Chapter 201: Cooking in Hell
On the eastern side of the Subnock Plain, atop a small hill near the Wetlands, five individuals—Rest, Yuri, Ula, a female attendant, and a knight named Ostre—decided to set up their campsite.
“Let’s prepare dinner! The cooking begins now!”
“Cooking… yay!”
Yuri declared the start of the cooking session, raising her fist triumphantly above her head. Behind her, the attendant, whose name was revealed to be Arly, clapped her hands enthusiastically.
“…………”
“…………”
Rest and Ostre were left in the dust, watching cautiously from a distance as they busied themselves with setting up the tent and other chores.
“I want to cook…”
“Oh, Ula, have you ever cooked before?”
“………… Bread, burn?”
“Oh! The fact that you said ‘burn’ instead of ‘bake’ tells me you have no cooking experience! Don’t worry, I’ll teach you!”
Yuri thumped her chest confidently, her ample bosom jiggling in response.
“I’ve been cooking since long ago! Recently, I’ve been learning from Primula, and it’s not an exaggeration to say I’m a master now!”
That’s an exaggeration… Rest thought to himself. Both Viola and Primula had commented on Yuri’s rather haphazard cooking skills.
“Now then… for today’s main dish, I’m thinking of using this ingredient… worm meat!”
“Whoa!”
Rest couldn’t help but exclaim. What Yuri pulled out was a portion of the worm they had collected as material. Most of the defeated worms had been handed over to the soldiers of the Lavender Barony, but it seemed they had managed to keep a part for themselves. The grotesque chunk of meat was placed on the makeshift cooking table Rest had created using Earth Magic.
“When you think of camping, you think of barbecue! Let’s make skewered grilled meat with this!”
“…… Question.”
“Oh, you’re wondering if this is edible? No need to worry, my instincts are telling me this will be delicious!”
“…… Surprise.”
“Oh yes, it will be a surprising flavor! Now then… let’s start the preparations!”
Yuri pulled out a large meat cleaver, one that could chop through the bones of cattle and horses with ease.
“Ah, but before cutting, we need to wash the meat and get rid of the mud… Rest, you do it!”
“Uh… sure…”
From afar, Yuri called out to him. He felt a strong sense of dread. He wanted to pretend he hadn’t heard her, but Yuri’s voice grew louder.
“Rest! Rest! Can you hear me, Rest?”
“Alright, alright! I heard you!”
Reluctantly, Rest replied. He walked over to the cooking table and used Water Magic to wash off the mud from the worm meat.
“Thank you, that helped a lot.”
“…… Are you really going to eat that? After washing, it looks like a mottled black and purple mess?”
“Oh yes, we’re eating it. Of course!”
After washing, the meat looked even less appetizing, but Yuri remained determined to eat it.
“Now, pass me those vegetables. Also, please start the fire and warm up the iron plate. I’ll make a delicious dish soon, so just wait!”
“………… Sure.”
With a strained expression, Rest complied and returned to setting up the tent.
“Now, let’s peel the skin off this meat. It’s too tough to eat as it is.”
“Peel.”
“Oh, well done, Ula.”
“Hunter.”
“I see, I see… you’re good at skinning prey since you’re skilled at hunting. Next, we’ll cut it into manageable sizes.”
“Surprise.”
“Oh, you’re surprised? A swarm of tiny bugs just came out from inside! Just as Rest has started the fire, we can roast them to death!”
“Juicy, roast.”
“That’s right, that’s right. But man, it smells strong. Let’s soak it in a garlic-based sauce to get rid of the odor. I’ll chop up some herbs and sprinkle them on too.”
“Where?”
“Where did I find them? I picked them from around here. They’re a type I’ve never seen before, with leaves as red as blood, and they try to escape with legs if left alone… but it should be fine, probably.”
A horrifying conversation unfolded. Rest exchanged glances with Ostre, both trembling in fear.
“C-Could it be Count Clover…?”
“…… Let’s stop worrying about it. We must empty our minds and ignore their voices.”
The two men focused intently on setting up the tent, trying to divert their thoughts from the hellish cooking taking place nearby.