Chapter 9 - Volume 1 (2/2)

And so, the sudden cooking course started.I began by carefully washing my hands, proceeding to wash the vegetables, and some unfamiliar grains right after, then chopping the vegetables and adding all of the ingredients together into a pot.

When I noticed that the ingredients being chopped were very sour and weak in substance,「Are these also going to be added in?」, was what I asked, and「These are incredibly important ingredients that cannot be missed out」was what she replied. Somehow, today had me completely following her pace, I hope that I don’t end up with anything I’m not satisfied with.

After finishing the cooking of the so called『porridge』, I cautiously scooped a bit of the sour ingredients I hated into a small saucer.

「Wait!」

Due to the panic in her voice, my hand stopped.

「I’ll be tasting it first. It’s mortifying if it has a weird taste after it was done」

Her point was illogical.Although she was the one guiding, the one who did the cooking was me. Even if the outcome of the cooking had a weird taste, there wouldn’t be any reason for her to feel ashamed.

Finally, her intention became clear. Well, it was kind of expected though.

After the incident of almost getting served poison, the people around me began preparing my meals with care. The servants in charge of the kitchen would offer to personally taste-test the meal for poison; furthermore, soup was no longer added to the table.

I told them I was fine even if they didn’t do it, but no one listened.

The food I consumed didn’t decrease.However, it was a pathetic to say that I felt melancholic every dinner time. It seemed she realized this small disorder I had.

「…Ok. It’s pretty good」

She said this after taste-testing it for poison for me, after quickly washing it, she offered the small saucer.

「Do you… want to have a taste as well?」

(Forcing me to make the dish, then making that anxious face, isn’t this cheating?)

Even with a small height difference, having Lycoris send me an upward glance in a helpless state stirred something within me. Wanting to cherish her, and at the same time wanting to tease her – it was an extremely complicated feeling.

「Yeah, let me have a taste」

Having said that, I opened my mouth slightly, and sure enough, she was put in an embarrassing situation.But eventually, a small portion of the『porridge』in the small saucer slowly came closer to my mouth.With moderate amount of sourness inside my mouth, the natural sweetness of the cereal spread through.Not bad.With the sound of a gulp from my throat, I remembered my hunger.

No matter how meddlesome it is, this was the deep affection of my fiancée.『As long as it’s your hand that offers, even if it was poison I’ll gladly take it』or so the lines of a play I heard somewhere before, drifted into my head.If I said those words out loud though, I’ll surely get scolded for indiscretion.

—(1) Garçon – actually French Waiter style

Author-san likes teaching us a lot of new words.