouth watered in anticipation.
The pork ribs’ marinade, enriched with fruits and vegetables, barley tea, was rich, savory, and sweetly enticing. As the pan warmed up suitably, she spread the well-marinated ribs onto it, removing the bamboo leaves stuck between the meat.
Sylvia laid the pork ribs across the pan and grew some vegetables. She prepared spring onion salad and bean sprout salad, thinly sliced leeks and onions tossed in mustard soy sauce. She also prepared fresh kimchi and thinly sliced radish salad, marinating it to achieve a sweet and sour taste.
She cooked a generous amount of rice mixed with black rice. Then, she thinly sliced potatoes and zucchinis, coated them in flour batter, and fried them.
The spectacle of creating a space atop the trees was fascinating enough, but everyone, including the Croban mercenaries who had seen it often, stared in amazement as Sylvia used various elements and magical cooking tools.
Ethan recalled the first time he met Sylvia. He had definitively concluded that she wasn’t an attack magician… Chastising his foolishness for judging based solely on hair color, he couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
And rightfully so.
Who else would use such a variety of elements just for cooking?
Even the magical chefs in the imperial palace or noble houses vary by the element they specialize in, using magic only supplementary to their tools.
They don’t use magic to float in the air, cutting, frying, or grilling.
The vegetables and fruits, shimmering under the slowly setting sun, looked incredibly appetizing. It also gave the feeling of viewing a beautiful flower garden.
Sitting on a wide wooden board, people gaped at Sylvia’s cooking.
Felix was particularly displeased. He found it very disagreeable that other men were looking at Sylvia.
“I want to hide her away.”
Hearing his mutter, Sylvia turned slightly and asked.
“Hmm? What did you say?”
Facing her curving teal eyes, his stiff expression naturally softened.
“I said, it’s the first time I’ve seen this food.”
“Ah, so it’s your first time seeing pork ribs?”
As she flipped the oak-scented pork ribs in sequence, Sylvia said.
“I’ll also make dongchimi noodles later. Eating that with these pork ribs doubles the flavor. You must try it that way.”
Sylvia spoke with a look of joy at the mere thought.
Felix asked, looking intently at her.
“Will you eat it that way too?”
“Of course! Not only do I love pork ribs themselves, but wrapping the meat in cold noodles at the end is also one of my favorites.”
Sylvia said, tilting her chin up slightly, looking so adorable that Felix felt like he could die from the cuteness. He sighed and whispered in her ear, having already been sticking closely by her side.
“You’re so cute it’s annoying.”
Then he playfully nibbled on her cute earlobe and gave her cheek a loud kiss, making a popping sound. Startled by his actions, Sylvia almost dropped the pot and pan she was levitating with fire magic.
Barely catching the pot and pan in mid-air, Felix managed to keep them floating. Sylvia, with her face turning as red as the heated pan, spun around, fuming.
“You’re crazy!”
Enjoying her informal burst as she was flustered, Felix merely smirked.
Really, she was so cute it was frustrating.
The others, having inadvertently witnessed their exchange, quickly looked away. Ethan had a vague idea about their relationship but was shocked to see how close they had gotten; Thibault was embarrassed by the blatant display of affection.
The Croban Mercenary Group and the knights from the Sabellis Duchy were mute as if they had eaten honey. Then, an innocent voice burst out from among them.
“What! So, Miss Sylvia and the captain of the Croban Mercenary Group are in a relationship! Ah, that explains the earlier comment. It’s said that in the early stages of a relationship, everyone looks more attractive. Hahaha!”