“Are you alright?”

It was the Knight Commander Gunther. He bowed his head slightly towards her. Adelheit pressed her hand to her lips and managed to nod in acknowledgment.

“Sir Gunther. It’s been a while since I’ve greeted you.”

Then she realized she had made eye contact with the empty sockets of the deer behind him, and her already pale face turned even more ashen.

He looked thoughtfully at the deer being butchered by the servants and the blood spilled everywhere, then discreetly blocked Adelheit’s view with his large body. Once it was out of sight, the intense revulsion quickly faded.

“……”

Only after the nausea subsided did she suddenly worry that the servants might have seen her weak moment.

Gunther comforted her as if he had guessed her thoughts.

“This is certainly not a sight fit for Your Highness to see. Please come this way. The fire is warm.”

Adelheit quickly followed him towards the bonfire where the knights were gathered. As she got closer, she thought she smelled something delicious, and realized they were already grilling large trout on skewers over the fire, basted with seasoning.

As she approached, the knights who had been sitting huddled together hurriedly stood up.

“We greet Your Highness.”

“Please, remain seated. You’ve all worked so hard.”

Adelheit greeted them with the proper etiquette. Then she looked with bright, curious eyes at the trout being grilled.

“Did you catch these yourselves? Were there enough trout in the river?”

“We broke through the ice on the river and caught a few. When we cracked open the ice, all the trout were plump and well-fed. It seems we won’t starve this winter if we just catch trout.”

A young knight with red hair answered Adelheit’s question with a joke. He was the handsome man Gunther always called Donovan. Adelheit felt a bit better at his confident answer. It was reassuring to think they had found a stable source of food.

Donovan enthusiastically pointed at the trout skewered and grilling, continuing:

“Can you see how the oil is dripping? It’s a winter delicacy, but we’ve been away from the estate so long due to the war, I’ve missed it terribly… Ah, it should be done now. Hey, Klaus. Bring a plate over here too. We should let Her Highness have a taste.”

Adelheit waved both hands at Donovan’s words. It was immediately obvious that there wasn’t enough trout to fill the stomachs of all these large men.

“Oh, no. There’s no need. I didn’t come down to eat, I just wanted to check if anything was lacking.”

“Once you taste this, you’ll forget all about dinner. It’s just simply grilled, so it might not be quite suitable for a noble lady, but it’s really delicious.”

The knight called Klaus said as he served a generous portion of trout meat on a plate and handed it to Adelheit. Seeing the rich, reddish flesh, she remembered how meager her lunch had been. Adelheit carefully picked up a steaming piece of meat with her fork and put it in her mouth.

“Wow.”

She couldn’t help but exclaim. Was it because she’d been eating poorly these past few days due to worry?

The properly grilled flesh was full of texture, and the salty seasoning masked the muddy smell characteristic of freshwater fish. The more she chewed, the more the savory flavor came through. She quickly finished one piece with relish.

“It was really delicious.”

“Isn’t it?”

Donovan, who had finished his portion of trout without leaving a scrap, grinned as he wiped his hands on a dirty cloth. Adelheit nodded her head vigorously several times.

“Starting tomorrow, I’ll have the servants go fishing. If we make it into a thick stew or porridge, there won’t be any problems with distribution, and we can salt and dry any leftovers to store for emergencies.”

Adelheit’s words sped up a bit with excitement at the most pleasant event in days.

Klaus, who had been throwing logs on the fire, looked at her with an expression that was almost but not quite a smile. He seemed to tilt his head quizzically. Noticing his reaction, Adelheit bit her tongue, realizing her mistake.

The man before her was not a servant, but a knight. And not just any knight, but one close to the personal guard of Grand Duke Ansgar. A proper ‘noble lady’ would not go on and on about how to cook fish to a personal guard knight.

Goodness. What on earth had she done?

‘With so much to worry about lately, I momentarily forgot who I was talking to…’

“That’s a good idea. Ah, it looks like the chef has finally decided to move his heavy bottom.”

At Donovan’s words, Adelheit turned her head to see the chef and servants coming from the kitchen with cooking utensils and bread dough. She was grateful that he had changed the subject instead of laughing or teasing her.

By the time they finished eating the grilled trout, it seemed the deer butchering was complete. The deer head that had disturbed Adelheit was now nowhere to be seen. The chef skillfully carved the venison and added herbs, tomatoes, butter, vegetables, and several kinds of spices to boiling water.

The servants shaped the bread dough according to the chef’s instructions and baked it in the oven. Soon, an incredible aroma filled the backyard. A few of the people staying in the great hall, who had only been given rations for the past few days, came out and furtively watched from a distance with disheveled faces.

“Those people…”

Just as Adelheit was looking at them with concern.

“Your Highness. Were you out here in the cold?”

Margaret, who had somehow spotted her, wove her way through the knights to approach. She was holding a thick shawl in her hand, from who knows where. She carefully wrapped the shawl around Adelheit’s shoulders and began to scold her.

“How could you come out here on such a cold day wearing only this? You’ve been working non-stop lately without proper rest, and eating poorly… Why, didn’t any of the people around think to stop Your Highness? What if you were to fall ill!”

And then she bravely glared at the knights. A few knights sitting near her couldn’t withstand her fierce gaze and discreetly moved away.

But Adelheit felt a warmth in the corner of her heart at Margaret’s worried scolding.

“First, keep this shawl on. Your hands and feet are like ice.”

Margaret grasped Adelheit’s icy hands tightly with her plump, warm ones. Her eyes stung and tears welled up suddenly. The wind must have changed direction, blowing smoke into her eyes.

There were moments when she regretted. Why hadn’t she approached more actively before, why had she given up prematurely… Of course, if Adelheit had acted that way, Grita would have been very hurt. Besides, there was no guarantee the outcome would have been the same as now. After all, ‘reviving’ Valentin had been the start of the change.

“Shall I bring you some tea?”

“I’m fine. More importantly, is there enough stew to feed all those people as well?”

Adelheit asked, looking towards the young refugees swallowing their saliva. Margaret followed her gaze and turned her head. Margaret spoke confidently, as if to say not to worry.

“We’ve set up cauldrons in the front yard too. Servants are busy making stew there as well. The maids are baking bread in the large ovens in the kitchen. We should add plenty of dried tomatoes, but there should be enough for everyone to have one meal.”

“That’s good then.”

“Here, here. Take this.”

A burst of hot steam hit her face, and Yannik, who had somehow approached, held out a wooden bowl to Margaret and her. The bowl was filled with appetizing stew, with freshly baked bread on top.

Adelheit took a large spoonful, blew on it, and put it in her mouth. She almost burned the roof of her mouth, but it was worth it. The broth had a harmonious blend of tomato, herb, and butter flavors, and the chewy venison added a savory taste.

The moment she took a bite, her stomach tingled with warmth and heat spread to her hands and feet.

“It tastes good.”

Margaret nodded with a rare faint smile.

Adelheit actually thought it was more than just good, it was delicious, but she didn’t say so out loud. People were almost burying their faces in their bowls as they ate the stew.

She slowly looked around and suddenly realized something as she watched the knights scraping the bottom of the pot.

“By the way, the Grand Duke must not have eaten yet. Did you perhaps…”

“Don’t worry. The servants have already taken his portion up.”

“Already?”

“We’ve been subsisting on salted meat, smoked meat, dried beans and potatoes all this time. There won’t be many chances to eat such fresh meat this winter.”

At Yannik’s answer, Margaret sighed deeply and continued:

“If the sheep hadn’t suddenly died en masse, the estate’s situation would have been better than it is now. We would have had plenty of sheep’s milk and cheese too. Still, it’s fortunate that we have enough preserved food left.”

“But this will all be over soon if we just endure a little longer. It’s been noticeably warmer for the past few days. At this rate, the snow will melt quickly too.”

Yannik spoke in an energetic voice, as if to comfort Margaret. Adelheit nodded in agreement.

“It really will be soon. When spring comes, we’ll start by buying lambs.”

“That’s a good idea.”

They silently finished their portions for a while. Adelheit also cut the bread into small pieces, soaked them thoroughly in the stew broth, and ate them. After finishing a whole bowl without leaving any, she felt satisfied and relaxed all over.

“By the way, Your Highness.”

At Margaret’s suddenly serious voice calling her, Adelheit turned her gaze from the bonfire where she had been throwing logs.