“Oof.”
Margaret and Kent, carrying Gordon, fled back to the room. Margaret roughly threw Gordon, who had lost consciousness, onto the bed.
“It really was heavy carrying him all this way. I’m a little tired from running back,” Margaret said.
“For that, you don’t seem tired at all?”
Margaret clapped her hands as if she had finished a job, but to Kent, she looked no more fatigued than if she had just gone for a walk.
“Really? But I exercised for the first time in a while, so I’m soaked in sweat here.”
“And with that, you put my hands where?!”
Margaret took Kent’s hand and placed it in the cleavage of her chest. It was true that Margaret’s cleavage was damp, but more than that, Kent was more interested in the pleasant sensation from the good elasticity transmitted to his hand, sandwiched between her breasts.
“Oh my, even an old auntie like me makes you feel that way? That’s fine. Welcome.”
With that, Margaret embraced Kent. Kent then felt a pleasant softness and a scent that evoked mature charm.
“No, no, if you do that, my head will fly off!”
“Oh, what a shame.”
As Kent said that, Margaret sadly pulled away from him. Margaret was called the Queen, so it was natural that she was married, and her husband was the King of this country. Although he was slightly interested, Kent felt it was too dangerous to go along with the flow and commit adultery.
“There’s still a little time before those children return. Shall we talk for a bit until then? Sit here.”
Margaret sat on the empty bed, patting the spot next to her, and told Kent to sit down. Kent had no reason to refuse, so he did as he was told and sat next to Margaret. For a while after that, Kent and Margaret spent time chatting about trivial matters.
“I’m home!”
The door to the room was suddenly thrown open with force, and Rachel returned. Following her, those who had gone to the hot spring facility came back in a procession.
“Huh? What were you talking about with Older Brother and Auntie?”
Rachel, looking curious, approached Kent and said. Margaret was still sitting next to the bed.
“Oh? Are you curious, Rachel? We were talking about love.”
“” “Ehhh!!!” ”
When Margaret replied mischievously, the others who heard it also cried out in surprise.
“It’s a joke. Gordon isn’t feeling well and is sleeping, so we were just chatting.”
“Hmm. Just chatting, huh…”
When Margaret said that, the others seemed convinced, but Catherine had a different attitude, and her muttering caught Kent’s ear. Kent looked at Catherine, and she turned her face away as if she had noticed his gaze.
(Oh dear… she might be quite angry.)
Kent knew he couldn’t make excuses since Catherine had seen him peeking at her bath. He decided he would have to apologize again later.
“This time, we could only use the public hot springs, but it was interesting with all the different baths. Also, it seemed like the news of our reunion hadn’t spread yet, so we had the place to ourselves.”
“Is that so?”
Rachel was enthusiastically telling Kent about her impressions of the hot spring facility, but Kent, having actually seen it, unconsciously replied curtly.
“Older Brother’s reaction is so slow.”
Rachel said disappointedly, as she had expected him to engage more in the conversation.
“I’m back.”
After a little more time had passed, Clara returned.
“Good work. Were you able to gather the items on the list?”
“Yes, but what are you going to do with such a large quantity of ingredients?”
Margaret seemed to have ordered Clara to gather the ingredients. She had apparently completed the mission and collected the specified items.
“That’s an incredible amount of ingredients. Most of them don’t seem to last long, so what will you do with them?”
Marie said, looking at the large amount of ingredients placed outside the room. The inventory included a large quantity of bite-sized raw meat and vegetables, as well as what appeared to be alcohol in barrels – an amount that everyone present, even if they tried their best, couldn’t finish in a single meal.
“There are several types of meat, including animal, bird, and fish. They all seem to be commonly available.”
Josette said, looking at the pile of ingredients. The grade of the ingredients was not the high-class food eaten by aristocrats, but rather items that could be generally obtained in the town.
“This is for tonight’s meal. Let’s borrow the inn’s garden and grill and eat it together.”
Margaret said as she confirmed if the items she had ordered were all there.
“Lady Margaret, you said grilling, but there are no cooking utensils in this garden?”
“Oh, that’s right. I was thinking only of the ingredients on impulse and forgot to prepare cooking utensils and tableware.”
Margaret said apologetically when Clara pointed it out.
“When that happens, just ask Older Brother. If there’s a barbecue set or something, it should be fine, so let’s get it ready quickly. And I want some sauce too.”
“Right…”
Kent took out his terminal and ordered a complete set of necessary equipment, including a barbecue grill, portable table, and paper dishes, as well as several types of sauce that Rachel had requested.
“As expected of Kent. This is a very artistic grill.”
Margaret said, looking at the silver-shining barbecue grill with a sense of novelty.
“Well then, let’s all get ready.”
” ” “Ooooh!!” ”
Everyone divided the work and began preparing dinner. As it was starting to get dark outside, they decided to prepare a few more battery-powered lanterns and use them for lighting.
“Now, let’s all eat.”
” ” “Itadakimasu.” ” ”
Once the preparations were complete, charcoal was placed in the grill and lit, and one by one, the ingredients were thrown in. Then, as they grilled, everyone took the ingredients they liked.
“When I put this sauce on, the flavor gets dramatically better.”
Elnet eagerly devoured the grilled meat and vegetables one after another with satisfaction.
“Mr. Kent, I didn’t know you had such hidden talents… and it’s delicious too.”
“This is also a way to eat, isn’t it? It’s fun to do things like this all together.”
Josette, eating meat with sauce for the first time with satisfaction, and Caro, enjoying the atmosphere of the place, spoke.
“This brand of sauce… it’s been a while. In shops, the heat is weak, and the smell tends to come out, so you can’t really barbecue.”
Rachel also seemed to be enjoying the barbecue after a long time.
“Oh? I thought I smelled something good, what are you all doing?”
“Oh, you’re awake? We’re all having dinner right now. You should take a plate from over there and join us.”
Gordon, who had woken up, came out of the room, drawn by the smell. Margaret, noticing him, invited him to join the circle.
“Lord Gordon, please.”
Patty, who had been watching the scene, prepared a plate and fork for Gordon and handed them to him.
“Ah… thank you.”
“Um, are you not feeling well yet?”
“N-no, that’s not it, but…”
Patty asked, puzzled by Gordon avoiding eye contact, and Gordon replied evasively.
“Oh dear, he’s conscious and acting cute.”
Margaret watched the scene with a gentle smile.
“I’ll eat lots.”
“Hanako, if you eat that fast, you’ll choke.”
” *Gulp*…”
“See, it happened just like I said.”
Catherine cautioned Hanako, who was eating with incredible speed. As expected, she choked, and Catherine gently handed her a drink.
“N. Thank you.”
“Yes, yes, you’re welcome.”
Hanako thanked Catherine.
“It’s so delicious, I can’t stop eating. What if I gain weight?”
“If you’re worried about it, would you also stick to just water like me?”
“I’ll pass on that…”
Al, who was only drinking water as usual, jokingly said to Marie, who was concerned about her weight.
“Miss Clara, aren’t you eating?”
“I’m here as a attendant, so I can’t join you.”
“Don’t be so formal, let’s all eat together.”
“But…”
Kent called out to Clara, who was watching alone from the corner. Clara replied hesitantly, but Kent encouraged her to join everyone.
“It’s fine. Go ahead and eat. It would be cruel to make only you wait.”
“Understood. Then I’ll be going.”
Margaret, who had been watching the scene, instructed Clara, and Clara followed suit, entering the circle of everyone.
“Kent, you were observing your surroundings well.”
“It just happened to be in my line of sight…”
“Really? But observing your surroundings and grasping the situation is very important. The reason I only prepared ingredients was to create an opportunity for you to shine, so I’m sure everyone’s evaluation of you has gone up.”
Margaret explained her intention for preparing only ingredients to Kent.
“Now, one question. Do you know why such an amount of ingredients, more than the number of people here can eat, was prepared?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Oh, what a shame, you didn’t see that far. Well then, please look towards the inn’s main building.”
At Margaret’s words, Kent shifted his gaze not to the detached building where Kent and his companions were staying, but towards the building where the inn was located.
“There are a lot of people watching.”
“Yes. After all this commotion and filling the air with delicious smells, everyone would be curious, wouldn’t they?”
“Is that all right?”
“I prepared it for that purpose, so it’s fine. You go and talk to them.”
“Understood.”
Understanding Margaret’s plan, Kent headed towards the inn.
“There are plenty of ingredients, so would you all like some if you’re interested?”
Kent decided to invite the other lodgers to eat together.
