Chapter 70
As a chef rigorously trained in the traditional style, Oliver was meticulous about cleanliness and adept at preparing large quantities of food on time. Not only that, but he also took the initiative to develop new recipes without being asked.
Thanks to his skills, Laszlo and Lenia realized the true standard of food that should have been served to them.
The quality of the employees' meals has also improved significantly.
"Where is Philip?"
“Ah, he went to collect the figs we had spread out to dry. Tomorrow we will make a fig cake as a dessert for the Count and the young lady.”
"Is Philip doing his job as an assistant well?"
“He is a hardworking and intelligent young man. He is doing his job well now, and he will become even better in the future.”
Edel felt good about herself because she had carefully chosen the right people. She had prioritized not only skills, but also character, and now she was reaping the rewards.
"So, I'll wait for a delicious lunch."
"Don't worry! She'll be great, hahaha!"
After saying goodbye to Oliver and some of the maids, Edel wandered around the palace to check on things.
I went up to the second floor to check on Linnea's room and Laszlo's office, and finally headed to Laszlo's bedroom.
When I opened the door, I smelled a familiar scent.
'Men's rooms usually smell unpleasant, but Count Crisis's room doesn't smell bad. He doesn't seem to use scented candles or sachets of herbs.'
Edel, who was very familiar with the luxurious bedrooms of the nobility, found Laszlo's room very tidy and comfortable.
It wasn't just the cleanliness that distinguished the room, but also its contents.
The room included a canopy bed, a chest of drawers, a sofa, and a few chairs. There was no excessive decoration. This simplicity reflected László's desire for the room to contain only the essentials for comfort.
“The choice of the red carpet was a good one.”
The carpet was a dark, unremarkable red, the bed linens were made only of white cotton, and the curtains were decorated with gold thread embroidery on the canopy.
When Laszlo expressed his admiration for the room after the modifications, Edel felt very proud.
I suddenly remembered the bedroom robe I had ordered for him.
“I ordered it in crimson red, I think he liked it. It will look great on him…”
I imagined Edel Laszlo wearing the robe, standing by the window. Being someone who dislikes restrictive clothing, he probably wouldn't wear anything underneath the robe.
His slightly toned chest might show between the edges of the open robe, and he wouldn't care much about covering it up.
'I wonder, does he take off his robe completely when he sleeps?'
Idil began to imagine what Laszlo would look like while asleep, his body covered by a thin layer of sheet, but she suddenly realized her bold thoughts and her face turned red.
“I think I’ve lost my mind.”
"You don't look like it."
"Yes!"
Idil screamed in alarm when she heard the sound behind her.
Laszlo had just returned to his room after finishing his tasks, but he was even more surprised than she was by her reaction.
"Ah, did I frighten you?"
“No, no! It’s okay.”
But in reality, she wasn't okay.
She felt extremely confused, as if Laszlo had managed to see all the thoughts that had just gone through her head.
"You came back early, didn't you?"
“Ah, today is the day His Majesty is scheduled to inspect the Imperial Palace Knights. He told me there are many who will be guarding him, and asked me to go home and finish cleaning it.”
Laszlo looked at Edel, who breathed a sigh of relief, then opened one of the wardrobe drawers and asked her:
"But why are you here?"
“I was checking around the house. If anything was missing, it needed to be dealt with quickly.”
"Don't you admit now that I have a good eye for choosing people? Where else could I find a housekeeper like you?"
Laszlo's playful gaze, coupled with his smug shoulder movements, gave him an air of familiarity, which helped calm Idil's racing heart. But before she could fully relax, Laszlo said:
“By the way, it feels strange to have someone else in my bedroom.”
Laszlo meant it literally. As someone who had received death threats, the presence of another person in his room was always a sign of imminent danger.
Although she was aware of it, Idell could not hide her embarrassment.
"What? No, I mean, I was only here for work, and I didn't mean anything else!"
"Hmm?"
At first, Laszlo seemed puzzled by her confusion. But when he saw her ears and cheeks redden, he realized his words might have been taken as a bad joke.
“Wait! Don’t misunderstand me! I didn’t mean anything else either. What I mean is that the people who have entered my room before have always been murderers. So, the presence of someone else, especially a woman, makes it feel strange! No, that phrase is strange too, I mean…”
As Laszlo tried to explain himself, he realized that his attempts were getting worse, so he stopped talking.
Amid this awkward silence, they were both trying to find something to change the atmosphere of the situation, and Idil decided to break the silence first.
"Anyway, what were you looking for?"
“Ah! …What was I looking for?”
Laszlo felt like berating himself. If only he had ignored it or said anything other than "What was I looking for?", he could have easily gotten over the situation.
As he fumbled around inside the open drawer, trying to avoid Edel's gaze, he suddenly remembered what he was looking for and found it:
“Ah, right! This is… the letter-opening knife. I brought it from the office because I need it here too.”
Although he wanted to stop talking, his words kept coming out. Fortunately, Edel handled the situation calmly.
“I will order another letter knife to be made. It would be best to have one in the office and another in the bedroom.”
"Oh, that's a good idea."
Laszlo nodded in agreement, coughing slightly to hide his embarrassment, then raised the knife a little before heading to his office. As he left, he repeatedly berated himself for making the same mistakes in front of Edel.
***
The round table meeting in the empire was known as a system that allowed the emperor and nobles to debate as equals, without any consideration for positions.
The basic rule was that participants would not be punished for what was said during the meeting. Even the emperor showing any displeasure with the discussions was considered a violation of the rules.
Therefore, it was natural for the emperor to feel pressured, and for the nobles to eagerly await the convening of the Round Table. But this was before Demarcus became emperor.
"Damn it! Did this man become an emperor just to hold roundtable meetings?"
“Isaac said angrily as he left the ‘Room of Wisdom,’ the place where the meetings were held, grinding his teeth in anger.”
Isaac used to be one of those who would mock or easily manipulate the emperor during meetings, but today he was defeated by words at the hands of Demarcus.
Isaac objected to DeMarcus's decision to reduce taxes to the rate stipulated by law, arguing that it was "very surprising," but his argument did not hold up.
“Reducing taxes to the legal rate requires gradual implementation? But when you raised taxes excessively and burdened the land’s inhabitants, you didn’t talk about gradualism! Why gradualism only when it comes to reducing taxes?”
“Does it sound like I’m asking for a favor? I’m simply asking you to respect the law. Isn’t that a very obvious request? Is it really that difficult to understand?”
Of course, DeMarcus's words were clear and simple. But for the nobility, accustomed to high taxes, this decision came as a shock.
“Cut taxes from 45% to 30% immediately? He’s trying to destroy us!”
During the reign of the previous emperor, there was no need to hold a round table meeting over such issues. When nobles illegally raised taxes, the previous emperor accepted bribes from them, thus increasing his own wealth.
But with Demarcus, bribes were ineffective. This angered the nobility, especially since his policies enjoyed considerable support from the lesser lords and the common people.
In the past, they might resort to poisoning or assassination, but even these options are no longer possible now.
“If Laszlo didn’t exist, we would have found a way to kill him!”
Laszlo was always by Demarcus's side, like his shadow.
He was nicknamed “The Ghost,” which is an accurate description, as no assassin, no matter how skilled, could get past him.
It was not known where Laszlo had gathered these exceptional mercenaries, whom he called Calliope, but they carried out his orders precisely.
The group included skilled fighters, experts in poisons and antidotes, as well as doctors and herbalists. Thanks to them, neither poisoning nor disease could harm DeMarcus.
Over time, Laszlo, Demarcus's protector, became the number one enemy of the nobles, even more so than the emperor himself.
“We need to plant someone next to the emperor, but there is no suitable candidate.”
Isaac's dream was that someone would appear who could disable Laszlo, even if only for a short time, or take the opportunity to assassinate DeMarcus personally.
Such an idea excited him, but it remained just a distant dream.
Therefore, the secret visit of Edmund Milton, the deputy commander of the Imperial Palace Knights, to Isaac was a very pleasant surprise for him.