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Chapter 23
Marika shrugged her shoulders as she took the next bite. The flavor was so moving it made her body shiver.
The seasoning of the tomato sauce was perfect—not too salty, not too bland, with a deep savoriness. Even though she was already full, her hand kept reaching for more.
“To think eggplant could taste this good. I’m seriously starting to think you’re a genius, Lise.”
At Marika’s praise, Alina smiled shyly.
“Thank you.”
“All I did was prep a little garlic, and I get to eat something this delicious?”
Alina, who had been looking at Marika, propped her chin on her hand and put on a worried expression.
“I hope the judges think so too tomorrow.”
“They will. Are you going to the judging site tomorrow?”
“No. They said it’s a blind test. Even if I go, I won’t meet the judges. I’ll just wait in the waiting room and hear the results.”
“Still, you must be nervous.”
“I guess so.”
Alina let out a long sigh.
She couldn’t have been more relieved when she heard that the judging would be conducted in a blind format that concealed the applicants’ identities.
If one of the judges, Prince Lysian, were to see Alina’s face, he would fail her before even tasting the food.
However, to adhere strictly to the idea of judging only skill, Greta had informed them that only the dishes themselves would enter the judging room.
Alina repeated aloud the words she had said to herself countless times while deciding on the menu.
“I hope it goes well.”
“Seeing you like this, you must have a wish you want to make to His Majesty the Emperor. What is it?”
Marika asked as she took a sip of water at Alina’s earnest words.
But instead of answering, Alina simply smiled.
The Day of the Judging
As all the kitchen staff had guessed, only Trudy and Alina participated in the judging.
It had effectively become a duel between the two.
After submitting her dish, Alina sat in the waiting room, awaiting the results.
As she anxiously clasped her hands together, she heard Trudy’s curt voice.
“Why are you shaking like that? You’re not seriously expecting it to be you, are you?”
Alina replied calmly to Trudy’s question.
“I think it would be nice if it were.”
“You dream big.”
Trudy sneered and crossed her arms.
Just as Marika had told her, Trudy had prepared for judging the potato dish Alina had once made.
And shamelessly, she even added an explanation claiming it was a dish she herself had developed.
When Trudy added at the end of her description that the Duke of Kestol liked potatoes, Alina felt a pang of regret.
Should I have prepared a potato dish too?
She had thought she had a chance, but now it was hard to predict the outcome.
As she waited for the door to the waiting room to open, Alina’s mind was in turmoil. It also unsettled her that the dish Trudy was being judged on was based on her own recipe.
She had told Marika she was fine, but now that it was happening, she wasn’t fine at all.
Alina let out a small sigh and spoke.
“Why do you dislike me, Trudy?”
At the pointed question, Trudy flinched.
“It’s not just you I dislike, Lise. I dislike everyone.”
“Everyone?”
“Yeah. Everyone. I hate those knights who look sick of me every time they see me, I hate Greta who pretends to be fair while favoring you behind the scenes, and I hate you too—just an assistant maid who dares to step into a place like this. I hate it all.”
At Trudy’s merciless words, Alina sighed.
“…I like your honesty.”
“I find you the strange one. What is it that you like so much about everything?”
“It’s not like I like everything. Just now, I disliked you a little, Trudy.”
“Honest. I like that.”
Trudy snorted as she replied. Yet surprisingly, hearing that didn’t make her seem all that hateful.
If Trudy didn’t hate her specifically, it felt like something she didn’t need to worry about too much.
Most people like meat—but not everyone does.
Some people, like the Duke of Kestol, don’t eat meat at all, and others dislike it.
If tastes can differ so much even with food, how much more so with people?
It’s impossible to be loved and cherished by everyone.
And if there are one or two people who dislike you, is it really worth pouring your energy into that, when life is already too full just keeping track of those who do like you?
Even now, Alina was constantly troubled by thoughts of Richard.
The reason she couldn’t readily answer Marika’s question the night before was because she wondered whether it was all right to make the wish she had prepared.
Please lift the warrant for Princess Genotat.
It was something she had wished for a long time. Nothing else had bound her as tightly as this problem.
If she made this wish, every problem would be solved. She wouldn’t have to live in fear of being captured and executed at any moment.
And yet.
Even though it was such a simple thing.
Why did she hesitate, wondering whether it was really all right to do so?
And why did she find herself wanting to wish for something so trivial instead—
Please send the Second Prince to the academy.
Have I really gone crazy?
Alina clutched her head and bowed it deeply. Watching her, Trudy snorted.
“What’s wrong with her now? It’s useless to act pitiful at this point. If you want sympathy votes, you should beg the judges.”
Alina pressed her lips together. With her mind overflowing with thoughts, Trudy’s sarcasm barely registered.
Let’s just see the results first. Don’t get ahead of myself.
Alina let out a long breath. After taking several deep breaths like that, the door to the waiting room opened.
“The results are in.”
Greta cleared her throat and looked back and forth between Alina and Trudy. She composed herself and spoke.
“It was a unanimous decision. As I said, the judging considered nothing but skill.”
“We know that already, so can’t you just tell us the result first?”
Trudy cut Greta off sharply.
Placing one hand on her hip, Greta replied,
“Skill includes many things. Trudy, did you really think I wouldn’t know what you did?”
At Greta’s pointed words, Trudy flinched and raised her voice, feeling guilty.
“What exactly did I do?”
“I’ve already tasted Lise’s potato dish before. Yours was remarkably similar.”
When Alina had made toast for Nina, Greta had tasted Lise’s potato dish.
It was just one bite, but it was a flavor she couldn’t forget—one that wasn’t easy to imitate.
Shaking her head, Greta continued,
“You didn’t even manage to follow Lise’s recipe properly. I didn’t even need to reveal the truth to the other judges. After one bite, they all put down their forks.”
After rebuking Trudy, Greta turned her gaze to Alina. With a gentle smile, she spoke.
“Lise Kruger.”
“Yes.”
“Congratulations.”
Greta stepped closer and patted Alina on the shoulder.
“You called it eggplant parmesan, right? Even knowing it was eggplant, I couldn’t tell while eating it. That’s how good it was. You cooked the eggplant just right so it didn’t turn mushy, and the tomato sauce was well seasoned—not bland at all.”
“Thank you…”
Alina answered in a trembling voice, bringing a hand to her chest. Her heart began to race.
It worked.
She was happy.
So happy she didn’t even know how to express it.
Now I can live as Alina Jacinda without any worries.
Her eyes grew hot.
She no longer had to live in hiding. All she had to do was meet the Emperor and speak.
Greta looked at Alina with satisfaction.
“As promised, you’ll have an audience with His Majesty the Emperor. Before that, go change your clothes. You came straight from cooking, didn’t you? Put on something cleaner.”
“Yes—yes, I will.”
Alina replied, blinking rapidly. If she didn’t, her tears might fall.
Trudy stormed out of the room, but Alina didn’t have the presence of mind to care.
“Thank you. Thank you so much!”
Alina cried out, pouring out her joy.
Her fourth life. At last, she could shake off the tragic deaths that had relentlessly followed her.
Her voice, thanking Greta, was thick with tears.
Back at her quarters, Alina sat on the edge of the bed with her fingers interlaced.
She was so excited that her fingertips felt cold. She couldn’t even remember how she’d made it back to her room.
Marika’s excited cheering rang in her ears.
“That’s great! Now all that’s left is to make your wish, and it’s all over!”
Remembering those words, Alina nodded blankly.
That’s right. It’s all over now.
If she just made the wish she’d prepared, she wouldn’t have to live in fear anymore.
She would no longer need to worry—or have reason to worry—about being seized by the knights at any moment. Perhaps this tiresome cycle of regression would even end here.
So don’t waver.
Alina steeled her resolve as she opened the wardrobe. It felt like she had to keep telling herself this.
Because there was a boy who had quietly taken root in her heart.
Richard…
As she changed her clothes, Alina thought of Richard.
In truth, she didn’t even have to try—his image came easily to mind.
It wasn’t because they met every day, but because Richard had become someone special to her.
Alina often found herself overlapping her past self with Richard.
They were different, yet also very similar.
Both had lived abandoned and alone in a desolate palace, receiving not love, but not even interest from others.
Every morning they woke up worrying first about how to fill their empty stomachs.
They lived in hiding, fearing whether someone would abuse them.
Both Alina and Richard had lived that way.
That was why she had promised to be on his side.
But it wasn’t just because they were similar that she cared about him. Richard was both like her—and different from her.
“The reason I want to go to the academy is because of you, Alina.”
If Alina had been barely managing to look after herself, Richard had tried to protect her.
That small child, with his tiny body.
After finishing changing and standing before the mirror, Alina touched her forehead. She recalled the illness she had suffered the night before, at the hunting grounds.
