A Captive Prince Awaiting Execution Falls In Love With A Young Lady - Episode 11

Sirius and Judith were intently staring at the four glass cups placed on the table. To be precise, they were puddings made under Judith’s overall supervision.

The sun is still at its zenith, and the clear sunlight fills the room.

“……Hey, Judith”

“What”

“I really understand that you want to entertain me.”

“Is it getting through to you?”

“Yeah. But…”

“Yeah”

“A pudding with a surprise… Isn’t this a bit harsh for someone who just started eating regular food today?”

“No, I think it’s fine.”

“On what basis do you think that?”

“I was thinking it would be okay if it’s Sirius.”

“I don’t need that kind of trust.”

After asserting, I looked again at the four pudding cups in front of me.

Even though they call it pudding, only one of them is actually pudding-colored.

The rest are yellow-green, light pink, and deep orange.

One of these, it seems, is the “loser.”

“So, Judith really doesn’t know which one is the wrong one either?”

“That’s right, don’t you think it’s terrible?! Our chef didn’t tell us ‘that’s not fair’!”

Crossing my arms and sulking angrily.

Or rather, chef.

Before we get into fairness and all that, just stop at the point where Judith made her offer. Sirius let out a deep sigh.

“Does that mean it’s bad?”

“I think so, but…”

“What does it taste like? Is it a miss?”

“I don’t know. They didn’t teach me anything.”

“Eh…? Then how am I supposed to know what to base my judgment on?”

Judith nodded with a serious expression.

“Luck. It’s all about luck.”

“If that’s the case, I have absolutely no luck…”

Because my brother-in-law is trying to poison me, and it seems like I’m being forced to help with a coup… Sirius muttered to himself, but Judith was seriously focused on her pudding cup, as if she didn’t care at all.

“Okay, Sirius. Two each for each person, okay?”

Judith speaks as if she were handling hazardous materials.

“First, let’s take them one at a time.”

“Who will take it first?”

“Isn’t that lady first?”

“No way. If this is a get-well gift, shouldn’t I be the first one?”

“I didn’t say it was a get-well gift.”

“What?!”

“I thought about eating with Sirius, but I never said it was a gift.”

“Ahh… Judith. You’ve really gotten dirty, haven’t you… for your own sake.”

“Say whatever you want. For now, this is what I’ve got!”

Saying that, he pulled closer a pudding of standard color.

The appearance, and upon closer inspection, even the fine black specks look just like vanilla beans—this is a genuine pudding.

“……That might be a trick question.”

Judith flinched at Sirius’s words.

“Because, doesn’t it feel so obvious? I wouldn’t fall for it.”

“You’re trying to separate me from this realistic-looking pudding like that! I won’t fall for such a trap! By the way, which one will Sirius take?”

“I’ll take this.”

What I attracted after saying it was a light green pudding.

“That?! You’re clearly a weird color! You look like a chef who’s feeling unwell!”

“Then let the chef take a break.”

After saying it in disbelief, Sirius looked at the light green pudding in his hand.

“Isn’t green a color that’s often found in plants? So, even if we put some kind of plant liquid in it, I think it might taste pretty good.”

“Ah… I kind of get it now.”

“What is it?”

“That’s why Sirius, you end up getting hit by some natural poison or something.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just because it’s a plant doesn’t mean it’s safe, you know? There are plenty of poisonous plants out there. That’s why you ended up getting poisoned. Your crisis management is lacking.”

“Wait a minute… Are you saying that this pudding has a chance of being poisoned?”

“I don’t really get it… If it’s bad, then that’s fine, but…”

“Scary, scary, scary, scary! The Kyuchuu Haku family, even their games are life-threatening?!”

“Well, anyway, that’s Sirius for you. Alright, next, it’s my turn.”

Judith directed a serious gaze at the remaining two pudding cups.

Somehow, following that gaze, Sirius also looked at the pudding cup.

Light pink or orange?

Somehow, it’s the pale pink that makes me wary.

Red is inherently a color of danger.

It might be super spicy.

But Orange is also suspicious.

This could be extremely sour.

“I’ve decided.”

She lifted her face decisively and resolutely chose the pale pink one.

“Seriously?! What’s up with your crisis management awareness?!”

“Huh?! That shade of orange is definitely suspicious! Sirius should be the one eating that!”

“Your humanity in making someone who was sick until yesterday eat that.”

“This world is survival of the fittest.”

As if on cue, Judith pushed the deep orange pudding towards Sirius.

“Then let’s eat!”

Judith did as she was told and picked up the spoon. Reluctantly, Sirius also picked up the spoon.

As I watch, Judith first picks up the pale pink pudding.

“Surprising. I thought you’d start with something more ordinary.”

Sirius, aiming for the deep orange pudding, says.

“……That definitely seems like a trap.”

“I think so too.”

With a chuckle, Sirius inserts a spoon into the surface of the pudding.

Without even the slightest resistance, the spoon smoothly sinks into the pudding.

Scoop it up, put it in your mouth.

It wasn’t synchronized, but the movement was simultaneous with Judith’s.

“Ah!”

“This!”

And we raised our voices together.

“Raspberry!”

“Pumpkin!”

Judith, sitting across from him, had her eyes wide with joy, and Sirius thought that he must surely have a similar expression on his face.

A well-purified pumpkin with a good texture. It must be a very sweet variety. Instead of the sweetness of sugar, you can feel the sweetness of the pumpkin itself.

The two of them silently finished the first pudding, and then, with a sense of purpose, picked up the second one.

“Well then”

“Now”

We exchanged glances and, as expected, moved the pudding to our mouths in unison.

And then.

“This is the quintessential classic pudding!”

“Wow! It’s pistachio!”

I said it with a smile, though.

We both went “huh?”

“Huh, so that means… no losing?”

“That means… it will be like that, huh? Wow… Making this so smooth must have been really tough.”

The oiliness, or umami, of the pistachio is fully utilized. In terms of texture, pumpkin wins hands down, but even so, this richness is comparable to the sweetness of pumpkin.

“Eh. This isn’t even a fair match.”

“Like, didn’t the chef think so too? Bringing such a terrible pudding as a visit gift for someone who’s sick is just inconsiderate.”

“I thought I would enjoy it.”

“Look at my face after drawing the short straw, aren’t you going to enjoy it?”

“Well, yeah.”

“It’s a terrible story, really.”

They both laughed together, and then took another scoop of pudding.

Got it.

Sirius notices that something has hit the tip of the spoon.

“Hmm?”

“What’s wrong?”

Judith, having finished eating, tilts her head slightly and looks over here.

Sirius simply picked up the spoon.

“Ah!”

“This!”

Once again, they raise their voices simultaneously.

Something on the spoon.

It is a ceramic figurine the size of a broad bean, and you can see that it is wearing a golden crown.

“It’s the king’s cake.”

They looked at each other and then spoke in unison again.

During the summer solstice festival, each household bakes a pie filled with almond cream called “King’s Cake.” Inside the almond cream, there is a ceramic figure resembling a king, and the person who finds it becomes the “king” (or “queen”).

It is said that one can spend the time until the New Year happily and without any trouble, wearing a crown woven from wheat and giving one command to the family.

“Instead of a losing ticket, they gave me a winning one.”

Sirius was impressed by the chef’s quick thinking and sincerely thought, “I’m so glad this isn’t a gift made by Judith.” If it were, she would surely make something extremely spicy or extremely sour.

“There’s no helping it, Sirius.”

Judith pouted her lips in boredom, but pointed the tip of her spoon at Sirius and spoke.

“Say the king’s orders.”

While wryly smiling and thinking, “I can’t tell which one of us is the king here,” Sirius wanders his gaze and says, “Yeah, that’s true.”

“Oh! Then, take Ijet-kun home with you!”

“Rejected”

“Lie. Ignoring the king’s orders?!”

“Other than that”

“What the heck, that too…? Eeeeeh. Hmm, well…”

I tilted my head, wondering if there was anything else, but nothing particular came to mind.

“Well, it can’t be helped. Then, I, the lowly one, shall become the king.”

As soon as he stood up, he quietly approached Sirius.

And then, sitting on the stool and looking up at Sirius, Judith lightly kissed his cheek.

“I’ll give you a kiss. Be grateful.”

Seeing Judith say it with her head held high, Sirius laughed.

After all, with this, I can’t tell who the real king is.

But.

“Thank you, Judith”

It seems that I have indeed hit the jackpot.