Chapter Text
Ferdinand had been working in the aub’s office for a couple of bells when the chattering of the scholars finally distracted him enough to disrupt his work.
“...is approaching soon”
“yeah! I cannot wait to see what she will come up with this year!”
Ferdinand’s eyebrow twitched, their scholars were clearly enthusiastic about something to be ignoring the work they had in front of them. He loved his goddess very much, but with her innovative ideas and constant inventions, it seemed like no matter how much Dreghanur spun, the work would never diminish.
“Justus, why is it that everyone is distracted?” His attendant and scholar grinned, knowing that a few years ago his master would have simply silenced everyone and had them back to work, but spending so much time with Lady Rozemyne had softened him slightly.
“It is soon to be Light day, milord, '' he explained further, seeing his master frown. “Every year around mid winter, Lady Rozemyne presents her exclusives, and both of your retainers with confections”
“Whatever for?” Ferdinand asked with confusion evident in his voice.
“You’ll have to ask her yourself, milord. When I have asked she simply starts rambling that she doesn’t have #$@#$% so they’re not technically !$#@#! But they are !@#$#@$.”
Justus had gotten surprisingly good at parroting the language of her dream world but all of those happened to be words Ferdinand himself was not familiar with. He tapped his temples a few times and debated whether to dismiss the scholars for the day. It was clear they were not working, and now he had to go hunt down the gremlin.
“She always has different types of confections she gives out and delivers them herself. She usually hands out cookies along with the recipe for them. Although this year there are rumors that she will be giving a different type of treat.”
Ferdinand frowned. He had not been receiving yearly cookie recipes from Rozemyne and the Ewigeliebe in him stirred at the thought of others receiving presents from his wife. He took the pocket watch Rozemyne had made for him and checked the time.
“Everyone is dismissed for the day. Justus, I will be going to the library” he announced to the room and left the scholars blinking in surprise.
He could feel Justus snickering behind him as they walked, but refused to give him the satisfaction of engaging with him. “Come on, milord. There’s no need to be jealous. Milady takes plenty care of you every other day”
“Although last year’s Erdnuss butter cookies were particularly good” Eckhart decided to chime in on the conversation.
Ferdinand gritted his teeth. He had tried the Erdnuss butter when she had first made it. He had been weary since Erdnuss were usually eifinte feed, but she had rejoiced once she found they were native to Alexandria. She explained the patterned hard shell was not edible for humans, but the nuts inside were very versatile and very nutritious. He preferred them salted, Erdnuss butter had a sweetness that was not particularly to his liking but it was unlike her not to give him new sweets she developed.
Strahl still wasn’t an expert in reading his mood and had thought they were making conversation “I much preferred the prehre jam ones from the year before” he added.
The sparkling smile gracing Ferdinand’s face had half the palace staff swooning as they walked the halls, but the closest of their retainers knew that the brighter the smile of the demon lord, the greater the danger.
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“Aub Alexandria, Lord Ferdinand here” Hasepyon, one of the shumil automatons announced his arrival. Their shumil tools were more advanced that those in the Royal academy, capable of more fluid speech and with more precise functions. Including removing books from her hands at 6th bell or when he came looking for her.
“Hey!” She complained when the book disappeared from her hands, but seeing him she immediately smiled “Ferdinand! What are you doing here? Did I miss dinner again?” She looked at the massive windows as if to read the time.
He motioned for her to follow into one of their hidden rooms. They had multiple scattered throughout the library, research labs, and palace. One never knew when an impromptu lecture room would be needed, or a small rendezvous, for emergency hugs of course.
“What is it I hear about Light day?” He interrogated her, ignoring her questions. “What about it?” She asked with confusion, tilting her head to the side. He missed how her hair used to cascade to the side when she did that.
“What do you mean what about it? What is it? Why are you giving our retainers sweets?” He asked wearily, not wanting to admit he was hurt he had not received any.
“Hmmm, I suppose I never explained it to you. In the dream world there is a celebration known as valentine’s day. It was most commonly known as a celebration of love for couples during courtship”
He felt his mana swirling inside of him to the point of bursting as she continued without noticing. “It was mostly a commercial holiday to incentivize people to spend money on flowers, candy and cards”
“That does not explain why you’re giving recipes to everyone who works for you” he replied icily.
“In [Japan], valentine’s day was celebrated slightly different. It was a day when girls would give the boys they liked a treat or a present, usually [chocolate]”
It was a testament of how much personal progress he had made when he didn’t immediately jump to the conclusion that she liked everyone but him since he hadn’t received any cookies.
“It was customary to give [giri-choco] to friends and family, as a sign of appreciation and love. But there were also [honmei-choco] which were hand made specifically for the person you were interested in romantically”
She paused for a few moments trying to remember how she had euphemized it for Yurgenschmidt standards. “So to answer your question, the [giri-choco] are the Goddess of light showing her appreciation to her pillars for always supporting her, which I give to those who help us, and [honmei] are the ones she makes specifically for the God of darkness to show him how much she loves him. Which I make for you myself”
He looked at her stunned. She was smiling radiantly at him and he felt foolish for being jealous over cookies. Now that he thought about it with a rational head, he could see the pattern of her presenting him with a new sweet mid winter for a few years now.
Last year she had made him crème brûlée, or Ewigeliebe’s snow, as had been the rejected name for the treat. He was particularly fond of the delicate flavor and contrast of textures with the burnt sugar.
She gave him a smug smile once she realized what had happened “Oh Ferdinand, were you jealous?” She teased in singsong.
He pinched her cheeks to his heart's content despite her protests.
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It was past 3rd bell when Rozemyne walked into the research institute. “Ferdinand, do you have a moment?” She asked, the excitement on her face evident for all to see.
He left Raymund in charge of the tool he had been working on and followed her to her ‘reading nook’, a small designated area for her to read in his laboratory. He sat with her on the window bench and noticed others peeking at them with curiosity and excitement, and then getting busy under his stare.
“Happy Light day!” She told him with a smile, handing him a square box. They were past the point of poison testing everything they gave each other much to their attendant’s amusement and dismay.
He opened the beautiful wooden box, stamped with her crest, and saw various glossy spheres resting on small silk pillows the color of her hair, some decorated with lines and some with fruit, some even covered in some type of powder. He picked one up and inspected its smooth surface. He frowned as he noticed the confection staining his fingers as it melted slightly at his touch.
“These are called truffles! They are made from [chocolate]. I found [cacao] beans during my trip to Dunklefelger last summer. The production is time consuming and extensive but luckily we got it right on time for Light day!”
With hesitant anticipation, he put the confection in his mouth and savored it.
He found himself engulfed by the richness and depth as a symphony of flavors unfolded in his mouth. Bitter yet sweet, each note played upon each other as if the notes of a harpsiel permeated in the air, igniting a passion for this newfound delicacy.
With each subsequent bite, he delved deeper into the depths of flavor, savoring every nuance and subtlety in each bite. The texture of the nuts, the acidity of the fruits. Each one was spectacular in its own way, awakening dormant senses and enveloping him in their embrace.
“Rozemyne” he whispered breathlessly. He truly had no words to describe the experience. Her golden eyes were sparkling in that way they only ever did for him and were staring at him with delight, as if watching him enjoy her sweets was as exhilarating as he felt tasting them.
Perhaps it was an unknown effect of the truffles but he couldn’t stop himself as he reached for her cheek and brought his face down to kiss her.
He was sure she could taste the chocolate remaining on his lips as she gave them a flick of her tongue, awakening Bernwarmme in the depths of his core.
Justus cleared his throat, and he noticed Eckhart had turned around to hide them with his cape from prying eyes. His ears reddened at his own shamelessness and he noticed she was blushing beautifully as well.
With a small blessing to heal their swollen lips, and slightly awkward giggle she smiled at him “I guess you liked them” she motioned to the now empty box. He hadn’t realized he had eaten one after the other and now lamented he didn’t have any more.
“Don’t worry,” she gave him a small laugh. “I still have to deliver everyone’s chocolates but I should have enough time to make you more truffles before dinner tonight”
Standing from their seat she motioned for Lieseletta to hand her a small bag she was carrying. “Since you complained the other day that I hadn’t given you the same treats as the others, I made sure to save some chocolates for you. You will not like them, as these are milk chocolate and yours were dark chocolate, but suit yourself”
He tried a single of the small squares presented. They were not decorated as his truffles had been, and were not as glossy either. He regretted letting his inner Ewigeliebe win in his jealousy, as the flavor of the chocolate was indeed too sweet to his liking. He could see why it would appeal to others but it couldn’t compare to the masterpiece that were the truffles.
He didn’t know if the confections truly transcended mere indulgence, or if it was the fact that his all goddess had made them specifically for him that elevated the creation. But he knew with absolute certainty that everything she made for him was infused by her thoughtfulness and consideration of his preferences, and as he ate another entire box after dinner, every bite was exquisite pleasure and a testament of the boundless depths of her love for him.