episode_0068

The first dish that came out was a simple bread dish, but on top of a small piece of bread, there was a large piece of cream cheese and some kind of herb. I tasted the cheese with a fork and it was pretty good. Cheese tastes pretty much the same in this world. I don’t remember it well, but it’s something like that.

Of course, since I ordered for ten people, ten plates came out, and I naturally picked up one of the two plates placed in front of me and gave it to Cosette. The waitress who was watching this was surprised and looked back and forth between Cosette and the plates.

Not paying attention to such gazes, Cosette had already cut the bread in half with a quick knife stroke and put it in her mouth. She had her eyes closed and was savoring the taste, but she seemed quite satisfied and began to quickly finish off the bread.

I also slowly moved the knife and cut the bread. I cut it so that the herbs were properly included, and when I put it in my mouth, the flavor of the soft bread and cheese was quite impressive. The herbs, which seemed to have no scent, began to reveal their presence very slowly, and at the end, they were left alone to coat my mouth.

It was a pretty good combination. In fact, even aside from the cheese and herbs, I liked how soft the bread was. It was a pretty high-class bread for a rural town, so it was a bit surprising.

I glanced over and saw that both Agnes and Mathias looked satisfied, and Aila, who had tasted a taste of home after a long time, was nodding. At this rate, I was quite excited to see what the next dish would be like.

After Cosette had finished her six plates, the next dish came out. It was served in a huge cauldron, and at a glance, there was a mountain of herbs piled on top. Was that supposed to be eaten? Everyone except Ayla probably had a strange expression on their faces.

But when the waitress used tongs to remove all the herbs and put the dish hidden underneath on a new plate, Cosette let out a small exclamation of admiration.

I don’t know what kind of meat it was, but it was a large piece of meat. When I glanced at it, it seemed like it had been grilled in some way, covered with herbs, and steamed again. A fragrant aroma rose from the meat in front of me, and when I lightly touched it with my knife, it was cut smoothly.

The waitress must have figured Cosette out perfectly, because she gave Cosette three plates, two loaves per plate, and then pushed the pot away from the table, and placed a basket of bread on top. It wasn’t just plain bread, it was bread that had been cooked in some way. Perhaps this one had been made with herbs as well.

I picked up a piece, cut it into small pieces with a knife, put the meat on it, and put it in my mouth. The meat juice, which was soft and rich in flavor, exploded in my mouth. The bread, which was more crunchy than hard, went well with it, and I quite liked how the different flavors of the bread and meat did not conflict with each other but quietly blended together.

“How is it, is it edible? There is no such dish at the Academy.”

“Definitely, I think Ayla would miss it.”

I nodded slightly. Of course, if you look at the objective perfection of the dish, the cooking technique, the quality of the ingredients, etc., there may be many dishes in the Academy that are better than this. However, as Ayla mentioned, there was no dish that used herbs so boldly and enjoyed the explosive flavor.

“The bread and meat that came out earlier were delicious, but the bread that came out this time was a bit…”

“Well.. That’s just how spices are. You can change your taste.”

Agnes seemed to be having a hard time eating this bread. However, judging from the fact that Agnes, who has a rather small mouth, was moving his knife diligently, he seemed to like the meat that would be called the main dish. Mathias didn’t say anything, but judging from the fact that he was eating diligently, he didn’t seem to dislike it.

“I’m glad Mathias doesn’t hate it?”

“..Why don’t you be quiet?”

I whispered softly in Ayla’s ear, and Ayla glared at me with an angry face. I resumed eating as if nothing had happened.

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.

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“I understand why Ayla asked you to come. I might think about you sometimes when I go back to the Academy?”

“Then why don’t you move to our neighborhood?”

“Is that so?”

Ayla and Cosette giggled as they left the store. I quite agree with that. Just like how you might find yourself craving food out of the blue even if it’s not your favorite food, I thought this type of food that you can’t find around the Academy would be quite common.

“If it’s a princess or Cosette, I’d like to treat them to other dishes since they can eat more, but honestly, other than this, there aren’t any dishes that are particularly unique. If it’s a taste they’re already familiar with, there’s no need to take the time to eat it, right?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Cosette’s stomach was limitless, but she had a conscience in her heart, so she didn’t seem to have any intention of starting research on what kind of menus there were in Ayla’s hometown restaurant, leaving Agnes and the others, who were already full, alone. Of course, I’m the same. In the first place, I just eat because I can, and I don’t eat because I want to like Cosette.

As I was walking around the town after leaving the store, I saw a man with a sword in the distance. While most of the people I saw were residents wearing ordinary clothes, the man in simple leather armor and a sword hanging from his waist stood out quite a bit. However, he looked this way and suddenly started running.

“Oh, Ayla!”

“..Huh? Oh, Cedric!”

As Ayla waved her hand, a man called Cedric came to Ayla and stopped. He spread his arms, but then he noticed us behind her and stopped. He then extended his right hand to Ayla. Ayla took his hand and shook it.

“How many years has it been? Looking at the friends behind me, the rumors about them going to the academy were true?”

“How many times have I told you that I’m going?”

“Well, it’s stranger to think that kind of thing is true.”

The man seemed to be quite close to Ayla and they were talking freely. The man had short brown hair and a few freckles on his cheeks, and judging by his broad shoulders, he seemed to be quite strong. I didn’t notice it before, but he was also carrying a small bow on his back. Ayla took a step aside and introduced him to us.

“This is Cedric, and I’m the son of Uncle Carl… the man who taught me how to be a hunter. That’s about our relationship. This is my friends from the Academy. In that order, Mathias, Cosette, and Agnes. And this one is called Princess.”

“Please call me Leah, not Princess.”

“Ahaha. Yes. Miss Leah.”

Cedric answered with a burst of laughter, though I didn’t know what was funny. I briefly considered whether my answer was funny, but no matter how much I thought about it, it didn’t seem to be. At that moment, Cosette suddenly poked me in the side. When I turned to her, Cosette whispered softly in my ear.

“..Princess, I think that guy.. Ayla..”

Cosette had only said that much, but what she said after that was something anyone could have guessed without saying anything. I kept my expressionless face, which was my specialty, and watched the man closely.

The man was shaking hands with Mathias, and it was clear that he was slightly taken aback when he heard Mathias’ voice answering his greeting. It could be said that he was simply surprised that he was a man, even though he looked cute like a woman.. but what if he was surprised that there was a man next to Ayla?

If I think about it that way, something quite interesting might happen, right? I smiled to myself and shook Cedric’s hand.

“So, Ayla, where were you and your group going?”

“I just had a meal, and I didn’t really have anything to do, so I took a quick walk. By the way, how are your Rudiger skills?”

“Well… I guess I can do some shielding now. My archery skills are still poor, and my sword is only slightly weaker than mine.”

“Hey, then you’re still weak.”

It seemed that Rudiger was also learning his hunting skills from Cedric’s father. It was a reasonable choice, since a certain level of skill was necessary to live the life of a herbalist who had to wander through the rather dangerous forest.

In what seemed like a normal conversation between friends, I caught the obsession called affection dripping from the eyes of the man named Cedric. Indeed, I can only say that Cosette is amazing for noticing this sooner than someone with such high-level observation skills as mine.

“Oh no. I feel like I took up too much of your time. I’m going to go now. Let’s talk later.”

“Okay, see you later.”

Ayla waved her arms in greeting and turned around without any hesitation and walked away. As she followed her, she glanced at Cedric, who was standing still and staring at Ayla’s back for a long time. That guy is seriously ill.

We returned to Ayla’s house after killing some time, and headed to the restaurant where the whole family was having a meal to greet Ayla’s parents. That’s when we heard shocking words from the mother who looked exactly like Ayla.

“Ayla, you marry Cedric.”