The Tyrant Empress is Obsessed with Me

25 – The Frenzied Party

“Head of department! I’m here!”

“You again?”

Sioux Shia.

An original member of the 3rd Evaluation Department, an 8th class public official, and a favorite of the ducal family.

She is the snack thief of the office.

By now, she could probably build a tower with all the snacks she has stolen.

“Today, we have cookies sprinkled with cinnamon powder? I’ll only eat one.”

“Wow, honey-drizzled fruits! These are in season right now, so they’ll taste great. I’ll only eat one, okay?”

“Tart! How did you know I love these the most! Looks delicious. Can I have one, just one?”

She is a one-bite monster.

What is a one-bite monster? It refers to criminals who say they will only take one bite of something, but proceed to eat everything and disappear.

In fact, prior to her dark evolution, one-bite monsters could be seen as cute.

The office snacks were quite abundant, so the addition of just one more mouthful wouldn’t make much difference.

However, Sioux Shia evolved into her dark form.

“Hmm… The dough is slightly undercooked today. Not that great.”

“The fruit is a little sour?”

“Eh. I shouldn’t have eaten it.”

In the end, she became a ‘One-bite Review Monster.’

A One-bite Review Monster.

The dark evolved form of the one-bite monster.

Not only does she come and eat one bite, she also gives unsolicited reviews after eating someone else’s food, then gracefully disappears.

“Leah. From now on, ban Sioux Shia from entering.”

“Understood.”

The next day.

“Head of department! I’m sorry! Please let me in! I promise I won’t do it again!”

Despite Sioux Shia’s desperate knocking on the locked door, Ascal coldly ignored her.

She shouldn’t have crossed the line in the first place.

A few days later.

Ascal happened to run into Sushia in the hallway.

“Sir, I tried baking cookies myself, would you like to try one?”

Sushia offered a cookie with slightly shrunk eyes, looking like a poodle watching its owner’s every move.

“It has no taste.”

Ascal coldly stated after taking a bite of the cookie.

In fact, to be precise, it was mild in taste.

However, the average quality of snacks in the office was so high that it made this cookie taste relatively bland.

Sushia raised her eyebrows, her pride hurt.

“Then why don’t you try making them, sir?”

“You want me to make cookies?”

“Yes. I bet cookies baked by you will have even worse taste, right?”

Ascal chuckled.

“If the cookies I bake taste better than yours, then you’re banned from entering my office forever.”

He spoke with overflowing confidence.

Sushia was about to step back, but suddenly a cunning thought came to her mind.

‘Well, we have the best patisserie and ingredients at our house, right? I’ll just ask him to make them instead.’

Sushia, who finished her calculations, spoke confidently.

“Alright. If I win, I can take all the snacks in your office without any complaints, right?”

“Do as you please.”

“Then our challenge shall be one week later, at our house. I will invite the judges. For the sake of fairness.”

Ascal agreed.

Regardless of what Sushia does, he had no doubt that he would not lose.

Because in his previous life, he had experience working at a bakery.

These amateur cookies, he could easily crush them anytime.

However, Ascal had no idea.

How this cookie challenge would snowball into something else…

“The Senestiya Duke’s family is hosting a banquet.”

“That Senestiya Duke? It’s bound to be a great opportunity. We must attend.”

Sushia was an ambitious woman.

Since they were holding a cookie showdown, the more spectators, the better, they thought.

And so, they decided to create a noisy and lively party for everyone to enjoy.

That was the initial idea.

Until the high-ranking officials from various sectors of the Empire began expressing their willingness to attend one after the other…

“Count Tehern has expressed his intention to participate!”

“Viscount Yorik said he would come!”

“Duke Habel has announced his attendance!”

Sushia’s hands trembled as she received the guest list.

Count Tehern was a highly skilled knight himself, and a prominent figure in the Empire, possessing the renowned Lavender Knight Order.

Viscount Yorik was a big spender who owned the most fertile land in the empire.

Duke Habel was a close friend of Archduke Senestia and a high-ranking noble who had long established a reputation in the empire.

“Th-This must be the end, right? Still, if it’s just these people, we can manage.”

However, news spread quickly, and of course, it reached the ears of the Crown Prince.

Cain laughed as he looked at the party guest list.

“What kind of scheme are our uncles up to now? I suppose I should send someone to watch them.”

The Crown Prince of the Empire was busy.

No matter how influential the attendees were at the party, it was not easy for him to participate in a party that required clearing a full day’s schedule.

“They say that Ascal Debr will attend the party.”

However, the story would be different if it was worth his attendance.

Before his aide could even finish speaking, Cain said.

“Get a message to Archduke Senestia! Tell him I’m attending!”

Crown Prince Cain joined the party.

The Second Princess, Serena, sat in a soft chair, reading the reports sent by her spies.

“Hmm. What wind is blowing for my brother to attend a simple party? It smells fishy.”

Certainly, the names listed on the guest list were interesting.

Each one was a heavy hitter who could influence the Empire.

Many people say that the next emperor is bound to be Cain.

However, Serena had not given up yet. Even the most outstanding people, as long as they are human, are bound to show a weakness.

And Serena was always ready to find and exploit those weaknesses. To do that, she was always listening intently.

And it was unbelievable that Seréna like that would get involved in such an event.

The result always follows action.

“I’ll attend the party. And let the costume room know. Prepare the most expensive dress.”

And.

If by any chance, it was such a huge party, wouldn’t he come?

That tiny ray of hope had influenced Serena’s decision, and she couldn’t deny its impact.

And so, Princess Serena joined the party.

Aescal was busy from the holiday morning.

From No ble mt L dot c om

What was most important when making cookies?

Of course, it was the ingredients. If anyone thought it was sincerity, he recommended taking a pastry class from the beginning.

“Alright. This much flour should do it.”

Aescal, who had selected flour from several stores, then moved on to purchasing butter and eggs.

But somehow, the square was bustling.

Although it was normally the time when people would be chatting with each other, today seemed particularly loud.

“Did you hear? The Crown Prince is attending the party this time!”

“Even the second princess is going. Isn’t this the biggest party in the empire recently?”

“Of course. If you’re a noble with a bit of power, you’ve all participated. In my opinion, the party is just a pretext; actually…”

Hmm.

Aescal nodded as he listened to the conversation.

It seemed the Crown Prince and the second princess were attending the party.

It didn’t concern him.

He needed to focus on the cookie battle.

As Aescal walked by, he overheard a conversation he couldn’t ignore.

“This time, the third princess, Yulia, is also attending, isn’t she?”

And the legendary third princess, Yulia, who hardly ever appeared in public,

had joined the party.

The imperial gossips were abuzz.

Wondering what kind of secret was hidden at this party.

What kind of secret would make these titans all appear?

‘Well, Lia is a princess too. She must be busy.’

They were all big names.

If an ordinary person like himself were to attend that event, they would be instantly crushed like a shrimp among whales.

‘Well, it’s none of my business.’

Ascal hummed a tune while picking out butter. The satisfaction comes from seeing the basket full of ingredients.

Now it’s time to go home and practice.

First, preheat the stone oven.

Meanwhile, mix the sugar delicately with the butter, and once it’s combined to a certain extent, add in the eggs and mix it all together.

Next, gradually add the flour and mix it well until it becomes a cookie dough.

When it reaches a certain consistency, use a tool to cut the dough into small, round shapes.

Then, place the cut dough onto a greased sheet.

Place the dough into the preheated oven.

“Phew.”

His skills haven’t rusted, even after a long time.

As time passed, the cookies started to turn brown.

Ascal took out the sufficiently hardened cookies and placed the sheet outside to cool them.

Crunch.

“I knew it would taste great with good ingredients. This should guarantee a victory.”

Ascal smiled, satisfied as he savored the completed cookie.

“I can’t wait to see Siazza’s tearful face.”

However, Ascal didn’t know that Siazza was already beyond a tearful state, preparing the largest party in history.

Moreover, he was too busy to even find the time to tell Ascal about it…