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“Karem. Karem.”

“Did you call?”

“Alicia seems to think Mary is a bit oblivious.”

Alicia tapped her foot on the ground, looking up at Karem. Karem clarified, just like he had done with Robin before.

“It’s a little different.”

“Different, you say?”

“Mary isn’t oblivious; she just doesn’t pick up on things.”

“Isn’t that a bigger problem in Alicia’s mind…?”

Karem couldn’t deny her words.

Even Alicia, who is merely 6 years old and will turn 7 next year, was trembling as she felt the atmosphere had been broken by Mary, who had desperately tried to patch things up.

“Well, since it happened like that, I guess from now on… from now…”

Karem scratched his head, avoiding Alicia’s innocent gaze.

That iron-faced girl probably won’t disappear anytime soon.

The sense of urgency was echoing.

“Ah, you don’t have to tell Alicia.”

“Is that so?”

“More than that, I’m just disappointed about the snacks.”

Alicia smacked her lips as if thinking about the lord of Afterglow Fortress.

“I only got to eat one. I wanted more.”

Indeed, for someone her age, a single pancake was only making her appetite more unbearable.

“Then let’s go back to the tower and head to the kitchen-”

“Isn’t it better if we don’t go in until Kitty calms down?”

“Then I can’t borrow another kitchen…”

Usually, they could have borrowed any kitchen besides the lord’s, but coincidentally, a reception banquet for guests was scheduled. The kitchens of Winterhome were as busy as preparing Wintersend.

“Sir Zigmeser’s kitchen can’t be used without him.”

“But Alicia is still hungry.”

“Isn’t there anywhere we can borrow a kitchen?”

“Um, well…”

Alicia hung her head, scratching the intact floor with her foot. She seemed to feel like something was coming to mind.

“If you ask, I’m sure you could borrow one…”

“Then why are you hesitating?”

“The greenhouse. The greenhouse.”

Alicia pouted and hesitated, then let out a big sigh. It didn’t suit her at all.

“Flora and Gordon are probably getting cozy.”

“Well, that’s… Ah…”

Considering what had happened in the office earlier, it was understandable she would hesitate. It was clear she was worried about becoming Mary from Flora and Gordon’s perspective.

“…Now that I think about it, it makes me mad.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Oh, nothing. How about we just sneak in and check the atmosphere?”

“But if they’re getting cozy-”

“Then we just come right back out.”

“And the snacks?”

Clank – Whoosh –

Instead of answering Alicia, Karem dug into his pocket and pulled out a magical chef’s knife, twisting the handle. Felwinter’s Lies blushed crimson.

“If needed, we can borrow just enough to make something.”

“Hmm. Then let’s go check the atmosphere for a bit.”

Alicia nodded with her face in a gentle freeze.

*

*

*

One thing Alicia did not know.

The greenhouse was not exactly a leisurely place.

The current season was mid-winter.

The ships laden with exports coming in and out of Iceland had long since ceased. A reasonable merchant wouldn’t sail in dangerous winter. They would come in late winter or early spring.

Of course, Alfred, who had anticipated the timing and identity of guests long ago, had stocked various food items, primarily vegetables and fruits, in large quantities months in advance.

However, the word loss exists in the world.

Leftover scraps from the process of preparing food. If something goes wrong and the dish is thrown away, it must be remade, and things that were already of low quality at time of delivery are discarded, etc.

In Coldon, no one is reckless enough to press their luck.

But the amount that gets lost will surely occur.

And to replenish the lost vegetables and fruits, the greenhouse was busy, though not as much as the castle’s kitchen.

“Hey. So what was it that they were getting cozy about?”

“Ah, seems like the timing overlapped?”

“Overlapped, you say?”

“These days, the greenhouse is busy until sunset because of the harvest.”

Although winter had long settled in Coldon, this was the greenhouse of Winterhome.

Each zone had its environment and seasons specifically cultivated, with areas deliberately designed to allow harvesting vegetables and fruits even in winter.

“Then can I borrow the kitchen?”

“Huh? What about the Mage Tower’s kitchen?”

“Uh, that’s a thing that happened.”

When he didn’t get a reply back, Gordon tilted his head. He figured that a response would only lead to him poking fun. In place of Karem, Alicia patted Gordon on the waist to call him.

“Mary, who interrupted the cozy moment, did something that would get her stabbed by a unicorn.”

“…Oh ho ho.”

Now this fool. I thought he was mature?

Karem sighed, covering his eyes.

That overtly wicked expression was clear to everyone.

It was evident he had grasped the situation fully with just one sentence.

And it was accurate.

A Swordmaster’s senses cannot be deceived.

“Geez! Acting so annoyingly!”

“Ugh, shut up. Anyway, it’s the kitchen. Aah, but if Corvus isn’t here, can we borrow the nest’s kitchen?”

“Probably wouldn’t matter?”

Gordon shrugged his shoulders while looking around the greenhouse.

“Just make sure you prepare enough for both of you.”

As they spoke, they arrived at Corvus’s nest. Karem noticed nothing had changed significantly.

However, various fruits and vegetables such as apples, pears, lemons, oranges, peaches, and various kinds of berries, cabbages, turnips, leeks, and onions were stacked haphazardly all over the nest.

Alicia’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the evidently ripe fruits.

“Gordon. What are these fruits?”

“They’re of low quality for the banquet.”

“This many? Then what about the good ones?”

“Those should be in the warehouse.”

With that, Gordon pointed with his thumb towards the back where the warehouse would be within the nest.

Fruits and vegetables. They might be ugly and scratched on the surface, but they were dense and perfectly ripe. There weren’t any unripe or under-ripe items.

Certainly, they were misshapen and had many blemishes. That’s how it is.

Karem’s thoughts were accurate. No matter how ripe a fruit or vegetable is, in modern times, if it’s ugly or has blemishes, it will barely be of medium quality.

“Such a waste.”

“Well, a commoner wouldn’t care, but for the so-called noble’s dining table, the quality wouldn’t suffice.”

“So all these fruits will be thrown away?”

“Hey, other nobles might, but our lord won’t. They’ll probably generously share with the castle people.”

Even in modern times, expensive fruits would not fall into Eurupa’s category.

Unless it was from tropical regions or orchards, fruit prices are astronomical.

Only those with money would throw away fallen fruit; for ordinary commoners or those in less favorable conditions, that would be more of a blessing.

“Then can I use a bit?”

“You can take as much as you want.”

“No, taking all of it is impossible… Even so, it would be a bit awkward to take all of this.”

“No, seriously, it wouldn’t matter.”

Gordon flicked an apple up into the air and caught it.

Crunch

“Even if I don’t use all of this, I could pile this much at least three or four times. No one’s going to mind even if I use some of these afterward.”

“What was that you said about it being of low quality?”

“Who’d notice once you peel and chop them up?”

“That’s true.”

Nodding along, Karem looked down at the hand touching his waist. Alicia was looking up at him intently.

“Snacks.”

“Oh right. Snacks. Is there something you want?”

“Originally, I wanted to eat the pancake we had earlier, but-”

That was a bit of a dilemma. Sure, pancakes could be made as much as one wanted, but – the thick pancakes Mary had made before were concerning even before thinking about the tools.

“Seeing these fruits, I’ve changed my mind.”

“Fruit tart? Pie?”

“Hmm. I want a soft dessert made with fruit.”

Was she looking for something different? Karem involuntarily released a sound, realizing the order was a bit more complicated than expected.

A soft dessert would refer to bread or cake. If it were pastry that had become familiar through a workout of divine power, that would be one thing, but as for cakes, inspiration had yet to hit.

“How about a castellan?”

“Oven-baked castellan with fruit? Does such a thing exist?”

“Um… no.”

Alicia wouldn’t simply want a dessert that paired fresh fruits. If she did, she would’ve just said that directly.

“Ah, wait. I got it.”

“Huh?”

“Just a moment. Gordon, do you have any ingredients in the warehouse?”

“Of course, we do.”

Gordon turned his body, gesturing toward the warehouse.

“We received proper deliveries this time, unlike last time.”

“Surely you have baking supplies, right?”

“We have flour, sugar, butter, cream, vanilla, yeast. We should have everything you need. Just say the word.”

That being the case, it was no problem. Even without missing ingredients, having sufficient supplies meant he could make something.

“How about a tart?”

“A tart? Sounds good, but isn’t that the crisp kind?”

“Well, there are ways.”

Tarte Tatin.

Although it was born from an accident, if the ingredients are there, it’s easier to make than your typical dessert. Just as long as you can do a bit of baking.

*

*

*

Mistakes are the mother of invention.

In modern times, few people would not know the phrase.

Chocolate chip cookies, Bêtise candy, oyster sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mozzarella cheese, burritos, raisins, cornflakes, cola… and so on.

The types of dishes created from simple, thoughtless, and foolish mistakes are countless, and it continues to increase somewhere in the world even now.

However, as always, to the eyes of others, creative mistakes simply appear as foolishness.

Hence, it was appropriate for Alicia to observe Karem’s actions with a suspicious look by the outdoor kitchen of Corvus.

“That’s strange.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

Alicia looked at Karem with a dubious expression. Caught off guard by the sudden question, Karem put the knife he was holding down.

“Karem. I distinctly heard you say you were making a tart.”

“Yes, I did say that.”

“Then why are you covering the pan with dough?”

“Well, if there’s no pastry, it wouldn’t be a tart; it would just be caramelized fruits.”

“This looks more like a pie to me.”

Alicia pointed at the dough completely covering the pan.

Under the dough was caramel sauce with plenty of butter and various fruit pieces, such as sautéed apples, peaches, and pears.

It was entirely ordinary filling for a pie or tart.

There were no issues up until this point.

If what held that were a pie sheet instead of the pan, that might have changed things, though.

Of course, Karem had his reasons as well.

“To make a proper tart, you’d have to wait until lunch; can you bear it?”

“Karem has never disappointed Alicia. I’m curious about what kind of snack will be made.”

Alicia said firmly, staring at Karem. The suspicion that had lingered moments before had given way to curiosity and appetite.

“Well, has he ever made something tasteless?”

“Hmm. Never that I’m aware of.”

“I don’t know. There are suspicious parts, though.”

“Suspicious?”

“Well, there are.”

Gordon chuckled at Alicia’s gaze and waved his hand dismissively as if it was nothing. As he was about to grab the knife again, he suddenly asked.

“How much longer do we have to peel this?”

Gordon whined as he looked at the mountain of carefully peeled fruits and fruit skins in front of him.

“You’ll probably need to peel a lot more.”

“More than this?”

“If you’re not going to eat any, you probably don’t have to peel any more than this.”

After all, Alicia eats a lot.

Gordon eats even more.

If they say they aren’t going to eat, it means there will be less work for Karem, so he was grateful.

But Gordon, as if he had never said that, whistled as he swiftly peeled the fruits.

Karem, brushed off that complaint, suddenly encountered another dilemma.

“Are we going to have enough pans? I don’t think so.”

Tarte Tatin.

It’s easy to make, but you need an entire pan to yourself.

That means one tarte tatin equals one pan.

“…”

“Karem? Is there a problem?”

“No, nothing at all.”

Karem took out every pan that was in the kitchen without any thought.

There were five in total.

That’s a lot, but still a long way from filling the insatiable appetites of the little bear and the swordmaster.

“Oh well, I guess it’ll work out somehow.”

Karem silently placed the pans on the cooking range.

 

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