TIPI 10

Chapter 10

For an entire week, I conducted health checkups on every servant in the Carseido mansion.

I measured their height and weight and, with support from the hospital, even carried out simple blood tests.

It was a fairly thorough examination.

And so, after several busy days passed—

“Doctor, the ingredients you ordered have finally arrived!”

Kaelen finally announced the arrival of the food supplies.

I headed toward the kitchen with him and the duke.

Inside the kitchen were Hans, the newly hired chef, and three representatives of the servants who had been chosen as taste testers.

“You want me to make chicken? I’ll preheat the oven.”

“No. This chicken is a little different.”

I stopped Hans as he prepared to make a roast.

Then I handed him the recipe I had prepared beforehand.

The chef’s eyes widened as he read my note.

“You mean you’re going to fry the entire chicken? I’ve fried plenty of chicken legs before, but this is my first time frying a whole chicken!”

“Trust me and give it a try, Chef. Make cuts like this so the inside cooks properly. Then put it into oil preheated to 180 degrees. Plop.”

Though skeptical, the chef followed my instructions and fried the whole chicken in a large pot.

At the sizzling sound of boiling oil, Siwoo, the stable master and one of the servant representatives, licked his lips.

“My goodness, that looks delicious. We could just dip it in salt and eat it like this.”

“Salt is good too. But we’re going to make something called ‘seasoning.’”

While the chicken was frying, the chef followed my recipe and made the sauce with butter and honey.

Then, just as he added a pinch of minced garlic—

“Add more.”

At my instruction, the chef looked puzzled.

“Pardon? But it says here, ‘Add a little garlic.’”

“You don’t understand, Chef.”

I picked up the ladle sitting on the counter and scooped up a generous handful of minced garlic.

“This.”

Then I dumped it mercilessly into the stainless-steel bowl.

“Is ‘a little’ garlic.”

“……”

The chef looked around desperately, as if begging someone to save him.

But everyone, overwhelmed by my quiet madness, simply stood there without helping him.

I quickly stirred the sauce so there would be no chance of removing the garlic.

“All right. Now coat the fried chicken in this sauce.”

The chef had completely lost the will to resist and simply followed my instructions.

But I was confident.

This was the devil’s recipe that had gifted me ten kilograms of weight during my internship.

And then, shortly afterward—

“My goodness……. What on earth does this taste like?”

That was Lily’s first reaction after cautiously biting into a chicken leg.

Peckrang, another servant, also sniffed suspiciously at the chicken at first.

But after taking a bite, he let out an exclamation.

“T-This spicy yet sweet, salty yet rich flavor……?! I’ve lived for thirty-three years, but I’ve never tasted anything like this before!”

“It’s absolutely delicious! I could easily eat an entire chicken by myself!”

“Your Grace, you should try it too. It’s really delicious.”

I handed a chicken leg to the duke, who was standing there motionless.

I thought he would immediately take a bite after being tempted by the delicious smell, but the duke simply stared silently at the chicken.

A handsome man and fried chicken.

Good things combined with another good thing…….

Thinking that, I urged him on.

“Why aren’t you eating?”

“It is…… an unfamiliar food.”

Perhaps this was simply too stimulating for someone who had barely eaten for three hundred years.

If he doesn’t eat it now, my accelerated-aging plan will be ruined…….

Growing anxious, I spoke to the duke.

“Your Grace. You said you would trust me and follow my instructions completely. I believe this is the first step in building that trust between us. Please, try it.”

As I watched anxiously, the duke slowly brought the chicken to his mouth……

And took a large bite.

“……It’s delicious.”

“Right?! I told you it was delicious!”

Why did hearing him say that chicken was delicious make me this happy?

Encouraged, I gave the chef another instruction.

“All right! Let’s move on to the next menu. We still have a long way to go!”

After tasting the garlic chicken, the chef no longer questioned anything I said.

As expected of someone who had spent his entire life making food, he became my perfect pair of hands, quickly producing whatever I asked for.

Donuts covered in an excessive amount of chocolate, mala soup packed with glass noodles, tanghulu glistening with syrup……

Every time an unfamiliar dish was completed, everyone cheered.

I was also quite pleased and happily enjoyed the stimulating foods alongside them.

Of course, I never forgot to diligently feed the duke whenever a new dish came out.

“We really, really enjoyed the meal! But Doctor, can we eat this food again next time?”

“Of course, Lily. Whenever you want to eat it, just ask the chef. Right, Your Grace?”

“No problem.”

“Then I want to eat it again tomorrow!”

This time, Peckrang suddenly joined in.

I smiled awkwardly.

“……Tomorrow too? That might be a little too stimulating.”

“You don’t understand how much we suffered in jerky hell. I honestly think I could eat this every single day.”

With all three of them pressing me, I looked at the duke helplessly.

The duke watched us with interest before speaking.

“Then we should all follow the accelerated-aging diet together.”

“Pardon? Are you serious?”

“If I eat the same meals as ordinary people, wouldn’t comparing the changes in each of our bodies give us more accurate results?”

I once again looked at the food spread across the table.

Chicken, mala soup, donuts, tanghulu.

And sweet juice on top of all that.

A famous writer once said that humans could not travel at the speed of light.

But I was certain of one thing.

If we ate all this at every meal, we could go to our graves faster than the speed of light.

“……If that is Your Grace’s decision, then shall we try it?”

“Wow! Then we can eat this again tomorrow? Thank you!”

The three taste testers, completely unaware of the real purpose, simply cheered at the thought of getting to eat chicken again tomorrow.

Avoiding their eyes, Kaelen cautiously spoke to me in a low voice.

“Doctor, are you sure this is okay? The duke is one thing, but making the servants eat such stimulating foods every day seems a little……”

“Don’t worry, Assistant.”

I whispered back.

“It won’t last very long anyway.”

Two weeks passed.

“Your Grace!! Your Grace!!”

The office door burst open, and Kaelen came running inside.

Blasion, who had been sitting at his desk and was just about to put a piece of chocolate into his mouth, stopped.

“Your Grace…… I can’t take it anymore.”

“Can’t take what?”

“Doctor Frencia! I can’t endure her treatment anymore…… No, I can’t endure her strict discipline! How is a person supposed to live on nothing but rye bread and broccoli?!”

On the evening of the day Lionel created the accelerated-aging diet, she announced that meals would henceforth be provided according to the meal plan and that appropriate dietary treatment would be prescribed based on the results of everyone’s health examinations.

At first glance, it sounded like a genuinely excellent plan.

Kaelen had thought so too.

If only she hadn’t diagnosed him with prediabetes that very day.

“Based on your blood test results, Assistant, you’re in a prediabetic state. If you leave it as it is, you may develop diabetes. You also have some anemia.”

It was the first time Kaelen had ever received such a diagnosis, and he immediately became tense.

“Is it serious?”

“No. It can absolutely be improved if you manage it properly. So please follow my instructions carefully. Understood?”

“Of course. I’ll trust you completely, Doctor!”

From the next day onward, Kaelen’s diet was strictly restricted.

His attending physician began disciplining him with the natural tone of an instructor.

“Assistant. I told you. Eat the broccoli first, then the eggs, and then the bread.”

“It’s so dry. Could I put just a little strawberry jam on it……?”

“Do you really have to lose a hand to complications before you finally come to your senses?”

Good heavens.

How could someone with such a gentle-looking face make such demonic threats?

Terrified, Kaelen chewed his rye bread.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

With tears in his eyes, Kaelen revealed another one of his hardships.

“I-I can’t even have a proper bowel movement because of the iron supplements the doctor prescribed!”

Blasion had absolutely no desire to know such intimate details about his subordinate.

Without saying anything, he placed the chocolate he had just unwrapped back on the table.

“The doctor told me that iron can cause constipation, but treating your anemia and diabetes comes first.”

“T-That’s……”

“You should give up, Kaelen. You’re already in the palm of the doctor’s hand anyway. Just accept your fate and eat your broccoli and take your iron supplements properly.”

Kaelen left the office with a miserable expression.

Blasion picked up the chocolate he had set down and put it into his mouth before checking the clock.

“It’s already lunchtime.”

I wonder what kind of food there will be today.

Thinking that, Blasion stood up.

Only a month ago, he had no concept of mealtimes.

Now, however, his body seemed to move on its own.

Blasion had to admit that he was actually enjoying meals quite a bit.

It wasn’t simply about tasting and enjoying food.

There was another pleasure that came with going to the dining room at a set time.

“Welcome, Your Grace.”

As soon as he opened the door, the attending physician sitting at the table immediately stood up.

As always, she wore a stethoscope around he