Chapter 442: The Discussion Begins
“It smells nice…”
Chris stirred awake, still looking a bit tired.
“Mm…”
Perhaps due to the increased movement, Ash shifted and opened his eyes.
“Good morning, Ash. I’m glad.”
I knew he was recovering thanks to the [Healing] spell, but that didn’t stop me from worrying.
“Yeah, it’s a relief to see you’re safe!”
Dean lifted his wine mug and said. Being a mug enthusiast, Dean preferred both beer and wine in a mug.
“Ah, Lord of Dusk… I thought I was hallucinating.”
Chris’s way of addressing me seemed a bit off; if I fed him, he wouldn’t sleep again. Normally, he called me Jean as per our agreement.
“Jean…? This doesn’t seem like Kanum.”
Ash looked suspicious.
“Your Grace, you gave me quite a scare.”
The butler said as he handed Ash a cup of tea while he sat up in bed.
Ah, having tea in bed before fully waking up sounds nice. I should try that next time.
—And then, as soon as they woke up, everyone rushed to the bathroom. I had only asked the Spirit for help while they were asleep.
◇ ◆ ◇
“Ah, I can’t get enough of Jean’s cooking!”
Tears welled up in the corners of Chris’s eyes as he stuffed his face with goose meat.
In the end, I was serving dishes based on personal requests. Most of the meals I had made in the past were stored in [Storage]. Especially Chris’s White Goose; I had an abundance of it. I had overhunted for the bedding!
Goose tastes similar to duck. While crispy skin is delicious, Chris prefers it moist. He likes it served with balsamic sauce or berry sauce—reduced from tart, slightly astringent dark red fruits to make it a bit milder.
“Ah, I just wanted to eat Jean’s meat and bread before I got into a pinch!”
“Indeed.”
Ash nodded at Dean, who was tearing into the bread.
Dean, stop saying it like I’m the one being cooked into meat!
“What does Ash want to eat?”
I asked Ash, who had finished his tea at the table.
“Is there a vegetable soup with bone-in chicken?”
He asked, as if recalling something he wanted to eat.
“Is the soup clear?”
“Yes. I believe it was made with salt, pepper, and consomme.”
I pulled out the ingredients that matched and placed them on the table. Ash’s face lit up with a smile. Though it didn’t change much, I could tell it was a big smile for him.
“Nostalgic.”
Ash brought the vegetable soup to his lips.
“Nostalgic?”
“Roasted rabbit and cookies. This vegetable soup was made in hopes of Az’s liberation, after I collapsed.”
“Oh, now that you mention it, it is the same as the one I made back then.”
Since I could leave it in the fireplace, I often made this vegetable soup. The chicken sometimes turned into bacon, but the base remained the same.
“What’s this? It’s sweet and sour!”
Dean laughed heartily, already getting tipsy!
“…You guys are lively.”
Retze had woken up.
And then he headed to the bathroom.
“Now, what will Retze eat?”
Retze’s request was corn soup. Plenty of sweet corn and heavy cream. I strained it and added some corn kernels.
“Sweeter than fruit…? How is it that the corn husk doesn’t bother me at all…?”
Retze diligently brought the soup to his mouth, and since he showed interest, I served some to Haulon as well.
The corn here is either the hard kind that can be made into popcorn or a sparse variety with only about eight rows. The sweetness is reminiscent of grains! If you savor it, it feels sweet!
“Alright, I’m done eating. Jean’s culinary temptations are too strong, but we should discuss what needs to be discussed before Dean gets any more drunk.”
Retze emptied his plate.
“There are those who watched without joining the battle to confirm the results. However, it seems they didn’t bring any Spirits.”
“Well, that gives us a bit of time.”
Retze looked relieved.
Could that be the one I sent the Black Spirit after? They seemed to keep their distance, but did both of them notice? What does it mean that not having a Spirit gives us time?
“Not having a Spirit nearby means they aren’t Mages. Even if they had a magic circle for contacting their employer, using it in a place swarming with Black Spirits could lead to the assisting Spirit being attacked midway, resulting in failure. If they want to use it, they need to go to a shallow area of the Forest with fewer Black Spirits.”
Retze explained while looking at me.
“I see?”
I need to get the hang of this quickly.
“Either way, you all seem to be dead, right? I think the Guild’s covenant record has either turned pitch black or caught fire.”
Haulon said.
“Why’s that?”
Dean paused his eating and drinking to ask.
“Because Jean has nullified the covenants for all of you.”
“Indeed.”
The butler reinforced Haulon’s words.
“Oh, right! When you break a covenant or contract, the other side tends to explode or burst into flames, right?”
I recalled the Zabuton explosion incident.
“Hey, you! Is it really happening now?!”
Haulon was getting flustered again.
It is happening now; I’ve never seen the scene myself.