Chapter : 29
First, let’s make the cake layers.
I picked up a basket and headed to the chicken coop to get some eggs.
“Cluck! Cluck!”
“Whoa!”
The hens spread their wings threateningly and started pecking at me, making a huge fuss, as if that thief had come back after a long time to steal their eggs.
“Ugh! Feathers!”
After pulling the feathers stuck to my mouth, I took four warm eggs that a hen had been brooding and left the coop.
Next, I cracked the four eggs into a bowl and whisked them to make foam. Just mixing wasn’t enough to get good bubbles, so I poured warm water into a basin and whipped the eggs over it.
Once thick foam rose up, I poured sugar into the bowl. I had to beat it for well over ten minutes, and my arms felt like they were about to fall off, but thinking about how happy my fairy would be made it bearable.
‘Wow, look how pale and pretty it is!’
I had been mixing absentmindedly, staring into space like a machine, but when I looked back at the bowl, a beautiful ivory-colored foam had formed. It wasn’t too thick, slightly runny, and fell in a smooth ribbon.
Now it was time to add the flour I had already sifted. This time, unlike the sugar, I didn’t dump it all in at once. I added it little by little, gently folding it in with a spatula.
I mixed from the bottom up, careful not to kill the fluffy bubbles. If the foam collapsed, the cake would taste awful, so I had to be gentle.
Then, in another small bowl, I poured in some cooking oil and added a little of the batter. If you add oil directly to the batter, it won’t mix properly. That’s why you have to blend it thoroughly with a small amount of batter first, then add it back to the main bowl.
I lined the cake pan with thin paper and poured in the batter. After tapping it on the counter to remove air bubbles, I put it into the oven.
‘Now I have to wait about thirty minutes, so I’ll make the whipped cream in the meantime.’
Making whipped cream itself didn’t take long. I just had to boil milk with butter in a pot, mix it with egg yolks, and let it cool. The problem was…
‘This needs to mature for twelve hours.’
I placed a book on top of the bowl with the cream and put it on a shelf in the storage room. The storage room was cool, and preservation magic was in effect, so there was no risk of the milk going bad.
I also hid the baked cake layers somewhere Layla wouldn’t notice. I placed the washed strawberries beside them. After finishing today’s farm work, I planned to start making the cake again early tomorrow morning.
I brushed my hands off, stretched once, and headed toward the potato field where the Crown Prince was. He was diligently pulling weeds that had grown among the potatoes.
“Your Highness, you’re working hard.”
“Potatoes are our most important food. Of course.”
Unlike before, he seemed quite used to squatting down now—though he kept adjusting his posture, probably because his thighs were sore.
He lifted his straw hat slightly and met my eyes. His blue, water-like eyes were fixed entirely on me.
“Vanessa.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“Do you know… when the Saintess might arrive?”
I realized why he had been unusually quiet and gloomy lately. He had been constantly thinking about the capital he left behind.
He dug aimlessly into the soil with his hoe and continued.
“I’m worried. I keep wondering whether I should go back…”
“I see.”
“I wouldn’t be of much help even if I went.”
He spoke self-deprecatingly, putting himself down. But the Crown Prince was one of the male protagonists of the novel—physically, he was one of the strongest beings in the world. If he returned to the capital, he would be a huge help. That was, if he could make it back safely.
In the original story, before the Saintess arrived, he carried out guerrilla operations in the capital, creating survivor camps and protecting his people almost single-handedly.
‘The timing of the Saintess’s arrival…’
The original novel never clearly stated when the Saintess arrived. It only described her suddenly appearing at a survivor camp in the capital not long after the zombie outbreak—spear in hand.
The story was written from Saintess Ella’s first-person observer perspective. Because of that, I couldn’t know an exact timing like, ‘This is it!’
‘But if the Saintess had arrived and started defeating zombies, the Countess would definitely have contacted us with her video orb.’
Nobles didn’t live as densely packed as commoners, so their survival rate was higher.
On top of that, the Countess was extremely well-connected. Even after coming to the fortress, she exchanged messages daily via video orb with almost every noblewoman in high society.
‘There’s no way all of them turned into zombies.’
If the Saintess had appeared, at least one person would have contacted the Countess. But so far, there had been no such message.
That meant either the Saintess hadn’t arrived yet, or even if she had, she hadn’t begun a large-scale zombie extermination.
Still, according to the original plot, the Saintess would arrive soon. Even though the original story never included the Crown Prince coming to my fortress or the Mage Tower Master begging for potato pancakes.
I placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke seriously.
“She’ll come soon. You’ll get a message through the Countess’s orb, so don’t worry.”
“…Really?”
“Really. Have you ever seen me lie?”
“I’ve seen it ofte—”
“Anyway, she really is coming. So don’t even think about leaving.”
It would be disastrous if he went out and turned into a zombie. The capital was so far away, after all.
I grabbed his hand firmly and repeated myself slowly.
“If you’re not here, the fortress won’t function. You manage this huge field, clean the house, and even play with the kids.”
“……”
The Crown Prince fell silent.
“Please trust me and wait just a little longer. Oh, and Your Highness.”
To change the subject, I pointed to an empty patch of land.
“Could you instruct George to build a small cabin over there?”
“What for?”
“I want to build a school. The children should at least be able to read letters and numbers—so they can live well even after everything returns to normal.”
“Hm.”
Fortunately, he went along with the change of topic.
“All right. I’ll talk to George.”
“Thank you!”
The Crown Prince, seemingly happy to have a task, strode over to George with his long legs.
‘Successfully cheered up the gloomy Crown Prince.’
When he was down, Eric and the others were constantly on edge, watching his mood. I understood his sense of responsibility as Crown Prince, but leaving in this situation would only increase his chances of dying senselessly.
After that, I made my rounds through the chili field, cornfield, herb garden, and more, checking whether the sprouts were growing well and if there were any signs of anthracnose.
Thankfully, all the crops were growing well under the warm sunlight.
‘Maybe I’ll take a nap for once.’
Amanda and Layla were in charge of lunch and dinner today, so I had some free time. After greeting the people working in the fields, I returned to my room.
Donggeul, who had been pecking at bugs in the fields, settled comfortably on the back of my neck, looking satisfied. Feeling the warm breeze drifting in through the window, I drifted off into a nap.
At last, it was my fairy Layla’s birthday.
I brought the not-quite-whipped-yet cream from the storage room and stirred it vigorously. Slowly, it began to solidify, and before long, real milk whipped cream was sitting there.
I brought out the cake layers, sliced them into three, and spread a thin layer of whipped cream on each. Tap, tap. I sliced the strawberries neatly and tucked them between the layers.
Finally, I placed three strawberries on top and decorated it with rosemary I’d picked from the fields. The strawberry shortcake was complete.
“Oh my, what’s this?”
Amanda entered the kitchen and widened her eyes at the cake. I brought my index finger to my lips and winked at her.
“Today’s Layla’s birthday. I’m planning to go ‘Ta-da!’ at dinner.”
Amanda smiled knowingly.
“Lady Layla must be very happy, having a friend like you.”
“Haha, you flatter me.”
“Then I’ll see you this evening. I’ll go catch some fish by the lake.”
“See you later.”
After saying goodbye, Amanda and I went our separate ways. I hid the strawberry shortcake in the storage room and went out to check on the crops and livestock.
The calf and piglet had grown quite a bit. Seeing them looking like they were entering adolescence, I smiled proudly.
“Eat well and grow big.”
Thanks to diligently milking the mother cow, we had more than enough milk stored to last the winter.
“Let’s see. The tomatoes are plump, the chilies are abundant, and the corn’s starting to grow ears too.”
The land inside the fortress seemed blessed by some goddess—whatever you planted grew quickly. Thanks to that, about twenty people were able to survive on food balanced between civilization and the wild.
“Lady Vanessa!”
“Yes?”
It was Oliver.
He looked like he’d rushed over—his ash-gray ears were flapping energetically, and he was barefoot.
“What’s going on?”
“Well, I made a generator.”
“What?! A generator? Let’s go see it right now!”
Shocked, I hurried to Oliver’s house.
‘A generator?! Is he insane?!’
He’d been quiet the past few days, apparently busy inside building something incredible.
What Oliver showed me looked like a treadmill. If someone ran on it for an hour, it could generate enough electricity to keep the lamps on for about three hours.
‘This would be perfect for the school.’
Since we had to work in the fields during the day, teaching the kids would have to happen in the evening or at night. For that, light was essential.
When I mentioned this problem to Oliver, he immediately built this simple generator.
‘Where on earth did he get something this precious?’
Oliver looked unbelievably lovable. I ruffled his curly ash-gray hair enthusiastically.
“Thank you, Oliver. You’re the best!”
“Ah, Lady Vanessa…”
He lowered his head shyly and quietly accepted my touch. Each time I patted him, his ears flattened slightly. His hair was unbelievably soft and pleasant to touch.
As I was praising Oliver like that, I suddenly felt a sharp gaze from far away.
End Of Chapter : 29
