The Emperor resumed walking after that, as if nothing had happened, and Lionel quickly followed behind him, too.

Soon, they arrived at the dining hall of the main palace. It was grand, full of goldenwares and freshly picked flowers that get replaced every day.

In the middle of the dining hall was a long dining table that was already prepared. On top of it were neatly arranged plates. Warm food filled the air, too, with its light aroma.

"You may sit," the Emperor said.

"Yes, Grandfather." Lionel nodded and took a seat.

Lionel sat where he was directed, and that was at the very end of the long table. Meanwhile, the Emperor sat at the head, on the opposite side.

It was the usual arrangement if they followed the proper decorum, but with how long the table was, the distance between them felt... ridiculous.

Lionel stared at his grandfather from where he was. Even if he talked now, he knew that his voice would be barely audible if he didn’t shout out loud. And that was something he couldn’t do in a place like this.

"W-What is this..." he muttered under his breath.

The attendants began serving them the dishes one by one. They don’t even need to lift a finger here, except if they’re really eating. It was just too formal.

Lionel looked at the space between him and his grandfather again. Then, he made a decision.

I’m already here, so might as well go all out. Either way, at worst, I would just be reprimanded.

So without saying anything, Lionel suddenly stood up. He pressed his lips together as he held onto his chair firmly. There were only 2 chairs right now, so this was the only way.

Okay, let’s go.

He talked to himself as he gathered his courage. Eyes were on him when he stood up, but he ignored everyone. Instead, he took a step and pulled his chair with him. The screeching sound of it immediately caught everyone off guard.

Everyone froze.

"My lord—?" one of the attendants called out in panic.

But Lionel didn’t stop. Instead, he even hastened his steps and dragged the chair across the floor.

"W-Wait!" Another attendant rushed forward to him.

"My lord, this is not allowed!"

A few more stepped in, trying to stop him before he could do anything more improper.

But Lionel moved faster than they expected. In just a few steps, he reached the side of the table, just right beside the Emperor. He placed his chair there and sat down as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"There," he muttered softly. "Now I’m closer to you, grandfather."

The entire hall fell into complete silence when they heard that. All eyes suddenly turned toward the Emperor, and even Lionel glanced at him from the side.

For a moment, the emperor didn’t say anything else. In his entire life, he had never seen someone act as outrageously as this one.

"Hah." A low sound escaped him.

The attendants quickly lowered their gaze, expecting anger from the emperor. However, instead, they heard something else.

"Hahahahahaha!" The emperor let out a loud laugh that echoed through the entire dining hall.

Everyone froze even harder because of that. Anger, they would understand it. But the emperor laughed? That was far more shocking than what Lionel just did.

An emperor laughing so openly like that was so rare that most of them had never even heard it before.

Lionel blinked in surprise, but he quickly recovered from it. A small smile appeared on his face instead. It was actually a nice feeling to hear his grandfather laugh like that. He didn’t even know that the emperor could laugh.

"What are you doing, Lionel?" the Emperor finally said between his laughter, looking at him.

Lionel just smiled more at that.

"It’s too far, grandfather," he answered simply. "I can’t talk to you like that."

"I didn’t think you were a bold one." The Emperor stared at him for a second, then another short laugh escaped his lips.

Lionel just smiled sheepishly at that. He could feel that what he did really eased the awkwardness between the two of them.

The Emperor shook his head slightly, but the faint smile on his face did not disappear at all. He glanced to the side and waved a hand.

"Leave him," he said to the attendants.

At that command, everyone immediately stepped back. No one dared to interfere anymore, especially when they saw his majesty’s current expression.

The attendants resumed their duties, though this time, they just stood at the side, waitinng for any instruction.

Lionel picked up his utensils now.

"Let’s eat, Grandfather," he said.

"Mm." The Emperor nodded once.

They began eating soon after. Lionel ate properly, but his attention wasn’t really fully on the food. Every now and then, his eyes would drift to the man beside him.

He watched as the emperor ate. And that was when he noticed that he wasn’t eating that much. His grandfather was only choosing certain dishes, and they were all those soft or light ones that was easy to chew and digest.

Right...

Just then, a thought surfaced in his mind. At this time... his grandfather’s ailment should already be starting.

Oh no. Without thinking too much, he reached forward. From one of the dishes placed in front of him, he carefully picked a slice of meat. He knew that the dish was braised until tender.

He moved his hand, took a slice of it, and placed it gently onto the Emperor’s plate.

"Grandfather, eat this. This should be easy to chew and light on the stomach. I noticed that it has pineapple bits on it," Lionel said.

"..." The emperor’s eyes slowly moved down to his plate. He was clearly surprised at the suddenness of it.

"That meat should be soft, grandfather." Lionel scratched his cheek lightly, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious. "You should eat a lot even if you’re not feeling well."

"Y-You," the emperor’s eyes widened.

"I-I me—"

Lionel was about to explain himself when a chime rang in his ear, pulling him back.

[Ding!]

[New Mission Triggered!]

[Mission Series Alert!]

[Mission: Save the Emperor from his death.]

[Notice: This is a chained mission series. Completing one mission will unlock the next one until it’s the last one.]

[The final reward will only be revealed upon the revelation of the last mission in this series.]

[Do you wish to accept this mission?]

[Yes?] [No?]