“Why are you looking at me like that? Do you feel sorry for him?”
“I know who it is, and I feel pity for him.”
Elisha feigned innocence and ignorance.
“It’s the Marquis of Fullmoon. Carola’s father.”
Elisha observed Lucerne. Maybe this person……. Doubts emerged within her.
“Really? I see that’s her father and how Carola grew up,”
Elisha neatly concluded. Lucerne seemed to like her words quite a bit. He seemed to be having fun.
Marquis of Fullmoon spoke gibberish to the employees, trying to dissuade him.
“No- I mean, I’m innocent. A man dressed up as a woman seduced me……. went into the room……. suddenly beats me up……. No… I…….”
Suddenly, Elisha had an appetite. Elisha resumed her nibbling on her meal and happily relished her wine.
“It was an interesting sight,”
Lucerne decided indifferently.
“Indeed. I guess he must be crazy.”
“Unless someone has messed with his head.”
At Lucerne’s words, Elisha’s doubts deepened. But she didn’t dig in. There was nothing Elisha could do even if she dug into it.
“Is it tasty?”
“Yes. Very good. This restaurant. I love (it).” [t1v: he’s always hinting at a double meaning, it’s weird in english but flirtatiously ambiguous in korean]
It bothered her that Lucerne was staring at her strangely. It wasn’t a bad evening at all. No, it was a lot better than ‘not bad.’
‘I’m relieved. I feel good.’
The corners of Elisha’s mouth were already twirling slightly up. As soon as Lucerne’s gaze reached hers, the appearance disappeared.
A look of regret flashed on Lucerne’s face as he gazed at Elisha. She told herself that she had misread his expression.
***
While riding the carriage on the way home, Lucerne quietly asked her a question:
“Where did you get the chef?”
Elisha comprehended his question. While he was away, she had hired a new cook to improve the mansion’s meals.
“I went to the square, grabbed people, and asked if they knew if there was a local big inn selling the most delicious food at a reasonable price. Of course, I told the butler to ask them on my behalf. After we had some leads, I chose one of them and scouted him.”
Lucerne silently listened to Elisha’s story.
“Before that, the cooks were even in charge of cooking for the people of the mansion. I put a cook under the chef. Oh, I looked up the military code that was not a violation of the military mandate. In the mansion, cooks can follow the instructions of a civilian chef.”
“Did you learn that from Archbishop Rosaria?”
“He doesn’t teach the answer; he shows how to find your own. If you need anything, go to the right place to ask questions and find answers.”
It was a smooth answer like a well-polished jewel. Lucerne accepted it and nodded.
“Where did you learn how to read books and where to receive ingredients?”
“I learned how to read a ledger at the monastery. We renegotiated the delivery of food ingredients with existing workmen. A lot of old ingredients were thrown away.”
Lucerne’s eyes sparked with interest. Elisha thought it was a good sign. Lucerne was never a person who would spend an extended amount of time on something he was not interested in.
“Since when have you been so smart? From birth?”
Elisha felt a little better because she had earned Lucerne’s recognition. She was not very confident in herself as a woman. However, she was quite proud of her aptitude for work that saved her in her previous life.
“When I was young, I had no money. My father……. didn’t pay for my stay in the monastery. Then, the monastery only fed me bread. So I needed money.”
“Then?”
“At that time, whenever I went to a village near the monastery, I observed the market closely. And I discovered that branded cheeses and wines were sold at higher prices.”
Lucerne nodded lightly, showing that he was listening.
“I made a trademark for the monastery where I grew up.”
Elisha told the new officer who was taking care of her and suggested it. She told them to use morning dew and promote the liquor as handmade by the priests.
“It was sold at exactly twice the standard price. After that, Priest Rosaria called me and made me his direct disciple.”
Elisha brought it up to make her story more believable to Lucerne. She thought it would be reasonable to emphasize her real past as to why she knew so much when he found her locked up, doing laundry.
In fact, Elisha, in her previous life, survived because of her five years of learning under the tutelage of Rosaria.
“That’s sincerely incredible. Whether I’m being tricked by you or you’re pulling me in.”
“…….”
“Every word is so touching and pertinent, so it should be said it’s rather suspicious. If you were already so smart at the age of 14, you must have lived twice as much life as others.”
Elisha was startled. Lucerne really had a good sense.
