I'd had a lot of free time lately.
It was because the only job available to me was a simple one, which consisted of going to the royal castle garden and pouring magical power into roses.
This was because this coming month was an important time, and Cerulean removed me from royal guard duties to avoid any accidental injury during the course of guard duties.
That being said, I was a knight, so why was I only allowed to work as a gardener?
While feeling dissatisfied with this, I headed towards the garden where the roses were to do the only gardening I was assigned to do, but somehow it seemed to me that the knights stationed in the rose garden looked nervous.
Wondering what was going on, I tilted my head as I stepped into the rose garden, and when I saw the knights standing there, I realized the cause of their tension.
Because the person standing there was none other than Commander Savis, the leader of the Knights.
"Good morning, Commander Savis. Are you visiting the roses this morning?" (Fia)
I called out as I trotted closer, and Commander Savis tilted his head in question.
"Do I look like I have a hobby of admiring flowers?" (Savis)
Of course I didn't see him like that.
However, I couldn't say it clearly, so I just gave an ambiguous smile.
"I don't know Commander well enough to know what his hobbies are." (Fia)
"That's a sad answer. Well then, I must give you a chance to get to know me." (Savis)
Looking at Commander who said this without even a smile, I was confused and couldn't tell if he was joking or not.
Hmm, that's a tough one. I wondered if I should just laugh and said, "Stop joking."
Or should I answer with a serious look on my face, "Yes, I'd love to know more."
Not knowing the answer, I paused and gave a half-smile, which made Commander frown at me. ...That's difficult.
"Cerulean promised to treat you, but it seems he hasn't done so yet." (Savis)
When the commander asked me, I replied, thinking that, yes, that was true.
"That's true. But we had royal castle cuisine instead." (Fia)
On the day I went out on the town dressed as a jester and a saint, Cerulean had offered to treat me to dinner, but my plans were derailed when I stopped by Count Peiz's mansion.
However, afterwards, we had dinner in Lloyd's room in the royal castle, so it could be said that it served as a substitute.
I was happy with that, but Commander Savis didn't seem to like my answer and raised one eyebrow.
"The food you eat at the restaurant every day is royal castle cuisine. There's nothing new about it." (Savis)
Hmm, that may be true in the sense of "Food served at the royal castle," but that's not the case here.
"No, the meals served at the Knights' dining hall are all meat, meat, and more meat. It's all about quantity over quality! It's different from delicate cuisine where a variety of dishes are served in small portions! ...In other words, a meal that requires only one knife and fork is different from a meal that requires more cutlery than the number of fingers!" (Fia)
In fact, when we ate in Lloyd's room, they only used one fork, but they decided not to worry about the details, as they didn't think it was necessary to be so precise.
In other words, I would say that the dish served by Lloyd was delicate and had that kind of feel.
Commander nodded in agreement, perhaps because I'd made a clenched fist to emphasize the point.
"I see. Then I will once again serve you royal palace cuisine, which uses a lot of cutleries. Come to dinner at 6 this evening." (Savis)
"Huh?" (Fia)
Suddenly, I was told something I had never expected, and my mouth dropped open.
When you say "dinner hall," do you mean the magnificent room where royalty eats dinner?
Am I invited to a meal at such a formal venue?
And from Commander Savis, the head of the Knights?
"The King is going out, so I'll be the only one accompanying you. Don't worry, I'll let you off the hook even if you have bad manners." (Savis)
Well, I wonder what they'll say when they catch the former princess.
Feeling it would be too much to respectfully decline the dinner invitation, I was about to decline, but when the invitation interrupted me, I couldn't help but retort.
"Hohoho, even so, I was disciplined by my sister so there's no problem with my manners." (Fia)
"That's encouraging. If that's the case, please point out any strange aspects of my manners. See you in the evening. Also, since this isn't work, change out of your knight uniform." (Savis)
Oh no. I forgot to refuse. Just as I realized this, Commander Savis had already turned around and left.
Therefore, I gave him the knightly courtesy and sent him off.
"Yes, sir!" (Fia)
After a moment, when Commander was out of sight, I straightened up and tilted my head.
"Did Commander come to the rose garden just to invite me to dinner?" (Fia)
And is it to atone for Cerulean's iniquity?
Certainly, it was Commander Savis who originally asked Cerulean to buy me a meal, so maybe he thought Cerulean hadn't provided the meal as promised and was trying to take his place... but the commander was so busy he's probably not going to be concerned with such small details.
"That seems suspicious. However, whenever Commander plots something, it seems like Captain Cyril is always there, so maybe this time he's just trying to act as Cerulean's younger brother... Hmm, I wonder if there's some kind of system in place that would make it obvious if he's up to something bad." (Fia)
That was what I had been thinking for a while, but...
"Oh, no" (Fia)
When I came to my senses, I found myself pouring magical power into the rose as per my usual habit.
"When I'm channeling magical power into the 'Great Saint's Rose', the effect on the petals changes depending on what I'm thinking! ...W-what should I do? I feel like I've created 'petals that dance when I think of evil things.'" (Fia)
If I made Colette drink something like this, Cerulean would definitely get angry.
With that thought in mind, I then seriously considered, "I hope I can remove the sleep abnormality," and continued to channel my magical power.
And then, evening.
I put on the best clothes I had and headed for the royal castle.
As expected of a space used by royalty, the deeper you go, the more dazzling the things you see.
The polished floors were covered with carpets that were almost too thick to walk on, and the pillars lining the hallways were made of large, shiny stone.
The vases and boxes lined up on the evenly-spaced displays look very old, and must be magnificent items from the past.
I looked around at them, repeating to myself, "Failure!"
...Ahhh, the more I look, the more luxurious everything seems.
That's true. Commander Savis was the younger brother of the king, and I was invited by his Royal Highness to the banquet hall used by the royal family.
In other words, I was given the opportunity to eat the finest food prepared by the castle's chefs for royalty!
I should have requested what I wanted to eat, as I would probably never had such an amazing opportunity again.
"'Meat and cake!' How foolish of me to fail to say that word!" (Fia)
The meat and cakes prepared by the royal castle's chefs must be exceptionally delicious.
However, if these two dishes were not on the menu and I missed out on trying them, I would regret it so much.
"Oh, please! Please give me some meat and cake so I don't end up regretting it!" (Fia)
When I arrived in front of the dining room, I prayed this at the door.