Chapter 44: Two Guests (2)

Chapter 44: Two Guests (2)

The dining table was finally serving its purpose after a long time.

Since Yuria's last visit, the table had been gathering dust, but now it was in use again.

From the kitchen, I looked at those sitting at the table.

Olivia had an indifferent expression on her face.

Hanna, who became the youngest aura user in the empire.

And Malik, the patriarch of the restaurant industry no, the firstborn son of the Histania family, all notable figures from the empire, were sitting at the humble dining table, sipping hot tea.

Savoring the fragrance of black tea, Hanna looked towards me with a small smile.

"This time it's not green tea?"

"I thought you might come, Hanna, so I decided to spend a bit."

Hanna smiled at my diplomatic response.

"Really? I was hoping to surprise you."

It seemed to be a joke suited to Hannas taste.

Hanna carefully observed her teacup.

With a subtle smile, she touched the handle of the cup and murmured to herself.

"The green tea was also tasty."

Seizing the moment, I rummaged around and took out a tin of cheap green tea from the cupboard.

The cheap green tea that Olivia and I had tried in vain to finish had not seen the light of day since we started drinking tea made with craftsmanship. I had hoped to get rid of it with this opportunity.

I showed Hanna the tin of green tea made of steel.

"Would you like some?"

Olivia, noticing my hidden intention to get rid of leftovers, commented.

"Ricardo, dealing with leftovers is bad."

"These aren't leftovers. I'm simply offering tea that suits the taste."

"That's still dealing with leftovers."

Olivia was being obtuse.

Hanna awkwardly shook her head, declining. While I regretted missing this chance to get rid of it and suggested she take it home, thanks to Olivias confession of conscience, I did not succeed.

Frustrated, I told Olivia.

"Then, tomorrow's snack will be green tea and biscuits."

"Dealing with leftovers is bad."

"It's fine. Sometimes the homeowner needs to take care of the leftovers."

"Well"

Olivia looked towards Hanna hopefully.

"You eat it."

And she pushed the green tea towards Hanna.

Hanna declined.

She said the green tea I made was tasty, or something like that.Ñ00v€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

With a reluctant heart, I put the green tea back in the cupboard.

Dinner preparations were quickly made.

Tonight's menu was tteokbokki.

A humble dish to serve to guests, but it was Hannas special request wrapped in bundles of gifts, so I had to make it.

It was what Hanna wanted.

And also the menu for tonight.

Nevertheless, I couldn't help feeling nervous about presenting a new dish in front of a giant in the culinary industry.

Malik had been watching me cook with his arms crossed for some time now.

His attitude reminded me of a certain cooking show from a past life. I was half-expecting him to say "Chef, could you come down here for a moment?" which made it hard for me to concentrate on my cooking.

"Hm You're rather good."

Malik gave a brief review as he watched my adept handling of the ingredients.

I couldn't decide whether to take it as a compliment or to tell this guest to stop critiquing and just sit down.

Curious about the developing dish, Malik asked.

"What are you cooking?"

"Ah, is this your first time, Malik?"

Malik nodded.

The only ones who had tried tteokbokki at this estate were Olivia and Hanna.

Come to think of it, Malik had never eaten tteokbokki before. He needed an explanation of the dish. Just when I was about to explain, I heard Hannas sharp voice from the chair.

"Just shut up and eat."

"Sure."

Malik couldnt stand up against Hanna.

The last time I saw them, Malik was desperately chasing after Hanna, but it seemed much had changed in their relationship.

I wonder if my advice from last time had helped, as the two seemed to be on better terms now, fitting the image of siblings.

Bickering.

"What are you doing at someone elses house?"

"It's an occupational habit"

"Occupation? Aren't you a knight, brother?"

"Thats right! A Royal Knight."

"Then behave like one and sit still, please."

Or not?

It seemed he might be thoroughly committed to his professional spirit as an entrepreneur

Anyway, it's good to see them getting along.

Just that the relationship between Olivia and Malik was a bit worrying.

Since a moment ago, Olivia had been eyeing Malik with her arms crossed. She was clearly displeased with this uninvited guests presence.

Their relationship started on a rocky note.

"Who are you?"

Hanna frowned and slapped Malik's hand away, then said something to him that she often used on her brother.

"What are you talking about, that's disgusting."

They truly seemed like siblings.

Malik told several stories.

Apologizing to Hanna.

Getting beaten to a pulp at the Royal Academy.

Proudly stating that he begged for Hannas forgiveness despite being hit with scabbards, auras, even getting beaten like a dog in front of people.

He came across as quite insane.

Olivia felt the same way.

"A lunatic."

She left the same review as I did.

Anyway, Malik said he had an epiphany in that process.

That he awakened his aura thanks to it. Hanna thanked us for the gift of the treasured sword and came to our estate for that reason.

Summarizing his story, Malik pointed at the gifts piled up next to the table.

Dolls. Flowers. Accessories. And

"Wow..?"

Even the dining coupons for Olivia's favorite, the Forest Friend.

Olivia's eyes widened at the sight of the dining coupons in Malik's hand.

"Ricardo dining coupons. As many as ten!"

Olivia was beaming with the brightest smile I had seen today.

I ducked my head and whispered in Olivias ear.

"That's the restaurant owner."

"The owner?"

"Yes the Forest Friend."

Olivia looked at me as if to ask why I was only telling her now.

She gave Malik a look of disbelief, then turned to me with a questioning gaze as if asking if this made any sense. I responded to her by nodding.

Olivia whispered in my ear.

"The family that thinks of nothing but swords?"

"Yes."

"A dumb brute who only understands swords?"

I nodded again.

"Is that the person you mentioned? The one who gave a lot of money?"

"Yes."

"Did I make a mistake?"

Olivia was silent.

Then she awkwardly extended her hand towards Malik.

"Then please take care of me."

Malik answered coldly.

"Its too late."

Olivia reacted as if she'd lost the world.

*

As the night grew late, the Histania siblings decided to stay overnight at the estate.

It was an overnight stay arranged through Olivia's efforts to curry favor and my suggestion.

Hanna went to Olivia's room with her, while Malik and I sat in the dining room drinking tea.

"Sigh"

As Malik cooled his hot tea, he thanked me for the dinner.

"Thank you for the meal. It was my first time trying that food, but it was really delicious."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

After a short silence, Malik spoke with a serious expression.

"So, I was thinking of adding that tteokbokki dish to our restaurant's menu"

I swallowed hard.

"What?"

Malik continued, saying that he didnt only want the recipe, he proposed that we go into business together, and was confident that the dish would be successful.

"I won't leave you feeling shortchanged; let's do it at a 70-30 split. Let's conquer the restaurant industry of the entire continent together," he said, and to Malik who seemed to have set an unusual goal, I said,

"Malik."

"Why, don't you like it? Then how about 60-40 I can't go any higher than that."

Malik seemed to have a natural talent for this line of work, perhaps even more so than with the sword. Of course, he was also good with a sword but that.

His talent in the restaurant business was remarkable.

"Weren't your dreams about becoming a leader of the knight order?"

Malik clamped his mouth shut.

After the business talk, Malik took out a single piece of paper from his pocket.

"If you give the recipe it's a 70-30 deal. I'll manage the operations, and you handle the development. No complaints, right?"

"Yes. You handle the bothersome stuff, Malik."

"Annoying. Well, let's conclude this conversation here and discuss this paper. I'm sure it's the thing you're most curious about."

Malik unfolded the paper on the table.

A blueprint with two large wheels attached to each side of a chair was sprawled out on the table.

"I read the letter you sent. The writing was serious, though I had to call an expert in ancient languages to resolve that it was terrible. The writing. Anyways, when I looked at the drawing, it was clear that it is indeed an incredible invention."

With a question mark over his head, Malik asked,

"What did you say the name of this chair was?"

I told Malik,

"It's called a wheelchair."