Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 87

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26. Julius’s Humiliation (2)

The ball celebrating the establishment of the Bakers’ League was held in the city hall’s central hall.

This signified its importance to the merchants active in Citizen [likely referring to the city or region, implying a significant hub for commerce].

Nevertheless, most of the attendees were nobles living nearby.

This was because it was the first time Prelia, who had been veiled [kept private or hidden from public view] for so long, was making an official appearance.

Noble ladies, adorned in splendid dresses, fluttered their fans and discussed her.

“Just how beautiful must she be to keep so many gentlemen awake at night with just her sleeping appearance?”

“I’ve heard she’s more beautiful than even the elves, the fairies.”

“Oh, come now, could she really be that much? Rumors are always exaggerated, aren’t they? In reality, she’ll probably just be a little pretty.”

“But everyone seems to be…”

“We’ll see during the ceremony anyway. More than that, since it’s a ball held at the city hall, there’s nothing to see. Even if we’re supposed to refrain from indulging in gourmet food, what’s with this food for commoners?”

“Indeed. This champagne is just bitter and has no aroma at all.”

The noble ladies’ conversation shifted from Prelia to the food at the ball.

The men, who had no interest in either Prelia or the food, were gathered around one person.

“Lord Julius, I heard you’ve become a Sword Knight. Congratulations.”

“Hahaha! A Sword Knight at such a young age! The empire’s future rests on the shoulders of young men like Lord Julius. Count Conrad must be proud of your achievements.”

“Hahaha! I’m overwhelmed by such praise.”

Julius’s mouth stretched from ear to ear with the continuous compliments.

He puffed out his chest proudly. The medal proving he was a Sword Knight sparkled in the light.

After his defeat in the duel with Cainchel van Zistad, Julius was greatly shocked.

Eventually, he returned to his family and devoted himself to training, isolated from the world.

And he was able to grasp what he had so desired.

A young man who appeared to be a trainee knight looked at Julius with admiration.

“I’ve heard that Lord Julius can infuse fire into his Aura Sword [a sword imbued with magical energy]. If I train hard with my sword, can I become like that too?”

“You mean the Flame Emperor? Of course. Effort never betrays you.”

Julius had to take a deep breath to suppress the laughter that was about to burst out.

What? He wants to use the Flame Emperor? [likely a special technique or ability]

That was impossible without the special mana cultivation method passed down in the Conrad family.

Moreover, using the Flame Emperor consumed a tremendous amount of aura.

How many magic stones had he devoured in the meantime?

Now, he was confident that he wouldn’t lose even if he fought Vincent, who was called the strongest in the Knight Training Center.

Suddenly, Cainchel’s face, laughing after defeating him, came to mind.

If he met him again, he would crush him with the Flame Emperor, which was now completely his.

At that moment, a man eating food in the corner of the ballroom caught his eye.

His back looked strangely familiar.

The nobles who saw him whispered.

“A free knight [a knight not bound to a specific lord or kingdom]. As expected of a loser who couldn’t even become a Sword Knight. Hiding in the corner and scavenging for food instead of stepping forward proudly…”

“That’s right. If it weren’t for Lord Julius, we wouldn’t have attended such a low-class ball. But Lord Julius is still aiming to become Lady Prelia’s knight, isn’t he?”

“Now that he’s a knight, he must have a lady to pledge his loyalty to.”

“Hahaha! If Lady Prelia meets Lord Julius, who is more knightly than anyone else, she’ll fall in love at first sight.”

Julius didn’t really care about Prelia.

Many young knights had attended this ball. They had all come to become Prelia’s knight.

What if he could surpass them and become Prelia’s knight?

A knight could pledge his loyalty by offering his sword to the lady.

If he drew the Aura Sword infused with the Flame Emperor at that moment, he could reveal his skills to everyone.

If that happened, he would become the star of this place.

Just in time, a servant appeared, blowing a trumpet to announce someone’s entrance.

“Count Grexia Wellide and his daughter, Lady Prelia, are entering!”

At the same time, everyone in the ballroom’s attention focused on the two.

The large door opened, and Prelia walked in with Count Wellide.

The people who looked at her had to doubt their eyes.

“Good heavens… Is that a human’s appearance…”

Silver hair that reached her waist sparkled in the light of the chandelier.

The face beneath it was so beautiful that it seemed otherworldly.

She was wearing a black evening dress with no decorations.

But that only made her appearance stand out even more.

Prelia slowly walked across the ballroom to the seat of honor. Until then, people could only stare at her face without saying a word.

Gulp…

Julius swallowed and cursed inwardly.

He had heard countless rumors describing Prelia’s appearance.

But no amount of embellishment could properly express her beauty.

Prelia politely bowed to the people gathered.

“Thank you so much for attending this ball to celebrate the establishment of the Bakers’ League.”

Then, she briefly explained the circumstances that led to the creation of the Bakers’ League and its future course of action.

She was so composed that it was hard to believe it was her first time on the social stage.

She could feel the reward for practicing to death for months.

“Now, we have prepared drinks and food for you, so please enjoy yourselves to the fullest.”

Applause echoed from all directions.

Count Wellide, who was watching, smiled contentedly.

With this, Prelia was able to completely wash away the stigma of being an idiot.

As Prelia stepped down from the platform, the men who had gathered approached to ask her to dance.

Julius pushed them away and knelt before Prelia.

“Lady Prelia, I am Julius, the eldest son of Count Conrad and a Sword Knight. May I have this dance?”

“Ah, Lord Julius. I have heard many rumors of your bravery.”

Then the nobles who had gathered whispered.

“Damn it, I’ve been beaten to it. I wanted to be the first to ask Lady Prelia to dance…”

“It’s the Conrad family. It’s not good to get on their bad side.”

“Tch.”

Prelia smiled brightly and politely bowed.

“But I’m sorry. I already have a prior engagement. Would you like to dance the second dance?”

“Se-second, you say?”

Julius’s voice trembled. Who would dare to dance with Prelia before him?

Prelia smiled as brightly as a blooming flower and said.

“Yes, a friend who gave me a very big gift. Oh, I almost forgot. My friend Cainchel has prepared a small gift to celebrate this occasion.”

“C-Cainchel?!”

Julius’s eyes were filled with shock at the all-too-familiar name.

@

Cainchel sighed as he filled his plate with empanadas [a type of savory pastry filled with meat, cheese, or vegetables].

The overall quality of the food was too low.

‘I can barely find any that are even 3-star quality.’

He could see why the nobles hadn’t touched the food.

Empanadas were a type of pie filled with meat, fish, or vegetables.

Inside were plenty of salted cod and raisins.

‘How did they bake it? It’s just fishy and doesn’t taste like anything. Who made this?’

Even if gourmet food was looked down upon in Britannia, this was too much.

Nevertheless, Cainchel stuffed the food that was laid out into his mouth.

Even this kind of food would become experience points.

The pinchos [a small snack, typically eaten in bars] topped with shellfish were at least edible. They were made by grilling garlic sauce and shellfish on bite-sized baguette bread.

It was a dish that was hard to make taste bad unless you burned it black.

As he was mindlessly eating, he heard a voice calling him.

“My friend Cainchel has prepared a small gift to celebrate this occasion.”

Turning his head, he saw Prelia smiling brightly at him.

He noticed someone kneeling at her feet.

‘What, it’s Julius? I wondered what he was doing after leaving the training center, but he was playing around in a place like this.’

Cainchel shrugged at Julius, who was glaring at him, and walked to the platform.

The young knights who had gathered were chattering loudly.

“That’s the free knight who was eating food in the corner earlier? But he’s Lady Prelia’s friend?”

“Wait a minute. I think I’ve heard of Cainchel somewhere…”

“…Could it be, Ice Cream?”

Julius glared at Cainchel, who had stolen the attention he should have received, and muttered.

His body was trembling with anger.

“Damn it, how could that bastard…”

Cainchel, standing on the platform, said in a calm voice.

“Today is a very happy day for my friend Prelia as she makes her social debut. I have prepared a small gift to celebrate the occasion, so I hope everyone will enjoy it together.”

Then the door opened and hundreds of plates filled with beautifully decorated ice cream came in.

Only then could people recognize the identity of the person standing on the platform.

“That person is the owner of Verus…”

The nobles who received the ice cream were surprised by the coldness that was transmitted through the spoon.

They had eaten many similar desserts, but this was the first time they had seen something frozen like this.

“We have strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate flavors, so please enjoy them according to your preference.”

Cainchel bowed with the etiquette of a knight and came down from the seat of honor.

The nobles who received the plates admired its beauty. It was as if a small castle made of snow was rising up.

“Then I’ll have vanilla.”

“I’ll take strawberry.”

“Chocolate would be good.”

The nobles, vying for their desired flavors, began to eat it.

When they put it in their mouths, they felt a coolness that made their eyes widen, along with a sweet taste that melted softly.

“Hehe… To think there was such a dessert…”

“It’s almost sad that we can only eat one flavor.”

A noble who had licked the ice cream off his plate asked.

“The owner of Verus… No, since you’re a free knight, it would be better to call you Lord Cainchel. Can we eat this at Verus?”

“Verus will only be selling Jewel Ice Cream as it does now. The three flavors of ice cream will be sold at the upcoming festival.”

Then cheers and exclamations of admiration erupted from here and there.

“I must participate in the winter festival.”

Now this fact would spread throughout Britannia through rumors.

While everyone was eating ice cream and having a good time,

There was one man who was making a dissatisfied expression.

Julius slowly rose from his seat and glared at Cainchel.

If he stayed like this, he would have all the attention he should have received stolen by Cainchel.

He was a formally titled Sword Knight, and the other was a free knight who was a nobody.

If he used that position, he could drag the other down to the bottom.

“Cainchel… I don’t know how you became a free knight, but if you’re a knight, shouldn’t you be doing knightly things? But what? Ice cream? As expected of someone who used to be a cook at the knight training center. Aren’t you ashamed of the wings of freedom you have on your chest!”

Now, if the angry opponent applied for a duel, he would use his Aura Sword to make a mess of him.

At that time, a merchant who was muttering Cainchel’s name widened his eyes.

He muttered to himself without realizing it.

“Could it be that you are Lord Cainchel who defeated the Wolf King in the north?”

Julius’s Humiliation (2)