Castle of Loch Ness

Apparently Arthur himself didn't see the goodness of his speech, it would take Guinevere but a moment to think of the best way to summarize its goodness. "Well, earnestness is an attitude that this continent has been lacking for quite a while. You'd be surprised how far honesty can get you with people who haven't known it," she mentioned in a haphazard way. Still they'd be able to move on, there was a newly developing problem of feeding the masses, Arthur rather suddenly sought Merlyn. "Hm, before she left us, she said she was going to do something about the monster in the lake," Guinevere remembered the rather flippant way that the Lady Merlyn had exited their presence. One could wonder what he wished to know of the lass who remained covered for whatever reason. Perhaps one of the others had seen her recently.

In the meantime, what was Merlyn doing? Laughing, participating in the little teasing show that Sir Dagonet was putting on for the few remaining citizens and waiting for the right time to join Sir Hector to move that beast he'd slain. "Spring chicken? Oh my... a girl might blush from such honeyed words~" Merlyn managed, she was still laughing. His further prodding seemed to get the last of the stragglers laughing along and on his side. Merlyn wiggled herself free of this man's hold and gave a minor bow as claps began and she managed to stand up straight. "Oh, right on time, Sir Dagonet, how about you escort these people back I...." a pause came from Merlyn in the moment. "Achoo~" she sneezed a little into the corner of her arm. "I bet he's talking about me, how rude after all I've done today~" she mused as if she was truly annoyed. But in the moment she wasn't unhappy at all, in fact she'd tolerate this for the sake of keeping up this new space of theirs. "Oops, sorry about that. Anyway, I think it is about time I help Sir Hector bring back dinner," she mentioned with a flicker of her gaze in the eastern direction. "Also, you have my thanks, Sir Dagonet. You're quite good~" she mentioned to him specifically. She was pleased to have found herself smiling and in good humor. At this point, she hardly regretted the moment which she'd had to use to free him, because she got to experience him in this way.

"Really? I'm not surprised to hear it's bad all over after what I've seen, but is it really that bad?" Arthur asked. A brief glance in the civilians' direction, and Arthur realized the answer was... yes. Those people seemed so hopeful after so long, one could only believe they lived in depravity for many years. Merlyn would certainly be useful right about now, if he could actually find where she'd run off to. Ah yes, she did say something about the lake monster, didn't she? He had been so unsurprised by the idea of a real Loch Ness Monster, he'd forgotten about the entire ordeal. Damn. Well, surely she would be popping up again eventually. Until then, it was best to get started. "Dinner should be started sooner rather than later, I suppose. As much as I hate to ask, anyone willing to lend a hand is more than welcome to join me in the kitchen," he said before turning on his heel, heading off to find... hopefully a very large pot.

The final people of Loch Ness were being swayed successfully into approaching the castle. Even so, he was not quite done with Merlyn. Prior to her announced departure, the sorceress sneezed. Since he was free from dealing with the people who were already on their way, he spun around Merlyn and manifested a balloon handkerchief. Naturally, such a thing was to be brought up to her nose. Dagonet did have a fair idea of where her nose would be beneath that hood's shadow, but he rather purposefully moved it toward her mouth instead. "The poor maiden has fallen ill~! An allergy to honey, perhaps? Blow, blow~! It is the least a mere jester can offer after causing an allergic reaction of this ma~gnitude~! Take this, Merlyn, in these swe~et moments of parting~!"

Guinevere thought about how best to answer Arthur's inquiry. Surely, he'd just popped up here, so he could have no idea how bad things truly were in this world, but if he was used to the idea of this being a video game she suspected he should have a bit better of an idea than most of how things played out. "From what I heard, not all places are bad. The Kingdoms that managed to ascend from this continent are well-managed and their general populations well taken care of, which is probably why people are looking for 'salvation'," Guinevere stated of her general knowledge of history. "But in the last few decades, the lower continent has been quite war-torn. A few kingdoms stood for decades with reasonable leadership, but several kingdoms fell. Some were taken over by strange people and emptied out, after a 'benevolent' ruler popped up out of nowhere..." she said of the news she'd been privy to before even the whole Kolin situation. Little did she know that Kolin or rather Mai Valentine was almost exclusively responsible for everything wrong on this continent after the rise of the desert kingdom. But this explanation was about all that was needed, she would offer her own services to help with dinner. Though she didn't cook often she was at least reasonable as an extra set of hands. "I can help a bit, I am fairly good at following directions..." she said softly. At the same time, Emilia popped up to comment as well. "I am an okay cook, and Guinevere is good at following directions. I can help. Besides I want to see what Merlyn did with the kitchens she said she took care of it~" mentioned Emilia who was more than ready to help. Had they been cleaning as normal... they likely wouldn't have been ready to start dinner for such a large number of people, as such she was gaining a great respect for Merlyn's use of her magic and foresight.

The final people of Loch Ness were on their way and after her little sneeze, Dagonet came with more jokes for Merlyn. A balloon shaped like a handkerchief was soon shoved in her mouth and it caused her a mumbled laugh while Dagonet spoke of her potential allergies and sweet parting. Ah, what a mood elevator this one was, she couldn't help but smile even beneath her hood. After managing to remove the balloon from her mouth she finally spoke, in a truly light-hearted manner. "Far be it for a lady to turn down such an esteemed token~" she gave a playful bow and in the same moment flashed Dagonet those glowing magenta eyes of hers. "Sir Dagonet, you do me a great kindness and bring me much joy~" she stated as she rose and placed a hand against the side of his face. "We should hang out more~" she mused, she quite enjoyed this young man. She knew she would but it was different as an experience. Ah, she really did need to leave him for now though, "Going to retrieve dinner now... there are a lot of people waiting around and I am sure Sir Cador and Emilia would appreciate the help while they are waiting~" Merlyn stated before she began walking east. But soon she'd be out of eye sight and walking up on Sir Hector instead, that balloon handkerchief still in hand. "So, how did hunting dinner go?" she asked of the man figuring she'd at least do the hard part of moving it to the larder.

The state of the world, at least at this level, would only become more clear to Arthur as time passed. For now, he had only a few examples paired with hearsay about how terrible things were. Little did anyone know, the fault was almost exclusively held by a single person. Over time, perhaps he would even know that. Alas, it wasn't worth concern at present; there were struggling innocents that needed warm food and cold drink in their bellies. Both Guinevere and Emilia offered their assistance in the kitchen; that would do for a start. Cador refrained from joining them, however. "I'll stay with them. Everything here will be taken care of while dinner is prepared," the Spirit Knight announced. Arthur nodded to his purple-haired companion, moving toward the kitchen thereafter. "Well, I have plenty of directions for the two of you then. Come on!" Arthur said excitedly. He was rather giddy to have an opportunity to cook with others, yet for some reason, there was a foreboding aura surrounding the knight as he shared his excitement.

With the acceptance of Dagonet's offering, Merlyn offered the notion that they should hang out more, and a flash of those strange, glowing eyes was seen by the jester knight. "It will be my humble self's honor, my magical queen~" he said with another exaggerated bow. He would happily accompany Merlyn any day. Like most of the current knights seemed to, he had an interesting amount of respect and admiration to offer the sorceress. One who would agree with this notion, was Hector... who was able to lay eyes upon Merlyn mere moments after her departure. When she appeared, she would find Sir Hector seated upon the head of a fallen flying bison. The beast had been slain with a single slash along its underbelly. If not for its weight upon the wound, it would have been spilling its innards from nape to chops, though it had long since lost its life energy. This flying bison was about four tons, hardly into adulthood and without much potential among its kind. How did the hunt go, then? "Lady Merlyn. Hello again. I wouldn't call it a hunt, as much as I would refer to it as gathering groceries. Should I assume I am fortunate enough to earn the great Merlyn's assistance in carrying it back?"

Sir Cador would stay with the people, Sir Dagonet was on his way back and Arthur had two victims for his work in the kitchen. Both Emilia and Guinevere seemed to note with a sense of foreboding. "I feel like he's too excited about this..." Emilia mentioned. "I'm going to regret this," she muttered flicking that one piece of her hair. "Well, since he seems too agitated about food, I think we are about to see the face behind the King Arthur we've come to know. Chin up, Lia... We go into battle this day!" Guinevere mentioned. She was more than fully prepared for this to be an experience unlike any other. Still, she and Emilia had overcome a woman much worse than Arthur, even if he was a slave driver in the kitchen it was a battle they could win... at least. Somehow, Guinevere's words served to properly motivate Emilia, maybe it was the Charisma skill she so artfully developed, maybe it was simply a matter of their friendship but regardless they would follow Arthur into the kitchen hand in hand with their heads held high. A kitchen Arthur would find strangely put together like the Ashikaga Mansion's kitchen. Multiple stove tops, and ovens run by magic. A collection of found vegetables and spices along one side. Access to the Larder and even access to the storage room they'd looked into before. Beneath the cabinets pots and pans of more than reasonable quality, and several absolutely flawless sets of magical kitchen knives and the entirety of the kitchen was absolutely spotless. This was an image Merlyn seemed to think he'd like and as such she'd taken to making it a reality within this space. The appliances ran on magic and could thus be activated with a tap of mana and worked like gas stovetops and ovens. No more or less would be what she could offer given her own abilities.

At the same time, the parting words of Dagonet made Merlyn smile. She was at least pleased she'd managed to make reasonable impressions upon the Knights who'd be under Arthur's command. It would make it much easier for all of them if they could get along, especially given her own needs in such a moment. Not that she'd be feeding upon the unwilling nor was she the type to use them just for the sake of herself. She would give in return for everything she receieved and many would be seeing the benefit of her personality. One such person right just now, was Sir Hector, who had nothing but a happy greeting upon the slayed beast of choice. "Ah, well yes... Sir Hector. It was indeed grocery shopping, magical grocery shopping," she teased in a light-hearted manner. "And of course, you've more than earned a bit of reprieve~ I do thank you for taking care of the more menial task. I hate to admit it, but I am quite unskilled with weapons as such. The slaughter of such a beast without waste wasn't something so far within my own skill set~" she mused, of course she could have killed it, but not in a manner which would make it edible afterwards. At this very moment she clapped her hands together those eyes of hers glowing.

"Shift," what would this do, once again the world around them and this beast would warp drastically, moving them from this place on the eastern edge of the hamlet, to within the larder within just a few seconds. Using such a spell on something so widescale would be considered tiring even to one such as Merlyn but she was less concerned considering she could always gorge herself a bit later. "There, that should do it..." she said as the room returned to normal and she stuck her head out of the larder. "Ah, Sir Hector, here has gathered the meat... I took the liberty of relieving it of its innards, Nessie still needs a little snack for being such a good girl today~" she mused about the creature outside. "Is all in order Arthur?" she asked as if she expected him to be within this kitchen by the time she stuck her head out. Yes, within the larder there was now a four ton beast for use in the meal rotation, Merlyn had done her part this day and was now more than content to tap out for the time being.

True enough, Arthur was a bit too excited about their joint kitchen trip. There would be a battle of epic proportions, and the opponent was either the meal ahead... or Arthur's pickiness in the kitchen. At the very least, there would be a bit of hesitation the moment he set foot in the room. Emilia stated that Merlyn had done something with the kitchen, and well... she had certainly done quite a bit. The kitchen was a sight to behold indeed, and surprisingly constructed much to Arthur's ease of use. There were nearly sparkles in his eyes as he moved about the room, inspecting a few unfamiliar features here and there. There was magic afoot, of this there was no doubt. Arthur counted his lucky stars that he had the assistance of two individuals, each of whom would know how to activate the stoves and ovens. First though, he would pick up the pots and pans necessary, as well as a few cutting boards for preparatory work. "Well, there's a surprise. I thought Merlyn was a bit lazier than this," he said. Into the store room he went, collecting multiple sacks of potatoes, some of that atrocious dried meat─ he even slid in a barrel of oats. "First thing's first; we are not feeding these meats to anyone unless we have to. At the very least, it should work to make a rudimentary broth. Oats porridge and potato soup should stretch out nicely, and I guess the meat can..."

Arthur was prepared to make a decision he would hate for eternity. Just to optimize the value of food items, he would see to it that everything was used─ even the dried meat. Just then, however, he was met by an angel! Hector was along for the ride and responsible for acquiring meat, but Merlyn proved to be the bearer of good news this fine day. Arthur could see it through the doorway; there was a flying bison held inside the castle. The beast had already been gutted by Merlyn herself, and clearly taken down by Hector beforehand. "Oh, Merlyn, you beautiful creature!" he offered, likely the first praise he'd ever offered the sorceress... and potentially the last for quite some time, depending on events. Everything in Arthur's arms were released as he hopped into the next room, smiling and slinging an arm around Merlyn, and the other around Sir Hector. "You two earned the lion's share tonight! Guinevere! Emilia! Scratch that stupid plan; we're making a giant pot of curry for dinner!"

Within the kitchen, Emilia and Guinevere prepared. They donned aprons and got ready for cooking more practically. Both girls produced hair ties for themselves which they used to pull their hair up and out of the way before the washed their hands. Ah, yes. Cooking came with so many practical needs. At the very least, Arthur seemed to appreciate the work done by Merlyn on this kitchen but seemed to have a strange idea about the laziness of the sorceress in his mind. "Hm, I don't think that's a fair assessment. The Lady Merlyn did quite a bit to help us out today..." Emilia mentioned missing that lock of hair she normally twirled around but knowing that habit wasn't good for the kitchen in general. Moving along, it seemed that he really was quite anal about kitchen stuff. Broth and potatoes on the menu? Well that was workable. But surprise surprise... Merlyn and Sir Hector showed up in the larder apparently bringing gifts of meat for the hold. A smile spread across Emilia's face as she felt further vindicated in defending her honor a few seconds prior.

At Merlyn's approach she expected some scene from Hell's Kitchen with someone being berated to tears, herself included. Strangely, though in exactly this moment at seeing this large offering of meat, Merlyn was instead given a compliment. Behind her hood she managed to look only more surprised than normal her hand over her chest in genuine horror. "Sir Hector, did I die between the east and this castle?" she asked seemingly utterly serious. "I have never seen a compliment from this man before... I think it might be the end for me," she stated succinctly, even as Arthur dropped everything in his hands to sling an arm around both herself and Sir Hector, Merlyn was still in disbelief. Apparently, she and Sir Hector had earned a large portion of food for the night. "That's all well and good. I live off compliments though... feel free to spread my extra portion around to the other Knights and Ladies," Merlyn mentioned in a light tone, surprised he hadn't noticed that she didn't eat. Well, that wasn't exactly true she ate, just not food in the traditional sense. And he'd even changed his mind about the menu... Guinevere and Emilia looked at each other when the claim was made they'd be making curry. Emilia was excited, Guinevere figured it had to be good based on Emilia's reaction. "So, what do we do with the dried meat?" asked Emilia now that they had a menu set she knew this wasn't a necessary ingredient anymore.

Oh? Merlyn had done a lot to help out today, had she? Well if the kitchen was any sign of her efforts, those words from Emilia could only be the truest things said by anyone this day. Much was done here at least, and Merlyn deserved infinite praise for making it happen. Apparently, she took it as something incredibly surprising. "I don't believe that is the case, Lady Merlyn. I'm sure a blind man could see your value, whether it is expressed outside of the most major moments or not," said Hector in regards to the sorceress' recent acknowledgement by Arthur. Now, he would hop down from the flying bison's head, thinking it would be a fair exchange if he aided Merlyn in feeding the bison's innards to the Loch Ness monster. To offer, he extended his right hand. "If this has you out of your wits, allow me to accompany you on your task."

In the meantime, Arthur thought strangely of Merlyn's refusal. Why had he never seen her eating? Oh well; there would be a plate for her whether she claimed to want it or not. The same would be offered to Hector, whom he knew would refuse an extra serving either way. Now then, to deal with the beast was but a secondary thought. They could easily lop off a chunk or ten when the meat needed dicing and cooking, but Emilia wished to know what they should do with those horrid dried meats. Arthur turned to face the white-haired girl, his eyes void of all emotion. Had he suddenly grown three meters? Was there some strange thunderstorm happening within the castle walls? No, that wasn't right; it couldn't be, given how cold it suddenly was in the kitchen. None of these things were real, but such was the aura spewing from Arthur's every pore as he spoke slowly. "Destroy it. Never let it back into this kitchen. We eat fresh food; meats especially."

Ah, Arthur wouldn't know the kitchen was the least of her efforts. Done specifically to spare others from having to deal with his scary face while he cooked. Of course, she also knew the great number of people who would come into this space to live and knew what kind of beacon Loch Ness would become for the continent. Oh well, that was thoughts for the future no one needed besides Merlyn. Speaking of, she was soon answered by Sir Hector who claimed her untimely demise hadn't caught up to her at all. He went on to claim anyone could see her worth and she could only chuckle at the notion. "I mean you can say that, and I might even believe it Sir Hector... still something about it seems so very," she paused giving her next word consideration "Strange." she said with a wiggle of her fingers. But they were moving on now, and Sir Hector even offered her company while she went to feed her new pet. She could scarcely turn down the opportunity to be in such a just knight's company. "Well, I could hardly say no to such a generous offer, Sir Hector~" she mused gently placing her own hand in his extended right. Still, never one to actually leave a duty unfinished offered a simple question. "Do you need anything else, Arthur?" she asked of him, perhaps after seeing all she was capable of today, he'd learn the proper uses of a reality-bending, immortal sorceress, with knowledge of modern times.

At the same time, Emilia was having her question answered, but she still felt strange. The young man known as Arthur never truly seemed upset about anything... he'd even been uncommonly kind to the woman known as Kolin even while not being the type to be falling all over himself trying to have her. As such, this rather sudden change in demeanor specifically about dried meat was far from expected. "Okay, throwing out the dried meat..." she muttered backing off with raised hands. How strange was this. "So, are there any more weird personality triggers you have? Do we need a list?~" the kindly Guinevere teased as she began helping Emilia get rid of the apparent devil food that was dried meat.

Strange? Well, apparently the dynamic seen between Arthur and Merlyn had been ongoing for quite some time. It wasn't Hector's place to pry, but their relationship seemed healthy enough in a... very strange way indeed. From his perspective, it was almost as if they were siblings or coworkers, one always bickering about the other, albeit both leading each other to greater heights by proxy. Again, thinking too much about those matters was not Hector's place. Merlyn would take his escort along with his extended hand, so he would be chauffeur toward the lake. That is, after Merlyn paused to check with Arthur.

Arthur could hardly think of another thing needed for the evening, except perhaps a few additions to the meal itself. So many people were about to have their first hot meal in weeks, maybe months or years, so there was no reason not to make it an incredible experience, right? "If it's not too much trouble, we could use vegetables. Fresh onions and carrots, garlic, tomatoes, apples... the works. Oh, and could you do something about berries? I'd like wine for the adults, juice for the children." Ah, the workplace─ the only time Arthur could actually hand out instructions worth a damn. It seemed he simply expected Merlyn to get the job done as quickly and casually as she normally behaved about everything, so he was content to instruct Emilia and Guinevere without further hesitation. In fact, he essentially skipped over Guinevere's acknowledgement of his rather strange behavior regarding dried meats. She'd be seeing more results of his 'weird personality triggers' in the next few moments anyway. That is, if anyone could keep up with how quickly he delivered instructions... "As far as lists are concerned, the only one we need to worry about is a list of orders for the people we have here. Emilia, you seemed familiar with curry; can you make a roux for us? Guin, I'll be washing potatoes and sending them your way─ I need them cubed quickly and set to boil. We'll followed that with cubed carrots, minced onions, celery allumettes, and sliced apples. Before you're done with the carrots, I should be bouncing between the meat and sending more vegetables your way. Emilia, put that roux on in as many pots as you can find, but save space for the rice as well. We feed children first, then women and elderly, and finally the men. Questions?"