Crepes
TN: Here’s another chapter! I had problems with the royal speech and kept forgetting to use it. orz
In the unexplored wilderness of Eastern Continent, there was a small country that was called the Flower Country.
The Eastern Continent had long winters and short summers but unlike the rest of the region, this country"s territory was a flower garden with the warmth of spring that continued all year long.
It was such a place.
Because it was such a place, 100 years ago during the "War with Evil G.o.d", the Allied Human Knights and Demon Generals invaded this country in order to make it a front base in their effort of attacking each other.
a.s.suming that they would have a decisive battle with each other, they rallied their forces and intruded into the flower garden… however, both of the opposing forces were attacked by the "citizens" of that country and were forced to retreat.
Yes, the country where colourful spring flowers bloomed all year round had been the country of "Faeries" for more than 1,000 years.
Fairy. Each of them has a small body that could ride on a palm with b.u.t.terfly wings enabling them to fly freely in the air, and a race with magical power comparable to the elves which compensates for their size.
Though they were not weak, they were temperate enough not to attack elsewhere. However, they were brave enough not to permit anyone to trample their territory.
True enough, the ruler of that time, Queen Silvia Silverio XII, was furious enough by the selfish invasions of the humans and demons to tackle their elite forces by herself, fighting bravely by fully utilizing her magical powers and borrowing the earth"s, and successfully drove them away.
Since then, the Flower Country was feared by the human kin and demon tribe, and they enjoyed their long peace without even exerting their powers.
About half a year ago, movement started to appear during their peaceful stagnation.
[Your Majesty! It"s urgent!]
At noon, that voice reverberated inside the green castle braided with beautiful flowers.
[Well, that"s usually the case.]
Seeing the elderly sorcerer who came rushing, Tiana Silverio XVI, the queen of the flower country who just ascended the throne two years ago with beautiful green hair and eyes and l.u.s.trous rainbow wings with black bordering, felt disgusted.
[…Her Majesty has also noticed?]
To her words, the sorcerer rebuffed without thinking.
Tiana quietly nodded to his question.
[Of course. This garden is Ours. If there is an abnormality, We will notice immediately. Especially, if it"s right in front of Our caste.]
On that day, without taking more than a single step out of the throne room, Tiana who was the best sorcerer in the country saw what had occurred.
The fairy tribe specializes in magic due to their magical power and their small, helpless bodies.
They have no use of swords and bows in battle like human kin, they exclusively use their magic or golems created by magic.
For that reason, magical power is really important for the king of their country. Those that are best at magical power were selected to the throne regardless of their gender.
It was inevitable that the queen of fairies was an excellent sorcerer.
[Let"s face it…]
Then Tiana stood up as if waiting for this report.
[Whatever it is, it is not permissible for them to trample in Our territory. Everyone, leave Us.]
Her voice became louder and was heard by the guardsmen in the vicinity.
Yes, this is the Flower Country.
Those who dared to invade the country of fairies would not be forgiven.
In the Flower Country, right in front of a castle that was regarded as small from a human point of view.
[…This is… a door, right?]
Tiana who glanced around to the people who were gathering there murmured unintentionally.
It was a big door that was usually used by humans… there was no such door in the Flower Country.
A black door with golden handle and a picture of a beast drawn on it.
Of course, it did not exist until last night.
[…It seems to be a kind of summoning magic…]
Tiana was determined because its ident.i.ty was unknown to anyone.
[We shall invade this door. The sorcerers will protect the country. Leave this to Us.]
If the true ident.i.ty of this door was confirmed, the people"s uneasiness would come to rest.
Tiana"s came to a quick decision.
[What!? Your Majesty! That is dangerous!?]
[Do not disobey me. We are the queen of this country. We have an obligation to protect it.
…We"ll go after preparation is finished.]
To the sorcerers who shouted in surprise, Tiana would use the secret weapon of the Flower Country.
[Respond to my call, come before me, Guardian!]
She took a grain from a bag that she pocketed and dropped it while activating the magic.
In this Flower Country, only one grain could be harvested once a year from a flower which was planted during the "Old Dragon Era" in the flower bed inside the castle that was protected by magic.
And by applying secret magic pa.s.sed on the successive queens, the strongest guardian of the Flower Country was born.
Ooooo…
With the seed resonating from the surface of the earth, it incorporated the magic of the surrounding earth and dense green vines started to grow from the seed.
After they elongated, they tangled together and started to form a shape.
Its appearance was a green giant. The vines gathered to shape like a muscle and pink flowers were blooming in places where its eyes should be.
Its height was similar to a giant… about three times larger than a normal human.
[Okay, guardian. Follow Us.]
Ooooo…
In response to the queen"s order, the giant responded with a roaring sound from the bottom of the earth, recognizing its master.
[Alright… everyone, leave this door first.]
Leaving the giant, Tiana retreated from the door.
She did not know what kind of danger lurked beyond it because she did not anything about it except that it"s created by magic.
Therefore she would reserve her judgement.
[Alright… Guardian! Open that door!]
Ooooo…
In response to the queen"s order, the giant bended down.
Grasping the handle of the door with two of its fingers that"s similar to thick branches, it gently opened the door.
Chirinchirin…
The door opened with a sound of a bell, which was a signal to activate its magic.
[…Well, this is a transfer device.]
On the other side of the door, it was slightly hazy and the details could not be seen, but seeing a bright room with human-like shapes inside, Tiana knew that it"s a kind of a magic device that used the magic of transference.
[What will you do, Your Majesty?]
[…That"s right. First of all…]
Overlooking the confirmation of the head sorcerer, she kept an eye on the elite sorcerers of the Flower Country.
[Let"s find out the other side"s intention. We shall lead the unit. Any objections?]
It"s a quick decision.
With lightning speed decision, Tiana gave her orders in rapid succession.
[Something like that… it"s dangerous! We do not know what"s on the other side! And with this door, the guardian could not pa.s.s!?]
[What are you waiting for? Leave the head sorcerer here, prepare a magic square for withdrawal. It will be useful for emergency.]
Tiana did not heed the head sorcerer"s warnings.
The queens of the Flower Country for successive years had kept the country"s independence and maintained the territory for a long time. They were the ones to respect the bravery to stand in the vanguard voluntarily over being in a safe place as they were strongest sorcerers in the fairy country as well as its king.
And Tiana also imposed on herself not to be ashamed of that tradition.
[This is an invitation to Us. Let us go inside.]
This was the first unusual situation to the Flower Country in 100 years.
The fact bounced without knowing the young queen"s heart.
Well, now was the time to show the power and knowledge worthwhile of a queen that could not be used during peaceful time.
[We will lead the people of this country. Then We shall talk to the people over there.]
Even if it"s dangerous in some cases.
Inside the restaurant, it was a kind of a strange case.
[Wha, what is this!?]
One of the sorcerers in the troop raised a surprised voice.
It was such a strange sight.
As soon as they pa.s.sed the door, the sight which was blurred became clear.
[…Calm down.]
A scene that was before their eyes…
Tiana gave instructions to her troop, even though they were surprised by the sight of humans, demons and other tribes eating as much as they like rather than fighting with each other.
(What kind of place is this…)
Of course, Tiana herself did not know.
Information was insufficient. They had to gather more at least.
Tiana concentrated and observed the magical power.
[…Is that a half-elf magician?]
And, that one was singled out.
A half-elf with silver hair with blue well-tailored clothes was wearing a cloak of magic.
As a mithril cane was place beside her, there was no doubt that she was a magician.
And from the strength of her magical power and her perfect control of it, she was born with high magical power comparable to Tiana and refined it under a good teacher.
(Let"s find out what kind of place this is.)
She judged so and approached the magician after winking to her subordinates.
[…Excuse me. You seem to be a magician. We are Queen Tiana Silverio XVI of Flower Country. If you do not mind, can you tell Us where this place is?]
To the queen"s words, the half-elf magician stopped eating what seemed to be a yellow slime and said,
[I am the princess of the Princ.i.p.ality, Victoria Samanak. I am honored to meet the queen of the Flower Country.
…And here is the otherworld dining hall "Nekoya" that was connected to our world through that door.]
It seemed that this was a different world restaurant.
After listening to the rough explanation from Victoria, Tiana pondered.
[A shop offering cooked food… We have heard that the humans and the elves prefer it.]
Tiana remembered what she was taught from her teacher who had travelled the human world back when she was a child.
Unlike fairies who ate raw fruits and flower nectars in the flower fields, humans eat food by burning them in fire or hot water.
And the otherworld dining hall offers food that had been subjected to various treatments.
[But… is it really delicious by doing so? From what We have heard, it is not as good as the honey of the Flower Country.]
[It"s delicious.]
To Tiana"s question, Victoria nodded with conviction.
Victoria had been visiting the restaurant for 8 years. The more you don"t get tired of the food, the better the taste of the restaurant"s food.
[I see… well, anything is experience. Magician, could you recommend something that could fit with Our tastes?]
Tiana was interested after seeing Victoria"s powerful affirmation.
If she could say so with so much conviction, she could probably eat it.
[I understand. The perfect cuisine for you is…]
Victoria pondered after Tiana"s question.
(First of all, I should recommend a dessert.)
The fairies" staple food is fruit and honey from the flower fields.
Both are sweet.
(…Parfait has problems with its vessels.)
A glimpse to the princess eating a gla.s.s of parfait with a big smile… an exception.
The vessel in which parfait was served had a deep bottom.
It would be a pain to eat if it was taller than the queen"s height.
(Pudding a la mode… but the fairies hate bitter things…)
Next, she glanced at what she was eating, but it would not be a good match.
Victoria belonged to a faction that did not admit that pudding was better without caramel.
(Probably dessert with many fruits will do. Not raw ones but processed. All that"s left is…)
And Victoria got the answer.
[…Crepe with mixed fruits. I recommend it to you.]
[Very well. We"ll order it.]
Tiana nodded to Victoria"s answer and made an affirmation.
[I see… Owner. One mixed fruit crepe. It"s best if you cut it to smaller pieces like hotcakes.]
[Okay.]
The owner who was surprised seeing a fairy like those in fairy tales retreated to the kitchen after receiving Victoria"s order.
After a while, the owner came back with a plate.
[Sorry I made you wait. Here"s your mixed fruit crepe.]
On the plate was something like a dull yellow and brown mottled cloth.
Wrapped inside it was something soft and white with colorful fruits gathered to a bouquet shape.
(Hoh, so this is a crepe. Human beings sure think a lot.)
Red, orange, green… pure white and the beautiful cloth that wrapped the fruits.
Crepe was a food that looked good.
[Well then, I"ll cut it now.]
Then the owner cut the crepe into bite sized pieces so that the faeries in front of him could easily eat it.
With a well-polished silver knife, the crepe was finely cut.
The owner cut the crepe as evenly as possible… with care to avoid making "failures" without fruit.
[Well then, enjoy.]
After finishing the work, the owner retreated to the kitchen to cook for another customer as usual.
[…Well, We suppose We should eat first.]
Among the group, Tiana said that.
[Something like that!? It may be poisonous! It"s dangerous!?]
[That is why.]
She calmly replied to one of the surprised sorcerers.
[No poison will be effective against the protection of Our magic. That is why We shall eat first.]
That was what she said.
On the other hand… she was curious about the taste of the food in front of her.
(First of… I"ll have a little taste.)
With her hands, she picked the piece with orange fruit and bit the edge of the cloth-like food.
That part did not taste very much. For a fairy like Tiana who liked sweet foods, she felt disappointed.
(Hmm… this white thing next… Muu!?)
With her expectation lowered, she licked the white part and her eyes widened in surprise.
It was sweet and soft and melted in her mouth.
Sweet, but not just sweet, it tasted like fresh milk.
(Delicious! This sweetness… Mumuu!?)
Tiana who ate it saw black and white.
It was an orange fruit.
It was sweet and contained plenty of water; it was delicious when eaten raw.
(What… the already sweet fruit was soaked in sweet water!?)
It was sweeter than any fruit that Tiana had eaten.
As a result, the fruit in this crepe was so sweet like it was melting, making Tiana felt that it was a dream.
(This deliciousness… it"s possible?)
After enjoying the taste, she noticed the fact and saw the crepe.
…Sandwiched between the crepes were various fruits, different from the orange ones.
(As I thought!)
And Tiana knew that all of them were different kinds of fruit.
Red berries were boiled in large amount of sugar water, they had sweet and mellow flavor.
Translucent green berries that seemed to be frozen once with magic or something, it was cold with sharp flavor.
And the yellow fruit that was a cut out of a ring that Tiana did not know of, it had a degree of acidity though it was as sweet as the orange fruit.
(I see, the cloth wrapping has a meaning…)
And as she ate them, she noticed it.
It was the cloth that did not have much taste before.
It was also based on calculations.
The sweet white thing and the various fruits.
A foundation that supported those intense sweetness.
That was the fabric.
If the cloth had more taste, the taste of the dish would be too sweet.
Yes, this was the first time the crepe had enough taste.
―――Aa, as I thought this crepe was indeed poisonous…
Tiana learned it while a.n.a.lyzing the taste of the crepe.
Although her stomach was full, she could not stop her hands from carrying more food to her mouth.
―――She was sure that this was a terrible poison to rupture her belly.
Such an idea crossed her head.
The temptation of sweet and sour fruit and the white thing that was sweeter than anything.
No matter how powerful her magic was, there was no resistance to "eating too much".
Tiana was unable to stop until her belly had her fill.
Tiana continued to eat the crepe to her limit and finally stopped by raising a lovely voice.
Then she sighed sweetly and her subordinates asked her after waiting a while.
[…So, how was it, Your Majesty?…]
One of the sorcerer"s aides swallowed their saliva and asked Tiana.
On the contrary, Tiana only said one word while wiping the cream from her mouth.
[Umu. No problem… please eat.]
The moment Tiana said those words.
The fairies cluttered the crepes.
Everyone could not wait any longer after watching the queen ate so deliciously in front of them and cheered at the melting sweetness.
[…Victoria, thank you. This is a reward, so please keep it.]
While watching her men, Tiana pa.s.sed Victoria a gift befitting the royalty… the treasure of the Flower Country.
[This is a kind of flower that could only be grown in Flower Country… do you understand what this means?]
Victoria"s eyes widened in surprise.
[…This is?]
At first glance it was a brown seed that could be found anywhere.
However, Victoria recognized it due to the extraordinary magical power contained in it.
A seed of a phantom flower that was almost extinct since ancient times except in the Flower Country.
Just by drinking a decoction made from it could rejuvenate someone for 1 year.
It could also be used as a powerful catalyst for magic.
Although in the royal treasury of the Princ.i.p.ality there was a seed that was strictly protected by magic, it could be traded for tremendous price in the market.
[No problem. We heard that it was an extremely valuable article for man, but if We want, We can get it.]
To Victoria"s glossy smile, Tiana said that.
[…I understand. From now on, I will pay for all the food you order in this restaurant.]
In response to what she got as a reward, Victoria further pledged.
Even if she paid until her life expectancy ran out, it was cheaper as a price for her reward, but this was the only thing she could give back to the queen.
[Really, sorry for your trouble.]
Tiana thoroughly appreciated that indeed.
As the Flower Country was isolated from the humans, it was not easy to get hold of human currency.
As a matter of concern, she was pleased that the method of payment was taken care of from now on.
…From now on, she already decided to visit the restaurant once every 7 days.
(What, other people will not be against it.)
Her 100 subordinates had already eaten that big crepe.
And she wanted to try the next "helping1" again.
Tiana did not think that people would oppose coming to the restaurant again.
Then, six months later.
Today as well, the "door countermeasure meeting" was confusing.
[Today"s order should be chocolate banana! I want to know the goodness of that bitter taste!]
[What did you say! The sweetness of strawberry jam and sweet and sour taste of cream cheese may be better!?]
[For sweetness, custard is better! We should have custard as the ingredient!]
[That"s not right! The fluffy texture of cream and custard is different!
It"s the world"s principle that cream is better than custard!]
[Ano~, I heard that crepes are not as sweet as they seem though.]
[[[[Dismissed! Crepes that are not sweet are not crepes!]]]]
The agenda was only "which crepe would you like to order except for mixed fruit", but it was not going well.
[Your Majesty! The citizens selected for this excursion have already gathered at the cathedral door square! If you do not leave urgently, there would be a riot!]
In the midst of such conference, the head sorcerer came in and gave his report to Tiana.
[We understand. Let"s head off soon.]
Tiana gradually nodded to his words and stood up in a hurry.
[Let"s go. We are sorry to hear the results, but think of the rest that are waiting.]
Only then, Tiana headed to the square where people were waiting for the great queen to appear.
From that, Tiana who brought back information repeatedly held discussion and came to an agreement for Nekoya.
Even though it"s a huge restaurant for humans, it was indeed a nuisance to push across thousands of citizens in the country.
Therefore, before going through the door that appears only once in 7 days, only 200 people and Tiana would be selected through a strict drawing regardless of position, age or power.
It was such an arrangement.
[We kept you waiting, Our citizens! Now, let"s depart! To otherworld dining hall!]
Tiana gave a speech to the citizens who brought basket knitted from gra.s.s vines to store otherworld confectionaries in their hands and danced in a state where they could not hide their expectations in front of the door.
They cheered and gathered nearer the door.
[All right! Golem! Open the door! Open the way to another world!]
The giant who became the doorman obediently turned the doork.n.o.b and opened the door.
"Chirinchirin", numerous fairies pa.s.sed through the door while listening to the bell.
[Ah! Welcome!]
In a state like this, the recently hired demon waitress got used to this situation.
[Umu. We"ll go to a table first. Then, the menu.]
One nod to the waitress, Tiana ordered her.
And on that day also, a sweet feast began.
Helping here means second helping or another plate.