Chapter 256: Feeling

"Your Majesty, where is Prince Alex?" Richard asked, making small talk.

"Out for a walk," the Red Star Empress replied casually.

She entered the back room of her house while tying her hair into a ponytail.

Richard continued following her, since the dining table was there and he planned to sit and wait.

"Your Majesty, there’s no need to cook too much. I just want grilled meat," Richard said.

"Is that all?" the Red Star Empress asked.

"That’s enough. Too much would only make me wait too long," Richard replied with a chuckle.

"It’s still a long way to noon. You seem very impatient. Well, fine—I’ll grill it as best as I can!"

She lit the charcoal until it glowed, then put out the flames, leaving only the embers.

After that, she took out a large slab of red meat heavily marbled with fat.

She placed it on the kitchen table, then took out a variety of spices—from sea spices to tropical forest herbs. They were incredibly fragrant even before being cooked.

She crushed the spices, mixed them with salt and oil, then coated the meat thoroughly.

Then she placed it over the embers.

Buzz!

Thick white smoke burst out instantly, rich with aroma.

The scent alone was enough to make one’s mouth water.

"It’ll take some time to cook evenly. You might get bored just watching me," the Red Star Empress said.

She didn’t merely leave the meat on the embers—she occasionally added various liquids that seemed to be seasonings.

"I don’t think there’s anything boring about watching you cook," Richard replied. "Besides, who would have thought you were also skilled at cooking? I doubt the king knows—or maybe I’m the only one who’s ever seen you cook."

Richard wasn’t under any influence.

It was just that a surge of excitement had risen within him.

That excitement pushed him to be bolder in expressing his interest in the Red Star Empress.

She was clearly surprised by his words and stared straight into his eyes.

How could she not feel suspicious?

And now, she seemed intent on seeing the truth.

After all, this was something she herself had started when she lost control while heavily drunk.

"I think that’s unreasonable. If it were a competition, it might be interesting to watch. But this? It’s just a woman grilling meat. The fact that I’m a former empress only makes it interesting to talk about—not to watch," she said.

"That’s just your opinion," Richard replied. "But in my eyes, it’s truly interesting. I can barely blink, you know..."

Red Star Empress, "...."

She clearly hadn’t expected Richard to keep responding like this.

This time, she was the one running out of words.

In the end, she chose to pretend to be busy, turning over the meat and cutting it into several pieces.

Richard felt a little disappointed that she stopped responding, but he knew this couldn’t be rushed.

She didn’t dare to rush either.

Before long, the meat was perfectly cooked.

The aroma was extraordinary.

She placed it on a wooden tray that seemed to enhance the flavor of the hot grilled meat.

Then she carried it to the dining table and set it in front of Richard.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"The most beautiful grilled meat I’ve ever seen," Richard replied—and it wasn’t an exaggeration.

It was browned evenly on all sides, looking as though it might melt, even though that was impossible.

"You haven’t seen much of the world—that’s why you say that," she replied.

She cut the meat into smaller pieces, each bite-sized.

Then she prepared two cups.

She filled them only with plain cold water.

"Go on, try it..." she urged.

Richard used a fork to spear a piece of meat and brought it to his mouth.

The moment it touched his tongue, he realized it was as delicious as it looked.

He chewed immediately, finding it so tender that it felt like eating fried fish rather than grilled meat.

He began taking piece after piece, eating quite quickly.

On the other side, the Red Star Empress had only taken two pieces before stopping.

"Why aren’t you eating, Your Majesty?" Richard asked in confusion.

"I cooked for you, not for myself. I only tasted it to make sure it was good," she replied calmly.

"It seems you really like it," she added.

"Yes, very much..." Richard nodded. "If only I could eat this every day when I wake up."

This time, the Red Star Empress truly froze.

What Richard had said was a common line men often used when flirting with women.

Hoping to eat a woman’s cooking every day meant hoping she would become his wife.

Or that she would become his mother.

But the Red Star Empress understood Richard well enough.

He might not have had an official family, but even from a young age, it was clear he could live peacefully without one.

In the end, he hadn’t truly suffered.

His talent had given him an extraordinary life since childhood.

It took some time before the Red Star Empress could calm herself.

She frowned, still hesitant, even though her logic knew the truth.

"Richard, what are you really thinking?" she finally asked—the question that had been gnawing at her.

Richard blinked several times. It wasn’t that he wanted to pretend to be confused—he genuinely was, now that it had been asked outright.

And her unblinking gaze forced him to be serious.

"Maybe I’m crazy," he said briefly.

Then he shook his head.

"No—that’s not right. How could liking you be called madness? This is just a natural emotion. After all, so many men like you."

Red Star Empress, "...."

With everything laid out so plainly, she seemed unable to respond.

Yet even then, when Richard reached out and took her hand—something that startled her—she did not pull it away.

"Your Majesty, it took a lot of courage for me to be honest, but this is truly how I feel. I like you."

"S-since when? Don’t tell me it’s because I was drunk, your desire was stirred, and you became like this," the Red Star Empress replied immediately.

"No. I don’t take that seriously. When someone is drunk, anyone can become a different person. I’m just not sure when I started liking you. I admired you from the beginning. As for these feelings, they grew somehow—perhaps everything that happened contributed to them," Richard replied calmly.

In truth, he felt relieved to have finally said it all.

As for the outcome?

It was hard to predict.

But the Red Star Empress, still silent, did not try to pull her hand from his grasp.