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“Ugh-!”

Mary, who had been guarding her master at the fortress for several days, furrowed her brows while fending off the incoming chunks of ice.

The frequency of the siege attacks had increased. Just a little bit.

And the reason was right before her eyes.

“Even in a situation like this, they keep increasing.”

The undead army densely filled the area in front of the fortress. New undead of various types and ranks were continuously joining the ranks.

“By the way, where in the world is Sir Stark- Hah!”

Thump-!

But Gordon had been called away briefly.

Not just Gordon, but some adventurers, soldiers, warriors, and knights on the castle wall were all summoned to the command room at once.

Realizing this, Mary clicked her tongue.

For a moment, there was a gap in their forces.

It meant more collateral damage on top of the fortress.

Let alone, Gordon was single-handedly blocking most of the siege attacks coming toward Catherine. With him absent, Mary felt her breath quicken for the first time since the contract began.

“What on earth is happening that they would call the contractor like this-”

Mary stomped on a skeleton crawling up, intercepting various incoming weighted attacks and sending an unprocessed boar zombie flying away with a gust.

“Ugh! So cold. Meal delivery is here.”

Karem, plump and squeezed between the servants carrying a large barrel, approached with a wide tray covered by a lid, both hands firmly gripping it.

“Oh no. Is it meal time already?”

“I’ve had a little something to handle in between, so I was a bit late.”

“All of a sudden, quite a few people are coming up. What’s going on?”

“Well, you could say we can now use holy water to our heart’s content.”

Karem’s eyes shifted around stealthily.

As the servants who had set down the barrel of holy water mumbled something, the soldiers immediately began pouring it out into buckets to sprinkle outside the fortress or launching the entire barrel from a catapult.

“What madness! I said to use holy water freely, but who told you to just toss it around whole!?”

“Ah! Please, be calm! Sir Alric! Just talk calmly-”

“Seeing those melting things brings me such relief.”

“Somehow, it makes me crave pudding.”

“…Looks like pudding is off the menu for a while.”

Mary couldn’t catch what the servants had said due to the gust.

But just by looking, the soldiers and adventurers had regained their composure.

The commander and soldiers commanding them were the same.

No, perhaps they had become more ruthless instead.

They were not only pouring out holy water but also drenching siege projectiles like bolts from ballistae, rocks from catapults, and chunks of ice with it.

Some even faced repercussions due to the excess.

“Anyways, Mary, you should take a break and fill your stomach.”

“I guess I’ll have to eat later.”

“Huh?”

Mary silently stepped forward and lightly but resolutely slapped her palm outward. An ice chunk the size of a calf shattered, sending shards flying like waves.

“As you can see, with Sir Stark absent, it’s rather hectic.”

“By the way, I don’t see Gordon. Is something up?”

“I don’t know what it is either. I only know that some have been called to the command room, including Sir Stark. Perhaps it was summoned by His Grace Duke Hadrianus? And they all went down together.”

“Hmm. Did they cross paths?”

Karem, with an indifferent tone, set down the tray.

“Then, shall I serve Sir Atanitas?”

“…What?”

“However, with Gordon gone, you said you’d eat later. It doesn’t seem like there’s time to serve Sir Atanitas, does it?”

Oops.

Mary, who had been focused on the front while crushing rocks with shockwaves, silently clutched her head with both hands, overwhelmed.

What a blunder!

Yet, as she mulled over Karem’s words, both her mind and house fairy sensibility concluded that his words were undeniably correct.

“Seeing you’re silent, I take it you admit it?”

“Ugh. But the menu is always the same, isn’t it?”

Currently, all meals at the fortress were standardized.

A pie stuffed with various meats.

A rich stew thick with meaty vegetables.

It’s a strategically sound choice, indeed.

For the troops enduring hard-fought battles in the frigid weather, high-calorie food and hot broth were desperately needed to maintain vitality.

Though it tasted fine, the same menu for several days.

If every meal for over a week was the same, it’s only natural to grow tired—

“I borrowed the kitchen and showed off my skills.”

“What do you mean…!?”

In the midst of the unexpected situation, Mary turned around absentmindedly.

And she realized Karem’s words were true.

From the rectangular pie, white steam billowed into the cold air, gathering like a cloud.

At first glance, it looked just like the meat pies they had gotten tired of eating.

But the warm smell diffused from the air—a contrast to the surroundings.

“Cinnamon and apple.”

“Apple pie.”

“And next to it—”

Mary turned her gaze sideways.

“This is, a crepe cake!”

“That’s right.”

The crepe cake, alternately layered with crepes and whipped cream, was finally topped with whipped cream and covered in a dark brown powder reminiscent of an ancient snowfield.

The finely ground dark brown alraune powder scattered into the air as the wind blew atop the fortress, resembling real snowflakes.

The sifting powder unveiled a white cream that had been mildly piled up due to the weight of the stacked crepes and was decorated with roughly crushed walnuts scattered on top.

“Weren’t the kitchen under control? How on earth…?”

“Well, it is under control.”

But Karem frowned.

To think he could only offer the same meat pie and meat-heavy vegetable stew to someone who was suppressing the ‘Grand Wizard’ for days on end—Catherine.

So, he negotiated.

“Lord Karem. No matter how much you may plead, this is in regard to the venerable Duke-”

“A recipe for sauce, one.”

“…!”

“Two recipes for sauce.”

“Surely you understand. Can’t one agree upon such matters for the top Magic Consultant who has stayed awake for nights on end!”

Of course, even then, there were various restrictions such as the oven only being used to put in and take out the pie once, the central stove being off-limits, and only one cooking range being available, etc.

“You’ve been going on with just meat pie and stew without any dessert or snacks. So I took advantage of the opening created by resolving the holy water issue and whipped this up.”

“Such a sly—no, wait a moment. The holy water issue?”

“Yes, well, they claimed it would run out in a few days.”

“You solved that crisis by yourself?”

“Yep.”

“How on earth did you do it?”

“I created holy water.”

“So, what method—”

As Mary continued to defend against the undead and siege attacks, she suddenly shut her mouth.

Thinking it over, Karem had one method available.

Yes. More than anything, if he thought of the holy relic he supposedly received directly from the God (not true), and which Catherine guaranteed (this is true)—

“Dumping sacks of salt into a well with a blocked bottom and plopped in the holy relic I carried—”

“What an outrageous idea! You treated such a magnificent holy relic that way—”

“Oh, something big’s coming.”

“Oops, noooorrrrrrr!!!”

While Mary focused on the front, Karem portioned out the pie and cake and looked up at Catherine.

This was the first time Karem had seen Catherine looking this worn out.

Last autumn and winter, even during long overnight shifts where she was fatigued and grumbled, her aura of annoyance was much less severe compared to now.

Now, standing on the magic circle with her staff, having only stayed up a week, she wore an expression of deep fatigue, dark circles under her eyes lending her a slightly decadent appearance.

With her golden hair drifting like silk and snowflakes swirling around, Karem silently admired the enchanting atmosphere.

“…Heh. What are you looking at so intently?”

“Um, ah. I was wondering if I could step onto the magic circle. But wait, you could speak?”

“Ah, it seems the enemy is tired as well. They’ve eased up on their intensity.”

At Catherine’s gesture, Karem shifted his foot into the magic circle while holding the portioned plates.

“No, not just that, bring the entire tray.”

“Huh? Ah.”

Though Mary was blocking the attacks, she couldn’t manage the fragments as well. Before the ice and rock pieces could fall, Karem hurriedly picked up the tray and approached Catherine.

“This meal has been prepared just for dessert.”

“Okay. Faintly heard you. Huh? A pie?”

“Ah, don’t worry. It’s apple pie.”

“Ah, good. The powder you covered the crepe cake with is made from the alraune I had before. But is there nothing to drink?”

“Oh, I forgot. I got so caught up in desserts that I should have prepared some milk.”

But what’s done is done.

Karem prioritized presenting a generous slice of crepe cake to Catherine, who was gazing at him longingly.

Nom.

The cold touch of the fork, and the rough alraune powder spreading in his mouth, imparting bitterness before the smooth sensation of the crepe cake flooded in.

The sweet and soft sensation flowed from his tongue, through the cheeks, the roof of the mouth, and down the throat, leaving a lingering ecstasy.

The sweetness washed away the heavy sensation leftover from the thick meat pie and oily stew, and Catherine involuntarily let out a moan.

“Mmm. Mmm-mm-mm.”

“Seems you enjoyed it.”

“Yes. The soft texture sweeps away the bitterness of the alraune powder and the sweet cream. The sugar streams into my body.”

“You seem to be eating rather quickly.”

“Stop talking and hurry up and bring more.”

“Yes, milady.”

As if she could no longer hold back, Catherine savored each bite with an almost semi-conscious eagerness, and Karem supplied her with forkfuls of sugar.

It had been nearly a week since she had last tasted dessert. It was just a crepe cake, yet it could taste this wonderful.

The thick, dry texture she had grown tired of was now nowhere to be found.

The fragrant scent of combined whipped cream and alraune powder seemed to massage her fatigue-ridden head.

‘The stress relief effect surely can’t be this great.’

The softness contrasted against the buildup of fatigue in her mouth gently eased her tiredness.

Perhaps due to the long-awaited taste, the sweetness of the cream stood out even more vividly this time, merging with the slight bitterness and the intense, nutty flavor as if it had been roasted right before being served.

After consuming four pieces in quick succession, she finally bit into the apple pie.

“I’d heard there are no exceptions, but to think we would eat nothing but meat pie and stew for nearly ten days.”

“It tastes good, but I’m so tired of it. Even fresh-baked ones would be tiring by now.”

“I’m neither a fan nor a detractor of apple pie, but it tastes incredible when I eat it this way. What kind of sorcery is this?”

“It’s the exact same pastry used for the meat pies you’ve had.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

Catherine, who had confidently asked, bit into the apple pie, her embarrassment causing her to chew noisily.

Unaware of her employer’s embarrassment, Karem quietly fed her more pie and cake, keeping pace with her hastened intake of sugar.

Creeeak-

Suddenly, an inharmonious sound filled the entire battlefield.

As if in agreement, Catherine and Karem exchanged glances; amidst the defense against the undead, everyone atop the fortress murmured.

“The door is opening!”

A traitor? Surely, they claimed to have caught them all!?

Karem, inadvertently setting down the plate, dashed past Mary and out onto the fortress.

And—

BOOOOM!!!

The gate of the fortress, which had been impossible to breach with siege weapons, exploded open.

BVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV-

Frrrrrrrrri- FAAAAWWWW- Frrrrr-

“Felwinter! Felwinter! Felwinter! Felwinter! Felwinter!”

“It’s time for a grand haul!”

“If you fall behind, you die! Run like the wind!”

“At once! Breaking news! Lance Charge!!!”

A unique instrument with multiple pipes and flutes stuck into a leather pouch.

With bagpipes being blown to the point of bursting, a group of sturdy men, skirts swirling, and various armored soldiers, knights, barbarian warriors, and adventurers charged forward with one purpose—to crush the undead.

The hollering, tearing timbre of the bagpipes reverberated through the air.

With every sound, a faint orange glow surged, enveloping the soldiers and adventurers who were obliterating the undead.

As the gate of the fortress began to close, a loud echoing sound filled the battlefield, capturing the attention of the undead forces.

In the front lines:

“Charge! With the vigor of a thriving child! Blow those bagpipes so loudly they echo through the Gogmagog mountains!”

“This is truly insane!!!”

“Hahaha! Isn’t it you who’s charging with more vigor than anyone?!”

Between Baston, wielding a power swing, and Richard, swinging a hammer, Gordon dashed in, wielding his sword.

 

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