Tangsuyuk and the Sauce
—Thud, thud…! A pair of slender legs strode into the lounge with a light, unhurried gait. As my gaze traveled upward, I first noticed the long, straight hair cascading down to her calves. “Oh? You are…?”
Following the silken strands, I lifted my eyes to find a pure white one-piece dress. The flowing, ethereal garment looked as though it had stepped straight out of a wedding photoshoot. Perhaps it was the stark whiteness of the fabric that made her blue hair stand out even more vividly. Those ocean-hued locks swayed gently like calm waves.
I tried to meet her eyes to get a proper look at her face, but I never managed to catch her gaze. It wasn’t that she avoided mine. On the contrary, I could feel an intense stare fixed squarely on me. While I couldn’t see her eyes, she had no trouble staring straight through me. That was only natural—her eyes were nearly closed. Only the faint outlines of her narrow eye shape and lashes were visible; actually meeting her gaze seemed impossible.
“Hmm~ What’s that delicious smell? I wandered all around the dormitory and never expected to find it here. How do you do, Attendant?”
The owner of those narrow blue eyes fluttered her lashes as she offered a greeting.
“Ah, Lady Sairin? What brings you here…?”
Indeed, the person who had stepped inside was none other than Sairin. She glided toward the kitchen with a light, graceful step, as if curious about what I was doing.
“I was just passing by and caught the scent. Are you cooking? You look rather busy.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I heard it was your day off… Why are you working? Shouldn’t you be resting properly?”
“I was testing a few things for tomorrow. Almost all the kitchen equipment has been replaced with new ones.”
“Oh my. So that’s it. You really are as diligent as they say. Even on your day off, you don’t forget your duties. It’s quite admirable.”
“Haha, you flatter me. It’s only natural, after all.”
I was making this because I was hungry, so of course I had to focus. Luckily, she took my excuse at face value.
“Then please continue with your work. I’ll excuse myself for a moment.”
—Scrape…! Sairin murmured softly as she settled gracefully into the seat right in front of the kitchen counter. All the while, she kept her eyes fixed on my face.
“Um, Lady…? What exactly brings you here? It sounded like you were looking for me earlier.”
“Ah, don’t worry about that. It’s nothing you need to concern yourself with.”
“Pardon?”
What was that supposed to mean? She’d gone out of her way to make me curious, only to brush it off like that. Of course that only made me more suspicious.
“…Would you like something to drink, at least?”
“No, I don’t want to disturb you on your day off. Just continue what you were doing. I simply find watching you rather entertaining.”
“I… see. Understood.”
No, watching me like that was definitely a disturbance. Still, why had she suddenly shown up? If she had no business here, why come at all? And why stare so intently? Even with those half-closed eyes, she kept glancing over.
‘Even so, it’s a relief that someone who at least treats me with basic respect came by. I nearly had a heart attack thinking Raili had burst in.’
—Clatter, clack…! I lifted the tangsuyuk from the oil and transferred it to a bowl. Fortunately, I was almost finished. All that remained was to whip up the sauce quickly. At this rate, Sairin’s gaze probably wouldn’t be much of a problem.
‘That aside, why did she really come? The “delicious smell” excuse is clearly just a pretext.’
I had no real friendship with Sairin. Though she always spoke to me politely, it felt more like a habitual formality than genuine warmth. Looking back on how she had treated me until now, she had actually been more indifferent toward me than any of the other young ladies. Yet here she was, staring at me without blinking.
—Glug, glug…! I quickly chopped cucumber, carrot, and onion, then simmered them in a pan with water. The sauce needed plenty of sugar. Once the water came to a rolling boil, I added soy sauce and vinegar. That alone would give the tangsuyuk sauce its signature sweet-and-sour flavor.
—Bubble, bubble, bubble…!!! As it began to simmer, I slowly poured in the starch slurry while stirring, aiming for that thick, glossy consistency.
“That too… I’ve only ever seen it back home!”
Once the sauce had thickened nicely, Sairin, who had been quietly observing, let out a small gasp of surprise. Even though her eyes were barely visible, I could almost feel them sparkling.
‘Tch, this is getting really awkward…’
Still, all that was left was to reduce it a little more. I wanted to finish quickly so I could finally eat. Of course, before that, I needed to find out why Sairin had come looking for me.
*
—Clink…! Glug…! Having finished cooking, Breeder neatly plated the food and sauce. The perfectly fried tangsuyuk went into a wide bowl, while the soy-based sauce went into a deeper one. Serving them separately was purely a matter of personal preference. If he wrapped these containers and packed them into a delivery bag, it would look exactly like takeout.
‘I thought Raili was exaggerating when she described his skills, but he really is quite good.’
Sairin had been watching Breeder closely the entire time. Even without tasting it, she could already imagine the flavor. Eastern continental cuisine, was it…? Had he known I would come? Perhaps Raili had done something similar…?
‘He mentioned serving her a dish made with flowers last time, didn’t he? Ever since then, Raili has been acting strange. And today, her energy was so depleted it felt like half her Dragon Heart had vanished.’
Sairin muttered inwardly, her eyes rolling behind those narrow slits. Before she realized it, her gaze had shifted from Breeder to the dish he had prepared.
She hadn’t come here for any other reason. She suspected something was going on between Breeder and Railin. The incident at the lookout post yesterday involving Raili and Sofia had already been surprising enough, but today Raili’s condition was especially concerning. Just as she had thought earlier, Raili’s Dragon Heart energy felt weak, and when Sairin had seen her that morning, her appearance had been dreadful. She looked utterly exhausted, as though she had pushed her body to its limits all night, and there was a faint, unfamiliar night-bloom fragrance clinging to her—something reminiscent of a strong male scent.
In truth, that male scent bothered her the most. The only man ever around Railin was Breeder. That alone was enough reason for Sairin to place him at the top of her list of suspects.
‘As I thought, no matter how I look at it, the Attendant is the most suspicious…’
Though she wasn’t particularly close with her twin sister Raili, Sairin still kept a quiet, protective eye on her in her own way. Based on all the circumstantial evidence, she had come here specifically to probe Breeder.
“…Oh! You can even float five of them at once?”
‘Hmm? Suddenly talking to himself?’
Breeder murmured to the empty air, as though something were hovering right in front of him. Sairin could only watch in bewilderment, finding him even more suspicious than before.
—Step, step…! Regardless, Breeder soon approached the table where Sairin sat, wearing a satisfied expression.
—Tap, clink…!
“Excuse me, Attendant? What are you doing right now?”
Breeder took the seat across from her and placed chopsticks in front of her, along with the tangsuyuk, sauce, and a small plate.
“Since you’ve come all this way, I can’t very well eat alone. Please, at least have a taste.”
“Pardon? But this was made for you to eat. I couldn’t possibly—”
“It’s fine. I fried more meat than I expected, so this works out perfectly. I couldn’t finish all of it by myself anyway.”
Breeder offered a polished, businesslike smile and nodded, gesturing for Sairin to pick up her chopsticks first.
“Kuh…?”
“Hmm? Lady?”
This sly fox! So this is how he lured Raili too?! With a face like Shaolin’s, saying things like that…!
‘Even I can’t refuse this…!’
—Grab! After a moment of internal conflict, Sairin reluctantly picked up the chopsticks.
“…Out of respect for your effort, I’ll at least give it a try.”
“Please, help yourself. If it suits your taste, feel free to have more.”
“Hmph. That probably won’t happen. Unless it’s prepared in the traditional style of my homeland, it rarely agrees with me.”
—Lift…! With those words, Sairin picked up the bowl of sauce instead of the plate in front of her. It was the bowl filled with the thick, glossy tangsuyuk sauce.
“Ah, Lady? W-wait, surely you don’t mean to—?”
Breeder shot to his feet at her sudden action, but it was already too late.
—Drip…! The rich sauce had already been generously poured over the tangsuyuk.