Chapter 376: Birthday Cake
“Mm… this… is the final result?”
One hand holding a fork, the other holding a knife, Rachel sat frozen at the table, a ladylike napkin tied neatly around her neck.
“Yes, this is it.”
Evelia sat across from her, looking very serious as she watched Rachel, who had been excited just moments ago but was now stiff and unmoving.
“……”
Rachel lowered her head to look at the food in front of her, opening her mouth but saying nothing.
Logically speaking, she thought the thing in front of her could probably be called “food.” But in reality, she had no idea how to even start eating it.
It was a bright red cake, or at least, it should be called a cake. But with all that thick tomato sauce dripping everywhere, it actually looked more like a freshly chopped-off head. A small one.
The shape was a standard flat cylinder, but the color scheme was nothing but red… and more red.
One glance, and you could tell it was Evelia’s work. The cake was drowning in who-knows-how-many bottles of tomato sauce, almost completely submerged.
“I used my best tomato sauce,” Evelia said, introducing her dish like a chef presenting their work. “The eggs and flour were also the best quality. I even went to ask a cake-making master for advice. He personally taught me, step by step.”
“…You mean the uncles and aunties in the kitchen?”
“Yes.”
“My goodness… they just stood there and watched you pour that much tomato sauce on it?”
“Mm.”
“……”
Rachel figured the kitchen staff probably realized there was no stopping Evelia, so they just gave up.
Earlier, on the carriage ride back, Rachel had casually tried to liven the mood by asking, “What kind of food will the manor make for New Year?” They chatted for a bit, and the topic soon shifted to Armand’s birthday banquet.
Both Evelia and Rachel knew Armand was picky about food. So they spent the ride discussing what dishes he could eat, mumbling ideas back and forth the whole way.
Once they returned to the manor, Rachel went to her small workshop to work on adding a simple protective mechanism to the pocket watch, while Evelia headed for the kitchen to see what the staff was preparing for the New Year.
Even though it was technically New Year, the main theme was still Armand’s birthday. The first thing on the planned menu was a large, luxurious birthday cake. So that everyone in the manor could share in the celebration, the kitchen staff had designed a multi-layer cake big enough for at least everyone to have a slice.
Evelia noticed this right away. She had never eaten a birthday cake before, but she knew such a thing existed.
Armand’s birthday was extremely important to her. It was a special day, a meaningful anniversary. Of course she wanted to make it even more memorable for him. So even though the kitchen was preparing a massive cake for Armand, Evelia decided she would make one herself as well. It didn’t need to be big, just enough to let Armand receive her blessing.
The ingredient Evelia most often used was, of course, tomato sauce.
Since she had never eaten a birthday cake before, she was still a little unsure about it.
None of the cookbooks she owned had instructions for making one, so she could only go ask the kitchen staff for help.
After Armand fell ill, Evelia still came to the kitchen occasionally to prepare tomato dishes, but much less often. And lately, she had been spending almost all her time taking care of him, so she hadn’t been in the kitchen for quite a while. The chefs had even started to miss her a little.
When they saw her come to ask about making a cake, they quickly agreed, saying that making a cake was simple and they could teach her anytime.
At first, they were smiling as they helped Evelia prepare the ingredients. But the moment she brought out a huge pile of tomato sauce, they were shocked. It was then they remembered the “terrifying” scenes from the past when they had secretly called her the Tomato Witch.
It was clear they couldn’t persuade Evelia otherwise, or maybe they simply had no way to stop her.
After all, Evelia was someone who served right by Armand’s side, his personal maid, with a much higher status than many people in the manor. In terms of rank, the kitchen staff had no authority over her decisions. So they could only watch as Evelia brought out those expensive-looking jars of tomato sauce and dumped them all onto the cake base, which was supposed to be topped with cream or chocolate instead.
Thankfully, once the tomato sauce was poured, the cake was “finished.” If it had needed to be baked again, the entire oven would probably smell like tomato sauce for days.
Since this was meant to be one of her birthday gifts for Armand, Evelia certainly didn’t plan to have him taste it right away. Instead, she went to find her “ally,” Rachel.
At the time, Rachel was in her small laboratory working on an alchemy experiment when she heard knocking at the door. It startled her, ever since Armand had fallen sick, almost no one had bothered her, so she had been quietly doing her experiments without interruption.
If it were just another young maid, that would be fine. Rachel could simply make up a quick lie to cover herself. But she was most afraid of Evelia or Armand, those sharp-eyed people, discovering her secret. If either of them noticed something, she would definitely be questioned thoroughly. And if her identity as an alchemist were exposed, she might not even be able to leave the manor safely.
But now, an even more serious threat was right in front of her.
Just moments ago, she had been thinking about how it would be a disaster if her true identity was discovered. Now, looking at this not-so-large “experimental” cake, Rachel felt she wouldn’t even need to be exposed. Just eating one bite of Evelia’s tomato cake might be enough to end her life.
“Taste it.”
Evelia, however, didn’t seem to notice the struggle written all over Rachel’s face. She simply pushed the cake toward her, even looking at Rachel with a hopeful expression.
“……”
Rachel stared at the bright red cake in front of her. It looked like a bloody chunk cut from someone’s body. Then she glanced at Evelia’s expectant face. From Evelia’s point of view, she clearly and sincerely wanted Rachel to enjoy her cake.
“…Fine… fine—”
In the end, under Evelia’s silent “pleading,” Rachel agreed.
Like a soldier walking toward certain death, she showed an expression full of determination.
“—Ugh!”
But clearly, her tolerance was far worse than Armand’s.
Just one bite, and she completely surrendered.