Wise was very uncomfortably seated in the dining room, at the head of his unnecessarily long table.
By his left side sat Esme and Daphne who had since cleared up their misunderstanding.
Currently they were chatting away in a carefree manner while Wise was sweating profusely.
He could already hear the click clack sound of the war going on in the kitchen.
"So where are you from?" Daphne asked Esme.
"Frenum, the city of grain." Esme replied curtly which sparked a reaction from Daphne.
Daphne smiled and leaned a little closer. "Frenum? I've been to Frenum once, during the harvest festival."
She leaned back into her seat as a series of fond memories flooded her mind.
"The food was fantastic, the wine even more so." She paused and blinked. "Wait, doesn't the harvest festival happen around this time each year?"
Esme smiled nervously. "Yes… Wise actually… found me during the festival."
Daphne paused.
"He what?!" Her face shot in Wise's direction. The young dragon was busy playing with the golden fork in his hand, a sly smile on his face.
For a moment, he forgot his impending doom.
"You kidnapped her during the festival?"
"Correction, I did not kidnap her. Kidnapping is taking someone against their will, am I right?"
He then glanced at Esme.
"Princess Esme," He said, taking her hand in his. "Do you wish to return home?"
"Not really, there is an arranged marriage planned for me the moment I get back. Plus, I still have many questions."
While Daphne seemed surprised, Wise was rather pleased.
"Aha! You should have been there Daph, it was quite a glorious abduct—Um—a glorious rescue if I do say so myself."
There was a hint of pride in his voice that made Daphne frown. The room got a tad darker, but Wise didn't seem to care.
"And that roar—ugh, glorious!"
Daphne got up from the table and began walking towards the kitchen. "Has anyone told you you're a bit strange for a dragon?"
"…"
Wise did not reply as he was once again reminded of his fate by her gesture.
Daphne came out of the kitchen a few minutes later with two trays of food, they were a feast for the eyes and nourishment for the soul.
Each tray contained a generous portion of roasted chicken simmered in pepper sauce.
A smaller bowl by the side contained a mashed potato dish with a light golden tint as though it was touched by the setting sun.
The vegetables were assorted and brimming with the kind of freshness that could only be gotten when freshly harvested.
And to compliment it all was a golden goblet filled to the brim with a fragrant red wine.
Wise could almost taste the dish just by watching it. He reached towards Esme's tray to grab a piece of chicken only to get his hands swatted away by Daphne.
Smiling at Esme as though she had not just batted his hands away she shifted the tray closer to her.
"Eat up, you must be tired from the journey."
The princess seemed surprised by the meal. "This is quite a lot, thank you, although I might not be able to finish it."
"No problem at all, just eat enough, we can throw out the rest."
Just as Daphne finished speaking, the door to the kitchen swung open and another girl walked into the dining room with a larger tray in her hands.
Her hair was a deep shade of purple that almost appeared black in the right shade of light and currently that long shimmering hair was tied up in a braid.
Freya was what most would call beautiful— actually ravishing would be more accurate.
Even with the apron wrapped around her body, her generous curves could still be discerned as well as her ample chest.
Her skin was bright and spotless, and appeared to glow underneath the light of the setting sun.
Sadly, her beauty did not extend to her cooking skills.
As she placed the tray in front of Wise he almost retched.
A large bowl of what appeared to be soup was bubbling, but when Wise placed his hands on it it was surprisingly cold.
'Why is it bubbling then?!"
He could see what looked like an amphibian finger floating in the soup and as if that was not warning enough, the aroma crashed against him like a train.
Wise suddenly felt a wave of nausea that quickly passed.
Dragons were immune to a lot of poisons, it was rather shocking that Freya's cooking would have such an effect.
Placed on a silver platter was what Wise assumed to be steak. But it appeared so raw that at any moment it could jump right out of the plate and moo.
"Welcome back Wise! I've missed you terribly." Freya said as she hugged him tightly, pulling Wise close to her chest.
A smile appeared on his face as he felt the pleasant softness of her bosom push against his face.
'Fool, you're about to die!' He cautioned himself.
~[Name: Freya Ashborne]~
Simple and cute
[Race: Human]
Pretty lady *>_<*
[Level: 6]
She gets a pass…
[Exp: 1/300]
*Coughs*
[Affinity: Creation]
Can escape any prison cell.
[Ability: Shift]
The host can manipulate objects at her discretion, buildings, walls, even the very earth finds itself surrendering to her gentle touch.
[A beauty with passion, men bow at her cooking, not because of its grand taste but because they'll probably be dead after the first bite!]
[Skills: —]
Daphne gave Wise a sly smile, she knew what she had done.
No matter how bad, Wise could not reject her cooking. The last time he did… let's keep the unsavoury details, just know that the living room and toilet somehow merged together in her outburst.
Esme gave him a sympathetic look but could not bear to look at the food for too long and turned away from the grotesque sight.
Meanwhile, Princess Freya finally let go of him and folded her hands around her back, watching him with waiting eyes.
'Here goes nothing!'
Wise took his spoon and jabbed it into the soup, taking in a mouth full of the ludicrous substance.
He swallowed— and that was the last thing he remembered of that day.