“Thank you all for coming today, everyone. My wife Mell and I worked together with our dear family members and the support of our friends to cook this feast for you all. These are the meals she made while away on many different expeditions. Despite her small stature, she was the rock that supported us throughout countless adventures. All of these dishes were made with love. Please, enjoy our ‘Expedition Cooking with the Enoch Royal Knights.’”
Zara’s words only made me cry harder and harder.
“Ngh… Thank you…Zara.”
“Are you all right, Melly?”
“I-I’ll be fine in a minute!”
Under the bright blue sky, we ate the expedition cooking I’d poured my heart and soul into.
Album went straight for the pancakes with nuts in them.
“Aaaah, Mell’s pancakes are always so yummy!”
He was talking to himself, although quite loudly, as he gobbled down the pancakes.
In another corner of the garden sat a pot of bubbling “bandit-style soup full of gifts from the forest” on a simple stove made with rocks. It was the first meal I ever cooked during a mission.
“It was a shockingly delicious soup born from the dry bread and jerky I made,” Ulgus recollected as he drank his soup.
I was able to find my place in the Second Expeditionary Squadron thanks to Ulgus’ “unique” jerky and bread. These days, I was actually thankful for them.
However, the soup at our wedding didn’t contain any chewy jerky like what Ulgus had made. Sir Aiskoletta had been the one to make the jerky out of proper ingredients, so it was even tastier than the one we had on our expedition.
Vice Captain Velrey was nodding her head with each sip she took too. “I was worried that someone like you might not be able to keep up on our missions, but you were the perfect squadmate from day one. I’m so impressed by you, Medic Risurisu.”
That was all thanks to the support Vice Captain Velrey gave me. I thanked her again for all her help.
Marina was cutting bites of our “cheesy steamed fish” to share with Captain Ludtink.
“You made this one in the valley with the tree monsters, right?”
“Yes. Your magic sword Superbia really stole the show back then.”
“Not that I’ve ever used it since.”
The “Seven Deadly Sins” series of weapons, each of them activating when their user experienced certain emotions, felt like a nostalgic memory from the past now. Captain Ludtink’s sword, Superbia, was connected to feelings of pride.
In the face of so many tree monsters, Captain Ludtink had confidently boasted how he would cut them all down. This activated the sword’s special power and brought about victory in the form of a supernatural black blade. That memory felt so distant when I thought back on it now.
Sir Aiskoletta was reheating our sausages on sticks. I could see the fat starting to bubble and drip from them. “This was the very first slow life recipe you ever taught to me, Miss Mell. I feel very moved.” He walked around to hand everyone a warm sausage before trying a bite for himself. “Mmm. Yes, delicious indeed.”
I was glad to hear he enjoyed it.
Garr and Fredrica were both staring sadly at the bowl of “noodles with slime sauce.” That was probably due to the main ingredient—slime.
Sly was waving her hands, trying to tell them it didn’t bother her at all. Seeing that, Garr and Fredrica steeled their nerves and tried their first bites.
“Oh my! How delicious…!”
Fredrica was right about that. Slime sauce and noodles were a tasty combination. These days, there were even restaurants specializing in slime recipes.
Sly seemed rather proud of their reactions.
Amelia and Rih were reminiscing over the past in front of the “golden-style cheese gratin.” Rih had never acted gentlemanly until that day he arrived with a gift of golden cheese. That was what had gradually caused Amelia’s feelings toward him to soften.
These days, the pair were very close.
I found the Lichtenbergers in front of the “mythical beast steamed bun” desserts. I’d borrowed culinary branding irons from the Royal Mythical Beast Preservation Bureau to make them. Inside the soft dough was a paste made from mountain chestnuts.
“They’re much too cute to eat.”
“I agree.”
“But they’ll go to waste if no one eats them.”
“I didn’t mean I won’t eat them, Mother. I simply meant they deserve better than being eaten.”
“You two are always talking about such complicated things.”
The family sounded as if they were enjoying themselves. I’d never seen them act so lively and enthused. It was a very touching sight.
When I first came to the royal capital, I never pictured my life being filled with so many people. But my cooking led to the start of many wonderful relationships.
As long as I lived, I would never forget my expeditionary cooking with the royal knights of Enoch—nor would I forget this day I spent surrounded by loved ones.
🥞🥞🥞
✦ ✦ ✦
AFTER marrying Zara, my transfer was finalized. Though it felt a bit strange to have such a title… I was officially a member of the “knight support department.”
There I spent my busy days coming up with healthy foods for the knights, developing new field rations, and working on the cafeteria menus. But outside of culinary matters, I also examined the health of the knights who went through difficult expeditions, reviewed items carried by combat medics, and adjusted standard equipment so that it would be lighter to wear. My department covered lots of different ground.
A bit later in the future, I would come to be known as the “Mother of Enoch” for how I was always helping knights with their food and equipment.
It was impossible to know what would happen in one’s life. Even without money, magical energy, or assets, there were still things that I could do. Perhaps they were all the more precious because they were things I’d managed to build on my own.
Hard work and dedication were capable of opening up a path forward. That’s why I always made an effort to talk to knights who felt lost in life. I wanted them to have faith in themselves.
“I hope you know that you have an infinite number of possibilities before you, just like I once did.”
Expedition Cooking with the Enoch Royal Knights: The End