The night descended upon the jungle.
Shadows from the forest blanketed the encroaching darkness.
Beyond the layers of deepening gloom, the rustling of bushes could be heard.
We unpacked our gear.
A tarp, fashioned from giant lotus leaves, was unfurled.
We drove stakes into the ground, then draped and tied unused robes over the frame, creating a makeshift tent.
– *Whoosh,*
Then, by flicking a rune-etched stone, a fire was struck and ignited.
“All set.”
A small fortress, ready to withstand the dungeon’s night, was complete.
“Oh, you’ve worked hard.”
“Heh heh, we all did.”
“Didn’t you say this was your first time? You’re incredibly skilled.”
With the experience of having traversed treacherous terrains both domestically and abroad, I quickly adapted to the task of setting up camp.
Even in this alternate world, I had worried it would be tough, but things had unfolded more smoothly than I anticipated.
“It’s rare to set up such a comfortable camp.
Usually, because of monster attacks, we can’t even light a fire and just shiver in fear.
Sometimes, we even tie ourselves to trees and sleep in the branches!”
Sleeping rough in trees, huh.
“Oh, that sounds interesting.”
“There he goes again, this fellow.”
“He’s usually perfectly normal, but his eyes get strange at times like these.”
Hahaha–
As I laughed and chatted with my odd-job worker companions, with whom I’d grown quite close over the day–
“Dinner’s ready!”
From a distance, Fay, who was on dinner and dish duty today, called out to us.
According to the Golden Duck Guild’s point system, today’s lucky winners were the Guild Master Lark and Fay.
They had each been assigned the undesirable tasks of preparing dinner and standing night watch.
“I’ll take the night watch.
I couldn’t possibly let a lady lose sleep.”
However, at Lark’s sweet suggestion, it was decided that Fay would cook, and Lark would take the night watch.
Fay claimed she was confident in her cooking.
“The meal… Oh, barbecue and venison stew.”
Upon arriving at the dining area, set up a little distance from our sleeping quarters, a rather appetizing spread awaited us.
“Fay, did you make all of this yourself? That’s incredible!”
Although one of the older odd-job workers had butchered the meat, preparing it to this extent was still impressive.
“Hmph, this much is basic.
Before I entered the magic tower, I was in charge of all the meals at my house.”
At my compliment, Fay seemed to perk up immediately, puffing out her chest.
“Cooking is a type of chemistry, isn’t it?
So, as someone who majored in magical chemistry, I suppose you could say I’m somewhat of a cooking major too.”
“Oh…”
She certainly seemed confident.
But do chemists really cook well?
In dramas, they’re good at making drugs, though.
‘Should I try the stew first?’
As I thought this and reached for the ladle from the older companions who had already tasted it—
“…Wow.”
“Ugh…”
“Hss… ha…”
For some reason, the expressions on their faces were far from normal.
‘What is it? Is it bad?’
Come to think of it, it was a common cliché.
Food prepared by a sheltered, naive lady character often turned out to be something monstrous.
And judging by Fay’s behavior so far—
‘There’s a possibility.’
I couldn’t deny the possibility that she had created something *resembling* food.
“Fay.”
“Yes?”
“Have you ever formally learned to cook?”
“I taught myself from books.”
Learning to cook from text?
Suspicion stack 1.
“Do you happen to remember the books you referenced?”
“Of course I do! *The Theory of Human Taste Buds*.
Studying this during my undergraduate years gave me tremendous insight into cooking.”
That’s not a cookbook.
Suspicion stack 2.
“Isn’t that a different genre?”
“Hmph,” Fay began her enthusiastic explanation, as if she had anticipated my question.
“It might seem that way, but fundamentally, they’re the same.
Magical chemistry creates magical phenomena through the harmony of the five elements.”
“Ah-ha.”
“But it’s the same for the human tongue.
All tastes are determined by the spectrum of sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami.
It’s no different from magic applying the five elements, is it?”
“Does it really work like that?”
At some point, she had suddenly dived headfirst into sophistry.
“So, if you combine the elements of each taste as if casting a spell, and use ingredients close to them… naturally, you get good food.”
“That’s just in theory, right?”
“It’s been proven in practice too!
My sister always said it was delicious!”
Compliments from family aren’t exactly reliable.
Suspicion stack 3.
Break.
This confirmed it.
Eating this food would not end well.
“By the way, why isn’t everyone eating?”
“As a Lizardman, I can’t eat soup.
Racial difference, racial difference.”
“My wife is extremely possessive; she’d fly into a rage if I ate soup made by another woman.”
The others, seemingly having caught on, avoided eye contact and diligently chewed on the relatively normal meat, steering clear of the stew.
As the entire party was thus diligently playing ‘pass the spoon’ (TL Note: A Korean children’s game similar to hot potato, implying they were avoiding the stew) to avoid Fay’s ladle—
“Everyone, what kind of attitude is this towards the meal a lady has worked so hard to prepare?”
Lark, the Guild Master, stepped forward.
“Miss LeBlanc, may I have a taste?”
Sweet—
His sacrificial spirit, unwilling to hurt a comrade.
It was truly the epitome of a genuine leader.
Gulp, gulp—
Lark bravely drank the stew Fay had made, and then—
“Mmm.
This is… um… well, the taste…”
After savoring the taste with a great deal of hesitation,
“The taste is…”
He forced his facial muscles into a peaceful expression, only to—
“Uwaaaagh—!!!!”
He vomited.
“Kweeeegh!!! *Cough*, the taste… f*ck…!”
Mixing in vulgar curses, he magnificently overturned the dinner atmosphere.
…
It was the moment the camp’s precarious peace shattered.
“Oh, I… I’m sorry…”
Fay bowed her head, having received an objective evaluation of her cooking.
She seemed deeply disheartened by the more devastating reaction than she expected.
“My sister… she always ate it deliciously…”
Her sister’s love was truly touching.
But such love often breeds monsters.
“No, nooo… that’s not… Ugh…”
Lark tried to offer some explanation, but with his stomach already severely compromised, he couldn’t form coherent words.
‘Ugh, I guess I have to eat this.’
I’ll just eat a reasonable amount and pass it off with a neutral reaction, like it’s a matter of personal preference.
I can’t stand a gloomy atmosphere during a journey.
‘I’ve eaten my share of bizarre foods while traveling, after all.’
I probably won’t vomit in front of the cook like Lark did.
“Then I’ll eat it.
Let’s see…”
“Huh? Mr. Will, wait…!”
Hang in there, stomach.
With a desperate resolve, I took a spoonful of the broth.
[Censored – Chemical damage detected in stomach.]
[Taste information replaced with ‘acceptable venison stew’.]
And then,
“It’s delicious?”
Nothing particularly happened.
****
After the commotion caused by Fay’s cooking subsided, it was bedtime.
However, sleep wouldn’t come easily, so I approached Lark, who was muttering something while on night watch.
“Lark.”
“…Why you again… No, Mr. Will.
What’s the matter?”
Lark looked at me, his brow deeply furrowed.
For Lark, such a man of character, to speak so harshly.
He must be feeling quite unwell.
“You’re probably feeling sick; why don’t you get some rest?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I can’t sleep.
I’ll take the night watch until I feel tired.
The Guild Master is the most important, so you shouldn’t overexert yourself.”
“No, it’s fine.
I…”
“Come on, I saw you half-asleep just a moment ago.
It’s fine.
I don’t usually sleep much at night.”
Under my persistent persuasion, Lark finally relinquished a bit of his responsibility.
“Ah… then, if you’ll excuse me.”
Lark bowed his head curtly and returned to the sleeping quarters.
And then,
*Nod.*
Suddenly, one of Lark’s guild members rose from a corner, greeted me, and then left.
What was that?
As I stood alone, tending the campfire and gazing at the starry sky,
“Mr. Will? Why are you on night watch…”
“Hmm?”
Turning my head, I saw Fay.
Perhaps it was because she had unbound the braid she usually wore over one shoulder.
Her aura was different from usual.
“Ah, Lark seemed to be having a really hard time, so I offered to stand in until I get sleepy.”
“There’s no need for that.
He just told one of his subordinates to wait until everyone was asleep and then take over for him.”
No way.
Could that guild member who just greeted me have been the night watch substitute?
Lark’s sweet image began to waver slightly.
“More importantly, thank you for today.”
Fay bowed her head to me.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I’m not an idiot, you know.
I nearly made a mistake by letting my emotions get the better of me, but thanks to you, Mr. Will, I avoided an unnecessary blunder.”
“Oh, it was nothing.”
Nevertheless,
“Hmm… I don’t know about the others, but I genuinely found it edible.
And I’m not just saying that to make you feel better, Fay.”
“…Really?”
“Yes.”
I really did eat it with enjoyment.
It was a bit salty, but for a Korean palate accustomed to mixing cabbage with sodium (TL Note: A reference to the saltiness of kimchi and other Korean dishes), it was well within an acceptable range.
Perhaps this culture was accustomed to bland food, leading to an overreaction?
“And don’t be too disheartened.
You’re not going to stop cooking forever, are you?
You can just make it better next time.”
There was no ill intent, and now she knew what to improve.
“…Still, thank you.”
“It was nothing, really.”
Perhaps due to the warmth of the campfire, Fay’s profile was flushed crimson.
“Then, get some sleep.
I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“You too, Mr. Will.”
Parting ways with Fay, I slowly circled the campsite.
Then, for a moment, I leaned my back against the trunk of the tallest tree and gazed up at the sky.
The branches of the towering trees formed a natural frame for the painting that was the night sky.
A deep indigo and black abyss layered with twinkling stars, its edges gracefully embroidered by a faint Milky Way.
It was a vibrant and wondrous spectacle, one I had never witnessed from the small villa where I lay paralyzed.
“It truly feels like a dream.”
As I indulged in a sentimental mood, admiring the otherworldly landscape, just then—
– *Rustle, rustle.*
The bushes before me swayed with a rhythmic motion.
Not a natural occurrence, but a rhythm created by a living creature within.
“Oh, this is.”
This had happened once before.
A sense of déjà vu washed over me.
The memory of my first arrival here, when I encountered Fay.
Back then, too, the bushes rustled like this, and just as I wondered what was approaching—
– *Meow!*
Yes, it had cried out just like that.
“You… from back then…”
– *Meow!*
The black puppy I had seen when I first met Fay.
That creature was wagging its tail at me.
