The Unsecured Pact
“This dessert… was fantastic.”
“Y-yes? What did you just say…?”
“How on earth did you make something like this, and why were you with the students in such a secluded place…? You must tell me everything without a single lie.”
After that incident, I could no longer avoid Benetric’s one-on-one interviews. The interviews weren’t limited to me alone. Everyone present had to go through one. Sofia and Derke were no exception. The reason was obvious—to uncover the full details of what had happened.
I was the last one to meet with Benetric privately. The individual interview took place in a corner of Diora’s hideout, lit only by the glow of a lantern. The time spent with her felt brutal. It was more like a short, heavy interrogation. The dim lantern light only made the atmosphere heavier.
—Why did you leave the lounge during work hours?
—I’ve already heard everything from Sofia, so lies won’t help you.
—Keep in mind that the severity of your punishment depends on your answers.
Benetric maintained a steady tone and kept firing questions. She continued until she got the answers she wanted. I had experienced high-pressure interviews before, but never one this openly interrogative. The oppressive atmosphere made it hard to breathe. I could only be grateful that no violence or coercion was involved.
“…That’s everything I know.”
“You’ve been repeating the same thing since earlier. You’d better speak honestly if you don’t want your sentence increased.”
Benetric pressed on without the slightest consideration for my position, digging into every detail. She was probably trying to verify the truth by comparing my statements with Sofia’s. Despite the suffocating pressure, I had no reason to shrink back. There was no need to lie to get out of this. No matter what anyone said, I was clearly the victim. I could never be the perpetrator. The idea of a human being the aggressor against dragons was absurd. Unless I were a Dragon Slayer, of course.
The same applied to today’s incident. Even if I had broken the academy rules under duress, the fact that I was the victim remained unchanged.
“Haa… To think all of this happened because of a single dessert… How disgraceful for a fourth-year. It’s practically a disgrace to the academy.”
Once all the circumstances matched Sofia’s testimony, Benetric could only let out heavy sighs. Even her previously stern and overbearing voice had softened.
“I suppose I’ll have to finish this once Diora wakes up. That first-year who used teleportation despite being a newcomer is also bothering me…”
After finishing all her questions, Benetric frowned and muttered to herself. She looked as if she might pull out a cigarette at any moment, her stress clearly visible. It reminded me of a detective’s face when faced with an unsolved case.
—Clink…!
But what she picked up wasn’t a mana cigarette. Instead—
—Scoop!
She dug her fork into the leftover cake. Yes, the mint chocolate chip cake I had made.
“Haa… The student council president tried to hoard something this amazing all to herself…”
Benetric, who had been hiding the only piece of evidence, now ate it without hesitation. Earlier she had fainted after one bite, but now she was devouring it casually. Had she already built up a tolerance? She even wore an expression that said she could die happy eating it. Her once-cold face now showed dimples.
‘I never knew a dragon could smile so brightly.’
Perhaps all the stress she had accumulated had been blown away by the mint chocolate. Benetric’s usually frigid expression bloomed like a rose at the tip of a thorny stem.
“Um… If we’re done, may I go down now? I still have a lot of work to finish.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. There’s still one very important question left.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“This dessert… How exactly did you make it?”
“Ah, you mean that?”
“Yes. The level of completion and the harmony of flavors are extraordinary. It feels as if you simply brought over something that already existed. It doesn’t feel like something made by chance… Am I right?”
Benetric scooped up only the mint-green cream with her fork and savored the taste again. She, too, had become a comrade of Sofia’s—completely captivated by the true flavor of mint chocolate. She even trembled as she relished it. Still, her gourmet instincts were sharp. Even though I had recreated an existing dessert, she had managed to guess it.
“…Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t you want to share the recipe?”
“Professor? I’m afraid the recipe is a secret.”
“What? A secret?”
“Yes. It’s a forbidden food combination passed down for generations where I come from. However, if you personally wish for it, I can provide it to you and Miss Sofia once a month.”
My reply might have sounded cheeky, but I refused while dangling bait. More precisely, I was attempting a negotiation. If she wanted mint chocolate, I would gladly make it—as long as she overlooked today’s incident. I couldn’t just hand over the recipe for such a fearsome dessert. If mint chocolate spread throughout this world, who knew what chaos would follow? Besides, it could be considered humanity’s final secret weapon against dragons. I didn’t want to reveal it if possible.
“It seems you’ve completely misunderstood something…! I’m only asking because there were a few suspicious points in Sofia’s answers!”
Benetric tried to dodge the issue by using Sofia as an excuse. She really was good at saying the right things. Even though she had clearly fallen for mint chocolate? The blush on her usually cool face gave everything away.
“Is that so? In that case, I suppose I shouldn’t make desserts like this anymore—”
“W-wait…! That’s not what I meant?! It’s fine! I’ll permit it!”
The ever-stern woman suddenly spoke in a flustered rush, desperately protecting the mint chocolate. From now on, mint chocolate was officially a legal dessert here. Well, it always had been. Either way, I felt like I had become the sole holder of an asymmetric power.
“Is that true?”
“Y-yes! But you can only provide it to me and Sofia, who know about this matter.”
“Of course. Then you’ll overlook what happened today?”
“Ahem…! Well, yes. From what I can see, you only committed the crime of treating the students as a servant should…”
With that, I was cleared of all charges. I was alive. Long live mint chocolate. It was practically an all-purpose negotiation card. Of course, the fact that I was truly innocent had made the negotiation possible in the first place.
“Then may I really go down now?”
“Fine, you may go. But I’ll be visiting again tomorrow, so you’d better prepare something.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes. You requested additional funding for the lounge, didn’t you?”
“Ah, that’s right. Why are you suddenly bringing that up…?”
“Why else? I want to see your skills firsthand and decide whether it’s worth supporting you.”
What had seemed like a disaster had turned into a blessing. I hadn’t expected the budget issue to resolve itself so easily. I was grateful she had brought it up directly.
“Is that really true?!”
“Don’t get too excited. I still need to uncover the full details of this incident, and I don’t completely trust you yet, you dragon-hater.”
“Ah, I see. Then would tomorrow’s dessert also include mint?!”
“W-what? What’s with that suddenly enthusiastic expression…?!”
Of course I was motivated if she was going to support and invest in me. If she didn’t trust me, I would simply make her believe. I could conquer her with my cooking. Showing my skills today had already proven effective. I seemed to have gained quite a bit of confidence after experiencing so much in such a short time.
“Leave everything to me! I’ll prove that the lounge is worth investing in!”
“Haa… This is why short-lived races are so… Anyway, you’re far too simple-minded.”
Benetric wore a displeased expression, yet a small smile crept onto her face. She was probably already looking forward to another storm of gourmet delights tomorrow.
“…In that case, can you make simple dishes as well, not just desserts?”
“Pardon? Dishes?”
“Yes. Something with rare flavor combinations like this mint chocolate.”
Benetric’s final words were quite unexpected. I had thought mint dessert would be enough, but now she was asking for a proper dish instead—one with an uncommon flavor pairing like mint chocolate.
“Breeder Oppa~? What are you thinking so hard about-desuyong~?”
After the interview ended, I was walking toward the academy with Derke. She had waited for me even though her own interview had finished earlier. Sofia and Diora were still with Benetric. They probably had a mountain of paperwork to handle because of today’s events.
“It’s nothing. I was just wondering what I should make tomorrow.”
“Don’t worry too much-desuyong~! If it’s Oppa, you’ll definitely do great-eeyap~!”
“Pfft, thanks for worrying. More importantly, Derke? Did you really forget how to use teleportation?”
No matter how far we walked, the mountain path never seemed to end. That was why I wanted to borrow Derke’s power. Climbing down a mountain was still climbing. My legs had gone numb after walking all day. I was sick of walking.
“Ung~! I forgot how to do it-desuyong…!”
“What? Then how did you even get here earlier?”
“I could do it easily when I thought about Oppa’s location because of our pact-eeyap~! But now… no matter how much I try to picture where I want to go, it’s impossible-desuyong~!”
“Really? So you can only come to me?”
“It seems that way-eeyap~! We’re inseparable now-desuyong~!”
Derke, who had been holding my hand as we descended the mountain path, clung tightly to my waist and grinned. Her expression clearly said she never wanted to let go. Watching her like that made the corners of my mouth lift without me realizing it.
“…Ah, right! Oppa, now that I think about it—the contract you made with Sofia Sunbaenim…! Did it really go through-desuyong~?”
“Huh? Yeah, it did. Why are you asking all of a sudden?”
“Then when you made the contract with Sunbaenim earlier…! Did you properly receive her Dragon Heart this time-eeyap~?!”
I wondered what she was asking about, but Derke had reminded me of something I had completely forgotten.
“Huh? That’s right. Now that you mention it, there wasn’t one this time either…?”
Given the situation, it was understandable that I hadn’t noticed.
‘Instead of a Dragon Heart, I did get a taste of Sofia’s tongue though…’
Contract confirmation. Feeling uneasy that the pact might not have been properly formed, I called out the command. I had definitely seen a success notification earlier, but I wanted to check again just in case. I also planned to confirm Sofia’s abilities and perks while I was at it.
—Flash!
The moment I uttered the command, a translucent hologram completely filled my vision.