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I was aware that this day, during the final, twelfth month of the year, represented Christmas―and all that supplemented it―festivities, joy, and celebration, but I was no more or less attached to this particular 359th day of the year than I was to any other.

Even during my time in the Wardens\' Playground, where Christmas was celebrated just as it would be anywhere else in the world, I struggled to find a point to it.

Its origins stem from a place of religious belief; these days, few take notice of such a fact.

The other kids in the Playground were deluded by the lies of a fantastical man who would deliver gifts to all the children in the world within a single evening.

As someone who knew the truth and who relied on the truth, it was naturally impossible for me to succumb to the same tricks. At the same time, that resulted in alienating me from the excitable ones who refused to heed my words―words deemed, dare I say, \'heretical\' by the others.

Yet another reason why \'ignorance is bliss\'.

As one of the most curious of creatures, humans crave to uncover the unknown, but ironically, they cannot handle the truth when confronted by it.

When I escaped the Wardens, I discovered that kids on the outside were slowly beginning to realise that the myth was just that, and that what they had initially believed was actually a lie.

Since then, I never really thought about it outside of the time frame itself where I would see all kinds of events and celebrations being held.

Until this year, that is.

This year, I decided it would be for the best to take part in the festivities, as those I need to keep by my side desire it.

Still, I didn\'t want to waste too much time with it, so I only did one thing, and that was to visit the Weinstell Christmas Market.

Apparently, that was good enough, as none of the kids pestered me to do anything more, indicating they had been sufficiently satisfied.

So, all that was left was Christmas Day itself, and that was more trouble than I could have ever imagined―reason being, I thought it would be beneficial to acquire presents for everyone as it\'s an easy way to gain favour, but there was an unexpectedly big problem with that plan.

―Nobody actually wanted anything.

I used the Measurement of Truth, of course, but the only kinds of things anyone wanted, was either something metaphysical, such as \'my presence\', or something otherwise abstract and completely unobtainable.

There was nobody who wanted anything that was actually tangible; something I could give as a physical gift, and so I was caught in a sudden quagmire.

What on Earth do you give someone who wants for nothing?

It was not something easy to answer, even for the omniscient Measurement of Truth, but there was no helping it.

I was told they would be happy with almost anything, but that certainly didn\'t help much. Was it something everybody agonised over when choosing which gift to give at this time of year?

Ordinarily, I wouldn\'t have even given it a second thought and just asked \'what is the perfect gift to give them\', but unfortunately...

「The \'perfect gift\' is something that comes from the heart; something that holds deep meaning, usually personal to the recipient」

Now, what the hell was that, huh?

Normally, for a gift, all you would need to ask is what that particular person wants, and then just get them that; unfortunately, this isn\'t something I can do in this case, so I\'m forced to think outside the box.

I never expected to have this much trouble with something so stupidly simple as giving a gift, but in hindsight, it should be obvious―I never really cared what the twins liked or wanted; I just said \'yes\' and gave it to them, whatever it was.

As a result, I now don\'t know what gift would be suitable, as they haven\'t asked me for anything.

Of course, such is an issue that can be solved with a simple question:

What does everyone like that I can give as a gift? Rather, what does everyone want the most?

I asked with a little clarification, and when I saw the answer―

「The individuals Sana and Sona want a gift with meaning behind it; Sophie Asanami only wants something from you if your feelings are genuine; Emir doesn\'t expect anything from you but wants something that proves you are a good person; Selina and Minami Mochizuki do not expect something from you」

Huh, what the... Oh? Hold on a second...

―I had an idea.

❖─────❖─────❖

When the inevitable day came that kids across the world would unwrap their gifts with anticipation and glee, a certain household did things a little differently compared to the rest.

There were fitting decorations and a beautifully-embellished, miniature spruce tree to liven up the living room, but that was all.

There were no presents.

There was no cheerful music.

There were no smiles on the residents\' faces.

House number 7 on Tree Jewel Boulevard―within this place, the inhabitants gathered not around a fireplace, but rather a dinner table.

"..."

""...""

"..."

"..."

"..."

Bathed in silence, everyone sat awaiting something at the table. They were not aware of what had been planned for today, as all they had been told was to wait patiently.

"...Uhm...?"

A slight murmur escaped her lips as she turned her head to the left and right with puzzlement. Selina wondered what was going on, and seemed about to ask when incidentally interrupted by someone, "This is ridiculous..."

Minami Mochizuki, who usually would be busy at this time of the day, let loose a sigh and rested her head on her hands, quickly beginning to regret staying this late. Today was one of her few days off in the year, and she was spending it so uselessly that she was conflicted about what to do.

If it weren\'t for Selina, she never would\'ve come to the house on this day, but here she was, idling by for nothing.

Sophie glanced at Minami and clicked her tongue.

"Tsk. Seriously, the hell\'s he got planned? Says nothin\' all day and all of a sudden says to sit and wait."

"Does this not normally happen?" Selina warily asked, causing Sophie to reply within an instant.

"God no."

"Hmm, is it because it\'s Christmas?"

"You think that guy would ever do something for someone else just cause it\'s Christmas?"

"Would he not? I think Cipher is a good person."

Selina tilted her head as if proposing a question of genuine curiosity, causing Sophie to simply stare blankly at her for a moment.

"...Ha," She snorted cynically, "You might be right that he\'s not necessarily a \'bad\' person, but... You haven\'t seen his true nature yet. No, he just hasn\'t shown it to you."

Selina kept quiet at the words that clearly knew something she didn\'t, and although Sophie was unaware of it, something in what she said sparked memories for Emir as he watched the conversation.

Eventually, the ever-rising boredom climaxed and she couldn\'t tolerate sitting in silence any longer; Sophie cursed with a sigh and shouted to the one who was the very cause of the current situation.

"Haaah, fuck sake... Oi, how long\'re you gonna have us waitin\' for, huh?!"

❖─────❖─────❖

Yelling from the table in the other room, I heard Sophie Asanami\'s voice.

Couldn\'t she learn to quieten down a bit? I was in the kitchen, but my ears picked up her booming tone with ease. Still, everything was just about done, so I ignored her without much thought and continued.

When I soon re-entered the room and showed myself, everyone\'s eyes moved to me in unison. Rather than frustrated at having been forced to wait, however, they were more focused on the thing in my hands.

"Hey, you-- hm? What\'s that?"

Sophie nodded her head at the large pot I held and asked as I walked over to the table.

"Well, what do you think it is?"

"...A pot?"

"There you go, then."

I set the pot so heavy it made my arms ache down on the table. At that moment, everyone\'s eyes widened.

"Did you cook...?"

"Is that what it looks like?"

The instant I lifted the lid, the salivating scent of something ambrosial wafted around and filled the room.

"It\'s just a simple casserole, but you won\'t find a higher quality one in any corner of this Earth, and I made enough for everyone, so take as much as you want. I also have some other stuff I prepared for variation which I\'ll bring out in a second. Also, Selina, I know you don\'t like to eat meat, so there are some tofu variants and other meat-free dishes as well for you."

"""..."""

As if having pressed \'pause\', everyone froze, their already widened eyes gaping even further as if they had witnessed a miracle.

"What?"

Nobody answered my question, and internally, I smirked.

Isn\'t this just the perfect gift? It takes almost no effort from me, and it\'s something to leave everyone satisfied.

The twins want something with meaning behind it.

This gift contains the meaning of \'I want these people to be more loyal to me\'.

Sophie Asanami only wants something if my feelings are genuine.

The feelings that I want these people to be eternally loyal to me are definitely genuine.

Emir would want something that proves I am a good person.

Cooking so much delicious food for all these people, and for nothing in return, how could I be anything other than good?

Finally, Minami and Selina never expected or really wanted anything from me to begin with, so appealing to them is easiest of all.

It accomplishes everything I need it to.

I\'ve heard of a saying in the past; that \'food is the way to a person\'s heart\'."

I am the best cook in the world, no questions asked.

I know how to prepare any meal in the world, and I know exactly how to personalise each morsel to anyone I make food for, down to every last bite.

In other words, could there be a better gift from me to them?

An unorthodox gift, but something that could most definitely be called \'perfect\'.

Looking at their joyful expressions as they wolfed down the first of many meals I had prepared, I subdued an emerging grin and put on a small smile.

"Bon appétit."