Chapter 546:
Cook All the Things!
I FELT GIDDY AT THE SIGHT of the giant pile of groceries before me. I was going to cook a lot more than usual, so I had to really bring my A game!
“Okay, where should I start… Huh?”
I looked around the kitchen to see my creatures merrily jumping into the pot. Um, you’re not supposed to be in there…
“Sora, don’t go in there. That’s where the food should be.”
“Pu! Pu, puuu.”
“Teryu.”
Sora and Flame merrily moved out of the pot and into the frying pan.
Um, no, guys…
My father, who had been watching the whole exchange, put the lid on the frying pan.
“Huh?!”
I immediately took the lid off, and Sora and Flame looked upset.
“Puuu.”
“Teryuuu.”
“Ha ha ha ha! Well, serves you right for getting in the way.”
I had to laugh at my whining slimes. Apparently, coming into the kitchen when they were not usually allowed to be there had gotten Sora and Flame a little too worked up.
“Still, what were the odds that the innkeeper would be taking the day off?”
My father’s remark brought my mind back to what Zinal had told us. “For the next few days, the inn is on break. Nobody will be there, so you can let your slimes play in the kitchen if you want.” That had just been so shocking that my father’s jaw dropped. But apparently, the innkeeper and our friends would be spending the next few days gathering evidence and making sure the victims were safe.
“Still, I really am surprised how empty this place is,” my father remarked.
Nobody was at the inn right then. This place was a refuge to keep victims safe, but there were so many victims this time that Asuro wouldn’t be used. Because of that, the innkeeper gave us free rein of the place.
“Inns feel very surreal when there’s nobody in them, huh?” I said.
“They sure do.”
I was washing the vegetables for prep…and starting to realize we really had a lot.
“You okay there?” my father asked me worriedly as he filled a pot with water.
“I’ll be fine. I’m only making easy things today.”
First, we were making dinner for the inn staff. They usually did the cooking, but they had no time for that today, so they had paid us to cook for them.
“Okay.”
“How many portions do we need again?” I asked.
“The innkeeper has a staff of ten people, so eleven should be enough. Oh, wait, they said they’d be happy to have a snack in between tasks.”
A snack between tasks… Maybe onigiri would be good? I took my father’s advice and added more rice to the pot. We had to make enough for the road, too, so I would need to cook three or four more pots of the stuff after this one.
“I was thinking of making rice balls and rice bowls—think that’ll work?” I asked.
“It should. The innkeeper did say they were okay with ryce.”
I did remember the innkeeper saying he was fine with rice, since he had eaten it before. But the person dressed as an adventurer beside him had looked shocked. I assumed they’d never had rice before.
“What are you going to do with all this water?” my father asked.
“I’m making a wild pigeon broth, so put all those pigeon bones in and light the fire.”
Since we were starting it in the morning, we would have a tasty broth by the evening which I would then use to make a nice hearty soup.
“The look on the innkeeper’s face sure was funny,” my father said.
I thought back to the look on the innkeeper’s face early that morning. Pigeon soup was well known as a medicinal brew sold by drugstores, famous for reviving your stamina and tasting terrible. That was probably what he thought I’d meant when I said I was making wild pigeon soup, and the look on his face was just… I chuckled now thinking about it.
“He didn’t have to put up that much of a stink about it,” I muttered.
“No, Ivy, believe me, medicinal pigeon soup is really something. You should at least try it on—no, actually, don’t.”
My father had a sour expression on his face. Everyone had that look when they thought about pigeon soup, and I found it a little hilarious.
“Okay, let’s get all these veggies cut.”
I grabbed the knife and reached out to the giant pile of vegetables.
“All done!”
After we cooked the giant feast, I divided the dishes between food we would take on our journey and food to give to the inn staff. The wild pigeon soup was filled with meat and vegetables, and it looked quite inviting. The onigiri were coated in a seasoned marinade, so they ought to be approachable, even for first time rice-eaters.
“I think they should be coming back any minute now…” My father looked out the window.
“Where are the monsters?” I asked. “Oh, look, everyone played so hard they’re fast asleep!”
After running around the inn all day, the quartet were in a cuddle puddle by the kitchen door. Everyone, even Ciel in slime form, had played their hearts out.
“Toron sure is being quiet.”
I looked at Toron to see the little tree staring at the platters of food in fascination. It didn’t seem to be contemplating any mischief, so we were probably safe, but what was the little tyke doing?
“Toron… What’s up, buddy?”
“Gyah.”
…I’m still having a hard time building a mutual understanding with you.
“Are you hungry?”
“Gyah?”
Okay, it’s not that. I thought you might be hungry since you were staring at all the food.
“All right, let’s get back to our room,” my father said.
“Sure.”
I transferred my sleeping slimes to their bag and picked up the magic bag that held all our food. We had made food for Zinal and Fische, too, so I wound up cooking way more than I’d expected, but it had been a lot of fun.
“Aren’t you tired? Toron, get in your basket, please.”
“Gyah.”
When Toron got in the basket, my father looked around the kitchen. The innkeeper’s one very firm request was that we remember to put the fire out.
“Looks good to me,” my father said.
“Yeah, and I’m not tired. I had a great time.”
“Okay, well, glad to hear it.”
When we got back to our room, we let the creatures out of their bag and took out potions for them.
“Puuu!”
“Teryuuu.”
“Pefu!”
Huge appetites as always. Well, they’ve been bouncing off the inn walls all day, so of course they’re hungry.
“Ah, it’s reacting!”
My father looked at the magic item the innkeeper gave us. It was matched with a magic item the innkeeper had, so its light would gradually change from white to green when he was approaching.
“Looks like they’re back,” I said.
“So it does. Should we have dinner?”
“Sure.”
We left our room, locked the door, went down to the first floor, and unlocked the inn’s front door.
“Thank you for your service,” my father greeted the innkeeper, who smiled in return.
“No problem. Something smells good.”
“It sure does,” said Zinal, following the innkeeper inside together with Fische.
“Thanks, Ivy. I hope you aren’t too tired?” Fische asked.
“I’m all right,” I assured them. “I got to cook a lot, so I had a great time.”
The innkeeper gave my head a few pats. “If only my granddaughters were just as little and precious as you.”
I tilted my head. He had granddaughters?
“That’s impossible,” Zinal scoffed. “They both started swinging a sword like their grandfather when they were little, and now they’re fierce adventurers, feared by all.”
Feared by all? That means they must’ve grown up to be mighty adventurers. They both sound incredible.
The innkeeper sighed at Zinal. “Tercules keeps swearing she won’t marry a man unless he’s stronger than her.”
“But that means only a few high-level adventurers even stand a chance, doesn’t it?”
Is she really that strong?
“Tell me about it,” the innkeeper groaned. “Meanwhile, Amakis lured a fledgling adventurer into marrying her.”
Lured him?
“Ohh, I know her. She made a big announcement like ‘I love a man who needs my protection!’ …So she got married?” Zinal looked at the innkeeper in surprise.
“Yeah, she did. To a poor chap two years younger than her. He’d only been an adventurer for a year when she sunk her venomous fangs into his heart.”
Her venomous fangs… Just what kind of granddaughters did this man raise? Now I really want to know.
Zinal smirked and patted the innkeeper’s shoulder while Fische tried to hide his laughter.
“Supper’s ready,” my father announced.
The innkeeper’s face lit up. “I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast, so I can’t wait.” And with that, he skipped toward the food.
“After all that working, he’s sure got energy,” Zinal sighed behind the innkeeper as he danced along the way to the kitchen.
“Well, I’m exhausted,” Fische said.
Zinal nodded.
“So, um, what about the other people working with you?” I asked.
I was confused because the only people who’d walked through the door were the innkeeper, Zinal, and Fische. Had their colleagues gone home?
“They’ll come back as soon as they’ve finished their own tasks. The innkeeper will make sure they’re fed,” Fische said.
I nodded. I decided it was best for the innkeeper to deal with them, since that was what they were used to.
“Got it. Can you and Mr. Zinal eat right away?”
“We can. We haven’t eaten since breakfast, either, and we’re paying for it now.” Zinal clutched his belly in agony.
“Well, I’ve made pigeon soup and rice bowls with extra meat. Wait in the dining hall and I’ll bring the food to you.”
“Oh, don’t trouble yourself; we can carry our own food. You had to cook a lot extra. Aren’t you tired?”
I shook my head. “I insist, let me serve you. I just have to heap the food over rice and it’s done.”