Chapter 6 THE MAN WHO GOT HIS WISH
Before Nora could ponder it any further, the bell above the front door rang sharply, shattering her reverie so suddenly that she nearly dropped the paper in her hand.
Firm footsteps sounded as they approached the kitchen. Their steady rhythm was enough to tell her who had arrived even before she turned around.
Master Crumb in the corner of the room suddenly gave a heavy creak, releasing a cold hiss from between its stone seams as though warning her of the unwelcome guest. Tilly hurriedly hid behind the nearest flour jar, her wings fluttering rapidly as she struggled to contain her nervousness.
Aurelius stood in the doorway, his velvet cloak slightly dusty, as though he had traveled a long distance before arriving here. His eyes immediately sharpened as his gaze fell upon the notebook in Nora’s hands, like a wolf that had just caught the scent of its prey.
“Did you manage to find anything in that book, Nora?” Aurelius asked without preamble. His voice was no longer as smooth as it usually was.
Nora closed the book and placed it on the wooden table between them, as though the object were a small wall that could give her a little distance.
She stared directly into the man’s face without fear, even though her heart was still pounding from discovering her grandmother’s message.
“Martha Finch used to make that cake,” Nora said bluntly. “And I know my grandmother erased the recipe herself before she died.”
Aurelius fell silent for a moment.
His jaw tightened, but he did not appear surprised by the revelation, as though he had already expected Nora to reach this conclusion from the beginning.
“Then you know we don’t have much time. My kingdom needs that cake now.”
Nora clenched both hands at her sides, trying to suppress the trembling that had begun to spread from her fingertips as Kael’s warning continued to echo clearly in her mind.
“Before I think about how to restore it, answer one question. What really happens to someone who eats Black Velvet Cake?”
The atmosphere inside the kitchen suddenly froze, as though time itself had stopped for a moment to hear the question.
Aurelius turned toward the window, avoiding Nora’s gaze for the first time since they had met.
Slowly, Aurelius looked back at Nora.
A faint, burdened smile appeared on his lips, completely different from the reassuring smile he usually wore.
“That is why I need a Finch,” Aurelius said quietly.
His words still hung in the air when the prince finally took his leave that night, leaving Nora with more questions than answers.
She could no longer rely solely on Aurelius’s words or Kael’s vague warnings. She needed concrete proof.
That very night, Nora opened Martha’s notebook again, this time with a more specific purpose, searching for the name of someone who had actually eaten the cake.
Nora turned through page after page of Martha Finch’s old notebook beneath the dim glow of the desk lamp. Its light flickered softly, as though it too were weary from keeping her company through the sleepless night.
Her fingers stopped on a page containing a list of customers from the past.
Tilly hovered near her shoulder, watching the rows of names anxiously. Her wings glowed more faintly than usual, as though she could feel the weight of the atmosphere as well.
“Did you find a clue about the cake’s victim, Nora?” she asked softly.
“There’s one name here,” Nora replied quietly, pointing to a line bearing the name Julian.
The record stated that the man had ordered a special variation of the cake from her grandmother many years ago, written in Martha’s still-neat handwriting despite the horrifying nature of its contents.
Nora read the line several times, trying to imagine who Julian was, a man who had existed in her mind only as a name among hundreds of others.
“I’ll look for him tomorrow morning,” Nora murmured, more to herself than to Tilly.
The little fairy nodded softly and helped Nora close the notebook before the two of them finally decided to rest, even though Nora knew she would not sleep peacefully that night.
The next morning, Nora made her way toward the old row of shops across from the market district, walking along the cobblestone streets that were beginning to fill with morning vendors.
She found a dusty antique shop run by Julian, its signboard worn down by years of exposure to the elements.
The middle-aged man greeted her warmly, his smile wide and sincere.
However, the moment Nora mentioned Martha Finch’s name, Julian’s expression changed dramatically, filling with emotion as though the name had reopened memories he had carefully tucked away long ago.
“You’re Martha’s granddaughter?” Julian asked, his eyes lighting up, his voice trembling with a mixture of surprise and emotion. “Your grandmother saved my life when this shop was on the verge of bankruptcy. I desperately wanted business success, and your grandmother granted my wish.”
Nora smiled faintly at Julian’s enthusiasm, even though a strange feeling had begun to weigh on her heart, something she could not yet explain precisely.
Julian gestured toward the rows of luxurious antiques surrounding his shop, intricately carved vases, gold-framed paintings, and old jewelry that still gleamed despite being covered in dust, as though he wanted to prove just how much success he had achieved because of that cake.
