Chapter 03
When working in an unfamiliar kitchen, the first thing you must do is check where all the tools and ingredients are.
I took out a ladle, a thin wooden stick, sugar, and baking soda.
I also didn’t forget the round press and the star-shaped cookie cutter.
It would have been easier if I had my usual tools, but as someone who had been kidnapped, I obviously couldn’t bring them. Besides, if they were paying ten million penta, this level of inconvenience was nothing.
“Is that all?”
“Yes.”
Kailos looked slightly surprised.
“I expected something much more complicated…”
“Did you think I would use nutmeg or cinnamon?”
I casually mentioned the spices nobles in this world were obsessed with.
“Something like that.”
I tried hard not to laugh.
If he had ever actually eaten dalgona, he would know it’s just pure sugar.
For a moment, I even considered adding something special because of the ten million penta.
But in the end, I decided not to change anything.
‘Safety first.’
Kailos had kidnapped me and offered an outrageous sum for normal dalgona.
Not some strange experimental version.
There was no reason to take risks.
As the sugar heated, a sweet smell filled the kitchen.
I stirred it skillfully with a wooden stick, not forgetting to add a little baking soda.
Soon, the melted sugar turned soft and fluffy.
I poured it onto a marble slab sprinkled with sugar.
Even I, who had made this countless times, swallowed instinctively at the smell.
I pressed it lightly, shaped it, and stamped it with the star cutter.
Once it hardened completely, I lifted it and placed it on a clean plate.
“It’s done.”
“……”
Kailos didn’t respond.
Instead, he stared between me and the candy with caution.
Then—
Crack.
A piece broke off from the edge of the dalgona.
What was once a perfect round shape now looked uneven and broken.
“Eat it.”
“Pardon?”
I blinked in confusion.
I couldn’t understand what he wanted.
Was he telling me to eat it because I worked hard making it?
“No. Eat it.”
He repeated firmly.
Still confused, I had no reason to refuse, so I put a piece in my mouth.
‘It’s good!’
The rich burnt-sugar flavor spread through my mouth.
It was a familiar taste, but familiar things are often the best.
I looked at him.
“It’s good.”
Kailos still looked tense.
Another piece broke off.
Now the candy was no longer round—it looked jagged and uneven.
‘Is he telling me to eat that too?’
Maybe he was the kind of weird person who enjoyed watching a street vendor eat their own product.
But instead of handing it to me, Kailos took a piece and ate it himself.
I watched him expectantly.
If he had kidnapped me for this candy, he should at least look thrilled.
‘…?’
My expression stiffened.
My expectations were wrong.
He swallowed it without any reaction, as if it were something unpleasant.
‘It tasted fine to me… so what, he just doesn’t like it?’
Then my ten million penta…
I nervously watched him.
“No poison.”
Only then did I understand.
Why he made me eat it first.
And why he ate it himself even though he didn’t like it.
“So you made me a taste tester.”
“Yes, and I was one as well.”
Kailos corrected me.
“Even if I only put you at risk, I would also be risking myself. So there’s no reason for complaint.”
I scoffed.
“So you’re saying you had to check personally in case I used antidote beforehand?”
I had read enough novels.
I knew how paranoid royals could be.
“You’re smarter than the rumors.”
Kailos smiled faintly.
Judging by how well-informed he was, he had clearly done his research on me.
Or perhaps Adelaide Sitten’s reputation for being foolish was simply that widespread.
“Then you must also know who this is for.”
“Ah…”
I let out a small groan.
If a prince personally acted as a taste tester, the only possible targets were the Emperor or Empress.
And since the Empress was already dead in the story’s timeline…
There was only one answer.
“…His Majesty the Emperor.”
Kailos’s golden eyes gleamed.
Not sinister—more lively, almost playful.
“Excuse me.”
Without warning, he lifted me into his arms.
My body left the ground as his arms supported my back and legs.
It was stable, but extremely uncomfortable.
“Your Highness, I have legs, you know.”
I muttered in disbelief.
Being in a stranger’s arms felt awkward.
Even if that stranger was an extremely handsome man like Kailos Oberon.
But objectively speaking, his arms were not exactly comfortable.
His muscles felt like stone—trained, hardened.
Still, he showed no intention of putting me down.
“You might try something unnecessary.”
I frowned.
Unnecessary?
I had already proven I didn’t use poison.
What else could I possibly do?
Perhaps he had suffered too many betrayals in the imperial court.
Kailos Oberon was far more cautious than I expected.
“Is that really all?”
“Ten million penta.”
He reminded me calmly.
So that was it.
The ten million penta contract didn’t just mean making dalgona—it also meant obeying his orders, no matter how strange they seemed.
So did I refuse?
No.
I had been earning only a few hundred penta a day not long ago.
Ten million meant I would do anything.
“Yes, I’ll behave. I won’t move a finger.”
The answer came out automatically as soon as he mentioned the reward.
Naturally, I ended up holding the plate of dalgona while being carried.
He couldn’t carry both me and the plate at the same time.
I sighed inwardly.
A prince carrying a woman holding candy.
How ridiculous must that look?
Fortunately, we didn’t meet many people in the hallway.
But that would change once we arrived.
Because our destination was the Emperor’s audience chamber.
Ten minutes later.
“…Huh?”
I blinked.
Why was the Emperor’s audience chamber in such a deserted hallway?
The corridor was decorated lavishly, fitting its importance, but it was eerily empty.
Strange thoughts filled my head.
Maybe “offering dalgona to the Emperor” was just an excuse.
Maybe I was actually being taken to a torture room.
After all, the man carrying me was the story’s hidden mastermind.
Finally, the strange procession stopped.
Kailos stood in front of a door guarded by two knights and set me down.
“Open it.”
He ordered.
“You may not enter, Your Highness Kailos.”
The knight replied stiffly.
“His Majesty is resting. No one is to disturb him.”
I sighed in relief.
At least it wasn’t a torture room.
Kailos’s voice turned cold.
“I will not repeat myself. Open the door.”
