Chapter 88

Wearing silver-rimmed glasses, Selene led the way, a little lost, to a foreign-style izakaya (Japanese pub) located near the entrance of the <Bakushuku> street.

The place was called Izakaya Nobu, apparently.

"Ms. Selene, you know some unusual places, don't you?"

"The food here is really delicious."

When she pulled open the glass door, the inside of the izakaya was unexpectedly warm.

"Welcome!"

"…welcome."

Absorbed in conversation, he hadn't noticed how cold it was outside. Realizing this, he felt the tips of his fingers were numb. Thinking that Selene must be feeling the same, Conrad felt a sense of frustration at his own insensitivity.

He thought he should have lent her his coat, but that was something he couldn't do, no matter how much he wished. Sitting at the counter with a sense of guilt, a damp towel was quickly handed to him.

"Here's a hot towel."

Taking it from the smiling black-haired waiter, he was almost startled by its warmth.

The temperature, slightly hot, felt pleasant on his cold palms.

Selene was also warming her hands with a hot towel. Seeing that she wasn't wearing a ring on her fingers made him feel a bit relieved, but he knew it was a shallow feeling.

What did it matter if she was single? He himself was about to go through an arranged meeting that he didn't want. Conrad felt a frustrating sense of helplessness at the contradiction that the highest-ranking person in the empire couldn't even choose their own life partner.

Ah, if only he hadn't met Selene.

He could have gone through tomorrow's meeting in disappointment. Now, it all seemed hollow.

Since he had met her, he would have to live with this regret in his heart.

"Here, two orders of kushikatsu, then."

It seemed Selene had already placed the order at some point. Still, kushikatsu was an unfamiliar name.

"Kushikatsu?"

"Yes, something like fritters… they call them schnitzel here, I think."

"I've never heard of such a dish."

It was a rather impolite thought, but he didn't expect to find much in the way of good food at a small izakaya in the old capital. He remembered the late emperor telling his close ministers about discovering new delicacies in this city, but he should have paid more attention to which shop it was. He never thought he would want to take a woman to such a place, so he had let the information slip by.

Speaking of regret, his "cousin" Johann-Gustav had said something similar. They weren't formal cousins, but all the male contemporaries with close blood ties were considered cousins.

His cousin had also told him about the delicious food in the old capital. He remembered his niece Hildegard mentioning something similar.

It was a pity. There were apparently two or three restaurants in the old capital that could satisfy the palates of the nobility. Brantano, the "pretentious one," had also mentioned that he had been dining out more recently. Perhaps the old capital was experiencing an unprecedented culinary trend.

He felt incompetent for not being able to take the woman he loved to a good restaurant.

As he was lost in these thoughts, a plate and a sauce container were placed in front of him, and he was told not to double-dip. It was the first time he had heard such a rule, and it felt oddly refreshing.

"I'm grateful to you, Conrad."

"Grateful to me?"

He was the one who should be grateful. If he hadn't met Selene today, he would have lived his life without knowing how much joy there could be.

"If I hadn't met you today, I think I would have lived my life without knowing how much joy there could be."

He looked at Selene's face intently.

It was both very happy and very cruel that they had the same thoughts.

A quiet silence fell between them.

"Here you are, let's start with the shrimp!"

What was brought to them was crispy fried shrimp. While fried food was common in the capital, he had never seen fried shrimp in an inland city.

Crunch.

He couldn't help but widen his eyes at the excellent texture.

It was light. Fried food was usually heavy, but this was different. Was it the oil? The sauce, which could only be used once, also added a good flavor. To put it simply, it was delicious.

Most of all, it was hot. Since he was only allowed to eat after the food had been tasted for poison, this was the first warm meal he had had since his days as the crown prince. His heart naturally warmed up as well.

"Delicious."

Selene smiled contentedly. She looked delicate when she was enjoying good food.

"The last time you were here, we couldn't serve you kushikatsu."

The waiter apologized, looking a bit embarrassed. It probably wasn't efficient for an izakaya of this size to prepare all dishes every day.

They continued to eat the kushikatsu, smile, and share their thoughts.

A happy meal, a happy time.

"Ah!"

He tried to dip the lotus root kushikatsu into the sauce container but failed. Only a small part of the edge was covered in sauce. This was a mistake.

I am the emperor of the empire, why can't I even dip the sauce properly? He held back the urge to say this and gave Selene a forced smile.

The waiter then picked up a piece of cabbage from the side.

"If you think the sauce isn't enough, you can adjust it like this."

He demonstrated by using the cabbage as a spoon to scoop up the sauce. Ah, that's a good idea.

He finished the lotus root without further issues, and his stomach was full. The izakaya was known for its good sake, but he didn't want to cloud his mind with alcohol today.

"Thank you for today."

"Thanks to you, I had a wonderful time, Selene."

Smiling at each other, a glass container was placed in front of them. It was a dessert made of ice.

"Wow…"

"Wow…"

Eating the ice dessert with a silver spoon, it melted smoothly on the tongue. It wasn't just the aroma of dairy. This aroma was vanilla. He decided to overlook how the shop had vanilla, which was banned by the imperial court. He might even grant a special permission for the use of vanilla in this shop as a memento of today.

The meal ended in a fluffy mood.

Not knowing how much to pay, he handed over a gold coin with his profile on it. The waiter looked curiously at the gold coin and Conrad. This was something he would never get used to.

"Thank you!"

The old capital's street, now outside, felt even colder because of the warmth inside the shop.

The sun had already set, and it was a dark, cold winter night.

"Conrad, look!"

When he looked up, he saw a shooting star streak across the sky. A shooting star, the child of the male and female moons, was said to grant small happiness and the courage to open up the future to those who saw it.

Unable to find the right words, Conrad continued to look up at the sky with Selene.

The cold crept up from his feet.

They remained silent until they each went their separate ways.