Red Witch's Finger Poppers Made in the Greenhouse (2)

Ssssssh—

The moment the oven door swung open, a blast of searing heat exploded outward. Behind ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it came the sizzling of the poppers frying, the sound spreading through the nest like a wave.

Bzzzzzzzt, screeeech—

In the pool of bacon grease on the tray, the bacon-wrapped Red Witch's Fingers bubbled and spat, frying hard and fast. Every faint vibration set the oil sloshing, and the grease only boiled more furiously, deep-frying the bacon that encased each popper.

Under the fierce heat the bacon had shriveled into a deep brown, its tight pressure forcing cream cheese to burst from the seams of the Red Witch's Fingers that could no longer hold it in. Yet neither the oven's heat nor the bacon grease was content to simply watch. The cream cheese that squeezed out through the gaps between pepper and bacon immediately began losing moisture, baking solid under the heat that pressed in from every side. It browned to a light toast, welded itself to the bacon that had once restrained it, and forced the bacon to release even more melted fat under the stimulus.

Some of it clung fast; some of it dripped free and formed cheese scorched-rice crusts. The sight was enough to make even the man who had opened the oven swallow hard.

"Ah—crap, they'll burn at this rate."

Karem snapped out of his daze and hurriedly pulled the entire tray free. Fortunately his worry proved groundless. What had looked like a murky dark brown under the oven's dim light turned out, beneath the greenhouse's gloomy illumination, to be a bright golden-brown, still happily frying in bacon fat. More cream cheese had escaped than he expected, and for a moment he fretted, but the bacon grease had formed perfect little crusts so nothing stuck to the tray itself.

"Miss Alicia, please—this tray just came out of the oven. It's dangerous to get so close."

"H-how can you say that, Corvus! That color! That smell! How am I supposed to just stand here after seeing and smelling that?!"

"Which is why, Mr. Karem, if you would kindly plate them before the young lady starts bouncing off the walls…"

Karem had no time to answer. He snatched up tongs and began transferring the poppers into the wooden bowls that had already been set out.

"Ow-hot-hot!"

"Careful, Karem! You should watch yourself."

Alicia's scolding only made the muscle in Karem's cheek twitch as bacon grease popped against his skin. And whose fault is it that I'm moving this fast? Still, rather than argue he simply finished stacking every last popper onto the wooden plates before more grease could fly.

"Hmm. Honestly, the raw green scent made me a little wary of Fire Witch's Hands, but cooked like this they give off quite a unique aroma."

"A green scent? F-Fire Witch's Hands smell like that?"

"Well, as a monster my senses are rather more acute than most people's."

Corvus tapped the two nostrils at the base of his beak with a claw. A green scent… Karem paused, then understood at once. The mild, cucumber-pepper greenness of a chili that had been bred down in heat and fragrance was definitely an acquired taste. Plenty of people who could handle cucumber still gagged at the smell of cucumber-peppers. A monster whose senses were dozens or hundreds of times sharper having the same reaction was hardly strange. Do crows even have picky eating habits? Or is it just because he's a monster? Karem found himself pondering Corvus's species with unexpected seriousness.

The pyramid of poppers was set on the table Corvus had prepared.

"Miss Alicia, here is a fork."

"Unngh! I can't wait any longer!"

Alicia seized the fork ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like an owl striking prey and silently speared the very peak of the pyramid, carrying it straight to her mouth.

"Mmm!"

The first bite began with the bacon shell. The instant it entered her mouth the bacon shattered into shards and powder, delivering a sharp, shattering crunch and a deep savory richness. Next came the Red Witch's Finger itself, still wrapped inside. As she bit down with a crisp snap Alicia almost startled. The irresistible aroma had made her hand move first, yet the thing now in her mouth was an entire Red Witch's Finger—and it wasn't particularly spicy at all. Instead, once the raw heat and greenness vanished, a mysterious, seductive flavor bloomed: sweet onion and garlic, toasted nuts, and the fragrant memory of wood-fire all swirled together. Then the two outer layers split, freeing the cream cheese from its pressure. It flooded out in an explosive rush and claimed her entire mouth. The rich heaviness of bacon fat and dairy was long since veiled by the faint lingering heat of the Red Witch's Finger. The more she chewed, the more the bacon fragments released their flavor.

"Mmm! Mmm-mmm!"

"Hmm. I wonder if the taste lives up to the smell."

"Miss Alicia's reaction is your answer."

"Ah—Her Highness makes that face even when she eats ordinary cookies."

Corvus speared a popper with a fork rather than his sharp talons, turned it this way and that, then pushed it into his beak. He began opening and closing the beak exactly the way a human chews.

He's got a crow's head… but he's not just swallowing it whole…?

Karem was intensely curious about the skull structure involved, yet Corvus ignored him completely and concentrated on savoring the popper.

"Well now—the green smell truly is gone. In its place… this unique savor is rather intriguing."

"Not bad, right?"

Corvus answered by nodding vigorously while his beak kept working.

"I assume no actual nuts went into this 'cream cheese' of yours?"

"No. Why…?"

"It's just that I'm getting clear notes of walnut and pine nut. And this peculiar taste is…"

Honestly Karem felt a flicker of unease. Even humans pick at their food for reasons of taste, experience, or genetics; how was he supposed to guess the palate of a creature that openly called itself a monster? Fortunately the species Corvus belonged to seemed to share a human-like sense of taste. Before long the fork had been discarded and he was picking up poppers one by one with his talons and stuffing them into his beak. Not quite as fast as Alicia, but still a respectable pace. Nuts, though… they didn't go bad, did they?

Only after Karem himself ate a popper did he understand. Separate from the bacon's crispness and the cream cheese's rich weight, every crunch of the Red Witch's Finger released the deep flavors and aromas of roasted tomato, garlic, onion, and assorted nuts—plus the heavy charcoal scent of the oven. Karem knew that seductive profile from his previous life.

Romesco.

A classic Spanish sauce built on roasted, peeled paprika and tomato, enriched with nuts and spices. He had never imagined he would taste the ghost of tomato in a place like this. And now he was certain: the Red Witch's Finger was an entirely different plant from chili peppers.

"At most it's convergent evolution."

"I don't know about the heat, but a warm energy is spreading from the top of my head all the way to the tip of my beak."

"Even a mutant Fire Witch's Hand is still a Fire Witch's Hand. I did scrape out the pith and seeds, so it's milder."

"Ah, so that's why."

The hottest part of a chili is the white pith and seeds; the same held true for a Red Witch's Finger that had apparently converged on the same design. It was a trait the milder, bell-pepper-like mutant still shared with ordinary Fire Witch's Hands. Corvus, monster or not, was clearly avian enough not to mind the heat. He liked the poppers so much that he began skewering one on each talon of a single foot and tossing them into his beak in batches.

"Corvus! You're hogging too many—!"

"Oh, Lady Alicia—do you taste that addictive umami that isn't quite nuts or garlic or onion?"

"A little sour, yet sweet and savory?"

"Exactly that umami. If we took the seeds Mr. Karem removed from these mutants, I believe we could selectively breed for that flavor alone—"

Karem paused mid-bite and tilted his head.

"You're talking about cultivar improvement?"

"Oh? That's a rather technical term; only a handful of scholars know it. You're familiar?"

"I just overheard it in passing. I only know the rough idea."

Karem waved a dismissive hand. The familiar meaning of the words had startled him for a second, but that truly was all he knew. Still, even knowing Corvus was no ordinary monster, he had never expected to hear such a precise term from a monster's beak.

"Every Red Witch's Finger Mr. Karem used was a mutant."

"Shorter and fatter than the usual ones."

"Children take after their parents. If we simply grow the seeds left after preparation, we might be able to reduce the heat and leave only that unique flavor in the Red Witch's Finger."

Alicia polished off one of the few remaining poppers.

"Corvus, just listening to that sounds like it would take forever."

"Well, farming has always been a long game."

Corvus clicked his beak and scratched himself with a talon.

"Lucky for me, time is the one thing I have in abundance. No problem."

"Hmm. Is there anything Alicia can help with?"

"Then shall we plant the seeds together? When the fruit ripens we can eat it together—how does that sound?"

"Deal!"

Karem raised a hand and slipped into the conversation.

"When the fruit comes in, could I have a few as well?"

"Of course. For cooking, I presume?"

"That faintly addictive sour-savory taste has been stuck in my head."

Well, of course it had—it was tomato. Garum, Red Witch's Finger, and now traces of tomato… Karem felt he finally understood how Thanos must have felt collecting Infinity Stones.

Corvus, still bobbing his head and beak ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠as he ate, suddenly flicked a talon.

"Ah—I meant to prepare something to drink and completely forgot."

"It's a bit late to start now…"

"Quite right."

Time had slipped past unnoticed. Beyond the greenhouse glass the gloomy sky was turning vermilion; the sun, half-hidden behind clouds, was already sinking.

"Mmm. Dinner will be starting soon."

"Indeed. Mr. Karem, would you be so kind as to escort the young lady to the great hall?"

"Ah… of course."

Karem only needed to return to the tower before full dark, but Alicia was different. Unless there was a special reason, members of the Felwinter family were expected to attend the evening banquet.

"Shall we go right away, Miss Alicia?"

"Hm? Fine. I have to eat dinner anyway, so I'll stop here."

"…You've already polished off half of them by yourself."

"This is… just a snack, so it's fine!"

Aigoo, is that so. Faced with that invincible logic, Karem had nothing left to say.

"Then, Miss Alicia—shall we head back?"

"Yes. Corvus, Alicia is leaving now. Karem, you follow me!"

As twilight settled over the great hall, people began filtering in one after another. Those already seated—alone, in pairs, or in larger groups—passed the time before dinner by nibbling the fruit and light snacks set out on the tables. In the middle of the lively chatter the doors suddenly opened; Alicia and Karem's entrance briefly drew every eye, then interest scattered again just as quickly. Had it been any other young lord it might have been different, but this was Alicia. Winterhome's freest spirit. It was perfectly ordinary for someone to be seen trailing after her as she roamed every corner of the castle. To the people who lived here the sight was simply part of daily life. They merely noted that today's captive happened to be the personal chef of the High Magic Advisor.

Alicia surveyed the still-empty seats of honor ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and planted her hands on her hips.

"Hah! Today Alicia arrived first!"

"Then I'll take my leave as well."

"See you next time!"

A sudden wave of exhaustion washed over Karem, yet he still saw Alicia off as she dashed toward the high table. He himself was still young, but the sheer vitality of the even younger Alicia never failed to leave him reeling. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught someone waving. Fatigue had blurred his vision, but the moment he focused on the gesture he recognized the figure at once.

Catherine sat in a chair, accepting little pieces of fruit that Mary had prepared. Following his employer's summons, Karem trudged over and dropped into the empty seat beside her.

"You arrived sooner than I expected."

"I had a young lady of the Felwinter family with me."

"Well, no Felwinter can skip the evening meal."

Just as she said, Alicia had already climbed into her seat at the high table.

"So—was the greenhouse tour enjoyable?"

"In its own way. I saw new possibilities in the Red Witch's Finger—ah, did you know about Corvus being… 'that'?"

"That? Ahh."

Catherine nodded as though she understood perfectly, then flicked her fingers through the air. The familiar privacy ward settled around them.

"Powerful people sometimes keep particularly fierce, dangerous, or beautiful monsters and beasts as living ornaments. It happens more often than you'd think."

"Like a zoo?"

"Something like that."

"Even having a monster as greenhouse keeper?"

"Well, doesn't that feel rather fitting?"

Karem had to admit that Corvus—who openly called himself a monster—felt somehow off for the role. A curse that twisted his outward form would almost make more sense. After all, a monster who enjoyed off-color jokes and took genuine pleasure in farming was cut from an entirely different cloth than any monster Karem had met before.

While they spoke, the servants finished their preparations and began carrying in dishes with both hands. Even though the poppers had filled his stomach, the rich, varied aromas made Karem's mouth water. The high table was now fully occupied by the Felwinter family. The moment Alfred took his seat, everyone began to eat.

"Ah—if you have anything scheduled the day after tomorrow, cancel it. We'll be going out."

Catherine spoke while Karem was transferring a large, mouth-watering steak onto his plate.

"An outing?"

"Yes. We're going to inspect the fief that was recently assigned to the tower. Half a day by carriage at least."

"I'll prepare lunch and snacks for the journey."

Catherine's eyes blinked once—exactly the reaction of someone who had wanted precisely that—then she turned her full attention to the meal, accepting a spear of asparagus from Mary. Karem likewise focused on the massive ribeye steak on his plate, a cut that easily looked to weigh four hundred grams.

A picture drawn by ChatGPT.