Chapter 517 - The Lonely Demon
Parfait began making the shortcake to give to the Demon King Mikan.
It was a masterpiece crafted with the finest ingredients. As an item, it was nothing more than a highest quality shortcake, but the materials she had prepared were all top-class.
Furthermore, based on the information she got from Rhadia, she was meticulous enough to be particular even about the water. She was proud of how perfectly she had prepared everything, to the point of wondering if it was really necessary.
Still, she was worried, so she created multiple shortcakes as a form of insurance, figuring that if she gave her one of them, it would somehow work out.
"Water from the Thousand-Year Subterranean Lake, Gugalanna Milk, Phoenix Eggs, Sun Wheat, and Asura Sugar—I'm pretty confident about these, but I just can't figure out the best strawberry, so let's prepare several kinds."
Following Rick's words, they prepared highest quality shortcakes that were identical except for the type of strawberry. The Spirit Peak Strawberry King, the Yomi Strawberry, and the Zaratan Strawberry—those three.
All of the strawberries were expensive, so she served a trial version made with ordinary strawberries to her clan members, which was met with rave reviews. Of course, this being AFO, items of the same quality all tasted the same.
They immediately started heading to the guild to deliver the cake to Mikan.
Traveling wasn't difficult since they used a teleporter. However, there was still a fair bit of walking involved, so Parfait and her friends started chatting as they made their way to the guild.
"Knowing Elder Sister Mikan, I don't think she'd give us such a mean-spirited challenge. But it does make me anxious about whether this is really the right approach."
"I agree, but aside from the strawberries, we still have a large supply of the other ingredients. Even if this doesn't work, we'll have enough time for at least one more try, so for now, let's just think of this as a trial run."
Rick replied to Ginny's words.
Just as Rick said, an announcement had been made that the "Lunatic Demons" event would end in one week. With that much of a buffer, it was more than possible to remake the cakes with different strawberries.
Thanks to her efforts in the monotonous, repetitive work, Parfait's Cooking Skill had reached 100, and she could now create highest quality shortcakes with a high probability of success. As long as she had strawberries, she was in a state where she could mass-produce them.
"By the way, didn't we gather information on those stone monuments or whatever in the Demon Country, hoping to find some hints?"
"Yeah, I gathered all the known information on the monuments. I looked through it, but there was nothing about strawberries. I showed it to Ginny, and she had the same opinion."
"Can I see it too?"
Rick handed Parfait a document summarizing the information from the stone monuments. Parfait glanced over the document as she walked.
It's true, there's nothing written about the ingredients. It does say she likes sweets... Huh? 'Always alone'? The Demon King is lonely?
The document contained various bits of information, but what caught Parfait's eye was the part describing the Demon King as a lonely being with no equal. The other demons were merely subordinates, not friends. Therefore, it was written that she created an equal being to become her friend.
So that Kurotako-chan is a demon with that kind of backstory. Its official name was 'Something called God in another dimension,' right? Friends with a god... friends, huh...
Demon King aside, the real Mikan was also said to have been lonely. From what Parfait had heard, Mikan's parents were too busy with work to see her often, and those who approached her were all ill-intentioned. The only person she trusted was her secretary and bodyguard, Lindsey.
The Demon King's backstory didn't completely overlap, but the part about not having friends was the same. Her secretary and bodyguard, Lindsey, wasn't a friend either. Thinking about that, Parfait hummed in thought.
Seeing Parfait like that, everyone else in the group tilted their heads. When Parfait explained the situation, they all hummed thoughtfully as well.
"But she seems to be enjoying herself now. I hear she sometimes hangs out with Benny-san and Ren-san."
"She does?"
"They were close in age among the cryosleep group, so I guess they hit it off. Though I heard the one closest to her age was actually Ruth-san."
"I, for one, would like to hear more about that. Not for any particular reason, of course."
Everyone except Natsu knew that was far from the truth, but they read the room and said nothing. Instead, Ginny relayed the situation.
"No, there's nothing to worry about, so please rest assured. They haven't played together or even had a meal together. It's just a story about them being close in age."
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure? If you're lying, I'll make you eat a thousand dark matters, not just a thousand needles."
"It's true. Besides, Elder Sister Mikan eats most of her meals alone. Even I only get to eat with her a few times a year."
"What? Why is that?"
Ginny's family and Mikan were close enough to be considered family themselves, and they lived in the same building. Ginny's parents worked as Mikan's assistants, so it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were together almost every day.
Given that, it was nothing short of astonishing that even Ginny only ate with her a few times a year. Parfait had just assumed Mikan only visited the cafe once every few years because she was busy with work.
"Apparently, Elder Sister Mikan often had her food poisoned in the past, and she's still wary from that time. She's scared that someone else might mistakenly eat the poison meant for her. It became a trauma after my mother actually ate it once."
"I see... Wait, was Lindsey-san okay? I mean, she's okay now, so she must have been, but was she alright back then?"
"She said she healed herself with fighting spirit so she wouldn't make Elder Sister Mikan cry."
"Fighting spirit, huh..."
They say illness starts from the mind, but fighting spirit was probably a different matter, Parfait thought vaguely.
"But it seems that fear has faded a little. My father used to always give Elder Sister Mikan sweets that Hayato-san made in AFO."
"Huh? He did?"
Ginny's father, Adrian, was the leader of a clan called the Demon Summoning Research Association. In a Clan War, he used a demon summoning technique that no one knew, which he had learned from Mikan. Mikan, who was the Demon King back then as well, was always given sweets by Adrian, and in return, he was taught how to summon a special demon.
After losing to Hayato and his friends in the Clan War, Adrian started buying cakes sold at Hayato's shop and giving them to Mikan, who apparently loved them.
"You don't think... she thinks the shortcake my dad made is the absolute best, do you...?"
"I doubt it's that. That would be impossible unless you had a special connection, right?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
A quest that only a specific person could clear was highly unlikely. She considered asking her father about the ingredients, but AFO back then couldn't have had that many materials, so she concluded that even if she asked, she would just get an answer about ordinary ingredients.
For now, they had prepared a shortcake made with the best materials, so they decided to see how it went. The group stepped into the guild where Mikan was.
As always, Mikan was at the reception counter. Her eyes widened when she saw them, and then a smile spread across her face.
"Whoa, it's a big group today."
"We brought the shortcake you requested."
"Ooh, I'm looking forward to it. But I'm very picky about taste, you know?"
"We know. These are the shortcakes we've crafted by carefully selecting the best ingredients!"
Parfait placed several shortcakes on the counter. They were all highest quality, differing only in the type of strawberry. This has to work, Parfait thought, her face full of confidence.
Amidst this, Mikan chuckled slightly and opened her mouth.
"This is just something I heard, but a long time ago, Hayato-san apparently sought Relic-san's cooperation through an introduction from Esha-san."
"Huh? Is that so? But why are you bringing that up now?"
"Oh, you haven't heard? Then this quest might be a little difficult, hmm?"
"Huh? What?"
Parfait was bewildered, but Rick, who was standing next to her, let out a voice of understanding. "So that's what this is."
"Rick-kun, what's 'what this is?'"
"I've heard about it too. As a condition for helping Hayato-san, Relic-san gave him a challenge. The challenge was to prepare 'an ornament that would capture his heart,' and apparently, Hayato-san cleared it brilliantly. Relic-san once told me the story with a happy look on his face."
"That happened? But what does that have to do with...?"
"Relic-san said the challenge was more about the situation than the ornament itself. Hayato-san figured it out immediately. Mikan-san might be talking about something similar."
Parfait looked at Mikan. Mikan was simply beaming.
"So, what will you do? Want to try and see if you can clear the quest with these shortcakes?"
Parfait looked around at her friends, but it seemed everyone was leaving the decision to her.
The fact that Mikan-san said that makes me feel like none of these are the right answer if I just hand them over... What should I do? Should I come back later?
Parfait furrowed her brow, agonizing over what to do.