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“Ah, what was that all about?”

Gordon, who had been slumped over, finally breathed a sigh of relief after hearing the explanation. He had been making unnecessary suspicious faces and keeping his guard up.

“No, what did I do to give you such a reason to be wary?”

“Are you really asking me that right now?”

“I mean, everyone else enjoyed the vanilla, Alraune’s Tear, and Kongarum just fine, yet here we are.”

“Are you seriously phrasing it like that?”

Gordon didn’t bother hiding his exasperation. Of course, there was nothing that Karem made that tasted bad. Even if there was, it would only be a matter of differing tastes.

However, Gordon still couldn’t shake off the memory of when Karem first saw a beaver’s testicles. The feelings he experienced back then were just as delicious as they were now.

“What’s wrong with wanting to repay my savior?”

“Think about your expression. Do I look like I’m making this up?”

With a strong shake of his head, Gordon slumped in his chair and frowned.

“So, what do you want me to help with?”

“Cooking.”

“What? Cooking? Me?”

“Yes! You’re a mercenary, right? Can’t you cook?”

No… did he just ask me to fetch some ingredients or something? Gordon tilted his head in confusion.

If asked if he could cook, he was certainly in the capable camp. Though, it was just within the scope of field cooking. The taste was bearable, at best.

“What dish are you trying to make?”

“That’s for me to decide from now on.”

“You haven’t decided yet.”

“It just came to me.”

At that remark, Corvus, who had been quietly listening with his arms crossed, jumped in.

“I apologize for interrupting your discussion, but—”

“Yes?”

“The supplies in the greenhouse are almost depleted.”

“Eh? What?”

Corvus flapped his wings, gesturing for the two of them to follow and show them the state of the warehouse. Unsurprisingly, Mary’s eyes lit up.

“Karem, in that case, I too—”

“Are you planning to leave Sir Atanitas alone?”

“Oh dear. And what about you?”

“I’ve already received permission.”

*

*

*

The warehouse was indeed empty, just as Corvus had mentioned.

It wasn’t just somewhat empty; it was practically barren where various food items had once been stacked.

“What’s left? Nothing at all?”

“Last time, we had quite a lot to work with. It seems our visit coincided with the time they ran out of supplies.”

The only remnants were apples, European pears, tomatoes, sugar, flour sacks, butter, and salt. Apart from that, all that was left were neatly stacked empty sacks, no other food scraps to be found.

“More visitors in the greenhouse have led to this situation. No, ‘residents’ would be a more appropriate term.”

“Does Flora, the fairy, eat as much as the princess?”

“No, not to that extent. Of course, Flora does eat quite a bit, but only slightly more than the average woman. No way does she compare to Alicia.”

Corvus, who had been turning his beak around, lifted a folded sack onto the shelf.

“With the increased residents and Alicia visiting more frequently than before, the supplies deplete faster than usual. Of course, the timing of ordering supplies has also matched up.”

Corvus crossed his arms, scratching his beak with his talons.

“So, what remains in the greenhouse’s storage are these ingredients. If you were to harvest the fruits from the trees, we might have a bit more.”

“And if we took something from the warehouse?”

“Then of course, we’d have more.”

Karem, having checked every corner inside the warehouse, spotted a person and a monster chatting softly as he emerged.

‘Now that I think about it, isn’t this the first time Gordon sees Corvus?’

He could talk better than most and had an unnecessarily elegant voice, and even spoke foreign languages, but Corvus was still a monster.

…Thinking like that made it seem extraordinary. But instead of being surprised, he conversed so naturally?

“Gordon.”

“Uh, so what’s in there?”

“Nothing. Apparently, what you see here is all there is. But…”

Leaning against the wall, Gordon turned his gaze when Karem’s words trailed off, wondering what he was going to say.

“Aren’t the two of you meeting for the first time?”

Huh? Both Corvus and Gordon locked eyes at the unexpected question. They blinked, wondering about it.

Then, as if they both realized something at the same instant, their eyes widened in surprise. Wait, how did they just now notice this? I didn’t realize it either.

“Excuse me for asking, but have you heard about me from Alicia?”

“No, I just entered the greenhouse and sensed the monster’s presence, so I thought it was a monster raised by Duke Atanitas, not my lord.”

Karem found it ridiculous how natural that assumption was coming from a misunderstanding.

“Didn’t you feel something was odd about that?”

“How many nobles do you think raise monsters in this world?”

“Ah.”

It was common for those in power to keep wild beasts as ornaments. Catherine had also mentioned that this was something that often occurred among the powerful.

Of course, while beasts and monsters differed, it seemed like the atmosphere was generally one of ignoring things unless they were extreme.

“Moreover, it’s not unheard of for beasts or monsters to undertake specific roles, albeit rare.”

“…Do you have an example in mind?”

“Like a guard gargoyle or a knight who has tamed a hippogriff.”

Wasn’t that more like training furniture or pets? Well, it might be effective.

“Well, unless it’s something really dangerous and aggressive or raised in an abnormal manner… Corvus.”

“Yes?”

“Have you eaten a person?”

“Not at all.”

“Well, that’s a relief. But how did you learn to speak then?”

“I naturally learned to remember the words people used.”

“Oh, you’re smarter than most individuals.”

Gordon was surprised by how he marveled at the bizarre aspect. No, it was indeed impressive to recall a language just by listening and remembering.

But still, there was something… off about this situation. Should it be this easy to discuss? No, now that I think about it, I too was dragged here by Alicia and just went along.

“Ah, forget it.”

“What? Can’t you decide on a menu just from this? I mean, looking at all this, I can only think of cookies and apple pie.”

Gordon picked up an apple, taking a big bite and chewing away.

“Actually, something comes to mind.”

“Well, if that’s the case, I have nothing to refute.”

With the seedless apple core cast away, he thought to himself that he could grab a snack while being rather confident.

“Sorry to interrupt again, but could you kindly pick up the trash and dispose of it separately?”

As Karem was gathering the ingredients, Gordon retrieved the apple core he had carelessly thrown away.

*

*

*

A snack time was suddenly designated.

However, no one refused it.

Mary was thrilled as there was work to be done and, of course, the idea of creating a dessert with butter and flour excited her. Catherine immediately urged to make the Strudel once she heard about the recipe.

It was only natural that everyone would react that way.

Given the flaky pastry stuffed with various fruits covered in sugar and infused with the aroma of butter, it was hardly something that anyone present could refuse.

“But how many are you planning to make?”

“Huh, how many?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

Catherine tilted her head as she watched Karem, who was mixing the flour with the chopped apple and pear.

“Flora aside, you have a mercenary and a princess here.”

“Oh. I’ve just forgotten for a moment.”

He had forgotten because they weren’t present at the time.

“Since it’s come to this, I’ll gather all the ingredients we have in the storage.”

Mary, who was preparing the pastries, dusted off the flour and promptly headed to the warehouse. Watching her go, Corvus began peeling the fruit.

“My storage that was already nearly empty will be cleaned out.”

“Oh, my apologies. I should have asked for permission first.”

“No, I was just joking. After all, we’ll need to order supplies anyway, so emptying it cleanly is quite alright.”

With that, Karem reassured as Mary hurried to the storage, and carefully placed the fruit on the pastries she had prepared earlier, rolling them up like gimbap.

“By the way, you said you’re making Strudel, right?”

Corvus tilted his head as he pulled the last of the apple peel and leaned toward the table.

“I thought the method was rather simple.”

“Just seal it up and thoroughly coat it with butter, then bake it.”

“Just like baking a pie?”

“Hmm… kind of a pie, yes.”

A pie refers to baked goods that are placed or filled with fillings in pastries. By that definition, Strudel also belongs to the pie category.

Even Karem, who was uncertain about baking, knew that Strudel was relatively simple enough to make at home. With frozen pastry available at supermarkets, you could whip up a similar dish with ease.

Considering Mary’s pastry skills, the Strudel Karem had made in his past life would have been no more than a flour dumpling. Karem thought this way.

And so he felt a deeper regret.

“If only I had whipping cream, or custard cream… or at least some eggs to whip into meringue! Should I go and take a trip? Ugh, forget it.”

While Karem was musing in disappointment, Gordon, who had been leisurely slicing the peeled apples and pears, asked.

“I’m almost done slicing. Want me to help you out?”

“No, you’re probably going to need to keep slicing.”

“Huh?”

Gordon followed Karem’s gesture and immediately understood.

Bam—

The faint tremors of a bag full of apples and pears, as well as the remaining flour sack and other ingredients in the basket, rose from beneath them.

“Just in case, I’ve gathered the remaining apples and everything else.”

*

*

*

As the time went by, the aroma of freshly baked bread and rich butter began wafting gently through the nest.

“That seems like a fair amount to me.”

Catherine gazed at the gently glowing oven.

“Preparations wrapped up faster than expected, huh?”

“It’s not as hard as Karem suggested, really.”

Gordon, who thought it was just an easy claim, was genuinely surprised at how uncomplicated the making process was.

Putting the filling inside the pastry, sealing it up, and coating it with butter to bake was the end of it. Compared to the desserts he knew, this was ridiculously easy.

Of course, most of the labor was on Mary, who handled the bulk of the pastry-making, and Karem didn’t know the original recipe, which contributed to its simplicity.

But simple means extensible.

“I think it would be good to have whipping cream, custard cream, or some jam to go with it.”

Mary stood beside Catherine, imagining the various applications and improvements of Strudel, salivating at the thought.

“Considering the harmony with the pastry—”

“That does sound more delicious for sure.”

“Then why the delay?”

“What can I do about what I don’t have? We’ve already made it, and it wouldn’t be right to leave now and come back empty-handed. There’s always a next time; let’s eat it later.”

“So, snack tomorrow?”

“Well, if Sir Atanitas wants it.”

At that remark, Mary abruptly turned her head. Catherine glanced at her before returning her gaze forward.

“Well, we should at least taste it. By the way, it’s been some time, has it baked yet?”

“It’s almost done.”

Just then, Corvus returned after checking the oven.

“It just needs a little more patience.”

“Shouldn’t we call Lady Alicia and Lady Flora?”

As Mary inhaled the increasingly delightful aroma of the rich butter and sweet caramel for the sake of formality, she asked.

“Oh, there’s no need to worry. I briefly checked the oven just a moment ago, so it should be—”

Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—

From the forest on the other side of the nest, the sound of two types of footsteps began to approach. It was obvious who it was.

Rustle—

“Snack time!”

Loving to eat, Alicia was one thing, but Flora bounded toward the table, her happy expression almost as if she had never sulked, scattering fallen leaves around.

Though they were two completely different-sized beings, the delightful glee on their faces, with their bodies covered in dry grass, evoked…

“Doesn’t it seem like Lady Alicia has one more thing with her?”

“Child! That’s blasphemous talk, isn’t it?”

However, Catherine did not refute Karem’s words.

 

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