When Leo entered the extremely elegant dining room that could be compared to the palace of Versailles, the entire royal family was already seated at the table.

The king denoted an aura of power, and he immediately turned his deep brown eyes towards Leo the moment he saw him enter, interrupting a talk he was having with his son. He was very similar to his younger daughter, both in facial features and robust build, but unlike his offspring, he had dark brown hair.

Mendel would have turned in his grave to see that two out of two children had inherited recessive genes.

His wife, the Queen, was the exact female counterpart of her son. The same blond hair, the same storm gray eyes, and the same icy demeanor.

Of the two, it was clear who wore the trousers in the house —metaphorically speaking, given that the queen was wearing a beautiful royal dress—.

“Dinner is served!” Leo bowed and handed the first courses, trying to remember as much as possible of Persian's teachings.

He had a blank mind.

The fault of anxiety and sleep that holy heavens... he didn't sleep at all those days, how could he still be alive in a place where coffee was scarce and was reserved only for the nobles?!

“So you're the cook?” the king looked Leo up and down, putting him quite in awe. Leo hurried to bow further, aware that he was still bad at doing it.

“Yes, your majesty. It is an honor for me to have had the opportunity to cook for you” he tried to be as formal and elegant as possible.

Anything to stay there.

Why he wanted to stay there with such conviction Leo couldn't explain it since being kicked out of the palace could have been a better opportunity, but whatever, plot reasons. Better a difficult situation in a castle than a difficult situation on the street, right?

“Taster, taste” the prince encouraged him to do his second job, and Leo took the morsel that the prince was handing him with tranquility and reverence.

And he smiled relieved after having tasted it well.

It was really great. Jane had done an amazing job of blending the ingredients, they cooked evenly and the mouthfeel was great.

He waited for the other diners to ask for his services, but after observing him for a few seconds, they decided to eat directly, without letting their dishes pass by.

“Daryan told us a lot about you. You seem like an extremely suspicious person that we would have no reason to hire. What do you have to say about it?” asked the king, continuing the interrogation and carefully tasting the dish. His face didn't break down.

It was a difficult question, but Leo expected such a comment.

“I completely understand Prince Daryan's position on my stay here, but I trust my cooking to speak for me and illustrate my noble intentions. That's my reason for getting hired,” he explained, stumbling a bit in formal speech because too many modern words came to mind.

“In this dish I feel Jane's dexterity, Irma's poise, and nothing new” after only a couple of bites, the queen set the dish aside.

“I like it a lot!” Opal tried to lighten the mood. She was the only one who seemed to eat with real gusto.

Even Daryan had given up after a few mouthfuls, while the king ate slowly, with an iron mask.

They were silent for the rest of the appetizer, and then it was the turn of the main course.

Leo did not have high expectations for the saffron risotto he had prepared with Mary's help. She was one of the best cooks in there, especially with main dishes, and when Leo had discovered saffron wandering around the kitchen a few days before, he'd been on the verge of tears. It wasn't the one from Abruzzo, but it was still a small trace of home.

Then he made a terrifying discovery… there, in Jediah… and probably in the rest of the seven kingdoms as well… THERE WAS NO PASTA!! At least not the Italian one he had learned to cook with his grandmother.

There was one type of pasta, much more Asian than Italian, and Leo had planned to make fresh pasta as a first course.

Unfortunately, he hadn't had time to train Mary well, so they had fallen back on saffron risotto. Not his first idea, but he still hoped it would go well.

“Taster, taste” Daryan again handed him a portion of his plate, and Leo ate it carefully.

Well… it was outstanding! It seemed to him that he had returned home for a moment.

“What did you put in it? It has a super particular taste!” Opal asked even before Leo swallowed.

“Opal! Wait for the taster's check before eating!” her father scolded her, looking at her worried.

“Leo would never poison me anyway! He adores me! Right Leo?” the princess gave him a coquettish smile.

Leo found the gazes of the three royals focused on him, waiting for his answer and with murderous eyes.

Four of them would have hated him if Leo had denied, three would have hated him if Leo had confirmed, so it was clear which was the best option.

But he didn't want to become the classic boy that the parents of the manhwa protagonist hated because he attracted attention or was attracted to the princess.

Mainly because if there was anyone he could be attracted to, hypothetically, not because Leo was actually attracted to him, it was the prince. Male. Of a more decent age.

But Leo wasn't attracted to him, he just found him a fine guy! Physically! Personality was meh… right?

Ugh! This was not the time to have a gay crisis! He had to answer the princess's question.

“Who could not adore the gem of the kingdom, princess” he tried to keep it vague and compliment her without getting personal.

“Awww, you are so kind! Be careful not to flatter me too much or I'll end up marrying you” Opal looked at him with a wink, and Leo turned pale.

The menacing looks turned so murderous that Leo was surprised he hadn't died of some royal curse. The characters in these kinds of stories, after all, had very special powers.

He looked away from the table, not knowing what the hell to answer, and was rescued by the last person he would have expected to come to his aid.

“So, what spice did you use for the risotto?” asked Daryan, resuming the question asked previously.

He was the one to marry, all right!

…Leo, keep it straight!

Or at least asexual!

You're on thin ice, gosh! Don't get a crush on princes with already (literally) written romantic destiny!

"Saffron," he replied, his throat dry.

“Curious combination, even if I feel the expert hand of Mary in the creaming. It looks more like her dish than yours” the queen took three bites this time before leaving the plate, but left it anyway.

It was obvious that you could feel the hand of whoever actually cooked the dish! Now Leo could only hope for dessert.

And in fact the following dishes showed very similar comments from the queen (“The meat was clearly cooked by Anna” “Sara ruined the sauce a lot”), while the king limited himself to eat and sometimes ask some personal questions to Leo to make sure he wasn't an undercover spy.

Like father, like son.

And speaking of the son… Daryan ate very little that night.

Probably, with all that Leo had tasted, he had eaten more than the prince, who usually took one, maximum two bites, and let it go, and did not seem to enjoy even a crumb of what he ate, as if he had to force himself to swallow.

Considering that the dishes were all really good, Leo just couldn't understand his behavior.

And he could also have pretended it was just maybe a passing thing. A little upset stomach, or maybe he had eaten too much during tea time.

But Leo was always by the prince's side during every meal, and he had noticed for some time that he never seemed to enjoy his food.

He always took enough to sustain himself, but it was as if he had a minimum limit and always stuck to that, compelled by his human needs to put fuel into the body.

It was sad.

“Well, I hope that dessert can revive this fundamentally mediocre performance” the cold words of the queen distracted Leo from his observation, and the boy bowed his head respectfully, before going to get his masterpiece that belonged in a three-Michelin-stars restaurant.

…perhaps.

…let's hope.

Leo hoped so with all his heart.

“WOOO!” was the first comment of the princess, observing the main course with eyes reduced to two stars. They really seemed to shine with their own light.

The queen widened her eyes barely.

The king let out a slight “Oh…” surprised.

Because the dish was not only definitely super good, but Leo had done his best to make it as beautiful to look at as possible. He had spent the last seven days experimenting with chocolate sculptures just for that moment.

Well, not exclusively, since they would certainly come in handy in the future, but still it was important that the sculpture came out well that day, and it had come out great.

Luckily it hadn't melted while waiting between courses.

“A dragon?” observed Daryan, amazed too, looking at the chocolate sculpture that adorned the cake.

“The animal symbol of the royal family of Jediah. My homage to those who have given me this important and generous opportunity” Leo explained, smoothing them as much as possible.

“Presentation does not make a dish. I've tasted hundreds of cakes in my life, it was risky of you to present yourself with such a cake” the queen tried to keep her composure.

“I want to eat it right away!” the princess was much less composed.

“It's not a simple cake, allow me to show you” Leo took a knife (snapping Daryan to attention who still didn't quite trust him) and cut the cake in the center, showing an interior of particular and selected flavours, and serving the dishes with elegance and care.

“Taster, tas… why do I even bother, Opal has already finished” Daryan was about to let him taste the cake (and it was the first dish that Leo really wanted to taste) but he stopped when he noticed that the rest of his family had already started eating.

Leo tried not to look too disappointed, but Daryan seemed to notice, for he handed him his plate.

“To be safe, I'd rather let you taste my dish” he changed his mind, in a cold tone.

Leo smiled joyfully, and tasted his most ambitious work.

…it was exactly as he had hoped.

He couldn't hold back his most satisfied smile.

And if he'd been slightly more observant, he would have noticed that Daryan too, though very to himself, had cracked the faintest smile at seeing him so enthusiastic.

But Leo's attention was abruptly attracted by a fist banged on the table, belonging to the queen.

For a second, a terrible instant, he feared he'd screwed up.

Had he perhaps used ingredients to which the queen was allergic without knowing it? Had he gotten that piece of cake wrong? Did something wrong end up there? A piece of eggshell, a hair?

Then he saw the queen's face. Her icy temperament had just given way to two shining eyes and a blissful expression.

“This is the best dessert I've ever tasted in my life!” she thundered enthusiastically, standing up abruptly.

“Oh, I'm really pleased, your maj…” Leo didn't have time to finish, because the queen had reached him and taken his hands.

“Become our personal pastry chef! You'll be in charge of the banquet for Opal's birthday party, we'll pay you double if you promise to stay here! Don't go anywhere else!” She made him an offer he couldn't refuse… not in a mafia sense, just in the sense that it was a really good offer.

“Oh, I… wow… it's… it's a great honor” Leo blushed suddenly. No one had ever addressed him with such enthusiasm…except Opal…but Opal was a younger girl, not a grown-up, queen, who up to that point had been colder than the snow goddess Noella.

“The honor is ours! Opal, do you like the idea of him taking care of your birthday banquet?” asked the queen to her daughter, after ruffling Leo's hair in an affectionate way.

“Absolutely! This cake is the epitome of absolute goodness! Dary, dad, what do you think?” Opal asked, addressing the males of the family.

“I’m not an expert in taste like you two, but I admit that the dish conquered me too... I must say that I loved this dinner, it was excellent for me from the first to the last course” admitted the king, abandoning the hard facade to show a more mild and good-natured attitude.

Daryan didn't comment, and just tasted the cake with furrowed eyebrows, as if he just couldn't understand why everyone was so excited.

For some strange reason, Leo couldn't take his eyes off him, full of expectation.

Did he like cake? Leo really hoped so. Although the two regents were the balance of his stay, for some strange reason Leo awaited the prince's outcome with greater trepidation.

But he remained a block of ice throughout the tasting, showing no sign of being impressed by the flavours.

But it didn't escape Leo that that was the only dish he finished.

And he didn't hold back a truly satisfied smile.

Now that he'd landed a permanent job and an engagement for a particular event, he could finally relax, right?

…Right?

Spoiler: …no!