Chevel made Leo wait outside a door, went in to announce him, and then encouraged him to come in as well.

Leo entered satisfied and full of expectation.

The prince was sitting at a beautiful desk. The entire room, probably an office given the number of bookcases and the absence of a bed, was beautiful, truly elegant. You could see that it had come out of a book, it reminded Leo of the royal palace of Caserta, where he had once been on vacation.

While the aspiring cook looked around, the prince was finishing writing a letter.

He seemed very focused and hungry. He didn't deign to look at Leo.

“Good evening, Prince Daryan” after a few seconds of silence, Leo broke it. Maybe he had to wait longer, but that plate was heavy, and he hated waiting.

“May Jahlee protect you…” he added then, hoping he remembered the name of the god well.

The prince raised his head from the letter, and looked at him suspiciously.

“Unexpected greeting from a citizen of Lumai” he accused him, crossing his fingers and staring at him with a cold and calculating gaze.

He looked like a villain in an anime, the only things missing were glasses with an evil reflection and the shadow under his eyes.

“I thought it was more appropriate for the Prince of Jediah. Unfortunately, my past as an ordinary man made me impractical with royal etiquette” Leo tried to justify himself, placing the plate of crepes in front of the prince, who shifted his gaze to it, and raised his eyebrows.

“It looks burnt, quite badly” he commented, wrinkling his nose.

“It's cocoa, your majesty” Leo explained, trying not to show his disappointment at the reaction.

“Good, now eat” the prince moved the plate towards Leo.

He was stunned.

“What?” he asked, surprised.

It would have been a kind gesture, if the prince hadn't done it with that tone and that look.

“Any problem with your dish, spy?” Daryan provoked him, getting up and making the smile of someone who had understood everything.

Leo, on the contrary, was not understanding anything.

“No, I just don't understand why…” then an illumination came to him, which left him completely stunned.

And it made him laugh out loud, without being able to restrain himself.

This seemed to surprise the prince, who stepped back, confused.

Leo took one of the crepes, and ate it without the slightest problem.

“You know, your majesty, if I had wanted to poison you I think I would have been much more sneaky about it” he pointed out.

He admitted that he was suspicious, but it hadn't crossed his brain for a second that his request could bring such paranoia.

And who the heck would have cooked a poisoned dish for a prince as the first thing he did when just arrived at the palace?! Just a suicidal idiot!

“Considering your unpredictability and impulsiveness it is more than legitimate to assume that you have bad intentions. Take that piece too” the prince was not convinced, and pointed at the most beautiful crepe, in the shape of a rose, which Leo was happy to eat.

“This one had both chocolate and whipped cream inside” he revealed, to make him regret not having eaten it himself.

The prince stared at him for a few seconds, waiting for him to feel unwell.

“If you want, I can also eat the whole dish. It's not poisoned, it's delicious, and I'm very hungry” he offered, starting to get another crepe.

The prince moved the plate, and stood in front of Leo, to look at him more carefully.

It was clear that he absolutely did not understand his intentions.

Probably having him cook was just a test to see how he would react, if he lied, or if he would try an attack immediately.

Even more likely he had no intention of hiring him indefinitely as a cook, since he could not trust him.

Leo could partially understand him, because seen from the outside he was the most suspicious person in the universe, in the prince’s view, but it began to annoy him that he was playing with him so much.

Still, he kept the prince's gaze, ready to participate (and probably to lose since he had no idea how to play the games of thrones).

“Chevel, take him to the basement. Tomorrow I will question him better” Daryan encouraged the guard, who in the meantime had remained at the door, to pick him up and take him away.

Leo sighed.

“All this effort for nothing. If I knew about that, I would have made less dough” Leo muttered, resigned, offering his hands to have them tied again, but before anyone in the room could do anything, the door swung open, accompanied by a loud “DARY!” shouted by an excited girl who It took Leo a moment to recognize as the princess, because she was in a nightgown, with very disheveled hair, and a face smeared with chocolate.

The three men in the room turned towards her.

“DARY YOU HAVE TO HIRE THE COOK!!!” shouted the princess again. In her hand she had a crepe of those left in the kitchen, filled with cream and with a few strawberries that Leo hadn't put in it.

“Opal, what... WHERE DID YOU GET THOSE…?!” After an initial shock, the prince really worried, and gave Leo the worst glare up to that moment.

“I just left the crepes in the kitchen, I did nothing!” Leo tried to justify himself, but from the prince's drawn sword, this time he realized that there was no escape from imminent death.

Oh well, come on now, he had survived a day longer than expected.

He had lived very badly that last day, but at least his last meal had been the best crepes he had ever prepared.

It was a small consolation, but a consolation nonetheless.

“No! Dary, don't kill him! He has to cook for me!” the princess, with unexpected reflexes, placed herself between her brother and the aspiring cook, stopping the execution.

“He has put you in danger, I can't forgive him” Prince Daryan objected, in a tone too calm for someone who was about to kill another person.

And the worst was that Leo couldn't blame him, as he understood the protective feeling towards a sister.

“To be precise, I only left some completely harmless crepes in a kitchen with six other maids, it's not my fault if they were within the princess's reach” he tried to object anyway.

“So I should kill all the other cooks?” asked the prince, exasperated.

“No, but…”

“That's enough! Anna, Mary and Jane were eating the leftovers in secret, and they offered me one. They are more than safe. Please hire him! It's the best food I've ever eaten!” the princess interrupted the discussion, explained what had happened, and then squeezed Leo's arm tightly.

He let her, delighted in having a human shield and brazen luck.

Chevel watched the prince waiting for orders, but not daring to intervene against the princess.

And Daryan sighed, put the sword in its sheath, and took his face in his hands, exasperated.

“Opal, I understand your enthusiasm…” how could he understand it, if he hadn't tasted the food yet?! “… but I can't hire such a suspicious person. His story leaks everywhere, and his behavior leaves something to be desired”.

“Please, brother, at least give him a chance. He doesn't seem smart enough to poison us” Opal let go of Leo to face her brother.

Although a little offended, Leo nodded vigorously.

“I am a very stupid person!” he stated confidently and without any shame.

The prince glared at him, and Leo lowered his head, and let the members of the royal family discuss the matter.

“Opal, we will find a better and more reliable cook. Tomorrow I'll send letters around or make a royal proclamation to find someone, what do you say?” the prince did not want to give in, and tried to find common ground with his sister, who was just as stubborn as he was.

“No, there is no one like him in all the seven kingdoms!” she insisted.

Ah, so there were seven kingdoms, good to know. Leo was absorbing all the information he could.

“Opal…” the prince's subsequent objection was interrupted when his sister treacherously put a piece of crepes in his mouth.

Daryan looked like he was about to spit it out, but Opal closed his mouth, forcing him to eat it.

Once swallowed, there were a few seconds of pure stillness.

Chevel was frozen in place, shocked by the scene he had just witnessed.

Leo was using all his energy to remain impassive and not burst out laughing again.

Opal was determined and sure of herself and of what she had done.

While the prince had a completely empty expression, with wide eyes, and he was almost comical.

He got up, grabbed his sister and pushed her away without saying a word.

“Isn't it the best dessert you've ever eaten?!” the girl tried to insist, but her brother didn't pay attention to her.

He walked over to Leo, until the cook’s back was against the wall.

Woah, had they already gotten to the point in the book where Leo was trapped in a kabedon? Isn't the second chapter too soon?

The prince sure was cheeky. He had singular tastes.

Leo hinted at a smile, which came out terrified, but tried to be as charming as possible, hoping not to receive a treacherous stab.

“From tomorrow you will be the cook in charge of the desserts” the prince finally announced.

“What?!” Chevel asked, shocked.

“YES!!! I am the happiest princess on earth!” Opal improvised a victory dance.

“Oh... really?” Leo didn't really expect it. He stared at the prince with his mouth open.

Despite the good news, the man's eyes were still full of suspicion.

“Do not sing victory so soon. From tomorrow you will also be the official royal food taster. So don't think about doing anything funny” he threatened him.

Leo nodded.

“It seems fair to me” yay, free royal food.

“And stay away from my sister” the prince then whispered in his ear.

He had nothing to fear about this. Even if Leo hadn't been gay, and he was very gay, he would have never flirted with a minor.

He wasn't in a controversial Japanese anime!

“Chevel, take him to the cooks' quarters, but keep an eye on him” Daryan walked away from the boy and encouraged the knight to pick him up and take him away.

Although still unconvinced, the knight did, grabbing him badly by the arm and dragging him away.

“I can't wait to taste everything you'll cook for me!” the princess bid him goodbye with joy.

“It will be a pleasure” Leo smiled, grateful to have escaped both death and prison.

A big thank you to Jahlee, if they existed.

“By the way, what is your name?” finally asked the prince, before Leo could exit.

Oh right! Leo never said that.

“Leonardo” he replied, having nothing to hide. Maybe it wasn't really a classic name for Lumai, but who cared, he could say that his mother had a great imagination. And he didn't want to come up with another name.

“We'll keep an eye on you, Leonardo” was the farewell of the prince, impassive and without looking him in the eye.

Chevel began to drag him away again.

Leo wanted to make a sarcastic comment, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed that the prince had taken one of the leftover crepes out of the ones he had let Leo taste, and his expression was so sweet and innocent, as he shared it with his enthusiastic sister, that in the end the boy decided to leave it alone and follow orders without complaining too much.

In the end, considering that he had no intention of poisoning anyone, and was reliable, and a really good cook, that could be considered an absolute victory.