Chapter 80

"Delicious!! The cheese is melting!!"

The pizza baked in the stone oven seemed to be well-received by the carpenters. Given that it was baked in the stone oven they had built, their sense of accomplishment seemed to have doubled.

"Enjoying the fruits of our labor with a good meal! This is the ultimate reward for a carpenter!!"

Carter, the foreman, took a bite of the pizza while watching the dog park. The reason they held the celebration outside today was to let the carpenters enjoy their meal while seeing the results of their hard work. Fortunately, the weather was nice, and the carpenters seemed to feel a comfortable sense of fatigue and satisfaction.

In the somewhat noisy but bright atmosphere, the carpenters devoured the pizza and other dishes. Gū-sama watched intently as the sliced pizza disappeared.

"Guruuuu?"

"Hey, don't I get any pizza?" he seemed to be demanding with a low growl.

"Gū-sama, please wait a moment. I've already asked them to bake a pizza for the wolves."

While trying to calm Gū-sama, I looked at the stone oven. The pizza baked today contained many ingredients toxic to canines, such as onions. I had prepared a pizza without onions, with less salt, and more meat for the wolves.

"I have two pizzas, but I'll only give you two slices. The rest should be shared with the other wolves."

"Muguuuuu………"

"Muu. If it's for the wolves, I guess I have no choice. I'll accept it," Gū-sama reluctantly sat next to me, his front paws neatly aligned, looking adorable.

Despite his fierce profile, his nose was pointed towards the stone oven. His tail wagged impatiently, and his mind seemed to be filled with anticipation for the pizza. I had heard that Gū-sama was a picky eater with little appetite, but for some reason, he seemed to be more enthusiastic about food in this palace.

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I had received permission from Mōr, the wolf keeper, to give Gū-sama food. It seems that Gū-sama's difficult personality also affects his eating habits, making him a light eater. I was told that if Gū-sama asks for food, I should definitely give it to him.

"Hehe, Gū-sama, in terms of food, you might be a bit like His Majesty?"

Comparing a wolf to His Majesty might be presumptuous, but sometimes, perhaps because of their similar eye color, their impressions overlap. Whether Gū-sama knew my thoughts or not, he turned away. The pizza's baking might have been more important to him than my muttering.

To meet Gū-sama's expectations, I cut the pizza from the stone oven into slices. When I placed it on a plate for the wolves, Gū-sama immediately started eating. He bit into it with his fangs and quickly swallowed it.

"Does he like it? What a good appetite."

Seeing Gū-sama eat so deliciously, my eyes naturally drooped. It was funny to see him flustered when cheese got stuck around his eyes. I reached out to remove the cheese, and he seemed embarrassed, as if to say, "I don't need to thank you for such a small thing."

While Gū-sama was focused on the pizza, his movements suddenly stopped. He sniffed the air and turned his face towards the entrance of the palace grounds, where visitors would arrive. His ears were perked up, and his limbs were spread out. It was unusual for Gū-sama to show such alertness.

"Kyaaaah!!"

"What's going on?"

"The griffin is making a noise. Is something wrong?"

The carpenters were murmuring. The griffin, Fon, was intelligent and served as a guard dog without making unnecessary noise. Perhaps someone suspicious was trying to intrude?

I cautiously focused my gaze on the entrance of the palace grounds, where Fon and Gū-sama were looking.

"Excuse me. I'm sorry for the disturbance."

With a light greeting, a young man and a creature appeared. The young man had black hair with a bluish tinge, and the creature was unfamiliar.

"Is that creature a scale horse……?"

It was about the size of a horse, standing on two hind legs, with a lizard-like appearance. Its body was covered in light brown scales, and it had black, round eyes on the sides of its face.

I had never seen one before, but I was sure that in the Southern Continent, it was treated like a horse. I had imagined it to look like a dinosaur, but it was more playful and had a charming face.

Who is the young man with the scale horse? He didn't look like he was from the Southern Continent, but rather from the western part of this continent. To confirm his identity, I decided to address him as the palace's owner.

"Good day. It's nice to meet you. I am Letizia, the owner of this palace. What brings you here?"

"Oh, sorry about that. I'm Hailoot, an artist. I just returned to the capital after a long time, so I decided to visit……"

Hailoot's gaze was not on me but on Gū-sama beside me.

"……That wolf has cheese on his mouth and seems to be quite attached to you, Letizia-sama."

Hailoot smiled pleasantly, his eyes narrowing like his hair, a friendly but unreadable smile.

"Guguu………"

"……I've been seen by a troublesome person……" Gū-sama seemed to be saying, as he grumbled unhappily.