The jester bobbed her head and shoulders up and down, left to right, with a fork and knife in hand.
The chefs shuffled past their dead comrade in culinary arms, taking careful steps so they did not shatter the crowned cake.
Ixion took his seat with a wicked grin of anticipation.
The jester began to cheer:
"Cake, cake, cake, cake!"
A hollow look filled Cecelia's eyes as she stood over the man's corpse.
Cecelia knelt and closed the man's eyes, then ordered a few chefs with free hands to take him away.
The amber-haired woman stood with her back turned to King Ixion and her eyes closed.
She was mad.
Angry.
Livid.
Furious.
'But what can you do about it?'
Ixion had already shown the gap in their power and the futility of trying to resist his rule.
A resistance which, if put forth in full unrestrained effort, might unlock the more sinister side of Ixion's "madness."
At least, Ixion was sure that was the conclusion the pitiable Chancellor of War had drawn.
Well, that thought might prove true if they picked the wrong time to rebel.
Not even his chancellors were immune to his tyrannical persona if they went too far, though Ixion would stretch that limit as far as he could.
As more and more parts of the cake were brought out and pieced together, its grandeur took shape.
While it might not have been the largest cake in history, it was certainly the largest in contemporary times.
Nobody else in the world had the resources to waste on delicacy on such a scale of grandeur.
Well, neither did Catatran.
'But still!'
They had created this monstrous beauty, which would be eaten by only a few and starve hundreds.
The cake stood six layers tall, with the bottommost layer twice as wide as the grand table.
A slab of pitch-dark chocolate formed its base.
Multiple tiers of pale sponge sat above it, topped with vanilla icing.
Red syrup seeped down from the top in viscous lines, like veins.
On top, frosting and custard swirled into the shape of a golden crown.
Yes, the cake was a bleeding crown. Red lines seeped from beneath the crown, staining the once pure white paste.
'Quite the symbolism...'
Ixion laughed when he saw it.
'Did they think I'd be too stupid and mad to notice?'
Tan, shattered sugar crystals were sprinkled throughout the layers.
'And are those the people I've killed?'
Ixion laughed in amusement as he studied the cake. Then, he let off a few haughty claps and shouted:
"Wonderful! Splendid job! Truly, this is a cake of massive proportion the likes of which the world has never seen!"
The chefs finished piecing the cake together and bowed, then fled from the room, chasing after the corpse of their comrade.
The jester shouted as the door to the kitchen swung closed:
"Cake, cake, cake!"
Ixion studied the faces of his treacherous crew.
The excited jester.
Zabaniyah, whose calm expression looked like it had been cut from marble.
Runa and Sebastian, whose eyes glistened in fear under the candlelight.
And Lord of Truth, who was currently tweaking out and spasming as it tried to escape its cage.
Then his gaze drifted to Cecelia, who stood against the wall with shame covering her face as she watched the folly of her country's king.
Ixion shoved his chair back and stood with his arms outstretched.
"Who shall get the first piece?! Hmm…"
Ixion drew his head left to right and scoured all in the room.
The jester raised her hand holding the fork and screamed:
"Me! Me! Pick me!"
'No! You stole my joke!'
"Hmmmmm."
Then his eyes settled upon one person.
"Cecelia! Would you like to have the first slice?"
The Chancellor of War shook with fury, her expression malicious.
"Do you—"
But as she looked at the cake, she halted.
"You know what. I will. I will have the first piece."
Cecelia sauntered over and drew her sword.
She took stance.
A moment later, she flashed through the air and split the crown atop the cake in half, causing the red syrup within to cascade down the sugary white mountain.
Ixion cheered as he watched.
"Bravo, bravo! Excellent strike!"
Cecelia looked at the red syrup on her blade, then slashed down and shook it off.
The drops splattered across the dining hall floor.