"My name is Melk! Melk the cutler!" The young person repeated, grinning slightly. "Wha..whaaat?! You're Melk?! As in the world's best cutler Melk?!" The boys gaped out."Nice to meet you." Andrea said with a polite smile. "It's been years since I've seen another person. And I'm not sure I've seen anyone so shocked. Ever." Now this part was gonna be fun. "I...I'm surprised that you're so, uh, delicate!" Komatsu started then began to describe what he thought Melk would look like. "I was sure you'd look like this. From the rumors." How the heck did he get that idea? "Where'd you get that idea from? And why a top knot?" Melk inquired a bit, looking slight confused. Very good question. But his idea was fun. "I was 99 percent sure you'd be like..." Toriko described what he thought Melk would look. Both of their ideas were out there.. "Don't know that one." Andrea blinked when eyes turned on her. "Don't look at me I never go by the rumors. (Even though I've never heard of you til just a short time ago.)" She explained and got greeted by disappointed looks (mostly from Komatsu and Toriko).
"Oh well. The rumors you've heard have some truth to them." Melk said holding the knife he held closer to his face. Those words were slightly ominous...talk bout a dark sense of humor. It sure got Komatsu though, judging from his expression..Jeesh.. Must he take everything at face value? The trio watched the slim "man" walk over to the door and motion with his hand in invitation. "Come in. It's been a while since I've had company." She glanced up at the hunter, who looked doubtful about something. Must be about the person in front of them. "Don't let it get to you, Riko. Things usually resolve themselves." Andrea grinned as the larger man blinked and looked down at her.
"Jeez.. Must you always have a say on something?" Toriko asked her, looking like he was trying not to smile. "Must you make things complicated than what their supposed to be?" Andrea smiled innocently and blinked when he ruffled her hair a bit. "You're something else. Let's go catch up to Matsu." Hm? Dang that little guy moved fast! She didn't even see him go in! Wait.. Ah. So he was the one who went "Woo-hoo! Score!" earlier. "Wait for us Matsu." Andrea called after him, walking over kinda curious to what was inside. She had never been to a cutler's shop before. It was kinda exciting to see what one looked like!
"I'm inside Melk-san's workshop!" The chef squealed excitedly placing his hands on his face. That was new..Andrea didn't think she had ever heard a man squeal like a girl. Talk about a fan boy! Andrea looked around the workshop curiously. Are objects supposed to sparkle? Knives yea but everything in here sparkled but everything was quite fascinating to look at! From the look of things the knives weren't sharpened yet but they looked like that? So this was what they meant by master craftsman. Glancing over at the chef it would appear that he was speechless. The woman glanced down and noticed gouge marks of all sizes in the floor. A stone floor no less. What could of have possibly..?
"What..the.." Andrea mused allowed, wondering what exactly caused the marks. "Comin' in..." The large man started to announce when he too noticed the gouges. What was with all the cuts? "Ah!" Komatsu gasped out looking up as one of the knives. "A thousand speciality knife! It's an all purpose knife that can slice thousands of ingredients with ease. It's Melk-sama's masterpiece and it sells for five million yen. This is what one looks like before its sharpened..." The chef dreamily sighed out as he reached up as it to touch it. "HANDS OFF!" Melk shouted at him just as the board, which was holding the knifes in place like a shelf, unhinged from the wall letting the same knife Matsu was just admiring fall off.
"Watch out!" Andrea cried out even as the hunter quickly yanked him back as he shouted, "Komatsu, watch out!" Andrea thought her eyes were gonna bug out when the knife easily sliced off some of Toriko's hair and embedded itself in the floor next to the shocked men. "W..wow.." Was all she had time to get out before the smaller man went, (seriously his eyes were gonna stay bugged out forever if he got them out any further) "Huh...?! Whaaat?! It sliced through the stone floor! Th..that's one sharp blade!" Ok. No matter what Andrea had seen up to this point nothing compared to the sight of a knife literally SLICING into the floor!
'I get it. The knives made these slice marks.' Toriko mused to himself then spoke up, "Melk knives.. Some are so sharp they required a license to use. (Say what?! The woman was very sure none back home needed licenses!) I've heard plenty of stories about clumsy amateurs getting themselves seriously cut." Yea. That was totally possible but still hard to wrap her mind around.. They watched him pick up the fallen knife and inspected it closely. "It's hard to believe this is unsharpened." Andrea thought her jaw was gonna hit the floor. The heck?! An unsharpened KNIFE did that?! "Didn't I say hands off? That knife is made from a Warner shark tooth. Nothing's as sturdy or sharp. It's dangerous."
That surprised Toriko a bit and commented. "A Warner shark? They're at least capture level 50. You must depend on another person to gather your materials." The woman bit back a sigh. Leave it to him to put his foot in his mouth. Judging from the reaction from Melk he didn't take that kindly. Something about Melk's demeanor said that the hunter was gonna pay for that remark. "Depend on another person?" Melk echoed a bit. Yup. He didn't take that comment well at well. The hunter waved off the remark and continued, "Never mind. Anyway, Melk. We've got something to ask.." "no one helps me." Melk spoke so quiet that Andrea almost missed it.
"I acquire all my knive and whetstone materials myself. I don't rely on anybody else. So watch your words." The slender man warned. Ten said Toriko was gonna go there. "Hmm. That's not how it looks to me. Melk." "I knew it. He went there." Andrea sighed. Even if it was true (Toriko's words) it was rude to point it out when it was none of their business, even more so when they needed a favor from this person. Toriko carried on, ignoring her, "You couldn't capture a Warner shark with that wimpy body. Ow!"
"That was rude, riko! You guys need a favor from Melk! Why are you trying to pick a fight?!" Andrea scolded him as she rubbed her elbow. Dang was his chest solid! Hope she didn't break her elbow from that jab. "Wait.. What are you.. Hold on a sec, Torik.." But the two continued on as if they didn't hear them. Now, normally getting ignored didn't bother her but Andrea could only take so much of that before it ticked her off. "How would you know without finding out for yourself?" Melk inquired and the hunter merely responded by lightly using his knife and sliced a spot close to the cutler. Jeesh...was it just her or did it seem like Toriko was getting arrogant? Though to be honest it was kinda amusing to watch the shock on Melk as he processed what happened and glance to see the gauge.
A ting ting sound got their attention and all turned to see the larger man holding one of the knives and was brushing it against the knife hand. "Fine. Shall we out?" Toriko taunted a bit, trying not to smile at the adorable glare Andrea was sending out him. Yea he was pushing it a bit but something wasn't sitting right with him about this...Melk. He had to find out what was it. "Heh heh.. Just kidding." "H..hold on!/For real?" The two went though the chef exclaimed while she just sighed out. "Sorry for wasting your time with that. I don't care where you get your materials. We came here for one reason." "Two reasons." Andrea corrected and tried not to smile at his sheepish grin. "Opps...two reasons. My bad."
"Outside." Melk ground out, face dark a bit with anger. She totally called it. If the woman didn't know any better she'd say Toriko antagonized him in purpose to get him to this point.. "Hm?" Toriko went as the cutler continued angrily. "Step outside. Now!" "Nice going riko. You ticked him off." Andrea said, wondering why it was a big deal about strength. Unless..her earlier guess was correct and he was actually a she. To confirm it Andrea needed to get closer to see if the Adam's apple was there or not but she was pretty good at judging. "M..Melk-San..?" Komatsu didn't sound very enthused about this.
Andrea knew this stunt was coming but still.. She sighed deeply as she and Komatsu followed the two outside. "You want to find? Fine. Test my true strength. In return, I'll test.." Melk said reaching for the knife in the hilt on his hip. "C..come on. Just apologize." Komatsu pleaded with the hunter, tugging on his arm a bit. "Quiet, Komatsu." Toriko told him. Andrea sighed quietly. She knew it would come down to this. What bug did that crazy hunter have up his butt about Melk? Of course he was really a she but that couldn't be it could it? Or maybe it was the age..?
"The sharpness of my latest blade." Melk finished saying holding a large knife that gleamed. Would that knife be enough to face Toriko? It would be a shame for Melk to get beaten up a bit. Next to her the chef let out a horrified gasp. Oh boy. 'Is that what he meant?! Melk-San really is cold blooded enough to test the sharpness of his knives on people?! That look in his eyes..' The chef thought as he remembered the cutler's earlier words. Glancing a bit at Toriko showed him looking slightly bored, which kinda annoyed her for a moment. He was the one picking a fight and now he had the balls to look bored?! How rude!
"Fine. I'll take you on. I don't know why you're so angry (cause a certain someone touched a sensitive subject but what would she know), but whatever this is about must matter a lot to you. I said something unforgivable. (More like running his mouth) About something you hold dear." The slender man (or should it be switched to woman?) said nothing, just stared at the hunter waiting for his move. "Whatever it is we're men! Some things can only be settled with our fists!" Toriko smirked for a moment before he corrected himself. "My mistake. It's not fists...its knives!" "Battle junkie to the end.." Andrea sighed as the two watched the large man launch himself at the smaller opponent as he shouted, "Knife!"
Which Melk blocked off beautifully with her knife, dang that was pretty cool! Guess Andrea could see why everyone was so gung ho about those knives. Judging from Melk's expression the move completely threw her off. While...Toriko did attack using his bare hard while she used a knife...so it wouldn't be a stretch to be surprised. The attack caused a knick in the move and a nice cut on the hunter's hand. Maybe the woman judged too harshly for him picking a fight this was pretty interesting to watch. Melk knelt down and in one smooth stroke sharpened the blade on her boot. Her boots were whetstone? Talk about a hard foot! Would Toriko be mad if she was impressed by that?
"H...he sharpened the chip out of his blade in one stroke?!" Komatsu loudly exclaimed in shock. Wasn't he the one saying what a master Melk was? If Melk couldn't do it in one then she couldn't call herself a artisan. Ah well. It'll be over in a moment. "Eat my scale shave!" Melk shouted at Toriko as she used her attack from before on him which the hunter just easily blocked with a loud grunt. "I'll eat anything!" "And it's over." Andrea muttered as a split second later Melk was flat on her back with the hunter standing over her, holding her shirt while his knife was close to her neck. And of course him smirking cockily at her. Damn ego.
Melk was huffing and puffing trying to catch her breath as Riko spoke up. "Not bad. You held out pretty well." "Just what...are you?" She asked between gasps. "Toriko-San! What did you do to Melk-sama?!" The smaller man shouted rushing over to the two. "Technechially Toriko did but hey.." Andrea said walking up behind the chef. "He started it.." Toriko retorted a bit moving so Melk could sit up. "Did you say Toriko? I see now... You're Toriko, one of the gourmet hunter four kings. That's why you're so strong." "You held out pretty good in my opinion." Andrea complimented and tried not to smirk at the pout he (Toriko) got at that.
"Guess I forgot to introduce myself." Toriko said watching the woma walk over to his fallen opponent and offer a hand. "You ok?" She asked then blinked a bit when the hunter said, "Now tell us. Who exactly are you? And where's the real Melk?" She called it earlier but still! To go this far JUST to get her identity? Talk about overkill! But coming from the larger man...it was to expected..Jeesh.. The small group went inside and tea was prepared for the three. "What makes you think I'm a fake?" Melk inquired as she served the tea. Well she (Andrea) could name some but unlike a certain person she was too polite to rudely name them.
"Thank you." Andrea warmly thanked the younger woman when she served hers to her. The two combatants hadn't bothered to clean up after the fight so the cutler still look quite disheveled. The chef echoed her thanks when he got his tea. "You want to know?" And here comes the rudeness. That man seriously needed to learn manners.. And perhaps lose the trademark cocky smirk. "Listen. What kind of artisan their sign over the back door?" Hm? Now that Riko mention it there was a sign hanging over the door they passed through.. Andrea watched as Komatsu went to check. "Yeah! This is where the sign is! And the mailbox!" The woman tried some of the tea as the other man joined his partner.
"This is actually the front door." Toriko explained, putting his hands on his hips. "Then what we entered used to be the back door." The chef finished. She was getting lost a bit so she just continued to watch the boys. Toriko turned to look at the cutler. "You didn't make that, did you? It's clear from the size." The hunter jabbed a thumb toward the door. "This door is larger than life." Now that he pointed it out most of the fixtures here looked like they were made for a much larger person. Ah. Now that she thought of it didn't Toriko mention this Melk person being a large guy? "Y..you're right. It's like it was meant for a giant." Komatsu echoed her thoughts.
The hunter glanced over to the woman drinking her tea calmly and was kinda curious why she was being so quiet all of a sudden. It wouldn't surprise him if she figured it out by now. Andrea was a quick one. "This is a workshop. Oversized materials come in through her all the time." The younger woman (Andrea couldn't help but feel she had a few years on her here) reasoned as they watch the hunter come inside and jab his thumb once again at the stairs. "Then how explain the size of these steps? They're on the scale of the steps leading up Melk mountain. This workshop and home were most likely built by the real Melk. (Don't suppose it occurred to him that this person could of been an apprentice? Andrea heard of apprentices taking on their masters names.) if he's as people-wary as they say, it makes sense he put the entryway opposite the stairway. The real Melk would be 2.5 meters tall. (Argh! Stop using meters! Her conversion was terrible!) You're not that." Toriko explained as he sat back down.
"If it's just about height.." Melk started but the hunter cut her off. "Nope, there's more. (He tried not to smile at the sigh Andrea tried to surpress.) Melk and the president are supposed to be friends. I'm talking about the IGO president. I have no idea how ancient that geezer (Again he tried not to smile at Andrea, who glared slightly at him cutely. Though he didn't think she'd appreciate him thinking her anger and glares were adorable.). But you don't look the right age to be friends. There's more. Want me to continue? Andrea. Please stop glaring at me." Toriko gave in and smiled at her, who was glaring more at him. "Half of that was totally unnecessary! Did you have to rub salt in the wound? Ack!" The hunter ruffled her hair. She was far too nice for her good.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! He didn't have to continue on like that! That jerk could of used some but dang! Very rude! And they haven't even asked for their favors yet! Melk was silent, though kinda confused and slightly amused at the exchange. Matsu glanced up and exclaimed quietly, "Melk-sama." The young woman was silent for a few more minutes then spoke. "The IGO president is Ichiryu if I'm not mistaken." Why did it surprise those two? The president was pretty well known. "The name of that friend is one of the few words I've heard my master speak." Andrea snickered as that really threw the guys off. ""Master"?" Toriko echoed in surprise and slightly annoyed at the snickering. Hmph. She even figured that out? When was she gonna let them in on that? "My predecessor. Toriko, the "real Melk", you speak of is the former proprietor of the shop. In other words.. I am his successor! The heir to his sharpening skills! Melk the second!"
Was it just her or did that give off a strange vib? Probably just her. "Huh? The second?" Matsu echoed. "Huh. Surprising. So Melk had an apprentice." Toriko commented. If she didn't know better Andrea would of thought that was sarcasm. "Like the rumors say, my predecessor was a hermit artisan. I was his only apprentice." Melk explained even as Komatsu got sparkly eye (which was getting creepy but hey) and went, "Aww, a father-son business! How cool!" Correction: father daughter business but the woman wasn't going to change that. It wasn't her place to expose her. "Why didn't you say so in the first place? I thought you were an imposter." Toriko rudely said stretching out a hand.
"For crying out loud Toriko! Must you continue with this rudeness?! What will you do if Melk doesn't want to help us?!" Andrea scolded and only got more frustrated at him when he grinned at her. Damn him he better be taking her seriously! "Andrea's right! You need to stop being rude, Toriko-San! First you pick a fight, and now you call him a fraud?" Komatsu joined in, though he was also being rude by pointing a finger at the hunter but one rudeness at a time. "You.. Who are you two to accompany one of the four kings?" Melk inquired curiously, looking over at them. "Ah! I forgot!" Komatsu rubbed the back of his head embarrassed and did the weirdest, creepiest bow and introduction she had ever seen. She decided to ignore the hunter's comment of "You're giving me the creeps, Komatsu." When she felt the same. Some serious fan issues..
The name of his hotel perked the cutlery interested. "Hotel gourmet..? Then you're chef Komatsu. The chef Komatsu who made century soup!" THAT really perked him up. "Y..you've heard of me?!" "Komatsu, if your eyes sparkle and get any bigger their gonna stick like that." Andrea said but highly doubtful he heard her. And she thought she went into fan mode! "Of course! Hotel gourmet and century soup are famous now!" Melk excitedly explained even as the pose he (Matsu) got in was even more creepy. "I can't believe you've heard of me...!" "Congrats, Matsu. Your name reached the person you admired." Andrea smiled (though creeped out) as she watched the exchange even as Toriko let out a small laugh. "Your name's scaled the highest mountains. Not bad, Komatsu!" Toriko congratulated him.
"By the way Komatsu's my partner." The large man added which drove the chef further into that weird pose of happiness which was extremely creepy.. "Oh! I'm lucky to have such famous guests." Melk started before Andrea waved her wave. "Just those two. I'm just a tag-along. I'm Andrea by the way." The other woman gave a curious look and inquired, "Are you Toriko's girlfriend by chance?" Andrea thought her face was going to explode from...actually why was she blushing? Toriko laughed a bit and replied, "No nothing like that." For some reason that bothered her... And judging from the slight weird look he felt the same before he stifled the expression.
"D..do you think maybe the former Melk-samwa also knows about me?" She could of kissed Komatsu for continuing on and breaking the ice. To be honest Andrea had no idea if she should of said something or not about the girlfriend bit and even if she...argh. Something to ponder about later. "No, I highly doubt he ever heard a thing about you. He didn't care about the world below." That did make sense. He was supposed to be people wary or whatever. "Since he's gone I'm pretty sure nobody knows there's a new Melk." Andrea commented, feeling slightly left out of the conversation.
"What happened? Did he retire or something?" Toriko piped up, curious as to what happened to the original owner. That was a good question. It's doubtful he quit from the sound of things. Melk was quiet for a moment then answered, "My master is currently looking for some whetstone material." Wonder why she sounded doubtful? Did something happen before he left? "Huh?! He's still active?!" Toriko exclaimed surprise as the chef joined in, "Cool! So Melk-Sama left his second in command in charge while he's in the field." Andrea rubbed her ears a bit. He really does get so excited.. "U...um, Melk-sama... Thing is, we came here...to ask for a single favor." Well that was a turnaround. The woman (Andrea) smiled a bit. That was awfully bold of him to be straight forward.
"Two favors, Mtasu./Not just one!" Toriko and her said (though he shouted his) and looked at each other. "To commission a knife?" She (Melk) asked. Komatsu got large hearts in his eyes and happily shouted, "Yesss! Please!" "Of course! No problem! But you'll have to get in line with the other commissions. It'll be about three years." Three years?! Holy cheese! Was the line that long?! Poor Komatsu got the most strangest face yet at the news. "Dah ha ha! Lucky you, Komatsu! In three years you'll have a knife!" The hunter teased him laughing. That was kinda harsh...
Komatsu took out his broken knife and looked at it sadly and sighed in disappointment. "Three years? I guess you've got commitments already. I better buy a replacement at some department store while I wait." The chef said, poor guy sounded completely dejected. The knife in the chef's hands got the cutler's attention, noticing something about it and leaned in to look at it. "That knife.." Melk started when Matsu explained, "Yeah.. It broke on me. Poor knife.. I'd been so careful." Andrea couldn't help but notice how captivated Melk was by the knife. It kinda made her curious about why the reaction.. "Hey, Melk. I have a request too. More like a question." Toriko spoke up, getting Melk's attention then got a cocky look (to be honest when he asks about stuff it seemed it like he always got a cocky look) as he asked, "Have you heard of Melk stardust?"
The question shocked the cutler pretty good. "Wha.. Did you say Melk stardust?!" Melk exclaimed surprised. "So you know about it?!" Toriko asked excitedly but Melk stayed quiet for a moment. "Melk..?" Andrea inquired a bit. Just what was it that got her so rattled a bit? "What do you want with it?" Toriko stood up to look at Melk. "We're looking for it. Can you tell us what you know?" "Melk stardust is a whetstone. It's an incredible whetstone said to be able to sharpen any material in the world!" The cutler explained. Andrea laughed at the boys shocked and dismayed expressions. She had a feeling it wasn't going to be food. Exactly. Knowing that crazy president this was something edible.
"What?! It's a whetstone?!/Huh?!" The two gaped out even as the hunter cried out in dismay, "Melk stardust isn't food?!" "Food..? Well, supposedly the golden shavings that fall after its sharpened a very hard material can be used as a seasoning. Is that what you mean maybe?" "A seasoning?" Andrea echoed, though she couldn't help but grin at the cute disbelief Toriko had on. It was nice to see those different expressions besides his smug look. "A seasoning?!" Toriko also echoed in disbelief. "Yes. The dust is composed of a new kind of amino acid. So it's basically never been tasted before." The cutler finished explaining. Ooh boy. Now the hunter was excited. "Never been...tasted?" "Riko you're starting to drool." Andrea smiled innocently when he moved his head away. Hehe. Did he think she was gonna wipe it off?
"The first one to discover it was my master. That's why it was named Melk stardust. (She kinda figured that. Things discovered usually get named for the person who found it) I've never seen it myself. If I had that whetstone I could sharpen on a whole new level." Komatsu watched the cutler, strangely quiet on the topic. Wonder what he was thinking.. Toriko had a thinking look and she could already guess what he was plotting. "Say... Say I found that whetstone for you. If I did...would you put Komatsu's knife at the top of your list?" "T..Toriko-San.." Interesting. Wonder why that surprised him. "How 'bout it?"
The younger woman looked at him for a moment then replied, "It's impossible, Toriko. Even you couldn't mine Melk stardust." "Hm? Why not?" Toriko asked. "It's in too dangerous of a place." "No worries he's used to those by now." Andrea chirped out innocently and tried not to giggle at the hunter. "Nice to know I've got your confidence but anyway. I kinda figured. Seeing as how the old man commissioned it. It was going to be in a dangerous place." Melk closed her eyes for a moment then said solemnly, "My master went there and has t returned." "Melk-sama the first?! So the whetstone he's looking for is Melk stardust?!" Komatsu gaped out.
"My master handled all the forging and material acquisition. He never asked for anybody's help. He's the one who killed the capture level 55 Warner shark. It wasn't me. Sorry, Toriko.." The cutler admitted. Toriko grinned slightly. "Yeah. I knew it wasn't you." "My master's so strong. He's the one who discovered Melk stardust... And yet he hasn't been back in six years!" "That long?!/S..six years?!" Andrea and the chef gasped out in surprise. "... Maybe he died." Toriko bluntly said and blinked at th glare from the smaller (much as it depressed her Andrea was slightly smaller then Melk.) woman. "How rude Toriko!" She scolded then blinked when Melk raised her voice in denial, "No! He's not dead! I know he's alive! I still...have to..." Her voice trailed off a bit clenching her fist in emotion.
Oh boy. Something tells her there's someone issues going on here. "Tell me. Tell me where I can find Melk stardust. If th former Melk is there, I'll bring him back with me. That's a promise!" There he went again playing the charisma card again. "About 30 kilometers north of Melk mountain.. Serveral tens of thousands of meters below the surface... Lies heavy hole. Because of the unique magnetic resonance field and pressure gravity is magnified there. It's the deepest cave in the human world. That's where Melk stardust is mined." Toriko cracked his knuckles a bit in anticipation.
"Let's go, Komatsu! Andrea!" "Nope./You should make this a solo journey, Toriko-San. It's too dangerous for me." The to replied back to the statement. "What?! Why do you think I've brought you two along?! I told you I need your strength! There's no point if we don't capture this together?!" The hunter cried in outrage as he and Andrea watched the chef turn to Melk and asked, "What do you think, Melk-sama?" Way to put the pressure Komatsu. "Hmm.. I think it's too dangerous for chef Komatsu and Andrea-chan. (Not chan please..)." Andrea watched on in amusement as the chef seized the moment. "I know, right?!"
Toriko, meanwhile, didn't look too pleased at the reaction. His pout was pretty childish and cute. Nice to know he could make those expressions. "Komatsu, don't tell me... You want to be left behind so you can watch Melk work." The woman giggled as the chef, caught red handed, tried to quickly deny it. "N..no way! Whatever made you think that...!" "Your expression gives you away, Matsu." Andrea told him trying not to laugh. "And what about you? Why are you staying?" "If it's as bad as Melk says it is we don't have the proper equipment to be there. Well, for Matsu and me anyway." The hunter obviously wasn't too pleased with that.
"Fine. I see how it is. Then you two... Give me one of your knives and necklace!" Toriko demanded. Wow for demanding he had such a serious expression on. "Huh? A knife?" Komatsu echoed in confusion. "Why do you want one of my necklaces?" Andrea inquired, curious about why he would want one. All she had left now was a heart pendant and a simple long chain with a jewel on it.. "Yeah. You've still got one that's not broken right? I know you've always got them on you." Toriko said throwing the chef off more. "I do, but.." He (Matsu) started but the larger man continued. "These knives are your life. I want one with me. Same goes for your necklaces, Drea. I've never seen those come off of you. Those are your treasures so I want one of them with me. I'll take this one."
She blinked a bit when he reached over and tugged on the longer necklace. Oook. Andrea took it off and handed it to him even as the chef handed him a knife. "Why do you want these anyway?" Andrea asked, watching the two items disappear into one of his pockets. "As collateral. If anything happens to me, something you value as much as your life should share the same fate." "The heck?! Since when did you get so spiteful?!" "Huh?! Why would you do that?!" The two exclaimed at him in dismay. The..the nerve! She blinked a bit and tried not to blush at the childish grin on Toriko's face.
"Just kidding. Heh heh. But we're partners, remember? Our spirits belong too wherever we go. ("Since when do you go deep, Riko?" Andrea asked, slightly surprised he would say that. The woman never pictured him for the spiritual aspect type.) And..it might be better to divide and conquer this time. You two got something important to take care of!" Toriko told them then took off. Komatsu was confused but Andrea had an inkling about what that was.. She glanced over to the younger woman. If it was what she thought it was then trying to help Melk get confidence might be a challenge.
"Will Toriko be okay out there alone? Heavy hole is one of the most dangerous places in the human world. The average capture level of the creatures down there is over 50." The cutler asked, worry in her voice. "He'll be just fine. This will probably be a piece of cake for him. If not, I'll figure a way to bitch slap his corpse for having the nerve to die on me." Andrea reassured her with a smile. "Again you say that so cheerfully Andrea.. But she's right! Toriko-San will be fine! He survived the gourmet world!" That perked Melk a bit. "The gourmet world...?" A loud screech came from somewhere behind them. The two turned around to see some bat like ape landing close to them.
"What in the world?!" The woman exclaimed, startled quite good from the sight even as the chef screamed, "GYAAH! MONSTER!" Just what the heck is that Thing?! Andrea instinctively backed away quickly when it lands RIGHT by them, poor komatsu fell and continued to scream in fear. "Knock it off, Pochiko!" Melk called over to the animal, silencing it quickly. "Their our guests." That thing was her pet?! Holy crap! "Huh?!" Komatsu whipped his head toward the cutler who extended a hand in apology. "Sorry she scared you, chef Komatsu and Andrea-chan. That's our pet vampire Kong! Her name is Pochiko." "P..Pochiko?" Komatsu echoed a bit.
"She's been the master's pet for a very long time. She's intelligent, friendly and delivers knives." That pipped her interested. "Delivers knives?" The two echoed (at this point answering together didn't seem strange at this) and watches Melk walk over and removed a large sac from the animal's back. "She delivers the majority of my commissions." "Really?!" "Wonder how that works..I bet it's quite a sight to see her bring those." "Welcome home, Pochiko. Good work." Once the bag was removed the bat (thing) scurried over to the nest pole thing nearby and climb up to the top of a half dome that had a nest inside and stood upright, her arms folded across her chest.
Didn't bats usually hang upside down? "Oh, that's her nest. But don't bats hang upside down?" The chef echoed her thought. The cutler was silent for a moment then exclaimed cheerfully, "Time for work! I've got a lot of commissions today!" Andrea laughed when hearts appeared in the chef's eyes and clasped his hands together in happiness, "Yes! Let's get sharpening, melk-sama!" The group went inside and watched the cutler dump the bad out and a whole bunch of knives of every size and shape fall onto the fall. "Wow! These are all knives, Melk-sama?!" The chef asked/shouted excitedly. That was a lot of knives...how did she ever get those done with ease? Must be a genius.
"Yep, that's right. They're knives that chefs from all over the world want sharpened. I get about a hundred a day." Melk confirmed, surprising the chef even more. Well andrea was just as surprised but if three years was a wait then a hundred a day sounded bout right. "Holy cow. If you have to deal with this every day, no wonder it would take three years to get to mine.
Hey guys! Sorry it's so short but I figured I kept you guys waiting long enough. Just moved into my boyfriend's house and still trying to clean things up and get how I like things. Yes I'm still continuing the story haven't forgotten I'm busting my ass so I can get to zebra then hurry up so I can get to the training and cooking arc. I'm gonna have sooo much fun with that! Especially zebra I can't wait! I've been doing my best not to read ahead but after I saw the blue demon (spoiler) and the guys turning into girls (spoiler) I've been saving all the best for that! I don't wanna adult anymore I just want to write and play games...T-T