Chapter 11
“Blue-backed fish and lamb have a fishy smell, so I don’t eat them often. Keep that in mind.”
“As expected of an emperor, you’re quite particular. Don’t worry—I wouldn’t have those even if I wanted to.”
“Good. And….”
“And?”
The emperor lowered his gaze with a prim expression and whispered softly, barely audible.
“You are right. My voice used to be more beautiful than it is now.”
“…….”
Haah… seeing him like that again makes me feel sorry for him. Even if he annoys me, I’ll just endure it for 12 hours. He’s a pitiful person.
After calming myself down like that, I spoke to him as gently as possible.
“If you eat well and sleep well, you’ll recover somewhat, so don’t worry too much.”
“…That sounds difficult.”
“Today I’ll feed you well and help you rest, so just relax while you’re here.”
Though my tone was rude, my voice carried warmth, and the emperor’s expression softened.
With a more relaxed face, he fixed his gaze on the rabbit doll attached to the slippers.
It seemed that although the situation was still unfamiliar, he had decided I wasn’t a bad person.
“So where is this place? I was clearly attending to state affairs when a blue box appeared like an illusion and forcibly transported me here.”
“I don’t know. Honestly, my situation isn’t that different from yours.”
“You don’t know where this place is either? Were you also dragged here?”
“…Well, something like that.”
Of course, it wasn’t just my body that was brought here—the house I lived in had been dragged along as well.
“Strange. You are indeed strange. Are you perhaps from the 29th Island?”
“Not exactly, but may I ask why you think that?”
The emperor hesitated for a moment before replying in a calm voice.
“They are not citizens of this land. They are outsiders who came from another world. You also seem like one of those outsiders, so I thought there might be some connection.”
“I see. But no, that’s not it. I only just learned that the residents of the 29th Island are outsiders.”
“I see. Then, where are you from, and who are you? Is NPC your name?”
“My name is Dorothy. I came from a place called Earth.”
“Earth…?”
“Yes. There is such a place.”
No matter how much I explained Earth, he wouldn’t understand, so I decided to go make some food instead.
I casually turned my back and opened the shelf.
The shelf was stocked with three types of instant ramen. Somehow, 24 hours must have passed.
It didn’t feel like a full day had gone by, though.
Setting that curiosity aside, I took out instant rice from the shelf and an egg from the fridge.
I planned to make egg and crab-stick porridge for His Majesty the Emperor.
That was probably the only thing his stomach—likely damaged by poison and stomach acid—could handle.
Besides, I had often made porridge during my idol days, so I was confident I could make it taste good.
I poured two cups of water into a pot and turned the heat to low. Before the water boiled, I added the instant rice after breaking it apart.
I also didn’t forget to press and mash the grains with a spoon so they would separate well.
As the water began to gently boil, warm steam spread throughout the room.
The soft aroma of white rice mixed with the mist tickled my nose pleasantly.
I felt a familiar gaze from behind. Istal was definitely watching me cook intently.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to poison you.”
“That’s not it. I’m watching because it’s interesting.”
“Cooking? Have you never cooked in your life?”
“Of course not. I am the emperor. If I were to cook, it would damage my dignity.”
I ignored his annoying remark and continued mashing the rice with the back of the spoon.
I tore two pieces of crab sticks and added them, then cracked in an egg and stirred everything together.
“Hm…”
Maybe this is too plain. It would be perfect with seasoning, salt, and sesame oil.
But buying all three would be too expensive—it makes my hands shake. What should I do?
For the emperor, something bland like this might actually be best, but that picky guy would probably stop eating the moment it doesn’t suit his taste.
“Ah!”
After much thought, I found a solution and quickly went to the shelf and took out seasoned seaweed.
The umami and saltiness of the seaweed should fix the blandness of the porridge.
I crumbled the seaweed into small pieces and added it to the porridge, then tasted it slightly.
It wasn’t as perfect as a franchise porridge shop, but it was definitely edible.
Of course, whether it would suit the emperor’s taste was uncertain.
I let the porridge continue cooking and took two pieces of frozen chicken from the freezer, placing them into the air fryer.
I couldn’t just eat hospital food just because there was a patient next to me.
As the rich aroma of various foods filled the air, Istal’s blue eyes began to shine brightly.
At that moment, a familiar sound echoed from his stomach.
Grrrroooowl—
“Seems like you were really hungry.”
“….”
“I’ll bring it right over. Even if it doesn’t suit your taste, it’s good for your body, so finish it all.”
I scooped a generous portion of porridge into a bowl, placed it on the table, and handed him a spoon.
He looked between me and the porridge suspiciously a few times, then pointed at the seaweed and said,
“It looks like soup made with rice and eggs. What is that black thing?”
“Seaweed.”
“Sea… weed?”
“Just try it first. People are always surprised at first, but once they take a bite, they can’t get enough.”
I chuckled, remembering videos of foreigners reacting to seaweed on YouTube.
They always got shocked, asking why people would eat black paper—but later ended up saying, “Just one more bite.”
However, the cautious emperor carefully pushed the seaweed aside and scooped only the plain porridge into his mouth.
Perhaps because he was raised in luxury, his eating manner was elegant—he didn’t rush despite being hungry.
“…It’s bland.”
“If you eat it with seaweed, it won’t be bland.”
“The flavor is weak as well.”
“Then I’m begging you—eat it with the seaweed.”
The stubborn emperor ignored me, ate two more spoonfuls of plain porridge, and then set down his spoon.
“I’m full now.”
“You’re lying. You just don’t like the taste.”
Even after days of fasting, he’s still picky about taste. As expected of an emperor.
I massaged my furrowed brow and opened the inventory shop.
I spent 300,000 points to purchase sesame oil, seaweed, and salt.
“…Sigh. He’s really high maintenance. No helping it.”
I had no choice but to bring out my secret Korean cuisine weapon.
I took his porridge back and poured it into the pot again.
I added a spoonful of seasoning paste and lightly salted it—it tasted much better than before.
“Yes. This is it. That was my mistake.”
I also chopped the seaweed finely with scissors so it couldn’t be pushed aside again.
The seaweed was now shredded into tiny pieces, making the appearance worse, but the taste was excellent.
Finally, I turned off the heat and drizzled a generous spoonful of sesame oil.
The rich aroma immediately stimulated my appetite intensely.
Even I, who hadn’t planned to eat porridge, suddenly wanted some.
I served the emperor’s porridge back into the bowl and transferred the remaining portion into my own bowl.
Figuring it would be fine to “borrow” some.
I sat down across from the emperor with a confident air.
I handed him his bowl and then dramatically slurped my own porridge.
“Mmm~!”
It’s really good. Sesame oil and seasoning paste are truly a perfect duo!
The harmony of flavorful seaweed and sesame oil attacked both taste and smell, while the warm, soft porridge gently wrapped around my tongue.
Completely conquered, I quickly finished the small amount of porridge and rushed to the air fryer.
Now that my appetite was back, I felt even hungrier. I needed to satisfy it with chicken.
The emperor stared blankly at me eating. Once I moved away, he cautiously took a spoonful of porridge and ate it.
I glanced at him from the side and smiled faintly.
There we go. Once he takes one bite, he won’t be able to stop.
As expected, Istal’s jewel-like pupils began to sparkle.
His arms, which had once moved gracefully like a dance, now shook erratically as if controlled by the spoon.
Without even realizing it, he was devouring the food frantically and hungrily.
I watched the pleasing scene from a distance, then returned to my seat holding freshly heated seasoned chicken.
“Tastes good, right? I told you to eat it with seaweed.”
“I will not deny it. You were right.”
The emperor smiled helplessly with seaweed stuck between his teeth.
I had to pinch my thigh hard to stop myself from laughing.
“Heh, seeing you admit your mistake so readily—you might make a fine ruler.”
“…I would like that as well, but it is not easy.”
He paused briefly, then resumed eating with his spoon.
Despite his gloomy thoughts, he still intended to finish the porridge in front of him.
I smiled with satisfaction and tore into a chicken drumstick.
With a crisp sound, the sweet and spicy sauce instantly overwhelmed my taste buds.
“Mmm! Delicious!”
No matter how good porridge is, it can’t beat chicken.
After devouring the drumstick, just as I reached for the chicken breast, I felt a familiar gaze.
It was similar to the look Theo would give hot chicken noodles.
“…Why? Do you have something to say?”
“What is that you’re holding?”
“This is mine. If you eat it, it’ll upset your stomach.”
“I’m not asking for it. I’m asking what it is.”
Fried chicken. Even if I explained, he probably wouldn’t understand.
“It’s chicken. Fried chicken.”
“What part?”
“The breast.”
“I like chicken breast.”
…So what? Who asked you?
