Vol 5. Chapter 24: Interlude (A Duke of a Fallen Country)
Duke Akirai Yubaden Aphrasia widened his eyes as he put the prepared meal into his mouth.
“I-It’s delicious...”
It was not as if he had been eating bad food up until now. He had hired first-rate cooks, used decent ingredients, and had them prepare decent dishes.
Well, in light of recent circumstances, the grade of ingredients had tended to slip, but still.
Even so—
Today’s meal was something entirely different.
“I am most relieved that it suited Your Grace’s palate. We are just as astonished, however...”
“Ah... ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) I had heard that from today on it would be switched to the fare from that kitchen. But what is this...?”
Duke Yubaden was not particularly a gourmet. Therefore, he could not say what exactly was so exceptional about this food.
It was simply—delicious. That was the only word for it.
“According to the people of <Paraiso>, by applying appropriate preliminary preparation to appropriate ingredients, they prevent off-flavors from emerging. And by combining ingredients whose affinities are good, they round off the harsh edges and produce a complex flavor.”
“I see... ...No, it is delicious, certainly. Are the others being served this as well?”
“Yes. That so-called automatic cooker, that magic tool, can make as many portions as you like so long as you have the time and the ingredients. The recipes differ somewhat depending on ingredients, but the knights and servants are also receiving their meals.”
It had been three days since those people calling themselves <Paraiso> had occupied the royal capital.
Until this morning, they had been served preserved foods cooked in the kitchen of the mansion that had escaped damage.
But now that preparations were apparently complete, from today’s lunch, <Paraiso> had begun providing the food.
“I see... Until yesterday, I feared what would become of us, but for the moment, that concern seems to be gone...”
Three days earlier, the royal capital of Aphrasia had been militarily occupied by <Paraiso>’s army of those magical-machine golems.
Allowing no resistance whatsoever, they had neatly neutralized every fighting force in the capital, without letting a single one escape. In the process, the buildings, supplies, and even the citizens of the royal capital had suffered no pointless casualties.
With overwhelming power, as easily as twisting a baby’s arm, the royal capital of Aphrasia had been subdued.
In fact, the place that had taken the most damage in the capital was Duke Yubaden’s own residence.
Using <Paraiso>’s invasion as a pretext, the other dukes had launched an assault on Duke Yubaden. That in itself had not been destructive, but the golem that <Paraiso> had deployed to secure Duke Yubaden’s person had half-destroyed the mansion.
What the duke had seen when he was taken outside the mansion by <Paraiso>’s soldiers was a gigantic six-legged monster, rampaging about while half-destroying his home.
At the time, he had had no understanding whatsoever of what was happening.
After that, <Paraiso> had gone on to occupy the royal capital without incident and detain all three dukes, including Duke Yubaden.
They had reportedly announced to the capital that going outside was, in principle, forbidden, and had begun military rule.
Duke Yubaden was under house arrest within the grounds of his estate, and contact with the outside had also been restricted, so he had not been able to obtain any information.
“Even under occupation, in enemy territory, they can still prepare food of this quality...”
They operated that much military force, and yet they could still afford to allocate effort to meals. And this was only the third day since the occupation. It was far from a settled situation.
In that case, it was safe to assume that this level of food quality was standard for their army.
“This so-called temporary residence is astonishing as well, however...”
Incidentally, Duke Yubaden was currently sleeping not in the half-destroyed mansion, but in a dwelling provided by <Paraiso>.
He had been told that this would be in use until reconstruction of the mansion, which had been destroyed by military action, was complete—and then this temporary residence had fallen from the sky.
The duke had doubted his eyes.
And at the same time, he had understood.
He had grasped at least one reason why the royal capital had fallen so easily.
If they could transport this temporary residence from the sky like that, then they could just as easily insert a group of those golems directly into the vital points of the royal capital.
His own troops had no doubt been annihilated without being able to put up any meaningful resistance.
The duke, his attendants, and the remaining members of the knight order were in a state of being cut off from contact with the outside. Because of that, they could not accurately grasp what had happened or what was happening now.
However, they had been informed by <Paraiso> that minimum contact would soon be permitted.
“However, I wonder if our cooks could possibly reproduce this...”
Now that he had tasted this, there would be no going back.
Thinking that, he asked the butler standing by his side, and the man nodded slowly.
“Without fail, Your Grace. The people of <Paraiso> have said they will answer any questions so long as it is not a military secret. I am sure the cooks are already bombarding them with questions. That ‘container house’ they speak of will also be open for some time yet. They have already prepared enough for all the servants.”
“I see... I had not thought we were completely cut off from foreign information, and yet the world beyond the border has changed a great deal...”
“Yes. They said they would summarize the situation and inform us at a later date. I hear they will also gather the other dukes.”
He had known they were called a remote backwater.
Even so, Duke Yubaden had always struggled, wondering if there was not something he could do.
In the past, he had even visited the neighboring Wheat Country of Weizenland and the Forest Kingdom of Levresta.
Even then, he had been stunned by the disparity in civilization.
But the shock brought by <Paraiso> could not even be compared to those.
“Judging by what has happened thus far, it does not seem they intend anything too terrible to us. ...What are they planning to do from here, I wonder.”
“...For the moment at least, we have been ordered to maintain the current system. That said, contact with the outside remains forbidden.”
From the third floor of the ducal residence, which had just barely avoided collapse, they could look out over the city. They saw no sign of looting or anything of the sort.
If anything, they could see the familiar smoke of cooking and boiling.
At the very least, this meant the citizens of the royal capital were maintaining their lives.
“Our afternoon schedule was to meet with the people of <Paraiso>, yes?”
“Yes. We have received word that it will be for information sharing and to notify us of upcoming plans. The one coming will be Lady Zehn=Ringo. In terms of military rank, she is what we would call a major general. In their home country’s noble hierarchy, a duke. They say she is a member of the royal family. Since her status is nearly equal to Your Grace’s, they even took the trouble to inform us that there is no need to be overly formal.”
“Hm... Well, even if I wished to offer hospitality, we have nothing. Everything at hand has been prepared by them. They could be much more overbearing and we would have no grounds to complain... How scrupulous of them.”
To the power-holder of a city they had occupied, to take the trouble to say there was no need to be overly formal because their status was equal—
Judging from their practiced conduct, they were no doubt carrying out military invasions in various places.
Perhaps somewhere else, some troublesome incident had occurred.
No, it might be that one of the other dukes had already done something.
Duke Calbark, for instance, was someone he frankly did not trust at all.
That said, since their treatment of him had not noticeably worsened, he wanted to believe nothing had happened.
“We have managed to recover some small items and clothing from the residence, and they are being prepared in the conference room. Jewelry, however, they have not provided for us.”
“It is a room prepared by <Paraiso>, after all. If they had not done so, it would have turned into a garden party. Though, strictly speaking, it was <Paraiso> who destroyed the residence in the first place...”
Complaining about that would not change anything.
He had heard that preparations for the conference hall were being carried out together with personnel from <Paraiso>, so there would likely be almost no issues of diplomatic protocol.
When dealing with a country with which they had had no contact at all, they had to be extremely careful because they did not know its customs. If the other side was willing to cooperate, there was nothing better.
“...Hm. The tea is good as well...”
“Yes. The quality is astonishing. It seems to be tea leaves from the Forest Kingdom of Levresta. The quality has not deteriorated, and something of this level would only be obtainable in East Gate City. Considering degradation during transport, it is really a product that can only be drunk locally.”
“I see... Either their preservation techniques are superior, or their transport speed is fast. No, both. If they cross the sky, then their transport speed would also...”
As he was thus enjoying his after-meal tea—
“Y-Your Grace!! Please, quickly—quickly, look outside!!”
“Mm. Captain of the Knights. What is this about?”
“I-It is beyond words! It would be fastest if you saw it for yourself!!”
The sudden intrusion by the captain of the knights made both the duke and the butler knit their brows. However, for the captain of the knights to be this agitated meant it was a truly serious matter.
That said, since he was not armed, it did not seem that a problem had already broken out.
It was somewhat discourteous, but leaving his tea behind, Duke Yubaden exited the dining room.
He then turned his gaze in the direction the captain of the knights was pointing.
There—
Something enormous.
Yes, a gigantic something that could only be thought of as the corpse of a dragon, like those in fairy tales.
It was hanging suspended from one of those mysterious magical-machine golems and was slowly moving through the sky.