Chapter 108

“Ernst, a few days ago, a flock of color-winged swans was frightened within the Death Mountains and migrated to the region called Tianehu in the southern part of the Storm Domain!”

“Now, they have fully adapted to Tianehu’s environment and steadily lay eggs every few days!”

Ernst: “...”

Ernst felt Gervas was joking, but he had already tasted the egg custard.

So the bowl before him was the best proof.

“Gervas, is this soup really made from color-winged swans?”

At that moment, a melodious voice came—Catherine, who had always maintained her elegance, spoke up.

Her gaze settled on the porcelain bowls of meat soup before each person.

The soup clearly contained pieces of avian meat, so Catherine made this assumption.

And if this assumption proved true, Gervas was far too generous.

Demon meat, color-winged swan eggs, color-winged swan meat—any one of these, when offered by another minor noble, would already count as exceptional hospitality.

Yet Gervas had brought out all three at once, in abundant quantities, almost as if he were squandering them.

“That’s right. I’ve tasted color-winged swan meat before—it’s truly delicious and enhances bodily lightness and agility, so don’t miss out tonight, savor it well!”

Gervas nodded with a smile, his expression calm, showing no hint of boasting.

“...”

Silence fell.

Everyone fell utterly silent.

Only Catherine’s beautiful eyes shimmered with unusual light.

“So, we still can’t identify the mastermind behind this?”

“Yes! When we returned to the castle, the three knights who colluded with the bandits had vanished; later, their corpses were found in the wilderness and near Ironwolf City!”

After the banquet, back in the parlor, Gervas and Catherine discussed the aftermath of the Scorpion Bandits.

As Gervas had suspected, the person behind the scenes had not been uncovered.

Of course, the Violet Family still had some depth in the borderlands; it was impossible they had left not a single trace.

Catherine whispered: “Lord Gervas, although I cannot obtain concrete evidence pointing to who orchestrated this...”

“But through covert investigation and leveraging my father’s lingering connections, the Scorpion Leader’s affair is almost certainly tied to two extremely high-ranking nobles in Ironwolf City.”

“The first is Count Farrio!”

“Because my former guard captain had prior contact with several of my traitorous knights, even frequently visiting gambling dens within the city together.”

“And just these past days, I received a cooperation proposal from Count Farrio—he wishes to buy half of the Violet Crystal Mine’s shares for two thousand gold coins!”

“My family’s crystal mine produces at least five hundred gold coins’ worth of ore annually!”

“After I refused, Count Farrio used his influence to unite numerous merchant guilds in suppressing the price of Violet Crystal!”

Damn! Gervas silently exclaimed Damn!

He wanted to buy half the mine’s output for just four years’ profit—Count Farrio was truly shrewd.

But remembering how he had destroyed Rose’s family to claim her, it was clear how heartless this man was.

Moreover, the Wild Wolf Brotherhood was funded by Farrio; funding another bandit group like the Scorpions was no surprise.

At this moment, Catherine brought up the second suspect.

“Gervas, the other suspect is the Commander of Ironwolf City. My steward told me that after he delayed a day before seeking aid, the commander’s response was painfully slow.”

“Even after he paid the customary thirty gold coins as a bribe and promised over a hundred more later, the commander still deliberately dragged his feet on the journey.”

“So I suspect he may also be involved.”

“The Commander of Ironwolf City?”

That caught Gervas off guard.

But thinking again—the Scorpion Bandits were well-equipped, wearing full sets of armor, albeit old.

Armor was strictly regulated by the kingdom; only lords could freely possess it. For the Scorpions to acquire so much armor, they’d need an inside agent within the kingdom’s border army—otherwise, it was nearly impossible.

“Of course, Gervas, these are all just my speculations. I only want you to be cautious—I have no concrete proof.”

“Lady Catherine, I understand your goodwill.”

Gervas knew it was inappropriate to accuse suspects without evidence.

But since Catherine had spoken, it was clearly to help him prepare.

Since night had fallen, both Andrew’s group and the Violet Family stayed overnight in Storm Domain.

Besides the banquet, Gervas had specially arranged a late-night feast for everyone.

When Andrew, Catherine, and the others accepted Gervas’s invitation and arrived at the castle’s rear garden,

servants and a stunningly beautiful cook were already busy.

Ernst and Lanier stared wide-eyed, astonished by the beautiful cook.

The cook’s beauty rivaled Carolyne’s.

Even more, her slightly older age lent her a potent air of maturity.

And that damned maturity was utterly irresistible to inexperienced young men.

Instantly, everyone’s gaze toward Gervas turned peculiar.

Pretty maidservants were one thing.

But even the cook was this beautiful? That was truly excessive.

How much effort must he have spent collecting them?

Mi’en and the others looked at Gervas with admiration.

Even Catherine beside him was slightly surprised, her eyes flickering with unspoken thoughts.

“Cough! This is my head chef, Rose—she prepared all the banquet dishes!”

Gervas instantly understood their glances and quickly explained.

He couldn’t let his noble image be tarnished like this.

After all, he, Gervas, was truly virtuous, wasn’t he?

He had even resisted the temptation of his personal maidservant—what more could you ask?

As for Rose?

She was for cultivation... cultivation, you understand?

“Huh? These are magic sea clams and magic sea snails? And lobster?”

At that moment, Baron Mi’en’s surprised exclamation finally drew everyone’s attention.

Only then did they realize the cook’s ingredients were all seafood.

Some of it even magic seafood.

In the Griffin Kingdom, even ordinary seafood was not considered demon meat.

Magic seafood was even more precious than demon meat.

The reason was simple... rarity!

“A few days ago, I accidentally saved a merman. To thank me, he and his tribe brought me these sea shells and lobsters...” Gervas explained honestly.

Everyone: “???”

Even saving a merman? They didn’t know what else to say about Gervas.

But as the seafood finished roasting, no one had time to ponder further.

In this world, seafood was rare—minor nobles rarely ever tasted it.

So the moment they tasted the seafood, everyone nearly swallowed their tongues whole.