Chapter 42:
I Found my Pathetic Self Transported to Another World after Having my First Love Confession Rejected. Will I be Able to Find the Life I Want to Have here??
“Wait I forgot something!”, said Violet.
“What?”, asked Cera and turned around in the doorway.
Violet began rummaging through her stuff.
“Shit where is it…”, she said a bit panicked.
“What are you searching for.”, asked Cera.
“A small box.”
“What is in it?”
“Something I need today…”
“Okay… Ah you mean that?”
Cera held up the small box, and one of her undergarments.
“That’s it! Pass it over!”, said Cera and held out her hand.
“Only if I can keep the other thing for me…”
“Fine…”
“What? I was just joking… now I wanna know what’s in there.”
She went over to Violet and looked at the contents of the box.
“Oh, It’s beautiful! It goes well with y-“,
“Don’t say it! Sorry, but you are not the one I want to hear it from!”, interrupted Violet Cera.
The elf helped her put it on.
“Damn you look really fine today… You might as well steal the spotlight from the actual star of the nights… Caleb and Lena will get furious with you.”, said Cera looking Violet up and down.
“Thanks… let’s go, the Engagement Party has already started I think.”
“You just want to see him… right?”
“Maybe…”
Both of them made their way out of Violet’s room and down the hallway. They heard music coming from the ballroom as they descended the stairs. Someone waited at the bottom on them.
Alex looked up and saw them, more specifically he saw her. Violet wore a long purple dress with a simple but elegant-looking flower pattern. The dress left the shoulders exposed. Over them she wore a transparent shawl with gems in them, so it looked like she was surrounded by a glittering shroud. She had the hair up in a fancy hairdo with only two strands freely curling their way to the side of her face. The tips of them touched the Amulet rested on top of her cleavage. This was the second time Alex saw her in in a dress directly, but this time she seemed to enjoy it.
“You… ehm… look great… the amulet really goes perfect with your hair color, like I said.”, he said as she reached him.
“Oh, you remember.”, said Violet and gave him a big smile.
“And to me you say nothing?”, asked Cera pouting a bit.
She wore a very tight dress in green colors.
“You look good.”, said Alex.
“That’s all? Well okay… I’m gonna raid the buffet, see you later.”, said Cera and vanished.
Violet step to Alex and fixed the position of his collar. He wore a stuffed doublet in a classic dark blue. She then also fixed one of his beard braids that came a bit loose.
“So, today is the day… for Caleb and Lena… but also for you… I have a good feeling we find someone for you today.”, said Violet.
“Oh, sounds like you have a plan.”, said Caleb.
“Maybe I do… but that is of no concern to you… look your fiancé is already looking all over for you… don’t leave her waiting… not today.”, said Violet and smiled friendly at him.
“Yeah, you are right… enjoy the night.”
“You too… and congratulation on getting engaged again!”
“Don’t say it… it still sounds so weird…”
“You’ll get used to it, and now off you go!”
Caleb went back to Lena.
“Well then let’s go in.”, said Violet and hooked herself into the arm of Alex.
Together they went into the giant ballroom. At the front an orchestra played music and people danced to it on the dance floor.
One side of the room was the buffet with all kinds of food that you can think of. Then there were some tables, but most of them full. One side of the room had an adjacent giant balcony.
“You search for someone with drinks… I’ll get us something to eat… we meat here back in three minutes, okay?”, suggested Violet.
“Okay.”, agreed Alex.
Violet went to the buffet. She randomly overheard two ladies talking next to him.
“Look there is that Barbarian again, that the princess dragged in a year ago, do you remember?”
Violet remembered the two ladies they were of the group that bad mouthed them behind their backs, when they came to the castle for the first time.
“I heard he helped rescue the princess from Dragons… and he does look a lot hotter than he used to, don’t you think?”
Actually, those were Wyverns, not Dragons…, thought Violet and felt a weird sense of proudness.
“I agree… Hm, maybe I’ll try fishing for him today… I bet he is easy to catch.”
“Yeah… and look at those muscles, I bet he has a lot of stamina, let’s go and see if we can get him to dance with one of us.”
Violet quickly put her half-filled plate down somewhere, turned around and rushed past the two ladies. She looked frantic for Alex and found him near a table with two glasses in hand. Violet went over to him.
“What about the food?”, asked Alex.
“Change of plans. Drink.”, she said and took one of the drinks for herself.
Violet grabbed Alex arm, after they put the empty glasses on the table.
“And now we go dance.”, she said.
“But… I can’t dance…”
“Me neither… don’t worry about it.”
Violet pulled him after her in the middle of the dance floor, where everyone could see. Alex was visibly uncomfortable being in the middle of all the people, checking the newcomers out.
“Just focus on me.”, said Violet.
Alex looked at her. His body relaxed.
“Do you remember our first time sparing with each other?”, she asked.
He nodded.
“Good, then just think of dancing like a sparing match. I have a weapon in hand and swing wide from the side, what do you do?”
“Do I have a weapon as well?”
“Nope, you’re grappling today.”
“Then I step in and catch the sword arm.”
“Good. Do it.”
Alex did it and grabbed her arm. She adjusted it a bit.
“And now what do you do?”
“I would try to throw you over the shoulder, so I would grab your waist next.”
“Okay do it.”
Alex grabbed her on the waist. She adjusted it a bit.
“Good… and now try and turn you body and throwing me.”
“But…”
“Do it, trust me!”
Alex did it, but instead of getting thrown over, Violet simple stepped with him and followed his movement.
“What? Go on and try to throw me.” She said with a grin looking at his astounded face.
Alex tried it one more time and Violet followed again.
“And now we’re dancing. Try throwing me or bring me off balance, however you want… but no Berserker state.”
Alex did so and began turning his body differently. But Violet followed every time perfectly. She had after all watched him and studied his movements for over two years now. At first unconsciously then consciously and recently very meticulously. Like that the two of them danced. If you can even call it dancing, because it was more of a turning around quickly, trying feints and hopping around than dancing, but it did let Violet accomplish the two things she wanted to achieve with it. First, she wanted everybody to see Alex and more importantly who he danced with. Everybody in the room looked at the odd pair jumping around the dance floor in a very unorthodox step pattern. Second, she found the answer she had been looking for in herself. And it was right there in front of her. Violet wondered why she could not see it sooner. They turned around each other laughing loudly. Violet decision had been made and now came the hardest part.
“Okay… let’s get something to eat now… Why don’t you go out on the balcony and see if you can find us a nice, and a bit, private spot… wouldn’t want any potential Candidate to see you how you wolf down a whole chicken in three bites… I will get us something nice to eat, okay?”, suggested Violet after the musicians started a small break.
“Okay.”, said Alex.
Violet went again to the Buffet and grabbed a fresh plate. She looked around. There really was everything edible present at the buffet, she thought. But she noticed that some things were nearly gone. It was all the most luxurious food items, like caviar, oysters, truffles and other exotic and very expensive ingredients. Then she noticed one meal that was still untouched. It was a plain iron pot with a plate in front of it that read simply “Gulasch” and next to it was a loaf freshly made black bread with a knife next to it. Violet immediately knew she had to get that. She switched her plate for a bigger bowl and loaded up plenty then she cut some bread slices. It was still warm. She sniffed it and basked in the freshly baked bread aroma.
“Huh… Interesting.”, said Caleb next to her.
“What?”, asked Violet the bread still on her nose.
“You’re the first one to take some of the Gulasch and the first one to cut himself a piece of bread… and the first one to sniff it as well… what’s that all about?”
“Here sniff.”
“What, don’t… oh that smells good.”
“One of the best smells in my opinion.”
“Definitely up there.”
“And yet I wonder how many of the guests here today had ever smelled it… the simple aroma of plain old bread.”
“I bet there is a lot that have never…”
“I wonder too now… Look at that buffet. What do you notice?”
“All the most expensive food is nearly gone.”
“That’s right… and I wonder is it really that good?”
“Huh? Well, I do like me some oyster… uh… woah… okay, not that one, that one was a no good one.” Caleb quickly and subtly spit out the bad oyster and let it vanish under the table.
“That’s exactly what I mean.”
“What? That you not like rotten oysters?”
“No, I mean, most of us are blinded by the good looks and presentation of that… expensive food… And because it’s so expensive we tell ourselves that it must be good and better than everything else… but often it just is bland, weird texture and leaves a bad aftertaste… and sometimes it’s even rotten in the inside, like you so kindly demonstrated.”
“Okay, so yeah, we take a risk with the expensive ones… but there are some among them that are definitely worth their money.”
“Yeah of course there are, I’m not trying to deny that. There are these exotic things that are definitely worth trying once… even twice sometimes… I just… Look all the expensive things are nearly gone and everybody scrambles over the left over… but nobody has touched this plain looking Gulasch… now tell me, after a day’s worth of honest work, or traveling for a whole day, or fighting for your life during an adventure… When you sit down in the evening tired from the day… what would you prefer then? This plain looking Gulasch or that expensive looking oyster?”
“Easy! The Gulasch of course… nothing better when you are really hungry and tired than to stuff you belly full of Gulasch or any other type of stew.”
“Exactly! So why are people ignoring it when it’s next to that flashy and expensive food?
“I don’t know… Are you suggesting we should stop eating expensive food?”
“No, not at all… Everybody can eat whatever he wants I just… how should I say it… It irritates the fuck out of me, that we only go for the plain option when we are at our weakest, but when we lack for nothing, we tend to ignore it while indulging in something expensive… something we deem… better… I myself have done so too and went for the expensive looking option once… or twice… while doing my best to ignore the plain one… but do you want to know the real interesting thing?”
“What?”
“Do you think the Gulasch cares?”
“Huh?”
“No, it does not give a single fuck, that we go for the other thing when we are at our best, and pretend it does not exist. When we come back crawling because we are weak it receives us with the same comfort as it always does. It’s always there, waiting to support us when we are down and patiently waiting while we are away. Not judging any of our bad decisions And the other funny thing is… try leaving one of the expensive food out for a bit and you will see how fast it will go bad… then take the Gulasch, you can easily forget it for a day or two… just give it some love and heat and will be just as good, if not better than before. It just… I don’t know… how is it, that the plainest of thing is the one thing that we need but sometimes chose to ignore… and why is it still as comforting and filling when you come back to it than when you first tasted it? Isn’t it strange? How can it just sit there and wait patiently without changing or going bad? Does it know that you will eventually come back? Or does it just hope for the best?”
“Are we still talking about food here?”
“Of course, what else? I think I just want to say that I hope that every Gulasch out there finds someone that appreciates it for what it is and what it does. It may be just a simple thing, but it does something that none other can and it does so without fail and without wavering, even if it gets ignored or rejected time after time after time… I came to really appreciate that just recently.”
“Recently… huh?”
“Yes… and if you will excuse me now, I have some Gulasch waiting for me to get back to.”
She grabbed her bowl, the bread and deliberately only one spoon. And turned around to leave.
“Violet?”
“Yes, Caleb?”
“I think your plan is not working.”
Viole turned around slowly and furrowed her brows.
“What do you mean?”
“Well after your … I don’t know if I should call it dancing…let’s just say show on the dance floor… I don’t think any women here now thinks of Alex as available anymore…”
Violet face changed to a big smile.
“Oh… then I would disagree with you… I think everything is going exactly according to plan.”
Violet turned around and left. Caleb looked after her with a smile.
“What did you talk about?” asked Lena appearing next to him.
“Oh, just the advantages of plain Gulasch over expensive Oysters.”, said Caleb.
“Oh, that’s easy! Gulasch just tastes way better than that weird glibber.”
“You’re not a fan of Oysters?”
“No! I don’t understand how people go crazy over them… just give me some good old Gulasch or other stew with some fresh baked bread. Oh look, somebody cut the bread up and left some pieces, that’s so nice of them!”
“Why am I not surprised by you saying that?”
“Huh? What?”
Caleb just laughed and hugged her. She looked at him confused, grabbed his neck and gave him a kiss.
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