Anning slightly frowned because the Duke was certainly not just now aware that he had won the duel.
If winning the duel had made the Duke appreciate him more, it should have happened when the news reached the Duke's ears.
But the prompt only appeared now, indicating that this "cheat" he had was not updated promptly; only after the Duke had made his feelings known and it had affected Anning did the system provide the corresponding prompt.
From the experience of the duel just now, Anning deeply realized that his "cheat" was limited and not as omnipotent as he originally thought.
Since the Duke had invited him, Anning naturally did not dare to neglect the invitation.
The butler led Anning into the main building of the Duke's palace. With a clap of his hands, a group of maids surrounded Anning and changed his bloodstained clothes.
Vanni stood by the whole time, watching older maids clumsily treat Anning like a doll.
After Anning had changed his clothes, the butler sternly told him, "When you dine later, you can follow Miss Christina's actions. Do whatever she does, to avoid violating too many dining etiquettes."
Truth be told, having just been carried by a crowd outside and hailed as a hero by commoners, Anning felt quite out of place suddenly worrying about noble dining etiquettes.
But after all, Anning was a guest in someone else's house, and it wasn't yet the age when nobility was doomed, so after thinking it over, he nodded.
The butler said, "Then, please follow me."
After that, the butler led Anning through several doors.
A characteristic of mansions in this era was the lack of long corridors; rooms were interconnected, and to reach a certain room, one had to pass through several different rooms.
Having visited the main building of the Royal Palace before, where he remained for a while in the entrance hall and met Mirabeau and the Duke, Anning had little idea of the layout within the Palace.
In his memory, it was just like the scenes from anime he had seen—a long corridor with rooms lined up one after another.
He had not expected it to be like this.
As he moved through the rooms, Anning noticed that the interior of the Royal Palace was similar to the bank he had visited before, mixing Baroque and Rococo styles.
Most of the room decor had already been changed to the currently popular Rococo style, but many pieces of furniture still had that glistening golden feel from the Baroque era.
Considering it, the Rococo style should have started to become popular during the reign of Louis XV, and the two styles were in the process of replacing each other.
While Anning was looking around, the butler opened the door to the dining room.
Christina was already sitting inside; she smiled and waved at Anning upon seeing him.
Beside Christina was a young boy, who looked young enough to be the infamous Char, who later defected with Demure to Austria.
Because he and Demure defected to Austria, Orleans, who was originally part of the Jacobin faction, was suspected of collusion and was promptly sent to the guillotine.
For the Duke of Orleans, this was an unexpected disaster. He was doing well in the Jacobin faction, even changing his name to Philip Egalite to showcase his support for the spirit of the Revolution, but still could not escape the fate of being betrayed by his son.
But currently, Char looked nothing like the unfilial archetype, just a plain-looking noble youth.
He curiously looked at Anning and then asked his sister, "I heard that Mr. Frost is from a declining nobility and also learned swordsmanship, is that true?"
"No, he is a son of a leatherworker."
"How could a leatherworker's son possibly defeat Reginald? His swordsmanship is said to be among the top three in Paris!" Char said.
Christina glanced at Anning, her tone becoming less certain, "This... well... uh..."
Suddenly Christina turned to Anning, "You couldn't possibly be the son of some declining nobility, could you? That would explain your German!"
Anning responded, "What are you thinking? No, that's not the case."
"But your defense against Reginald's attacks today looked very skilled, like that of a seasoned swordsman," Christina insisted, "A leatherworker's son or an outsider could never achieve that!"
As Anning was guided by the butler to his seat, he placated Christina, "That's just because you're an outsider, and you get along well with me, so it appeared that way. Humans tend to glorify those they have good relations with."
Christina was just about to reply when a baritone voice came from behind Anning, "You're right, humans indeed have such tendencies."
Anning turned around and saw it was the Duke, quickly standing up to bow.
The Duke waved his hand, "Alright, sit down. You're the hero of the common people now, I bet you're the topic of conversation on every dining table in Paris tonight, and even the King and Queen might have heard about you."
Anning joked, "Maybe they will even talk about me while they make babies tonight."
The Duke laughed heartily, "That might be possible! But, I'm not sure if my brother would be in bed with the Queen tonight, as the palace rumors say His Majesty would rather sleep in the tool room with his beloved locks."
Anning was dumbfounded, "Good heavens, is this era's Louis XVI even more excessive than the other era's?"
But on second thought, the current Duke of Orleans was the mastermind behind fabricating numerous scandals and tabloid news about the Queen and the King, making Anning uncertain again.
The Duke walked to the head of the dining table and sat down, looking at Anning, "Back to you, are you really a leatherworker's son? You understand German, your swordsmanship defeated one of the top three in Paris, Christina also told me you can ride a horse. For the son of a leatherworker, don't you think you have learned too many skills?"
Anning replied, "But I am indeed the son of a leatherworker, no matter how many people you send for verification, that's the truth. As for riding a horse, honestly, leaving Germany this is the first time I've ridden a horse; previously I only rode mules, but obviously, riding a horse isn't a very difficult thing to do.
"Dueling is the same, I'm an amateur with the sword, I only won by reacting spontaneously..."
"Don't get agitated," the Duke interrupted Anning, "Mr. Frost, I don't mean to doubt you, I just find it astounding that as a leatherworker's son, your performance is remarkable. Watching you makes me think, perhaps the era of the common people, as those philosophers mentioned, is truly arriving."
The Duke sighed, then looked at his daughter, "Since Christina has reached the age suitable for remarriage, I've inspected many young people in Paris, and let me tell you, the entire Noble circle in Paris is spoiled rotten, and I couldn't find a single young man I would want to marry my daughter to!"
Anning frowned, thinking to himself, is the Duke preparing to marry off his daughter?
The Duke continued to speak, "More than one family has come seeking an alliance, but when I see their sons, I want to chase them away like flies.
"So, sending her to Briena Military Academy might be a good choice."
A thousand "no way" thoughts popped up in Anning's mind, and he silently waited for the Duke to continue.
Duke: "Of course, sending a girl to a military academy, I'm somewhat worried since it is a man's world after all. But now that concern is resolved; I've already decided to sponsor you to attend Briena Military Academy. I'll provide all your tuition and miscellaneous fees. With a young man like you at Briena taking care of Christina, I'm sure there won't be any problems."
Anning was half-open-mouthed; he had thought his attendance at Briena Military Academy was already confirmed, only to find out now that the Duke had made the decision to sponsor him, previously it wasn't a real commitment.
No, it seems he had mistaken their non-committal attitude as consent...
Duke: "Furthermore, if you graduate from Briena and manage to get into the Paris Officer's Academy, I will continue to sponsor you. The house where you are staying now will be yours to keep!"
Anning: "Thank you, Duke. But, that house is a bit large, if it's just me, cleaning and such..."
The Duke grandly gestured, "No problem, what do you think, Vanni? From now on, she will be your maid, of course, I'll be paying her salary!"
Anning: "Really? That's great."
Saying this, he glanced at Vanni who was helping to distribute the utensils beside him and smiled slightly when their eyes met.
Vanni remained expressionless, showing neither joy nor sorrow.
But Christina chipped in, "That's great, Vanni!"
Vanni: "Hmm."
At this point, the Duchess took her seat, and the butler approached, asking, "Your Grace, may we begin the meal?"
The Duke nodded, "Alright, let's begin with a prayer before the meal."
France being a Catholic country, a prayer led by the head of the household was customary before meals.
Although Anning joined everyone in prayer with hands clasped and eyes closed, his attention was entirely on the dinner already placed on the side table.
He thought he smelled the delightful aroma of roasted foie gras.
Speaking of which, though he'd been in France for a long time, he hadn't yet had a proper French meal—well, he had tried authentic French bread, which tasted pretty much like gnawing on wood.
As Anning's mind wandered, the Duke loudly pronounced, "Amen!"
Everyone echoed, "Amen!"
The Duke opened his eyes and snapped his fingers, signaling the servants to begin serving the courses.
The first appetizer to come was a bread basket.
Upon seeing the French bread inside, Anning was instantly filled with the urge to criticize.
At that moment, Vanni, who was among the maids serving dishes, placed a small pot in front of Anning.
The maid quietly said, "Butter goose liver pâté, to spread on the bread."
Anning glanced at Christina, who had already begun spreading it on her bread, quickly picked up a slice, used the butter knife to scoop some goose liver pâté onto the bread, and then put it in his mouth.
The flavor... not bad at all.
Perhaps because Anning hadn't had anything delicious for a long time.
He decided, for the moment, not to think about anything else and to fully enjoy the first authentic French meal since his arrival in France.