I Was Supposed to Be Feeding the Pigeons, But Somehow I Ended Up Feeding a Beautiful Demon Lord Instead - 04

Chapter 4

Even after the week turned, the air in the royal capital remained heavy and oppressive. The unprecedented news that the northern fortress had been melted by magma had cast a deep shadow over people’s hearts.

All sorts of wild rumors were flying around. Some said it was terrain manipulation magic by the “Invisible Strategist,” others that the Demon King had performed a forbidden volcano summoning.

“Extra! Extra! Northern wall fortress completely gone! Testimony from survivors: ‘It was like the cauldron of hell opened!'”

I let out a small sigh while staring at the skyrocketing vegetable prices at the greengrocer.

The cauldron of hell, huh. Natural disasters are terrifying things. I never thought the “boiling water disinfection” I suggested last week would overlap in timing with volcanic activity on such a massive scale.

I wonder if Bel is safe. She said she was in a position like a site supervisor, so she must be chased by intense work again with disaster recovery and cleanup.

(…Maybe I should bring a bit more in the care package.)

I checked the weight of the basket in my hand and headed to the usual park.

In the deepest part of the park, Bel was sitting on the bench today as well.

But her atmosphere was less “fatigue” and more outright “bad mood.”

She sat with her arms crossed, legs crossed, cheeks puffed out, openly sulking. She looked less like an official governing the country and more like a girl whose favorite toy had been taken away.

“…Bel. Good work today.”

When I called out to her, she pretended to glare at me sharply, but her eyes quickly took on a spoiled, sweet color.

“…You’re late, Kazuya. I’ve been waiting forever.”

“Sorry. You seem pretty upset. Did you fight with your boss again?”

“No, not above… below.”

Bel let out a big breath and plopped her head onto my shoulder.

“Oof…”

“I’m tired. Lend me your shoulder today.”

“Y-Yes!”

A nice scent drifted from her silver hair. I naturally accepted it and got into position to listen to her complaints.

“The guys at the site… especially the ‘green ones’ doing the heavy labor on the front lines. They’re giving me trouble.”

“The green ones… oh, the color of their work clothes?”

“Something like that. Those guys have incredible strength, but their brains just don’t keep up. They only know how to brute force things and won’t listen to detailed instructions.”

I see. It seems hard to manage craftsman-like workers on site in any world. Especially this other world’s civil engineering (that’s what I think it is), rough types probably gather easily.

“If I say ‘break the wall,’ they smash it way more than needed and scatter the pieces everywhere. If I say ‘stand by,’ they get bored and start fighting… Honestly, it feels like taming wild beasts.”

“Haha. Isn’t it good that they’re full of energy?”

“It’s no laughing matter. Thanks to them, the wrinkles between my eyebrows just keep getting deeper… Here, look.”

Bel lifted her face and brought it close to mine. Sure enough, faint wrinkles had gathered on her beautiful forehead.

“You’re right. It’s ruining such a pretty face.”

“…Hmph. Whose fault do you think that is?”

“It’s not my fault… but I’ll take responsibility and fix it.”

I opened the lid of the basket. A sweet sugar scent and the savory smell of frying oil wafted out gently.

“…What is this?”

“They’re ‘twisted donuts.’ I twisted the dough, fried it, and coated it heavily with sugar.”

The basket was piled high with golden twisted donuts. They looked rough, but they were chunks of calories and sugar.

“Here, open your mouth.”

“…Huh?”

“Your hands will get dirty, right? I’ll feed you.”

When I picked up one donut, Bel’s eyes widened in surprise, and then her face turned bright red.

But she didn’t refuse. She timidly opened her mouth small, like a baby bird.

“…A-Ah…”

“Here you go.”

I brought the donut to her mouth.

“…Mmm!”

Bel’s body jerked with a twitch. Her eyes melted dreamily, and happy sighs escaped with every chew.

“Sweet. It’s really sweet, Kazuya.”

“Right? When you’re tired, you need this kind of punchy sweetness.”

“Mmm… The more I chew, the more the oil’s flavor seeps out…”

She nibbled the donut from my hand. Her defenseless gestures were so cute that I couldn’t help smiling.

When she finished eating, as expected, white sugar was all over her mouth.

“…Phew. That was delicious.”

“Bel, your face is covered in sugar.”

“Hm? Wipe it for me.”

She stuck her face out naturally. Full spoiled mode. I smiled wryly and gently wiped the sugar from her lips with my thumb.

“There, got it.”

“…Hmph. The other side too.”

“Yes, yes.”

I wiped the sugar on her other cheek too. Every time my finger touched her, Bel narrowed her eyes pleasantly. Like a cat purring.

“…Kazuya’s hands are warm.”

“It’s just the heat from the donuts.”

“No. It’s your heat.”

Bel grabbed my wrist tightly and pressed my palm to her cheek. Her cool skin mixed with the warmth of my hand. Her purple eyes looked up at me, glistening with moisture.

“…Won’t you just keep spoiling me until I’m ruined? I want to throw away work already.”

“That’s no good. The green guys below you are waiting, right? The country would fall…”

“…Ugh. Don’t bring me back to reality.”

Bel grumbled unhappily, but the harsh wrinkles from earlier had disappeared from her face.

“Please share these with the people at the site too. It’s the ‘carrot and stick’ thing. If you give them rewards sometimes, they’ll probably start listening better.”

“I see. Taming with food… no, control through rewards.”

Bel reluctantly let go of my hand and looked down at the basket.

“For beasts that don’t understand words, filling their bellies is best. Kazuya, is it okay to take all these donuts?”

“Yeah, I made a lot for you, Bel.”

“…You’re really sweet. More than these donuts.”

She hugged the basket carefully, stood up, and suddenly turned back to me.

A soft sensation brushed my cheek with a quick peck. It happened in an instant.

“…Thanks. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Bel’s face turned bright red as she flipped her robe and ran off. Her back looked like she was fleeing, but also like she was skipping.

I stood there stunned, hand on my cheek. A faint grainy feel of sugar remained there.

“…Wrong idea about what?”

I muttered to myself while feeding the remaining bread crumbs to the pigeons to hide my embarrassment. Well, as long as she was that happy, it’s good.

Sweet things save the world. I really believe that.

◆

“Uoooooooh!! Sweet! So sweet and delicious!!” “This… this is a direct reward from the Demon King…!!” “What mercy! What high calories!!”

At the frontline camp, a bizarre scene unfolded. Muscular, massive orcs wept and snotted while devouring the donuts.

For them, usually given only crude raw meat or hard bread, donuts fried in refined sugar and good oil were an unknown pleasure hitting their brains directly.

The Orc General raised a half-eaten donut and roared.

“Listen up, you bastards! The Demon King has been watching our work! And she personally handed over the basket while saying ‘Ah…’!”

“””Uoooooooh!! Long live the Demon King!! We’ll follow her forever!!”””

“Offer our flesh and blood to the Demon King! Turn these calories into pure destructive power!”

The sudden blood sugar spike from sugar reacted chemically with their fanatical loyalty to the Demon King. Reason flew from the orcs’ eyes. Only pure fighting instinct and absolute obedience to their lord remained.

Bel watched the frenzy from atop the hill. She touched her cheek, face dreamy.

“…Kazuya was right. Spoiling them is necessary sometimes.”

Bel herself reminisced about the sweet time in the park earlier, her magic surging like she’d been doped.

“Go, my beloved subordinates! Wield that violence to your heart’s content!!”

That day, the kingdom’s key defense, the “Second Knight Order,” was instantly trampled by the charging green giants who attacked as if feeling no pain.

The last thing the knights saw were the orcs swinging axes in ecstasy, mouths stained white.

The Demon King’s “Invisible Strategist” Kazuya. His devised “carrot and stick strategy” left the kingdom’s army with the mysterious lesson: “Never give sugar to orcs.”