“That’s a mythical beast, isn’t it?!” he shouted upon laying eyes on the weasel fairy. The man’s expression was utterly terrifying.
He turned out to be Marius Lichtenberger, director of the Royal Mythical Beast Preservation Bureau—an institution with the purpose of protecting and researching mythical beasts.
He later found out the knights had brought him to this man because they suspected that he was in fact a mythical beast.
However, if Marquess Lichtenberger refused to take him, the weasel fairy would be sent to the Monster Research Bureau. Hearing that filled him with so much terror that he screamed that he wasn’t a monster, but a fairy.
“Please don’t kill me! I’m just hungry!” he pleaded. That was when Marquess Lichtenberger made a proposal.
He would form a contract with the fairy and let him roam freely as long as he didn’t misbehave. When the creature learned that this offer included three meals a day, he accepted instantly.
Once it was finalized, the weasel fairy was granted the name “Album.” It meant “white” in an ancient language.
And ever since, Album resided at Marquess Lichtenberger’s house.
Album thought he was doomed to spend his days inside that cage that reeked of iron, instead he found himself able to go where he pleased as long as it was within the manor. The marquess even cast a spell on Album to prevent him from leaving.
His three meals were prepared by the house servants. When they served him nuts and fruits, Album asked for human food instead. With Marquess Lichtenberger’s permission, Album was able to start receiving bread and sweets. It appeared the marquess was actually a quite understanding man despite his terrifying face.
For breakfast, Album ate toast with lots of butter, rich mountain chestnut potage, and crispy bacon.
Lunch consisted of sandwiches with thick, juicy cuts of meat with fried potatoes on the side. At night, Album filled his stomach with dinners of broiled fish in sophisticated sauces, flavored ice to cleanse his palate, and three-horned cow beef simmered in wine.
The food at the Lichtenberger manor was more luxurious than anything he’d ever experienced.
However, the desire for pancakes was still an unbeatable force in Album’s life.
One day, he asked Marquess Lichtenberger’s chef to make pancakes. The kind chef obliged the request, even though it didn’t come from his employer.
A sweet aroma came from the pancakes. Album’s mouth was watering. He spread butter across the warm cakes and drizzled honey over the top. His greatest desire was finally right before his eyes.
When the chef cut a piece for him, Album stuffed it right into his mouth.
The first bite was soft and fluffy, delicate-tasting, and as sweet as a dream. It was a bundle of happiness, causing him to reminisce about the warmth he had felt surrounded by family as a child.
Album went back for bite after bite, coating his mouth and paws with honey. But he hardly cared—the pancakes were just that delicious. He started to wonder if those knights were bullying him when they refused to share their pancakes with him.
After finishing his plate, the fairy started to wonder about something. As delicious as those pancakes were, was it possible that the ones made by the Fore Elf girl were perhaps even better?
There was one problem—Album had no idea where she was now.
He did, however, remember one piece of information. He was pretty sure Marquess Lichtenberger’s daughter, Liselotte, served in the same unit as the Fore Elf girl who had made the pancakes—or “Pancake Girl” for short.
When Liselotte returned home from work, Album bolted right to her so he could gather any possible information about Pancake Girl.
He was confident she would tell him everything he needed to know. Album was very popular with young girls. Wherever he went, they always squealed about how adorable he was.
Liselotte was surely no different. She would be so delighted by his presence that she would easily give up the information she had on Pancake Girl.
But Album had been naive.
Liselotte just coldly stared at Album the moment he approached.
In the end, Album fled the scene in tears. That was the day he vowed never to approach Liselotte again.
After that, the much kinder employees of the Lichtenberger family made pancakes for Album on a regular basis. He ate them happily, but the question of Pancake Girl’s version still lingered in his mind.
“I want pancakes… I want pancakes… No, I want Pancake Girl’s pancakes…!” He even babbled those words in his sleep on some nights.
But things finally reached a turning point. One day, Pancake Girl herself came to visit Album. She wanted his help in searching for food. For holding up his end of the bargain, Album asked for pancakes in exchange. Pancake Girl agreed to the deal without hesitation.
That was how Album found himself going outside for the first time in a long time. He was even cruelly affixed with a collar to prevent him from fleeing. Of course, he had no intention of doing anything of the sort. He took his job of finding food seriously.
Once they came across something edible, Pancake Girl kept her promise and made pancakes for Album.
Unlike the thick, fluffy pancakes that the Lichtenberger family chef made, Pancake Girl’s pancakes were thin and flat. She served them in a stack of three. After she’d drizzled them with the tree sap she’d boiled into maple syrup, Pancake Girl’s special pancakes were complete.
Album inhaled all of the sweet scent. It smelled like the forest in spring. The fairy’s heart ached upon remembering that he would likely never be able to return to that forest.
If an opportunity did happen to arise someday, the first thing on his agenda would be to apologize to the other forest fairies. With those thoughts swirling in his head, Album finally tasted these long-awaited pancakes.
“Mm, mmmmmmmmm!”
The edges were crispy, the surface was grilled to perfection, and the batter inside was incredibly condensed. It was even more filling than the thicker, fluffy pancake. Album went back for bite after bite.
“Sooooo yummy!”
No pancake in the world could possibly be more delicious.
Ever since that day, Album started to crave Pancake Girl’s pancakes above all else. He was prepared to do whatever it took to make that happen, but Pancake Girl rarely ever visited the Lichtenberger house. He didn’t dare ask Liselotte, the one connection the two shared. He knew she would just glare at him, and that would be the end of it.
That was when, one evening, Album witnessed a servant receiving their month’s wages. It seemed that people were compensated for their work here.
That made Album wonder something. If he was to assist Pancake Girl in some task, would she cook pancakes for him in return?
He acted fast after that. Album went to Marquess Lichtenberger and asked if there was any kind of assistance he could provide Pancake Girl.
As soon as Album brandished one of the feathers he’d picked up from when Pancake Girl’s griffin came to the house, Marquess Lichtenberger accepted the trade without a second thought.
That was how Album became Pancake Girl’s official helper.
Working at her side allowed him to learn many new things.
The first thing he learned was that food tasted better when you cooked it with someone else.
“It’s so good, isn’t it?” you would say to them. “It sure is,” they would reply. This process made the food taste even more delicious.
He started by carrying dishes for Pancake Girl. This resulted in many mistakes—either dropping them or bringing her the wrong amount.
Each time he was met with lectures from Pancake Girl. But no matter how many times he messed up, she never abandoned him—giving the fairy gentle instructions on how to improve instead.