Chapter 65

Clatter

As Kurt placed a piece of meat, richly seasoned and exuding a strong aroma, on the table, the three of them stared blankly at the dish.

“This looks like a type of meat I’ve never seen before… What kind of meat is it?”

“Nothing special. I just happened to get some good ingredients and decided to use them.”

“The smell… It’s hard to tell because the sauce is so strong, but it seems similar to Three-legged Fowl meat, yet different at the same time. Ah! It smells like the lizard meat I had before!”

At Karina’s words, Mari, surprised, took another look at the meat dish on the plate.

Indeed, upon closer inspection, the neatly cut, round shape resembled the tail of a lizard.

Hearing this, Mari’s eyes widened, and she urgently asked Kurt.

“Eh!? Kurt, is your tail okay!?”

“It’s not my tail!”

At Mari’s absurd assumption, Kurt snapped and flicked her forehead.

“Ouch… Karina! Kurt’s bullying me!”

“Honestly, I think what you just said was somewhat justified.”

“Even you, Karina!”

At that, Mari, as usual, made a fuss, and seeing this, Kurt, who was about to say something, gave up and pointed to the A-Dragon meat.

“…Whatever. At least you seem lively.”

“That’s all you have to say after hitting an Elf!?”

“Let’s just eat. It’s getting cold.”

Mari tried to argue, but the intense, sweet, and salty aroma of the teriyaki sauce wafting from the plate Kurt handed her made her stomach growl.

Feeling that she hadn’t had a proper meal all day yesterday, she coughed once and quickly sat down, grabbing her fork and knife.

“Ahem, ahem…! Well, considering the effort Kurt put into cooking, I’ll let it slide this time!”

And with that, the four of them began their meal.

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Meanwhile, while Mari and Kurt were causing a commotion and Karina, caught between them, was making a troubled expression as she mediated, Serena had no time to pay attention to the noise.

She was too busy just staring at the A-Dragon teriyaki grill on her plate.

The intense aroma of the teriyaki sauce rising from the plate stimulated her senses.

Although she had eaten similar types of lizard meat before, the important thing wasn’t the lizard meat itself but the sauce poured over it.

Despite it being a scent she had never encountered before, she couldn’t stop her mouth from watering.

Kurt’s teriyaki sauce wasn’t just made by simmering ingredients; it was grilled over charcoal, infusing it with the aroma of the charcoal.

The sauce, flavored with soy sauce and sugar, combined with the charcoal’s aroma, and the meat’s juices underneath emitted a rich, enticing scent that seemed to tempt her.

Gulp

Serena, who always enjoyed Kurt’s cooking, would answer that her favorite dish was grilled meat if asked.

With her already favorite grilled meat and the appetite-inducing sauce added to it, she couldn’t take her eyes off the dish.

With anticipation in her eyes, she moved her fork and knife to slowly cut the A-Dragon meat.

Despite the meat’s thickness, it cut effortlessly.

As she sliced a large piece and lifted it with her fork, the blackened, glossy sauce dripped… drip… drip… in high viscosity.

Mesmerized by the meat’s cross-section, Serena couldn’t resist and put it into her mouth.

Hap

The first thing she felt was the intense, sweet, and salty taste of the teriyaki sauce.

But it wasn’t just the sweetness and saltiness from sugar and salt; it was a complex flavor from the soy sauce, onion, and garlic, creating an indescribable taste.

Her tongue, already producing saliva, started secreting even more.

Gulp

Gulp

As she began chewing, the intense juices from the A-Dragon meat burst forth.

The meat’s juices mixed with the teriyaki sauce in her mouth, elevating the flavor to another level.

At the same time, the strong teriyaki sauce, which could have been overwhelming on its own, blended perfectly with the lightly seasoned meat, creating a harmonious balance that was intense yet not overwhelming.

The sticky teriyaki sauce clung to every part of her mouth, leaving a rich aroma, and seeped into the crevices of the meat as she chewed.

After swallowing the piece of meat, the rich aroma of the teriyaki sauce lingered, leaving a blissful aftertaste.

“Haah…”

Serena, who had been silently savoring the aftertaste of the A-Dragon teriyaki grill, suddenly opened her eyes and shouted towards the guild’s reception desk.

“Wendy! Bring me a beer! No, bring a whole keg!”

This definitely goes well with beer.

Serena was sure of it.

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“Serena! Drinking beer first thing in the morning again!”

“It’s not morning, it’s lunch! And for a Dwarf, beer is no different from water, so it’s fine!”

Seeing Serena order beer, Karina scolded her for drinking alcohol first thing in the morning, and Serena retorted, making the table lively.

Whether it was due to exhaustion or the failure to defeat the monster, the atmosphere, which had been somewhat subdued, completely returned to normal.

While Karina and Serena bickered as usual, Mari, who had been eating, spoke to Kurt.

“Kurt.”

“What? Want more?”

“No. Just, thank you.”

Mari didn’t specify what she was thankful for, just smiled softly.

“…Boring.”

At her words, Kurt felt somewhat embarrassed and turned his head, continuing his meal.

“Kurt. There’s one more thing.”

“…What is it?”

“Give me more meat!”

It was a scene that had become familiar.

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After the three finished their mission investigating the abnormal situation with the monsters, several more days passed.

At Astram’s entrance, two men mixed in with other travelers.

Despite wearing ordinary traveler’s clothes, one had an aristocratic air about him with his blond hair, while the other had a fierce impression with his red hair.

After walking into the city for a while, the two entered a quiet alley and finally broke their silence.

“Hoo… It’s been a while since I’ve seen sunlight. Feels like I’m alive again.”

“I agree. Considering all the hard work we’ve done digging up the ruins without getting caught by the Eustians… Ugh.”

“But at least we managed to finish the job without anyone noticing, so that’s a relief.”

The two were knights from the Empire who had been excavating ruins in a cave near Astram.

Not just any knights, but the Empire’s Knight Commander and Vice Commander.

They had avoided any actions that might reveal their identity in crowded places, but now that they were in a place with no signs of people, they relaxed and revealed their identities.

For ordinary humans, this might seem reckless, but their combat skills were at the pinnacle of the Empire’s elite knights.

Almost no one could deceive their senses.

“By the way, we dug it up, but is that ruin really that important?”

“I don’t know the details either. We just have to bring back any artifacts from the ruins to the homeland as ordered.”

“Still, sending the Empire’s knights to infiltrate another country like thieves and do manual labor… Honestly, I’m not thrilled.”

“It must be that important. We shouldn’t complain about the Empire’s affairs.”

“No, it’s not that I’m complaining…”

As they walked around Astram, enjoying the fresh air, they soon sensed something and stopped.

“Found it! How about that building?”

“Hmm… It doesn’t look very fancy…”

“But the smell is amazing! This must be it!”

“Alright. We don’t have time to look for another restaurant.”

The reason these two, who had been stuck in a cave for so long, had come out was to have a good meal before returning to the homeland after the long excavation work.

They had been searching the city for a restaurant with delicious food and finally found the building with the most enticing aroma. They opened the door and entered.

It was a building that seemed larger than a typical restaurant and was frequented by many adventurers.