“……Yes. We are now in a state of isolation. It’s impossible for the merchant who used to supply the ingredients to visit, or for us to go to the market and buy them.”

Although the Duke in me still has a relatively luxurious diet, there has come a point where the limit has been reached.

So it’s natural to hesitate to eat and drink freely.

‘If there’s no food, people’s nature becomes so bad.’

People can’t hold out for long in front of starvation.

As my expression darkened, knowing the truth from experience, Lina smiled brightly as if to tell me not to worry.

“It’s okay, Duke! Master Luus is here and he’s a skilled magician, so we won’t starve, will we?”

“Luus is not a skeleton key. Unless that person finds hidden food well…… Huh?”

Wait a moment.

Thinking about it, Luus Critcheron was an allaround magician who handled most magic attributes well.

‘……Can’t he use detection magic to find fresh food?’

It’s possible. No, it had to be!

In the original work, Luus even found and gave a rare plant that Sienna wanted to see as a gift.

If the use of that ability is changed to target mushrooms blooming in the mountains or edible fruits?

It’s possible!

‘Eureka.’

It was great news for me, who wanted to use the reward that Zero gave to solve the food problem.

I firmly held Lina’s hand and spoke with sincerity.

“Lina, thank you. You are a genius.”

“Wha, what?”

“You are right. Luus could be an excellent food detector…… no, a food provider. Haha, hahaha. I was a fool to limit him to only military usefulness. Thank you!”

“Tha…… thank you?”

Lina was taken aback by my enthusiasm.

「Hey, madness is overflowing from your eyes.」

Even though Zero was nagging at me, I didn’t care.

“Let’s have the party! After all, fresh ingredients only spoil if kept for a long time.”

“Tha, that’s right?”

“Tell butler Patrick and housekeeper Iliana that I’m permitting the party. Also, make it a belated welcome party for magician Luus and knight Michael.”

“Really?!”

Lina was delighted by my permission, and I added a little more.

“Drink and eat meat to your heart’s content, just for today.”

It’s better to eat it while it’s delicious, before it goes bad due to expiration.

‘And it’s good to recharge them appropriately when their spirits are high.’

Even though my meal is still plentiful, I couldn’t be unaware that the servants’ meals were becoming poorer.

Since it has come to this, it’s good to let them enjoy a little.

“Just make sure to control it well.”

“Of course.”

“And, I will only eat and then leave, so keep that in mind.”

“Ah? You won’t rest, Duke?”

I just smiled at Lina’s question.

“Somebody has to protect the ducal residence.”

It was a plan to discuss the future with Luus and Michael while also guarding against night attacks.

They were asked to attend the party but declined. They prioritized analyzing the zombies more.
Luus was curious about the state of the zombies she was analyzing.

It was purely out of my interest, but Rina seemed to take it in a way that made her tearyeyed, sealing her lips.

“Your Grace…! To go that far to protect us!”

[The affection and trust sent to you by the Duke’s servants increase.] [You are now referred to as a fairly trustworthy lord.]

Though the sudden popup status was ridiculous, it wasn’t bad.

‘If loyalty goes up, it’ll be easier to gather and lead these people.’

Just laugh at times like this, right?

“Hahaha.”

“I…! I’ll help the butler and the head maid with Emily and Rose to throw the best party!”

Hey, Rina. You said you’d have a modest party. We have a limited budget, so what are you trying to do?

Without giving me a chance to stop her, Rina’s eyes blazed like a runaway train, and she dashed off.

“…She’s gone?”

「So, what will you take as a reward?」

Since I’m planning to use Luus as a food detector, it’s best to ask for something that would be advantageous to the main quest of eliminating zombies.

“Tell me the current locations of the other characters who need to be recruited as party members.”

While I could easily find the Paladin Michael and the Wizard Luus, it was not the case with the others.

Especially, the last submale lead ‘Benedict Fairman.’

A halfbreed of fairy and human, he quietly packed his bags and returned to his hometown El Sekaro when Sienna chose Crown Prince Louis, so I knew…

‘El Sekaro is a secret city built discreetly by fairies to avoid humans.’

An ordinary human like me couldn’t possibly find it.

So, I had to rely on Zero’s help to find it.

‘The villain Kieran Woreido is also a mysterious figure, so it won’t be easy to find him either.’

If I find these two, additional rewards from Zero will follow, so it’s a twoforone deal.

「Alright. I’ll give you the reward.」

As Zero snapped his cute cane, a new skill was granted to me.

[A new skill is given.] [Hey, where are you? (Intermediate)] [Once a day, you can detect the location of the person you want to find.] [This helpful skill not only provides the location of that person but also the path to meet them.] [But remember, it might not work properly with a person whose life or death is uncertain.]

‘Great!’

I was reassured by the new skill.

Could I gather all the original work’s male lead candidates much faster than I thought?