Chapter 11: The Demon Lord’s Culinary Challenge and the Empress’s Mischievous Musings

“In any case, your primary task now is to learn how to cook as quickly as possible! Hmm… the kitchen is over there. Go on, go on, you can do it!”

That night, standing before the stove, Luo Jia recalled Allyrose’s words. Having just disposed of dozens of bags of trash, he couldn’t help but gasp, nearly fainting from sheer exasperation.

Fortunately, just as his vision blurred, the Demon Lord just in time pinched his philtrum. After a long moment of recovery, he slowly regained his senses.

‘This damned woman…’

‘Isn’t she a bit too much of a shut-in?’

‘What is this? A perfect goddess in public, a slovenly shut-in behind closed doors?’

‘Please, Goddess, spare a thought for the countless believers who worshipped you for so many years!’

‘Even if you’re no longer the Saintess, imagine the horrifying disillusionment your followers would face if they saw you in this degenerate, reclusive state, or this house filled to the brim with trash, resembling an old drunkard’s bedroom!’

‘Tsk…’

‘Sooner or later, I will expose this pretentious pseudo-Saintess!’

After a moment, Luo Jia took a long, deep breath, pondered his thoughts, and then turned his gaze towards the kitchen before him.

‘Hmm… alright, it seems the most pressing issue right now is still this.’

‘How exactly am I supposed to cook…?’

‘Ugh, if I try to just wing it…’

Luo Jia imagined what might happen next, and then… for some inexplicable reason, a horrifying scene materialized before his eyes.

He and Allyrose were both frothing at the mouth, unconscious on the sofa, while on the coffee table sat a black, shapeless… solid.

‘Cough, cough, cough…’

‘Let’s just forget about it!’

Luo Jia quickly shook his head. Since he had no intention of poisoning Allyrose and committing suicide, if he couldn’t learn to cook, he should at least consider technological or magical solutions.

With that thought, after a moment, Luo Jia suddenly wore a triumphant smile.

‘What a joke. It’s just cooking, isn’t it?’

‘Could this possibly stump the Demon Lord?!’

A moment later, the Demon Lord extended a hand, then with a flick of his wrist, summoned several glowing spirits.

Within seconds, the wok was on the stove, oil was heating, and then… ingredients flew in automatically, while the spatula and the wok itself began to stir-fry.

‘Victory~’

‘Hmph…’

The Demon Lord crossed his arms, gazing with satisfaction at the fully automated cooking process before him, silently calculating the perfect time to serve.

‘Hmm, speaking of which…’

‘Where is that woman, Allyrose? She dumped all the work on me—where did she run off to?’

****

“Ya~hoo—!”

After dumping all the chores on Luo Jia, Allyrose joyfully flopped onto her large bed, then closed her eyes to savor the moment.

‘Hmm…’

However, after only a few seconds with her eyes closed, Allyrose opened them again, a flicker of worry in her gaze. How to describe it… inexplicably, she felt a slight pang of guilt?

‘Oh, I was too lazy to throw out the trash before, so it piled up. Now I’ve dumped it all on the pretty boy. Isn’t that a little… not good?’

‘Cough, cough…’

Yet, a moment later, the scoundrel woman decisively coughed twice, then promptly discarded her feelings of guilt.

‘What a joke! I came to this novel world to be an emperor! I should prioritize my own enjoyment first!’

‘Cough, cough. Besides, I’m paying to keep the pretty boy. Doing some chores is only right, only right!’

‘Perhaps, for the pretty boy, this is even more acceptable. At least doing some work is just a bit tiring. If he didn’t work, he’d probably be tormented and teased by me~’

‘Well…’

‘Uh, no, that’s not right…’

‘It sounds like I’m some kind of pervert…’

Allyrose decisively shook her head. It wasn’t like that at all. The girl merely… merely enjoyed teasing boys, especially innocent young virgins, and watching them blush furiously while trying to feign manliness~

‘If you ask why…’

‘Cough, cough. It’s probably because, before Allyrose transmigrated, there was an older sister living next door, and she… she, cough, cough…’

‘…was the innocent young virgin who got teased.’

Her former self was caught in the act, but after transmigrating, Allyrose realized… the older sister was right! ‘Let me tell you, an older sister teasing a young virgin isn’t just messing around!’

‘Because it’s truly… exhilarating~!’

‘Pfft, pfft, pfft. It’s not about falling in love with men. It’s just that… seeing the innocent expressions of those young virgins, a natural, uncontrollable joy arises within her, a pleasure in effortlessly toying with them.’

‘It’s probably like… having once been rained on, so now you want to spray water on others… that kind of mischievous thought.’

…

‘Hmm, but… am I adapting to this new identity a bit too quickly?’

Allyrose blinked, looking out the window. For a moment… her mood suddenly grew somewhat bewildered.

If teasing Luo Jia could be explained as imitating the older sister’s behavior, then… she seemed to have no resistance to her current body at all. In fact… she even found herself enjoying using this body’s charm…

‘It feels like I’m really becoming Allyrose… Is that true?’

Perhaps this was also due to her having fused with a part of the original host’s personality and memories, especially that troublesome, deep love the original host held for her scumbag fiancé… it was truly a headache.

The only solution Allyrose could think of now was… to tease Luo Jia more, using another man to desensitize herself. Perhaps the effect would gradually improve.

‘Cough, cough… Of course, teasing is one thing, but for Allyrose, one point was very important.’

‘That was… she wouldn’t forget who she truly was…’

‘Become a complete girl? Even fall in love with someone else?’

‘Heh, how could that be?’

Allyrose pouted, already envisioning her future. What magnificent visions they were! She could return to the real world with a hundred-million goal, live a laid-back life, and enjoy modern technology.

Alternatively, she could rely on the system to turn the tables on those ‘dog-couple’ villains, dominate the other world, achieve a kingly destiny, and revel in the ’emperor’ life of swords and magic.

‘Heh…’

‘Hehehe~’

Just thinking about it, Allyrose was already on the verge of laughing aloud.

So, teasing pretty boys, ridiculing her fiancé, and such, were merely Allyrose’s little quirks.

What she truly desired was to live for herself, to be utterly self-serving… to follow her own inclinations.

‘Love, or whatever? Heh, does she truly need such a ridiculous thing?’

That’s why… Allyrose was like this now. After transmigrating, she couldn’t even bother to put on an act behind closed doors, simply giving up and being exactly as she was in her previous life~

‘As for what would happen if others, especially her former believers, found out?’

‘Well…’

‘Cough, cough. It’s a contrast, a moe contrast, right?’

‘Hmm…’

‘Oh, right! Wait a minute…’

Allyrose, who had been contemplating life for a while, suddenly remembered something, then abruptly sat up in bed.

‘I almost forgot…’