Unexpected Duel
“…Where is Breeder right now? With his skills, he could be of great help.”
A chill ran down my spine at the sound of Benetric’s voice searching for me. It felt like standing guard during my military service only to have the duty officer show up for an unannounced inspection. If possible, I wanted to stay hidden like this a little longer……. But why wouldn’t anyone lend me a hand just this once? Still, was it really safe to step out now?
‘Ha, damn it…….’
I had grown somewhat used to dealing with the young ladies, but facing Benetric—the vice principal—was still daunting. She was 3416 years old; how had she not developed dementia yet? Ah, was she still considered young for a dragon? Either way, that wasn’t the issue right now…….
“Maruti? Answer me at once.”
“Well… it’s a rather long story—”
“I’m right here, Professor.”
I revealed myself before Maruti could give his one-sided version of the day’s events. He might twist the facts to suit himself. No matter what he said, I was already at a complete disadvantage. That was why I chose to step forward before things escalated further. For now, this was the best move I could make.
“Hmm? Where have you been, Breeder?”
As expected, Benetric regarded me with a displeased gaze. Her expression suggested she was ready to scold me at any moment. But this was exactly when I couldn’t afford to flinch.
“I was offering prayers outside on my own.”
“What? Outside? What nonsense is that?”
“I wanted to pray and atone as you instructed, Professor, but Maruti drove me out of the chapel, claiming a dragon hater had no right to pray.”
First and foremost, I needed to defend myself. I had to lay out the facts clearly—that everything had started because of Maruti.
“Hmm? Is Breeder telling the truth, Maruti?”
“W-Well, that part is true…! But I ordered him to prepare dinner and refreshments instead of praying! Yet he left on his own accord—”
“Enough. That will do.”
Benetric coldly cut off Maruti’s trembling words. She turned to face me directly, her eyes sharp and piercing.
—Shiver…!
Just meeting her gaze was enough to make my skin crawl. Last time, the purification of light and the fire dragon’s heat had let me shrug off Benetric’s wrath without much trouble. Now, however, simply facing her icy stare made my knees weak.
“Breeder? This time I’ll ask you. Is what he said true? That you disobeyed orders and left on your own?”
“…Yes. That’s correct.”
“Then why did you act alone?”
“At first, you said… P-Professor, that simply attending the prayer would suffice! That’s why I did it…….”
I steadied my trembling voice and spoke. If I stammered just because I was intimidated by a glare, my life could truly be in danger. Besides, I couldn’t simply endure unfair treatment. Doing so would be no different from declaring myself a slave.
“…And besides, you never mentioned anything about participating in meal preparation or chores, did you?”
That was why I poured out everything I had to say, swallowing dryly as I spoke. Under normal circumstances, I would never have dared.
“Ha, what a ridiculous excuse.”
“Pardon?”
“I did say that, but I believe I also mentioned that Sofia would explain the details. What kind of petty wordplay is this?”
“Ah…….”
“If Sofia simply forgot to pass on the message, then I suppose I’ll have to punish her instead of you. Isn’t that right?”
“…….”
“Hmm? Why aren’t you answering?”
She wasn’t wrong, so I couldn’t reply. I hadn’t expected her to turn the situation like this. I had thought she was just an old spinster who had lived too long, yet at times like this she proved unnecessarily sharp.
“Well, fine. If you have no answer, then I’ll consider everything Sofia’s responsibility and—”
“No. It’s all because of my own arbitrary interpretation…….”
“Hmph, that’s more like it.”
I couldn’t drag Sofia into this. I still hadn’t properly answered her confession, and if she got involved, her favor toward me would surely plummet.
“…….”
That aside, what was going to happen now? Surely she wasn’t actually planning to kill me? Not when I possessed the recipes for mint chocolate and Hawaiian pizza?
“Anyway, no need for further talk. Breeder? You’ve been assigned to chores today. So you’ll have to help as well.”
“H-Help?”
“Why are you pretending not to know? Obviously, preparing for the tea party. If you do well, I won’t punish you separately.”
Benetric withdrew her cold gaze, wearing the expression of someone granting a favor. At least my life was spared—that was a relief. Moreover, if I performed well she wouldn’t punish me separately; for Benetric, this was quite generous.
“What should I do? I heard that almost all the prepared desserts went missing…….”
“Even so, it’s not as though we have nothing left, is it? The remaining ingredients should be sufficient. Make the best-tasting things you can with what we have.”
“Does that mean the variety doesn’t have to be extensive?”
“Correct. Just create at least one proper dessert. I, as vice principal, will handle the lack of variety myself.”
““Ooh…! As expected of Lady Benetric……!””
The otherworldly chefs bowed deeply at Benetric’s declaration that she would resolve matters through her authority. Honestly, it was the best approach. Given her personality, I had expected her to overturn everything, yet as vice principal she was handling the situation quite competently. Of course, we would be the ones doing all the work.
“So, Breeder and Maruti? You two should put your utmost effort into making desserts…….”
Benetric, who had been about to give instructions with a raised hand, suddenly trailed off.
“No, wait…! That’s a good idea—!”
She muttered to herself for a moment…….
—Clap!
She clapped her hands alone, wearing the satisfied expression of a strategist who had just devised a brilliant plan.
“Alright, let’s do it this way. Each of you will present a different dessert.”
“Huh? Different desserts?”
“Breeder? If you create a dessert tastier than Maruti’s, I’ll exempt you from chores starting from the next prayer. How about that?”
“Does that mean I should make something special that suits the Professor’s taste?”
“No, you don’t necessarily have to consider my taste. It would be nice if it’s special, but keep in mind that this dessert will be served to everyone.”
Benetric gave the order with a satisfied smile. Her intentions were transparent. She was clearly trying to satisfy her own palate under the pretext of handling the tea party. It was far too obvious.
“How about it? Everyone can manage, right?”
Benetric looked positively excited as she asked.
““We are grateful for your merciful grace, Lady Benetric…!””
The otherworldly chefs clasped their hands and groveled. They revered her as if she were their savior. Yet who was it that had skipped the desserts while teleporting in the first place…….
“Breeder? What’s your answer?”
“Ah, I understand. So it just needs to be a special dessert that everyone will enjoy, right?”
I couldn’t disobey either. The condition was ridiculous, but I had no other choice. Even if it was shady, I had to survive first.
“Good. Then I’ll go have dinner first, so make sure to do well.”
With those words, Benetric left the cooking area. She walked away leisurely, muttering about how she was looking forward to today’s dessert. I had heard somewhere that dragons grew greedier with age, and it seemed to be true.
“Now, let’s move quickly! Lady Benetric is waiting for our desserts!”
“Yes, Chef!”
“But Chef? What should we make?”
“Hmm, are these all the ingredients we can use right now?”
As soon as Benetric left, the otherworldly chefs began moving busily. They put their heads together to select the menu. Perhaps because they had narrowly escaped death, they seemed full of energy.
Damn it. Now that I thought about it, it was three against one. Extremely disadvantageous. I had to make a dessert in a short time all by myself? As much as I wanted to ask the lamb squirrel and the herbivorous beastkin for help, they were busy preparing Benetric’s meal. I had no choice but to overcome this difficulty alone. To do that, I needed to assess the ingredients on hand before worrying about what to make.
“…The only things left right now are the chocolates and simple biscuits left over from the prayer.”
“That’s right, Chef. The rest are all baking ingredients.”
Fortunately, they were also checking the ingredients. As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you’ll win every battle—I should first eavesdrop on what they were planning.
“Let’s see… We have about an hour left, so making something grand is out of the question. Is there cacao butter over there too?”
“Yes! We bought it when the price dropped significantly, so we have plenty!”
“Good! Let’s make use of what we have. It’s too tight to use the oven.”
“Then we’ll go get everything we have for now!”
“Right, hurry! We can’t lose to a criminal like that!”
—Clatter, clack!
The others moved busily under Maruti’s instructions. Having worked together for a long time, their hands and feet moved swiftly. Moreover, whether they were conscious of me or not, they didn’t leak any information about what they were going to make.
‘Something special yet appealing to the general public’s taste…….’
I had no choice but to come up with a plan right away. I couldn’t afford to delay any longer. What remained were chocolates, biscuits, and various baking ingredients. What could I make with these that would be called special and delicious? I kept muttering to myself while checking the remaining ingredients.
‘Haa, a snack that suits weekend prayer activities…….’
I was muttering keywords like that for a while when—
“Ah, that’s it!”
An idea deeply buried in my head flashed through my mind.
“You can’t leave this out of a weekend religious event……!”