Chapter 5
“To Grandma Victoire,
Grandma, it’s me, Camille. Remember I told you last time I made a new friend? Her name’s Sarah. You wrote back telling me to stay close with Sarah, since making friends is always a good sign.
So I spoke to Sarah and even complimented her on the pretty dress she was wearing. Sarah smiled at my words, as if she wanted to be friends with me. I think she liked that I could speak the Imperial language well. All my hard work studying paid off!
Sarah even invited me to her house. I was so happy! The truth is, I really envied her green dress. I imagined her wardrobe would be full of beautiful clothes like that, and the thought made me so excited.
Sarah’s house was huge—two stories with an attic. There was even a front yard. To me, Sarah looked like a princess. She said she wanted to have a meal with me, and of course I said yes.
You’ve always said, Grandma, that eating together is the best way to make friends. So I was really grateful to Sarah for offering her hand in friendship.
When I went into Sarah’s kitchen, there was a table full of delicious food. I had never seen so much food served at once! There was mushroom soup, spaghetti, and roasted meat. Sarah’s mother had made them all.
Sarah sat down. I tried to sit next to her. But Sarah said to me, “No, Camille. You stand.” I did as she said, since it was her house after all.
Sarah began eating all that delicious food. I really wanted to eat too, so I asked her when I could have some. But she just told me to keep standing and not to sit down.
I did as she said, but I couldn’t understand why. It felt like I was being punished. Sarah had clearly invited me to have a meal with her…
So I told her I wanted to eat together.
Then Sarah said, “I invited you to the table, but I never said you could eat.” I still didn’t understand why I had to stand there doing nothing.
Maybe because I didn’t understand, Sarah got angry. She said: “My mother made this for me because she loves me. Why should I share what’s made for me with a colonial kid like you? Are you begging me right now? I thought you might be different from other colonial kids since you speak our language well and seem nice.”
Sarah never calmed down. I feel like I should apologize, but I still don’t know what I did wrong. Please help me, Grandma. I love you.
From your granddaughter, Camille.”
“To Miss Helen, who likes rubies as much as I do,
You promised, right? You’ll definitely go to the restaurant with me? I’ll need to prepare what to wear that day! I’ll meet you in my best clothes!
At the restaurant, we should try other dishes too. I’m so curious what kind of food will be waiting for me! There will probably be many other items on the menu, and I want to experience them all.
In return, I’ll invite you to my home. I want to cook something just for you that tastes as good as anything from a restaurant! I’m actually quite confident in my cooking. Even the pickiest crows in the neighborhood admitted my food was delicious!
I can’t wait for the day we’re together. Make sure you call me! I’m being very serious!
On a night flipping through recipes for mushroom soup, spaghetti, and beef steak,
Enoch Greer”
“Hello, Diary. Tomorrow is the day of the grand festival I’ve been longing for! On the night of the Golden Moon, we hold a festival. If you saw the beautiful, golden moon, you’d want to have a festival too!
When the season for Ruen Doh comes, snow begins to fall from the sky. It’s the coldest time of the year. We enjoy the festival walking on the crunchy snow, but without thick boots, you might get frostbite—so be careful!
Seeing the world turn white is wonderful, but unfortunately there’s not much to do during the day. That’s when we have to sleep anyway, since Ruen Doh only begins after six in the evening. By then, the whole world turns dark… except for here.
Because during Ruen Doh, this place becomes the brightest in the world.
Once the festival starts, the streets are filled with colorful lights and giant lanterns. The person who decorates their lantern most beautifully and brightly gets a prize. It’s all to honor the moon.
There’s also lots of delicious food! Turkey and cake are must-haves for Ruen Doh. People sing hymns for the moon as they march through the streets. And for the final event, everyone makes a wish to the moon. You mustn’t tell anyone your wish—otherwise it loses its power.
The adults say the moon can work magic, and if it loves you, your wish will come true. I wonder if my wish will be granted next year? Even though I’ve been making wishes every year, the chance hasn’t come to me yet.
Anyway, that’s why I won’t be writing tomorrow—I’ll be out enjoying the festival!
See you the day after tomorrow.”
— From the diary of Victoire Laurent (8 years old)
“To Enoch, the chef approved by crows,
Hey, crows eat anything. Have you ever seen them picky about food? Gourmet crow—now that’s the most mismatched word combination ever.
But if it’s a magical crow from the world of magic, maybe it’s different. I heard they can cast spells with their eyes and fly on broomsticks, so why couldn’t they be food critics too?
Speaking of cooking, there’s a strange story I heard here. Want to hear it? There’s a girl named Cassie, and her boyfriend was a great cook. He wore an apron so often at home that people nicknamed him Apron. Normally, men think wearing an apron is embarrassing, but he wore it proudly.
Also, without an apron, your clothes can get messy while cooking. So Cassie’s boyfriend always wore an apron over his suit.
So far, not very interesting, right? Here’s the funny part. One day, Cassie went to his house, and he was wearing an apron again—but that was all he was wearing. Literally nothing else—just the apron. And he was cooking! Cassie had a key to his place, and he hadn’t expected her to arrive so soon.
If Cassie had been like other girls, she would’ve walked right out. But she was a bit unusual. She thought her boyfriend looked so attractive like that.
Then, well, they did what most adult couples do. Weird, right? I nearly died laughing. I guess her boyfriend must have been something else. Still, even if he was handsome and well-built, to start kissing him like that… Cassie really was the right girl for him.
My point is—first, that this story is hilarious, and second, that you shouldn’t walk around naked at home. Especially if someone else has a key. If a burglar breaks in while you’re naked, how will you defend yourself?
Of course, you’re a dignified wizard, so you wouldn’t make such a mistake, right?
Hmm… now that I think about it, maybe this wasn’t the best kind of story to send to a man. But who cares! I’m on the battlefield, so I can legally act like a crazy woman.
Damn it. I’m too lazy to rewrite this, so just read it. Suddenly I’m curious—since you’re a wizard, you don’t have to lift a finger, right? Does that mean your pans and ingredients just float around?
— H.A”
“Dear Miss Helen,
The story you told me is quite interesting! I can understand the man. It’s hotter than you think in front of a fire. Cooking takes time. Honestly, sweating naked is better than sweating in clothes. That sticky feeling of sweat-soaked fabric clinging to your skin is just unbearable.
I’m so curious—what kind of apron was he wearing?
For us wizards, cooking is an important task and ritual. We even have special clothes for it.
First, you wear a headband to keep your hair from falling—because hair in food is a disaster. Then, we wear a black puff-sleeved outfit. Black is practical because stains don’t show easily (and puff sleeves are pretty!).
Over that, we wear a white apron—so we can spot any sauce stains right away. Imagine me cooking in such an outfit!
We always use our hands in cooking—it’s a delicate and precise process. It’s actually irreverent to make food float with magic. Even two drops too many can change the flavor, and doing that by magic takes even more effort.
Well, does that answer your question?
Have a good night.
And you were right—we wizards never wear nothing but an apron.
On a night offering dinner to the gourmet crow,
Enoch Greer”
