<Chapter 13>
#2. A Hamster in the Snake’s Den (3)
Frozen stiff with no time to even register the pain in his neck, Melty looked up at Angel with anxious eyes. Angel felt guilt rising from deep in his chest at the moisture gathering in those large eyes looking up at him, feeling as if he had become the villain. However, the gold coin in the inner pocket of his chest was too hot for him to back out now.
“Well… to break the contract, there’s a penalty fee…”
“Ah, yes. That’s right. The penalty is quite large. Moreover, there’s the debt that Mr. Melty had been carrying that’s been resolved now, right? When you add all that together…”
Angel leaned close to Melty’s ear and whispered the total amount of the penalty fee plus the debt. At the staggering amount that was more than he’d expected, Melty’s face once again became deathly pale. Even before hearing it from Angel, he was aware that the debt he owed to Calix was substantial. Although it was difficult to face him directly, Melty had occasionally helped with cooking in the kitchen, but now he realized that was nowhere near enough to cover such an amount. Angel patted Melty’s shoulder comfortingly while looking at his dejected form.
“In the current situation, it would be difficult for Mr. Melty to cook for Master Calix as originally contracted, wouldn’t it?”
“Y-yes, that’s right…”
No matter how hard he tried to think differently, the thought that he would be eaten alive wouldn’t go away. Seeing Melty nodding his head vigorously up and down, Angel spoke as if doing him a favor.
“Then how about assisting Master Calix with his work?”
Melty’s round eyes grew even larger at Angel’s suggestion. Blinking at the unexpected proposal, Melty let out an awkward sound.
“M-me…?”
“Yes. It shouldn’t be anything too difficult. First of all, I’ll be there too.”
Despite Angel’s reassurance, Melty shrank back. Assisting with work meant being near Calix anyway. He was still scared just thinking about Calix. Pretending not to notice Melty’s hesitation, Angel placed his arm on Melty’s shoulder.
“It’s not about changing your duties. According to the contract, Mr. Melty came here as Master Calix’s exclusive chef anyway.”
Melty nodded his head obediently at Angel’s gentle tone. As he had originally known, even if his gift wasn’t “revealing what food the other person wants to eat,” the satisfaction level was high when he used his gift. He might have settled comfortably by utilizing his gift as he had thought when signing the contract, but using his gift on Calix was meaningless.
‘I don’t know why my face appears only when I use my gift on him, but…’
Until he knew exactly what gift had been bestowed by the Beast God, it was impossible to understand the reason. Angel glanced at Melty’s fidgeting fingers and smiled warmly.
“As Mr. Melty is aware, it seems we can’t rely on your gift in this situation. If that’s the case, don’t you need to know more about Master Calix in order to perform your duties?”
“Wh-what kind of things…?”
“Things like his preferences, his taste in food, and so on.”
Melty’s head nodded unconsciously at Angel’s casual tone. Rationally thinking, to perform the role of “exclusive chef,” he needed to know about Calix, who was his employer. Lacking confidence in his basic cooking skills was a separate issue.
“So I’m suggesting that you assist with his work until you become familiar with these things. There’s a lot you can only learn by being close by, isn’t there?”
“B-but…”
The words that came out of Melty’s mouth in defiance couldn’t reach a conclusion. He couldn’t bring himself to say that his employer was scary or that he disliked him. Melty was aware that he was receiving too much in the mansion compared to the work he wasn’t doing. Moreover, he was the one who signed the contract, and he clearly recognized that it wasn’t something to be taken lightly.
Angel looked at Melty, who could neither readily accept nor refuse, and stroked his shoulder reassuringly.
“Are you that afraid of Master Calix?”
At his question, Melty’s head nodded up and down emphatically. Seeing his nod, Angel thought ‘the situation is worse than I expected’ and stroked his chin with his free hand.
“He may be a bit mischievous, but he’s not a bad person. He’s been taking good care of Mr. Melty in many ways, hasn’t he?”
“…In what way?”
Melty’s eyes widened as if he had heard something absurd for the first time in his life. Faced with Melty’s expression that clearly conveyed “I don’t understand,” Angel felt cold sweat running down his back in embarrassment.
“W-well… He pays a lot of attention to the food you eat, and he treats you kindly…”
“The ones who care about what I eat are the chefs. And ‘kindness’…? Does the Padrian family consider ambushing people as an expression of kindness?”
Angel’s mouth quietly closed at Melty’s firm statement that this point couldn’t simply be brushed aside. While Melty’s words weren’t wrong, it was true that Calix did care about his food. After all, it was with his permission that the chefs could freely use the Padrian family’s ingredients without any concern.
But in the current situation, it didn’t seem like pointing out each of these details would uphold Calix’s honor or dignity. Deciding that maintaining Melty’s trust was more important, Angel diffused the tension with an awkward laugh. Melty, who had been staring at him, pushed his lower lip forward again.
“I understand that Mr. Angel has to be considerate of your employer, but you don’t need to try so hard to take his side.”
“B-but he really isn’t a bad person. He has many good qualities!”
Angel’s forced smile made the corners of his mouth tremble. He needed to somehow change Melty’s image of Calix to something more positive. An additional gold coin was at stake for this task. That one gold coin Calix had wagered made Angel act desperately.
“Good qualities? What good qualities do you think he has?”
Melty’s question with his round eyes was innocent. Angel gulped dryly at the question that contained pure curiosity without any hostility toward Calix. Instinctively, he felt that the answer to this question was extremely important. The longer Angel racked his brain to come up with a good answer, the longer the silence stretched. As the silence continued, the curious expression on Melty’s face gradually cooled. Feeling the urgency from the change in his expression, Angel hastily blurted out:
“W-well… M-money!”
“Huh? Money…?”
Ruined.
At Melty’s question with his head tilted, Angel wanted to tear out all his hair right then and there. He had meant to give an answer that could evoke a positive feeling, but what came out was his own sincere thought that he always felt on his skin. Suppressing the urge to cry over the ruined situation, Angel moved his mouth to salvage the conversation with an awkward smile.
“There’s no family wealthier than the Padrian family. No place pays such generous wages and takes such good care of welfare benefits like here. There are so many places that earn a lot of money but are stingy toward their subordinates.”
“I see… Come to think of it, I was also very surprised by the high wages when I was writing the contract.”
Angel sighed with relief as Melty nodded with a gentle face, accepting his explanation. He wasn’t sure if he had successfully appealed on Calix’s behalf, but at least he hadn’t lost any points himself.
“And he’s also extremely handsome. Quite a few people work here just to see that face.”
This was a pretty good point, though it occurred to him a bit late. Calix Kuse Padrian was already quite famous due to his tall stature and refined appearance. Of course, a major part of his fame was also due to his personality that failed to match his appearance. Excluding that latter part entirely, Angel continued praising his appearance. Of course, he didn’t forget to quickly wet his lips with his tongue for the sake of what little conscience he had left.
After reciting various minor incidents that had occurred due to his handsomeness for quite some time, Angel concluded with a sense of satisfaction. Melty, who had been listening to Angel’s praise silently, smiled shyly and whispered:
“Mr. Angel must really like him.”
“Pardon…?”
Angel felt like he had caused some strange misunderstanding. As if to prove that his thought was correct, Melty looked around and whispered as if sharing a secret:
“I may not be of much help, but I’ll support you.”
“…What kind of support are you talking about?”
Angel asked dryly as Melty clenched both fists and took a fighting stance. Although he thought it absolutely couldn’t be that kind of misunderstanding, the ominous feeling somehow wouldn’t disappear. Then Melty delivered the final blow:
“I know everything. Mr. Angel also works here because you want to see him up close, right?”
“No! No! Absolutely not! It’s absolutely because of the ‘money’!”
Melty’s eyes blinked at Angel’s terrified exclamation. The saying that a strong denial is a strong affirmation flashed through his mind. Angel clearly conveyed his belief that ‘money is the best!’ multiple times. And Melty, who had been quietly listening to his explanations, nodded obediently.
‘He seems to be very shy. I should pretend not to know.’
While laughing “hehe,” Melty fidgeted with his own fingers. Angel’s eyes narrowed as he sensed an ominous aura in that laugh. Feeling that the uneasiness wouldn’t go away, Angel stroked the back of his neck and casually threw out a question.
“In Mr. Melty’s view, what did you… what did you think of Master Calix?”
“When you ask what I thought…”
“H-his appearance! Appearance. Haha.”
“Hmm…”
Melty pondered, chewing on his lips. To be honest, he didn’t have much memory of him from when they first met. That day was filled with a series of particularly shocking events. He couldn’t remember much else from that day when he could barely keep his wits about him. Above all, he still didn’t have good feelings toward Calix.
‘But it doesn’t seem right to speak ill of someone in front of a person who has a crush on them…’
After checking Angel’s expression, Melty carefully regulated his breathing. This was the first time he was actually applying the coping methods he had learned from his brothers and sisters. Looking at Angel’s eyes, which were a mixture of worry and expectation, Melty smiled brightly.
“I think Mr. Angel is right. I thought so too.”
“……”
Angel’s unease intensified.
Angel, who had been staring blankly at the brightly smiling Melty, opened his mouth with an awkward smile.
“So… Mr. Melty also thinks Master Calix is handsome, right?”
“Yes. Oh! But not as much as Mr. Angel thinks. Don’t worry.”
“…This really seems to have gone wrong somehow…”
Melty’s head tilted to the other side at Angel’s low mumble. Angel rubbed his eyelids, feeling as if there was a dangling question mark above Melty’s head. Lamenting his precious labor being wasted on such a task for the sake of a gold coin, he swallowed a sigh and rose to his feet.
“Anyway, Mr. Melty won’t have any inconveniences while working as an assistant. I think it would be more comfortable for you to assist in order to prepare for your original duties.”
“Yes. I’ll do that. You’ll be with me too, right, Mr. Angel?”
Angel felt slightly relieved at the sight of Melty nodding his head willingly, despite having shown clear signs of fear toward Calix until just moments ago. Angel extended his hand toward Melty, who was still seated.
“Of course. Now that we’ve decided, there’s no need to waste time here. Let’s go to Master Calix together.”
“R-right now?”
“Of course. Decisions and actions should always proceed immediately.”
At Angel’s declaration, Melty hesitated but then took his hand and stood up. The thought of having to be in the same space with Calix continuously was uncomfortable even to imagine, but Angel’s words were certainly persuasive. And he had been feeling uncomfortable just eating, playing, and living like a guest when he had come to work.
‘Maybe I can help Mr. Angel too…’
Melty smiled softly while thinking thoughts that would have made Angel collapse from high blood pressure had he known.
