Chapter 144
The next place I visited was a popular restaurant in the Imperial capital.
When Fiene and I entered the restaurant, several groups of customers were already inside.
"We've been expecting you, Prince Arnold and Fiene-sama."
Saying that, we were shown to a table in the center of the restaurant.
Nothing seemed unusual so far.
I had made the reservation without revealing that I was conducting an inspection, so that was only natural. As far as the restaurant was concerned, we were simply customers.
However, I knew that a noble affiliated with the White Gull Alliance had contacted this restaurant.
I wondered what sort of trick they would try.
As I was thinking that, a fragrant soup was brought to the table.
Fiene took the first sip and smiled happily.
"It's delicious!"
"I see."
Saying that, I scooped up some soup with a spoon and put it in my mouth.
Two sensations attacked me at once: spiciness and bitterness.
I involuntarily grimaced and glared at the soup.
"I see... So that's how you're playing it."
They had come up with a subtle form of harassment.
I could make a fuss here, but there was still a chance that the problem lay with my sense of taste.
Perhaps I should wait and see what happened for a little longer.
Though I probably already knew the result.
■■■
"Call the chef!"
I shouted at the top of my voice.
An unpleasant sweetness still lingered in my mouth.
What I had just eaten was a meat dish, yet it tasted as sweet as a dessert. There was no way around it: the food was awful.
I already knew it, but the problem wasn't with my sense of taste.
"You called, Your Highness?"
A slender man in his thirties emerged.
He had built up this restaurant through his own skill, and his selling point was that he could serve cuisine from the Empire and other countries alike.
Fiene, who was used to eating fine food, had praised his cooking, so his skill was genuine. That was why this was such a shame.
"Didn't you serve me a different dish?"
"Certainly not! I would never do such a thing! Perhaps it simply wasn't to your taste?"
"Yes, it was absolutely inedible!"
When I shouted that, the customers around us began whispering among themselves.
"Apparently even the Dregs Prince's palate is made of dregs."
"He can't even appreciate the flavor of this restaurant's food... How pitiful."
"Blaming the chef just because the food isn't to his taste... Does he have no common sense?"
"Don't bother. That prince is always playing around. He'll never acquire any common sense."
"I still can't believe he's Prince Leonart's twin. I have a high opinion of Prince Leonart, but with a brother like that..."
"Would it kill him to change his ways? It's pathetic that he isn't even ashamed of being called the Dregs Prince."
"Exactly. What a disgrace to the imperial family."
They continued throwing insults at me in hushed voices.
Fiene frowned and started to rise, but I stopped her with a hand.
Then I addressed the chef.
"Do you take pride in being a chef?"
"Of course I do."
"Good. Then try it. And give me your honest opinion, guided by your pride as a chef."
Saying that, I offered the chef the dish I had eaten.
The chef took a fork with practiced ease and put the meat dish he had prepared into his mouth.
Although his face twisted slightly, the chef swallowed the food.
"Well?"
"I-it may have been seasoned a little too sweetly... But that's simply the way this dish is meant to be."
"I see... You just squandered your last chance."
Saying that, I placed the ring on the table.
The chef went pale when he saw it.
"The Golden Eagle ring..."
"That's right. This ring shows that I am acting on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor. I am inspecting the Imperial capital as his representative."
When I made that declaration, one of the customers hurriedly stood up.
However, Linfia and the knights guarding the entrance stopped him.
"Please sit down. His Highness is speaking."
"I-I have an urgent matter to attend to..."
"Are you going to slight the Emperor's representative?"
Threatened by Linfia, the customer returned to his seat with a tearful expression.
Every customer in the restaurant looked pale.
I didn't know how much they had been paid, but what fools they had been.
"Now then, Chef, you understand whose words I speak, don't you?"
"Y-yes..."
"Then answer my question again. What do you think of this dish?"
"...P-please forgive me... Your Highness...!"
The chef knelt on the spot and begged for forgiveness.
Even then, I did not change my question.
"What do you think of this dish?"
"...It's terrible..."
"Was it deliberate or accidental?"
"..."
"You've already lied once. I wouldn't recommend doing so a second time."
"...It was deliberate. I intentionally served Your Highness terrible food..."
"I see. This wasn't a personal grudge, then?"
"Yes..."
The chef remained motionless with his head bowed.
Of course. He had committed the one act a chef should never commit, and then admitted to it.
If he were the kind of man who could keep a straight face after that, his restaurant would never have become this popular.
What a waste.
I shifted my gaze to Linfia and gave her an order.
"Search the restaurant. He must be somewhere inside."
"Yes. Right away."
With Linfia at their head, several knights began searching the restaurant.
Even if he tried to escape through the back entrance, it was already secured. Escape was impossible.
After a while, Linfia brought a short man before me.
"Let go! Do you know who I am!?"
"Of course I do. Count Zeffeln."
Count Zeffeln was in his late twenties.
Among the nobles of the Imperial capital, he was one of the wealthier ones, and he used his money to conduct business in a wide range of fields. He was also famous for proposing marriage to beautiful noblewomen. If I remembered correctly, he had even proposed to Erna, though the Valiant Marquis had apparently rejected him on the spot.
"Good day, Count Zeffeln."
"Prince Arnold! Your subordinate assaulted me! How are you going to take responsibility for this!?"
He had some nerve, acting so arrogantly at a time like this.
Unlike Count Farner, this was outright harassment, so he could still insist that the chef was lying.
His position wasn't as desperate as Count Farner's. That said, it was still absurd for him to act so boldly.
"Responsibility? That's my question to you."
"What have I done?"
"I was deliberately served terrible food. And somehow, you happened to be inside this restaurant. What exactly were you doing here?"
"I was touring the restaurant! I'm thinking of opening one of my own soon!"
Count Zeffeln declared that pompously.
It was still a strange story, but apparently he thought it would get him out of trouble.
I showed Count Zeffeln the ring. Judging by his reaction, he still didn't understand the situation.
"Do you know what this is?"
"Th-that... the Emperor's ring!? Why do you have it, Your Highness!?"
"I have His Majesty's permission and am currently inspecting the Imperial capital. During that inspection, I was deliberately served terrible food. That amounts to serving terrible food to His Majesty himself. Isn't that right?"
"Th-that seems like a bit of a leap in logic..."
"Well, I'm not the one who decides that. To find out who arranged this, I'm going to arrest everyone here. You included."
"Isn't that tyrannical!? Why am I being arrested when I'm innocent!?"
"To determine whether you are."
As soon as I said that, the knights began arresting the customers and employees.
Seeing this, Count Zeffeln began to panic. A thorough investigation would reveal that he had paid for all of this.
"Count Zeffeln. Lying will make your crime more serious. This is tantamount to an inquiry by His Majesty. If you deceive us, you could even face the death penalty."
"The death penalty!? Th-that can't be true!"
"It can. It's entirely possible."
Count Zeffeln fell silent at my words.
If he lied, his punishment would become more severe. But if he told the truth, he would certainly be charged with a crime.
After a brief silence, Count Zeffeln chose the latter.
"...I gave the order..."
"I see. Why?"
"I-I thought that if I harassed you... Your Highness would distance yourself from Fiene..."
"How shortsighted."
When I said that, Count Zeffeln glared at me. I met his gaze head-on, quite seriously.
Count Zeffeln began trembling, and sweat poured down his face.
"A-ah..."
"You act for your own convenience without giving any thought to Fiene. I can hardly stomach you White Gull Alliance people. Now that you've admitted your crime, you'll be spending some time in a cell."
"Y-yes..."
Broken by my glare, Count Zeffeln quietly gave his answer.
However, that alone would not be enough to teach him a lesson.
So I confronted him with a fact that would be absolutely devastating to him.
"And it would be troublesome if you tried anything else after the trial, so I've bought every business associated with the Zeffeln family. I'm also having the illegal moneylending operation you spearheaded investigated. Once this matter is settled, that trial will be next. I wonder how much money you'll have left by the time it's over."
"Th-that... no... P-please wait! Why would you do such a thing!? What have I done!?"
"Ask your own conscience."
"...No way... Are you planning to ruin my family over harassment this minor!?"
"This minor? You don't understand. For a noble subject to harass their imperial liege is itself something that must never happen."
"That's absurd! There must be plenty of people who've mocked you! Why am I the only one being punished!?"
"Rest assured. You're not the only one. Anyone who did more than mock me—anyone who openly acted on that mockery—will see hell. Those who cooperated with them are equally guilty."
Saying that, I turned my gaze toward the customers around us.
"Eek..."
"P-please forgive us."
"We only did what we were ordered to do...!"
The customers looked at me as though they were staring at a demon. They had been reckless beyond belief. Mocking a member of the imperial family was far too risky for a little pocket money. Still, I would make sure they experienced their share of fear.
They weren't the problem.
I turned my attention to the chef, who was still hanging his head.
The chef looked as though the world had ended, but when he noticed my gaze, he slowly raised his face.
"Y-Your Highness..."
"Your downfall was letting money blind you and selling your pride as a chef. Even if I did nothing, this restaurant would go under because of what happened today. No one would visit a place that deliberately served its customers terrible food."
"...Yes... I'm sorry..."
The chef continued to shed tears.
At this rate, he might even take his own life in prison.
Being blinded by money was his own fault, but this was not something worth paying for with his life.
As I was thinking that, Fiene quietly offered the chef a handkerchief.
"Here."
"...I can't accept it... Please forgive me..."
"I see. Then I'll leave it here. Wipe your tears once you've calmed down. And after you've regretted and reflected on what you did, cook again."
"Fiene-sama..."
"Your real cooking was delicious. Next time, make some for Al-sama too."
"...Yes..."
The chef answered as though he were squeezing the words out.
When Fiene saw that, she took a quick step back and bowed her head.
Her attitude was practically saying that she had meddled unnecessarily.
It had honestly helped, but I couldn't let that show right now.
"Linfia. I'll leave this place to you. Keep them restrained."
"Yes. Understood, Arnold-sama."
"Fiene. Shall we go to the next place?"
"Yes..."
Fiene lowered her gaze sadly at the thought of what still lay ahead, but she did not object.
She must have understood that it was necessary.
"That's two. Let's finish the rest quickly."
Saying that, I boarded the carriage with Fiene.