Chapter 11
Queen’s Struggle (2)
“I’m done!”
Exactly three hours after I started cooking, I stared at the finished dish with a bright smile.
Thanks to all the time and effort, about twenty Kufros—each about the size of a clenched fist—were beautifully arranged on a large platter.
My master had once taught me, “Presentation is part of cooking. Never cut corners until the very end.”
Because I had been taught so strictly, I believed I had achieved a decent result. Still, I wondered how real professional chefs would evaluate it as I nervously looked toward the head chef.
When I did, I met the gazes of the tense-looking cooks—and suddenly realized something.
Despite asking them to supervise my cooking, not a single correction had been made.
Oh no.
My cooking could not possibly have been perfect. So perhaps there had been many opportunities to correct me, but they had hesitated to interrupt a queen cooking so seriously.
Only now did I understand that.
Or worse… judging by their stiff expressions, maybe I had made serious mistakes.
Feeling uneasy, I placed one Kufros onto a small tasting plate and offered it to the head chef.
“If you don’t mind, could you try it and give me your honest opinion?”
“O-Of course!!”
The head chef took the dish directly in his hands, expertly split it in half, and ate one portion.
He chewed slowly, swallowed, and then looked up at me.
And in that moment—
Tears began streaming from both of his eyes.
“Eh!?”
Was it that bad!?
I widened my eyes in shock. The head chef, still crying, spoke through sobs.
“Your Majesty… it is perfect!! I have not eaten Kufros this wonderful in six years! I am the royal head chef, yet I cannot produce anything at this level! It is a magnificent dish!!”
“Um…”
That was clearly too much praise.
As I tried to stop him from overdoing it, the head chef quickly continued, his eyes still red.
“May I ask something improper? Six years ago, I succeeded the previous head chef. He was an extraordinary cook beyond my abilities. After leaving the royal palace, I heard he moved to the Kingdom of Diablo. His name is Chilo Ronki… do you happen to know him?”
The way he asked made it clear.
He already knew.
So I gave up and confessed honestly.
“…Chilo is my cooking teacher.”
Yes.
After his son and daughter-in-law passed away, Chilo had moved to the Kingdom of Diablo to raise his granddaughter. And my mother had invited him to serve as my cooking instructor in the royal palace—so that I could learn directly from someone who had worked in the royal kitchen of my future husband’s country.
…Ugh. I really didn’t want to say that.
Using a former royal chef from Feliks’s palace as my teacher made me sound like some terrifying stalker. If he ever heard this, he would definitely be put off.
And it was clearly proof of how much I loved Feliks… which made me even more embarrassed.
But the head chef didn’t seem to notice my embarrassment at all. Instead, he clasped his hands tightly.
“Ohhh, Your Majesty! I suspected as much when I watched your cooking process!! His Majesty King Feliks used to love the previous chef’s cooking, and after he left, he would often say the taste had changed with dissatisfaction. I myself could never recreate it… and yet, after six years, that flavor has returned!!”
I silently thanked Chilo, who had taught me so carefully.
“If that’s the case, then Chilo must have been an excellent teacher. Since I was a beginner, I simply followed his instructions without overthinking them.”
“With respect, Your Majesty, the previous chef always said: ‘Cook while thinking of the eater.’ The green vegetables inside the Kufros are something His Majesty dislikes. That is why you hollowed them out instead of leaving them whole.”
“Oh my.”
He noticed even that.
“But you didn’t discard them. Instead, you finely chopped the hollowed parts and mixed them back in, preserving the nutritional balance. This… this is exactly the previous chef’s method. A method I cannot replicate.”
“….”
As I hesitated for a response, the head chef removed his hat and bowed deeply.
“I am humbled, Your Majesty!! Thank you for your wonderful instruction!!”
“Eh!?”
I was the one who should have been receiving instruction.
While I blinked in confusion, Milena spoke behind me, her voice trembling with emotion.
“Lady Rupia, to think you can surpass the royal head chef in cooking… it is truly an incredible achievement! Ahh, as expected of you!!”
…No, I don’t think that’s right.
Now, as for what happened after that—this is something I heard from Milena.
It seems Lord Feliks rarely eats proper dinners. Because his schedule is packed, he usually just picks at food while working on documents.
That night, the dish delivered to him as a late-night meal was the Kufros I had made.
Without even looking away from his paperwork, he took a bite—and froze.
“…This is delicious. I ate this Kufros when I was a child. Since then, I’ve always wanted to taste it again.”
At that moment, a servant quickly added, “This was prepared by Her Majesty the Queen.”
Feliks looked at the Kufros in surprise and murmured, “…I see.”
Then he ate five of them.
Seeing his unusually strong appetite, everyone around him smiled with happiness.
The next morning, at breakfast, Lord Feliks thanked me.
“Rupia, thank you for the Kufros yesterday. It was very delicious.”
“Eh—ah, yes.”
I had already heard through Milena that my dish had been served to him, but I hadn’t expected him to mention my name directly, so I became flustered.
But soon I grew happy and replied excitedly.
“I-I’m glad you ate it!”
Seeing me like that, Feliks smiled warmly, and my face turned red.
…So happy. One of my dreams came true!
He ate the food I made.
And not only that—he even said it was delicious.
Ahhh, I’m so happy.
As I clenched my hands in excitement, Feliks gave me a slightly pleading look.
“You didn’t overwork yourself cooking, did you? If it’s alright… when you have time, could you make it again someday?”
“I’ll make it every day!”
I blurted it out before I could stop myself.
Feliks blinked, then burst into laughter.
His cheerful laughter echoed through the breakfast hall many times that morning, and I ended up having a breakfast that was both embarrassing and incredibly joyful.
