Bon Appétit

Eyes always say a lot—same about Legion’s gaze.

Luana’s heart felt cold. She couldn’t speak since she was afraid, feeling like anything she said would be denied. Without realizing it, she took a step back.

“Luana.”

She didn’t want to hear Legion’s voice. However, she couldn’t run away; she stayed, just delaying what was to come.

‘I can’t run away.’

Luana stood there desperately. She tried to understand what was happening. As Gerald said, things shouldn’t have gone this way. If the powder only works to increase people’s desires and greed, it’s strange now the effect on Legion was his feeling toward Luana disappeared. Only then, Luana realized,

Gerald lied!

‘Then what is the real effect of this drug?’

Luana turned pale.

She didn’t know.

She could only speculate about the drug’s effect. But before that, she had to tell Legion about her meeting with Gerald.

“Actually, I know the source of that powder.”

“You know the source? You know?”

Legion asked again.

His question made her sad. She couldn’t find his former self in those small actions, but now the time was tight. Luana clenched her teeth and continued her story.

“Gerald. Gerald made it. Witches sometimes sell what they make to get the goods of the human world.”

“Do you know the effects of the drug?”

“He said it moves people’s hearts. It increases your greed or desire to a greater extent. But I don’t think that’s right. Then it wouldn’t be like this now.”

Legion agreed with her. Gerald didn’t seem to be telling Luana the truth. Gerald seemed to always look at Legion with displeased eyes, and this time he used his own hands in this matter. Legion felt angry. He doesn’t know for sure if his greed or desire get increased, but it seems his statement about the effect of moving people’s hearts is true.

“I’ll have to send a knight there, too.”

A witch nature.

Legion, clicking his tongue without realizing it, soon remembered that Luana was also a witch. Her mother cursed him, and she tried her best to break the curse. They had an unusual relationship, but he used to think what they were having was okay because he loved Luana. But what about now?

Legion put his hand on his chest out of habit. He didn’t feel any emotion.

“I think keeping our distance for a while is better.”

As soon as he said those words, Luana raised her head. She seemed to have a lot to say, but after opening her mouth, she nodded. She felt uncomfortable, but that was it. The heart she loved remains in the past.

“Okay.”

Luana answered helplessly, turned her back, and left the room. The fact that there’s nothing she can do would be so hard. She wonders why she is a gourmet witch. Luana was in despair. But despair won’t change the reality. So she decided to do the only thing she could do. With her weak steps, Luana walked toward the place she was most familiar with.

***

Legion became frustrated. He didn’t want to be manipulated by others, so he looked into various ways but couldn’t find a solution.

He sent a knight where Gerald lived, but he said the house was already empty. He could not find his whereabouts either, and Madam Safia still knew nothing. Then the Marquis Rusti came to the duke’s mansion.

Marquis Rusti knew everything, like about Safia being caught spraying the powder he gave her and about the duke being unconscious and finally waking up. But strangely, he didn’t feel any fear. Rather, his heart was pounding with unknown expectations.

Has the duke changed?

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you, Your Highness.”

Marquis Rusti greeted him in a relaxed manner.

“Indeed, it has been a while.”

While answering, Legion felt the marquis is suspicious. Under the current circumstances, he was suspected of being the one who told Madam Safia to do what he ordered, but he was not the right person to do so because Marquis Rusti was greedy, but he always acted cautious. But now, he seems to have thrown off such caution. A thought crossed his mind,

‘If we go back to the past, things were certainly strange in many ways.’

“I came here as fast as I could because I heard you call me. Did something happen?”

“If it were about work, the marquis would know.”

“Oh, you mean about Safia. It’s unfortunate. I don’t know why she did that.”

Legion got goosebumps. He was taken seriously by the thought that he might look strange like Marquis Rusti. Now he was smiling contentedly, telling a lie. He looked strange.

“Marquis Rusti, are you okay?”

“Pardon? Am I okay?”

“Does the marquis not know your condition?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’m perfectly fine.”

Legion didn’t know, but the powder didn’t have the same effect on everyone. It depends on how much resistance you have to magic and how much powder you inhale. And Marquis Rusti inhaled a lot of powder without any hindrance, no wonder he looked strange. Now he was so full of greed and desire that he didn’t know when it would explode. This was something that Gerald didn’t even guess because he didn’t use the powder often.

“No, you’re not fine. I’ll call the doctor.”

“I don’t understand the Duke’s words. Is the Duke okay?”

“Me?”

‘I am fine.’

Legion, who was about to answer that, shut his mouth again.

‘Am I really fine?’ He got a headache.

“First of all, I think you’re more of a problem than I am.”

“I’m fine.”

Marquis Rusti replied with a smile and brought up a story out of the blue.

“By the way, have you decided who will take the empress’ position?”

“Didn’t I say that the position already has an owner?”

His heart felt cold, but he didn’t mean to push or let Luana go. He didn’t love her, but he knew better than anyone that she would be such a great empress. Besides, everyone already knew about Luana that he couldn’t retract and change it.

“Does the position really have an owner?”

Marquis Rusti’s eyes were dazed. His thoughts seemed to collide.

“Bring in the doctor.”

Legion spoke to the knight beside him. The knight moved quickly, and Marquis Rusti began muttering to himself in the meantime.

“No, it can’t be. Seriel is a perfect fit for the empress position. It should be like that. That’s right. It should be like that.”

It was like looking at a crazy person. Even then, it was even more strange to see him talking to Legion as if he was fine sometimes. There was a time when he suspected Marquis Rusti, but this is a different story.

“In the end, the culprit was that witch.”

It was him, Gerald.

It didn’t make sense this happened without his intervention. Then why did he do this? The reason was obvious. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t like Legion. When he met him, he used to look at him with a displeased expression the whole time. Legion thought it might be necessary to dig deeper. Gerald simply did all of this because he hated him, but there seemed to be something else.

Meanwhile, the doctor and the night arrived, and Marquis Rusti was subdued and imprisoned. He yelled at him for what he was doing, but he neatly ignored it and stopped Madam Safia’s torture. Whatever the cause, he determined that she was guilty of her crime, but no further information came out.

And Legion immediately tries to find Luana to learn more about the story.

“Where is Luana?”

“She is in the kitchen of the annex.”

It was very much like Luana to be in the kitchen at this time. Legion smiled bitterly and headed for the annex.

***

Bang!

As he got closer to the kitchen, he heard a loud noise.

Bang!

Just in case something happened, he rushed his step and opened the kitchen door. Then Luana, smashing the flour dough with all her might, turned around in surprise.

“Legion?”

The moment he ran to see what had happened, he was confused.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going to make sujebi.”

Luana hid the bat behind her awkwardly.

“Sujebi?”

“It’s a good meal to eat on a rainy day. In fact, on the first day we met, I was making and eating sujebi.”

“Is it delicious?”

“It is.”

“Do I have my share?”

Luana’s eyes widened at those words, then she answered immediately.

“There is, there is! Please wait a moment.”

Only then did Legion have time to look around the kitchen. A slightly fishy smell of the sea came from somewhere and passed by the tip of his nose. Looking in that direction, white steam was rising from a large pot. When he approached and looked inside, various ingredients in the cotton cloth were boiling with water.

Luana stopped smashing the flour and began to flatten the dough. She rolls it thin and flat and pushes it again. Then she came to the pot and removed the foam from the top of the boiling water. She then took out the cotton cloth; a clear broth was shown. She put the vegetables that took longer to cook in first. The white potatoes sank to the bottom of the pot.

“Would you like to do it together with me?”

Luana handed out the thinly rolled dough to Legion.