TPCFE 03

Chapter 03

“I thought they wouldn’t be able to kill it until that person joined the subjugation force……”

“Basilisk poison! Ptoo! It hit this big brother!”

“Right? There was someone there…… Oh my? This person……!”

The woman examined Cain’s body and suddenly stiffened when she noticed the crest of the Bellaon family.

Then, as though she recognized him, she brushed back his hair and looked closely at his face. She even pried open one eyelid with her fingers.

“Cain Bellaon…… Why is he already here?”

“Ah! This oppa ugly.”

Even while drifting between consciousness and unconsciousness, the child’s cry stabbed Cain directly in the heart.

Since birth, he had been praised as one of the Empire’s handsome young men.

Though only from a branch family, his sculpted nose and cool eyes had made him a rising figure in high society.

It felt deeply unfair that his appearance was being judged in the most miserable state of his life.

“That’s right, Lucy. He does look ugly. But that’s because the monster poison made his face swell. According to the setting, he’s supposed to be handsome.”

“……Ugly. Only eyeballs pretty.”

“Is this my fault……? After that incident, manpower probably got redirected to Imperial Army security, so they rushed reinforcements for the subjugation force.”

Cain couldn’t understand her words.

Why would Imperial Army staffing be this woman’s fault?

“Mom…… my head hurts.”

“Oh, right, my daughter! Your head hurts because you completely exhausted your mana. Let’s go get treatment. The canyon is the shortcut, but today we’ll have to go around.”

“Going see doctor teacher?”

“Of course. The doctor will give you a mana recovery tonic. After that, don’t go putting buffs on cooking whenever you want.”

“Buff…… fun though.”

“What do we do with him? Stamina: 1 point. Strength: 1 point. Mana completely empty too. If we leave him to die……”

Cain’s vision was gone, and his hearing was heavily damaged, so he couldn’t properly make out their conversation.

Even the parts he could hear made little sense.

But they didn’t leave.

As if they were seriously trying to find a way to save someone soaked in monster venom and as good as dead.

“Basilisk Worm poison…… It drains a human’s life force until they dry up and die. So the problem isn’t the poison itself—it’s the life force that’s been sucked out.”

“If no life force, become ugly?”

“…Probably?”

“Then save him. He become too ugly. Can’t even breathe. Lucy heart hurts.”

“……”

Had the child’s words moved her?

He heard rustling, then the woman brought something close to his mouth and whispered—

“Eat. If you can chew and swallow, you might live. If you survive, cross the river and find Madam Bellamotte. She’s a scammer, but when it comes to treating monster poison she’s better than most doctors.”

After speaking, she stuffed a small soft lump into Cain’s mouth.

At the same time, a tiny warm hand slapped gently against his cheek.

“Ugly oppa get better now?”

“If he’s lucky. If we meet again much later, I should make him pay heavily for the bread…… no, forget it. He won’t remember anyway. Let’s forget it too. This wasn’t even in the original story. It’ll just get confusing.”

The warmth disappeared.

The woman left carrying the child.

Cain never even got the chance to protest being called ugly.

The moment he became aware of the taste touching his tongue, every remaining sense in his body went numb.

It was softer and sweeter than anything he had ever experienced.

The fishy smell of eggs vanished without a trace.

Only a warm, comforting flavor filled his mouth.

Cain’s branch family of Bellaon wasn’t poor, but thrift had been their tradition.

Having grown up chewing tough rye bread, this texture shocked him.

No—forget rye bread.

He was certain even the Imperial Palace would struggle to find bread this light, as soft as clouds.

What happened next was even stranger.

The instant he swallowed—

His blurred vision cleared.

Strength returned to muscles that had felt severed apart.

His mana circuits purified themselves.

Even his grotesquely swollen face recovered halfway to normal.

By some miracle, Cain stood up, crossed the river, and found Madam Bellamotte.

Granted, after learning his identity she shamelessly raised the treatment fee from ten gold to one hundred.

Still—

He returned alive with all four limbs intact.

The duke kept his promise.

He handed Cain a baron title—the very title his own children had desperately wanted.

And even after ten years, Cain never forgot that taste.

Not the bizarre experience of recovering strength from eating bread.

Not the warmth of someone who hadn’t abandoned him while he was dying.

Recently, Lord Nor—one of his vassals—visited the Imperial Palace and proudly offered Cain a dessert his castle chef had newly developed.

Castella.

The moment Cain took his first bite—

He froze.

It was the exact same food he had eaten in the forest ten years ago.

The technique had become more refined.

The texture was far softer.

But the instinct behind handling ingredients—

It was unmistakably the same person.

Even though he didn’t feel the same recovery effect this time—

He was certain.

He had finally found them.

He absolutely had to meet this cook.

Because somewhere inside the Bellaon ducal estate—

that child was slowly fading away.

Two long shadows fell over Luciella’s head.

When she slowly looked up, she saw two imposing men.

“Are you a maid of the lord’s castle?”

The brown-haired one, who looked like a guard, asked.

“We’re looking for the castle’s chef. I heard they’re extraordinarily skilled.”

“……Nigel?”

“Nigel?”

The man tilted his head, apparently not expecting that name.

“That’s the name the lord gave. Masculine name, but that’s the one.”

The one standing behind him—the noble-looking man—nodded.

Lucy narrowed her eyes.

Maybe because the sunlight was too bright.

Maybe because strength was steadily leaving her body.

She couldn’t make out their faces clearly.

But those vivid blue eyes somehow felt familiar.

“Can you guide us to Chef Nigel?”

Cain asked Luciella.

“That person is my benefactor. I’ve spent a long time searching while carrying my gratitude.”

Luciella’s eyes widened.

“……That human whose brain is made of pork fat?”

Maybe because she was completely exhausted—

The words slipped right out instead of staying in her thoughts.

As she spoke, she staggered slightly.

Her arms and legs no longer obeyed her.

I should’ve eaten the potatoes before leaving. Then the buff would’ve lasted another hour.

“Watch your mouth. How dare you speak of Baron Cain’s benefactor like that.”

Lucan tried to scold her, but Cain raised a hand to stop him.

“Child.”

Cain called quietly.

From afar, she had simply looked dirty.

But up close—

Her condition was far worse.

Her face was pale.

Her thin arms and legs trembled.

She looked as though she might die at any moment.

“I don’t care if his brain is made of fat. I need to find that person.”

So he spoke more gently than usual.

“Guide us. After that, Lucan will take you to a doct—”

Thunk.

Before he could finish—

Luciella collapsed sideways.

“Hey! Child!”

Startled, Cain caught her.

Lucan hurried over and checked her pulse, then tilted his head.

“Her pulse is stable.”

“No obvious injuries…… Has she been abused over a long period?”

Cain frowned as he examined Luciella.

“What exactly happened in this lord’s castle……?”

Silence filled the air.

Then—

Crunch.

A suspiciously cheerful sound shattered it.

Cain turned.

Lucan was holding the potato skewer Luciella had dropped and chewing.

“……Lucan. Are you eating potatoes right now……? In this situation……?”

Disgust appeared on Cain’s normally composed face.

“Ugh—that is—!”

Startled by Cain’s icy tone, Lucan lowered the skewer.

“My apologies, Baron! My hand moved on its own……!”

Even he looked shocked.

He liked food, sure—

But not enough to steal food from a child who had collapsed on the roadside.

“I-I couldn’t resist the appearance and smell.”

“Have you gone insane……?”

“I’m serious! And the taste…… the taste is incredible! The texture is…… what herbs did they use?”

“You fool, if you already ate it then put it dow—”

“Ah, just try one bite before saying anything.”

Before Cain could finish—

Lucan shoved the remaining piece of potato into Cain’s mouth.

“I said I don’t—”

Cain refused with a cold expression—

But the rich aroma of butter tickling his nose and the savory scent of salt made him unconsciously part his lips.

Nom.