Ch. 5: For the Best Chocolate
Creto continued to look at the poster for a little longer, then looked up as if having decided on something.
Creto: “OO, I have a favor to ask… there’s a condition that to enter the competition, you have to be a pair, so would you enter with me?”
OO: “M-me!?”
(Participate in the chocolate competition… together with Creto?)
OO: “But I don’t know anything about making chocolate…”
Creto: “That’s alright! If you’re right there with me for support, I’m sure I can make the best chocolate.”
OO: “Creto…?”
Creto: “Ah… well.”
He buried his face in his scarf in embarrassment.
Creto: “This competition… has an ancient and honorable origin world-wide. My father, and my grandfather, and everyone else in the Latte Family has won this competition… and become first-class chocolatiers. I want to do that too… but incidentally I can only make things that look weird. If I try my absolute very best… maybe guys really can make chocolate, and I’ll become cool. That’s why…”
Creto took a breath.
Creto: “This whole time until now… I’ve had absolutely no confidence in myself, but if you’re there… You, who said you wanted to eat the chocolate that I made… then I want to make the best chocolate.”
Creto looked straight at me.
There was a passion burning deep in those eyes.
(If I can be helpful to Creto…)
OO: “Alright, if you’re sure. Let’s make some delicious chocolate together.”
At that, Creto’s usual wonderful smile returned.
There was an autumn chill in the air, but our feelings were warm as we smiled to each other.
Ch. 6: Sweet Chocolate and His Determination
Creto: “There’s a condition that to enter the competition, you have to be a pair, so would you enter with me?”
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After that…-.
Creto and I immediately went to the palace where he lived and set out to make use of the kitchen.
Cook: “Prince Creto, are you experimenting with chocolate again today?”
Creto: “Yeah, let me borrow the kitchen for a bit.”
With a practiced hand, Creto spread out all the tools on the worktable.
Creto: “OO, could you get me the notebook in the second drawer there?”
(Um… is that this?)
I opened the drawer in front of me and pulled out a notebook, which opened on its own…
(Wow… there are so many chocolate recipes in here. Plus, there are a bunch of labels with notes on trials and failures.)
OO: “Did you write all this Creto?”
Creto: “Yeah. I figured it was no good if I couldn’t make the best chocolate in the whole country. I’m a prince, so if it wasn’t something that could make everyone smile with happiness…”
I handed over the notebook while Creto spoke, and his expression turned serious as he heated up water for the chocolate.
The way he used his hands was both delicate and self-assured, and I could only stand there and be impressed.
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Creto: “If I try my absolute very best… maybe guys really can make chocolate, and I’ll become cool. That’s why…”
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OO: “I think you’re really cool when you’re trying your best Creto…”
Creto: “Huh? What did you say OO?”
OO: “Ah, um, nothing!”
Creto: “…? I’m getting fired up! I’ll definitely make the ultimate chocolate!”
OO: “Yeah!”
(I have to do my best!)
And so, until the day of the competition, we spent every day absorbed in the effort of trying out different types of chocolate…-.
…
……
Then the day of the competition arrived…
The place where the competition was to be held was the kitchen of the Shocoluna Castle.
(So many people… I didn’t think there’d be so many competing to make chocolate.)
There were older, experienced craftsmen, and younger craftsmen who looked tense…
All sorts of different people were gathered together, and I felt my heart pound with nervousness.
OO: “Good luck… Creto.”
Creto: “Yeah, I’ll definitely make the best chocolate.”
OO: “So then, what did you decide to make?”
While we were experimenting, right up until the start of the competition, Creto hadn’t decided on which chocolate to present.
Creto placed both hands on the worktable and lifted his head.
Creto: “My absolute favorite milk chocolate ganache. Regardless, everyone will try it, so I want my victory or defeat to be decided by something I love.”
Creto turned to look at the judge’s seating, then switched back to me and nodded.
OO: “…”
(Creto looks really serious.)
I remembered Creto’s mass of notes and memos from his trial runs of chocolate.
(…I don’t think Creto realizes this himself, but everyone else can see that he’s more earnest and hardworking than anyone.)
Creto, a boy so skilled at making chocolate, had eyes that were shining now.
I wanted to continue to stand by his side and help him, just a little longer…-.
…
……
Then at last, the judges came up to announce their decision…
It was decided that this year, the best chocolate went to Creto.
The two of us shared in the excitement and reflexively hugged each other in joy.
…
……
Then when the competition had finished, the two of us went out into town to breath in the fresh air.
Creto: “Here OO.”
OO: “Eh…”
I turned to Creto as he said my name and…-.
In front of me was the delicious chocolate that he’d made.
The refined smell of cacao tickled my nose.
OO: “Isn’t this… the chocolate you made for the competition? Is it okay for me to eat it?”
Creto: “Yeah, open wide.”
The sweet smell, and the even sweeter sound of Creto’s voice…
(I’m excited…)
I slowly opened my mouth and took a bite of the chocolate Creto held in his fingers.
The taste was rich as it melted on my tongue and transported me with a strange sense of ecstasy.
It was like the taste of love…
OO: “…it’s delicious. I’ve never had chocolate that tasted this good.”
My lips and Creto’s fingers were both coated in chocolate…
The color made my heart beat faster.
With a thump… I made a pleased noise in my throat and Creto smiled gently again.
Creto: “Not just this, but I’ll give you even more delicious chocolate from now on. I won’t spare any effort to make that happen. So… will you be with me again the next time?”
I was speechless in the face of his beautiful smile and the taste of the delicious chocolate…
I could only take a deep breath and nod towards Creto.
The magic of his chocolate had totally and completely charmed my heart.
END
Secret Story: Earnest Chocolate
Late at night, a few days after we’d gained complete victory at the chocolate competition…-.
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OO: “…it’s delicious. I’ve never had chocolate that tasted this good.”
Creto: “Not just this, but I’ll give you even more delicious chocolate from now on. I won’t spare any effort to make that happen.”
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I kept my promise to OO and over the last few days, I had spent night after night in the kitchen trying out new types of chocolate.
Creto: “…phew. Alright, done!”
I had continued to work, bent over the worktable now covered with multiple types of chocolate.
(I feel like they’ve improved significantly in terms of appearance but…)
Creto: “Anyway, time to sample each and every single one.”
Opening my recipe notes, I put the nearest piece of chocolate into my mouth.
(Yeah, good. But… it’s a little strong, so it’s easy to get tired of.)
Around the illustrations of the chocolate I’d made beforehand, I made notes on the taste, feel, balance, and any other little things I noticed.
Creto: “…”
Completely absorbed in my writing, I could sometimes fill multiple pages with notes about one single type of chocolate.
Creto: “…phew. Alright, that should be good for this type of chocolate. Next is… this one.”
I picked up a trial ball of chocolate and put it in my mouth.
Creto: “…oh. This has a good sweetness.”
It was a truffle that I’d adjusted to OO’s liking based on my favorite milk chocolate ganache.
Creto: “Yeah, the texture is smooth, and the taste is good…”
I continued to write notes on my notepad.
Then a little after I’d finished writing down my impressions, I put a circle around the illustration.
(Hehe. That’ll be the fourth one.)
Flipping through the notes, I counted up the ones that I’d drawn circles around.
(I marked all the ones OO would like so I wouldn’t forget, but… if I keep increasing the numbers little by little, I bet she’ll be super happy.)
I found myself smiling in delight without realizing.
But…
Creto: “…oh whoops. Gotta keep testing.”
(If someone saw me grinning to myself like that alone in the kitchen, there’d be an uproar about how uncool I am.)
Turning away from those thoughts, I searched through the samples on the table.
Then at that time…-.
Creto: “…ah.”
A single piece of chocolate caught my eye.
Creto: “…right. I’ll try this one next.”
I murmured those words to myself as I picked up the piece and put it to my mouth.
Then, the typical sweet taste of chocolate mixed with the refreshing zing of citrus filled my mouth.
Creto: “Yeah, not bad. But it’s a little different from the others. I wonder what OO would think of this flavor…”
I put the piece I’d bitten into back on the table and, just like I’d been doing, picked up my pen.
Then after a while, I finished writing down my impressions…-.
Creto: “… … …good.”
I put a circle around the illustration.
(It’s difficult to know if this would suite her preferences but… it was definitely made… with a hint of that special feeling… I’ll definitely have her try it someday.)
Thinking that, my gaze dropped back to the piece I’d taken a bite out of.
Since the first time I’d met OO, my heart had been overcome time and again with the overwhelming earnestness expressed in the bittersweet taste of chocolate made with orange peel.
END