Surprised by his offer, Sylvia’s eyes widened as she asked:
“Excuse me?”
“It’s just in time for lunch, so the timing is perfect. Aaron, guide the merchant to the kitchen.”
Although it was quite a generous treatment for a commoner from a high noble, Sylvia had come from Korea. She vaguely thought she should avoid nobles, but she knew nothing about their ecosystem.
Her misconception was further fueled by her encounter with Felix. The fact that a prince of a mere kingdom had engaged in a childish staring contest with her meant she had no clue what high-status individuals were like.
To her, Lucino’s words were highly irritating. Though polite, they implied that her opinion was unnecessary.
‘Well, what can I do? If I’m told to do it, I guess I have to.’
Keeping her complaints to herself, Sylvia rolled her eyes. While she was pondering, the Duke had already disappeared, and Aaron was standing in front of her.
“Follow me.”
“Yes.”
Sylvia, with a disheveled face, clutched her leather backpack tightly and followed. She hadn’t noticed the grandeur of the Duke’s mansion in her confusion, but following the butler allowed her to take it in. The mansion was incredibly lavish and grand, incomparable to her humble wooden house.
She didn’t know where the kitchen was but took the opportunity to look around as she followed. The maids, dressed neatly in uniform, moved quietly. The same was true for the servants. They minimized noise from talking and footsteps as they moved swiftly.
Aaron, walking ahead of her, was no exception. His footsteps made very little sound. Sylvia, cautiously moving her feet to avoid making noise, then heard a loud shouting voice.
“Where is the fire handler!”
“Chef, he will be back shortly.”
“Where does he wander off to all the time!”
“He went to harvest onions, eggplants, and cucumbers.”
“Why would you send the fire handler for that, causing such a hassle?”
Hearing the loud male voice, Sylvia paused to think for a moment before grabbing Aron just before entering the kitchen.
“Excuse me, just a moment.”
In the quiet, her urgent call made Aaron turn around. Surprisingly young for a butler, he was a green-haired magician of the wind element.
“What’s the matter?”
At his softly falling question, Sylvia hurriedly responded.
“It doesn’t have to be such a large kitchen. Actually, I prefer cooking alone. A small kitchen would be sufficient.”
Entering that place now would leave Sylvia unable to do anything. The reason she hadn’t been caught using magic of other elements while living with the Croban mercenary group was that she had completely sealed off the kitchen.
“Is there, perhaps, a smaller kitchen? If I must cook there, I’d rather make it at home and bring it.”
Aaron looked at her firmly speaking and then nodded. It was clear that the Ducal household’s head chef would be displeased to have strangers in the kitchen.
Even if it was the Duke’s order, this was something he needed to judge for himself, and he almost made a mistake.
“I hadn’t considered that. There is a smaller kitchen. Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable to cook there?”
“No? No, it’s fine. It’s enough.”
Waving her hands, Sylvia replied. Aaron nodded as if he understood and then moved on. They passed the main kitchen and went deeper inside.
After walking some more, they arrived at a place very close to where vegetables were grown. It was like the kitchen system Sylvia had seen in her own home, but much more convenient and well-equipped.
“His Lordship will dine in an hour. Is there anything you’re curious about?”
“What kind of food does His Lordship prefer?”
Pretending to quickly scan the kitchen, Sylvia asked. She thought it best to make something to his liking.
‘He wouldn’t punish me for bad taste, would he?’
Her heart pounded with anxiety.
“His Lordship isn’t picky. And since he was curious about the lunchboxes you sell, it would be best to make and bring those. Ah, and make sure there’s plenty. I’ll come to pick it up in an hour.”
“Yes, I understand.”
After finishing his words, Aaron left the kitchen. Sylvia carefully closed every small window in the kitchen. Before closing, she scanned the vegetables being grown, planning roughly what to make.
She moved briskly, turning her thoughts into action as she searched the kitchen.
“These robbers…”
Aaron hadn’t known this kitchen was no longer in use. Even as a butler, he wouldn’t know since the kitchen falls under the chef’s domain.
Sylvia bit her lip and scowled as she opened empty shelves and drawers and a storage cabinet engraved with magic circles.
“These bastards really…”
Really, there was nothing.
And from how to light a fire, Sylvia knew nothing. Instead of the fireplace she had used when she first cooked at home, she saw a large slab of stone and, noticing the fire magic circle engraved on it, she could only guess that was how to start a fire here.
“Sigh…”
Letting out a deep sigh from the pit of her stomach, Sylvia put her backpack down. Then, she took out a subspace cypress container. She pulled out three of the largest lunchboxes she had.
She planned to fill them to the brim with food.
“Alright. Since it’s come to this, let’s show them some real flavor.”
Already upset by the unpleasant invitation, she decided to channel her irritation in another way. Standing in the middle of the kitchen, Sylvia sent her magic through a plant magic circle, and plants she desired began to grow around her.
She harvested the ingredients with wind magic and made them disappear. Then, she took out a ribeye steak from the subspace. The untrimmed ribeye was enormous. She cut it in half and put the rest back.
She heavily seasoned the steak, as long as her arm, with salt and pepper and left it aside. She washed carrots and butternut squash and boiled them in hot water until they were beautifully orange. She seasoned them with salt and pepper, added butter, and blended them together.
She simmered the finely blended purée over the fire a bit more and then placed it in a bowl. She took out the largest pan from the subspace and heated it with fire magic.
She sprinkled some soybean oil and placed the seasoned steak on it.
Sizzle.
The sound of the large steak meeting the hot pan was tremendous. Asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, eggplants, and small carrots were thinly sliced.
The red onion was cut into eight pieces like a pizza, keeping the base intact. While flipping the steak, she added butter and infused it with thyme and garlic for aroma.
While the steak was cooking nicely, she grew fruits with plant magic. She first harvested a pineapple, used wind magic to remove the flesh, cut it into round, flat pieces, and placed them next to the sliced vegetables.
Once the steak was cooked to perfection, she wrapped it tightly with wind magic for resting. She left the resting steak aside and grilled the pineapple and vegetables like asparagus in the same pan used for the meat.
She added more butter, lightly coated the red onion with butter, seasoned it with pepper and salt, and then baked it with fire, water, and wind magic like in an oven. As it baked, the red onion blossomed like a flower.
In the first lunchbox, she spread the carrot and butternut squash purée widely and neatly placed the steak, cut into bite-sized pieces, on top. The meat was red and juicy. Sylvia took a piece, tasted it, and hummed in approval.
“Mmm, delicious. Whoever cooked this did a great job.”
The lunchbox was filled with a generous amount of steak. She topped it with the grilled vegetables and sliced grilled pineapple. Then, she placed the bloomed red onion attractively in a corner diagonally.
Next, she reduced grape juice to make a sauce and sprinkled it over.
Sylvia took out eggs, separated some whites and yolks, and made an omelet. She made a large, cheese-filled omelet and placed it in the second lunchbox.
Then, she warmed up her pre-made tomato sauce and drizzled it over. She was careful not to let the lunchboxes cool down as she cast a preservation spell on them.
She thinly sliced tomatoes and rolled them into flower shapes. Tomato and strawberry flowers blossomed on the omelet. In the last box, she beautifully arranged various fruits. Green apples, apples, pears, and watermelon were cut into long rectangles and aligned.
She served stewed peaches in a remaining glass bowl with ice and filled the empty spaces with washed leaves for decoration.
Still, it seemed somewhat lacking, so she added a vegetable salad with lettuce and vitamins to the second compartment and sprinkled it with orange dressing. As a bonus, roasted potatoes laden with butter also made their way into the lunchbox. She neatly stacked the completed boxes.
Estimating the time, she removed all traces of the ingredients and everything she had used. She even erased the preservation magic she had cast, and not long after, the butler returned.
It was a tight squeeze that Sylvia wouldn’t have been able to complete within an hour had she not been skilled.
Muttering under her breath, Sylvia gave Aaron a bright smile.
“Please take care of the bread separately.”
Aaron, taking the handed-over lunchbox in both hands, was startled by its hefty weight. Sylvia quickly asked him as he momentarily froze.
“So, can I go back now? I mean, I need to go to the market for tomorrow’s business.”
Sylvia, desperate to leave as soon as possible, pleaded with earnest eyes.
Aaron, glancing at the large lunchbox in his arms, nodded almost reflexively. Having secured what his master desired, it seemed to be of no consequence. After all, his master rarely sought the same food twice.
It was a whim that brought a commoner into the ducal household, but likely just this once.
“Here, take this.”
He floated a pouch towards her with wind magic. Sylvia blinked in surprise as she caught the heavy pouch.
“It’s your compensation. You, come here.”
He called over the green-haired servant from earlier.
“See her out.”
“Yes, Butler.”
The servant who had abruptly brought Sylvia here approached her. Tucking away her displeasure, Sylvia greeted him cheerfully.
“Well then, I’ll be off.”
She made sure not to say anything like ‘Please use our services again.’ Eager to escape the strangely unsettling place, she quickly followed the green-haired servant urging her on.
Reaching the ducal mansion’s main gate, the servant said,
“This should be far enough, then.”
Different from when she was brought in, the servant only escorted her to the main gate. Sylvia was eager to leave, passing the knight who opened the grand gate with a sharp gaze, clutching her leather backpack as she hastened her steps.
She walked for a while, not knowing the way. Looking here and there, only noble mansions appeared until a familiar road brought a deep sigh of relief.
“Anyway, those people are too much. Ugh… So unlucky? I should never meet them again. Tsk.”
They had dragged her along as they pleased, brought her to an unprepared kitchen, and told her to cook. If it hadn’t been for her, she might have ended up just crying her eyes out.
Muttering to herself, Sylvia continued to move her lips as she headed to the market.
It was then that she remembered the purse given to her by the butler and checked it. Sylvia’s eyes widened at the sight of the purse full of gold coins.
“Um… let’s not add, ‘what I have increases,’ and leave it at that.”
She retracted the curse she had just made and, looking at the purse, smiled broadly.
“Now, what I need to buy today is…”
Entering the familiar market, Sylvia made a mental list.
“Ah, I need to buy beef and pork.”
With a relaxed expression, Sylvia admired the lively atmosphere of the market as she moved further inside.
“Sylvia! What did you come to buy today?”
After hearing the warm words of the butcher shop owner, Sylvia finally felt at ease and went inside.
Surprised by his offer, Sylvia’s eyes widened as she asked:
“Excuse me?”
“It’s just in time for lunch, so the timing is perfect. Aaron, guide the merchant to the kitchen.”
Although it was quite a generous treatment for a commoner from a high noble, Sylvia had come from Korea. She vaguely thought she should avoid nobles, but she knew nothing about their ecosystem.
Her misconception was further fueled by her encounter with Felix. The fact that a prince of a mere kingdom had engaged in a childish staring contest with her meant she had no clue what high-status individuals were like.
To her, Lucino’s words were highly irritating. Though polite, they implied that her opinion was unnecessary.
‘Well, what can I do? If I’m told to do it, I guess I have to.’
Keeping her complaints to herself, Sylvia rolled her eyes. While she was pondering, the Duke had already disappeared, and Aaron was standing in front of her.
“Follow me.”
“Yes.”
Sylvia, with a disheveled face, clutched her leather backpack tightly and followed. She hadn’t noticed the grandeur of the Duke’s mansion in her confusion, but following the butler allowed her to take it in. The mansion was incredibly lavish and grand, incomparable to her humble wooden house.
She didn’t know where the kitchen was but took the opportunity to look around as she followed. The maids, dressed neatly in uniform, moved quietly. The same was true for the servants. They minimized noise from talking and footsteps as they moved swiftly.
Aaron, walking ahead of her, was no exception. His footsteps made very little sound. Sylvia, cautiously moving her feet to avoid making noise, then heard a loud shouting voice.
“Where is the fire handler!”
“Chef, he will be back shortly.”
“Where does he wander off to all the time!”
“He went to harvest onions, eggplants, and cucumbers.”
“Why would you send the fire handler for that, causing such a hassle?”
Hearing the loud male voice, Sylvia paused to think for a moment before grabbing Aron just before entering the kitchen.
“Excuse me, just a moment.”
In the quiet, her urgent call made Aaron turn around. Surprisingly young for a butler, he was a green-haired magician of the wind element.
“What’s the matter?”
At his softly falling question, Sylvia hurriedly responded.
“It doesn’t have to be such a large kitchen. Actually, I prefer cooking alone. A small kitchen would be sufficient.”
Entering that place now would leave Sylvia unable to do anything. The reason she hadn’t been caught using magic of other elements while living with the Croban mercenary group was that she had completely sealed off the kitchen.
“Is there, perhaps, a smaller kitchen? If I must cook there, I’d rather make it at home and bring it.”
Aaron looked at her firmly speaking and then nodded. It was clear that the Ducal household’s head chef would be displeased to have strangers in the kitchen.
Even if it was the Duke’s order, this was something he needed to judge for himself, and he almost made a mistake.
“I hadn’t considered that. There is a smaller kitchen. Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable to cook there?”
“No? No, it’s fine. It’s enough.”
Waving her hands, Sylvia replied. Aaron nodded as if he understood and then moved on. They passed the main kitchen and went deeper inside.
After walking some more, they arrived at a place very close to where vegetables were grown. It was like the kitchen system Sylvia had seen in her own home, but much more convenient and well-equipped.
“His Lordship will dine in an hour. Is there anything you’re curious about?”
“What kind of food does His Lordship prefer?”
Pretending to quickly scan the kitchen, Sylvia asked. She thought it best to make something to his liking.
‘He wouldn’t punish me for bad taste, would he?’
Her heart pounded with anxiety.
“His Lordship isn’t picky. And since he was curious about the lunchboxes you sell, it would be best to make and bring those. Ah, and make sure there’s plenty. I’ll come to pick it up in an hour.”
“Yes, I understand.”
After finishing his words, Aaron left the kitchen. Sylvia carefully closed every small window in the kitchen. Before closing, she scanned the vegetables being grown, planning roughly what to make.
She moved briskly, turning her thoughts into action as she searched the kitchen.
“These robbers…”
Aaron hadn’t known this kitchen was no longer in use. Even as a butler, he wouldn’t know since the kitchen falls under the chef’s domain.
Sylvia bit her lip and scowled as she opened empty shelves and drawers and a storage cabinet engraved with magic circles.
“These bastards really…”
Really, there was nothing.
And from how to light a fire, Sylvia knew nothing. Instead of the fireplace she had used when she first cooked at home, she saw a large slab of stone and, noticing the fire magic circle engraved on it, she could only guess that was how to start a fire here.
“Sigh…”
Letting out a deep sigh from the pit of her stomach, Sylvia put her backpack down. Then, she took out a subspace cypress container. She pulled out three of the largest lunchboxes she had.
She planned to fill them to the brim with food.
“Alright. Since it’s come to this, let’s show them some real flavor.”
Already upset by the unpleasant invitation, she decided to channel her irritation in another way. Standing in the middle of the kitchen, Sylvia sent her magic through a plant magic circle, and plants she desired began to grow around her.
She harvested the ingredients with wind magic and made them disappear. Then, she took out a ribeye steak from the subspace. The untrimmed ribeye was enormous. She cut it in half and put the rest back.
She heavily seasoned the steak, as long as her arm, with salt and pepper and left it aside. She washed carrots and butternut squash and boiled them in hot water until they were beautifully orange. She seasoned them with salt and pepper, added butter, and blended them together.
She simmered the finely blended purée over the fire a bit more and then placed it in a bowl. She took out the largest pan from the subspace and heated it with fire magic.
She sprinkled some soybean oil and placed the seasoned steak on it.
Sizzle.
The sound of the large steak meeting the hot pan was tremendous. Asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, eggplants, and small carrots were thinly sliced.
The red onion was cut into eight pieces like a pizza, keeping the base intact. While flipping the steak, she added butter and infused it with thyme and garlic for aroma.
While the steak was cooking nicely, she grew fruits with plant magic. She first harvested a pineapple, used wind magic to remove the flesh, cut it into round, flat pieces, and placed them next to the sliced vegetables.
Once the steak was cooked to perfection, she wrapped it tightly with wind magic for resting. She left the resting steak aside and grilled the pineapple and vegetables like asparagus in the same pan used for the meat.
She added more butter, lightly coated the red onion with butter, seasoned it with pepper and salt, and then baked it with fire, water, and wind magic like in an oven. As it baked, the red onion blossomed like a flower.
In the first lunchbox, she spread the carrot and butternut squash purée widely and neatly placed the steak, cut into bite-sized pieces, on top. The meat was red and juicy. Sylvia took a piece, tasted it, and hummed in approval.
“Mmm, delicious. Whoever cooked this did a great job.”
The lunchbox was filled with a generous amount of steak. She topped it with the grilled vegetables and sliced grilled pineapple. Then, she placed the bloomed red onion attractively in a corner diagonally.
Next, she reduced grape juice to make a sauce and sprinkled it over.
Sylvia took out eggs, separated some whites and yolks, and made an omelet. She made a large, cheese-filled omelet and placed it in the second lunchbox.
Then, she warmed up her pre-made tomato sauce and drizzled it over. She was careful not to let the lunchboxes cool down as she cast a preservation spell on them.
She thinly sliced tomatoes and rolled them into flower shapes. Tomato and strawberry flowers blossomed on the omelet. In the last box, she beautifully arranged various fruits. Green apples, apples, pears, and watermelon were cut into long rectangles and aligned.
She served stewed peaches in a remaining glass bowl with ice and filled the empty spaces with washed leaves for decoration.
Still, it seemed somewhat lacking, so she added a vegetable salad with lettuce and vitamins to the second compartment and sprinkled it with orange dressing. As a bonus, roasted potatoes laden with butter also made their way into the lunchbox. She neatly stacked the completed boxes.
Estimating the time, she removed all traces of the ingredients and everything she had used. She even erased the preservation magic she had cast, and not long after, the butler returned.
It was a tight squeeze that Sylvia wouldn’t have been able to complete within an hour had she not been skilled.
Muttering under her breath, Sylvia gave Aaron a bright smile.
“Please take care of the bread separately.”
Aaron, taking the handed-over lunchbox in both hands, was startled by its hefty weight. Sylvia quickly asked him as he momentarily froze.
“So, can I go back now? I mean, I need to go to the market for tomorrow’s business.”
Sylvia, desperate to leave as soon as possible, pleaded with earnest eyes.
Aaron, glancing at the large lunchbox in his arms, nodded almost reflexively. Having secured what his master desired, it seemed to be of no consequence. After all, his master rarely sought the same food twice.
It was a whim that brought a commoner into the ducal household, but likely just this once.
“Here, take this.”
He floated a pouch towards her with wind magic. Sylvia blinked in surprise as she caught the heavy pouch.
“It’s your compensation. You, come here.”
He called over the green-haired servant from earlier.
“See her out.”
“Yes, Butler.”
The servant who had abruptly brought Sylvia here approached her. Tucking away her displeasure, Sylvia greeted him cheerfully.
“Well then, I’ll be off.”
She made sure not to say anything like ‘Please use our services again.’ Eager to escape the strangely unsettling place, she quickly followed the green-haired servant urging her on.
Reaching the ducal mansion’s main gate, the servant said,
“This should be far enough, then.”
Different from when she was brought in, the servant only escorted her to the main gate. Sylvia was eager to leave, passing the knight who opened the grand gate with a sharp gaze, clutching her leather backpack as she hastened her steps.
She walked for a while, not knowing the way. Looking here and there, only noble mansions appeared until a familiar road brought a deep sigh of relief.
“Anyway, those people are too much. Ugh… So unlucky? I should never meet them again. Tsk.”
They had dragged her along as they pleased, brought her to an unprepared kitchen, and told her to cook. If it hadn’t been for her, she might have ended up just crying her eyes out.
Muttering to herself, Sylvia continued to move her lips as she headed to the market.
It was then that she remembered the purse given to her by the butler and checked it. Sylvia’s eyes widened at the sight of the purse full of gold coins.
“Um… let’s not add, ‘what I have increases,’ and leave it at that.”
She retracted the curse she had just made and, looking at the purse, smiled broadly.
“Now, what I need to buy today is…”
Entering the familiar market, Sylvia made a mental list.
“Ah, I need to buy beef and pork.”
With a relaxed expression, Sylvia admired the lively atmosphere of the market as she moved further inside.
“Sylvia! What did you come to buy today?”
After hearing the warm words of the butcher shop owner, Sylvia finally felt at ease and went inside.
