The King's Mistress

Chapter 113: Smiling

At that moment, Ida noticed the smile on Sierra’s face. It dawned on the maid that Sierra enjoyed doing this. With that in mind, she decided not to question the princess’s decision any further.

The kitchen staff were busy preparing as per Sierra’s instructions when they got there. As soon as they saw the princess appear, they were stunned. They thought she would merely come down for an inspection sometime later.

But when they saw her pick up the tools to help, they realized how wrong they were to assume she was just like the others.

"Great work, everyone,looks like we’re going to have a feast," Sierra mused as she helped with the marination of the meats.

The spice mix she had asked for was ready for her to use. After washing her hands in a basin of fresh spring water, she got to work rubbing the spice mix on the racks of ribs. Everyone watched her intently, realizing quickly that Sierra had much experience in the kitchen.

Even the chefs were impressed, especially with her knife work. All the hustle and bustle caught the attention of the princesses in Celestial Lodge. Everyone looked out of their windows as they saw people running around to prepare for the barbecue.

They were even more surprised to see Sierra at the center of it all. Myra and Taita decided to go down and help too. They were curious as to what Sierra had in mind.

As the fires in the grills were stoked, everything was coming together nicely. As soon as the first sausages were placed on the grills, the aromatic fragrance of spiced meats filled the air.

Even with the windows closed, you could still smell it. In fact, the aromatic fragrance accompanied by smoke, travelled towards the main building of the castle too. Though it did not reach the King or Queens’ Quarters, it still caught the attention of the palace staff.

Soon enough, news of what Sierra was doing reached King Alistair’s ears.

"Repeat what you just said."

"My King?"

"Repeat what you just told me," Alistair asked again, a little more annoyed then before.

The messenger cleared his throat as a droplet of sweat trickled down his forehead, "Princess Sierra is hosting a barbecue, Your Majesty."

Perhaps he should have expected such behavior from her by now. But Sierra never failed to amuse him, and this was no exception. Alistair rose to his feet and left his Quarters. The closer he got to Celestial Lodge, the stronger the scent in the air.

Smoked wood and spiced meats. It had been quite sometime since he’s smelt anything close to it. After all, it was not typical cuisine served in a castle to royals. Along the way, he also noticed the confused looks of his subjects. freёweɓnovel.com

Alistair turned to one of his personal servants.

"Yes, My King?"

"Bring the smoked sausages we received as tribute from the desert kingdom of Makesh, along with the racks of ribs we’ve been dry aging," he instructed.

The servant paused for a moment with wide eyes. He did not dare look up at his King, but he had to ask to confirm what he had just heard.

"All of it, Your Majesty?" that was enough food to feed the entire castle!

"Yes all of it. Bring the apple wood from the store as well.I doubt they’ll have enough fire wood."

With that, Alistair continued on his way. Upon his arrival everyone was stunned. The look on his face did not help them ease their worry either. All of them parted way for him to walk through them.

Alistair paid them no mind. He was used to people acting that way around him. By the time he got to the line of grills, he was impressed. Sierra was managing them well with the help of the chefs. The first batch of meats was already on the grill.

When the chefs and servants saw the King, they immediately dropped to their knees.

"We can’t just leave the meats on the grill without tending! They’ll-" Sierra looked up and immediately lowered her head and curtsied.

"King Alistair, my apologies. I did not see you there," she mumbled with embarassment.

"Spare for the formalities. And you’re forgiven, princess. Don’t let those meats get burnt," he chimed with a smile.

Though his mask obscured his expression a little, Sierra knew he was smirking. She bit her lip and got back to work as the chefs and servants carried on with their preparation.

Tables and chairs were set up in the courtyard as per the King’s instructions. Sweat trickled down Sierra’s forehead. She had not expected things to turn out the way they did. All she wanted to do was to make use of the wild boar meat that was available.

Perhaps a little selfish on her end, but she wanted to do so partly to reminisce the times she had eaten grilled wild boar sausages while on the road with her father. It was one of the happiest memories she had with him. She had been missing him as of late, wondering how he was doing.

Sierra let out a sigh as she busied herself, helping the chefs. She could feel Alistair’s gaze on her. Each time she glanced up for a fraction of a second, she would catch him looking at her direction.

Once the first plate was ready, she brought it to him personally. Despite how the situation developed, she could not deny one thing.

Of every person she wanted to share the moment with, it was with Alistair. She paid everyone else no mind.

"Princess Cassandra caught a wild boar earlier today, so I asked the kitchen to prepare the spice rub and the grill to make these. It’s simple food, but delicious. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do, Your Majesty," Sierra said as she placed the plate before him.

"Thank you, Princess Sierra. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it very much." Alistair replied with a smile as he dug into the plate.

He’d been salivating from the moment he saw the meats on the grills. The perks of being King, gave him first dibs. Cutting into the sausage, the trapped juices from the meat and spices kept it moist. One bite was enough to set his taste buds alight.

"This is really good. Great work, princess," Alistair commended.

Sierra could not help but beam with pride. She quickly accepted Alistair’s praise before returning to the grill stations to help. With the King’s stamp of approval, everyone wanted a taste of the food too.

Sierra knew there wasn’t going to be enough for everyone, and she felt a little sad. She had hoped there would be enough for the staff to try too. But when the servants from the castle brought more helpers, grills, wood and more meats, Sierra realised Alistair had predicted as much.

They looked at each other, smiling.