Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 1015 - 130 Elf Night Banquets

Chapter 1015: 130 Elf Night Banquets

In the Yarran Continent, the style of banquets varied greatly among different races, different countries, and even different regions.

In Faral City, the banquets prioritized scale, turning into quite splendid events whenever they were hosted, especially by higher-status nobles. Inside the Nesterger Palace in Faral City was an enormous banquet hall, the most striking feature of which was a long table nearly fifty meters in length where the Emperor of Falar hosted his banquets. At such times, the Emperor and the Empress of Falar would sit at opposite ends of the long table, with guests from various places filling the sides. The palace orchestra played cheerful music on both sides of the long table, significantly enlivening the atmosphere of the entire hall.

The Neville Federation differed significantly from the Falar Empire; its banquets consisted of many small tables, each seating only three or four people. No food was placed on these small tables; instead, food was centrally displayed in the venue. Guests would pick up some food and then wander around the venue, initiating conversations with others of similar status worth networking with. If they needed deeper interaction, they would find a table, briefly eat while conversing and sharing drinks. In Neville, attending a banquet was more akin to participating in a business negotiation than having a meal.

The banquet culture in Neutral Land was somewhat similar to that of the Neville Federation but advanced it further as their banquets were almost always linked with dance parties. Thus, there were no small tables at all. Including the host, everyone was treated equally, carrying food trays and wine glasses around the hall, occasionally resting in the lounge area at the edge of the venue.

As for the Elves, their choice of tables highlighted their uniqueness. While other powers on the Yarran Continent generally used long tables, differing only in size, the Elves used round tables. These beings, who pursued freedom and equality, hosted banquets where all attendees, regardless of role or status, sat together at the same round table, enjoying the same food. It was impossible to determine anyone’s level of importance based on their position or what they were eating, which was precisely the purpose of using round tables. Now, over ten guests were seated in a circle around the round table, yet there was complete silence; no one was willing to speak. It wasn’t that they had nothing to say, but rather, everyone was reluctant to stop eating because the Elf’s food was too tempting. They didn’t want to forfeit eating, so they temporarily gave up speaking instead.

"The food of the Elves is even more delicious than in the legends," said Catherine, the only one of conventional human noble descent among those present. Unless in a private setting, she would always instinctively maintain noble etiquette, not an exception even while eating. For a human noble, it was considered very rude to eat voraciously at a banquet. They were accustomed to merely sampling each dish before ending their meal and spending the remaining time discussing important matters. Thus, despite her reluctance, the young knight set down her cutlery and gently swirled the wine glass in her hand, exclaiming, "I never dreamed that food could be cooked to taste so delicious and look so exquisite. When several dishes were served earlier, I couldn’t bear to disturb their arrangements."

"Uru uru, uru uru," Pannis mumbled while chewing, making incomprehensible noises, perhaps echoing Catherine’s remarks, but it was likely no one understood any word he said.

"Hey, you." Catherine rolled her eyes and glared at Pannis, saying irritably, "Either eat or talk, don’t do both at once; it’s discourteous, and besides, think about it, who can understand you when you talk like that?"

"He’s saying, the Elves are accustomed to making their food look like artworks," said Flare with a sly smile, teasingly adding, "You see, if you get used to the way he speaks, you can naturally understand him."

"Eh, that’s not right," Catherine’s expression darkened slightly, but she swiftly reacted, puzzled, she exclaimed, "He never used to talk like that in the past; how could you possibly understand what he is saying? You shouldn’t have had the chance to get used to it."

"Oh no, I’ve been caught," Flare said, covering her mouth and playfully blinking. "Actually, I made it up, hehe."

"You... you..." Catherine gritted her teeth in annoyance but ultimately could only laugh and sigh, "Are all you elves so idle? To be making such jokes when you’re bored."

"Of course not, to be precise, only I am this idle." Flare pointed to her own nose and said with a grin, "Kyle was absolutely right; seeing how serious you are, I just couldn’t help teasing you."

"Cough cough cough cough cough." Pannis almost choked on his food, grabbed a drink nearby, and gulped down several sips, he coughed vigorously before he managed to catch his breath and said, "Don’t make such dangerous jokes lightly, when have I ever said such things? Joking like this can be life-threatening."

"It’s okay," Flare blinked and responded, "I think it’s very safe."

"Of course you’re safe." Pannis moved his chair a little away from Catherine and said discontented, "The one in danger is me."

"Hmm." Catherine snorted but then couldn’t help laughing out loud, shaking her head helplessly, she said, "You really are a headache. But I’ve noticed something; many of the dishes we ate today, it seems you’ve made something similar before, only the flavors here are a bit better."

"Because a lot of my cooking skills come from the forest, and I simplified some steps, so the taste is slightly inferior." Pannis said matter-of-factly, "Take this wind rabbit meatball for instance. Wind rabbits are a Silver-Rank herbivorous magical beast from the Lost Forest; they move as fast as the wind and are hard to catch. To achieve high speed, their hind leg muscles are very developed and extremely tough. If cooked simply, it would be nearly impossible to chew. So, in cooking, you must first process the hind leg meat into a paste, not by cutting but by repeatedly smashing it into a paste; this makes their meat tender. Then pick some leaves from the Thick-leaf Fern found in the Forest of Death, carve small thumb-tip-sized holes in the thick fern leaves, and seal the wind rabbit meatballs inside before steaming. The juice from the fern leaves seeps into the meatballs, not only neutralizing the mild sour taste of the wind rabbit meat but also making the meatballs elastic. If you’re interested, you could try making it; a finished meatball can actually bounce when dropped, thanks to the juice of the Thick-leaf Fern. When I cooked for you, I didn’t have wind rabbits or Thick-leaf Fern, so I had to substitute other ingredients, which of course makes a difference in taste."

"Kyle, speaking of which, you haven’t visited the Elven Royal Court many times, but you seem to have already mastered our three best dishes," a voice came through the clear walls, "I think you’re greedier than I am; you want to learn everything."

"But I never thought of mastering everything to the Legendary Rank." Pannis shrugged, "Anyway, congratulations, Muir."