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Chapter 09
“Your brother gives you things like this? Your real brother?”
“Yeah. He’s the only one who gives me food. Well… now there’s you, Riese.”
Richard added shyly. But his words barely registered in Alina’s ears.
She knew very well that being siblings, being family, didn’t automatically mean a loving relationship.
She herself had been pushed to her death by her father at an early age, and endlessly tormented by her eldest brother Kineryk.
But knowing it from her own experience and actually seeing someone else suffer it—especially a child—were very different things.
Alina couldn’t just watch a young boy being abused, watching him accept it as if it were normal.
She took Richard’s hand firmly.
“Listen carefully, Richard. Next time your brother tries to give you something like this—”
“Huh?”
“Bite his hand.”
Alina’s eyes gleamed fiercely as she squeezed Richard’s thin hand.
“As hard as you can.”
* * *
Ssssshh—
“Hey, is this all the batter we have left?”
“I’ll make some more!”
Alina lowered the stove’s heat and dashed down to the pantry.
The kitchen was filled with greasy smoke as the meat fried in oil.
Tonight’s menu was lamb steak, and naturally, the side dish was—yet again—French fries.
For some reason, in the Malaharck Empire, every meat dish always came with fries.
The menu was practically fixed. The only difference was whether the meat was beef or pork.
Today’s “winner” was lamb.
A whole lamb roasted, sliced thickly, seared again on a hot pan, and served with freshly battered and fried potatoes—this was the dinner being prepared.
Just looking at it clogged the arteries.
But Alina had neither the authority nor the skill to complain about the menu. She was only one rank above dishwashing duty.
So now, she was doing exactly what Greta told her to—preparing the frying batter.
She poured flour into a large bowl and added carbonated water. Ice water or carbonated water made the batter crispier.
Often, she mixed memories from her past life and her regression into her cooking.
Thanks to that, in her previous life she had even risen to the position of head chef at a restaurant.
Of course, she got kidnapped by the 2nd Prince of Malaharck right before reaching that point.
Still, she was alive again now, so it was fine.
She didn’t have the time to dwell on regrets like I should’ve run back then or I should’ve said something different.
“Riese! The batter!”
“Yes, coming!”
Alina checked the batter’s consistency and ran upstairs.
She handed the bowl to Trudy, the sous-chef who had returned today.
“Trudy, here!”
“Ugh! I’m losing my mind. When will this end? Greta, please just let me quit already!”
Trudy, soaked in fryer oil after cooking fries all day, shouted irritably.
But Greta, expression cold, simply issued orders.
“You really have time to talk like that when we’re this busy? If you want to quit, go tell the chamberlain tomorrow when he comes. Otherwise, be quiet.”
“Can’t I at least talk?”
When Trudy grumbled, Greta cut her off.
“Then why don’t you also talk about how poor Riese had to go apologize to the knights because of you?”
“Riese?”
Alina and Trudy’s eyes met mid-fry.
Trudy frowned and muttered irritably.
“I’m sorry about that, okay? Happy?”
Wiping flour-covered hands on her apron, Trudy asked Alina:
“You went to deliver food to the knights for me, right? Were they furious?”
“They were fine.”
Thanks to that, I got to see the fragment early.
Alina swallowed those words and smiled.
“I’m fine, and the knights aren’t angry. Don’t worry, Trudy.”
“They’re not angry at you. I’m the problem.”
Trudy muttered as she checked the oil temperature.
“If it weren’t for the paycheck, I’d quit in a heartbeat…”
Trudy complained as naturally as breathing. Alina, used to this, pretended not to hear and asked:
“Is this batter enough? Should I make more?”
Looking at the mountain of potatoes, Trudy sighed deeply.
“Two more bowls.”
Alina nodded and went downstairs. She opened a new bag of flour and began mixing the batter—then winced.
“Achoo!”
Shuttling between the hot kitchen and the chilly basement with the freezer was making her body ache.
She wanted nothing more than a warm cup of tea. But there was no time. The kitchen was a battlefield.
She turned away from the bowl, coughed hard, and began working again.
She spent three hours running nonstop—her first day in the cooking division.
That night, she fell ill.
“How awful… Riese, did you catch your cold from me?”
Soaked in cold sweat and burning with fever, Alina whispered to Marika.
“No…”
Kitchen workers got single rooms. Her room and Marika’s were right next to each other.
Because of that, Marika ran in immediately when she heard Alina coughing.
“Then was it Trudy? She kept sending you down to the pantry so many times today.”
Alina reassured her worried friend.
“It’s just that the tension wore off. Today was my first day working in the cooking team.”
“Kitchen work is pretty tough.”
Marika agreed and placed a wet cloth on Alina’s forehead.
But even as the towel settled on her head, Alina’s mind was on the stone fragment hidden beneath her bed.
Richard and Till had shown up earlier, preventing her from hiding it in the garden.
Switching the real one was easy, but it’s dangerous to leave it in the dorm…
Marika wouldn’t leave, so she couldn’t sneak out.
With a flushed face, Alina lowered the cloth and said:
“Marika… can I ask for some warm ginger tea? I’m cold…”
“Of course!”
Marika sprang up like a spring.
“Wait here, I’ll bring it right away!”
“No need to hurry.”
The moment the door closed, Alina forced herself up.
She reached under her bed, pulled up the basket, and took out the stone wrapped in a handkerchief.
Under the light, it looked like a piece of worn, broken glass.
Buuuum—
But unlike glass, it hummed and glowed red the moment she touched it.
It really is real…
She had hoped it was fake.
The glow was brighter than expected—too bright to hide in the garden safely.
Now that she had been promoted, she went to the garden more often.
If she accidentally touched it there, she’d be in trouble.
And she couldn’t just throw it away. If someone found it, it would end up back with the princess or the knights.
Where do I hide it?
She put the fragment back and pressed her forehead.
Her fever made it hard to think.
Tap tap.
“Riese!”
Tap!
“Riese!”
“…What is that?”
Something tapped at the window—and then a familiar voice.
Dragging her heavy body, she opened it.
“Riese! Yummy Riese!”
“Till!”
The moment the window opened, Till fluttered in. Alina raised a finger to correct him.
“I’m not ‘yummy’ Riese, Till.”
“Riese, Riese!”
Till hopped all over the windowsill.
Alina pulled a chair to the window and stroked the bird’s head. Till turned his head and rubbed his cheek against her hand.
The affectionate gesture made Alina smile softly.
“Till, how did you find me here? Did Richard send you?”
“Missed you!”
“….”
“Riese, missed you!”
Till raised his voice—it was exactly Richard’s tone of speech.
Hearing it made Alina think of Richard, who followed her blindly.
She covered her face with both hands. As she sighed, a whisper escaped her lips.
“…Yes, Richard.”
Poor Richard.
That pitiful boy was probably longing for her right now.
He seemed to be raised cut off from everyone in the palace.
She didn’t know which department he belonged to, but his guardian was cruel.
Especially his brother—he was the worst.
The Malaharck royals were infamous for their cruelty.
But that didn’t mean the palace staff were like that.
In the kitchen where Alina worked, everyone—skill aside—had a decent personality.
Well… except Trudy.
But Richard’s department seemed just as vicious as the royals.
No wonder his brother gave him things that weren’t even food and called it “meals.”
No wonder Richard was terrified.
“What kind of human behaves like that to his own brother?”
Alina muttered.
Kineryk was awful, yes—but even he hadn’t gone that far. Or… had he?
She rubbed her temples, annoyed that her fever muddled her thoughts. But the worst part was that Richard wouldn’t leave her mind.
“Till, tell Richard not to trust his brother. Tell him that man doesn’t deserve to be called brother.”
“Yummy Riese!”
“And tell him not to just accept whatever awful thing he gives him.”
“Riese, Riese!”
“And tell him I’m sick today so I probably can’t go to the garden tomorrow.”
“Riese!”
“…Can you deliver all that?”
Till just chirped “Riese” like a refrain. Alina dropped her hands and sighed.
“Richard can read, right? Do you know, Till?”
“Riese?”
Till tilted his head, not understanding.
