Chapter 73

Chapter 73

Things Scheduled

A contest hosted by a newspaper company.

It wasn't common in the current era, but it wasn't a completely unfamiliar matter either.

From the Victorian era newspapers quickly established as mass media, and as part of advertising or marketing there were often matters of holding various public participation events holding newspapers. Among them there were also many small events.

Newspaper companies periodically held contests like riddle contests, literary work contests, puzzle problem solving to increase subscribers.

"Selecting a total of 10 readers who proposed the most delicious sandwich by changing the contents in the sandwich manufacturing method His Majesty Edward VII created and giving 10 pounds prize money each. And the awarded recipes will be sequentially revealed through Strand Magazine the month after next? Mr. Doyle, is this content you know?"

"Not at all. Somehow the content itself was shared a bit earlier, and it seems they put an embargo (*Embargo, information restriction). Before that the newspaper company and other related people might have prepared promotion in advance."

The timing is suspicious? If a magazine carrying the newly published Holmes novel not only Britain but various places in Europe, America, Canada, Australia, India would try to obtain it, and they'll carry recipes there?

There prize money alone a whopping 10 pounds, there would be no one in London who wouldn't rush here?

A sly intention is visible visible!

But even if suspecting there was nothing to find out. I continued lowering my gaze straight down.

The contest condition was only one. Mr. Doyle read that part out loud.

"Limit so the price of ingredients used in the recipe doesn't exceed 4 pence per 1 sandwich. This is to allow even the poorest Briton to comfortably enjoy His Majesty's grace... A small wave will arise in British society. Although borrowing a separate editorial format to avoid responsibility, there's no way a newspaper company can hold such a contest alone. This is His Majesty's will."

"Right."

Without a set recipe, if only the taste is good no matter what the ingredients are was also a characteristic of franchise burger style cooking.

Originally put beef patty, but whether putting chicken, or pollock meat, or putting fried egg instead of meat, if only the taste is good they all call it burger.

The essence of hamburger is the structure of sandwiching patty between bread and eating.

Not specific ingredients but the cooking method and that structure is the core. Thanks to that various variations are also possible.

Looking from that point this hamburger recipe contest was an event that well pierced that essence and made.

How much did His Majesty like the hamburger that he even instructed to hold such a contest?

With only one one would get tired soon, so mobilizing collective intelligence and collecting various recipes and enjoying for life the intention was clear!

If recipes are carried in Strand Magazine, someone somewhere in the world will attempt variations, and while variation and reinterpretation repeat like that, naturally the cooking will evolve and expand. It was obvious it was a plan made aiming for that!

"Mr. Durand, are you thinking of participating in the contest?"

"Me? Why?"

"You're looking at the paper as if piercing it. In my thought even if the teacher just participates winning would be a piece of cake."

I did talk about the matter at Windsor Castle last time to close acquaintances, but I didn't describe even the detailed parts one by one. Sometimes there also exists privacy one doesn't want to inform.

This hamburger recipe was also one of them. I didn't bring up hamburger talk to surrounding acquaintances. Mr. Doyle also didn't know the fact that this recipe started from my hand.

Of course I also had no thought of stepping forward myself and self-destructing.

Nevertheless his words weren't wrong. The one who first introduced this dish was also me, and the person who has experience of tasting numerous variation hamburgers in modern times is also me.

But what I was looking at wasn't the newspaper.

【 History Change Degree: 11.23% 】

The change degree number that showed no fluctuation at all recently, discovering it was suddenly fluctuating sharply within about 2 percent I paused.

Even when introducing grilled eel there was no big fluctuation so I was living ignoring it until recently—

【 History Change Degree: 11.69% 】

What on earth?! Is this surely as the newspaper spreads to various places in London it's influencing?

There was nothing I could guess at all! Because I didn't even know the conditions for the change degree to move.

Just because the number rose no noticeable change occurred. There was no effect one could feel either.

Sometimes the change degree also retreated backward, so it wasn't a number one could 100 percent trust either.

It might not be because of the hamburger. Right now today alone I gave the Fish Ball recipe.

Lately there were so many things I caused that I couldn't know which among them was causing the butterfly effect either.

The reward for the change degree moving arrived immediately.

【 Random Box Confirmation Fragment D x1 (4/10) 】

If collecting fragments at this speed within next spring one random box will be confirmed to open...

At the same time the fluctuating change degree also became quiet again.

I quietly sighed so Mr. Doyle couldn't hear.

"I just looked because it was amazing. Anyway, the curiosity is solved so it's fine. Coachman uncle, please depart again. To the Chicken and Chips shop on Baker Street!"

"Understood, my lord!"

Now it was time to really return home.

The carriage we rode passed the center of Baker Street that became noisy with His Majesty Edward VII's sudden hamburger recipe announcement, and headed to the alley I grew up in.

In the meantime familiar buildings passed by one by one.

I told Mr. Doyle Baker Street changed a lot, but in fact not much changed.

Only people who recognize me increased a lot.

That well until last year I lived here and stood in the middle of the street and sold newspapers, so as much as this street not recognizing me was more strange.

Experiencing unwanted fame now, even because of that the situation of frequently visiting the hometown house became difficult.

On Lombard Street since I already became famous people who recognize me treated me familiarly, but people here knew me from before, so rather there were more who seeing me from afar slowly fled.

Envy, jealousy, envy.

Seeing the appearance of people one saw every day trying to keep distance was never a pleasant experience.

Anyway the original plan was while bringing up the manor talk received from Windsor Castle to parents, slightly asking about grandmother and grandfather talk.

Thinking about it I hadn't heard much talk about grandmother or grandfather that others all have.

But it's not that both our parents are orphan origin either, it's a strange matter?

I also couldn't think of necessarily digging that.

That was probably because I never had a real family in my previous life, so the sense about family boundary was different from others.

Right now just the fact that there are parents I was satisfied with.

But, today before even mustering courage and asking I already felt I heard the answer.

"Mr. Durand, isn't that the royal family's carriage...?"

"..."

From when entering the alley and passing a few mounted guards something was ominous.

The ominous premonition wasn't wrong.

The royal carriage stopped in front of our house. And officers controlling people's passage around it.

Among them there were also familiar faces. Inspector John Reid of the London Metropolitan Police, and the attendant of Windsor Castle who participated in the search for Princess Alice in Berkshire.

So one could immediately recognize who the owner of the carriage was.

As soon as Mr. Doyle saw Inspector Reid he brightened.

"Inspector John Reid! I saw you in the morning and meeting here again!"

"Mr. Doyle! And Sir Durand, no, even Teacher Durand! To think I'd see here... Ah!"

Of course, here you're guarding is my house. Inspector Reid also seemed to have belatedly noticed the situation.

Mr. Doyle asked the circumstances to Inspector Reid instead of me.

"Inspector, what on earth is the matter? Royal carriage in such an alley... Surely it's not that the royal family came to buy Chicken and Chips?"

"Ah, in fact I also don't know well! Today is escort duty for a precious person."

I took one step forward and cut his words. And so one can sufficiently hear even inside the house, I shouted in a loud voice.

"Is it okay to go inside?!"

"Hmm, guidelines for such a case... I'll ask right now—"

Burst.

The 2nd floor window opened and what appeared was, a woman in her mid to late 30s wearing the same gray half-mourning clothes as always, looking youthful.

And she directly gave the answer to my question.

"Sir Durand, come up."

Princess Louise.

The one who visited our house was, exactly that person who refused me at the door at Windsor Castle.

"...I don't know what circumstances the teacher is involved in, but the thought that it will be very complicated comes. I wish you luck. I'll wait here chatting with Inspector Reid."

"Mr. Doyle."

In an instant he grabbed my wrist.

"The voice isn't trembling, and the heartbeat is also in normal range. The pupils are also the same. No prognostic symptoms due to excessive stress are seen either. In fact you already knew the circumstances, right? As expected an amazing poker face! If playing poker I absolutely don't want to face the teacher. Haha! Please go up quickly."

In fact it was the opposite. Too tense the legs seem to give out?

Mr. Doyle deliberately made idle jokes and tried to relieve my tension.

I forcibly moved the stiffened corner of the mouth muscles and showed him a smile.

###

On the 2nd floor there were only Princess Louise, and our parents three people.

As soon as I came up Princess Louise quietly closed the window. In the awkward atmosphere the parents avoided my eyes, and the princess's reddened eye rims were evidence she wiped tears until just now.

On the table high-end treasures and documents I'd never seen in my life were scattered. As soon as seeing them one thought flashed by.

Ah, I'm really not the biological son.

At that moment all puzzles fit. There was no need to know more detailed content.

"I'm not curious. I don't want to hear the detailed circumstances. I won't listen to excuses either."

"Sir Durand."

Princess Louise called lowly, but I didn't look at her.

"What changes if hearing? I'm Jean-Paul Durand, and parents are parents. The years lived like that don't change. I didn't gain anything with bloodline either, I'll just live the same like this."

At my words mother's shoulder flinched. Father's head that was lowered for a long time also shook finely.

"Aish, mom straighten your waist a bit! What did you do wrong to whom? Dad also raise your head a bit!"

The parents were still the parents I love. The love received until now doesn't disappear either, in fact while coming up the stairs the mind settlement already ended.

I could have fled, but the reason I mustered courage and came up like this was to declare that. For myself too, for the parents too.

To hear the secret of bloodline here and pretend to be shocked, I already saw too many makjang dramas in modern society.

"Ah, it's obvious! I must have been a child of some hidden noble or royal family! The parents would have been attendants, or servants, or knights! Somehow dad couldn't even nail properly! Now I know everything, so stop the play of pretending to be commoners and just live comfortably! Chicken and Chips also just hire more employees! Now there will be many people who want to do it!"

"Jean... Cough, cough!"

"Jean, my proud son..."

The room was full of silence for a while.

The only sound heard was the wind sound hitting the light window frame.

If my age was a bit younger, I might really have been greatly emotionally agitated.

In fact Mr. Doyle's words were correct. There wasn't much shock either, and I wasn't tense either.

To shake one by one at such matters, the years I've lived until now were too rough.

Orphanage origin that was nothing special.

Not even the 80s era when everyone was equally poor, starting with bare fists without anything and building a career.

Compared to such experience this level was nothing special.

Rather Princess Louise expressed doubt at such me.

"...How can you be so calm even in such a situation? I already heard that you know nothing. But I also know you're that excellent a person. Seeing you Isabella and Leopold... continue to come to mind. Now I understand. Not only the face but even that boldness is too similar to them..."

While speaking Princess Louise continued wiping tears with a handkerchief.

She tried to suppress the hand trembling hard, but couldn't even properly hold one teacup.

No really, why does a person who ate age keep trying to cry?!

Of course there were things to confirm clearly.

The reason one had to hide me tightly from the bloodline and hide in the lower class streets of London.

It's common even in novels. After growing up trackers attach.

For such a matter to occur in reality, already long entered modern society not medieval so there seemed not many such matters.

Still if there's even 1 percent possibility one had to remove it. Because it might become a matter that threatens the parents' or my life.

Of course while living until now I didn't feel such a sign at all, so now it might have become a matter that doesn't matter much.

However being kidnapped again on London streets in broad daylight was now declining.

So I decided to just frontally break through the crisis as I've lived until now.

I sighed.

"Who on earth are that Isabella and Leopold that everyone says so? Last time at Windsor Castle too the princess avoided so I couldn't hear. Fine, let's just hear the talk refreshingly once. Now please tell, Your Highness Princess Louise."

The moment to dig the secret of unwanted bloodline came.