225: Farewell

Walking into the dining room, I had to smile to myself as it looked like organised chaos. The people there had broken up into groups currently, with Elijah, Hari, Luis, George and Darren all chatting together, though I noticed Elijah kept sneaking glances at Huling, who was currently scratching Lily behind her ears, sitting next to Sylverith.

Kathrine looked to be engaging Clifford and his wife in conversation, to which Crisplet burst over there immediately, clearly wanting to say hello to his friend.

Then there was Micca with Milo and Jen. I wanted Archie to join us for dinner, but something told me that with the arrival of Marcus and Amber, the chances of Archie joining us were near impossible, so I’d just force food on him later.

I knew I should meet Marcus and Amber at the entrance, but if I wanted to truly keep this as informal as possible, I made the decision in my mind not to do that and let Archie show them in.

Approaching the table, I loaded it up with food I had stored, first pulling out baskets filled with still-warm bread. I used infuse on everything just so there would be mana in every item for Lily.

I placed a still-sealed razor crab pot at either end of the table, with the non-spicy one at the end where I knew George and Darren would be seated.

Infusing them both, I noted that the one I had made was very similar to last time, just missing the major earth potency, but Crisplet’s were incredible.

[Rare] Smoky Fire Crab.

• Fire immunity
• +4 Endurance
• +1 Charisma
• +2 Willpower
• +1 Luck
• Fire Conjuration
• Fire Magic Potency
• Flame Barrier

Notably, the hardened shell ability was now a flame barrier, and the minor fire conjuration was now upgraded as well. The stats were less than before, but that was due to me choosing the longest buff time.

There was nothing special about the boar, and that to me made it special in itself. It reminded me of where this crazy journey began, and to me, that made it my favourite dish on the table so far.

Finally, I pulled out the sausages, mashed tubers, and several sauces, including a meat gravy, a red wine jus, a garlic grass cream sauce, and a mixture of roast vegetables.

Looking at everything, I had way too much food even for gluttons like Liane and Lily, but I looked at it fondly. Just as I was setting out the final item, I saw the doors to the dining room open, as Marcus and Amber walked in, flanked closely by Archie, who looked slightly panicked.

Marcus made his way directly towards me. “Trevor, thank you for having us at the last minute.”

He took my hand, giving it a firm shake, while Amber came alongside and gave a nod with a warm smile.

“You’re welcome. I apologise I didn’t invite you sooner. I didn’t want to turn this into a political event that would cause trouble,” I admitted.

“Understandable,” Marcus smiled before turning to the rest of the room, his eyes landing directly on Huling.

“Well, everyone you know, except for Sylverith’s friend, Huling.” I announced it loud enough for others to hear it as well.

When it caught Huling’s attention, she appeared next to me in what honestly seemed like a teleport, but the small breeze that blew past me made me think otherwise.

Marcus’s eyes were wide, clearly recognising the name and who it was, much like Liane did. I suppose if I read Morlin’s book fully, I might have seen Huling in there.

“Ah, the King!” she said, which I had to assume was to everyone’s mind, reaching out to shake his hand.

There was a small cough from Sylverith off to the side. “Huling dear, please give Marcus his rings back. We’re not going to cause any trouble here tonight.”

Looking down, it was only then I noticed all the rings that Marcus had been wearing were currently missing, and Huling had a mischievous smile on her face but placed four rings into Marcus’s hand.

“You’re fast,” Marcus laughed in good humour, putting them back on.

Turning back to the table, I did a double take as a familiar old man, with grey hair and a grey beard, wearing a light blue robe that should have stood out, with a blue metal blade strapped to his hip that was visible at the top of the leather sheath.

He was there with a plate in hand, and already helping himself to the boar, seemingly not noticed by anyone else in the room yet.

“Morlin?” I asked.

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“Hello! I hope you don’t mind the intrusion. This is a dinner I would love to attend,” he said with a smile.

It was only then that everyone else registered he was in the room, with Huling being the most surprised, it seemed, as she appeared next to him.

“I didn’t sense you. Most impressive,” she said again, so that I could hear as well.

“Huling, a pleasure to meet you again, though this time I do hope you’ll not try to kill me,” Morlin chuckled, still helping himself to the boar and vegetables.

“Oh! I’ve tried to trick you before, have I?” she laughed.

Poor Clifford and his wife looked absolutely terrified with both the arrival of the entire royal family, in addition to Huling, Sylverith, and now another name that I’m sure he’d recognise from history.

Now that everyone was here, I spoke up, “Uh, everyone, please help yourself. Crisplet, could you remove the seals on the pots?”

Taking a seat at the head of the table, I took a bread roll and roast boar for myself to start.

The coal sealing the lid on each crab pot vanished, as steam escaped and filled the room with the smell of spice and salty sea air. It was incredibly fragrant and already had my mouth watering, and I’d not even seen it properly yet, but I figured a warning would do.

“Just letting everyone know, the crab at this end of the table was made by Crisplet, and as such is particularly spicy. The one at the other end is very mild.”