Teaching Frieren

The Third Year of Married Life—

After finishing her daily lessons with the court mages and assigning her apprentices the task of designing "Cooking Golems,"

Flamme picked up the latest research materials and headed back home.

"What will Agusheed be making today?"

"He seems to have been experimenting with desserts lately…"

Walking along the nearly empty streets, Flamme began to think about what dinner would be.

She never used to think about this before, as she always did the cooking.

But ever since that incident during their first anniversary two years ago, Agusheed had never let her set foot in the kitchen again.

The reason? He didn't want to see the kitchen get blown up into the sky a second time.

Flamme had no objections to that.

After all, she found out that Agusheed did indeed have a knack for cooking.

His food was genuinely a bit better than hers.

Just a little bit better—

"Mercury Pudding… Berry Parfait…"

She brushed her hand over the honeysuckle vines coiling around the low walls, softly murmuring the names of the desserts Agusheed might make.

These were desserts they used to enjoy during their travels, and Agusheed had even found the recipes from the caravans passing through the capital.

While Flamme was lost in anticipation of dinner, something white caught her attention in the display window of a magic shop on the street.

"Red Mirror Dragon Fang…"

"I remember that this material is ideal for weapon crafting and golem core casings…"

She quickly pushed open the door, the chime of the bell startling Hakimi, the old store owner's sleepy pet.

"Lady Flamme…"

The white-bearded shopkeeper, recognizing his guest, exclaimed and hurried to greet her.

He was about to bow respectfully to the Grand Mage, but Flamme raised her hand, signaling him to stop.

On the third shelf, a Red Mirror Dragon Fang, about the size of an adult's arm, was quietly displayed.

Since she had been here many times in recent years, there was no need for bargaining or forced gratuities.

When the Rasiel gold coins jingled onto the counter, the shopkeeper had just finished wrapping the Red Mirror Dragon Fang.

He also handed her a small box.

"This is the material that Lord Agusheed ordered two days ago. Since you happened to be here, I might as well give it to you as well."

The white-bearded old man sat back down, cradling Hakimi once again, and spoke as if addressing any regular customer:

"Looking forward to your next visit, Lady Flamme."

Flamme smiled faintly, carrying the two boxes—one large and one small—out of the magic shop.

As dusk settled in, her pace quickened.

But when she passed the central fountain square of the capital, she suddenly stopped.

At the same time, a white silhouette sitting by the fountain, covered in dust and dirt, noticed Flamme.

"Flamme, I've come to see you again."

The rather bedraggled-looking Frieren greeted her with that statement.

——————————

"So… what exactly happened that made you rush to the capital in such a sorry state?"

Inside the small house that Flamme and Agusheed shared.

Watching Frieren devouring her share of Mercury Pudding, Flamme gently wiped the dust off her face with a silk handkerchief while curiously asking.

But the little elf, enjoying both the pudding and her teacher's care, completely ignored Flamme's voice.

She simply stuffed spoonful after spoonful of pudding into her mouth, face brimming with satisfaction.

(◍´꒳`◍)

"Stupid apprentice."

Seeing that Frieren was completely absorbed in the food and treating her questions like passing wind, Flamme sighed softly.

Then she put down the handkerchief and grabbed Frieren's cheeks, squeezing them mercilessly.

"Yamete yo… Flamme…"

Frieren's muffled protest had no effect, because Flamme completely ignored her pleas for mercy.

"Aren't you two acting like children?"

Carrying another plate of Mercury Pudding from the kitchen, Agusheed separated the two troublemakers.

He pulled Flamme over to sit opposite Frieren and placed what was originally his own share of pudding in front of her.

"Since it's come to this, let's eat first."

Seeing Agusheed giving his own pudding to her, Flamme didn't continue tormenting Frieren.

Instead, she leaned against Agusheed, her mouth slightly open.

(＾ワ＾)

Flamme: "I'm tired. Feed me."

Agusheed did not refuse. During their travels, he had gotten used to feeding Flamme when she got lazy.

So when Frieren finished her pudding and her brain regained its usual sharpness,

She was immediately greeted by an unexpected scene—

Agusheed, looking somewhat helpless, holding the plate and skillfully feeding pudding to the Flamme nestled in his arms.

(￣▽￣)

"Ugh… so cheesy…"

Having regained her wits, Frieren commented bluntly.

But Flamme merely shot her a glare and continued enjoying the pampering from her husband.

"Now that you've finished eating, let's get back to business—"

While still feeding Flamme, Agusheed turned to Frieren and asked:

"What happened to make you rush to the capital in such a sorry state to find Flamme?"

At his words, Frieren's face took on a look of resigned frustration.

She rested her chin in her hands and began explaining why she had come.

"I was in the Ernst Region of the Northern Highlands and encountered a nameless Grand Demon. That guy chased me for an entire month."

"I had no choice but to come to Flamme for help, since I couldn't deal with that Grand Demon on my own."

Hearing the words "nameless Grand Demon," Agusheed stopped what he was doing.

Realizing that Frieren had indeed encountered a life-threatening crisis, Flamme also stopped leaning against Agusheed.

She sat up straight and looked seriously at her apprentice.

"A nameless Grand Demon… What kind of magic did he use? Did he have any particular traits?"

Flamme asked Frieren carefully about the specifics of the Grand Demon.

"Um… he didn't use any magic the whole time. He must be one of the Generals of the demon kind."

"Also… he was incredibly tall, had unbelievably sharp senses, and his strength was greater than all the Demon Generals I've faced combined."

"That's it—"

Frieren recalled the towering figure who could pinpoint her exact location from miles away,

And who, in order to catch up, had tanked through a bombardment of magic and even punched straight through a mountain.

Even now, she still felt a shiver run down her spine.

Not even when facing the Throne of Basalt had she felt such a strong sense of impending death.

After listening to her description, Flamme turned her gaze to Agusheed.

"The Grand Demon Frieren is describing… can you identify who it is?"

At Flamme's inquiry, Agusheed nodded calmly.

He then fixed his eyes on Frieren, who was sitting across from him.

"How interesting… you actually survived an encounter with him…"

"Frieren, I'm truly impressed."

Because the description Frieren provided was far too distinct.

By the time she was halfway through, Agusheed had already figured out who the nameless Grand Demon chasing her was.

And as it turned out, it happened to be an old acquaintance of his.

Because he knew how powerful that demon was, Agusheed did not hold back in praising Frieren.

(ーー゛)

Flamme nudged Agusheed with her elbow, hinting for him to stop teasing and get to the point.

Agusheed, receiving the hint, didn't keep her in suspense any longer.

He easily stated the name of the Grand Demon who had yet to truly reveal himself to the world.

"If I'm not mistaken, the Grand Demon that Frieren encountered is likely the strongest of the Demon Generals—"

"The Bloodstained War God, Levare."