“Well, it’s also true for most dishes. Toppo’s cooking is generally the best. I’ve eaten at the royal palace several times, but their chefs don’t come close,” Lord Kyros declared resolutely.
Needless to say, I’d never sampled the cuisine of the royal palace and couldn’t compare the two, but I knew for a fact I couldn’t cook like Toppo, no matter how much I tried, so I nodded. “I agree. The dishes served in this castle are always delicious—every one of them.”
I’d just finished my plate and put down my spoon when Toppo cleared his throat and declared, “You don’t need to bother with flattery just because the young master is here.”
“H-huh?!” I blurted out, astonished.
Toppo turned his back to me. He didn’t walk away, but his head hung low, and I could see his shoulders shaking. He shot several glances at me, while mumbling, “You always leave so much on your plate. And you never tell Toppo what’s wrong with the food. Toppo has changed the way he does things, the ingredients he uses, but that hasn’t changed a thing!”
“I-I—”
“It’s all right. Toppo’s stupid pride doesn’t matter,” he continued. “The young master told Toppo he was the best cook in the country many times, but Toppo knows not to believe that. So what if the chef of a baron’s house is better than Toppo? Toppo may be frustrated, but he won’t hold a grudge.”
“What—”
“But would you please think of the ingredients?!” Toppo interrupted me once more. “The animals and the vegetables…they’re all living beings! We take their lives to eat, yet you throw them away! Ah… How sad…”
“Excuse me, hello?! May I just say something? I haven’t been leaving leftovers because I didn’t like the food!” I finally managed to scream.
Toppo turned around with a shocked expression. The poor man had tears in his eyes. How in the world did I get misunderstood so badly?! “In fact, I’ve been thinking the same thing as you this entire time! I feel terrible about wasting so much food!”
“B-but…”
Toppo looked at me, then at Lord Kyros, and then at Mio. When Mio stared pointedly at the count, all of our gazes turned to him.
“I didn’t know what you liked, so I ordered you be served a bit of everything,” he said, looking at me. “I wanted you to pick the dishes you liked best so that you wouldn’t be served what you didn’t like again. Marie, did you not tell Mio what your preferences were?”
“Well, I…”
“Lady Marie said she thought they were all delicious,” Mio answered. “I actually hoped to discuss this with you today. Lady Marie isn’t the type of person to assert her likes and dislikes so easily, so your plan of presenting her with a ton of options and waiting to see what sticks has been a failure. It hasn’t worked with food, and it certainly won’t work with dresses either.”
“Is that true, Marie?” Lord Kyros asked with a dejected tone.
I shook my head. Mio was correct that I wasn’t good at asserting myself, but that wasn’t what had happened. “The dishes Mr. Toppo makes are all delicious. There was not a single one I disliked. In fact, I loved every single one of them!”
“Madam…” Toppo looked at me in shock. “Do you mean that?”
“Of course, I do. I just could not physically eat that much, that’s all.”
Toppo started at me in a daze for a few moments. His charming eyes were open wide and, before long, tears started pouring down from them.
“M-Mr. Toppo?!”
“Toppo is so glad… Toppo had no idea… Toppo is beyond moved! You truly like Toppo’s food, don’t you? Ah! How glad Toppo is!” He burst into tears.
Oh no! This was my first time seeing anyone other than my younger brother crying, and I didn’t know what to do. Is this my fault? Should I say something?!
At a loss, I turned to Mio. Unsurprisingly enough, she was still as expressionless as ever. “I’ll go prepare tea,” she declared before walking off to the kitchen.
I turned back to Toppo and saw that Lord Kyros was patting his head gently. He didn’t seem the slightest bit surprised by his chef’s effusive sobbing.
“Don’t worry, Marie. Toppo is always quick to cry,” he said.
I-is that so…?
Toppo’s tears continued to flow unabated, and the two of us took turns trying to calm him down. When his tears finally ran dry, he stood up and smiled brightly.
“Toppo is truly glad! Now that this is settled, allow Toppo to bring you your dessert! Your devoted Toppo has baked an apple pie for you! Five apples, lots of butter, and a little whipped cream for the topping. It’s the perfect amount of sweetness for a before-bed snack!”
Huh? I watched with astonishment as Toppo happily skipped to the kitchen.
A wry smile crept over Lord Kyros’s face. “You see, he eats so much he probably couldn’t fathom someone struggling to finish their food.”
“I-I’m actually full at the moment too. I don’t think I can handle dessert…”
“It’s all right, Marie. I’m sure he understands you have a small appetite now.”
I had a feeling I didn’t eat little enough to warrant that comment, but I couldn’t focus on that because I was confused. F-five apples? And what in the world is a before-bed snack?
I was still pondering over that when Toppo returned. He put the freshly baked apple pie on the table with a thud.