“It all belongs to me!” Sue said. “Everything that I see!”
“Spoken like a true noble...”
She hadn’t been here five minutes before she acted like the place belonged to her, and that was what scared Arcus most of all.
Cazzy escaped by excusing himself to do more cleaning, while Noah went to adjust the lace curtain to regulate the room’s light. Arcus and Sue sat down together on the couch. Arcus realized it had been a while since they’d been alone together, Noah notwithstanding.
Sue’s long black hair was as glossy as ever. Her blue eyes sparkled as if set with gems, and though her skin was light, it had a healthy tinge and tension to it, overall giving the impression that it was too precious to touch. She seemed to have grown a little, and her body had a bit more shape to it. They were sitting close enough for Arcus to pick up the gentle scent coming off her—one he felt might throw his heartbeat off rhythm if he wasn’t careful.
Ignorant to Arcus’s self-consciousness, Sue kept on talking. “How’s your arm doing?”
“It’s still way off normal, but it’s better than it was.”
As soon as Arcus had his sleeve up, Sue wasted no time in starting her examination, grabbing his arm, and bending and stretching it. She frowned.
“What’s with this bruise? It’s weird...”
“Hm? Oh hey, you’re right.”
“It looks like it’s got a pattern to it.”
Sue was referring to a dark red bruise that Arcus hadn’t noticed till now. Its shape was peculiar, as if designed with purpose.
“Hm. It looks kinda like a phoenix.”
“Yeah, it does. Especially with this long part here, like its tail,” Sue agreed.
“What mark have you branded me with, you witch?!”
“It’s a curse! You gotta show this to five people and brand them with the same mark, or you’ll have bad luck forever!”
“A chain letter?! How old are you?”
“Same age as you.”
“R-Right. Of course...”
Never mind how old she was, she didn’t even inhabit the same world as chain letters.
Once Sue was done examining Arcus’s arm, she immediately cast a healing spell on it, one which used quite a lot of aether. It was an impressive spell, perhaps just short of legendary, and something Arcus would never have the aether to cast even in his wildest dreams. Not even the healers at the Guild had used this spell on him.
“It’s not fair how you’ve got so much aether,” Arcus muttered.
“Yeah.” Sue sounded sympathetic. “You don’t have enough to cast this.”
“Y’know, it’d be nice if you could bottle up the aether you don’t use, so I could use it for myself.”
“Like a physical aether store? That would be neat.”
“I guess the only way to get one is to find a way to bank aether for myself,” Arcus said. “But there are other hurdles I need to cross before I can even think of that.”
“How’s your arm feel now, anyway?”
Arcus tried moving it. “Way better.”
“Really?! That’s great!” Sue beamed, as if hers were the arm that had healed.
There was a major difference in Arcus’s arm before and after the spell. Before, even just a small movement gave way to a frail dullness; now it had a bit more vitality to it.
“I’ll do my best to keep treating you till it’s completely healed, okay?”
“Right. Thanks...” Arcus was on the brink of tears from his friend’s kindness.
“Now let’s have dessert?”
“Way to ruin the moment.”
“Hey, I worked hard! I think I deserve a reward.”
Arcus no longer felt like crying.
Noah clapped his hands together, as though an idea had struck him. “Would you perhaps like to sample the dessert Master Arcus just made?”
“N-Noah?! Are you insane?!”
Noah gave Arcus a quizzical look. “Did you not make it with Lady Susia in mind?”
“No! Well, sort of. But no!”
“You made a new dessert, Arcus?!”
“I’ve made nothing.” Arcus tried to double-down with a nervous laugh, but it was too late.
Sue narrowed her eyes at him. “It’s too late to fool me now.”
“Nngh...”
Just then, the door opened, revealing Eido in his chef’s uniform with a trolley in tow.
“Pardon the intrusion. I’ve come with tea and snacks.”
There was a serious expression on Eido’s face as he carried out his work deftly, as though he had been a chef his entire life. On top of the trolley was a tea set, and two small yellow mounds topped with caramel.
“Eido!” Arcus screamed. “What are you doing?!”
“My...job? I heard you had an important guest, so I’ve brought the dessert you made earlier.”
“You didn’t think to ask me?!”
“I thought you were planning to serve these to your friend anyway,” Eido said.
“I was, but I wasn’t...” Arcus grumbled.
The dessert the three of them had made earlier was a classic pudding. Eido placed one of them in front of Sue before filling her cup with tea.
“Thanks! I knew you’d have my back, Eido!” Sue cheered.
“But of course.” Eido smiled widely, leaving Arcus to wonder when the two had gotten so close. All of a sudden, it felt as though a spy had made their way into the home. Adding to his confusion, he couldn’t even remember the two of them speaking at his recent house party.
“What is this, then? Dessert? It sure looks weird.” Sue was frowning at her pudding. “It’s all wobbly too. Looks like steamed eggs...” She poked at the pudding a couple of times with her spoon to test its integrity.
Arcus had portioned out the ingredients according to his memory, so the flavor was sure to be a perfect match. That was the problem. He could already imagine how Sue would react once she had a taste. He had gotten away with his pork buns thanks to the difficulty of obtaining the meat, but milk and eggs were much easier to come by in the capital. Once Sue tasted the mind-blowing combination that was milk, eggs, and sugar, well...
“Here goes!” Scooping the top from her pudding, Sue brought the spoon to her mouth. “Whoa...” Her eyes widened at once, and a dreamy expression crossed her face. She started devouring the pudding at great speed, each bite stretching the smile on her face wider and wider. Once she was done, she rearranged her features into something much more dignified, and dabbed at her mouth with a napkin. “Yes, quite delectable. Do I detect milk? And eggs?”
“Yeah. You mix the beaten eggs with milk and sugar, then steam the mixture to set it. After that, you cool it.”
Sue looked surprised. “Is it really that simple a process?”
“You wouldn’t think so, right? Sugar’s usually used to make boiled candy, put in tea, or sweeten beans while boiling, isn’t it? You don’t get anything like the desserts I served at my party.”
“Indeed. Are there any other varieties of dessert you know how to make?”
“Not really. I’m not a chef or a pâtissier, and I’ve only got the odd recipe in my head. Unless it’s something simple, the only way I can learn to make anything is by trial and error, like with those pork buns.”
“I see...”
“Don’t look so disappointed. I think I’ve done pretty well, considering.”
Clearly, Sue had been expecting him to cater to her whims and present her with dessert after dessert. It was as he expected; all humans were born with a sweet tooth.
“Now, Arcus, please do enlighten me. How have you christened this dessert?” Sue asked.
Arcus stared at her. If the formal speech was a joke, she was taking it a little too far now. Sue’s eyes widened, as though she realized why he was looking at her strangely.
“I-I mean, what d’you call it?” She smiled and blinked at him incessantly, as though it would somehow help in wiping Arcus’s memory of the last few minutes. He was almost impressed by her optimism.
“Pudding,” he answered.
“Pudding...it somehow fits. I’ve never had anything like it, y’know.”
“Yeah, no one else makes it.”
“Can I have another one?”
“No. There’s only one left, and it’s mine,” Arcus said firmly.
“Aww, c’mon! Don’t be stingy!”
“I’m not! I only made these today too. I gotta have a taste, or I won’t know what to improve for next time!”
“I’m telling you now, they’re perfect. Promise!” Sue grinned at him like a mascot on a cereal box.
“I’m sure it mostly tastes fine, but I’m not used to these ingredients yet! I gotta know for sure!”
“It’s just milk, eggs, and sugar though, right?”
“It’s not that simple! Eggs depend on the variety of bird, milk from the cow, and there’s a whole range of different kinds of sugar!”
“You sure are fussy, Arcus.” Sue stared at him, looking somewhat exasperated. She turned her gaze to the pudding and then to Noah, stretching out her hands towards him as though begging for the plate. Noah passed it to her without hesitation. “Yay! Thanks!”
“You’re not welcome! Why’d you give it to her, Noah?!”
Noah hesitated. “There are certain hierarchies which must be respected.”
“Noah,” Arcus sighed. “I’m your master, not her. You’re my servant. Which means you’ve gotta listen to what I say. Or am I wrong?”
“So he’s mine too! That means he’s gotta listen to what I say!” Sue insisted.
“Just ’cause you said it doesn’t make it true! What about you, Eido? You’re not in this girl’s pocket too, are you?!”
“Sorry, Arcus,” was all Eido said.
“Seriously?! You all work for me in my house! Why are you all against me?!”
“Remember, Arcus, everything I see belongs to—”
“That wasn’t funny the first time you said it!”
But Sue was not to be put off. “Look, can I eat this already? Please?”
“I already told you, that’s my portion.”
“So you’re gonna refuse your guest, huh? I see how it is.”
“I made that much precisely so I could have some myself.”
“Let’s go halfsies, then! That’ll solve everything, right?”
“Or you could just accept it’s not that big a deal and let me have all of it!”
The two squabbled over the pudding for quite some time. Afterward, they studied magic together until Sue eventually headed home. Cazzy poked his head around the door almost as soon as she was gone.
“So, did ya end up goin’ halfsies or what?”
“I had to!” Arcus snapped back. “Or we were gonna be there forever!”
No matter how much he pushed, Sue failed to back down, and so in the end Arcus had no choice but to give in.
Apparently his servants weren’t so sympathetic.
“Gotcha,” Cazzy said. “So you’re a pushover.”
“Quite,” Noah agreed. “I think Master Arcus may have a promising career ahead of him as a doormat. At least in his domestic life.”
“If you guys don’t shut up right now, I’m gonna knock your heads off!”
“Oh boy, we better be careful!” Cazzy laughed.
“Allow me to make a correction. Master Arcus may have a promising career ahead of him as a tyrannical doormat.”
With that, Arcus’s servants scattered from the room, leaving him to stew alone.