Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter Title: The Item That Makes the Emperor Shiver, the Tower Lord Gasp, and the Pope Faint (1)
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"Wh-what is this?!"
Red hair, red eyes. A red beard.
Beneath robes embroidered with gold and dyed a noble red that proclaimed his status was a sturdy build.
The man wearing a crown that bespoke his authority had his eyes wide open in shock the moment he put the food in his mouth.
"Y-Your Majesty! Wh-what on earth-"
The attendant serving him had flung himself flat to the floor in alarm, leaving only the Chief Imperial Maid to barely manage a question.
"This dish! This dish!"
"Wh-what's wrong with the dish? D-don't tell me it's poisoned-"
"It's too delicious!!"
"...Pardon?"
The Chief Imperial Maid's face, which had been scrutinizing Emperor Siegmund's well-being for quite some time, filled with bewilderment.
Unaware or uncaring of her expression, the Emperor forgot all decorum as he scooped the tomato-sauced meat and noodle dish onto the plate right in front of him.
Seeing the Emperor personally serving himself food, the flustered Chief Imperial Maid finally stirred.
"Y-Your Majesty. Rather than doing that yourself, you could just have us serve it. Was it really so good that you had to shout?"
"Of course it was! I've never tasted a dish where the flavors harmonize so perfectly before."
Soon, the Emperor twirled a generous forkful of wide noodles and meat with sauce and chewed it thoroughly.
Only after swallowing the large bite did he wipe his mouth with satisfaction, his gaze turning to the Chief Maid.
"Right, they say smothering food with spices to the point of masking it is a symbol of wealth, so there's no way our palace's idiot chefs-who cover everything in spices-would have made something like this. Who made this dish?"
"Well, if you're asking who completed the dish, it was indeed the palace chefs..."
"Hmm?"
Siegmund narrowed his brow with a strange expression, as his guess had been wrong.
As Siegmund's puzzled gaze turned to her, the Chief Imperial Maid-who had served him for many years-continued.
"It's true the chefs prepared the dish, but the sa...sauce used in it came from outside."
"Sauce?"
"Yes. I'm referring to the tomato seasoning in the tomato meat noodle dish you're enjoying right now."
"Hm, let's see."
No sooner had the Chief Maid finished explaining than the man scooped up just the sauce with a spoon and tasted it.
His suspicion soon turned to certainty.
"Indeed, this sauce has impeccable balance in its flavors. But something's different."
"Different how...?"
The Emperor's expression soon grew deadly serious.
A single phrase escaped the lips of the gravely serious man.
"I don't know."
"Pardon...?"
The middle-aged woman's face went blank at his words.
But as if it were no big deal, the Emperor wrapped more wide noodles, meat, and sauce and shoved them into his mouth.
"In any case, I can tell this is something special. But where did you get it from?"
"Ah... I heard it came along with the potions and magic tools from the Argentis house's caravan last time. It's become quite the trend in the capital now, so the palace bought some experimentally to try..."
The Emperor's brow furrowed again at the Chief Maid's answer.
"Argentis? The alchemy house famous for magic tools and potions, right? Don't tell me the Argentis family used witchcraft or black magic, or even slipped drugs into the food? There's no other way it could be this addictively good."
He said this even as he regretfully scraped up the last spoonful of sauce.
Dismissing the Emperor's suspicions, the Chief Maid replied.
"It's already circulating on the market with no issues confirmed. The palace mages and alchemists have verified it's just an ordinary seasoning, and the Magic Tower will soon authenticate it as well."
"Hm, I see. Argentis, Argentis..."
As if sensing something odd, the man set down his utensils and fell into thought for a moment before calling to his advisor standing beside him.
"Hey, Verdan, Chief Imperial Chamberlain."
"Yes, I'm listening."
"This sauce seems to be circulating widely in the markets."
"Ah, yes. But why do you ask...?"
A mischievous smile crept onto the Emperor's face.
"This sauce is far too dangerous."
"Pardon...?"
"So until we get verification that it's safe, the palace will buy up the entire supply and store it."
The chamberlain looked at the Emperor with an expression that said, 'Here he goes again.'
"Are you serious? What should I tell the Argentis family?"
"Hey, that's why we're buying it all with money, of course. Though we might sample a bit during storage."
"...Understood. I'll have people buy up the entire stock immediately."
The chamberlain soon turned and left the palace dining hall.
*The next day, in front of the Argentis caravan's grocery store.*
"No tomato sauce?! How is that possible!"
"Right! What are we supposed to do for cooking now-"
Was the capital particularly sensitive to trends?
The emergence of this thing called sauce had started drawing considerable interest, especially appealing to housewives in the inner city who hated housework and the middle class who didn't skimp on food expenses.
But when the stock they'd prepared sold out in less than three days, they wailed at the sudden loss of that convenience and flavor.
But what good was explaining to these people? The goods were already gone.
The caravan's head manager finally stepped forward to calm them, speaking with difficulty.
"We're sorry, but the palace has bought up our entire stock of tomato sauce! We'll notify you when the next shipment arrives, so please form an orderly line-"
But to those who heard this, the key word wasn't the "few days later."
"The palace...?"
"Did he say the palace?"
"The palace bought the whole stock?!"
Someone's shout was the signal flare.
In an instant, the scene in front of the Argentis grocery store turned into pandemonium.
"The palace endorses the taste? It's that good?!"
"See, I tried that sauce yesterday, and it was the best flavor of my life! No wonder the palace noticed!"
"Hang on, so we can't have any now? That doesn't make sense!"
Voices of the crowd-mingled with rage, despair, and an inexplicable fervor-pierced the skies.
What had been just a "novel seasoning" days ago was now being deified as the "Emperor's food" and "heavenly taste."
Some nobles, losing their reason, sent servants to force open the shop doors, while commoners could only stamp their feet in tearful frustration.
"Give us the sauce! The sauce!!!"
A servant's sorrowful wail echoed through the capital's skies, but all that lay before him were empty shelves.
*Meanwhile, in the Argentis County, Kandoria's alchemy workshop.*
"Jonathan! Jonathan!"
"Yeah?"
As usual, immersed in cooking... no, alchemy, a clear voice rang out.
Turning around revealed soft, wavy long hair like spun gold thread. Sapphire-blue eyes.
Perfectly sculpted features, skin white as jade. A doll-like petite face. A fitting height.
Slender shoulders leading down to generously proportioned bust and hips, contrasted by a slim waist.
My fiancée and childhood friend, Erika Argentis, stood behind me with an urgent expression, calling my name.
"What's up? I've already reviewed all the administrative paperwork. Did wild boars show up and trash the cabbage field again?"
"No, no, no! That's not it, Jonathan!"
"?? What then?"
"The palace bought up all the sauce they got through our caravan! All of it!"
"Huh? For real?!"
Erika responded to my incredulous words with even more excitement than I felt.
She grabbed one of my arms and dragged me out of the workshop.
"More importantly, I have something to show you! Hurry!"
Following Erika led to a box brimming with silver coins, brought by a caravan employee.
And the transaction ledger the employee handed over.
Looking at the ledger, the sales amount for the sauce.
"Let's see, one, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, twenty...?!"
The ledger showed a whopping 20,000 silver coins in sales. Did they pay ten times the markup?
Seeing income surpassing a mid-sized town's half-month tax revenue, I stuck out my tongue in shock.
"Yes, Jonathan! Just from the first batch!"
It was at that moment.
"Um, Jonathan...?"
"Heh, heh heh. Heh heh heh heh..."
Shivers raced wildly up my spine.
*Meanwhile, at the Papal Palace and the Magic Tower.*
"“Wh-what is this!!”"