New Patreon goal: 7 Days (chapters) of Nigotta Hitomi no Lilianne.
When the goal is reached, I will dedicate an entire week"s schedule to Nigotta Hitomi no Lilianne.

Information gathering is important, isn"t it!
It seemed like the meal was over in the kitchen, as cleaning and tool repairs were being carried out.
I could see them preparing ingredients for tomorrow, and polis.h.i.+ng rice.
Fumu, it seems that we will be having j.a.panese breakfast tomorrow. I will ask about the side dishes later.
… Oh, no good. I was about to lose sight of my objective.
I looked around the kitchen, searching for s.h.i.+n.

"Ah, there he is. s.h.i.+n, do you have a little bit of time?"

When I called out to s.h.i.+n who was polis.h.i.+ng rice, s.h.i.+n who turned his head around and recognized me made "Eh!?" face momentarily.
However, noticing the gazes of the surroundings, he quickly corrected his att.i.tude.

"Ah~… Missy… my lady, what are your orders?"

It"s a common knowledge in the fief"s kitchen that I was the one who invited s.h.i.+n, so hey more or less tolerate it when he treats me crudely.
However, as the households in Capital are judged by the manners of their servants, he had to start being cautious about the way he speaks to me.
The servants in the fief change their att.i.tudes at the snap of a finger when a visitor comes, but in the town of n.o.bles like this, servants from other households are constantly coming in and out of the mansion, so you wouldn"t know what kind of rumors it might create. That"s why I am always taught to not let my mind wander.
Still, the last time s.h.i.+n called me "lady" must have been the first time we met, so it"s making me feel creeped out…

"Err, I"d like to ask you of something…"
"Cristesama! What is the matter? If you are fine with me, I am more than willing to help!"

Gege, Head Chef!? He did not leave far from the kitchen, so when he discovered me from the entrance, he swiftly rushed over.

"No, umm, I did not come to make anything today. I came to ask about some ingredients…"
"What!? If it"s about ingredients, please consult with me by all means! I will show you that I can pull off anything no matter what!"

Head Chef forced his way between me and s.h.i.+n and looked at me with eyes that said: "Now, now, ask me anything!"
Ehh~ even if you tell me that.
Asking Head Chef why animal internal organs aren"t eaten is a tad difficult…
Still, it"s not like I can withdraw now, and keeping Head Chef at a distance seems difficult.
Reluctantly, I moved to a table in the corner of the kitchen, erected a soundproofing barrier to make sure the surroundings didn"t hear.

"Umm, this might be an abrupt question, but…"
"Yes! What might it be!?"

Ugh, I must be hallucinating as I saw a tail swaying from side to side at the back of Head Chef whose eyes were sparkling with expectations.

"Animals are turned into the meat when dismantled, right? That, how do I say this, I was wondering what is done to the remaining parts of the carca.s.s."

If it was only s.h.i.+n, I could go right to the point and ask him "Why are the remains from dismantling thrown away and not eaten?" but with Head Chef here, I had no choice but to ask in a roundabout way.

"The remaining parts… is it? We are directly selling it to the dismantling store who then sells the skin, fangs and things like that to other stores, but…"

Ahh, so he got it like that, just as I thought.

"Umm, I did not mean that. I was thinking about whether there aren"t any other edible parts aside from what I usually eat."
"Edible parts aside from what Cristesama usually eats… is it?"

Head Chef couldn"t understand so he tilted his head to the side.
Ugh, it"s usually thrown away, so it must not be considered edible.

"Err, let"s see, for example, the head, shank or… internal organs."

When I said so, Head Chef and s.h.i.+n looked at me with shocked expressions. Looking at their reactions, there really mustn"t be custom like that… how unfortunate.

"Ah, it"s fine if there aren"t any. Sorry for asking something weird."

When I stood up to return to my room to think about the next step… I was quickly restrained by Head Chef who was pondering "Hmm" about something.

"Wait a moment, please. I don"t know what are you seeking, but I heard of rumors about an a highly regarded ingredient by a select few that seldom appears on the market, Ojousama. However, that… is that something that can be spoken about in front of Cristesama…"

Head Chef seemed unusually hesitant to talk.
Nn? Highly regarded by a select few? Seldom appears on the market!? Is that perhaps…

"I don"t mind. Please, tell me."

Being urged by my decisive tone, Head Chef showed a slight hesitation, but he looked at me with resolve and spoke up.

"I heard that there are people who eat the internal organs of animals. According to those people, it"s so delicious it can become a habit. However, internal organs of animals aren"t something chefs like us have spare money to try ourselves. Therefore, everyone"s taking it only as a practical joke, so…"

There it issss! Bingooo!

"Tell me everything about that, in detail."