Mia says: “Eat your food while it’s hot!”
‘Phew, I’m quite tired… Ah, I’m hungry…’
Mia sat on the rug laid out in the clearing and let out a deep sigh.
“Thank you for our hard work, Mia-sama. I’ll bring you something to eat right away.”
“Ah, thank you, Anne. Please do.”
With that, Mia sent Anne off and sighed once more.
Mia was so hungry that she had no strength left to even move. Originally, she had been slightly hungry, and after working hard in that state, Mia felt that she had lost all her energy. The danger of her sugar reserves disappearing loomed large.
‘Hehehe. Anyway, having food right in front of your eyes when you are hungry is not necessarily a bad thing.That, right there, is the best seasoning.’
Mia raised her high expectations for the food she was about to eat.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Mia-sama. This looks really delicious.”
“Thank you very much. Oh, it looks really delicious indeed!”
In no time, Mia eagerly grabbed what Anne had brought her. It was a big, crispy, fragrant herb wrap, something like a flatbread made by mixing yoghurt into wheat and then baking it. It was apparently called ‘Yonan’.
Thinly cut slices of smoked meat were sandwiched between the crisply fried Yonan. Mia gulped in anticipation at the sight of the smoked meat that was overflowing with succulent juices.
‘Well then, let’s get started….’
Right at the exact moment, Mia opened her mouth wide to bite into the Yonan, there was an interruption.
“Princess Mia, may I have a moment please?”
Aima came calling with incredibly bad timing. What’s more, she brought along an old woman who seemed to be a prominent member of the clan!
“Your Highness, Princess of the Tearmoon Empire, there are no words to express my gratitude for what you have done.” With that, the old woman bowed her head. Internally, Mia clicked her tongue as she proceeded to introduce herself. When people are hungry they are generally narrow-minded.
‘Hmm. Anyway, I would prefer to talk about difficult topics after I eat.’
Self-introductions could be quite tricky. It would be considered rude not to remember a name, once you heard it. Based on her past experience, Mia’s intuition told her that the old lady who had accompanied Aima was the kind of person whose name it was important to remember.
However, at that moment Mia just wanted to eat. Ever since she had begun helping out, her stomach had been crying out in misery. Anyway, for now she was in the mood to just focus on eating. Of course, she could understand the other person’s feelings.
‘I am trying to eat right now! Don’t come talking to me at a time like this!’
It was not like she wasn’t thinking along those lines, but delaying her self introduction would be considered disrespectful.
Moreover, in case of introductions, the order was equally important. Considering their status, the introductions ought to have begun with either Rafina or Mia. Since Mia was the one who had stood out the most earlier, it was natural that they came to greet her first.
‘I understand their feelings. I truly do. However, I can’t help but feel that this is not the right time.’
Mia’s dissatisfaction spilled out of her mouth accidentally!
“Could you please stop talking about things that don’t matter?”
‘I said it! I said that it didn’t matter! I didn’t want to use my brain, so I ended up saying it too bluntly. Oh, that’s terrible. I let out my true feelings!’
In that instant, Mia’s brain momentarily awakened. The Wisdom of the Empire burnt the last remaining sugar reserves in her body to increase her brain’s working speed to its maximum, and finally, she arrived at the words needed to salvage the situation.
“Let’s save the difficult conversation for after we’ve eaten. I believe you all must be hungry as well.” After emphasising that it was all for their sake, Mia continued.
“Besides, I am also hungry after all the work I’ve done. If I don’t eat soon, I feel like I might lose consciousness.”
Mia added a bit of her true feelings there. The trick to tell a convincing lie was to mix in a kernel of truth. With that she wondered if had successfully managed to disguise her true intention. Then, with a deceptive smile she said, “That’s why let’s save the difficult discussion for after we’ve eaten. Look, it would be a shame if the freshly prepared, piping hot food ended up getting cold.”
That was also the truth. Mia wanted to enjoy the piping hot food. When the old woman heard that, she opened her eyes wide in surprise for a moment.
“Hehehe, I see. It’s exactly as you say. Look, Aima, let’s eat for now. The children won’t be able to relax and eat unless Her Royal Highness starts eating.”
Aima, prompted by the old woman, glanced briefly at Mia and said, “Thank you for your consideration once again.”
“There is no need to thank me. I just wanted to eat the food while it’s still hot and delicious. That’s all.”
After giving a cheerful smile, she felt it necessary to assert her point.
“I believe I’ve earned the right to eat heartily today after working so hard.”
‘I am eating only after having worked diligently. Please understand that I am not being arrogant and just eating without doing anything. I think I conveyed my case abundantly clear.’
“Then, once again…”
With that, Mia opened her mouth wide and firmly sank her teeth into the edge of the Yonan that she held tightly with both hands. The crispy herb made a slight sound in her mouth. Immediately, the gooey cheese coated her tongue, followed by the burst of flavour from the grilled cheese and its mellow tanginess. The savoury juices from the meat added to the mix, creating a symphony of three hot flavours.
The food was so hot that Mia had to exhale, but she was still smiling.
“Ah! Wonderful! This taste is amazing.”
Then, she suddenly realised that everyone was staring at her.
“Oh? What’s wrong, everyone? If you don’t eat quickly, it’ll get cold.”
Everyone who was watching, captivated by Mia’s hearty eating style, finally moved into action.
And then it became time to purely enjoy the feast. The enjoyment of the occasion generated enough warmth to slowly melt away the tensions between the Fire clan and the Forest clan. It was a night when the famous Banquet Princess Mia shone radiantly like the moon.
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