Chapter 119: A Few Matters About Viki (Part 2)
“Because you two are just drunks,” I casually brushed it off.
Just then, the plump woman returned, filling our glasses and plopping a steaming pot of sour rabbit stew right in front of us. The pot looked a bit questionable on the cleanliness scale, but the aroma wafting up like a perfumed cloud was intoxicating… Wow, what a smell! It was a wonderful scent I’d never encountered before.
I grabbed a bowl and spoon, eager to dig in.
“Because in the entire southern district of the Royal City, every tavern we visit, the Palace knows in minutes.”
Viki’s sister’s voice continued in my ear: “And then someone—whether the manager or a guard—would come drag us back, make us sit through a lecture, and then lock us up. Only this place, they don’t know and aren’t familiar with, so we can stay as long as we want and do whatever we please.”
As the steaming stew filled my bowl, I took a sip. The broth was rich and flavorful, with a hint of sweet and sour undertones. It was really good! Suddenly, I felt like this might not be such a waste of time after all.
My spirits lifted, I casually continued her line: “Drink as much as you like!”
“Do you have a problem with drinking?” The woman furrowed her brows, staring at me.
“I have no issues with drinking.”
I said, waving a piece of meat in front of my mouth to cool it down: “But I do have a problem with alcoholics—Hoo!”
“Who’s an alcoholic?”
The woman’s frown deepened at my words.
But then, she seemed to think of something and smirked, giving me a knowing wink. Suddenly, she flashed an ambiguous smile: “You’re not upset about alcoholics in general; you’re upset about one particular woman who’s an alcoholic, aren’t you? Aren’t you, aren’t you~?”
This almost made me drop the piece of meat I was about to take a bite of.
I quickly composed myself and continued enjoying the unexpected meal, choosing not to bite back at her playful jab.
This pot of rabbit, probably from one of those four-eared rabbits from the Western Continent, was tender and fresh, yet somehow still chewy—what a peculiar texture! It must be related to how the stew was cooked…
This plump Boss Lady really knew her stuff.
I thought about the taste and texture of the stew, and calmly said to the woman, “So, you dragging me here was just to tell me about the times you and Viki secretly drank as kids?”
“Why bother finding such a hidden spot? The stash in the Palace wine cellar is surely better than this! Just snatch a few bottles and head up to a high tower; they’d never find you there.”
“You really think we’re here just to drink?” Viki’s sister pouted, clearly wanting to explain, but when she saw my teasing gaze, she paused, then suddenly burst out laughing, “Hey, you almost got me trapped in your joke!”
I shrugged and focused on the meat.
“Actually…”
Suddenly, she said, “When we were little, my relationship with Victoria wasn’t that great.”
“Is that so…”
Oh man, this rabbit meat is fantastic, especially with the broth!
“She was actually quite a stingy woman, but now that she’s grown, she knows how to control herself. Back in the day? Don’t even get me started on how infuriating she was…”
Viki’s sister was sipping her beer and taking small bites of rabbit meat, and as if flipping a switch, she started talking non-stop, regardless of whether I was paying attention or not.
“Victoria didn’t really play with us palace kids.”
“When we were little, aside from her late little brother and Ryan’s few apprentices, she virtually ignored all her peers, exuding a special kind of haughty attitude. She was just unbearable, which made us not want to play with her.”
“So, for a few years, our relationship was pretty sour, just a whole lot of ignoring each other. But it didn’t start that way. When I was younger, I thought she was pretty, so I actually liked playing with her for a while. I still remember the start of it—especially how ridiculous it was…”
“Back then, the old king was still alive; he loved hunting and would take a massive entourage with him. Us royal kids often tagged along too.”
“One time on the road, we saw a clothing shop, and we both liked the same skirt. The old king casually remarked that the skirt didn’t suit her but looked great on me, and he had someone buy it for me. Because of that, she sulked for a long time and wouldn’t speak to me.”
I thought I was bad enough, but without any formalities here, I dove right into grabbing the meat. Before long, my hands were covered in grease, and when I looked up from my feast, I found the woman across from me was doing the exact same thing—eating with her hands and barely caring about her image, grease practically on her nose!
“She’s so stingy, right?”
The woman, gnawing on a meat bone, seemed rather clumsy, venting her feelings through her rabbit meat: “It wasn’t my fault, but she just wouldn’t talk to me again. After the old king passed away, I wanted to comfort her, but she scolded me instead, saying I was just like my father… and the same with the Empress. They’ve been moping for years and ignoring each other. And what happened in the end?”
“Do you think there’s still time to make up?”
“Too late. She knows it, but that’s just her nature.”
The woman said this, then set down her cleaned bone, took her half-glass of beer, and downed it in one go, gasping afterward.
“When she’s in a huff, she’s downright impossible, like a startled kitten! She keeps her distance, eyeing you as if expecting you to make a move. If you don’t go over and offer to pet her, she could stay mad for years…”
“And the root of it? Just a few extra words of explanation could clear things up. It’s not that she doesn’t understand; maybe… she just needed those few proactive explanations?”
The last sentence came out more like a question as the woman tilted her head at me, batting her big eyes.
“What are you getting at?” I asked.
“The royal sister is currently sulking.”
She pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her mouth, casually discarding the expensive silk on the table.
She looked at me, her expression a bit mischievous: “From Chielis City until now, that sulky mood hasn’t eased but has actually intensified. Recently, she’s often taken it out on me, bullying me! You saw that the other day!”
“Ah, I’m so pitiful…”
After a dramatic sigh, she suddenly stood up: “I’m all full!”
Stretching her back and patting her tummy, she walked to the side of the road, frowning, “It’s so late, and here I am, unable to resist, eating so much! Once full, I get sleepy… No way, starting tomorrow, I’ll have to eat grass with Her Majesty the Queen!”
Muttering to herself for a moment, she suddenly turned, smiling and waving at me: “Tonight was really fun! I’m sleepy now, so I’m off~”
With that, a gust of wind swirled around her, and before the astonished eyes of countless passersby, she suddenly leaped into the air, landing on a low building, disappearing shortly afterward into the thick night.
I was left dumbfounded.
Then I finished off the majority of the pot of rabbit stew all by myself.
As I was preparing to leave, the plump Boss Lady suddenly stopped me: “That’ll be three silver coins, and the beer is on the house. Thanks for your patronage!”
That night, Pasifal returned to his assigned quarters in the palace while I strolled through the bustling market for quite a while. By the time I headed back to Vilo Garden on Longdoll Street, the night was deep and everyone was fast asleep.
