A Meal with the Grand Duke of the North (2)

The Grand Duke of the North took a long time to eat.

That didn't mean he ate leisurely.

He ate slowly, but he wasn't the sort of person to pointlessly draw out a conversation over a single dish.

He took a spoonful, tore off some bread, chewed meat, and drank liquor.

Every one of those movements was broad and solid.

With his white hair, broad shoulders, and fur-lined coat, he really looked like an old white bear from the North sitting at the table.

Yet there was something strangely dignified about him.

It wasn't the thin, glittering dignity of the capital's nobles, but the dignity of a man who had guarded this northern land through blizzards.

Even after the first meal ended, more dishes kept arriving.

They weren't all set out at once. Warm soup came first, followed by smoked fish and a small dish resembling dumplings, and then the meat was served separately...