Translated by EunEun

Edited by Zil

“But I’m really fine! It’s a decent dish. You’ve tried it before, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then, then you knew that even after eating it, nothing happened to our body—”

Flinch.

Beatty closed her mouth, as she was surprised by the Duke’s gaze who was looking back at her.

The eyes that looked like something were boiling.

Even before she could figure out what the feeling of boiling like lava was, the golden eyes quickly swallowed its passion.

“For me, surely it has no after effects.”

“Then..!”

“But, you’re different from me.”

Sting.

At that moment, Beatty’s chest hurt, perhaps she was poked by something inside her clothes.

‘It’s strange. Since it was a soft cloth.’

Without seeing Beatty tilting her head as a reaction, the Duke ordered the aide again.

“Aide.”

“I’ve taken action to bring him right away.”

“...”

While waiting for the doctor, somehow nervousness seemed to be reflected over the Duke’s face.

Beatty was puzzled.

‘Why is he like that?’

As she was reasoning hard, the Duke frowned and said as if he was warning her.

“You shouldn’t eat something that hasn’t been confirmed.”

“Yes? But this definitely has already been proven...”

It has already been verified by hundreds, no, millions of people on the continent.

“You should know how to value your own body.”

Beatty’s eyes became round.

“My body?”

‘No way. Is this.. worry?’

Beatty tilted her head in confusion.

Glance.

She looked at Father’s expression.

‘Hm. As expected, it’s impossible for him to be worried.’

An expression that is too brutal to be a person who is worried about his daughter’s body.

No, rather than worry, wouldn’t that be more of an excitement to catch and screw germs?

‘Ah!’

Thinking of a much more powerful hypothesis, rather than him worrying her at the moment, Beatty opened her mouth.

‘By any chance, is it because he doesn’t like rumors coming out that a member of the Duchy is hurt?’

Hm. That’s plausible.

‘It makes much more sense than a transience that he worries about his unpleasant daughter’s body.’

And even with him calling a doctor and not believing, even when she said that it was a dish which the poison processing was finished off, it was reasonable to think that he didn’t trust her, since she’s a nuisance.

‘Then, I have to buy that trust.’

“Do you understand?”

Thinking that now she understood everything, Beatty nodded.

“Tell me right away if there is an after effect in your body, even if it’s only a little.”

“Uhm. Yes.”

She took the Duke’s word, who asked again, as a pretense of protecting the Duchy’s image. Then, she opened her mouth again.

Beatty’s head was full of thoughts to prove her credibility.

“But, rather than that kind of thing—”

That’s why she didn’t immediately notice that the Duke’s expression was distorted in an instant.

“That kind of thing?!”

Hiccup.

Beatty’s eyes widened at the sight of the Duke raising his voice for the first time.

His harsh voice sounded like he was suppressing something.

‘Is he angry? Why?’

Beatty was disconcerted, not knowing what was the cause of the Duke’s anger.

“Uhm, the important thing now is, the food—”

“Nothing.”

The Duke said with a face of holding back his swaying emotions.

“It is not more important than health.”

‘Your’ health.

He even didn’t say who he was referring to.

‘She’s already a weak child.’

Of course, the Duke was talking about Beatty’s health.

However,

‘I didn’t know. That Father...’

Beatty had no idea of what the Duke had omitted and made a false guess.

‘..would value his health this much.’

Is it because of the rough North?

Or maybe the important thing on the battlefield is maintaining the soldiers’ physical strength.

For whatever reason.

‘Turns out, Father is a person who really cares about his health.’

To the point where even if it’s the unpleasant daughter, he doesn’t want to see anything unhealthy in front of his eyes.

And like that, Beatty drew up a conclusion that seemed reasonable for herself and nodded.

‘In the future, I should be careful with health-related words in front of Father.’

As promised, Beatty was gently examined by a doctor who had been called.

***

“Or do you feel dizzy or have a stomachache?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Or feeling like you’re going to get nauseous?”

“Not at all.”

Under the surveillance of the Lion Duke, whose golden eyes were brilliantly shining from the side.

Sweating profusely, the doctor treated Beatty meticulously so that he wouldn’t miss even the slightest symptom.

“Your Excellency.”

“How is she?”

“Fortunately, the Young Miss is fine.”

“Are you sure?”

At the Duke’s sharp gaze, the doctor trembled inwardly and checked several times, but he had confirmed that there was no abnormality found.

“It is common for Tuberosum’s poison to not exceed a quarter of a day at the longest. So Your Excellency can feel at ease now.”

After answering the Duke’s questions over and over again about the possible danger, and saying, “She’s really really fine, I swear,” the doctor could be released only then.

After the doctor went out, Beatty was left with the Duke who had a serious expression again. Then, she barely spoke again.

“Can we now talk again about our conversation before?”

“Conversation?”

“The Tuberosum dish. As an expanding way to solve the chronic food shortage in the North—”

The words that look like she had memorized diligently so far, flowed out of Beatty’s mouth.

“Ah, right.”

Beatty’s cheeks swelled up as a response to the Duke’s reaction, which seemed to have almost forgotten about the important proposal suggestion.

‘No, no. Calm down.’

Calm, competent, and trustworthy!

While Beatty calms down by recalling the figure of an ideal trading partner in her mind.

“Okay, but after that talk, you’ll go back to your room right away today.”

As the Duke asked Beatty to go to bed right away, he emphasized the ‘sleeping early’ to Beatty again.

“..Yes.”

Looking at such a Duke, Beatty was convinced of her thoughts on the Duke again and again, saying that he was just like a healthist, just as she had expected.

“Then I’ll say it again.”

Beatty resumed the explanation that was cut off while trying to talk earlier.

Except for the strengths which they already knew about, for those who don’t know the true taste of Tuberosum yet...

“Tuberosum Pontage. This is the only sauce for Tuberosum. Also, Tuberosum Cheese Oven Grilled...”

The results of the recipe that she had studied so hard on poured out one after another.

They were dishes that looked delicious together.

It smelled incredibly good to say that it was the result of being made from the dry and bland Tuberosum.

“Such various dishes like this!”

“...”

Unlike the aide who was admiring it, the Duke said nothing, but Beatty was not disappointed.

‘I’m sure he put his gaze on every single one of them.’

It was enough with only getting attention.

“I am surprised, Young Miss. That tasteless.. No, to think that the Young Miss made such a rich flavor of dishes like this with the little stimulation of Tuberosum?!”

“If it’s like this, other people, too, can enjoy eating Tuberosum, right?”

“Of course!”

When it comes to deciding on the food to feed the local people, it is not just the amount that can be secured, but the taste.

At first glance, although it may sound like a full-fledged whine, this was important.

‘Because no matter how hard I try, it’s a waste of time if the general local people don’t accept it voluntarily.’

It’s not enough just because it is convenient to supply.

In order it won’t be an empty talk, there had to be an acceptable incentive for those who were familiar with the existing meal.

“All of these dishes are made of ingredients that are easy to get around, like Tuberosum.”

Taste, price, universality.

It was an overwhelming alternative in all respects.

There is no need to worry about the merchants who don’t come bringing food right away.

“If people mainly eat this, then we don’t have to worry about food from now on, right?”

“Really..!”

‘It’s no different than a stone-like grass that used to roll in the mountain range being transformed into such precious food that used to be bought with gold and silver.’

The aide, who realized the huge impact of Beatty’s knowledge, opened his mouth.

“You’re amazing, Young Miss!”

The sincere exclamation made Beatty proud.

Naturally, he smiled around his grinning mouth and talked about the deal Beatty was aiming for.

“This Tuberosum recipe is the price of my proposal.”

‘Price of the proposal?’

The Duke’s jaw tilted.

He recalled the memory of being pushed out of shock by the title ‘My Lord’.

“I brought a proposal that you won’t regret hearing about.”

‘She said that in the beginning, right?’

A word that doesn’t fit the mouth of a small child.

To say ‘proposal’.

‘Just why?’

If there’s anything she wants, he’ll give her anything. Why does she need a proposal?

The questioning Duke tilted his head.

“In return for giving you the ‘Tuberosum recipe’ that will permanently solve the Duchy’s food problem.”

‘Is there something that she wants that she has to do that?’

What does a baby who is the cutest and even smartest in the world want?

The Duke thought about the candidates inside.

A better cookie master craftsman?

Or a newborn foal?

If it’s also not that, is it a separate house that she wants to take care of?

“Instead...”

Gulp.

After gulping, Beatty opened her mouth.

“Please let me stay here, in Duke’s Castle.”

Looking at the child with a slightly recalled look of tension, for a moment, the Duke thought, wondering whether he heard it wrong or not.