Chapter 11: A New Face in the Kitchen.

“Haa—! Nice to meet you!
I, uh… I mean, I am Samuel Emonie, the fifth son of Baron Emonie!”

His voice cracks slightly from nerves.

“My hobby is… searching for seasonings…!
Ah—and my special skill is that I can tell what hidden flavor a dish needs!”

“And, um…”

“This isn’t some matchmaking meeting. You’re fine now.”

Sandwiched between His Highness and me, the brown-haired, brown-eyed man shrinks dramatically.
He stands so rigidly it’s painfully obvious how tense he is.

I place a light, reassuring hand on Samuel’s shoulder—pon.

His Highness then speaks.

“He’s been working as a palace chef for eight years now.
He creates quite unique and interesting dishes.
Most of what he makes is light yet surprisingly delicious.”

Even as a palace chef, opportunities to meet His Highness directly would be rare.
The Emonie barony isn’t large, but it’s rich in forests and fields, with long hours of sunlight—a naturally abundant region.
A fifth son from a remote baronial house far from the capital would need to acquire a practical skill to support himself.
High society would be far out of reach.

Still, with solid family credentials, a talented individual like him would be perfect for the palace kitchens.

Despite his timid demeanor, Samuel’s appearance doesn’t quite match.
His eyes are narrow and slightly upturned, his build rugged and imposing—more suited to being called a knight than a cook.

“Samuel, nice to meet you.”

“Y-Yes! I’ll do my absolute best!”

“Discuss the details with the head chef.
Sara, please tell Paul to show him around the residence.”

Paul is the head butler of this marquis household.
He oversees every servant living here.

“Yes, right this way.”

“Ah—yes! Thank you very much!”

Samuel keeps his large frame hunched the entire time.
He gives a small, polite bow—peck—and leaves the room together with Sara.

“Your Highness… I never imagined you’d actually bring a chef.”

“Was it that unexpected?
I just couldn’t resist wanting to see your surprised face.”

“…Haa.”

“Haha. But his skill is top-class.
His creative dishes are things no one else in this country would ever think of.”

“Is it really all right to bring someone like that into our household?”

“Yes. Food is fundamental.
If you can’t eat properly, your body weakens easily.
I thought he would be the perfect person to find dishes you can manage.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Indeed—Rachel’s appetite has yet to return.
The Marquis household’s cooks have tried their best: lightening seasonings, adjusting flavors to suit her.
Yet no matter what, she simply cannot eat much.
She manages vegetable soups and fruits, but bread, meat—anything substantial—gets stuck in her throat.
She quickly feels bloated and uncomfortable.

“No—if even he can’t help, we’ll simply think of another way.”

♢

From the Marquis residence, Louis and I returned to the palace.
In the office, we silently tackle the mountain of accumulated work.

Suddenly, as though the thought had just occurred to me, I lift my eyes from the documents and speak to Louis, who is taking a brief pause.

“Is this really all right?”

“About what?”

“About that chef.
Isn’t he one of the people you’ve been observing?”

“Observing targets—you really do talk about people like they’re specimens.”

“Well… yes, that unique creativity of his does intrigue me.
From the consistency of ingredients he chooses, it almost feels like some regional folk cuisine.”

“But lately, I find myself more interested in seeing Rachel’s various expressions.
Today’s face—the one that practically screamed ’You actually brought him?!’—was particularly good.”

“You truly are…”

“Besides, Rachel makes so many interesting faces: surprise, frowning, all sorts of them.
But… I don’t particularly want to see her looking weak.”

“Why is that?”

“Hmm… why indeed.”

He tilts his head thoughtfully.

“Discovering new sides of Rachel is fascinating.
But seeing her in a weakened state… I don’t enjoy that.”

He pauses, then adds lightly,

“Well, no one likes seeing someone they know suffer, right?”

I let out a quiet, exasperated sigh.
Louis looks at me strangely.

“What’s wrong, Cyril? If you’re tired, we can take a break.”

“No, I’m fine.
I was the fool for asking you.”

“Huh?”

“Come on—back to work. We still have plenty left for today.”

Louis still looks unconvinced, but he reluctantly returns to scribbling notes on the documents.

I watch him—my master—with my usual expressionless gaze.

──The girl whose personality changed along with her frail body…
just how much will she end up changing His Highness?

He possesses abilities surpassing most adults, yet he remains remarkably blind to his own emotional shifts.

Until recently, he was interested in the cause of her transformation.
Now he has begun looking at her herself.

But throughout his entire life so far, His Highness has prioritized goals above all else.
To achieve them, he seemed to have cast aside every personal indulgence, as though he ended his own childhood prematurely.

Born as Crown Prince, he was special from the moment he drew breath.
At the same time, people have always measured his worth by his abilities rather than seeing him as himself.

Because of that, he has judged others solely through the lens of gain, loss, and interest.
Understanding his own feelings is still likely very difficult for him.

If this change is a good one… then all is well.
If it’s a bad one…

…Then I will have to watch carefully.