Chapter : 10
‘I heard that women from the South love flowers… But perhaps seeing such rough, rustic flowers only reminded her of home and had the opposite effect.’
He didn’t know how she had found out about it, but when his wife suggested going there first, he had been both delighted and shocked.
That flower field had been his secret trump card.
Whether it took decades or not, he had always dreamed that one day, after Aspara finally forgave him, he would carefully bring her there.
There, he would ask for her forgiveness once more, swear his love to her again, and when peace finally came to the kingdom, he even indulged in the childish fantasy of retiring together to a small cottage they would build in that very place.
But—
“As expected… does My Lady wish to return to her homeland?”
Ever since the day he had first met Aspara, the phrase “go back” spoken in that awkward Southern accent had become a trigger for Guss’s deepest trauma.
Simply hearing those words again had completely unsettled him.
After escorting the carriage back, Guss personally walked his wife to her room.
Yet if he closed the door now…
It felt as though his beloved wife would disappear forever.
Wanting to keep her by his side just a little longer, he spoke.
“My Lady, I’ve recently learned a little about brewing tea. Would you be willing to judge my skills? By coincidence, we also have some delicious snacks today.”
“――――? ―――.”
The melodious Southern language was completely incomprehensible to him, and today it felt more frustrating than ever.
He desperately wanted to learn the language of his wife’s homeland as soon as possible.
More than anything, he desperately needed a translator—but none could be found.
“Um… Your knight is probably away at the moment. I’ll fetch him immediately, so please wait here for just a little while.”
Using exaggerated gestures to indicate that she should stay in the room, Guss closed the door.
The moment it shut behind him, he completely abandoned all dignity and sprinted toward the kitchen.
* * *
At the same time, the two trusted subordinates had gone down to the kitchen.
“Alright, this is my secret dog hole. I’m only showing it to you, so give it a try yourself. Crawl straight through and you’ll come out in the outer kitchen. At this hour, the kitchen attendants should all be outside breaking the ice at the well.”
“Got it.”
Jack handed over his coat before crawling into the narrow passage.
After passing through the North’s unusually thick double walls, a smooth kitchen floor appeared before him.
As soon as he entered, Jack looked around before even brushing the dust off himself.
His eyes immediately landed on a single plate.
Among the rough wooden bowls sat one porcelain dish that looked brand new.
It even had decorative patterns, making it look rather expensive.
Such tableware had been common back at the young lady’s family estate, but this was the first time he’d seen such a luxury in this place.
“One for Ugly too… no, he’s worked hard too. Two for him, two for me… five should be enough.”
Jack picked up three dumplings with his front teeth while grabbing three more in one hand.
Just as he was about to leave—
“――― ―――?”
A deep voice echoed through the room like the rumble of a cave.
Jack turned around to find its owner.
“Ah.”
Standing before him was a man as large and broad as a fortress gate.
An overwhelming presence far greater than even his massive frame radiated from behind him.
His fierce eyes gleamed with murderous sharpness.
‘That startled me… Those eyes look like they could kill someone at any moment.’
At that moment, there were two things Jack didn’t know.
First.
That was simply how the king of these barbarians normally looked.
The only expressions Jack had ever seen from him had been directed toward Aspara.
Second.
Guss was genuinely angry.
Extremely angry.
“What are you doing here?”
Without realizing it, Jack’s hand moved to the sword at his waist.
It was pure survival instinct—the same instinct one felt when encountering a wild beast in the forest.
Seeing a mere knight take a sword-drawing stance before the lord of the castle, one of Guss’s eyebrows slowly rose.
Aspara’s escort knight…
His own wife’s escort knight…
Was looking at him as though he were the enemy.
As though he were the intruder inside his own kitchen.
Something that had been swelling inside him all morning…
Burst.
“So none of you can acknowledge it.”
Guss took one step forward.
Jack took one step back.
“Is it really so laughable that a barbarian who won his crown with sword and fire pretends to be the princess’s husband?”
Guss stepped forward again.
Jack retreated again.
“Very well. A wild beast’s greed ruining the destiny of someone so precious… that is surely a sin worthy of lifelong repentance.”
Another step.
Jack’s back struck the wall.
“Even so…”
Guss’s enormous head completely blocked the kitchen lights overhead, plunging the knight’s vision into darkness.
“Someone like you has no right.”
Looking up into those icy eyes, Jack finally realized something.
This man…
Had been putting on an act the entire time in front of the young lady.
* * *
A medium jackpot!
It was certainly something worth celebrating, though not enough to call it a grand jackpot.
Aspara cheered inwardly.
After all, superlatives should only be saved for moments that truly deserved them.
Alone in the empty room, she examined the flowers she had gathered.
The more she looked, the more convinced she became that she was right.
The familiar scent drifting from the petals…
She had been so preoccupied with confirming her suspicion that she’d barely paid any attention to Guss during the entire ride back.
“This really is Antibacterial Herb.”
The sap of this uniquely scented plant, when mixed into food or medicine, greatly slowed spoilage and allowed it to be preserved for much longer.
In the hot, humid South, it was an extremely useful plant.
Because gathering it was expensive, it wasn’t used as commonly as other preservatives.
However, that rarity also made it more valuable and allowed it to sell for a higher price.
To think that such a difficult plant grew wild across these fields.
No wonder people in the South had struggled to cultivate it—it was a plant native to snowy lands.
It wasn’t enough to completely reverse the country’s fortunes overnight.
Still, it was a unique commodity.
It would serve perfectly as bait to lure merchants closer.
At the very least, it would benefit the country far more than selling two cartloads of lime.
“To think they never even considered selling this. Then again… in a place where food freezes solid instead of spoiling, they probably never realized its value.”
Aspara thought of this land’s natural refrigerator.
Simply leaving food outside caused it to freeze solid.
She remembered seeing fish heads and dead guinea pigs sticking out from snowbanks in front of the kitchen while touring the castle.
It had startled her at the time.
Thinking about the kitchen reminded her of someone else.
“Oh, that’s right. Lord Guss.”
Only now did she realize that her husband, who had gestured for her to wait before disappearing, still hadn’t returned.
“It’s been quite a while now… What is he doing?”
* * *
A loud crash echoed through the kitchen as the porcelain plate shattered across the floor.
“――――, What… what is… happening…?”
“You ask what I’m doing?”
The lord of Fang Castle slapped away Jack’s hand as it reached for his sword.
The movement looked effortless.
Yet the force behind it was overwhelming.
The sheathed sword flew across the kitchen with a loud clang.
“I’m fulfilling the duties of a husband.”
Guss pinned Jack’s wrist against the wall beneath his boot.
Then he gripped the sword hanging at his own waist.
At that very moment—
“My Lord!”
Someone shouted urgently from somewhere nearby.
Both men turned—
No.
They looked downward.
“…What are you doing?”
A head was sticking out of the corner wall.
The sideways-protruding head stared at them with complete seriousness.
“…I’ll explain.”
“Then explain.”
Guss frowned, feeling the fighting spirit drain out of him.
“While the two of you were away, My Lady’s knight discovered a dog hole running through the castle corridor. He suggested we repair it for the castle’s security, so we were inspecting it together.”
Without turning his head, Guss shifted only his eyes toward the knight.
Jack had somehow collapsed onto the floor.
Only his panic-stricken eyes continued rolling around wildly.
“The kitchen is especially sensitive when it comes to security, so we hurried…”
“Is that true?”
“…Huh?”
After staring down at the knight sitting pathetically on the floor, Guss finally lifted his foot.
One of Jack’s fingernails had already cracked.
“It seems I was a little overly sensitive. But if you’re to serve this place from now on, remember this well.”
“I do not tolerate outsiders tampering with my family’s food.”
“I’ll make sure he’s properly educated. We’ll seal this hole immediately, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Good.”
“Since Your Lordship needed to focus elsewhere all day today, I intended to handle it myself… but things turned out like this. You came back sooner than expected.”
The killing intent instantly returned to the kitchen.
Ugly immediately realized he had just said something he shouldn’t have.
“A-Ah, indeed! The weather wasn’t very good today! Yes… on days like this, staying indoors is best!”
“More importantly… how about coming out of the hole before talking?”
“…I think I’m stuck.”
“…”
“I rushed in after hearing the sound of something breaking…”
Ugly answered, his face noticeably more purple than before.
“…I’m sorry, but I have urgent business and can’t help you. I’ll leave him to you.”
“Leave it to me.”
“And…”
Guss lightly tapped Jack’s shoulder.
“Little knight. Remember this.”
“There’s only one reason you’re still alive.”
Jack still had no idea what the man had been talking about this entire time.
But since everything seemed to have calmed down somehow, he simply raised both thumbs.
Blood was dripping from one of them.
As if trying to suppress the anger still lingering inside him, Guss took a deep breath before tossing a paper napkin from the kitchen shelf at Jack.
“From this moment on, write down everything I say in your language.”
