Chapter 215

“Kwaaa. This is a meal, and this is dinner!”

Louis, speaking in an excited tone, continued to stuff kebabs into his mouth.

Louis had no thoughts.

He just thought the kebab was delicious.

“Hahahaha! Lizardman, bro! You really know how to cook! You’re good at fighting and cooking too? Isn’t that just too amazing?”

“I’m glad you like it. Here, some extra meat. Let me know if you need more.”

“Hahaha! Thanks! I’ll enjoy it!”

“….”

“….”

He was so carefree that he even shared a meal with Kurt, who had knocked him down just hours ago, laughing together.

At that sight, even Albert, who was also busily eating kebabs beside him, flinched and glanced at him. Even Daria, who had been in a tense standoff with the Imperial Knights just moments ago, looked at him with a questioning gaze, wondering if he was sane.

But ignoring their stares, Louis simply enjoyed the moment of eating.

From the beginning, Louis had risen to the position of vice-captain in the Holy Sword Knight Order purely through skill, without any political or background reasons.

He had always been a simple man, uninterested in schemes or psychological battles.

Thus,

“Ah, Dark Elf. Can you pass me the bread over there?”

“….”

He casually asked Arisa for bread, thinking that since no one was seriously hurt and he had already apologized, the matter was over.

“Hey! Aren’t you taking too much meat?”

“Hmph. First come, first served.”

He bickered with Kirsh, whom he had fought earlier, as if they were friends who had met at a tavern.

“Hey, Kurt! Your friend’s taking all the meat! Say something as the chef!”

“…There’s plenty of meat. What’s the big deal?”

Even after realizing that Kurt, who had knocked him down, was the master chef, Louis treated him no differently.

“….”

“….”

At his behavior, Albert, Daria, and the others were left speechless, unsure if it was shamelessness or just his carefree nature.

Yet, ironically, Louis’ carefree attitude allowed him to enjoy the meal more than anyone else there.

“Hmm♪ This is good as is, but it’s even better with bread and veggies.”

Humming a tune, Louis prepared the vegetables and bread.

“Oh, you know how to eat!”

“Ha! Of course. Despite how I look, I’m quite particular about food in the Empire!”

Louis responded to Kurt and began assembling his kebab sandwich in his own way.

“First, a thick layer of pure beef kebab on rye bread, topped with special sauce, lettuce, and onions…!”

With a cheerful expression, Louis made his kebab sandwich.

The others could only watch in stunned silence as Louis happily ate his sandwich.

Their eyes seemed to ask, “Is it really that delicious in this situation?”

But Louis, ignoring their stares, stuffed his mouth with the sandwich and said,

“Mmm! The seasoning of the kebab itself, combined with mustard and ketchup, creates a rich flavor, but the crisp lettuce and sliced onions add freshness, while the rye bread soaks up the kebab’s juices and sauce, making it moist and tender! All the ingredients play their roles perfectly, balancing the sandwich’s flavor without any one element overpowering the others! My judgment was spot on!”

“Wow, you really know how to eat a sandwich.”

The only one reacting to Louis in that situation was Kurt, who looked like he was overjoyed to see someone enjoying his food.

A man with a mind so simple, for better or worse.

A man who held no grudges over what he had done or what had been done to him.

A man who could forget all trivial matters when faced with delicious food.

That man was Louis.

.

.

.

Amidst everyone’s stares, Louis continued his meal.

“Oh, what’s this bread? It’s thin and soft, different from the others.”

“Ah, that’s a type of bread called tortilla. Instead of wheat, it’s made with cornmeal. It doesn’t rise much since it doesn’t use yeast, so it’s not fluffy, but it’s soft and flexible, making it perfect for wrapping things.”

“Hmm. Really?”

Louis, intrigued by Kurt’s explanation, took a tortilla and waved it around to inspect it.

“Mmm. It definitely has a corn aroma.”

Soon, Louis used the tortilla to make a sort of instant burrito, adding sour cream, kebab, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and onions.

“When folding the tortilla, do it in a fan shape to prevent the veggies and sauce from spilling out.”

“Oh, I see.”

Following Kurt’s advice, Louis folded the tortilla and made a burrito.

Unable to wait, he took a big bite with both hands.

Crunch.

Unlike bread, the tortilla was thin and soft, easily changing shape.

This made it much easier to fill with vegetables and meat compared to regular rye bread, and it was also much thinner.

This meant that the flavors of the meat and vegetables inside were more pronounced than in a regular sandwich.

The soft texture and fragrant corn aroma of the tortilla lasted only a moment.

Munch, munch.

Soon, his mouth was dominated by the harmony of the vegetables and kebab, much more vivid than in a regular sandwich.

The tortilla’s presence was minimal compared to regular bread, but the flavors of the vegetables and meat were several times stronger.

It felt like eating a salad mixed with kebab, fresh and vibrant.

“Oh, ohh…! Indeed…!”

“How is it? Do you like the tortilla?”

“This is amazing! The sandwich I had earlier was great, but this tortilla sandwich is even better!”

“Right? Personally, I think tortilla goes better with kebab than regular bread.”

Louis continued to exclaim in admiration, experimenting with different combinations of bread, vegetables, and sauce as he enjoyed the kebab.

And as Louis did so,

The atmosphere at the table slowly began to change.

At first, the others looked at Louis with pity, confusion, or discomfort, unable to read the table’s mood. But as they watched him continue to enjoy his meal without a care, their expressions gradually shifted.

Gulp.

“….”

Albert, watching Louis wrap the kebab in the tortilla, swallowed dryly and silently took a tortilla, mimicking his recipe.

Aila, who had been picky and only eating meat since the meal started, quietly began to reach for rye bread and vegetables.

Daria and Arisa, sitting far from the bread and vegetables respectively, exchanged glances and silently passed each other the bread and veggies.

“Hmm. Recombining already prepared dishes is such a hassle. I can’t understand the eating habits of other human races.”

“Same here. It all ends up the same in the stomach anyway.”

“…That’s why I left the village. Idiots.”

The only ones not fitting into the mood were Kirsh and Lakia, who continued to eat at their own pace, unaffected by the thawing atmosphere.

Though they had been silently eating, tired from earlier events, they began to genuinely enjoy the kebab party after being influenced by Louis.

.

.

.

Though unintentional, Louis’ way of eating had clearly lightened the table’s atmosphere.

“Um……”

“Ah……”

Though the people at the table were still awkward and not conversing, they at least began to pass vegetables and sauce to each other when needed.

“My goodness…… Munch munch. To think the atmosphere changed just because of kebab……”

“Really…… Munch…… I can’t…… believe it.”

“At first…… Munch…… I thought it was just some ridiculous excuse to eat kebab…… Gulp……”

Mari, Karina, and Serena muttered in disbelief, unable to believe that the people they had desperately tried to mediate between were now gradually letting go of their hostility over kebab.

“Hmm……”

But Kurt, still unsatisfied, furrowed his brow.

“Why…… Munch…… are you like that?”

“No. It’s just that this isn’t enough.”

“There’s plenty of meat, though?”

“No, not the kebab. I mean reconciliation. The atmosphere has only just started to loosen up, but the resentment itself hasn’t been resolved.”

Indeed.

It was true that Kurt’s kebab had somewhat lightened the mood.

The tension in their expressions was gone, and they were now eating together with relaxed faces.

But that was only the first step.

While it was important to ease tension and let go of hostility for open conversation, relationships didn’t improve on their own just because of that.

In a way, the table’s atmosphere had only just reached the starting point.

As Kurt looked at the table with dissatisfaction, he soon nodded quietly, as if realizing something.

“I see. To truly open up to each other……”

Standing up, Kurt approached Serena, who was busy copying Louis’ recipe.

“Next, the cherry tomatoes…… Eek! What’s wrong?”

“I need your help with something……”

“My help…?”

Kurt whispered something into Serena’s ear, and though she initially blushed and looked flustered, her eyes soon sparkled with excitement.