Spit Out the 'Fire' from Impossible
I spat out the "impossible." "Yeah, that's right, isn't it? You didn't mishear me."
"Hohwawa-? Th-that can't be……???"
I brushed off Raylin's reaction and continued prepping the ingredients. Today's star ingredient: the drill apple.
—Crack…! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The thick rind peeled away with difficulty. It wasn't easy to cut through at all. Still, I finally reached the golden flesh inside.
'Once the rind's off, it shouldn't be too hard, right?'
—Slice, slice…!
I divided it into neat fan-shaped wedges. The pieces held their shape surprisingly well. A few quick cuts to make bite-sized chunks, and it was done. The flesh was crisp like an apple, so it wasn't difficult to portion.
—Crunch, crunch!
After finishing with the drill apples, I tasted one again just to be sure. I wondered if I'd mistaken the flavor earlier because of its pineapple-like appearance.
'Mmm…! It really is almost identical to pineapple! Just a bit more intense on the sour side.'
The crisp texture and tangy juice flooded my mouth. Saliva welled up instantly. A rich fruity aroma rose to my nose, leaving a sweet aftertaste. It was delicious enough to be called a specialty. A tropical fruit reminiscent of pineapple. Yet I had to grill this sweet, wonderful thing over fire……
The thought of the drill apple turning golden-brown on the grill somehow made me feel oddly depressed.
"…Whitey? Aren't you the one who doesn't know what pizza is?"
"Huh? What do you mean……?"
"I've only had it a few times myself, but…! There's no way fruit belongs on pizza! Even common sense says so-?!"
Raylin, who had been silently watching, cried out in shock. Her voice dripped with utter disbelief. Apparently, Hawaiian pizza didn't exist in this world yet. Not surprising she'd be horrified. I understood the feeling completely. But I had no other choice right now. Not if I wanted to satisfy the eccentric palate of Vice Principal Benetric.
"I know exactly what you're trying to say, sis. Honestly, I don't want to put this precious fruit on a pizza either."
"Then why on earth……?!"
"To satisfy Professor Benetric's tastes, I don't have much choice. She specifically requested something unusual from the start, calling herself a gourmet and all."
Right. I wasn't in the wrong. It was just Benetric's unique appetite. That didn't mean I wanted to badmouth Hawaiian pizza in the slightest. Mint chocolate was the same—everything came down to personal preference. The real problem was forcing those preferences on others. Food and individual taste were never at fault. It was simply painful that I had to keep making these bizarre combinations with my own hands. Having to create another weird dish today left me feeling heavy-hearted.
'Maybe I'm poisoning this world after all……?'
Staring at the drill apple made me feel conflicted. Mint chocolate too—maybe this wasn't right. But what could I do? I had to survive first. Besides, it was thanks to Raylin that I'd even thought of pineapple pizza. I wasn't blaming her, but receiving the drill apple had been the starting point. Plus, after hearing about Benetric's habit of eating bread with cream cheese instead of a proper meal if the food wasn't satisfying, the idea had come naturally. Bread, cheese, and drill apple. Hawaiian pizza practically suggested itself. A perfectly logical thought process.
"Th-then why did you bring that meat? Don't tell me you're planning to put fruit and meat on it together?"
Raylin pointed at the pre-grilled T-bone steak she'd received from the kitchen, her voice laced with concern.
"Hmm… Half right, half wrong."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I don't want to mix that expensive meat with fruit either. I'm saving it for something else."
"Hohwaa…? I don't get it. If you're not putting them together, how are you using them separately?"
Raylin tilted her head repeatedly, full of questions. As expected, it was hard to understand just from words.
"You'll see when it's done."
"Still, I'm curious……!"
"Sorry, but I really need to focus now, okay? Raylin, sis?"
I deliberately added "sis" to her name to shut down her curiosity. If I kept chatting, I'd run out of time.
"Huh…? Ah, uh, yeah……. Ahem, that just now… sounded kinda nice……."
She grew unusually docile, nothing like her usual cheerful fire-dragon self.
—Drip……!
That wasn't all. Suddenly, a single stream of nosebleed trickled down. What on earth was she imagining while looking at me?
"Huh? Sis?"
"Ah, it's nothing! Training's just been intense lately…! Y-you just keep doing what you were doing-!"
Raylin quickly turned her head and wiped the blood away, acting like it was no big deal.
'At least she didn't collapse while spouting a fountain of blood like last time. That's a relief.'
—Tap tap tap!
—Slice, slice…!
After that, I focused solely on prepping ingredients. I sliced plenty of drill apple, then cut the steak into similar-sized cubes. Sausages and tomatoes were already prepared. Now I just had to assemble everything on the dough. Only simple, easy work remained. Of course, I still had to make the dough myself.
'The dough's the real problem now……. Ah, perfect timing!'
I'd been dreading having to knead again when I remembered the failed batch from this morning. Plain flour dough with nothing added.
—Rustle…!
"It rose nicely while I was gone."
When I checked the dough covered with paper wrapping, it had puffed up like a giant steamed bun. A blessing in disguise—it had actually turned out well. It had proofed while I was at the restaurant. There was plenty of it too, so the pressure of failure felt lighter.
"Alright, let's tear off a suitable piece……."
—Squish, squish! Knead, knead…!
I recalled the baking techniques I'd picked up while working part-time at a café. The basic dough process was still vivid in my memory.
—Roll, roll, roll……
First, I gathered the dough into a round ball. Fist-sized was about right. Smooth sailing so far. No hitches yet. Handling dough for basic breads was pretty much the same up to this point.
'But…… how do I flatten it into a proper circle for the dough?'
For ordinary bread, this was where it ended. The rest was handled by bread molds or simply baking while maintaining the round shape. Pastries or croissants that required special shapes weren't easy without skill. Pizza dough was no different.
—Squish, squish! Press! Press……!
At a glance, it seemed like I could just press it by hand or roll it out with a pin, but maintaining even thickness while forming a perfect circle was far harder than it looked. I could make something rough easily enough. But today, I absolutely couldn't afford to be sloppy. My opponent wasn't ordinary, after all.
'Haa, this is tougher than I thought……'
I replayed cooking videos I'd watched for fun in my head, trying to stretch the dough or spin it on my fingers using centrifugal force, but……
—Riiip…!
—Plop!
The dough kept tearing midway or slipping from my hands and falling to the floor. It wouldn't go the way I wanted. I couldn't form a proper circle at all. The thickness was uneven, making it tear easily. My inexperience with stretching dough didn't help, and the sticky dough clinging to my hands made control even harder. It was lucky I'd prepared a large batch for biscuits earlier; otherwise, I'd have wasted a ton of time remaking dough.
"One more time……"
"Hey, Whitey…? You okay?"
Raylin cautiously spoke up after watching in silence. My repeated failures must have worried her too.
"Yeah. I'm fine! I've still got plenty of dough left……"
I answered with an awkward smile and turned back around. I tried to act unbothered, but my crumpled expression refused to smooth out like pizza dough. An unexpected crisis, I suppose.
'I can't ask Raylin for help either……'
She'd offered to help earlier, but I couldn't possibly ask a noble dragon to make pizza dough for me. Still, if I kept trying, I'd definitely succeed—
—Rrrrip…!
Another failure. The dough tore apart so easily, and my will tore apart with it. I considered just stretching it flat and cutting out a circle, but that would ruin the chewy texture I wanted.
—Thud…!
—Riiip!
—Tear tear tear……!!
Failure after failure. This was already the seventh. My motivation kept dropping with each failed attempt at making dough.
'I thought I had a hidden talent for baking…… Guess not. It was all just luck until now.'
I'd probably been deluded by my recent string of successes. Talent for baking and cooking? What a joke. Looking back, every success had come with trial and error. I'd always tested things the day before, fixed problems, and only then completed the dish. Even when making just one item, I'd approached it with full caution and effort. But today I'd been too complacent. I'd poured in some effort, yet I'd been overconfident since yesterday. I'd chosen sleep, believing I'd manage somehow today. A moment of success had made me drop my guard.
"……"
Plus, there wasn't much dough left now. Two or three attempts at most. I hesitated to even touch it, afraid of failing again. Worry and anxiety piled on like excessive toppings, making my head spin and my body stiffen.
"Whitey? What's wrong?"
"…Do you think I can pull this off with the chances I have left?"
"Huh? What are you saying……?"
"Huu, if I fail this time too, I won't even have time to make more dough……"
"Whitey? Don't think like that. Just take it slow from the beginning……"
"Maybe making pizza was impossible for my skill level from the start—"
"Stop! That's enough-!!!"
"R-Raylin, sis?"
Just as I was muttering weakly in despair, Raylin's sharp rebuke struck my ears. Her voice was stern, nothing like the gentle tone she usually used with me. It was the voice of someone telling me to stop being weak and get a grip.
"The Whitey I know…! No, the Whitey I know is—! Always confident and bright! That kind of discouraged look doesn't suit you at all-!"
Raylin scolded me loudly, clearly displeased with my deflated state.
"…I know that too. But no matter what, this is beyond my current ability. Look at this. I can't even make a single dough—"