Chapter 149: Rishu and the Staff
When I came to, I found myself in a landscape reminiscent of the one I crossed over the icy lake. The early summer forest was gone, along with the beautiful trees that bloomed golden-hued white flowers. But in my hand, I held the Konkon Staff EX.
After defeating a Demon Beast that leaped at me like a saber-toothed tiger, I glanced around once more to confirm there was nothing else before I activated [Teleportation].
“I’m back, Rishu!”
Rishu flew over from in front of the fireplace, sniffing me. She usually does this whenever I return from somewhere other than Kanum.
While Rishu sniffed me, I opened my jacket to release the Fire Spirit. Dan-chan jumped into the fireplace to warm himself.
After a thorough sniffing, Rishu seemed to notice the Konkon Staff EX, now about forty centimeters long, and sat down with a thud.
“Nice staff, huh?”
I sat down in front of Rishu, letting her sniff the Konkon Staff EX.
“Yo! I’m the Konkon Staff EX, nice to meet you!”
The leaves popped open and greeted her cheerfully.
“This is Rishu.”
Rishu sniffed suspiciously.
“The name Konkon Staff EX is a bit long for everyday use, right? How about we give it a nickname? What do you want to be called?”
“The Great Rod Branch Super Konkon Staff EX!”
“Alright, let’s go with Ex.”
“That’s too long! Plus, ‘staff’ and ‘rod’ are redundant.”
“Come on, at least call me ‘Staff’! It’s my identity!”
“Then how about Ex-Staff?”
“Sure!”
“Well then, I’m going to take a bath.”
The place where the spirit appeared was warm, but I was still cold to the core. I leaned the Ex-Staff against a chair and headed to the bath.
I took my time soaking without washing, and when I was about to drink some milk after my bath, I found Rishu nibbling on the Ex-Staff.
“Ah—, easy there! Ouch, wait, that’s too strong! Yeah, just like that.”
I was a bit flustered, but it seemed to be fine. I took a sip of milk while leaving Rishu, who was mindlessly nibbling, and the noisy Ex-Staff as they were.
Tonight, I planned to have tea over rice and hit the hay early! Tomorrow, I’d whip up something to bring along and invite Rishu to the forest to show off the Ex-Staff.
When I woke up in the morning, it was drizzling. Looks like the Demon Forest is off the table today; I’ll just invite everyone for a card game instead. With this weather, I can’t go out to play.
The stone oven can either be heated by shoving in coals from the fireplace to bake whatever I want or by burning firewood inside until it’s all consumed, raising the temperature, and then gradually changing what I put in as the heat decreases.
Thanks to going to bed early yesterday, I woke up early today, so I’ll make a few things using the firewood method. While waiting for the firewood to burn nicely, I took Rishu for a walk.
I donned my hood and went hiking in the mountains. Rishu didn’t mind the drizzle, so we ventured out. The rainy forest had its own charm, but the slippery ground was a hassle.
After confirming that the firewood in the oven had turned to charcoal, I used a poker to create space for cooking and placed the spare ribs and potatoes in first. While they cooked, I focused on Spirit Naming.
Next up was round bread, and while waiting for it to bake, I played with Rishu. Today, the field was taking a break.
After that, I made pizza, which cooks quickly, so I kept an eye on it. Finally, I tossed in a soup made with chickpeas, spring cabbage, and finely chopped bacon into a pot to finish up.
I placed the plates of bread and spare ribs into a basket, covered them with a cloth, and grabbed the Ex-Staff, ready to go.
“Good morning! Here’s a little something for you. If you’re free today, how about a game?”
“Thank you very much. If it’s today, I can manage after lunch, but not in the evening. I’ll let Retze know.”
“Thanks!”
With the weather being bad, any adventurer with a bit of coin should be home if they’re not on a quest. It’s too early to head to the tavern anyway.
By the way, Ash still hadn’t woken up yet. At this early hour, it was just the butler and the Dinoss Family awake. Recently, Dinoss had been sleeping in a bit longer after a night of drinking, but being a farmer, he usually rises early.
It’s become a pattern for the butler to deliver things to Dean and the others when he wakes up.
Since I had to hide the Ex-Staff before the reveal, I got the go-ahead from Dinoss, and my afternoon plans were set.
It was also raining here, making it a bit chilly. I decided to light a fire in the fireplace to warm the room. I had been walking outside until yesterday, so I planned to lounge in front of the fireplace for the morning.
I lit the fire in the attic fireplace and sprawled out on my bed. It felt lonely without Daifuku around, but I hugged my feather pillow and read. With the shutters closed, the only light came from the lamp, making me drowsy.
Listening to the sound of rain tapping on the roof, I enjoyed my morning nap.