Preparation

Hiroto had to prepare for his brother's wedding, a task Fred assigned. Hiroto found it incredibly cruel for Fred to assign him this role. After all, the bride was his ex-fiancée, someone Hemal had cherished. But Hiroto wasn't Hemal, so he could just suck it up.

When people talked about wedding preparations, they meant a lot of things—like a lot. This included making a guest list, sending invitations, booking a venue, arranging food and shelter for every guest, calling a priest, and much more. All of it had to be done under a limited budget. Although the Rodricks were considered noble, they were among the lowest-ranked. Still, they were nobles, so they needed to display their power and wealth; otherwise, others would look down on them.

The worst part was that everything fell on Hiroto. What about others, you ask? Luna was busy preparing herself, deciding what dress she would wear and how she could have fun. Meanwhile, the first wife was occupied with her "kitty parties," mostly bragging about her son. She was also in charge of the female guests, so she wasn't completely free. And the family elders? They were busy with their own affairs and could only offer minimal help.

So, the entire workload landed on Hiroto. But Hiroto was okay with it because he could do anything for the wedding; all the power was in his hands. When Fred asked him to prepare for the wedding, Hiroto was initially confused about why he had been chosen. It was then that he realized that Hemal had prepared every past event in the Rodrick Family. So, everyone was doing the same this time.

The event would span two days, and he only had one month to prepare. He made a to-do list so he wouldn't forget anything. And even if he did forget something, he wouldn't care; it was their mistake to dump all the work on him.

First on the list was food. The house chef would prepare the food. If needed, they could hire helpers. Hiroto remembered the banquet's food. It wasn't anything grand—more like a regular house meal with bread, wine, soup, porridge, meat, etc. Hiroto wondered what was even royal about that. He went to the kitchen to meet the head chef.

"So, Mr. Garge, how are preparations going?" Hiroto called out.

Garge was instructing other workers when Hiroto approached.

"Oh, Young Lord Hemal." He turned around. "We were just waiting for you."

Hiroto noticed that the kitchen felt like a five-star restaurant's kitchen. He kept his thoughts to himself. Garge took him to another location where various dishes were already prepared. "As you can see, these are the dishes we considered serving during the marriage. If you could please test and approve them, we could proceed with calculating how many ingredients we'll need."

Hiroto saw dozens of dishes lined up, one after another. He sat at a table, and dishes were brought to him.

"First up, roasted griffin meat. It's roasted at 500 °C for 20 minutes, and later a secret gravy is layered on it to give it a finishing touch."

Hiroto had never had griffin meat before. It was extremely red and looked like it would burn his mouth if he ate it. Hiroto took a bite regardless. Contrary to his expectation, his mouth didn't burn; instead, the meat melted, and all the flavors seeped in.

"This is good," he declared.

Garge just smiled and ordered the next dish. It was a peacock stuffed with spiced fruits and nuts. It was juicy and lived up to noble cuisine. After that came whole suckling pigs glazed to a golden crisp.

"All the ingredients used in these dishes are a luxury, so we could only prepare one of these dishes," Garge explained.

But that wasn't the end. After the meats came the beverages: the finest, oldest wines and meads, some perhaps aged in magically sealed cellars or infused with rare herbs for unique properties. Exotic fruit nectars and pure, magically filtered waters were served in ornate goblets. Then, fresh fruits and vegetables, even those out of season, were flown in from warmer climates. Crystal grapes, shimmering berries, vibrant salads with edible flowers, and sweet, crisp root vegetables prepared in complex, layered dishes were all presented.

These were all dishes Hiroto had never encountered before, and he liked every single one. But he couldn't prepare all of them because the family had a small budget. Still, Hiroto felt something was missing and knew what to do. He told Garge which dishes needed to be prepared and gave additional instructions. Garge was surprised by Hiroto's words but decided to do whatever he was asked. Hiroto left the kitchen after that.

Next up was the venue. They could have used the main palace as the venue, but that could have negatively impacted the family's image. So they needed to book a place that could truly show the family's might. The venue decided upon was an even bigger palace than their original house, with a vast field in front of it. Hiroto toured the area; it had everything needed for the event. The only thing he needed to do was arrange for decorations.

After booking the venue for the wedding, Hiroto went to the city. He needed help from someone there. He stopped in front of a shop. The sign on the shop read 'The Humble Alchemist'. He entered, and a bell chimed.

"Coming..." A female voice called from inside. The person emerged from the back of the shop, covered in soot. That wasn't the strange part; she had large, rabbit-like ears on her head. If a rabbit were to look human, that would be her. Hiroto looked at her intensely.

"Hello, customer, how can I help you?" she asked.

"...I am Hemal Rodrick, second son of the Rodrick family," Hiroto replied with a slight lag. "I want you to prepare something like this."

Hiroto handed her a paper. Confusion was evident on her face, and Hiroto was amazed to observe the different expressions. "This is something I have never heard of or made," she admitted.

"So, you can't make it?" Hiroto asked, disappointed. He didn't press further, realizing it wasn't something crucial and could be skipped.

"No, listen to me. I think it is possible to make it. It will take a little time," she clarified.

Hiroto hummed in acknowledgment.

"And I can only prepare the ingredients for it. You need an expert to make the end product."

Hiroto was unaware of most things, including who could make the end product. He asked directly, "Do you know who can complete the product?"

"Dwarves usually do these things."

"Dwarves... Where can I find one?"

"You don't need to go anywhere; I know a Dwarf. He can probably help with this. But there will be a separate fee for the Dwarf."

Hiroto nodded. It was to be expected.

"Alright, that would be good. Can you also show this to your Dwarf friend?"

She took another paper from Hiroto with a hint of curiosity.

"Can I take a look as well?"

"Of course," Hiroto replied. There was nothing to hide.

"This... this is. I don't know what to say about this," she muttered, clearly impressed.

Hiroto chuckled slightly.

"Well, if you need any ingredients, you can ask the palace."

Hiroto thought for a while.

"Can you prepare a prototype in a week?"

Hiroto discussed the terms and conditions of the order and bargained the price. He didn't know if he ripped her off or not, but he felt he did a good job.

Next up was checking the guest list. Hiroto found the person preparing it and began cross-referencing names. There were four invitations: Diamond, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Like nobility, the invitation rank determined a guest's standing during the event. Giving the wrong type of invitation could offend someone and potentially harm the Rodrick family, making this a crucial task. They couldn't just hand out Diamond invitations to everyone, as it would undermine the authority of other nobles.

Hiroto checked the list carefully. There were only four Diamond invitations: one for the Priestess from the Holy Kingdom, one for the Leo Family (who ranked just below the royal family), one for the royal family itself, and one for the Shaw Family. Since the Rodrick family was organizing everything, the Shaws were also invited as guests. The list also included brief descriptions of each guest.

Commoners were also invited to the marriage. But their venue was different from that of the noble families. They were not sent any invitation; instead, a messenger was sent to the city who would read the invitation aloud in front of the people.

Hiroto meticulously reviewed all the names and gave the order to send the invitations.

After that, Hiroto needed to look into the musical group for entertainment during the event. The family had already selected a group, but Hiroto had to decide on the music they would play and in what sequence. He listened to the musical group play, and Hiroto genuinely liked their selections. After giving them a few more instructions, he left them to practice.

All the preparations took a month. He revisited the alchemist, and that's when he realized he never knew her name. Her name was Coral. He also met her Dwarf friend. Hiroto had thought Dwarves were a proud race who looked down on humans, but he was wrong. Hammer was a down-to-earth Dwarf, and talking to him was very easy. Hammer was impressed by the items Hiroto requested, and because of this, Hiroto even received a discount on the deal.

Hiroto was busy every day, and before he knew it, a month had passed.