I raised the corners of my lips ever so slightly without bothering to reply to his taunting. Caught off guard by my quiet smile, the butler peered at me with wide eyes. His composed expression morphed into a glower aimed at his sworn enemy.
“I see. So sacrificing one or two of your subjects is of no loss to you,” he spat.
“I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.” I tilted my head slightly with the smile still pasted on my face, acting all the while like a sheltered noble lady. Then, I narrowed my eyes. “After all, there will be no sacrifices today.”
“What?” he uttered oafishly.
At the same time, someone stammered out, “Th-This is certainly an innovative flavor.”
I guided the butler’s eyes toward the cooking contest with my own. The judge who had slumped over the table was now looking up with a pained smile. The tense atmosphere in the venue immediately dissipated.
“Wh-What’s so funny?” Zaara—the soup’s creator—asked anxiously.
The judge’s eyebrows drooped apprehensively. “Err, I was just surprised. The taste is a far cry from what I imagined it would be. I think this is a groundbreaking new flavor that will bring a gust of fresh wind into the world of cooking.”
“Huh? But I just made a garden-variety vegetable soup that my mom taught me,” Zaara said, overly honest.
The judge’s troubled expression grew. “I see. In that case, you likely mistook salt for sugar.”
“I did?! I’m sorryyy!” Zaara screamed, setting off waves of laughter in the venue.
Her mother was shaking with anger, but everyone else was smiling. The disconcerted atmosphere from seconds ago was completely gone, and the festival’s merriment had returned.
“Impossible... No one could’ve withstood that—even the tiniest amount would do you in!” the butler cried, confessing to his crime.
Has he lost his cool, or did he never plan to hide the truth in the first place? I fixed him with a cold stare. “I don’t know how much you people despise our duchy, but we’re not so incompetent that we’d let a rat we know is coming slip through our fingers.”
Some might say we have too many talented individuals in Prelier. I don’t know what methods the butler used to slip poison into the seasonings for the contest, but I’m sure my agents or knights sniffed it out. They didn’t arrest him immediately and let him roam freely, all to collect evidence that he couldn’t talk himself out of.
Or maybe...this was one of Ratte’s mean-spirited jokes. He probably slipped onto the panel of judges because he wanted to see the butler’s flabbergasted expression... Oh, what shall I do if that’s actually the reason? Okay, let’s believe it’s for a different reason. Anyway, someone from the Khuer tribe has likely already investigated the poison behind the scenes.
I cast a sideways glance at Ratte, to whom Zaara was profusely apologizing, then looked away. I won’t know the answer to that no matter how much I think about it, so let’s just stop brooding for the sake of my mental health.
“You noticed? It can’t be... Then...what did I do all this for?” The butler crumpled to his knees. He was white as a sheet and trembling, but not out of fear for the punishment he would face. Apparently, failing to carry out Duke Schletter’s orders had shaken the very foundation of his existence.
As someone who had been born into royalty, I didn’t understand the feelings of those who served. I didn’t understand what it was like to be someone who carried out the wishes of their masters unconditionally, without regard for good and evil. But I did understand that the feelings of someone who’d lived decades with that mindset ingrained in them wouldn’t change so easily. Hence, I didn’t know what words to offer the butler. I had my knights restrain him, and we left the cooking contest venue.
Once we reached a secluded area, I turned around to face Lord Franz. “We will take custody of the suspect. Once you’ve made the proper preparations to receive it, I would like to hand over the evidence we’ve gathered to you. What do you think?”
His breath hitched. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. However, I’m sorry, but may I assign one of my subordinates to you?”
“Of course, but...” He trailed off, bewildered.
I understood why he was confused. Poisoning was a crime far more severe than disturbing a festival. As Duchess Prelier, I could write a formal letter of protest to Duke Schletter and start an all-out war. Furthermore, we had gathered physical evidence, the perpetrator, and the orchestrator, so there was no need to go out of our way and use Lord Franz as an intermediary.
However, even though the other side was clearly at fault here, our opponent was still a duke of the same rank as I. If we fought, my house wouldn’t come out unscathed either. Besides, while I had some choice words for Duke Schletter, I bore no grudge against the duke’s household itself. I’d only known Lord Franz for a short while, but I liked his character. His diligent and sincere personality merited my trust.
“I know you will handle him with integrity,” I said.
Lord Franz looked like he wanted to say something, but he pursed his lips tightly. He closed his eyes for a moment as though he were struggling with some internal conflict. When he opened them, he gave me a serious look that made me straighten my posture.
“The Prelier Duchy wishes to have a good relationship with the reborn Schletter Duchy,” I said. I indirectly implied that we had no intention of reaching an amicable settlement with the current Schletter Duchy.
Lord Franz wasn’t rattled in the slightest. He placed his hand on his chest and bowed like a knight. “I will be forever grateful for your compassion. I—Franz von Schletter—vow to never betray the sincerity and trust you’ve shown me.”
His dignified expression was that of a person who’d made up his mind. I was relieved that the peril and hesitation he’d exuded a few hours earlier was no more. The path that Lord Franz will tread going forward will surely be arduous. I hope he can forge forward without breaking or becoming corrupted.