[ he smiles, relieved that link decides to play along without pointing out what an obvious deflection that was. he's never been great at that, but his tendency to pivot and charge ahead on some other topic makes it more difficult for people to get him to double back anyway. ]

Wow! A princess, huh? Sounds like you're a pretty important guy!

[ so probably better than pretty good with a sword, but ryouma is the last person to call anyone out for being modest about their skills. ]

Hot pot is where you take a big pot and fill it up with meat and vegetables, mushrooms, eggs and other good stuff, and boil it up until it's steaming hot. Then, the best way to have it is with a bunch of other people while you're drinking together, and everybody shares.

It'd be perfect at this time of year, too, since it'll warm you up inside and out.