- (Charlotte’s POV) –

I just left this shitty shop. This girl… How dare she treat me like this?! I will make her regret her action!

I walk back to my house to meet my parents. Once I arrive there, I see them together in the living room. They see me and talk with a surprised voice:

“Charlotte! What happened to your face?!” (mother)

“Tell me who dared to hurt you!” (father)

As expected of my parents, they are very protective!

“I went to ‘Sanctuary’ but the shop owner slapped me for no reason! She even put me and the family on the blacklist!” (Charlotte)

Their expression right now is a mix of shock and anger.

“What?! What will I do without soap?” (mother)

“Calm down dear, we can send a servant. More importantly, we have to take revenge for Charlotte!” (father)

Oh, I didn’t think about sending a servant! As expected of my father, I only need to lie with a smile, and he will do anything for me! It’s too easy! All the men are so stupid!

I could also ask Thomas for help, but I don’t want to show him my injured face!

************

- (Anna’s POV) –

A few hours passed after the earlier drama, and the cakes are finally baked. I also used magic to cool them because it’s tastier when it’s cold. I could also have used magic to bake them, but I never used magic to cook so I was a bit afraid to do a mistake.

I made 3 cakes: a strawberry one, a lemon one, and a blueberry one. I couldn’t find any chocolate on the market though, maybe I will find it in the future? By the way, I also did my own cream! It’s a lot of work, so I definitely need to experiment cooking with magic. I wonder who will make the cakes if I want to open a shop… Well, I will think about it later.

I put the cake in my inventory and leave the shop. According to the sun’s position, it’s the middle of the afternoon, so it’s a perfect time to eat a cake!

Let’s go to Alice’s house first because it would be risky to bring an untested product to the Royal Family. Once I arrive in front of the house, the knights let me pass without problem; all of them know my face and I’m even friend with some of them.

Once I’m in the entry hall, I can hear someone running down the stairs.

“Anna-oneesama!” (Alice)

Oh, it’s Alice! Somehow, she is always the first one informed when I come back… Is she looking through the window to wait for my arrival everytimes? Or maybe she asked a maid to do it?

“Hey, Alice! Come with me!” (Anna)

I drag her in the living room, and we sit on a sofa. A few maids followed us, so I ask one of them:

“Please tell Eleonora and Roland that I brought something for them!” (Anna)

“As you wish!” (maid)

The maid leaves the room while I talk with Alice. A few minutes later, Eleonora and Roland enter the room while shouting with an excited tone:

“Anna-chan! Is it true that you brought something for us?” (Eleonora)

“What is it?” (Roland)

“Yes.” (Anna)

I take out the 3 cakes and a knife from my inventory and put them on the table. They look at it with mixed feelings.

“What is this?” (Roland)

“Is it food?” (Eleonora)

“Oh! It’s pretty!” (Alice)

Mhh… Their reaction was as expected.

“It’s a cake. And yes, you can eat them.” (Anna)

“Cake? I have never heard of it.” (Roland)

“I know. It’s because it’s a recipe that exist only in my hometown.” (Anna)

It’s not really a lie.

“Your hometown again? I really wonder where it is and what it looks like… But I don’t want to force you to explain.” (Roland)

Uhh… I always try to give some vague answer when they ask about it because I don’t want them to suspect me… Suddenly, Eleonora interrupts us:

“More importantly, let’s see how it taste!” (Eleonora)

“Alright, which one do you want to try? The strawberry one, the lemon one, or the blueberry one? Or all of them?” (Anna)

“””All of them!””” (Roland & Eleonora & Alice)

I slice 3 small part of each cake and give it to them.

“How do you even eat it?” (Eleonora)

“For this type of cake, it’s fine to take it with your hand and bring it to your mouth. Like this.” (Anna)

Each of them takes a bite on the cake and their face lit up.

“Wow, the taste is so good!” (Eleonora)

“It’s very sweet, but I like it!” (Roland)

“It’s yummy!” (Alice)

All of them are eating their piece of cake like a wild beast. Hey! You are supposed to be nobles! Eat slowly! Well, whatever. It proves that they like it at least.

It doesn’t take more than 2 minutes for them to eat the 3 pieces.

“It was so good! Can I have more?” (Eleonora)

“No! If you eat more than that, you will become fat!” (Anna)

I think 3 pieces is already a lot. Besides, I need to keep enough piece for the princess and the others…

“Wah! I don’t want that! But I still want to eat more!” (Eleonora)

Why is she suddenly becoming childish?!

“I’m sorry, but it’s really not a good idea, aren’t you full already?” (Anna)

She reluctantly accepts to stop here. It looks like she might become fat if I open a shop selling this cake… Speaking of shop, I should ask them:

“More importantly, do you think that it will be popular if I sell it?” (Anna)

“Of course! I don’t know how you did it, but it’s a masterpiece!” (Eleonora)

Is it? I don’t think that it’s better than a cake made by a professional on Earth though…

“I see… I think I will open a shop after the tournament.” (Anna)

Suddenly, Roland reacts when he hears the word ‘tournament’.

“Oh! By the way, how were the qualifications?” (Roland)

“Ah! I passed the qualifications and the first match will be tomorrow.” (Anna)

“Good! We will be there to watch you!” (Roland)

After that, I leave the house and walk toward the castle.

Once I arrive in front of the castle, one of the knights stops me. I show him a parchment with the King’s seal on it. He gave it to me because it’s not really safe to tell his knight to let a girl with red hair pass… Red hairs are rare, but there are style a few of them in the city.

I walk in the castle’s corridor toward Stella’s room. I basically have free access to walk in the castle… Is it fine to trust me that much?

Suddenly, I can feel someone running behind me. Again?! I turn around, and I see an old man this time. Oh, it’s the old man from the Royal Library!

“Lady Anna!” (Carlos)

“Hello! Nice to meet you again!” (Anna)

I don’t really know who he is and what’s his position so it’s better to stay polite.

“Come with me!” (Carlos)

He takes my hand and drag me with him. Uhh! What’s wrong with the people in this castle? Why do they need to run while dragging me? I could easily escape but I’m curious to see what he wants.

We arrive in the Royal Library, but there are several old men close to the desk. Oh shit! I actually forgot that I translated something without permission yesterday! Maybe he wants to lecture me? Or thank me? Well, let’s see…

He brings me to his desk and make me sit down. Then he opens his mouth while giving me a piece of parchment:

“Can you understand what’s written here?” (Carlos)

I look at the parchment and I can see something written in the same language that I saw yesterday. I can understand it perfectly, but is it fine to tell them? It’s probably a language from another kingdom, and they might suspect me to be a spy if I can speak it perfectly… Or maybe not because this old man could also translate it… Well, fuck it, let’s be honest! I’m tired to lie everytimes!~

“Yes, I can.” (Anna)

The group of old men have a shocked expression and they start to whisper to each other. What?

“Is there a problem?” (Anna)

“Ah, no. Sorry! Could you translate it?” (Carlos)

“Of course! Should I read it aloud or write the translation?” (Anna)

“You are able to read it aloud?? Then do it please!” (Carlos)

All the old men look at me with expectation. I read the text aloud while translating at the same time, it’s quite easy to do it because I can understand the language perfectly.

Once I’m done reading, they all look at me with a shocked expression and start to whisper to each other again. This time, I focus my attention on their voice and listen to their conversation.

“How is it possible?” (old man 1)

“I don’t know, but it’s perfect! I already translated this text before, and I found the same content!” (old man 2)

“Yeah, but the most amazing thing is that she can translate it while reading!!” (old man 3)

Ah I see, I remember that I had some difficulties to translate something on the spot when I was a student on Earth. Sometimes, it’s difficult to find the good word so I had to think. However, I find it easy to do it now thanks to the ‘translation cheat’. Thanks God! If only I had something like this on Earth… I wouldn’t have to study so hard to learn 2 foreign languages!

Suddenly, the old man from yesterday takes my hand and speaks with an excited tone:

“Lady Anna! Please work with us!” (Carlos)

WHAT?! Why me? I agree that I’m good at translating this language, but it should be easy to find someone who can do it as good as me, right? RIGHT? After all, I know some professional translator on Earth who are way faster than me because they have a lot of experience.

“Eh? Why me?” (Anna)

“What do you mean ‘why you’?! You are so talented!” (Carlos)

Is that so?

“Can you explain everything first?” (Anna)

“Explain what? It’s very rare to find someone who is able to translate the ancient language, so it’s obvious that we want your help for our projects!” (Carlos)

“Ancient language?!” (Anna)

“What?! Don’t tell me you can translate it without knowing what language it is?!” (Carlos)

SHIT! I said it aloud!! I’m so stupid!

“Uhh… I mean… I…” (Anna)

“It’s suspicious! Where did you even learn the ancient language?” (Carlos)

Crap… They got me… Now they are even suspicious. What can I do now? Should I tell them that I have a secret master who taught me? No, they will want to find his identity… AHHH! I’m so bad to find a lie on the spot! Let’s just say the truth without going into the details.

“Actually, I have a spell that make me able to understand the ancient language!” (Anna)

“A translation spell?! I never heard of something like this! Where did you learn that?” (Carlos)

“I’m sorry but it’s a secret!” (Anna)

He sighs then opens his mouth again:

“Ahh… A secret again… Those mages… It’s because of all of you, mages, that we don’t make a lot of technological progress! Because you always want to keep your discoveries for yourselves!” (Carlos)

I’m really sorry for him… But even I don’t know how to learn a spell like that. I wouldn’t mind sharing it otherwise. By the way, it’s common sense for the elites of this world to have a secret. Well, it was the same on Earth; everyone say that you can find EVERYTHING on the internet but it’s WRONG! When they discover something very high level, most company keep it for themselves because they want to stay ahead of the competition.

“I’m sorry…” (Anna)

“Ah, it’s fine. You are not the first one.” (Carlos)

I really fucked up though. I should have thought of the consequences when I started to translate yesterday!

“By the way, can you keep the fact that I can translate the ancient language a secret? In exchange, I promise to help you to translate sometimes.” (Anna)

I think it’s a good idea because I would be able to learn more about the ancient times. After my words, the old men’s faces lit up.

“Ohhh!! With pleasure! Please help us when you are free! Your secret is safe with us!” (Carlos)

“Alright! It’s a pleasure to work with you!” (Anna)

“Oh! I forgot to present myself! My name is Carlos, I used to be a commoner, but I became a baron thanks to my achievement with the ancient language! That’s just how important it is for the country to get more information about the ancient times. However, the paragraph that you read aloud earlier would take half a day to translate for me! And I’m one of the best in the country at it! I can’t imagine what rank you can become with your capabilities!” (Carlos)

WHAT?! You can become a noble by translating this language?! And he is the best in the country when he can translate a single paragraph in half a day?! Oops, I just realized that I fucked up even more than I thought…

“I see... Thank you for the information, Carlos!” (Anna)

“No problem, miss!” (Carlos)

“Alright, I’m sorry, but I have to see the princess…” (Anna)

“Ohh!! We are sorry for keeping you for this long!” (Carlos)

After that, I leave the Royal Library and walk again in the corridor. I finally arrive in front of Stella’s room, so I knock on the door. After a few seconds, I can see Stella’s maid opening the door.

“Hello! May I enter?” (Anna)

“Ah yes! The princess talked about you all the times…” (maid)

I enter the room and see Stella sitting on a chair, she is apparently drawing something. She turns her head and her face lit up when she sees me.

“Anna-oneesama!” (Stella)

“Hello Stella! How are you?” (Anna)

“I missed you!” (Stella)

What?! We saw each other yesterday evening! Are we a couple or something?

“I brought something to eat! Do you want it?” (Anna)

“Un!” (Stella)

I take out the 3 cakes that are already half eaten. Stella and her maid look at it while tilting their head.

“It’s called ‘cake’, I think you will like it!” (Anna)

I slice 3 small piece of each cake and give it to her. However, the maid interrupts me.

“Wait a second! Sorry for my rudeness, but I need to eat first to check if there is no poison!” (maid)

Ah, it’s true. I can’t just come here and give any food to the princess…

“It’s fine, I already planned to give a piece to you anyway.” (Anna)

She looks at me with shining eyes.

“F-For me too?” (maid)

“Of course! Here, for you!” (Anna)

I give her a small piece from each cake. She takes it and starts to eat it. Stella looks at her while drooling.

“Wow! It’s delicious! I have never eaten something like this!” (maid)

She keeps eating while smiling, but Stella interrupts her.

“So, is it fine to eat it?” (Stella)

“Ah, yes it’s fine. Sorry, I forgot because it’s too delicious!” (maid)

… No comment. Stella takes a piece of cake and starts to eat it while drooling.

“Mhh! So yummy!” (Stella)

About 5 minutes later, they finish to eat.

“It’s so good! Where did you buy it?” (Stella)

“I didn’t buy it, I made it myself. You won’t find it anywhere on the market.” (Anna)

“Oh, amazing! Can I have more?” (Stella)

“No, because you will become fat if you eat too much!” (Anna)

“Pretty please!” (Stella)

She looks at me with dog eyes. AHH! I can’t resist! Too much cuteness! But I won’t yield because it’s to protect her cuteness! Instead, I bring some of my mana to her body.

“Ohh! It’s warm again!” (Stella)

Then, she gets closer to me and sit on my lap again… Of course, I don’t refuse!

I wonder if I should bring some cake to the rest of the royal family… I can’t really tell them to come because it would be rude, and they might be busy. I turn to the maid and open my mouth:

“Please, bring a piece to the King, the Queen, and the First Princess.” (Anna)

“Good idea!” (maid)

She takes 3 plates with 3 small pieces of cake on it and leave the room. I’m now alone with Stella on my lap, so I keep circulating my mana inside her body until she is bored. The maid comes back half an hour later, so I ask:

“How was it? Did they accept it?” (Anna)

“Yes. When I said that it’s from you, they immediately became excited and accepted.” (maid)

Wow! Well, I hope that everything goes well and that they don’t choke because they eat too fast… I don’t want to be arrested for harming the royal family!

“Alright! I guess it’s time for me to leave!” (Anna)

However, someone is not happy about it.

“Already?!” (Stella)

“Ehh, I have been here for nearly an hour! I will visit sometimes, I promise!” (Anna)

“…” (Stella)

“You can also come watch me fight in the tournament tomorrow!” (Anna)

“Ohh! I want to see you fighting!” (Stella)

“Alright! I will do my best for you!” (Anna)

Well, it will depend if the opponent is worth it though. But if I really do my best, she won’t even be able to see my movement with her naked eyes…

After that, I stand up and leave the castle. I go to the cathedral to give a piece of cake to Lylith and her father. They accept the cake happily and have the same reaction than the others. I also give a piece of cake to several priests because they are drooling too much. Everyone want more, but the cakes are entirely eaten…

It looks like everyone is becoming addicted… I think that I shouldn’t underestimate the power of a cake! After all, it’s a piece of cake to make someone addicted with a piece of cake!~