Prologue: Invitation from The Ducal House

Volume 3: Pride and Jet Black Imperial Torte

Note: Turning Marquis Fernandes into Margrave Fernande.

After our journey to save the spirit village from the disease, we finally arrived home. It didn’t even take a week, but I gained a bountiful harvest from the journey to the spirit village.

“Soon, it’ll be Kurt’s village, right?”

“Right, our village. I was only absent for a short time, but I feel nostalgic already.”

The greatest boon that I gained from the spirit village is this girl. She’s Chloe…. a young blonde haired female elf who lived in the spirit village. She has a pleasant personality and rich knowledge about fruits that she gained from growing fruits in the spirit village. She could also use water magic arte.

Using water magic arte in agriculture will definitely be very helpful.

Besides her, there are other elves and lunars coming with us. Colt, the spirit village head, said that they all could use elemental magic arte.

“Kurt, thank you so much. If you didn’t come, it would’ve been the end of the spirit village.”

Chloe hugged my left arm. I could feel her chest against my arm.

“Chloe, you’re sticking too close.”

Tina, who saw it…. the pretty girl with silver hair and fox ears opens her mouth. She’s my precious partner.

“Isn’t it fine? It’s not like he’ll lose something.”

“He will. A girl’s chasteness or Kurt-sama’s reasoning power. Many things!”

Looking unimpressed, Tina tugs my left arm and pulls it away. Perhaps she thought that I’d be taken away by Chloe. Even though there’s no reason for her to be worried at all.

“Be careful, you two. We have a lot of luggage right now.”

“Uuu, I’m sorry, Kurt-sama.”

“Eek, he’s angry.”

I did a dekopin to their foreheads, lightly to Tina and harsh flick to Chloe.

“Don’t make fun of Tina too much.”

Chloe rubs her forehead, looking slightly dejected.

“Uuu, I understand.”

Tina snorts in a better mood.

Upon our antics, the elves and fox kins walking behind us are snickering. They are helping us to carry the fruits that I obtained from the spirit village. The fruits that I got from the spirit village are incredibly delicious. I’ll be receiving a tenth of the spirit village’s agricultural products every year. We can’t carry them by ourselves, so we receive a lend of hands. Ultimately, they’re only borrowed hands, so I let them know that they can go whenever they have to.

I can’t wait to make pastries from the spirit village fruits from now on.

☘

After walking for a while, we arrived at my village. Of course I couldn’t notice if there’s any significant changes in one week. While walking in my house’s direction, my eyes met with Volg’s.

He’s a butler who belongs to Faruno, my fiancee, the dearly beloved daughter of the noble who is responsible for this whole territory, Margrave Fernande. While serving as Faruno’s guard, he’s also my coach who possesses extraordinary skills.

“Kurt-sama, you’ve returned at last.”

“Yeah, I’m home. Why are you so flustered?”

It’s rare for Volg to lose his composure. To be exact, it’s the first time I’ve ever seen him like this.

“A grave situation has occurred. Now, as soon as possible, will you go to our mansion? If it’s handled imprudently, the Baronet house of Arnold might fall into ruin. Even Margrave Fernande himself will fall into an unfavorable situation.”

“That sounds bad…”

I can’t really imagine what matter could be that urgent. Faruno definitely knows the full details of this matter. Firstly, if I don’t try to ask, I can’t do anything.

“Tina, I’ll be heading over to Faruno’s place now. Please let Salt know about our arrival and show Chloe to an empty house. After that, please make the fruit carrying helpers feel at home.”

“I understand. Kurt-sama, please let me know about the conversation later on.”

“Of course.”

With that, I leave the matter of Chloe and the rest to Tina, while I walk alongside Volg in Faruno’s mansion’s direction.

With Salt, the leader of the pioneering village, and Tina, Chloe and the company will be handled well.

☘

Faruno’s mansion is located in my village. She recently had it built for her the moment we got engaged. All of the materials were imported from Margrave Fernande’s territory; it was an outstanding building that didn’t seem to fit in a poor pioneering village.

I enter the mansion and the servants come to greet us. They are all hired not by me, but by Margrave Fernande.

“Welcome, Master. We will inform Faruno-sama about your arrival in haste, so please wait shortly.”

The servants call me Master. It’s a bit too soon. They hasted to go inside and returned in no time.

“We apologize for the wait. Kurt-sama, this way please.”

With that, I was led into Faruno’s waiting parlor.

☘

“Welcome back, Kurt-sama.”

“I’m back, Faruno.”

Faruno welcomes me with a smile on her face. She is my fiancee. She’s 16 years old, with fluffy pink hair and giving off a gentle impression. Her body is exuding her feminine charm.

“From the look on your face, the matter of the spirit village’s disease seems to have concluded well. As expected from my future husband.”

“It was unexpectedly a disease that I recognized. I could make the cure with the materials that I possessed.”

Without telling the truth, I let her know the official explanation. It’s not like I don’t trust Faruno, but she’s still a Fernande. I can’t tell her about my true weakness, my Magic.

“I’m glad that you could come home without missing a single thing.”

Faruno rubbed her chest while looking relieved. It seems that I’ve truly made her worry. I’m grateful for that feeling.

“I’m glad to be able to see your face too, Faruno.”

We look at each other and laugh. It’s the gentle passing of time.

And then, Faruno clears her throat.

“I apologize for mentioning this when you have just arrived, Kurt-sama. An urgent matter has occurred.”

“I heard about that. What had happened, exactly?”

Let alone Arnold, it’s even dangerous for Fernandes.

“About that. Kurt-sama’s present for Duchess Renalier, the rose cookies, have become a problem.”

There’s an ugly feeling in my heart. Before, Margrave Fernande recommended my pastry as the present that he would send over to Duchess Renalier. When I heard that Duchess Renalier dearly loved roses, I made rose cookies that would let her enjoy the roses’ fragrance, flavor, as well as appearance.

Was Duchess Renalier dissatisfied with my cookies?

Did it leave an impression so bad that she would destroy the Arnolds to take responsibility and even make Margrave Fernande lose face? If I earned a Duke’s ire, such a thing is not impossible.

“My pastry didn’t pass her favor, did it? I’ve brought trouble to Margrave Fernande. And to you as well, Faruno. I’m really sorry,” I say with trembling voice. I grip my hands so tight that I draw blood.

I’m confident in my pastries. However, after all, getting a favorable impression in being good enough in a rural area won’t bring enough standard of luxury for a duchess……

However, Faruno firmly shakes her head.

“Uhm, Kurt-sama. You’re misunderstanding the situation.”

“What was it?”

“That, Duchess Renalier has fallen in love with your rose cookies, saying that it was the first time in her life she tasted that kind of pastry. Not only loving it, in the traditional banquet of the empire’s four Dukes, she wanted to display the rose cookies. I heard that she was said to exclaim that she had founded the territories that could produce such a wonderful cookies.”

“I see, it’s not because my pastry wasn’t well received.”

“To be able to make her delighted to that extent, even my father became really proud.”

For the present, it made me feel relieved. However, that relief is short-lived. With how things progressed so far, I can sense where the talk is headed to. It’s really bad, isn’t it?

“……However, she liked it too much. It presented an excessive appeal to her, as she didn’t only express her pride, but also disparaged the pastry of the host of the present banquet, Duchess Lanaletta, in the same place. It seemed that she even said that the rose cookies are only one among other more wonderful pastries that could be made.”

My head throbbed. That was a posturing noble.

……Well, being a posturing noble might bring its own benefits. By finding out about the height of the cultural standard in their own fief, they can constrain the moves of their opponents and possesses an influential pose. The four Grand Dukes will intensify the rivaling disposition between them all the more.

For a regular banquet, to be attended by the four Grand Dukes, most likely it was a battle of stomach exploration rather than the usual armed force. Also, a part of the actual strength of the rose cookies lies not in its suitability. If it’s a pâtissier who could make the rose cookies, of course he will earn other’s trust that he’s able to make even better pastries.

“Faruno, Margrave Fernande received a request, didn’t he?”

“As I thought, you would catch on to it… An envoy came to my father’s place. The pastry chef who made the rose cookies himself was invited to the castle. Just in case, Otousama told the envoy that Kurt-sama was the single person responsible for the whole fief and would not be able to leave his territory for a long period of time. However…… the appeal was not granted.”

“Well, it’s not possible. When the other party is a duchess, it’s impossible to refuse.”

In the whole empire we live in, the emperor stands at the top, while those who are connected by blood to the royal family are the Grand Dukes. After that, from the top to bottom, there are Dukes, Margraves, Marquess, Counts, Viscounts, and Barons. With the exception of the royal family, the duchess hold the highest authority.

Margrave Fernande handles the commercial capital city and possess a vast territory, so he holds the advantage of economic and military strength even compared to an ordinary ducal house, but he’s far from being their match in political strength.

“Of course, sorry about that even when we just met.”

“Yes, it seems that Duchess Renalier will be the host for the next regular banquet, and she wishes to host the best banquet for the four Dukes. Kurt-sama, you will display the best of your skills in that event. Delicious isn’t sufficient, dishes so strange they have never been experienced before among the Dukes must be presented as the full experience. If it can be provided, there will be an enormous reward awaiting.”

Dishes they never experienced. Well, it should be a given. After becoming a duchess, eating all the delicious things is so common it’s boring. Besides, if I want to show my cultural power to the other Dukes, their inexperience is required. The duchess has even said she’ll provide an amazing reward, so it should be fine to anticipate that, right?

However, still……

“What if I betray their expectations?”

“She will suffer disgrace in front of the four Dukes. It will be a miracle to keep your life and the Arnold fief from ruin.”

The answer is just as I expected.

That’s what it means when the other party is a duchess. However, I’m excited for it.

I can eat various gourmet dishes of this country, and my cooking will circulate among a group of Dukes.

My blood is boiling up.

“I understand the situation. Either way, I don’t have the right to choose. So I’ll go. To Duchess Renalier’s territory.”

With that, I decided my new target.

The risk is unprecedentedly high, but the rewards will also be incomparably huge. Both the fact that I’ll be able to receive the prize from a duchess, and that my name will be well known among the four Dukes.

Credits:

• • Raws
  • Dekopin anime gif from Myriad Colors Phantom World anime

Isecai’s Notes:

Both Faruno and the servants in her house call Kurt “dannasama“, but when spoken by a wife, it means husband, and spoken by the subordinates, it means master. Japanese is weird.

Wikipedia seems to position the marquis and margrave equally and interchangeably, so when the Fernande dad appeared in the series for the first time, although the direct translation in jisho shows that he’s a margrave, I gave him the Marquis title instead. So now that both the Fernande’s title and another marquess (as mentioned in Faruno’s engagement party as well) have their own hierarchy, I have to change it. It makes more sense too because the Margrave seems to be expanding the empire’s territory by doing all the reclamation, and a margrave does defend/expand an empire’s boundaries. b

Also changing Fernandes because it doesn’t sound too German, whereas “margrave” is. o)—( I’m doomed, so many chapters to edit out //cries. (I’ll edit them once this chapter is published.)

Anyhow, my interpretation so far is that there are four Grand Dukes who hold regular banquet in ducal houses in rotation. Free food in exchange with prestige for hosting the grands, I think. If the details reveal something different in the future, I’ll go back and edit this chapter //cries.