A Cruel Fairy Tale
"I've sent the tributes again this time," the woman reported, bowing deeply.
In a vast study lined with countless books, the man who had been absorbed in an ancient tome let out a long sigh and raised his head.
"Haa..."
His gaunt eyes turned toward the woman standing rigidly before him. She stiffened even further, as if sensing his mood. It was only natural. The man in front of her was none other than the Third Prince, Arkin de Berg.
Rubbing his forehead as though plagued by a headache, the man spoke. "How long is this childish game going to continue? What could possibly be so entertaining about such nonsense?"
"..."
"Want to be loved? Why the hell does something like that even matter? If I possessed that damned monstrous power, this pathetic empire would already be—!"
Arkin's temper flared as he spoke, and he ground his teeth with a loud crunch. The woman trembled faintly.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and asked again in a calmer voice. "You did send the prisoners, correct?"
"Yes."
"Even after sending those vermin-like criminals who are better off dead, everything remains quiet?"
"..."
Arkin let out a hollow laugh, unable to comprehend it. "Well, there's no way those violence-obsessed idiots would ever be compatible anyway."
"...Correct."
"We must prevent her from finding a suitable toy at all costs. If that damn monster becomes satisfied, our opportunity vanishes. It's infuriating enough that someone with such power spends her time playing house—!"
The more Arkin spoke, the more his rage boiled over, twisting his features. He raised his arm.
Kwaaaaang!
The table shattered under his blow, sending splinters flying in every direction. His anger showed no signs of fading. With bloodshot eyes, he scanned the room.
Srrrng.
He drew the decorative sword that hung on the study wall. Breathing heavily, Arkin gripped the blade and strode toward the woman.
"Y-Your Highness...?"
She stared at him with shaking eyes. Fear lurked within them.
"Do you truly believe you can find anything worthwhile among mere prisoners and childish games?"
Facing his bloodshot gaze, the woman collapsed to the floor with a thud.
"After spending my whole life groveling before those shitty older siblings of mine, did you think I wouldn't notice?"
"S-Spare me..."
"You're Asrin's spy, aren't you? The Second Princess's little pet. I heard you're trying to use that monster. You think I'd let you live?"
Arkin's face warped with fury as he shouted. He glared down at the woman groveling on the floor, begging for mercy, and gave a bitter smile.
"I couldn't tell anyone because I couldn't trust a soul. Thanks for listening so well. Farewell."
"...!"
Schluck.
Blood sprayed across the floor. Arkin turned away and muttered under his breath.
"Love is bullshit. Once I become emperor, I can obtain anything I desire."
...
"..."
I could only stand there with my mouth hanging open in shock. Before my eyes were not the bizarre ingredients I had feared, but perfectly ordinary grains and foodstuffs.
Wait, she made that grotesque meal with these?
Are you some kind of alchemist?
I stared at Leviart in disbelief. She simply tilted her head, as if wondering what the problem was.
"The thing from yesterday... that wasn't an eyeball, was it?"
"Huh? Eyeball? Ohhh, you mean that dish you liked so much, oppa?"
Leviart nodded as if the memory had returned. The fact that she could say that after witnessing my face rot away made it feel like she was subtly messing with me.
There aren't any eyeballs here at all...
The storage room was enormous and stocked with valuable ingredients, yet there were no eyeballs in sight. Nor should there be.
Because of yesterday's meal, I had needed to steel myself mentally several times just to enter the food storage.
"Where exactly did the eyeball from yesterday come from...?" I asked, my voice trembling.
Leviart looked at me with puzzled eyes, as though she couldn't fathom why I was asking.
I need to know this.
It was important. That eyeball that had tasted like bread—was it from here, or was it a genuine eyeball?
Leviart pointed at potatoes, bread, cheese, and the like. "I made yesterday's food entirely with these. I didn't have time to go hunting."
"..."
Just how had she managed to create that nightmare of a dish using these ingredients? I looked back and forth between Leviart and the storage in a daze.
Should I call that fortunate?
No, wait a second.
It was still extremely strange that these ingredients could produce something with that kind of appearance. I'd set that question aside for now.
"...There's meat here too. And spices. Let's just grill some meat, keep it simple."
"Okay!"
Leviart let out a happy "hehe" and nodded vigorously. I didn't know what she found so wonderful about it, but I smiled back at her.
Meat... it's been so long.
After being thrown into prison, all I'd eaten was some bizarre porridge. It was supposed to taste awful, and somehow there had even been a rat's tail in it. Excluding the rat meat—which was definitely not normal—I had barely eaten any real meat at all.
I gathered the ingredients. They're in surprisingly good condition. The meat wasn't rotting anywhere. Good freshness like this meant either they had gone hunting or 'someone had supplied it.' The latter seemed far more likely, especially since the meat was neatly packaged and ready to eat.
"Whenever I try to grill meat, it always turns to dust and disappears..." Leviart said, her shoulders slumping with clear dejection.
How exactly did one grill meat so that it turned into dust? Wouldn't it just burn black?
I rolled up my sleeves and declared with confidence, "Alright, Levi? Watch me do it."
"Le...vi?"
Leviart looked at me with slightly flustered, dazed eyes.
Ah, I shortened it by accident.
Medieval names were hard to remember. It wasn't like they were simple like Anton—it was something like Lowrick's Anton the Third. My old habit of shortening names had slipped out.
I cleared my throat and quickly made an excuse. "It's a nickname. That's what siblings do, you know."
Total lie. What siblings actually use nicknames? Maybe some did, but I certainly hadn't.
"A nickname...!"
Levi's eyes widened into perfect circles. The expression on her face wasn't one of surprise so much as pure delight. A bright smile bloomed across her lips, so it seemed my excuse had worked perfectly.
Phew. That worked out.
Levi sounded much cuter than Leviart anyway. Even though up until yesterday I'd wondered if it was appropriate to give such a nickname to someone who had killed people...
But what was I supposed to do? I had survived.
"Levi! I like it!" Levi laughed with a bright "hehe" and began jumping up and down. She looked like a pure-hearted child who had just received the gift she'd always wanted.
"Yeah, yeah. Let's head to the kitchen."
"Levi~ Levi~" She hummed the nickname I'd given her on a whim and led me somewhere, her steps light and bouncy.
She's not going to sing it all day, is she? It wouldn't really matter, but it might get annoying.
The place she brought me to was a huge room filled with every kind of cooking utensil and dish imaginable. I'd half-expected ingredients from the underworld or something equally ominous, but it was surprisingly normal.
"This is... where I'll be cooking, probably," Levi said hesitantly.
"What do you mean, probably?"
"I don't know how to use any of these."
Levi added the words with a gloomy expression. Just where had the food I'd eaten been prepared, then?
I need to know this. At this rate, I might actually ascend to heaven while eating one of these days.
"How do you usually make food, Levi?"
"Umm... if I fiddle with it a bit... poof! It turns into whatever shape I want. The humans call it alchemy!" Levi explained, waving her arms around in an attempt to demonstrate.
It really was alchemy?
In that case, there probably wasn't a problem. Alchemy followed the basic properties of objects. It most likely just altered their appearance.
I'd learned about it back in prison because some prisoner had tried to escape using alchemy. He'd even made a key and broken out... only to get beaten half to death and executed by the prison warden, most likely.
Since he'd become a Speedwagon in my heart, I offered him a moment of silence. Thank you, nameless man!
"Levi hates alchemy. Hunting and eating is much better!"
"Really? What do you hunt?" I'd only asked to play along, but her answer was anything but ordinary.
"Wolves... orcs. For a special treat, dragons!" Levi declared proudly.
"But lately those big lizards got scared and ran back to their lairs. Hunting them takes too long."
"..."
I stared at her with a completely blank face. If it's dragons... Was she talking about those dragons?
"Those stupid dragons seem to think their lairs are safe. It's just one giant hunting ground to me. Still, if they move their nests again and stir up more wars farther away, it'll be troublesome. I haven't caught any lately."
"..."
I felt like I'd heard far too many things I shouldn't have. I quickly wiped the bewilderment from my face and changed the subject. "I-I see. I'll grill the meat for you. Want to watch how it's done?"
"Yes!"
Levi climbed onto a chair that had appeared from somewhere and watched intently. I placed the meat on a surprisingly well-maintained grill and began cooking it, adding butter and spices.
"Woaaah..." Levi's eyes sparkled with fascination.
It made me feel strangely proud. It wasn't anything special, yet here I was showing off. So this was why people did it.
The color looks perfect.
Once the steak was finished, I plated it and added a small decorative touch. A steak so appetizing that it would have made my mouth water even back in my original world—complete!
"Let's eat!"
"Okay!"
There was a dining table right beside the kitchen. We set it nicely and ate together. Levi sliced her steak using magic rather than a knife and chewed happily.
"Mmm, so good!"
"I'm glad."
I'd set out a fork and knife for nothing. I cut my own portion and took a bite.
Fuuuuck...
This luxurious flavor. It brought tears to my eyes. In that damned prison, they usually didn't even give us the proper rations...
Maybe just living here wouldn't be so bad...
What the hell was I thinking! Did I not know who was sitting right in front of me? This was Leviart. The final boss. A being of terror who could slice me apart whenever she pleased.
Don't entertain such weak thoughts.
I will definitely escape.
With this kind of information, they might even pardon my crimes. Then, even if it wasn't a perfect happy ending, I could still enjoy a decent life in this other world.
But first, I'd finish this meal.
"It's delicious."
Maybe I should just stay here?