The two of them returned to the living room.
Katarina had also finished tidying up her room and walked out, just in time to run into Fiora.
"Nice to meet you," Fiora greeted the red-haired Katarina.
She had already learned from Luke that Katarina was the new maid he had taken in at the border.
"Nice to meet you."
Katarina answered while looking at Fiora, clearly sensing the extraordinary aura of the woman before her.
Her instincts told her that Fiora was also a very formidable person.
At this moment, Fiora's gaze also swept over Katarina's delicate face. Then, without changing her expression, she glanced at Luke, who was sitting on the sofa.
Luke, who was drinking hot tea, felt an inexplicable chill flash across his back. He remained sitting there as steady as a mountain and had no desire to turn around at all.
It was currently afternoon.
If Katarina had to evaluate the atmosphere inside this house, her evaluation would be that it was no different from when they were in Hill City.
It was slow. For some reason, she always felt that time became very slow here.
It was unlike Noxus, where every minute and every second was urgent, and every person moved forward like rolling wheels.
She did not know whether Demacia as a whole was like this, but after spending so much time around Luke, she was certain that this guy definitely was not.
Clearly, this guy looked so young, but the way he lived his life did not have the slightest bit of a young person's energy.
It was not that this kind of life was bad. Katarina just was not very used to it yet.
At this moment, Lux, who had been lying in front of the fireplace, sat up. Her eyes brightened as if she had thought of something, and she quickly found a game board.
Because they had gone beyond the border to fight a war, this game board had not been brought along.
Now that she saw it again, Lux found herself rather missing it. She looked at Katarina with a beaming smile. "You definitely haven't played five-in-a-row before, right? Interested in a couple of games?"
Hearing this, Katarina did indeed look over with some interest. She walked over, sat down, and asked, "How do you play?"
"It's very simple. Horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, as long as five pieces of the same color land on these points and connect into a line, you win."
Lux enthusiastically explained the rules.
Luke glanced over there, then withdrew his gaze, too lazy to pay attention.
In truth, this girl's skill was not that bad anymore. She was a little above ordinary level, after all, she had played for quite a while. It was just that this girl had a particular love for beating up beginners.
The main issue was that she could not keep bullying them for long. The other person's skill would quickly surpass hers, or at least become equal to hers.
The five-in-a-row match began over there.
Fiora looked at Kahina and asked, "After going to the border, did you practice your swordsmanship?"
Kahina nodded, her eyes bright. "I practiced every day. Does Miss Duelist want to see my progress?"
Fiora stood with a light smile and walked toward the back courtyard. "Then come."
The two of them went to the back courtyard, and Poppy also followed along to watch the fun.
Sona remained sitting quietly over there, refining her music.
Sitting in the living room, they could still hear the sound of her playing. It was like a lounge at sunset playing a leisurely and relaxing tune, making the ears feel rather satisfied.
Lying on the sofa, Luke thought that Quinn should also have received the news of his return by now. He wondered where she was at this moment.
While he was thinking, footsteps came from outside. Not long after, Quinn walked in.
After not seeing her for some time, her temperament seemed much steadier.
After seeing Luke, Quinn's eyes lit up, and she said happily, "Your Highness."
Looking at her, Luke also showed a smile. "I was just thinking about you."
"I heard about what Your Highness did beyond the border. It was amazing."
Quinn had never hidden her admiration for Luke. When she said this, she also felt somewhat regretful that she had not been able to follow Luke this time.
"It wasn't that amazing. I just wiped out a Noxian force."
Luke waved his hand humbly.
Katarina, who was studying five-in-a-row, had the corner of her mouth twitch. As a Noxian, hearing that a Noxian army had been wiped out and then used by someone else as a casual boast made her mood rather complicated.
Sigh.
She sighed faintly in her heart and shifted her attention back to the game board. This five-in-a-row was actually quite interesting.
Luke stood up and walked outside. "Let's talk outside."
"Mm."
Quinn followed.
The two of them came to the front courtyard, then sat down.
Luke asked, "Did you discover anything?"
"I discovered quite a lot."
Quinn thought for a moment, then continued, "Let's start with Russell Chambers. Right now, he's living alone in one place, but Tourt often goes there. He doesn't stay long, leaving after about half an hour. They should be discussing certain matters."
Luke listened and nodded slightly without speaking, continuing to listen.
Quinn continued, "Also, among the nobles who secretly helped Queen Melli leave the capital back then, there seems to have been the shadow of House Chambers. However, there were far too few clues regarding this, so I couldn't dig up more information."
"House Chambers…"
Luke pondered slightly.
This was also an upper-class noble house of the capital. Russell was Tourt's uncle, and also one of the previous noble representatives.
He had also been one of the more powerful nobles among those who had opposed Jarvan III making Melli queen back then.
However, many years ago, he had already stepped down. The person who inherited his position was Tourt.
If they wanted to know more details from back then, they would probably have to question Russell face-to-face.
This was information Quinn could not investigate.
It seemed this matter could not be rushed. Luke knew that Jarvan III was also investigating what had happened back then. If he wanted to, he should have already summoned Russell.
Seeing Luke return from his thoughts, Quinn continued, "During this period, I also paid special attention to Eldred. While maintaining his daily work, I discovered that he has close dealings with several noble houses. So I paid attention to those nobles and found that they seem to be secretly hiding mages. Eldred's role is helping them hide those mages."
The commander of the Mageseekers was actively helping nobles hide mages. It sounded ridiculous when spoken aloud.
By rights, his duty was to arrest all mages.
But if one truly wanted to be serious about it, then the capital's dungeons would probably be holding even more mages, including no small number of noble heirs.
No matter who dealt with this matter, they would probably have no choice but to turn a blind eye.
Looking at it this way, Jarvan III's proposal to pardon mages was actually the better method.
Yet there had been more than just a few people who stood up to oppose it.
Aside from a portion of the old conservative faction with outdated views, there were definitely some people with ulterior motives mixed in.
Luke pondered for a second, then asked, "During this period, did you discover anyone acting suspiciously?"
After his words fell, a hint of confusion appeared in Quinn's eyes.
Luke also knew that asking it this way was indeed a little off. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Or rather, among those who came into contact with these houses, were there any new faces?"
Hearing this, Quinn carefully recalled for a few seconds before shaking her head. "I haven't discovered any suspicious new faces."
"A Noxian assassin has come to our side."
Luke then slowly explained, "There's no way he could have silently slipped all the way from beyond the border into the capital. Either he used some special method, or…"
Quinn was smart, so she naturally understood what Luke wanted to say. She nodded. "I understand, Your Highness. Next, I'll pay attention to this person."
Luke looked at her. "Your mission remains the same. Continue helping me watch them. You've worked hard during this period."
Quinn smiled. "It isn't hard. Being able to share Your Highness's burdens is what I've always wanted to do."
She truly did not feel that it was hard.
After chatting with Quinn for a while longer, the sky had already darkened.
It was now close to dusk. Winter nights came quickly, and Luke also felt a little hungry.
So he stood up, preparing to start making dinner.
If asked what he wanted to eat most right now, after thinking about it, Luke still wanted fondue.
This winter, he had only eaten it once before setting out beyond the border.
Now that he had returned, he absolutely had to eat more good food.
Moreover, fondue was convenient to make. The equipment from last time was all still there. Light the fire, mix a bit of broth base, wait for the pot to heat up, and then they could start eating.
After arranging for Yurna to go outside and buy ingredients, Luke began preparing.
When Yurna returned, he processed the ingredients a bit, then began heating the pot.
Before long, the fondue was already steaming hot. The rising steam seemed to scatter the winter chill.
Just like last time, one half was spicy, and one half was clear broth.
The spicy seasoning Luke mixed was absolutely rich in flavor, both fragrant and hot.
Very soon, it attracted the girls in the house and the back courtyard one by one.
When everyone gathered around the fondue pot and looked at the bright red spicy broth, they immediately remembered last time.
Looking at it now, they were afraid, but they also especially wanted to eat it.
Katarina did not know about this. Looking at the spicy pot with its rich aroma, she had to admit she was tempted.
Watching Luke put the ingredients into the pot, she was already somewhat impatient by the time he said they could eat.
Seeing this, Lux still kindly reminded her, "Be careful. This is really spicy."
"What I fear least is spice."
Katarina nodded, the corner of her mouth lifting into a confident smile, her heart filled with disdain.
What a joke.
She, Katarina, was not even afraid of poison. How could she be afraid of spice?
After glancing at the spicy dipping sauce Luke had prepared, she directly made herself an extra-spicy version.
Very soon, she picked up a meatball, dipped it in the sauce, and put it into her mouth.
The hot meatball entered her mouth, making her breathe out a few times. The meatball rolled around in her mouth, coating it with the fragrant spicy juice. Then she bit down, and a burst of delicious flavor spread out.
At this moment, her bright green eyes lit up all at once, and she could not help looking at Luke one more time.
She knew this meatball had been made by him. She had seen him busy in the kitchen for a long while earlier, but she had not expected it to be this good.
It should have been made with shrimp, with some other things added in, then kneaded into this round, white meatball.
Biting into it, she could taste the rich aroma of fresh shrimp mixed with the fragrance of the spicy broth. It was so delicious that it reached an addictive level.
After following this guy for so long, this was the first time Katarina learned that he actually knew how to cook.
This single meatball directly awakened Katarina's appetite, and her fork repeatedly sank into the spicy broth.
Compared with her charging straight for the spicy side, the other girls, who had already experienced this once before, alternated between both sides of the pot.
When they were too overwhelmed by the spice, they would first eat some clear-broth ingredients to slow down. Once they wanted to eat it again, they would reach their forks back into the spicy pot.
Even so, in the middle of this winter, each of their pretty faces turned red from the spice. Fragrant sweat covered them, and not a trace of cold remained on their bodies.
Fondue truly was the god of winter.
At this moment, they sincerely sighed with emotion in their hearts.
After some time passed, looking at Katarina again, her forehead was already covered in sweat. She had unconsciously begun hissing and breathing in, her face red, and even her cool eyes looked somewhat dazed.
Clearly, the heat had kicked in.
At this moment, she felt her tongue going numb, and her throat was like it had caught fire. Even her stomach felt as if it were burning.
It was not that she had never eaten spicy food before. It was just that only today did she learn that the things she had eaten before simply did not count as spicy at all.
Although her body had a very high immunity to toxins, that did not mean she could be immune to peppers.
Spice was a kind of pain.
Katarina glanced at the clear broth beside her and swallowed, wanting to eat something from there to slow down.
However, just as she stretched out her fork, Luke saw her.
So he kindly reminded her, "The spicy broth is over here."
Katarina's outstretched hand froze in the air. She forcibly changed direction, then said, "I got a little distracted."
Once again, she picked up a slice of fatty beef from the spicy pot, dipped it in her sauce bowl, then put it into her mouth.
As for how it felt, it was like a bomb that was about to explode detonating with a boom.
Luke saw her standing there in a bit of a daze and could not help saying, "If you think it's spicy, eat some from the clear broth."
Katarina came back to herself and sneered. "It's not spicy. This is nothing."
Fiora and Lux looked at her current appearance and could not help showing the exact same look at the same time.
The way she was being stubborn really looked just like them back then.
Hearing this, Luke also smiled. "Then eat more. You've finished dipping up the spicy sauce in your bowl, so why not go add more?"
Katarina lowered her head and glanced at it. After a moment of silence, she walked toward the seasoning area.
Then, under Luke's gaze, she mixed herself another extra-spicy sauce.
Luke said, "I didn't expect you to like spicy food this much. You can make more."
Katarina took a deep breath, added several more spoonfuls to her bowl, turned around, and walked back to the fondue pot. Without saying a word, she began eating again.
She seemed to be mustering all her strength, starting to take huge mouthfuls.
Her lips were as red as blood and had even begun swelling slightly.
At first, the girls were still somewhat worried about her condition. Later, they gradually came to believe that she really could eat spicy food.
At least, none of them could eat this way.
In order to maintain the boast she had blurted out at the very beginning, Katarina had paid far, far too much.
After she finished eating, she coldly left behind one sentence, "Not spicy enough." Then, looking at the admiring gazes of the other girls, she turned around and left proudly.
It was just that she felt as if her entire body had caught fire at this moment.
That said, on this point, Luke did admire her quite a bit.
At the very least, this red-haired girl's stubborn mouth was truly tough.
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