***Arc 7 One Who Bare Their Fang on Reason, Chapter 165 Cooking***

“Kreschenta-sama, could you pass me some salt?”

“…Which salt is it?”

"Ah, my apologize. The one on the right please."

There were more than 30 visitors, and it goes without saying that this was the largest number of guests that the Christand has welcomed since Bogan and his ancestors.

As expected, with this many people, the kitchen was running at full capacity.

Innumerable cooking utensils that utilize magical crystals――what Bery created was a crystal kitchen that could almost be called a workshop, adding Krische and Bery and on top of that, Kreschenta, it was busier than ever.

Kreisharana hates luxury and seems to usually live like a rural villager or something.

She thought of holding a banquet in the glorious halls of the royal castle, but that wasn't to their liking.

And there was also the problem of the noble.

As was shown in the audience chamber, the nobles were concerned about dignity and appearance.

It can be imagined that having them eat in the same place would only have negative effects, which is why Kreschenta personally invited them.

However, even though the circumstances was what it was, the treatment was exceptionally high.

Overwhelming national power.

It may be a mystery to many why the Queen welcomes these people, who can now be described as just a tribe of barbarians, and spared no effort for them

Of course, Kreschenta had no childish desire to walk hand in hand with them, she is a calculating being to the end.

Her goal was the magic crystal they possessed.

When she heard about the dragon from her older sister, the first thing she focused on was the magical crystal cliff wall that existed behind the Dragon.

The theory that dense magical power crystallizes over a long period of time and becomes a magic crystal was widely known as a plausible theory, and Kreschenta was of the same opinion.

Like any other metal, a mine of magic crystal will run dry if it was mined.

Even if they don’t know the mechanism of the crystallization, at least it was certain that it didn’t suddenly appear one day without any warning.

A dragon with that much magical power.

And Arbyagel, where that dragon resided for a long period of time.

It was easy to imagine that, with high probability, many veins of magic crystal would lie untouched in the land of Kreisharana.

Kreisharana hates luxury and was currently submissive to her older sister.

If they deepen the friendship between the country, she'll be able to obtain the mining rights to that vein in a deal that rarely happens.

Magic crystal, like other ores, is a limited resource.

If the value of its use increases rapidly through future research, it was likely that various veins of ore will dry up and the supply would no longer be able to keep up, and there was no doubt that in the future it would become a precious ore with a price similar to that of jewels――the one who wins at that time is naturally the one who monopolizes it.

Economic victory make the need for menial tasks such as war unnecessary.

Sprinkle money into obedience, and then siphon off more than what was given from the subjugated country.

Take away their power to resist and makes it impossible for any nation to exist without Alberan.

War is just another means of diplomacy.

It may be necessary for some to destroy countries that are as intelligent as club-wielding barbarians, but all of that is based on economic power.

It is the abundance of money that maintains a strong army.

What she seek in the future was a vast territory where the sun will never rest.

A superpower that rules all of this world, where the sun never sets.

One of the ingredients that would ensure this was Kreisharana, and that was why she went to such lengths to welcome them.

“Kreschenta, it is coarse salt for grilling. If the particles are too fine, they will absorb moisture and dissolve quickly.”

"I see. Ehehe..."

However, that was only for the future.

Everything she wanted was currently housed in this estate, and to be honest, it didn't really matter to her, because that goal was infinitely closer to her pretense as a “wise queen”.

As a young girl, Kreschenta’s primary goal was to be praised by her older sister.

The figure of her leaning close to her sister and smiling happily, there was no queen’s intelligence to be found there

Since the audience, her older sister praised her endlessly, saying great, great and she was in an extremely good mood.

Even though she was busy cooking, she was very satisfied.

Although Krische never praised her for her political work, as she took it as it’s only natural she could do it, she always strongly appreciated her attempts to make others happy.

The purpose of her hospitality was the magic crystal, but now her head was full of rewards from her sister.

Using all of her high spec abilities to please Krische, she was cooking more enthusiastically than ever.

Looking at that Kreschenta, Bery happily and skillfully sprinkled salt onto the skewers.

"Hehe, it looks good. What do you think?"

Krische was oven cooking.

Kreschenta was making soup.

And what Bery was making was grilled foods.

She grabbed two sticks and handed them to Krische.

Since the guests not be accustomed to using knives and forks, the main focus today was on dishes that can be eaten with hands, with the exception of soup.

After receiving it, Krische handed one to Kreschenta and looked at the skewers.

It's chicken tail meat with a sticky amount of fat.

However the meat was grilled with a wire mesh, and the excess oil fell, giving it a golden sheen.

She opened her small mouth and took a bite of the first piece.

The oil that oozes out from the meat was high quality.

The lightly sprinkled herbs reduce the weight of the oily meat, and only the flavor of the meat was extracted.

After eating one, she quickly finished one more, and swallowed it down.

Placing a hand on her cheek and smiling, Krische hugged Bery.

"It's very delicious. As usual, the seasoning is exquisite, and it's really amazing."

Bery smiled, picked up one of the skewers and looked at it.

And bite into it.

"Hmm, the grill is good. However, I feel like the oil is a bit sticky..."

"...Is that so? Krische fells its good."

"I wonder if it’s because I can't taste it, so the oil feels heavy? If I were to eat all this, it would definitely feel greasy, but if I'm just eating one or two, this is enough...it's so-so."

Kreschenta, likewise, told Berry after finishing the skewers.

Berry's “so-so” rating for the food she cooks mean the best to her.

Berry thought about it for a moment and nodded.

"My senses doesn't seem to be reliable. It's going to be a little difficult until I get used to it."

Krische body twitched as she hugged her, and Bery shook her head troubled.

"It's alight. It seems like I can feel the spiciness, and I can grasp if the oil is too strong or not. If I match my senses against Krische-sama’s and Kreschenta-sama’s, I'm sure I'll get used to it, and things will get a little better."

Krische, however, shook her head at those words.

"Krische will restore Bery's tongue to its original state... so Bery doesn't need to get used to it."

She tried medicinal herbs and used magic to accelerate healing.

She had tried all possible methods at the moment, but the results hadn’t been good.

She thought that a detailed examination of the tongue might reveal something, but the tongue itself is unique to each person, and its structure differs between Krische, Selene, and Kreschenta.

Whether the tongue itself is normal or not――she didn’t know how to judge that and maybe even if the tongue itself was normal, another part was affecting it.

There were so many things she didn't know at the moment.

Why do people die and why do they get sick?

Even that was uncertain. All of the current medical care was nothing more than vague rules of thumb.

It would take an enormous number of trial to determine this, and there was not enough manpower or time to do so.

Krische was confident that she could easily figure it out if she use human, but she knew that Bery would not want her to do so.

She had no choice but to do it steadily.

“...Definitely.”

Bery smiled at Krische who said that and .

"Fufu, yes."

To Bery, this seemed like an unavoidable price to pay for her life, and it was too much to hope for more.

She had no hope that it will ever heal on its own.

Such expectations were painful.

But if she was like that then, it was her role to believe in her.

Maybe it will be ten years, twenty years, or maybe it will be a long time in the future――it might be when she became an old woman.

Whatever the case may be, she would spend her time believing that she will make it come true.

Bery was more than happy with that.

“But there’s no point in worrying too much. As I said, I’m fine, and considering that I got Krische-sama thanks to it, it’s a cheap purchase. It will be a great loss for me if Krische-sama gets so worried you’re your health deteriorates.”

She smiled jokingly and hugged her delicate body.

“Working, cooking with me, taking a bath with me, pampering me, and be my pillow when we sleep together. Hehe, since you have such a busy schedule, I need you to prioritize that first, my Krische-sama.”

"...Ehehe, yes."

"...Onee-ama is not Argan-sama's. Besides, is it okay? The meat will get burnt."

"Huh? Ah"

Bery turned the meat over in a panic.

Kreschenta wrapped her arms around Krische’s waist from behind and hugged her, puffing out her cheeks in dissatisfaction.

"It's already been decided that today Onee-sama is mine. To think you would take advantage of her Onee-sama’s kindness, what a servant."

"Kreschenta, if you say something like that to Bery, Krische'll get angry, okay? Besides, it’s not like, Krische promised Kreschenta anything like that..."

"Sister, a promise is not something that can be determined by words alone. Just like a written contract, it can also be determined by the flow of events and the atmosphere of the place."

Kreschenta held up her finger and calmly presented a farcical argument.

"At least...that's what Onee-sama promised me in the audience room."

Krische was obediently surprised by her little sister's words, , and Bery smiled bitterly at the nonsensical word Kreschenta said.

In any case, she knew that the reason Crescenta was showing such hospitality was to be praised by Krische.

The sight of Kreschenta trying so hard to get her sister's praise is so adorable and heartwarming.

She had a distinct and harsh personality, was jealous and a bit selfish.

She was also endearing in every way, both similar and dissimilar to Krische.

She smiles bitterly as she remembers that there was a time when her sister was saved and became attracted to by Bogan, and that she was jealous of him as well.

Wanting to get her attention, she thought about this and that――but gave up without actually putting it into action.

Compared to herself, Kreschenta was probably much healthier.

Bery giggled and bowed her head to Kreschenta without any sense of guilt.

"Fufu, I ended up pulling ahead of Kreschenta-sama. I'm sorry."

Kreschenta glared at Bery as she teasingly said that.

"I'm telling you, once your tongue heals, you have no right to restrain Onee-sama. The agreement between you and Onee-sama will no longer be valid."

She puffed up her cheeks like balloons.

She is strong-willed and doesn't hide anything. At least Crescenta is free from her spiteful and gloomy thoughts, which was why Bery didn’t have any particular reservations either.

That's what makes it so much fun, and maybe this was what the so-called love interest in the story was like

Bery liked this kind of silly exchange with her very much.

"Once this situation calms down, the kingdom will develop even more. Technology, and medicine too. If that happens, such silly aftereffects will be gone in no time, right away."

Even though they were far apart in age, they were people who like the same person.

Their personalities seem to be polar opposites, but there were some similarities between them, and they value the various things they share with each other――or perhaps they are closer to something that could be called friendship.

If she said that, Kreschenta would probably get furious, but the kind of gentleness that she show from time to time was just as beautiful Krische’s.

"Thank you....However, I may not be able to think about losing Cliché-sama, who came into my hands."

"You should understand that showing weakness and trying to make Onee-sama yours is an extremely nefarious and fiendish act to begin with. Such a transaction is invalid from the beginning."

‘Surrounded by such people, I’m probably the luckiest person in the world.’

She thought about this while smiling and showing an air of surprise.

"My. Calling fiendish."

"Did you think otherwise? From now on, you'll have to understand more about what kind of person you are."

"I see. But if you think that you could get Krische-sama by just going astray, maybe that's not a bad thing..."

Bery reached out to touch Krische’s cheek, but Kreschenta stopped her by hugging Krische’s body.

Krische, who was pinched by her sister's cheeks from behind, looked at Kreschenta troubled.

“Kreschenta is really a foul-mouthed girl huh. That's what we call a bad mouth you know. Kreschenta should have more respect for Bery, Krische is Berr's after all.”

"Please come to your sense, Onee-sama. That is the result of a vicious deception."

"...?"

Kreschenta said while rubbing her cheek.

"Argan-sama is very good at making up nonsense. Onee-sama is just being deceived."

“Nonsense… even so Krische was convinced, Krische doesn’t have any problem with――”

“I see, so let's assume that this is a legitimate trade...In exchange for the tongue, Onee-sama sold yourself. If that argument is true, then if Argan-sama's tongue is cured thanks to me, Onee-sama will naturally be mine...that’s what it means right? ”

"Hmm...? Um, that logic seems kind of strange."

Kreschenta smiled as she tilted her head in thought.

“It's not strange. It means that Onee-sama find equal value in herself and that of Argan-sama’s tongue. Isn't it logical that if I heal her tongue, I'll get Onee-sama in return? ”

“Now that you said it, certainly that’s…”

"And in the future, Argan-sama's tongue will be healed thanks to me. It's an established fact. In other words, Onee-sama is already almost mine, and the servant Argan-sama is also mine. This isn't nonsense or anything like that."

As her gaze flickers from side to side, Krische made her brilliant mind spin rapidly.

But for her, farcical reasoning (sophism) was a blind spot――there was no flexibility in her mind to deal with changing the subject.

“Somehow Krische isn’t convinced… But, hmm…Krische does feel like it make sense.”

"Don't worry about trivial things, Onee-sama. It's my job to think about such things."

Bery watching that unfold, shook her shoulders and smiled.

“You shouldn’t do that, manipulating Krische-sama into something that suits you like that.”

“I don't care who else in the world says it, I don't want to hear that from you”

Kreschenta furrowed her brow, looked back at Bery, and whispered to Krische.

"You should think logically, Onee-sama. You should not be fooled by vague things such as emotions. This is the fair reward that I deserve."

"Hmm...fair..."

Was Kreschenta who tried to deceive Krische strange.

She still covered her mouth and glared at Bery, who continued to shook her shoulders, and Kreschenta smiled as if trying to pounce.

“Hmph, enough of your nonsense leeway now, Argan-sama. ...Then Argan-sama will be just a servant, doing nothing but cooking and watching me and Onee-sama with her fingers in the mouth. If Atgan-sama devote herself to us then, maybe I'll let Argan-sama touch Onee-sama once in a while.''

Bery amusedly and approached them.

She hugged them both and patted Kreschenta on the head.

"My, fufu... Your Majesty, how kind. As your subject, I am highly honored."

"You're just an extra. And if you're saying that, then you should stop treating me like a child like this. I'm much better than you can comprehend you know."

Kreschenta glared at her, but Bery couldn't stop her cheeks from loosening.

Bery laughed even more happily and kissed her forehead.

"My apologies. My hands seem to move on their own when I’m happy."

"You are also sick in various meaning huh. I think it would be best to find a cure for your head before fixing your tongue."

"I’m sorry but it’s something I’m born with. It may never be cured."

" It's called laziness if you don't even try. I'm tired of thinking that someone like you will be stuck at Onee-sama side from now on."

Bery was still smiling and looking happy.

Krische, who had been listening to the exchange, reached behind her shoulder and squeezed her cheek.

“Hmm, Krische doesn’t really get it, but in any case, Krische think Kreschenta has a bad mouth against Bery, so Krische think that should be corrected. Even if Krische becomes Kreschenta’s property, it is the older sister, Krische’s role to raise Kreschenta to be a good child, so we need to keep things like this separate.''

"Eh...?"

"Hehe, as expected of you, Krische-sama, you say a good thing. I also think that having an older sister lead her younger sister is socially beneficial and truly admirable."

"Ah, Argan-sama! That's cowardly!"

‘That’s not good,’ Krische said, turning back to Kreschenta, and pressed a finger to her lips.

“Krische’ve always thought Kreschenta wasn't honest enough. Even though Kreschenta must love being petted by Bery, the mouth only let out bad word. Be a little more honest...Ah, right, from now on, the rule is that Kreschenta will turn into a dog whenever she spends time with Bery.''

"Ah, Onee-sama, it's almost time for the oven..."

“? Ah, it's still early. We need to bake it a little more...Um, Kreschenta, don’t change the――"

“Th-then, I'd like Onee-sama to taste the soup one more time”

"...Taste?"

"The Oita pumpkin should have melted better than before. I-I'm sure Onee-sama will enjoy this pumpkin soup."

Kreschenta glared at Bery as she told her to not talk.

Bery playfully shook her shoulder and cover her mouth, sending help to the desperate Crescenta.

“Right, fufu, I would like to start arranging the dishes soon, Krische-sama, would you please give it a taste?”

"Hmm...Yes, if Bery says so. Krische is still worried about Kreschenta’s, Krische needs to check properly..."

Krische, fooled by the sound of test-taste, approached the pot.

Behind her, Kreschenta glared at Bery from a position that cannot be seen.

Her expression was truly vexed, as if to say she had just been sent salt by her enemy.

Bery smiled back and patted her on the head again.

It was an unchanging happy time for her, and everything was in it.