“Knowledge is more precious than gold, my lady,” said Ruth.
As Ruth sat in her usual spot, the impact caused the towers of books around her to collapse.
Volumes that supposedly contained invaluable knowledge were scattered across the floor.
Maxi grimaced, debating whether to make a caustic comment, but decided against it with a heavy sigh.
All things considered, Ruth had been a great help, and she couldn't afford to antagonize him.
“I’m going to order the books.”
“Thank you,” Ruth said dryly before returning to her book.
Maxi left the library, shaking his head.
The hallways were lit by the white sun that streamed in through the newly installed windows.
Maxi looked up at the cloudless blue sky before walking down the stairs with light steps.
Elegantly decorated handrails lined both sides of the stairs, and the steps were covered in a soft carpet.
Although she initially panicked upon being tasked with redecorating the castle, her heart flutters as she sees the small changes that have materialized.
She entered the banquet hall, smiling widely.
Rodrigo was busy supervising the construction, which had entered its final phase.
“Rodrigo, are you busy?”
“My lady.”
Rodrigo's wrinkled face lit up when he saw her.
Maxi handed him the handwritten order list.
"I took a walk around the castle to see if we needed anything.
Can you mind asking for these items?"
“Of course, my lady.”
“And please ask merchants to find the books listed at the end.”
“How to order.”
The butler folded the parchment carefully and placed it in his inner pocket.
Maxi smiled, pleased to have completed one of her tasks.
She turned to leave, but Rodrigo quickly stopped her.
"The young squires caught four ocries in the mountain stream at dawn, my lady.
They will soon be ready if you will go down to the kitchen."
“O-Ocrie…?”
"Ocries live in cool mountain streams, which gives them a smooth, rich texture.
There's nothing as delicious as freshly caught ocrie grilled over charcoal!"
Maxi felt his mouth water.
Although the meals at Calypse Castle were always delicious, they were decidedly meat-heavy.
Despite Anatol's proximity to the sea, Maxi had never seen seafood on the table.
His stomach growled at the prospect of biting into succulent, freshly grilled fish.
"B-But the squires c-caught these fish.
It's not right, I..."
"They say they caught them for you, my lady.
They'll be delighted if you join them."
She nodded, though not without a slight blush.
She hurriedly left the banquet room, eager to try the delicacy, and headed to the kitchen.
When she peeked into the kitchen, she saw that the two young squires had speared four fish the length of a full-grown man's arm above the drain and were busy cleaning the fish.
Beside them, the cook was sweating profusely as he watched anxiously.
"J-Young masters!
Please leave me!
I insist."
“It's okay, it's okay,” Ulyseon said cheerfully, his tone completely at odds with the carnage at his hands.
"We need to know what it's like to cut a living creature after all.
It's part of our training!"
Right next to him, Garrow was collecting fish blood in a bucket that had been placed under the creatures' tails.
“Uly, I emptied this one.”
"Give it here.
I'll clean this one up too."
“I can’t let you do such a humble job!” insisted the cook.
"Silence.
Like I said, this is part of our training!"
"That's right.
This fish will go to the lady's table.
We can't let a servant take care of them."
"But why do we catch fish, anyway?
A fox or a deer would be a better gift."
"Garrow!
How can you even think of hurting such magnificent creatures?"
Garrow shook his head.
“Are you saying this fish here met an early death because it’s ugly?”
“He had the misfortune of being ugly on the outside and tasty on the inside,” joked Ulyseon.
Maxi hesitated at the entrance.
She did not expect to witness such a scene.
Feeling sick at the sight of the half-cut fish, she silently turned to leave.
But just at that moment, Garrow, who had stretched his neck to the sides, ended up locking eyes with her.
She froze in place.
He smiled brightly and waved.“Good morning, Lady Calypse!”
“My lady!”
Ulyseon waved his hands like a dog's tail.
Maxi waved back weakly.
“G-Good morning.”
"You're right on time!
We took these to thank you for the exciting story you told us yesterday.
This is the tastiest fish in all of Wedon!"
“We’ll have them at the table soon,” said Garrow, cutting off a head.
Maxi watched as the head fell to the ground and rolled away, its tongue sticking out of its half-open mouth and its eyes staring at her resentfully.
Maxi had to stop himself from vomiting as he nodded.
She quickly turned to leave, but Ulyseon started talking to her happily.
“My lady, would you tell us more about the fight against werewolves while you wait?”
“Uly, she might not like seeing all that blood…”
"Don't be ridiculous, Garrow.
Her lordship is brave!
She watched a fountain of blood gush from a giant ogre!
She is the wife of the bravest knight in the land!"
Ulyseon looked at her hopefully, waiting for her to back up his words.
Maxi forced a smile.
Thunk.
As yet another fish head rolled to the ground, she tried her best not to look.
"Of course.
That's nothing to me."
"See?
Hey!
Bring our lady a chair!"
She was trapped.
She watched as the servants brought in a chair, dreading the prospect of spinning a bloody tale as the squires landed their catch.
Holding back tears, she sat on the edge of her chair.
Meanwhile, Ulyseon ripped and peeled the ocrie's thick skin, revealing white flesh.
After removing the scales from the back and belly, he placed evenly cut fillets on a plate.
Soon, all that was left of the fish was the skeleton.
"I've seen a werewolf before.
It had the fearsome head of a wolf, but its body was humanoid.
It leaped from tree to tree on its hind legs!"
"And their tusks stick out like boar tusks.
It's said that the people of Balto stuff werewolf heads to display as trophies."
"For what?
I will never understand the Norteños and their aesthetics."
“For them, wolves are a symbol of courage.”
More pink-tinged fillets were piled on the plate.
As the ocries began to lose their shape, Maxi's nausea eased.
She took a deep breath to regain her composure when Ulyseon turned to her, drying his hands on a piece of white cloth.
"It's ridiculous that they mount werewolf heads to show their courage!
The White Dragons slaughtered dozens of these beasts in the blink of an eye!"
“Please tell us how Sir Riftan fought this battle, my lady.”
Maxi forced another smile.
She took a deep breath and began her story with how Riftan decapitated three werewolves with a deadly blow of his sword.
From there, the story only grew; As the riders advanced through the forest, severed werewolf heads rained down like black hail.
The story of blood, bones and flesh seemed to delight her young audience, and their enthusiasm gradually made her forget her discomfort.
She never imagined that she would speak so happily in front of others.
When the story was almost coming to an end, the cook interrupted.
“The seasoning is ready, young master.”
"Then start grilling.
I'm hungry."
The cook placed the fillets in a bowl of dark liquid.
Then he heated a greased frying pan and prepared a lettuce, onion and herb salad.
Maxi's mouth started to water again.
“The ocries will be ready in just a moment, my lady,” said the cook, placing the marinated fish in the pan.
“They are absolutely delicious when grilled, browned and served with a salad.”
As the fish began to sizzle, a delicious smell spread through the air.
Garrow insisted on eating the fish straight from the grill rather than waiting to be served in the dining room, so Maxi and the squires found themselves sitting around a small table in the corner of the kitchen.
Fresh salad and grilled ocries were soon placed before them.
Maxi cut off a piece of the steaming fish and brought it to his lips.
The tender meat, sweetened by the seasoning, melted in his mouth.
His eyes widened.
“It’s d-delicious!”
"Of course!
Nothing compares to a freshly caught ocrie in the fall!"Although the fish was soft, it managed to maintain its texture, and it didn't have any fishy odor.
In the blink of an eye, she finished two large fillets.
Meanwhile, Ulyseon and Garrow were already finishing their third serving.
She helped herself to a third slice and ate it with the crunchy salad.
“It’s really d-delicious.”
“We're happy to hear you liked it,” said Ulyseon, who devoured his food with impressive speed.
“We’ll get you another good one, my lady.”
Maxi smiled back, grateful for his kindness.
“I-I w-look forward to it.”