On the way back from Spicy Kingdom, the lingering warmth of the banquet still clung to Takahashi Yuuki's body. That scorching atmosphere the moment Red King declared "I will join the Three-Nation Alliance" at Flame Tower Hall. The miracle born from a single drop of honey. The way Caramel Hime's eyes had glistened with tears. But now, the wind against the horse's back carried no warmth. "I'm increasing our speed," Caramel Hime said, pulling the reins taut. Her golden hair streamed behind her. Yuuki gripped the saddle horn with both hands. The horse galloped down the night road. The two horses borrowed from Red King were swift-footed and didn't lose their way even in darkness. In the direction of Citraralia—the capital of Fruit Kingdom, a hundred kilometers east of Gratinée, a tree-top city where massive fruit trees served as buildings—gray smoke rose into the sky. It hung unnaturally in the dark night sky, the only thing that didn't belong. (This feels bad.) Bad didn't even begin to cover it. A faint stench of rot began mixing into the back of his nose. The sweet aroma of fruit had completely died. This area was the eastern part of Fruit Kingdom, just before Verde Forest on the outskirts of Citraralia—Fruit Kingdom's food supply source, a verdant forest where fruits of all seasons grew abundantly. Yet what rode the wind was the smell of rotting garbage. The horse stopped at the forest path entrance. People came running out of the forest. One, then another. A young man carrying an elderly person on his back, a woman leading a child by the hand—food-people fleeing desperately without even their belongings, slipping past Yuuki and the others. Everyone's faces were deathly pale. "Wait! What's in there?!" Yuuki called out. The fleeing residents didn't answer. They didn't even have the composure to. Only one old woman, without even turning around, screamed: "Run! If it touches you, you'll rot!" Yuuki met Caramel Hime's eyes. "Let's go," Caramel Hime said. "Yeah," Yuuki replied. The two dismounted and pushed into the forest against the flow of fleeing people. ◆ Within ten steps, something was clearly wrong. Ash-green blotches spread across tree trunks. Fallen fruit on the ground had turned to mush; stepping on it produced a sickening squelch. The air felt heavy. The back of his throat itched. Despite being a forest full of fruit trees, there wasn't a single vibrant green leaf. Everything was turning into dull ash-gray. From deeper in came a sound: *Dogoon.* Followed by an energetic shout. "Ugh!! Come on! Why won't it hit?!" They ran toward the voice. Beyond the trees, in a clearing, stood a girl with short pink hair flying wildly. The first thing that caught his eye was that hair. Vivid pink in a short bob, bouncing with each movement. Next came the mountain of fruit in her hands. She cradled them in her arms, throwing with one hand—throw after throw after throw. A continuous barrage of fruit flew toward the massive figure ahead— But every single one turned to ash-gray mud the moment it touched the creature. "Oh, you're already here!" the girl said, spinning around. Bright orange eyes—which, upon closer inspection, sparkled like stars—fixed on Yuuki and the others. Her expression held no fear, only a brazen grin. A confectionery-making apron was covered in fruit juice and dirt. "You're late! I've been doing this alone for thirty minutes!" "We literally just got here?!" Yuuki protested. "Stop complaining and help already!" Momo was already throwing the next fruit. Yuuki finally looked ahead. ——There it was. Three meters tall. An ash-green massive body. The texture was like rotten food ingredients forcibly molded into human form, with a thin mist continuously drifting from it. Every fruit tree the mist touched lost its color. The source of the rot-stench filling Verde Forest—Mold General stood there, slowly turning to look at them. "What the hell is that?" Yuuki muttered. "It's huge. Definitely three meters," he added. "What's its name? Where did it come from?" he asked. "I don't know! It just showed up!" Momo shouted back. "...At least tell me your name! We haven't even introduced ourselves!" Yuuki said. "Momo! I'm a confectioner from Fruit Kingdom! Who are you?" "Takahashi Yuuki! A high school student from another world!" "What about the princess?" Momo asked. "I am Caramel Hime," the princess said. "That's a weird name," Momo said. "That is rather rude," Caramel Hime replied. "Sorry, I'll apologize later! Let's go!" Momo shouted. All three burst forward at once. ◆ Momo took the lead. Gripping fruit in both hands, she hurled them with all her might. Peaches, tangerines, apples—fruits that Fruit Kingdom boasted flew like bullets. Each was hard enough that a normal creature would stop in its tracks if hit. The moment they struck Mold General's body, they all turned to rotten mud. *Splat, splat, splat.* The fruit turned ash-gray and dripped to the ground. Mold General didn't budge an inch. "No way..." Momo's smile vanished. Still, she didn't stop. She picked up the next fruit. "Princess! A barrier!" Yuuki shouted. "Yes!" Caramel Hime replied. Caramel Hime pulled out a small bottle from her waist. Special caramel sauce—a rare sauce made from honey-flower sugar, a golden liquid imbued with the magical power of sweetness. As the princess quickly drew a circle on the ground, a thin golden wall rose up, encircling the three of them. Mold General's miasma touched the barrier. The gold began turning black. The sauce corroded, crumbling from the edges. "...It won't hold," Caramel Hime said. The barrier dissolved in less than ten seconds. Yuuki quickly scanned his surroundings. Broken tree branches, fallen fruit, and in his pouch—dried vegetables and thinly sliced bread. (I can make it. Right here, right now.) The composition of a dish formed in his mind. Layering ingredients, pouring in his thoughts. Simpler in structure than the sandwich he'd made for Red King in Episode 3, but he had the materials. As his hands moved, he desperately assembled it in his head. He wanted to help his friends. He wanted to protect this forest. Momo had fought alone for thirty minutes. Caramel Hime had come all this way with him. Light bloomed. The moment he pressed it together, the sandwich glowed faintly white. Taste magic—the phenomenon where thoughts poured into food manifest as supernatural power—was awakening right now. "I can do this!" Yuuki shouted. He threw with all his might. The sandwich flew straight toward Mold General—and the instant it touched the miasma surrounding the massive body, it turned black. The light vanished. Its form crumbled. By the time it hit the ground, it was just a lump of mud. A wet *splat* echoed through the forest. Silence. Yuuki stared at his own hands. Materials still remained. The thought of making another crossed his mind—but his feet wouldn't move. Mold General looked down at all three of them. And it laughed. A low laugh that made the rotten air vibrate. More vibration than voice. The meaning of that laughter was clear even without words. ——Your attacks mean nothing to me. ◆ The next instant, his vision inverted. A massive hand had grabbed Yuuki—he understood this only after being lifted into the air. Ash-green fingers wrapped around his body. The miasma touched his skin. A stinging pain shot through him. Then he was slammed into the ground. *Dogoon.* Impact across his entire body. All the air left his lungs. Noise filled his vision. The smell of soil and rotted grass stabbed into his nose. His body wouldn't obey. He tried to stand, pressing his hands down. Blood seeped from his palms. "Yuuki!" Caramel Hime cried out. "Stop it—!" Momo screamed. Momo charged forward, throwing her entire body weight into a tackle at Mold General's leg—but she was repelled. The rubbery recoil sent her flying backward. Her back slammed into a nearby tree trunk, and she slid down to the ground. "Momo!" Yuuki shouted. As Yuuki tried to push himself up, a kick came. It connected with his ribs. He flew several meters, his body tumbling through the air before hitting the ground and rolling. He tasted blood. His entire body burned with heat. Pain made his thoughts spin. When he tried to push himself up, blood-covered fingers sank into the soil. (Stand. Get up.) His body wouldn't listen. His knees wouldn't leave the ground. Then Caramel Hime ran in. The princess positioned herself between Yuuki and Momo. She spread both arms wide, standing before Mold General's massive form. Her slender body looked impossibly small against the giant. Mold General took a step forward. The miasma drifting from its foot flowed toward the princess. The ash-green mist enveloped Caramel Hime's right arm. The princess's arm decoration—the delicate caramel-colored embroidered patterns, the food-material decoration born with her as a food-person—turned ash-gray before his eyes. The beautiful caramel color died. The pattern's edges unraveled like fraying thread, and the gray slowly spread toward her shoulder. The princess made no sound. Her expression simply froze. Her lips pressed tight, her arm drawing slightly closer. A face enduring pain. "Princess—!!" Yuuki screamed. But his body wouldn't move. When he tried to stand, his legs trembled and he fell to his knees again. Blood-seeping hands pressed against the ground. Pressed. Pressed. He couldn't stand. Mold General glanced at the three of them. Its eyes held no interest. As if no threat existed here anymore. That was what made it most infuriating, most hopeless. The massive body slowly turned away. The miasma spread across the entire forest. Its radius expanded. Fruit trees turned ash-green one after another. Fruit rotted and fell to the ground. Leaves blackened and shriveled. The echo of laughter faded into the rot-scented air. ◆ After Mold General left, the forest was terribly quiet. No bird songs. Only wind passing through rotted branches. Yuuki remained on the ground, hands pressed down, unable to move for a while. His entire body felt heavy. Not from pain, but from something else clinging to him. He stared blankly at his blood-covered fingers. Soil had soaked in. (I couldn't do anything.) The image of the sandwich he'd poured his heart into turning black the moment it touched the miasma kept replaying in his mind. The instant the light vanished. The sound of mud hitting the ground. (Taste magic couldn't reach it at all.) Momo pushed herself up from the tree trunk. She wiped her mouth with her arm. The back of her apron was completely brown with dirt. As she stood, she stared fixedly toward the east. In the direction of Citraralia. Beyond the suburban hills, thin gray smoke rose. Momo said nothing. She just bit her lip. (That smoke... it's probably coming from Momo's workshop.) Yuuki intuited it. In a small fruit tree on the outskirts of Citraralia was Momo's confectionery workshop, "Peach Blossom House." That smoke might be coming from there. Residents began slowly returning. Standing among the rotted trees, surveying the destroyed forest, some collapsed in tears. Some fell to their knees. An old woman picked up a rotted fruit, watched it crumble to mush in her hands, and covered her face. "...So that's the Taste Guide," someone muttered nearby. Their voice was low. "What's changed since it arrived?" It pierced him. It felt like something physically stabbed into his chest. Yuuki couldn't lift his gaze. With blood-covered hands pressed to the ground, he absorbed those words. He couldn't deny them. Caramel Hime came to Yuuki's side. She reached out to place a hand on his shoulder. At that moment, her right arm's wound must have hurt—the princess's face twisted for just an instant. Only a moment. She quickly restored her expression, but Yuuki had seen it. The food-material decoration on her arm remained gray, and that discoloration continued spr