My Lady Chef

Chapter 4.2: A Better Tomorrow

Linda's POV:

"Pardon me milady. Did you just say ingredients? The manor has a lot of those." I said to her but she

shook her head.

"I know what will happen if you gather ingredients from the main house. They might accuse you of

some nonsense so I would rather buy and re-stock our stash of ingredients with the money the duke

gave me." she proudly flipped her braid.

"Bu-But I don't know how to cook anything milady."

"That is fine. I know how to cook. So let's order some supplies and produce at the market district."

came her excited tone as she smiled while we found a general store that had the stuff she needs.

Did she say that she can cook? Noble Ladies...don't cook.

Hence our outing was just hours of purchasing a lot of cooking materials, utensils, and ingredients. She

even bought an icebox which cost 100 gold drachma.

But even then, we were left with 50 silver and 90 gold drachma as a leftover.

After we gave the stores and growers the address and directions to the South Gate and the bridal

house where they will drop our supplies tonight, my lady looks cheerful as we walked to the area where

we hailed a carriage back to the Duke's house.

This was the weirdest outing with a lady I have ever experienced. She would not buy any more clothes

because she says she has more than enough of those. She is not interested in jewels nor is she

interested in fripperies or fragrances but she said maybe when she gets her official allowance, she

might think of buying those added expenses.

She called what most ladies deem as a necessity "added expenses".

My brain can't seem to wrap around what the duchess was even thinking.

"Linda, This day has been so much fun. For the first time in weeks; I feel so alive." her dulcet voice

sounded so warm, the moonlight lending a startling effect on her hair which glowed as her teal eyes

glimmered as she smiled at me. "I hope you can do this with me again."

Milady...

Something inside of me just burst as I felt her smile reinvigorating me while we left the carriage and

walked towards the bridal house. I readied the bath for my lady and while she soaked in the tub. I

hurried to the main house to collect our dinner trays.

I was able to get back immediately and left the tray on the table and helped my lady dressed up for the

night.

"What did the chef make for our supper today?" she asked me as she took her seat as I poured her

some honey wine.

"The maid working in the kitchen says it was meatballs?" I answered and uncovered the dish which

was a plate of three small meatballs which was strangely dark brown surrounded by some bland-

looking steamed vegetables. "It looks....edible."

But the dark glare of the duchess as she used her knife and fork to take a small chunk of meat and ate

regally. it was within my expectations as her pretty face twisted in a distasteful frown as she ate only

one meatball and half the steamed vegetables before telling me to eat the rest before she shooed me

away.

I left the room but not before she grabbed a few books and dimmed the lights by her bed as she started

reading. The duchess is an avid book lover and always reads the books that were available from the

old library room we cleaned a week before.

The kitchen was bare since the items needed by the chef and his staff are all in the main kitchen. There

was only a stove that does not work without any mana stone and a wide spacious table where I usually

take my meals ever since I came here.

I wondered why the duchess looked disturbed over the meatball. After a discreet taste from her plate;

my face also had the same expression. It was salty and it was dry as the Lucretian Desert; the steamed

vegetables were mushy and tasteless but eating them helps me swallow down the meatball I ate and

counteract the saltiness.

By the Goddesses' fury, I have never eaten anything this bad before. The meals before were subpar

and bland but now they are feeding this to the master's wife?

It was akin to slapping the Duchess' face. A mark that she was an unwanted existence in this place

since the duke never shared a night with her which marked her as a pariah until the master makes an

honest woman out of her and gives her the authority she deserves.

The indignation and outrage that I felt for my lady just went up leaps and bounds as I threw the

remaining food into the garbage and prepared for bed.

I need to demand a more palatable first meal for the duchess tomorrow.

The cafe food we ate at the capital was even better than the over-salted pile of crap they gave us.