The Maid's Bed
“…I’d like to host a banquet at the palace with this tomato dish. What do you think?”
“My lord! I enjoyed it as much as anyone, but that seems far too hasty.”
Ryuk liked the tomato dish, yet because it was an unknown fruit, he thought holding a banquet right away would be reckless.
“Nonsense! The only thing hasty around here is our empty stomachs. Once everyone tastes it, they’ll be singing the tomato’s praises. Well? Will you prepare the palace banquet?”
Even Jinu thought Lord Berk was being reckless, suggesting a full banquet with nothing but tomato rolls and candied tomatoes. Still, the thought of the famous chef Saltbae stirred a spark of ambition in him.
Saltbae had started in a tiny Turkish shop, but his signature salt-sprinkling pose turned him into a celebrity chef whose influence reached the world’s elite. If a royal patron backed him and he presented new tomato-based dishes to high nobles with flair, he might become just as famous here.
Yet the risks of entanglement with royalty had to be considered. Saltbae lived in a civilized world where fame didn’t threaten his life, but this place was different. A king could declare “Off with his head!” at any moment, and no amount of renown would save him.
While the idea of connections with royalty and high nobles was tempting, it would be wiser to stay in the background and keep his name hidden.
“I’m grateful for the offer, my lord, but I must decline.”
“Why not? What’s the problem?”
“The tomatoes themselves. We don’t have nearly enough for a banquet.”
“D-don’t tell me you have to bring them one by one from the Arean Continent?”
“No, that isn’t it. We’re still in the early stages of gathering seeds, so we lack the quantity needed. Besides, it’s winter. We can only grow them indoors, and even then the harvest is limited.”
“Ah, I see. I learned of it too soon. You said you’d give me the seeds, didn’t you? Once we can harvest enough, would a banquet be possible?”
“Yes. At that point it would be. But if we harvest on such a large scale, word of the tomatoes will spread before we even hold the banquet to introduce the dishes.”
“You’re right. Once they’re grown across wide fields, rumors will spread on their own and dishes will be made. It would have been a fine chance to raise my own reputation. A pity.”
As a true party enthusiast who loved fame, Lord Berk couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
“There is another way, however. Since the seeds came from the Arean Continent, we could give them a new name.”
“A new name for the tomato?”
“Yes. If we call them ‘Berk Tomatoes’ and distribute the seeds to many people, your name will spread along with the tomatoes themselves.”
“Oh! That’s clever. My name could become known as the man who brought tomatoes from the Arean Continent and introduced them to the Entrick Continent. Hahaha!”
Lord Berk laughed heartily at the idea, then suddenly stopped.
“But if we do that, what happens to you, the one who actually brought the seeds?”
“If we say I brought them at your request, there should be no issue.”
“Hmm. Would that really be all right? Then is there something you want in return?”
“I don’t have any particular requests, but finding a place to stay in the capital, Daiven, has been difficult.”
“Ah, so you’d like a house in the capital. Ryuk, did you hear that?”
“I’ll look into it.”
“Still, is that enough? I’ll be taking all the fame for myself.”
“Pardon? This was something you requested, my lord. It’s only natural that the tomatoes bear your name.”
“Hm? Hahaha! You’re right! These are the tomato seeds I requested and brought here. Your name was Jinu, wasn’t it? I quite like the way you handle things. I like it very much.”
Lord Berk was genuinely pleased that the mage was willing to hand over all the fame for bringing the tomatoes in exchange for nothing more than a single house.
He began planning how to use the new tomato name to build his reputation. Sitting by the warm stove with a full stomach, drowsiness soon crept over him.
“I’m getting sleepy. Which bed should I use?”
Jinu hadn’t expected him to want to sleep there at all, and Lord Berk’s infamous reputation with women—according to Cezanne—made the situation awkward.
“You’ll have to use that bed, my lord.”
“What? You want me to sleep here? In a maid’s bed?”
Lord Berk looked incredulous, but there was no helping it.
“I’ve heard stories about you from Cezanne.”
“Now, now, you shouldn’t believe everything you hear. Those tales get exaggerated as they spread. Besides, half the time the ladies approach me first, yet somehow it all gets blamed on me. It’s quite unfair!”
Lord Berk jumped up in protest.
“I’m afraid I can’t judge the truth of it. I simply can’t allow a noblewoman and a man to sleep in the same open space. You’ll have to use that bed.”
“The mages of Arean are wise indeed. He saw right through you, my lord.”
“Ryuk! Enough nonsense! I have eyes too—wait, that came out wrong. Ahem.”
Lord Berk had been about to say, “No matter how freely I swing my bat, I don’t touch girls who aren’t fully grown or those who are nothing but skin and bones!” but swallowed the words. Insulting a lady was something he couldn’t do.
“Even I find your appetites remarkable at times. Please, get into bed. With a noblewoman present, it’s best to follow the mage’s advice.”
“Still, a maid’s bed, of all things!”
“You should have behaved more modestly, then. I knew something like this would happen eventually, what with all the young ladies you’ve been toppling. I’ll take the second floor.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! I’ll take the second floor!”
Grumbling all the while, Lord Berk reluctantly climbed into the wardrobe-like maid’s bed, and the massive Ryuk squeezed in after him.
“I’ll lock the door as well.”
Ryuk agreed, knowing that if he truly wished, he could break out of the maid’s bed anyway.
Once the door was shut, Tilt and Jack lay down in front of it, while Michel curled up beneath Cezanne’s bed.
Only the crackling of the stove and the sound of snoring filled the room.
***
Fortunately, the snow had stopped by morning. Michel was the first to rise and opened the bed’s door.
The moment Lord Berk and Ryuk woke, they began bickering again.
“It was surprisingly comfortable. Now I understand why maids sleep so well. You should use this bed back at the mansion too, my lord.”
“Nonsense! I couldn’t sleep properly because of Ryuk’s snoring! That aside, make that tomato roll thing again.”
“Instead of tomato rolls, I’ll prepare something better suited for breakfast.”
“Something else? Does it include tomatoes?”
“Yes, of course. I’ll use every last tomato we have left.”
“Hmm. Very well. Hurry and make it.”
Everyone looked forward to the new tomato dish, but what Jinu prepared was nothing more than ordinary tomato scrambled eggs.
Tilt had brought eight eggs from the barn early that morning, but with only five tomatoes remaining, there was only enough for two people.
He sautéed chopped green onions and onions first, then added the finely diced tomatoes and cooked them a little longer. While the egg mixture slowly set over low heat, he folded in the pre-cooked tomatoes. The only seasonings were the tomato ketchup he’d made the day before, along with salt, sugar, and pepper.
When plating, he served it with two pieces of halved pita bread.
“You can eat the tomato scrambled eggs as they are, or wrap them in the pita bread.”
Compared to the tomato rolls and candied tomatoes from the day before, Lord Berk found this dish rather ordinary. Perhaps because it used eggs, something he ate all the time.
But when he tucked the mixture into the warmed pita and took a bite, the flavor was completely different. The fresh, slightly tart taste of the tomato combined with the savory richness of the cooked eggs created something that felt like tomatoes tamed by human hands.
He had now tasted three different tomato dishes, each with its own distinct character.
“Do people in Arean eat this often?”
“Yes. It’s mainly a simple breakfast dish.”
If he had taken more care, he could have blanched the tomatoes and peeled off the skins, but he hadn’t bothered. With oyster sauce and rice, this would have made an excellent fried rice as well. Barley existed here, so rice surely did too if he looked for it.
“Until now I’ve just eaten bread and beans for breakfast because it’s simple, but this would be nice too.”
“Once tomatoes become widespread, more people will eat breakfast this way. And more people will speak my name as well.”
Lord Berk smiled at the thought of people asking for “Berk Tomatoes” every morning.
“I’ll stop by again on my way back from Booktoria. Give me the seeds then.”
After finishing breakfast with satisfaction, everyone moved quickly. Tilt was already saddling Lord Berk’s horse, Dawn 2.
“I’ll return this horse when I come back.”
***
“The sages say that hardship gives hope and strong will to those who endure it. And I believe I experienced such hardship on my way to Booktoria.”
Upon arriving at the Alfred family mansion, Lord Berk received a warm welcome and spent the tea time praising his decision to come to Booktoria.
It was proper noble etiquette to speak of a visited estate with such flowery praise, but this time his flattery was sincere.
“I once met an old friend near here, long ago. He was from the distant Arean Continent.”
“I’d heard your network of contacts was impressive, but this is remarkable. A friend from the Arean Continent?”
Adelan, head of the Alfred family, was impressed.
“It’s thanks to my habit of following the wind and enjoying meeting people. That’s how I learned about Arean’s culture, so different from Entrick’s, and heard about foods that exist only there.”
“I’ve heard Arean people eat strange, boneless things that crawl along the ocean floor. Is that true?”
The teenage Alfred daughter, at the age most curious about everything, asked eagerly.
“Unfortunately, the sea is too far from here, so I couldn’t confirm that. But there was one dish my friend boasted about—a fruit called the tomato, used in several dishes. Has anyone here heard of tomatoes?”
The dozen or so Alfred family members gathered in the drawing room all shook their heads.
“It’s a truly unique fruit. A pity I can’t let you taste it.”
“Then you’ve tasted this tomato yourself, Lord Berk?”
It was Vincent, the Alfred heir and eldest son.
“Sadly, I didn’t get the chance back then. There were no tomatoes available. But I did tell my friend that if I ever went to Arean, I would bring some back.”
“You said ‘back then.’ Does that mean you’ve now obtained these tomatoes and tasted them?”
“Of course. A few days ago, when the snow was falling like a storm, I felt an irresistible urge to come to Booktoria—as if guided by divine will. And there I met my old friend once more.”
Watching Lord Berk skillfully manipulate the Alfred family with his storytelling, Ryuk could only smile inwardly and think, What a load of nonsense.