Chương 80

The kitchen inside the Marquis estate was an absolute madhouse. Rudra stood over his massive iron skillet, furiously flipping thick cuts of seasoned meat. He had a lot of mouths to feed now. Seven legendary Red Knights were sitting around his dining table. Kentrick was inhaling a mountain of roasted potatoes. Amelda was stuttering happily while talking to a very quiet Icarus. Singuled, still wrapped in bandages, was laughing at something Elysia said.

Dante was slowly enjoying his tea, and Winfred was already studying a map. Add in Haster, the Siren Princess Nerissa, and a very demanding divine cub, and the grocery bill was getting ridiculous.

"Kratos, back up," Rudra warned, nudging the dog-sized beast away from the counter.

"You already ate three steaks." Kratos let out a deep, complaining bark, but obediently sat down. The heavy wooden doors of the dining hall suddenly clicked open. Princess Seraphine stepped inside. She didn't bring a massive royal guard, just her trusted aide. As soon as she crossed the threshold, she froze. The casual, noisy atmosphere didn't hide the sheer weight of the room. Seven of the most dangerous, battle-hardened veterans of the Saharan Empire were sitting at one table.

The combined pressure of their auras was heavy enough to make the air feel thick. Seraphine didn't flinch. She kept her posture perfectly straight, respectfully acknowledging the immense power Rudra had gathered.

"Good morning, Your Highness," Rudra called out from the stove, waving his spatula.

"Want some breakfast?"

"I already ate, thank you," Seraphine smiled, walking over.

"But I did bring the Royal Map. It is time we finalize your land grant, Marquis." Rudra quickly plated the last of the food and wiped his hands on a towel. He, Seraphine, and Winfred cleared a spot at the end of the long wooden table. Seraphine unrolled a massive, detailed map of the Murray Kingdom.

"Here," Seraphine pointed to a lush, green area right in the center of the kingdom.

"The Silver Plains. It is incredibly wealthy. The farmland is rich, and it sits right on the main trade routes. It would be a very comfortable seat for your new noble house." Rudra shook his head immediately.

"No thanks." Seraphine blinked.

"It is the most profitable land available."

"It's also surrounded by other nobles," Rudra pointed out.

"That means tax disputes, border arguments, and annoying royal parties. Plus, farmland means boring food. I need a place where I can hunt." He dragged his finger all the way to the top right corner of the map. It was the absolute edge of the kingdom's borders.

"What about here?" Rudra asked, tapping a massive, jagged territory. Seraphine looked at where he was pointing. She let out a heavy sigh.

"The Stormbreak Region," she said, sounding deeply concerned.

"It is massive. It is actually larger than Duke Henrick's entire territory. But no noble has ever claimed it. It technically shares a border with the Saharan Empire."

"A warzone?" Elysia asked, walking over to inspect the map.

"No, not a battlefield," Seraphine clarified.

"The Empire doesn't march through there. No one does. The region is completely boxed in by a treacherous mountain range crawling with high-level monsters and highly aggressive non-human tribes. Worse, it sits right against the Red Sea, which brings constant, violent monster tides crashing onto the shores. It is an absolute death trap." Stolen novel; please report. Rudra's eyes lit up.

"High-level monsters? Constant tides of fresh seafood? No annoying neighbors?"

"It is actually a brilliant choice," Winfred suddenly spoke up. The old tactician tapped the map, his sharp eyes calculating the terrain.

"Look at the geography. The mountains and the Red Sea form a perfect, natural barricade. The Empire would have to march an army through a monster-infested meat grinder just to reach the region's borders. The hostile tribes and the harsh terrain will naturally keep the Empress's spies and the kingdom's greedy nobles far away." Winfred looked up at Rudra.

"It is completely secluded. It is the perfect, impenetrable sanctuary for us."

"And an infinite grocery store for me," Rudra grinned.

"I'll take it." Seraphine looked at the confident faces of the tactician and the cook. She shook her head, a small, genuine smile breaking through her serious expression.

"You truly are a strange group," Seraphine said. She pulled a royal stamp from her pocket and pressed it firmly onto the map over the Stormbreak Region.

"Then it is officially yours. But as a Marquis holding a major territory, you need a formal house name for the royal registry."

"A surname?" Rudra scratched the back of his neck.

"I haven't really thought about it."

"The land shapes the lord," Seraphine suggested smoothly.

"Rudra von Stormbreak. It carries a heavy, respectable weight." Rudra smiled.

"I like it. Rudra von Stormbreak it is." With the official business settled, Seraphine signaled her aide to wait by the door. She dropped her rigid, royal persona completely. She looked at Rudra, her eyes filled with a quiet, desperate vulnerability.

"Marquis Rudra," she said softly.

"The soup you cooked for my father saved his life. It suppressed the Empire's poison. We are forever in your debt."

"It was just soup," Rudra waved it off kindly.

"Glad he's doing better."

"He is stable," she said, her voice tight.

"But the poison ravaged his body for years. His organs are heavily scarred. The royal doctors say he only has a few years left, at best." She took a slow breath, looking him right in the eyes.

"I know this is incredibly selfish. But is it possible? Could you and Elysia cook something else? A true cure?" Rudra crossed his arms, thinking.

"It's going to be hard. We need something with a massive amount of pure, raw vitality to actually regenerate organs."

"The Royal Vault is completely open to you," Seraphine offered instantly. Rudra looked down at his pitch-black leather gloves. An idea suddenly clicked in his head.

"Wait," Rudra said, looking back up at Seraphine.

"When I picked out these gloves a few months ago, I saw something sitting in the very back of the vault. It was a giant severed head packed in magical ice. The Obsidian Drake." Seraphine blinked in surprise.

"Yes. The beast that your gloves were crafted from. Its head has been perfectly preserved down there for decades." Rudra turned to Elysia.

"Hey, Elysia. If the flesh is frozen solid, can we thaw it out? Like, use medicine and alchemy to restore the tissues to their original, living state?" Elysia's eyes widened slightly. The sheer absurdity of the idea genuinely intrigued her. She crossed her arms, her analytical mind instantly doing the math.

"Reviving dead draconic marrow?" Elysia muttered, tapping her chin.

"That is highly volatile. But... the ice preserved the core. If we combine your advanced cooking with my extraction methods, we could technically force the cells to reactivate. The raw vitality trapped inside would be immense." Rudra's eyes lit up.

"Drake head soup? That sounds completely insane. I love it." A bright golden light flashed in Rudra's vision. [Quest Generated: A King's True Cure] [Difficulty: S] [The King's life was extended, but his internal damage is severe. Use your pinnacle culinary and alchemical skills to create a miracle. Clear Condition: Create a Unique or Legendary rated medical dish capable of fully healing the King. Reward: Maximum affinity with the Murray Royal Family,???] Rudra read the prompt and quickly closed the blue window.

He looked back at Seraphine with a confident grin.

"We don't even have to wait until we leave for Stormbreak," Rudra said, pulling the heavy Protean Crafting Cauldron out of his inventory and setting it on the floor with a loud thud.

"Your Highness, get someone to bring that frozen head to my kitchen. Elysia, get ready to teach me how to restore frozen parts." Seraphine let out a shaky, deeply relieved breath.

"I will have it brought here immediately," Seraphine said, a genuine smile breaking across her face.

"Thank you. Both of you."