The Safety Guidelines of The Duke’s Haunted Castle Chapter 57

—Underground, Belmond Ducal Estate, Food Storage Room.

The place had always been kept spotless ever since I finished organizing the estate, but today it was piled high with unfamiliar sacks.

“How… did you manage to bring all of these here?”

“W-Well, I was wondering the same thing. I didn’t expect this either…”

Standing in front of Edwin, I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.

I’d been more than grateful just to receive a single sack, so the sheer amount we’d gotten had left him speechless for a while too.

“Miss Windsor.”

Just then, the head chef, who had been called in to inspect the quality of the Golden Carrots, spoke up while holding one of the carrots he’d just finished examining.

“The quality is perfect. They’re premium produce without a single blemish. Whoever grew them must have taken excellent care of them.”

“Oh, really?”

But they hadn’t asked for anything in return?

Even Mr. Scrooge had no idea what was going on, so I’d brought them here for the time being. Still, I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in my gut.

They aren’t going to come back later and demand several times the price, are they?

Just then, the head chef’s voice reached me again.

“Would it be all right if I took half of them to the kitchen?”

“Huh?”

“There are some dishes I’d like to try. Especially a cake made with carrots this fresh and perfect. I’m sure it would be… absolutely delicious.”

Even in a situation like this, he was still overflowing with enthusiasm for cooking, so I couldn’t help but nod.

Besides, with this much, even if I fed Golden Carrots to Geumjok every single day, there was no way we’d be able to use them all before they spoiled.

“I’ll make something that everyone will fall in love with!”

Maybe hearing what Edwin really thought of his cooking had boosted his confidence?

He and the rest of the kitchen staff swept away half of the Golden Carrots I’d brought.

As I stood there staring blankly after them, Edwin’s voice came from beside me.

“Let’s go for now.”

“Huh? Where?”

“You went through all that trouble to obtain the carrots. Surely you had a reason for doing so.”

“Oh, right. That’s true.”

At last, I’d gotten a chance to become even a little closer to my troublesome little Geumjok.

“Let’s go, Edwin.”

When I casually called him by his name, Edwin looked slightly surprised, but soon nodded.

 

 

 

****

 

 

 

An awkward silence lingered between Edwin and me as we walked toward the stables.

Taking advantage of a brief lull, I carefully spoke up.

“By the way, Edwin.”

“Yes?”

[Affinity +1 (6/50)]

Oh, my affinity went up again.

Nothing about him seemed any different on the surface, but that only made me even more curious about what exactly his criteria were.

“…Why did you get engaged to me?”

More precisely, I meant why he had gotten engaged to the person known as Nadia Windsor.

Instead of answering right away, he hesitated as though thinking about it.

“I don’t know.”

“What?”

Was he planning to brush me off with an answer like that?

Ah, wait. Was this supposed to be an arranged marriage?

“It wasn’t something I wanted.”

“Uh… I-I see.”

That kind of blunt honesty hurt a little…

No, I should probably just take it as him being honest.

Perhaps the conversation was making him uncomfortable, because Edwin gave a short nod and turned away, saying that we should get going.

I hurried after him as he walked ahead with an awkward air, and soon we arrived at the stables.

I was wondering how we were going to get Geumjok out, but fortunately, Edwin took care of it himself. He put the bridle on Geumjok and led him outside.

Once outside, Geumjok rubbed his head affectionately against Edwin as if he were happy to see him.

But when he looked at me, all I got was a slightly annoyed stare.

[The Pegasus (Name: Geumjok / Male) is sending you a strong message.

“Seriously, how much free time do you have? Why do you keep coming back to bother me? What a persistent woman!”]

You little—

Did I really go through all that trouble to get Golden Carrots just to be treated like this?

Just as my sense of reality was about to completely shatter, I somehow managed to pull myself together.

Right. Geumjok is supposed to be tamed.

Thinking of the doctor from that famous TV program, I forced myself to smile instead of showing my irritation and held that out in front of Geumjok.

A Golden Carrot that glittered in the sunlight like a gold bar!

“……!”

At that moment, Geumjok’s eyes changed.

He began examining the Golden Carrot closely, staring at it with the sharp, suspicious gaze of a professional gambler, as if trying to determine whether it was real or fake.

He was definitely reacting to it, so he must really like them.

Deciding that Geumjok had taken the bait, I gently waved the Golden Carrot in front of his face.

“Geumjok, I went through all that trouble to get this for you.”

[The Pegasus (Name: Geumjok / Male) is sending you a strong message.

“Freeze. It’s not fake, is it?”]

Seriously?

What kind of Pegasus suspects something is counterfeit?

“Look at this. Have you ever seen a fake this perfect? It’s a premium Golden Carrot that’s even passed a quality inspection.”

I tried to convince Geumjok in the most serious tone I could manage.

Edwin, who had no idea I could hear Geumjok’s thoughts, seemed to be looking at me a little strangely, but… whatever.

I slowly placed the Golden Carrot into Geumjok’s mouth.

“Neigh!”

Fortunately, instead of biting my hand off, Geumjok obediently bit down on the Golden Carrot.

And then…

W-What is wrong with him?

Geumjok’s eyes began to glow like crazy.

So intensely that it almost looked like madness.

He devoured the Golden Carrot in an instant, then stared at me as if asking whether there was more.

He smacked his lips greedily.

[You have given your partner their favorite snack.

A bonus Bonding Affinity will be applied for the first gift only. +99]

[Current Bonding Affinity: 0]

…Was I supposed to be happy about this or not?

Once again, I was reminded that my basic bonding affinity was so far below zero that it had practically drilled into the Earth’s core.

I let out a hollow sigh.

In a way, I should probably be grateful that it was now zero.

“Neigh!”

When I gave Geumjok another Golden Carrot, he devoured that one just as quickly.

Then, with a happy whinny, he lowered his body slightly in front of me.

At first glance, it looked like the behavior of a loyal horse offering its back to its master.

But perhaps because I’d already been hurt once, I couldn’t bring myself to climb on right away.

As I stared uncertainly at Geumjok’s back, I suddenly remembered that I had an expert(?) standing right beside me.

“Edwin… w-what does this mean? He’s not suddenly going to turn around and beat me up while saying, ‘Actually, it was all a lie!’ or something, right?”

“He’s probably feeling sorry.”

The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

“What?”

“He kicked you before, didn’t he? Yet instead of getting angry, you went out of your way to get Golden Carrots for him. He’s intelligent, so there’s no way he doesn’t understand that.”

“R-Really?”

“I’ve heard that Pegasi are always sensitive, much like adolescent boys and girls. He was probably just feeling a little discouraged and didn’t know how to express that he was sorry.”

Come to think of it, when we’d gone for a walk last time, he had seemed sullen, but he hadn’t acted aggressively like before…

Ah, wait. Did he?

Remembering Geumjok baring his teeth like an angry dog, I gave an awkward smile.

Anyway, he was practically kneeling down and offering me his back. There was no reason not to ride him.

Just as I’d practiced with Edwin several times, I climbed onto Geumjok’s back.

A new message appeared.

[Up to two people can ride.]

Oh, so that’s how it works.

Having learned something new, I turned toward Edwin, who was standing beside me.

“Edwin.”

“Yes?”

“Would you like to ride with me?”

He blinked, looking slightly surprised.

“With you…?”

Well, I suppose it was a little out of the blue.

But I was trying to raise Edwin’s affinity anyway!

I might as well kill two birds with one stone…

“Yes. If something unexpected happens, I think I’d feel safer with you beside me.”

After hesitating for a moment, he nodded and climbed onto the horse behind me.

At that moment, I felt a warm body and a strange sense of pressure against my back.

Huh…?

I could literally feel the warmth and solid strength of his chest against my back.

His heartbeat was calm.

And when I tried not to pay attention to it, a faint scent tickled my nose.

Maybe it was because I liked the soft scent, something like a blend of musk and sandalwood, but for some reason, my heart began to feel strangely restless.

Edwin isn’t bothered at all…

He was exactly the same as before, completely calm.

Meanwhile, I felt as though only my body temperature was rising, and my heartbeat was gradually getting faster.