Chapter 16: Lunch Time!

On today's lunch menu, he opted for strawberries, white rice, chicken, and pudding. It wasn't a combination he'd normally have, but the monstergirls would probably like this. Right, so I should focus on the rice and chicken first. The strawberries and pudding were already prepared. For the chicken, it was already seasoned so all he had to do was fry them.

He took a pot and placed it in the kitchen sink. He poured enough uncooked rice for the monstergirls and himself, then turned on the tap to let the water stream into the pot. After putting enough water in, he began running his hand through the soaked rice and rinsed them. I wonder if I could start frying the chicken…

"Could I help with anything else, Eryn?" Iris tugged on the hem of his shirt. Again.

"Hmmm…" Well, I think she could do this. Eryn placed a stool in front of him. "I definitely could, Iris! Can you get on the stool?" She stepped onto the stool so she could see into the pot.

"I just need you to rinse the rice." He explained, guiding her hands to grab a fistful of rice and squeeze them in the water. Perhaps she could see this as playing around with the rice, so maybe it wouldn't be so bad. "Could you do that for me?"

"Okay!" Iris imitated what he did and began rinsing the rice to the best of her ability.

Eryn moved to the stove and set a new frying pan on it. He poured oil into and attempted to turn on the flames…

Flames…

"Wow, a fire appeared!" Melty exclaimed, looking at the burning stove in awe.

Eryn shifted his gaze to Melty. Her body could generate intense flames, couldn't it? He witnessed the destructive power of her flames firsthand. It would be kind of interesting if she fried the chicken directly with her flames… just then an idea popped into his mind. Why… don't I just ask her if she could? There was no harm in trying.

"Hey, Melty?" He placed the chicken on a plate. "Are you able to… use flames?"

"Of course!" she beamed, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "I can create fires quite easily! Do you want to see?"

"S-Sure…?" Eryn hoped this wasn't a bad decision.

Melty raised her hand and snapped her fingers, igniting itself in flames. "Tadaa!"

"W-Wow!" Eryn gasped, genuinely surprised. She can actually create flames at will?! He was half-serious when he asked that question. She's like a wizard!

"I can even raise my body heat to super high levels!" she pointed at herself.

"That's amazing, Melty." he stared at the chicken meat, then back at her. It was too tempting to ask her, so he rolled with it. "Is it possible to cook this using your flames?"

"Sure!" Melty nodded. "Let me try!"

Well, here goes nothing… Eryn handed the plate of chicken meat to her. What's the worst that could–

"HIYAAAH!" Melty generated a fireball in her hand and slammed it into the plate, creating a small burst of flames on impact.

"W-Woah?!" He flinched from her cry and the burst of flashing light. I was not prepared for that! What's surprising though… the chicken meat was already grilled and ready to be served.

"And there!" Melty took a big sniff of the aroma coming from the grilled chicken. "It smells really good, Eryn!"

"What in the actual…" Eryn was left speechless at the sight. She… actually cooked it?! With her flames?! It only took a second but the chicken meat was already grilled! The aroma from the food was delectable!

"Ah!" Melty took a few seconds to realize she burnt his sleeve. "Eryn! I'm sorry! I burnt off your sleeve!"

"Huh?" Eryn raised his hand, only now realizing a searing heat lingering around it. That stings! His sleeve was, unfortunately, burnt off. Oh, it is. The cooked chicken surprised him to the point he couldn't feel the burning sensation.

"Sorry, Eryn…" Melty bowed her down, guilt settling into her heart. "I… got too excited."

"Don't worry about it, Melty." He patted her head between her ears to comfort her. "I asked you to do this without really considering the consequences."

"B-But…" Melty sniffed, tears welling up in her eyes and clenching the hem of her shirt. "I hurt Eryn! I don't want Eryn to get hurt…"

"Aw, Melty… I didn't get hurt." He waved his arm around to show he was okay. "See? I'm completely fine."

"Mnngh…" Melty rubbed her tears away. "O-Okay…"

He smiled softly, showing his palm. "Here, let's do a high-five."

Melty stared at her palm, then back at his. She raised her palm and meekly hit him for a little clap. A small grin formed on her face.

"Thanks for helping me, Melty." He grinned back. A smile suits her the best.

So Melty can manipulate flames and heat. She's also incredibly strong and has a lot of stamina. He made a mental note of that. He recalled never reading this in the notes. Might need to start writing it down. He cast a side glance at the catgirl and Anubis in his arms. He wondered if they possessed any supernatural abilities like her… well, they aren't human. I wouldn't be surprised if they did.

"Eryn! Eryn!" Iris called him, prompting him to turn around. "Is the rice done?"

I'm surprised Iris didn't notice any of that chaos. He walked to her side and checked the rice. "Yeah, this should be fine."

"Mnnnh…" Iris stared at him expectantly, her tail wagging left and right.

"… Oh, haha." Eryn let out a soft chuckle as he patted her head. She sure needs her head pats. "Thanks for the help, Iris."

"Hehe~" she giggled cutely, enjoying the warmth of his head pats.

"Mnnngh…" Lofie slowly opened her eyes, finally waking up.

Oh, she's waking up? Eryn bowed his head down to her. "Afternoon, Lofie…" He whispered, planting a little kiss on her forehead.

"Eryn…" she snuggled her head under his chin, feeling comfortable in his hug. "Good morning…"

"It's not morning, Lofie!" Iris huffed. "Wake up! You're bothering Eryn!"

"Yeah, yeah!" Melty agreed. The two monstergirls seemed to be very annoyed at the little Anubis.

"Haha, it's all right with me." He gently rubbed her cheek in circular motions. "How was your nap, Lofie?"

"… Good," she answered. "I feel safe sleeping with Eryn."

"I see…" Eryn hummed. Safe, huh? I'm glad she slept well. "Could I put you down, Lofie? I'm making lunch for us."

"Mnnngh…" Lofie pouted but gave little nods. She was quite comfortable in his arms, but her sisters were right.

How adorable… Eryn gently let her down on the ground. She stretched her arms upwards and rubbed her eyes.

He continued making lunch. Occasionally, Iris and Melty would ask if they could help, and he'd give them easy tasks to do to keep them busy.

A while later…

…

..

.

"Enjoy your lunch!"

Eryn finally finished making their food. For each monstergirl, he served white rice, grilled chicken, a cup of strawberries, and pudding.

"Waaaw…!" the monstergirls exclaimed in awe. It's been a while since they had a warm meal together with a family. It might even be their first time sharing a meal as a family.

"It looks really colorful!" Iris clapped her hands together.

"Can I start eating it, Eryn?" Melty asked eagerly, her eyes homing in on her meal.

"Of course." He nodded. "Go right ahead."

He observed the monstergirls for a moment. He noticed some interesting things about the monstergirls, particularly the way they were having their meals. Iris picked up her spoon and fork and began digging into her meal. Melty used her hand and her fork to eat, aggressively stabbing the fork into the meat while using her hand to eat the rice. And Lofie… she stuffed her cheeks, looking like a squirrel who stuffed its mouth full of nuts. It was a cute sight to see and made him chuckle.

"Lofie, you shouldn't eat so much at a time." He grabbed a napkin and gently rubbed the food stains off her mouth.

Lofie simply blinked at him, looking like she wanted to say something but it came out incomprehensible to his ears since her mouth was full and all.

"Haha, just take it slow." He smiled softly. Perhaps she's just used to eating like this. She did try to eat the cake in the same manner.

Mhmm… when was the last time I shared a warm meal with my family? Eryn cast his gaze in the distance, rummaging through his mind for memories. Have I ever experienced this… familial warmth? There was a certain feeling he couldn't quite describe as he watched the monstergirls happily chowing down on their food. A feeling that made his chest warm and fuzzy. Nothing came to his mind, but this feeling with the monstergirls right now, it felt oddly…

Nostalgic.

I guess it's true what they say about sharing a meal together…

It tastes better.