The Final Masterminds Are Obsessed with My Foot Jelly
Ha… how am I supposed to deal with all of this.
Kailian let out a deep sigh as she stared at the pile of bug corpses.
Kyaa?
Just eat them all together, duh.
I tilted my head and looked up at Kailian.
They’re delicious and poison-free. What’s the big deal about eating them? Those guys already wiped out our food supply too.
I tapped the bugs with my paw, pointing at the mountain of corpses, and Kailian stared back at me with a dumbfounded expression.
Hey. You’re looking at me like you want to eat them, right?
Kyung?
Yeah, I saw them earlier. They tasted good.
You pig. People don’t just pick up and eat anything like that.
Kyaa?
You mean I don’t eat anything?
I silently raised my paw and pointed toward the area behind me.
Why? What’s up?
Kailian turned her head to follow my paw.
There, Lina and Rosalia were laughing while picking out the juicy meat bits from the bugs and devouring them like they were enjoying crabs.
They’re eating fine?
Mmm… this side has a strong creamy taste. The texture is quite soft too.
Indeed… I suppose each individual tastes a little different because they’re magical beasts.
Look at that. They’re eating up a storm.
Lina and Rosalia were smashing the bugs’ exoskeletons with their bare hands, then stuffing the white, juicy flesh straight into their mouths with practiced ease.
Now that I have the claw skill, I can just tap and the meat comes right out.
Kailian, who had witnessed the scene, clutched her head with both hands.
Agh… I’m really losing it… why do they keep doing this for real.
Your Highness.
By now, Gumiho had approached and stood beside Kailian.
Instead, perhaps Your Highness could try eating them directly in front of the villagers. It might work.
What? You want me to eat that disgusting thing right now?
Kailian glared at Gumiho in shock.
Right now the south can’t produce any food because of these bugs. They’re poison-free and packed with nutrition, so they’d make excellent emergency rations.
But… the villagers won’t easily put them in their mouths.
So Your Highness needs to set a good example.
Gumiho gave a sly smile.
…What a faithless grin.
If the imperial princess herself eats it, the villagers’ reluctance will vanish in an instant. If even the imperial family finds it tasty, why would the starving villagers refuse?
…It’s oddly convincing and that just makes me more annoyed.
With her persuasive words backed by reason, Kailian gritted her teeth and sighed.
Is this what seasoned wisdom looks like? I’m being talk-talked down to.
Plus, if Your Highness can be seen eating alongside the Divine Beast Blanc, the effect will be even greater.
Kyaa!
I’m in! Eating together is even better!
I wagged my tail vigorously in agreement with Gumiho’s suggestion.
Food tastes better when shared, after all.
Ha…
Kailian let out an exaggerated sigh as if the ground had been pulled out from under her.
She seemed to understand Gumiho’s logic rationally, yet she still couldn’t bring herself to put the bugs in her mouth.
Well, they look and taste similar to crabs, so why is there so much hesitation?
Yeah… for the sake of the people… I have to… I really have to… they’re disgustingly shaped.
While Kailian hesitated in front of the mountain of bug corpses, unable to contain her frustration, I quickly snatched one perfectly cooked bug and peeled the shell off in one go.
Kyaa.
Come on, try it.
I put the most glossy, juicy piece of meat in my mouth and brought it right up to Kailian’s face.
I even peeled the shell. If I don’t eat this, I’ll sulk.
Ugh… Blanc, put that down…
Kyung?
Just one bite. It’s really delicious, I promise.
I looked at Kailian with the cutest eyes possible, wagging my tail and rubbing my head against her leg.
Let’s see if she can still resist like this.
Ah… really… Blanc.
Kailian couldn’t withstand my desperate cuteness act.
She always teases me, yet I still lose every time.
In the end, Kailian squeezed her eyes shut and, with a trembling hand, accepted the meat I had in my mouth.
With a determined expression, as if swallowing poison, she took the meat into her mouth.
She’s overdoing it, but at least the taste is good.
Kailian scrunched up her face, held her breath, and chewed a few times.
……
Kyaa?
How is it?
I wagged my tail and watched her reaction.
Her tightly shut eyes slowly opened.
Kailian’s eyes widened in disbelief as she covered her mouth.
What is this… it tastes so good? The texture is chewy… and there’s no weird smell at all…
See? My words were right. If you listen to me, meat can even grow in your sleep.
Kyaaang!
Tasty?! I peeled it for you! Want me to get more?
Uh, uh… yeah. Just one more. This isn’t half bad.
She had been so cautious earlier, yet she devoured the bugs with gusto.
Excited, I dashed over and brought back another perfectly cooked piece.
Mmm… it’s really mysterious. If not for the appearance, it would be incredibly tasty.
Kailian chomped down the meat I offered and stroked my head.
Our Blanc has turned into a gourmet. Finding tasty things and bringing them over.
Kyung.
I should’ve done this sooner.
Just then, Rosalia, who had been silently eating bugs from behind, approached.
Your Highness, we’ll stop burning the corpses.
Okay, do that. This amount should be enough as rations.
Kailian nodded enthusiastically.
I did another good thing.
With a satisfied heart, I stuffed the bug meat into my cheeks until they puffed up.
Everything tastes better when you eat plenty of it.
By the time everything was mostly settled, I had eaten a satisfying meal and felt like taking a light walk. I wandered around the city walls.
Kyaa.
I should mark my territory so those magical beasts can’t come over here.
I stood in front of the thickest part of the wall, planted both paws on the stone, stretched my back long, and sharpened my claws.
Skrreeech—!
Dust rained down, carving deep, sharp claw marks into the wall.
Now this is my territory.
Kyung?
Yeah… but just the claw marks probably won’t be enough.
I rubbed the jelly part of my paw thoroughly with my tongue, then pressed it down right below the claw marks, leaving a clear imprint.
Because of the wet saliva, my paw-jelly shape was perfectly stamped on the wall.
Kyaa.
Perfect.
I looked at my own traces with an extremely satisfied expression and wagged my tail.
Ooh…! Wonderful, Your Highness Blanc!
Lina clasped her hands together with an emotional face as she gazed at me.
She had followed me to help while Kailian was away at work, but it was clearly out of pure devotion.
If Your Highness’s sacred hoof prints are inscribed here, the magical beasts will never dare look this way again.
Kyaa.
Obviously.
Lina carefully examined my paw print, pressed her face against the wall, and began recording something.
Um… if it’s alright, could I borrow that hoof print from you…
…Kyaa.
I don’t like it.
While I was having fun with Lina, the air around us suddenly grew unnaturally cold.
Kyaa?
What is this gross smell?
The revolting, filthy stench that tickled my nose.
It smelled like I had left wet socks in a drawer for a month and then thrown them away.
Kwadak!
The ground below the wall split with a weird sound, and something disgusting began crawling out of a dark pit.
Kyaa.
That’s…
It had a similar shape to the other bugs, but it was far larger.
A disgusting purple aura swirled like steam on its pitch-black exoskeleton.
Ha… interrupting the time I spent with Your Highness…
Lina’s face, which had been cheering moments ago, instantly hardened into ice.
That’s the one… the thing that hid among the bugs when I caught them earlier?
Now that I could finally see its true form, hidden away among the others.
Probably the starting point of this whole mess.
I’ll handle it, Your Highness.
Without hesitation, Lina stepped in front of me and summoned radiant sacred energy into both hands.
…It doesn’t seem like an ordinary bug.
Chiiiik—!
The monster’s massive jaws opened wide, spitting out pitch-black, sticky poison.
When the poison hit the ground, it bubbled and melted the earth.
Ugh… disgusting.
Even seeing the poison, Lina extended her hands forward with a look of pity.
Paahh!
From Lina’s hands, pure white sacred power formed a massive barrier, completely covering the poison.
Chiiik!
The bug’s poison was suppressed and purified by Lina’s sacred power without being able to do anything.
As soon as the poison cleared, Lina clenched her fist and launched herself forward with a powerful kick.
Kwaang!
Though she was called the Saintess, Lina’s fist came down mercilessly toward the monster’s head.
Swish!
The creature twisted its body in an absurdly fast speed that didn’t match its massive size, dodging Lina’s punch.
Kwaaaang—!!!!
When Lina’s fist slammed into the ground instead of the monster, it created a massive crater in the plain outside the wall with a tremendous boom.
Impressive bug-escape skill.
Lina stood in the center of the crater, her eyes cool and sharp as she glared at the monster.
As she clenched her heavy fist again, preparing to strike.
Kyaaang!
Get out of the way! That’s my snack!
Tired of waiting, I leaped high into the air using Lina’s shoulder as a launchpad.
Thanks to Lina’s distraction, the monster’s back was perfectly open.
I infused sacred energy and frost chill into my front paws.
Kwaaaang—!!
While falling from above, my paw struck the monster’s pitch-black exoskeleton perfectly.
Kiiieeeeeek—!!!!
The monster let out a horrifying scream as it was slammed into the ground.
Tap, tap-tap!
Kikiig…!
The monster thrashed wildly on the ground, roasted by the sacred power.
The frost chill injected along with the sacred power instantly froze its veins and joints.
Kyung.
Why do you keep acting tough in front of me?
I wagged my tail and mocked the bug to my heart’s content.