Chapter 104 – Capital Road (1)

“Isn’t it enough to just eat calmly with a fork and knife?”

Sitting at the table, I had to taste what it felt like to be a five-year-old. Next to me, Elena wrapped the tablecloth, and on the floor were my spilled food. The thought of wanting to dip the sauce dripping on the floor and eat it and the extravagant feeling that I could live without it shook my heart. Beside her, Sophia covered her mouth and laughed.

“Master. It’s like a baby.”

“Not yet. If you eat like that, they’ll laugh at you there. I can’t see them laughing at our Evan.”

It was because this old-fashioned aristocratic ceremony was breaking even the peace of the family. Even during her slave days, she had heard that she ate rice quietly, and had received training in basic dining etiquette, but it seemed that Elena and Isabel, who were from orthodox noble families, did not like it.

Elena looked down at me with stern eyes to see if she really wanted to correct me in the meantime, she said.

“Okay, let’s do it again. The way you hold the knife is wrong, and the sauce leaks out when you cut the meat. If you have good power, why can’t you? It’s very easy. Because with a little more, you can do it. Let’s do it one more time.”

In front of my eyes was a brutally mangled steak. Lee Mi-ja lightly poked the meat without a corner with a fork, and cut the meat again as Isabel demonstrated her. Both Isabel and Elena held their breath and watched me play with my hands.

Elena nodded her head in satisfaction, and I wiped the sweat from her forehead, forgetting that I was eating. Why do nobles eat their food in such a complicated and irritating way? Are these guys not eating food, but enjoying themselves eating food in a luxurious way?

My patience is running out, but this unpleasant meal is still far from over. Said Elena.

“Good. If you are eating, a servant will come to pour you wine. Do you have separate glasses for white wine and red wine? Remember where it is, and I will ask when pouring the wine, so just hand out the right glass.”

I shook my head and said.

“I live doing all the fucking shit. Even if you leave it like this, you’ll be treated like a lunatic who is extravagant. Even when I was the happiest, the cup was unified with one water cup.”

“Didn’t you set aside the wine cup, though? I don’t care if the water cup smells like wine.”

“I was underage at the time, so I couldn’t drink. At that time, the owner didn’t even drink alcohol.”

The master who taught me and my friends then did not teach me how to drink wine. We didn’t know our names or how to drink wine, but we were the 17th, 5th, and 13th, happy in our own way.

“Anyway, the places we go to aren’t ordinary mansions, are they? One of the most prestigious families in the capital, the Plancia family. If you mess up your dining etiquette, how much will you annoy my mistress with that? Have you ever thought about how much it will humiliate you? I will never see you like that.”

“How about the setting that I’m an idiot who can’t even eat? That’s why Isabelle has to feed me every day. I can act well with a disabled person. I did a lot of begging when I was young. If I acted as a poor guy, people at least didn’t hit me.”

“No.”

I just said it knowing it wouldn’t work. After all, I had to be held at the table until I had fully mastered table manners. Sophia enjoyed the meat I hacked and smashed, and Elena and Isabel waited without eating until I learned the perfect etiquette, then ate the food to match with me.

Dance was originally only for those who wanted to dance, and it was not possible to learn it in a short period of time, so it was omitted. However, it took several more days just to learn the manners of greeting and the courtesy to be observed when among nobles.

“Are you going to be okay with this?”

Another few days passed like that. The carriage that was supposed to pick us up was coming, and I changed my clothes. Carlson’s robe was too big for me, so Elena had to mend it. A pile of neatly cut cloth was strewn about like a rag in the corner, and I put on my tie in front of a full-length mirror.

Elena’s expression was not enough even after teasing me so hard. Because Elena didn’t follow me when Isabel and I went to the capital. If she followed her, only Sophia was left in this mansion, and it was impossible for Sophia alone to manage her mansion for a long time. An old mansion could only be maintained with a skilled caretaker.

I said to Elena.

“I did my best. They will understand you there too.”

“Yes. How can I not do more than this I wish they were a little less nasty… All the people from my hometown I remember have bad personalities.”

“Really, all the people are so fucked up that it’s hard to eat the devil?”

Elena laughed lightly at my joke and patted me on the back. The carriage that had come to pick us up arrived at the entrance of the village. The coat of arms of the Florentine family could be clearly seen from the windows of the mansion.

“Because our Evan is really cool. It will be fine.”

Saying that, Isabel hugged me tightly once more. I felt awkward in the suit I was wearing, so I twisted my head while pulling on my tie. I didn’t like the tactile feel of the neck. It was because it reminded me of the shackles that I wore around my neck in the past.

People glanced at the wagon that had come to pick us up and gave us curious glances. At this moment, when she proudly walked through the crowd, the villagers seemed to realize that Isabelle was the mistress of the Plancia mansion.

“Come on, get on.”

The attendant assisting us accepted the luggage I handed over. I quietly climbed into the carriage, and Isabel asked if he was familiar with the servant.

“Long time no see. How is the mansion these days?”

It was easy to meet people’s round eyes beyond the window frame of the carriage. They sensed that I, a former slave, had become the husband of Isabel, Plancia. The authority of the family, which had not leaked out in the slightest due to the old house and the timid personality of not being able to leave the house, was being built right up with a fancy carriage.

Rumia was taking over on duty with a non-trivial expression. The priest, who had to hand over her duties to Lumia, was giving a rough report with her eyes fixed on the carriage.

Housewives who came out to buy cold dishes were laughing, and there were also people who looked at me with envious eyes. I faced them head-on without paying any more attention. Isabel followed me into the carriage as if the conversation had ended. I stretched out her arm, and she crawled into my arm and sat quietly.

I asked while stroking her hair.

“Who was that man?”

“He’s been working at the Plancia mansion for quite some time. He used to play with me a lot when I was young, but meeting him like this makes me feel strange.”

“How is the mansion?”

“I don’t know. They say it’s the same as usual, but that means it’s terrible to live these days.”

“It’s fun.”

It was a really fun expression. A terrible mansion to live in as usual.

What kind of garbage lives there, so that we even talk about it? I smiled and looked at our mansion in the distance. From the balcony on the second floor, I saw Sophia and Elena waving. I waved my hand at both of them.

“This wagon, since you can’t see the inside from the outside, it’s meaningless.”

“Really?”

“Huh. It’s a magic device. Would you like to check later?”

“So it looks like we’re not there from the outside? Like an invisible man?”

Isabelle laughed at my question. I pinched her cheek because I hated her puffy expression.

“Ouch! It hurts… ! Eh, Evan! It’s not like that, but it means that the inside of the carriage looks pitch black. They say they applied a special substance.”

“Isn’t that strange too? Is it to prevent assassination of nobles? He gave me a rather expensive carriage.”

Isabelle nodded her head.

“Because I’m formally inviting you. I’m trying to kill you with a carriage like this. It’s a method that is used a lot. It’s to daunt them by putting up fancy products that you wouldn’t normally be able to use.”

I wasn’t going to fall for such a weak trick. How many times have you faced being territorial? Upon closer inspection, this wagon was clearly out of class with me. Can I still buy the doors of this wagon if I add up all the sales and sales so far? The handle of the wagon was crafted with jewels, and on the ceiling, mana stones made of luxurious materials were shining brilliantly.

At the back of the large wagon, there was a separate seat for servants where servants could sit, and the inside of the wagon was spacious enough for me to stretch my legs out. I leaned back against the backrest, shaking my legs, then felt something catch on my heel and lifted myself up again.

I reached down and grabbed the drawer.

“Hey, look here. I put the liquor in it.”

I opened the drawer under the chair. I snorted as I saw several bottles of liquor rolling out from inside. Isabel also opened her eyes and said.

“There is something like this. I didn’t know this either. But why did you put the liquor in it?”

“If the thieves come later, set them on fire and throw them?”

“Is it? It could be for self-defense.”

Isabel agreed with me and smiled lightly.

The joke went like that.

The mana stone was a grenade, and the jewel on the handle must have been a bribe to the thieves. The wagons meant to crush us became the subject of our jokes and turned into a ridiculous collection. I asked Isabelle as I slumped down on a soft chair.

“Isabel.”

“Huh?”

“Can I go to the capital and do well?”

“Of course. Because he is the best husband.”

The capital was getting closer.

I strangely felt my heart pounding.

Did I know that this day would come in my life?