Meat, Gods, and Hidden Intentions

“Fren…?”

Vanessa blankly stared at him as the plate was snatched from her hands, leaving them suddenly empty.

Fren set the plate on the ground and bowed his head.

“I’m sorry, Princess. I truly cannot eat this.”

“Oh? Look at this.”

Daphne frowned.

“You two know you’re being extremely insolent right now, right?”

“Yes. But as I said earlier, Eo was one of my friends. He was also kind to Vanessa. No matter how I think about it, this is not respectful to his memory.”

Fren tried desperately to smooth things over, and Vanessa could only pray he wouldn’t be punished.

Then Daphne, who had been staring at them with a stony expression, suddenly grimaced—and burst into loud laughter.

“Puhahahaha!”

Fren and Vanessa silently watched Daphne as she literally rolled on the ground laughing.

Clutching her aching stomach, she eventually managed to straighten up.

“Fine, if you don’t want to eat, don’t eat.”

And then she dropped something truly shocking.

“Eo already ate plenty anyway.”

“…….”

Vanessa could only be speechless at Daphne’s ruthless efficiency.

She had expected Daphne to kill the minotaur as revenge, but she never imagined she would feed it to Eo before executing him.

Fren seemed to have had the same thought, as he asked with curiosity filling his expression:

“Did Eo eat it willingly?”

“Of course he did. He never imagined that the steak served at his last meal would be minotaur meat. And he must have really loved that cow. Even on the day of his execution, he begged to see it one last time.”

“Well, he did personally feed that minotaur human blood since it was a baby. I suppose he was attached.”

“I knew that, so I kindly told him. ‘What do you mean last time? You already met it.’”

Recalling the moment, Daphne burst into laughter again.

“You should’ve seen him sticking his fingers down his throat trying to throw up.”

Fren simply laughed along without comment.

“Honestly… Did he really think he could become the Princess’s father-in-law with such a weak heart? If you want to marry a princess, you need the guts to give up everything.”

In fact, Daphne had once hanged her fiancé Apollon the day before their wedding.

His family protested, but the other princesses all took Daphne’s side, so she received only the lightest of punishments.

As Vanessa remembered the incident, she accidentally made eye contact with Daphne.

Daphne instantly scowled.

“What are you staring at? Do you think I went too far?”

Daphne had suffered miserably under her former fiancé, who had tried to control her, and under her would-be in-laws, who constantly pressured her.

Vanessa knew well that Daphne despised the thought of married life because of that.

So she immediately shook her head.

“No.”

“Right? I think I did well. Still… it’s a bit of a shame.”

Daphne clicked her tongue.

She had wanted to punish Jason—the one who tried to use her for political gain—but his mother Aina, who was also a princess, begged in tears for mercy for her son.

Daphne couldn’t ignore a beloved family member’s tears.

She slung an arm over Fren’s shoulder and whined.

“Fren, why am I so softhearted?”

“At least the outcome was good. Two elders died, so the authority of the palace and nobility will be firmly restored.”

“That’s true. Who’s going to dare disrespect us after all that?”

“So, Princess Daphne.”

Fren stepped back from her and spoke.

“I think it’s time you told me the real reason you called me.”

Daphne stared at him for a moment, then grinned widely.

“What do you mean? I’ve been talking about the real reason from the beginning.”

“Princess, unless you say it clearly, I can’t understand.”

“Oh, Fren.”

She sighed his name dramatically.

“Why are you pretending not to know? You’re usually too perceptive. I even overlooked you refusing food from me, and now you act like this?”

“I truly don’t know anything.”

“You’re so annoying.”

Daphne put her hands on her hips and let out a deep sigh that could have cracked the ground.

Then she finally said why she had called him.

“I need the power of Sylvia Fronia, your mother.”

“Oh, so that’s why you called me.”

“Stop pretending you didn’t know. You’re driving me crazy.”

“Why do you need my mother’s power?”

Daphne tugged lightly on Fren’s cheek, then plopped back down on the ground.

“The time for the ritual to the gods is approaching. But Jason’s and Medea’s families are in mourning, so they can’t perform it this year. And you know how picky the temple priests are. If we bring someone unworthy, they’ll scream sacrilege and refuse to conduct the ritual. Last time we brought a child, and they drenched him in olive oil, yelling that someone barely out of infancy had no place there.”

“How could I forget? That elf still can’t eat olives because of the trauma.”

Fren turned and sought Vanessa’s confirmation.

“Right, Vanessa?”

“Yes, that’s correct, Sir Fren.”

“To be honest, my family would rather stay out of this. The priests are… difficult people.”

“We know. Their tempers are awful.”

“…….”

Hearing the famously hot-tempered Princess Daphne say that felt strange.

Vanessa silently watched the situation unfold.

Despite Fren’s reluctance, Daphne continued pleading.

“But Sylvia is the only elf who meets the priests’ standards and has a free schedule.”

“She certainly has plenty of time.”

When Fren mumbled that, Daphne’s face lit up.

Thus, the rumor was confirmed: after making Fren an elder, Sylvia retired from public life and lived in seclusion at the Fronia estate.

“Then it’s perfect! Please ask Sylvia on our behalf. Ideally, I’d love to greet her myself, share a meal, talk, and then ask her for this favor… but she’d probably reject me on the spot.”

“Well, I doubt she’ll listen to me either.”

“No! She’ll definitely listen to you.”

The situation flipped instantly.

Fren, who had been humoring Daphne with caution, suddenly seemed relaxed, and Daphne became so nervous it was pitiful.

She grabbed both of Fren’s hands and pleaded desperately.

“Your mother loves your family more than anything in the world.”

“…….”

Fren stared at her intently.

Behind Daphne, Vanessa quietly lifted both hands and covered her eyes.

When Fren noticed Vanessa’s gesture, he closed his eyes briefly and opened them again.

For just a split second, a faintly negative emotion flickered in his gaze—before it faded, replaced by his usual gentle warmth.

Fren held both of Daphne’s hands and nodded.

“I’ll talk to her.”

“Thank you!”

The princesses, including Daphne, had personalities so fierce that even high nobles never dared provoke them.

Even in front of the king, their father, they never backed down.

But in front of the one elf they cherished and respected above all others—they softened like freshly baked bread.

And that elf was—

“I’d also like you to tell Sylvia that we want to invite her to the palace before the ritual.”

“Yes, I’ll be sure to tell her.”

Sylvia Fronia, Fren’s mother.

Daphne pressed a hand to her chest and exhaled excited breaths.

“Ah… just imagining it makes me nervous. I can’t believe I’ll get to meet Sylvia soon.”

“I haven’t spoken to her yet. Don’t get your hopes up too high.”

“She’ll definitely say yes if you ask. How do you know Sylvia less than we do? You’re her only son!”

“…Then may I leave now? I’d like to buy a small gift before seeing my mother.”

“Yes, go ahead. And please give Sylvia our regards.”

Daphne beamed brightly as she sent Fren off.

All the way back to the carriage, Vanessa kept watching Fren cautiously.

Not only had he been given a troublesome request, but the palace was unusually crowded with guests that day.

Everyone who saw Fren expressed admiration.

“He’s truly beautiful. He looks just like Sylvia.”

“And not just that—he’s kind and incredibly talented as an artist.”

“With Lady Sylvia’s training, of course such a perfect son would be born.”

Sylvia, Sylvia, Sylvia…

The more the name repeated, the more Vanessa’s anxiety grew.

She wanted to say something to Fren, anything, but she knew it would only make things worse.

Sometimes, letting Fren act as he wished was safest.

So Vanessa stayed quiet.

Even when they left the palace.

Even when they boarded the carriage.

Even when the door closed…

Even when the carriage started moving…

Even when Fren suddenly shoved her down onto the seat, she didn’t make a sound.

Fren leaned over her and immediately pressed his lips to hers.

Vanessa instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck and parted her lips.

“Huh…?!”

His knee pushed between her thighs.

Vanessa’s calm expression crumbled instantly.

Fren had never been this blatant before.

She couldn’t help being shocked.

“W-wait…! Why here—!”

“You said you had a lot to learn.”

Fren’s face was chillingly expressionless as he spoke.

“So learn.”