Ch#70
Chapter 70As befitting a chef trained under strict apprenticeship, he had impeccable hygiene standards, was skilled at preparing large meals on time, and even proactively developed new menus without being asked.
Thanks to him, Laslo and Linia newly realized what kinds of meals they should have been served. The servants' meals had improved in quality as well, of course.
"Where's Mr. Philip?"
"Ah, he's out harvesting the figs we hung to dry. We're making fig pound cake for dessert tomorrow for the Count and Miss."
"Is Mr. Philip doing well as your assistant?"
"He's diligent and clever. He's doing great now, and he'll do even better in the future."
Edel smiled proudly, thinking she'd chosen well. It had been worth carefully considering not just skills but character when hiring the new staff.
"Then we'll look forward to a delicious lunch."
"Don't worry! Hahaha!"
Edel greeted Oliver and the other maids before continuing her rounds to inspect the mansion.
After checking Linia's room and Laslo's study on the second floor, Edel made a final stop at Laslo's bedroom.
Opening the bedroom door, a familiar scent wafted out.
'Men's rooms usually have some off-putting smell, but Count Criserus's doesn't. And without using scented candles or potpourri.'
To Edel, well-acquainted with noble bedrooms saturated with fragrances, Laslo's felt remarkably tidy.
Not just the scent—the furnishings inside were the same.
A canopied bed, dresser, chaise, and chair—that was it, with no garish decorations whatsoever. It reflected Laslo's preference to keep it minimal, with nothing beyond essentials for rest.
"Good call making the carpet red."
It was red, but a dark crimson that wasn't flashy. The bedding was plain white linen, offset by the red canopy curtains embroidered with gold thread patterns.
Laslo had loved the revamped bedroom, which had made her feel quite proud at the time.
Suddenly, she recalled ordering his bedroom robe.
.
"I ordered it in reddish-brown—hope he likes it. It should suit him perfectly..."
Edel imagined Laslo standing by the window in his bedroom robe. He disliked anything restrictive, so he'd probably skip a separate shirt.
His firm chest would peek through the loosely tied robe, but he wouldn't fuss over covering it meticulously.
'He probably takes the robe off to sleep.'
As she pictured a thin sheet draped over his bare body, Edel belatedly realized her thoughts had veered into improper territory.
It was so embarrassing that a murmur slipped out unbidden.
"I must be crazy."
"Doesn't seem like it."
"Eek!"
Edel startled at the reply from behind. Laslo, who had simply returned from the palace and entered his room, was even more surprised.
"Oh. Did I startle you?"
"N-no! I'm fine."
She actually wasn't.
It felt like Laslo had peered into her head at the exact thoughts she'd just had, making her heart pound wildly.
"Y-you're back early?"
"Ah, today His Majesty was inspecting the Imperial Knights Order. With plenty of guards to protect him, he told me to go home and finish cleaning."
As he opened the dresser while glancing at the hand Edel clutched to her chest, Laslo asked,
"But why are you here?"
"I was inspecting the whole house. Need to fix any shortcomings quickly."
"Now will you admit I have a good eye for people? Where else could I find a steward like you?"
His sidelong glance held a playful smile.
- 3 -
Laslo's cocky shoulder shrug felt unusually approachable for some reason, calming Edel's startled heart. Until he spoke again.
"Feels kinda weird, though? Having someone else in my bedroom."
Laslo meant nothing by it. As someone often targeted for assassination, anyone else in his bedroom had always spelled trouble.
Even knowing that, Edel panicked.
"P-pardon? I-I just stopped by for work, no other intentions...!"
"Hm?"
Initially puzzled by her fluster, Laslo noticed her reddening ears and cheeks and realized his words might have sounded like cheap innuendo.
"Wait! Don't misunderstand! I had no other meaning either. It's just that the only others who've entered my bedroom so far were assassins, so having a non-assassin here feels odd! Especially a woman—even more so! No, that sounds weird too, I mean...!"
Flustered in turn, Laslo rambled incoherently, sensing he was digging the misunderstanding deeper with every explanation, and clamped his mouth shut.
In the awkward silence, as they desperately sought a way to shift the mood, Edel spoke first.
"U-um, what are you looking for?"
"Ah! ...What was I looking for?"
Laslo wanted to smack his own mouth. He could have brushed it off casually or at least avoided that line to defuse things naturally—but now it was ruined.
Avoiding Edel's gaze, he rummaged aimlessly in the open drawer until he recalled—and found—what he'd been seeking.
"Right! This... letter opener! I brought the one from the study here. It's surprisingly inconvenient without it."
He wanted to stop his excuse-like babbling, but his mouth had already run ahead. Fortunately, Edel responded smoothly.
"I'll order another letter opener. One for the study and one for the bedroom would be convenient."
"Yeah. Sounds good."
Laslo nodded with a needless cough, awkwardly showed her the found letter opener, and headed to his study. Strangely, he only messed up in front of Edel, inwardly cursing himself repeatedly.
.
The Pispera Empire's Round Table Conference was famous as a system where the emperor and nobles debated 'without rank insignia.'
Statements made there were immune to punishment, and even showing displeasure at the emperor's discomfort was taboo.
Naturally, the emperor found it burdensome, and nobles eagerly awaited it. Until Dimarcus ascended the throne.
"Damn it! Did that bastard become emperor just to hold Round Table Conferences?"
Isaac ground his teeth as he emerged from the 'Chamber of Wisdom' where the meeting was held.
Once able to chew out and sweet-talk the emperor there, today he'd been verbally thrashed by Dimarcus again.
Opposing Dimarcus's announcement to collect taxes only at legally set rates as 'too abrupt,' he'd failed to salvage even the status quo.
"Even lowering rates set by law requires gradual implementation? They jacked them up without caring if domain folk died, so why gradual only for reductions?"
"Is this begging for consideration? I'm just saying follow the law—something so obvious. Is that so hard to grasp?"
Yes, it sounded simple in words. But to nobles accustomed to high rates, it was like a bolt from the blue.
'Dropping from 45% to 30% immediately? He's dead set on killing us!'
In the late emperor's time, they wouldn't have held a Round Table over this. Illegal hikes meant lavish bribes to the emperor.
But bribes didn't work on Dimarcus, and his policies enjoyed massive support from lesser nobles and commoners who'd kept their heads down.
They might have tried poison or assassination before, but now even that was unfeasible.
'If only that Laslo bastard weren't there, we could've killed him somehow!'
Laslo, ever shadowing Dimarcus like a ghost, fit the term perfectly.
No matter how skilled the assassin, they couldn't breach Laslo and the mercenaries.
Where did he find such people? 's experts—from swordsmen to poison masters, antidote specialists, physicians, and herbalists—obeyed Laslo's every command, rendering poison useless against Dimarcus.
Thus, Laslo, Dimarcus's protector, had become the bigger thorn in his side.
'Need to plant someone by the emperor, but no suitable candidate.'
If someone could block Laslo even briefly, or seize a chance to kill Dimarcus directly...!
It was a shiver-inducing fantasy, but still pie-in-the-sky.
To such an Isaac, the covert visit from Imperial Knights Order Deputy Commander Edmund Milton was most welcome.
.
