Heroes to Hunted

The dining hall was just that, a hall.

Various gold and gem-encrusted chandeliers lined the ceiling.

Parked in the middle of the room was a singular table that spanned the entirety of the hall's length. Blanketing it was an equally massive, gold-embroidered tablecloth. As if that wasn't already luxurious enough, the chairs were also intricately designed with etchings of their own.

Expectedly, the carvings matched the theme of the manor I'd seen thus far. Extending across its smooth wooden backrest were depictions of an irregular yet royal bird.

Instantly, patches of the table were filled by the various cliques that formed during our carriage ride. Likewise, Agawa and I found Kamida with Takagi as they were scanning for their seating.

Kamida threw up his arms in excitement when he saw us. "Ah Ms. Agawa, Mr. Sato! Mr. Takagi and I were looking for you!"

"Huh, what are you on about?" Takagi pocketed his hands and snarled. "I wasn't 'looking' for anyone. You just invited yourself to sit next to me!"

Despite saying that, Takagi stood where he was rather than leaving. I wondered if he actually hated the idea of eating together. The kid acted tough, but maybe Kamida's words got under his skin.

"Ah yes, pardon me, Mr. Takagi," Kamida cheerily sighed, "I was looking for the both of you so that we four may form some bonding memories together." He finished by triumphantly placing his hands above his hips.

"Sounds good…." Agawa responded. "Sato and I discussed meeting with you two to talk, so that's good."

"That's splendid! Now, where shall we sit?" Kamida surveyed the table for opening seating.

Meanwhile, I was doing my own searching.

I appraised the room for potential exits. Sadly, there were only two visible means of escape. The door we entered from and the door on the opposite side of the room.

I wanted to suggest we search for a seat near one of those, but they'd all been snapped up by other cliques. The only seating left was at the very edges of the room. Even if I split off from the three and sought out a chair for just myself, none remained.

"We took too long," I grumbled under my breath.

"What was that?" Agawa questioned me.

"It's nothing," I gave a twitchy grin to mask my frustration.

It was then that Takagi entirely gave in to Kamida's social pressure. He scowled and pointed to four perfectly aligned seats towards the far end of the table. "How about there?" His tone was exhausted, and his finger drooped slightly. Cooperation must not have come to him naturally.

Kamida excitedly clasped his hands together. "A fantastic suggestion! Well, let's help ourselves then, shall we?"

Upon being seated, the other set of doors swung open.

Proceeding inside was a large caste of servants. They poured into the dining hall wielding various dinner trays and carts.

With deadly efficiency, the once barren table now had an impressive arrangement of exotic foods populating it. There were foods for anyone from any walk of life.

Perfectly browned meats drowned in various spices, seasonings, and sauces. Vibrant fruits, all of which exploded in a spring of nectary juices with even the slightest provocation. Finally, there was a large assortment of fresh veggies that even the most renowned chefs would envy.

Their task now complete, the majority of the servants bowed and returned in the same fashion with which they entered. Those that stayed kept an equal distance from each other on the outskirts of the feast and observed.

Seeing the elaborate spread before me, I felt light sadness. It had been so long since I saw such good-looking food.

I was mortified that I'd need to exercise self-restraint and refrain from eating. Though I wanted to delve into everything on this table, I didn't hold an inkling of trust in these people. That was before even considering the events that transpired today.

I still didn't want to stand out, so I grabbed a meager amount of food from each nutritional category. I hadn't planned to eat any, so the least I could do was waste as little as possible.

"Huh," Agawa nudged me, "is that all you're going to eat?"

"She's right," Kamida added, "you're our trusted warrior! We can't have you malnourished!"

"It's fine. I'm not hungry," I forced a laugh, brushing off their concerns.

They both exchanged concerned expressions before accepting my decision. Then, they dug into their food the way I wished I could.

Plates brimming and spirits overflowing, a melody of metal scraping against ceramic echoed throughout the grand hall.

After unwinding the cloth wrapped around my eating utensils, I noticed we weren't even using silverware. No, what was given was, undoubtedly, one hundred percent goldenware!

I discreetly spied on the others around me. At one point, I even saw someone desperately pocketing as many forks, spoons, and knives as possible rather than using them for their intended purpose.

'That's not a bad idea,' I smirked. Though I likely had different reasons than that thief. With how sketchy these people were, there was no way you'd catch me without a weapon.

I appraised each unclaimed knife near me.

Most were useless and dull butter knives. However, there were a few I could use. They were serrated and sharpened to perfection; both needed traits to cut the flesh they were served beside.

Sadly I couldn't just pocket the knife, given how a servant's presence weighed heavy on my back. I needed to camouflage my actions.

I reached forward and shaved off a piece of meat from the large roasted haunch nearest me. Then, after transporting the meat onto my plate, I subtly but hastily stashed the knife in the pockets of my vest.

Kamida started rowdily laughing, startling me. "What a display of lavishness! I simply can't wait to meet the lord of this estate! With these tastes, I'm sure he and I would make fantastic business partners!"

"About that," Agawa motioned for Kamida and Takagi's attention, "do either of you feel slightly," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "uneasy…about everything that's going on?"

"What?! Of course, I feel uneasy!" Kamida almost looked offended. "I'm extremely anxious to see what kind of person runs such an efficiently wealthy household!"

A flicker of frustration crossed Agawa's face. "You-"

"You know that isn't what she meant!" Takagi interrupted. "You're right, Agawa; this place doesn't sit well with me."

I could see I wasn't the only one shocked by Takagi's agreement, given how Agawa's eyes and mouth were gaping in disbelief.

"What the hell," Takagi pointed his fork toward Agawa. "Why do you have such a stupid look on your face?! It's not surprising that I'd agree with you, right?"

"Actually..." Agawa grinned teasingly, "it is... It's surprising to think you'd agree with anyone, let alone me. You struck me as the defiant type that actively tries to DISAGREE with others."

"Huh?!" Takagi stabbed his knife into his steak. "So, you're making fun of me now?! I could easily walk over and knock you out. I believe in gender equality," he smiled, "so don't think I'll hold back either!"

"Ohhh," Agawa's eyes narrowed, "I'd like to see you try. I'm pretty fast, so I bet I'd be able to drop you before your first swing!"

Takagi closed his eyes and performed a belittling gesture to Agawa. "Heh. I guess you forgot how I beat down that door earlier."

Agawa didn't look impressed. I could only describe her taunting expression as that of amusement. "Okay... You can break down a moldy wood door. If that's such an achievement, you aren't as intimidating as you think. Shall I call you 'Door Slayer' from now on?"

Though no violence was involved, their argument continued to devolve from clever jabs into crude insults and unintelligible growling. Luckily, we had Kamida, the master of overwhelming friendliness, to de-escalate the verbal arms race.

"Now," he consoled, "let's not ruin such a nice banquet with something as pointless as a brawl, alright?"

Being struck by his infectious niceties, the tension between Takagi and Agawa returned to tolerable levels. However, they still refused to look at one another for the rest of the meal.