The World Dragon's Heir

Chapter 783: A Long Negotiation

Prince Fahad shrugged. "We can do lunch in the meeting room. There is no need for the two to be separated. In fact, I would be fine holding the meeting at the dining table, if we removed those who shouldn’t know such things from the manor."

"That’s nearly impossible, given the nature of the place. We often host guests both inside and in the rear courtyards, as you may remember.

That hasn’t changed.

So, we will move everything to the meeting rooms. Beth, if you don’t mind?"

The cook made a noncommital noise from the kitchen. She didn’t care where the food was served, unless it was outside, which called for a difference in plating and dishware.

As soon as dinner was ordered, the Nobles had vanished into the meeting room, set for a full day of negotiations about how they were going to allocate the biplanes. That and whether there needed to be any changes made to them before they were delivered to Axbridge, plus what the training schedule would look like.

And that was when Pops finally entered the kitchen, via the side door.

"I thought that they were never going to stop talking and get to business. Now, what does my favourite cook have for me today?"

Beth laughed and rolled her eyes as the Dwarf sauntered into her kitchen like he owned the place.

"Oh, I’ll give you something good later. But for now, I’ve got a potato bacon soup and some fresh bread. Take a seat at the kitchen table and I will bring it over.

Is there a particular reason for your visit today? Or did you just miss my company?"

"If I said it was your cooking, would you believe me?"

Chef Beth laughed. "Even your apprentice knows better than to believe that. You’d be just as happy if I served you ale and potatoes for every single meal. You only come here to flirt while I’m at work."

Pops winked at her as the stout woman set a large bowl of soup in front of him with an entire round loaf of bread.

"The food is a nice bonus, though."

The staff watched as the two regulars of the Manor who might well be considered the least eligible bachelor and bachelorette, both being somewhat antisocial and well past their middle years, flirted shamelessly over a light meal.

Everyone knew that the pair was unlikely to make anything official, but they also knew that if they disappeared somewhere together, it was best that you didn’t follow them.

Compared to Pops and Beth, the quiet courtship between Colonel Wilkes of the Royal Guard and Jasmine the farrier had been positively civil.

And they had bonded over their love of horses and swords, so that was saying something.

Pops and Beth couldn’t sneak away right now, though. The meal wasn’t prepared yet, so Beth still had work, and Pops’ forge would be busy until late in the evening. It always was these days, just like when he had been in the Capital.

The same sorts of goods, for the most part, as well.

Once everyone had the basics covered, more of them began to consider the little luxuries.

A high-quality frying pan, new stainless-steel pots with a copper core that cooked much more evenly than their old ones. Then there were the basic maintenance items that he sold, including the goods for the Adventurers, who were as busy as ever.

The Monster Summoning Ritual outside of town was still active, with no signs of losing power.

Nobody knew where it was linked to, and none of them could get in there to check.

So, they had just accepted that was how it was, and spent their days hunting the monsters that spawned for the cores and the chance at loot.

For now, that was still somewhat obscure knowledge among the Adventurers, or there would definitely have been more of them here by now. With no shortage of work, and accommodating locals who didn’t automatically treat you like an outsider, Adventurers had it easy here in Wistover.

Well, most of them.

Bella was currently in a terrible mood, as the Larry doctor had just informed her that she was pregnant and needed to be mindful of the fit of her armour, so it didn’t strain her stomach. Which was fine on its own.

But that news had caused Wiz and his overly excitable parents to start treating her like she was made of glass, and that was the cause of today’s annoyance.

Her father-in-law’s intense desire for grandchildren.

It eventually got so annoying that she retreated from the house to the Adventurer’s Guild, where she had informed her family that she would be looking for noncombat missions to keep her mind occupied.

As she entered the building, a great cheer went up. The news had already spread, and everyone in the Guild knew that she was expecting.

"Here’s to Wiz, who’s not shooting blanks! And here’s to Bella for having the patience to let him prove it!" The adventurer sitting next to the counter yelled.

"Hear, hear!"

Bella laughed and rolled her eyes. It was perfectly normal for adventurers to take some time off when the kids were little, and then turn to smaller odd jobs around the Guild later in life.

Assuming they lived that long.

So, it was no surprise when the girl behind the counter already had a list of possible missions and odd jobs ready for her that didn’t involve high chances of combat.

Many of the jobs were still risky, as you might be ambushed by monsters. But they weren’t extermination missions.

"Thanks, Jill. This one looks just right. Reports of a wild boar pack digging up fields will be a good group outing."

The counter clerk smiled, "I thought that you might like that one, so I saved it as soon as I heard the news. Just ask around, and you should get plenty of volunteers to go with you and split the profits."

The job didn’t actually pay much. Two silver coins. But the target was edible, and every one of the adventurers would want a boar for themselves, either to sell to the butcher, or to take home.

And these weren’t even monsters, as far as they knew, just wild boars.