Berserk of Gluttony (LN) - Volume 4 - Chapter 30

Chapter 30:

The Trials of Greed

AFTER A FEW MORE HOURS, the boisterous voices of the party began to quiet, and people bid their farewells to Roxy and her mother before heading home. I couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of Mugan dragging Miria away by her collar as she made her displeasure vocal. It seemed that this was just part and parcel of everyday life for Roxy, and she waved with a smile as she called, “See you both tomorrow!”

Miria’s gaze locked onto my own, and I just knew that sooner or later, I’d be wrapped up in one of her schemes again. Even so, I couldn’t bring myself to hate her, no matter how much she seemed to dislike me. I chuckled, at which point I noticed Aaron approaching.

“Fate, I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to head off early. I need to check in at the castle.”

“Is it about Memil?”

“Yes. She’ll be coming to the manor tomorrow. There are still some arrangements that need to be settled, but I expect to be back in the morning with Memil. So at least that’s one thing to look forward to.”

“I’ll do my best to be mentally prepared.”

“Indeed. Very well, I’ll see you then,” he said. Then, turning to Roxy and Lady Aisha, “I had a truly wonderful time today, Roxy, Aisha. I do hope you’ll invite me to whatever you plan next.”

Lady Aisha and Roxy bowed politely and promised that they would. Then Aaron put on his coat and headed out. That left me as the last remaining guest. Just as I was thinking about heading back to Barbatos Manor, Lady Aisha’s face lit up with inspiration.

“If Aaron is going to the castle, that means you’re all alone tonight, Fate. I’ve heard you don’t have any servants at the manor yet. In that case, why don’t you stay here this evening?”

“Huh? Er, would that be okay?”

I was a little bewildered by Lady Aisha’s sudden invitation, and I looked to Roxy. She was the head of the family, after all, and now that I was a member of one of the five esteemed families as well, I worried over whether it was appropriate for me to spend the night at another manor.

However, Roxy instantly shoved my worries aside. “It’s fine by me,” she said as if it were nothing. “And knowing Fate, he probably hasn’t even thought about how he’s going to feed himself.”

“I, uh…”

The truth of it was that, well, Aaron and I lived a little bit ferally. Aaron spent every day in meetings with the kingdom’s white knights, and he didn’t return home until late. For my part, I hadn’t been sleeping much because I’d been investigating Rafale. Roxy was right; I just didn’t really give much thought to maintaining a healthy diet. That was probably part of why everything I’d eaten at Roxy’s party had struck me as especially delicious.

“How about I make you dinner?” said Roxy.

“You’ll make it yourself?!”

I couldn’t help but be startled. It was one thing for Roxy to have prepared the ingredients for the barbecue and another to hear she’d focused so much on culinary endeavors that she could cook up a whole meal. I couldn’t actually remember her ever having cooked while I was her servant. And here she was saying she’d make me dinner.

“No need to be that surprised! I’ve been really working at it, you know? Once you taste my dishes, then you can be shocked.”

Maybe it was just my imagination, but at that moment, I felt like I could see a distinct aura of flame surrounding Roxy. I was actually truly happy that I’d have a chance to taste something she cooked. The barbecue had given me good reason to look forward to this.

“I can’t wait,” I assured her. “Really.”

Roxy nodded happily. “I’ll do my best!”

I wonder what dish she’ll make…

Just as my imagination was beginning to take off, Lady Aisha jumped in. “Don’t forget! Lady Aisha has entered the battle!”

“Mother?! But why?”

“Because it’s fun, that’s why! It is time for mother and daughter to put their nobility to the test!”

“But Mother, what does cooking have to do with proving our nobility?”

Oh, dear. Lady Aisha had turned the prospect of an ordinary meal into a cook-off battle. I had a bad feeling that the judge was going to be me. I worried that having to choose one dish over another would lead to hurt feelings. Right then and there, I made up my mind that whatever they prepared, I would deem them equally tasty.

“By the way, Fate,” said Lady Aisha, her eyes piercing my mind, “I’ll say this up front so it’s clear: There will be no funny business. No saying that both dishes are of equal deliciousness. You make your decision and you make it clearly.”

“Y-yes, ma’am.”

“Mother, please!” cried Roxy.

Lady Aisha’s competitive side was something of a revelation—a real change from the gentle woman I was used to. If it had ever been unclear that she was Roxy’s mother, there could no longer be any doubt.

All of a sudden, however, the once-cheerful Lady Aisha dropped into silence. Without uttering another word, she began walking, so Roxy and I followed her off the terrace. The sun was setting, and the cold winds of winter were settling back in. However, Lady Aisha wasn’t heading for the manor, as we expected, but in the direction of the sunset.

Suddenly, I knew where she was going. How could I have missed it earlier? Lady Aisha had declared her intention to see Roxy, but that wasn’t her only reason for coming to the manor. There was another thing she wanted to do here, something she couldn’t have done while bedridden far away from the capital. It was with these thoughts in mind that we arrived at the gravestone of Lord Mason Hart.

“Thank you, Fate,” said Lady Aisha quietly. “Being able to stand here is like a dream. Ever since I can remember, he always said that when he died, this was where he wanted to be put to rest.”

“Lady Aisha…”

It reminded me of when I’d first come here with Roxy. I’d been so overjoyed at becoming a servant that I hadn’t thought at all about Lord Mason’s passing until I was forced to look at his grave.

Roxy placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “There’s no need for you to feel bad, Fay,” she said. “You’ve granted my mother one of her wishes.”

I placed my hand atop Roxy’s and nodded. We stayed like that until Lady Aisha turned back to us and urged us all to scurry back inside. The sky had filled with thick gray clouds, and a soft snow had begun to fall.

“I think I’ll cook something nice and warm,” said Lady Aisha. “How about you, my daughter?”

“I’ll cook something that warms to the very bones. I’m not about to lose to you, Mother.”

“I might not be your match with the blade, but in my eyes, you’re little more than a newborn when it comes to cooking!”

Lady Aisha had officially issued her challenge, but Roxy wasn’t about to back down. All the same, it made me think. Lady Aisha’s ability to switch modes so quickly from normal to ready-for-action was really something I could learn from. It wasn’t something that came from stats or skills either, but rather a strength all her own.

Dinner that night, unsurprisingly, was prepared by both Roxy and Lady Aisha. What was surprising, however, was that they both chose to prepare the exact same dish. When they each decided to cook something warm and hearty, they both landed upon the idea of a creamy and butter-rich stew. I couldn’t help but laugh at the coincidence.

To be honest, both stews were so good that I truly couldn’t decide which was better. Lady Aisha had insisted I make a decision, but in the end, I just couldn’t. Fortunately, even though Roxy and her mother had been so pushy about the competition, they were more pleased to see me devouring both stews.

After our rowdy competition dinner, I relaxed in the manor baths, then retired to my room. I unclasped Greed from my belt and placed the black sword against the side of the bed. Now that I thought about it, I realized he’d been silent ever since the party ended. He was usually pretty talkative in the moments before I slept, but I guessed even Greed had his off days.

Thoughts of the day ran through my mind as I closed my eyes. I thought of Lady Aisha running me around like a servant and of the way Roxy and I had been stuck at her beck and call the whole evening…and I fell into slumber.

***

I found myself standing in a space of pure white. It was a space I knew very well, because I’d seen it a lot in recent days. At my feet, under the white flooring upon which I stood, lay a hellscape composed of all the crying, screaming souls my Gluttony had devoured. In this sense, the floor was a barrier that kept the lesser effects of my Gluttony at bay.

Then I heard her calling out to me—the girl of white who had created the barrier—and I turned to find her standing before me. “Hello, Luna.”

“Good evening, Fate. You look well. You were really pushing it when you devoured the archdemon, however.”

“I wanted to thank you for your help back then. Without your support, I’d never be in the Domain of E.”

“I appreciate the honesty. Seems to me you’re starting to mature and understand the world. At least from what I’ve seen—and I see everything from here.”

“Everything?! Don’t I get a little privacy?”

Just how much did Luna see? Everything would have to mean the battle with Rafale, the reunion with Roxy, even the party. But I wasn’t expecting what she said next at all.

“Let me give you a little advice, though: Spend a little longer in the bath. Soaking heals the body, but it doesn’t work if you’re only in there for a minute. I also think it would be wise to use a hair treatment after you wash your hair.”

“What are you watching that for?! You don’t need to see me in the bath!”

“I’m sorry, Fate, but it does get awfully boring in here.” I gripped the sides of my head in anguish. She’d seen too much. The bath should be off-limits.

“There, there, Fate,” said Luna, “No need to get so worked up.”

“That’s rich coming from you! You’re the one watching it all!”

“Well, it’s not going to stop, you know. I’m going to keep doing it.”

“Stop it already!” I wailed. Can’t I take a single bath in peace?!

I pleaded and begged for her to at least leave my hygiene to me and me alone. Somehow, I managed to convince her.

Then I heard a hearty laugh echoing from behind me. I turned to find a tall redheaded man standing off in the distance, an arrogant look written across his face. I couldn’t hide my astonishment when I saw him.

“Greed?! What are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t help overhearing you and Luna having so much fun together, so I came to check it out,” he said with a grin. “Or, well—to be honest, I asked Luna to make a path for me to get here, and it took some time, but I’m finally back.”

By the sound of it, this was no mean feat. “If it took you so much work to get here, you must have a reason for it,” I said.

“Well.” Greed smirked. “It’s about time I started training you myself, man to man. Consider this the beginning of the trials of Greed.”