Chapter 6. Those who bear especially fierce grudges over food
"Luka... Luka... Can you hear my voice?"
"Ah, yes, I hear you, Ilias."
Having grown somewhat used to this sensation, I woke up the moment I heard her voice. As always, I found myself in that mysterious space with Ilias right before my eyes. However, for some reason, she appeared to be in a slightly bad mood.
"...Luka, you have disappointed me."
Never mind the 'slightly' then; seems she was in quite the foul mood indeed. Just what did I do to... well, I suppose I did break her commandment about intercourse with monsters.
"U-Uhm... Whatever may be the cause of your anger, Ilias?"
"Luka, did you not promise to continue providing offerings to me?"
"...I did say I would continue to serve you well, but—"
"Silence."
"Ah, sorry." Not good; she was the kind of person who really shouldn't be interrupted.
"And yet, you did not provide any of those so-called Ama-Ama Dango as an offering. Just what in the world were you thinking?"
The look in her eyes was terrifying. If I gave the wrong answer here, I may very well be struck by lightning... I'd have to be very careful about my reply...
"Actually, the parallel world Ilias pestered, err, I mean, she also received various things as offerings from me."
"And how would that lead to not presenting any to me?"
"When I offered her an Ama-ama Dango, she said, 'Using honey collected by insects, how repulsive...' So I thought it would be best to avoid them for now..."
Although she ate all sorts of things with great delight, the lines she said just before eating showed what angels generally thought of surface world food.
"...So, when you first offered me that ice cream..."
"Ah, yes. I thought to start with sweet things as the angels, including Ilias, loved them. I also used fruit that had yet to touch the ground."
I cautiously checked her expression. Having probably understood that I hadn't ignored nor forgotten her, her wrath appeared to have simmered down for now.
"I see, so it was all out of consideration for me. Very well, I shall forgive you, Luka."
"T-Thank you very much." It was probably a good idea to just obediently bow my head in gratitude here.
"...Incidentally, are those Ama-ama Dango delicious?"
"Yes, very much so. The parallel world Ilias also seemed to enjoy them a great deal."
Hearing that, the adult version of Ilias before me became troubled. She probably had a lot of conflicting feelings swirling in her mind ever since she ate that ice cream. Repulsive, yet so delicious. After thinking for a while...
"Ahem, very well. As the goddess, it is also my duty to be well acquainted with human life. I give you special permission to offer them to me. Also, henceforth, you may use your own judgement to decide which food to present as an offering. I hereby declare you shall not be punished even should the food be unusual."
"Ah, alright, I understand."
"Now, go forth, Luka. Once you wake up, quickly make an offering of Ama-ama Dango."
When my eyes opened, I couldn't help but feel that it was even earlier than usual... Ilias must really be interested in those Dango. Fortunately, since I was allowed to stay in one of the empty houses after the feast ended, I even had a kitchen to use.
"Alright, let's make a light snack before breakfast."
Luckily, I managed to secure a jar's worth of Happiness Honey. Alice was initially going to just lick it all up, but when I told her, 'I'll be using it for cooking, so don't eat all of it!' she obediently handed it over, even if the act seemed to break her heart.
I fetched water, set a fire under the pot, and began kneading flour, water, and salt into a single mass. After cooking all sorts of dishes for my friends all the time, I had long since grown used to this kind of thing. I put a sieve over the pot of boiling water to steam the dumplings, then began to fry them, after which they would be skewered together and laced with honey.
"Oh? Fried Ama-ama Dango? I already look forward to it." The sound of lips being licked came from behind me.
"Good morning, Alice. You're up early."
"All because of this mouthwatering aroma," she replied, her tail waving about as she already seemed to be in a good mood this early in the day. Unfortunately...
"You'll have to wait a bit longer. I'll dedicate the first one to Ilias."
The movement of her tail became more violent, creating a menacing sound akin to a rattlesnake as her mood suddenly took a sharp dive.
"You would have me wait for these freshly fried, fragrant dango until they have cooled down!?"
"I'll be done in just a moment, okay!?"
"Luka, as a chef, you should know how much the flavor can change in just a brief period!"
"Erghh."
Fortunately, the dango were still in the middle of being fried, so she wouldn't just steal them, but the moment they became golden brown and laced with honey, that would likely no longer be the case.
"B-but if Ilias becomes upset, I'm going to literally be struck by lightning... S-So, please be patient for just a little while."
At my words, she gulped down her anger and closed her eyes, surely directing her wrath toward heaven.
"Curse you, Ilias... I will never forgive you!"
"...That bad, huh..."
I could have sworn there was a high-pitched sound coming from above along the lines of 'Ohohohoho!' but decided not to comment on it as this place may become scorched earth otherwise.
In order to calm the anger of those two, I set the dango onto a plate as quickly as I could and sent it to Ilias' side in heaven with a prayer. Considering the wave of holy energy that occurred shortly after, it must have been satisfactory.
"...Luka, hurry up with the next batch, lest I decide to empty you instead."
"I'm already going at full speed; just bear with it for a moment, please."
Next up was the furious Monster Lord. One after another, the finished dango were thrown into her mouth, her temper gradually improving.
"Delicious~ The aroma is completely different when fried; I cannot get enough..."
"I'm glad you like them... wait, Alice, what happened to my portion?"
Before I knew it, I had run out of ingredients, and nothing remained on the plate other than picked clean skewers laid neatly on one side; not even a single drop of honey was left.
"...This is not what it looks like."
Being quietly glared at, the Monster Lord was unable to endure the awkwardness and looked away. Having committed the same blunder twice, she was apparently not even able to muster excuses to defend herself. Holding eye contact was also growing more and more difficult as her companion's look became scarier.
"If you ate that much, I suppose you won't need breakfast, right?"
"I am sorry, please forgive me. Anything but that," Alice apologized with a bowed head as I sweetly smiled at her, completely throwing aside her dignity as the Monster Lord.
Once we were finished with breakfast, everyone from Happiness and Harpy Village saw us off. Though there had been a lot of quarrels, the overall atmosphere didn't seem too bad. As for the rest... time will tell.
"Excuse me... May I be allowed a question? Are you perhaps..."
"I am a traveling gourmet. Nobody important."
"I-Is that so... I suppose I needn't pry in that case."
Hearing Alice shoot down Queen Harpy's inquiry about her identity, I could only suppose she would want to pass as traveling gourmet to other monsters in general.
...Though rather than a gourmet, she was more like a simple glutton.
I flinched as I suddenly received a glare. Just like back with Sonya, women's intuition is scary...
Then, as the time to part arrived, a thought occurred to me.
"Excuse me, Queen Harpy, I have a favor to ask..."
"Very well, whatever you may need, provided I am able."
"Would you give me some of your feathers?"
The body parts of monsters could serve as material for synthesis. Especially with a monster of her caliber, it should prove quite effective.
"Oh, well, if that is all..."
She pulled a few beautiful feathers, brimming with magic, out of her wing and handed them to me.
"Thank you very much, now..."
I grabbed the custom sword hanging by my waist and brought it close to the feathers.
"The principles of creation in my hand—change your form! Refine!"
The custom sword was imbued with the power of wind! The custom sword has become a wind sword!
In the other world, I'd given all sorts of materials to blacksmiths for the purpose of enhancement, but since I was now capable of alchemy, I'd had a feeling I'd be able to do it myself. As a result, my blade became sharper and now held the power of wind.
"A sword containing Queen Harpy's power... Even among monsters, countless swordswomen would desire such a thing."
"I hope my power will be able to help you, even if only a little. May the Dark Goddess' blessing be upon your travels."
"Ah... R-Right. Well then, goodbye!"
And thus, Luka and Alice left Harpy Village.