After leaving the dungeon and walking for a while, we ran into Ms. Ivana.
Did she possibly wait here all the time?
That would be incredible since she wouldnât be able to tell when we came out again.
Once Ms. Ivana saw Sword, she went for a tackleâŚerr, she ran up to him and hugged him  with teary eyes.
ââŚMr. Sword! Iâm so happy that youâre safeâŚ!â
Sword froze as he had never expected her to hug him. Also, Iâd like him to stop looking my way with eyes as if he was seeking help.
I mean, given that heâs fine with me hugging him and him hugging me, itâs not like it matters, right? Heâs not going to lose anything from it.
ââŚWith Indra as partner, Iâm able to come out unscathed from dungeons thatâre a lot more dangerous. Anyway, sorry, but Iâm pooped out.â
He lied bluntly. As if something like that would tire him out.
When I closely stared at him, Sword cleared his throat and then tore off Ms. Ivana. And then he grabbed me and carried me under his arm.
âNyaa!?â
âBye, I gotta hurry,â Sword bid farewell from Ms. Ivana while raising a hand, but where does he plan to go?
And whatâs up with him treating me like some luggage?
Ms. Ivana called Sword to halt in a hurry, âMr. Sword! Umm, a celebration at the innâŚâ
âSorry. Iâm tired and I wanna eat Indraâs handmade food. She might look like this, but sheâs runninâ a restaurant at our base and you can easily describe her as an outstandinâ cook,â Sword interrupted her and rattled down one excuse after the other.
But, sheesh. Of all things, he had to use this way of cutting her off!?
When I sighed out of reflex, Sword cast a fleeting glance at me and further added, ââŚSince cooks consider the position of the one who made the food, it looks like they think I should moderate my view on only eatinâ her food, but I wonât yield on that part. Iâve decided that Iâm gonna eat Indraâs cookinâ.â
I let all my power escape at once, pretending to be dead.
âWhoa!?â
Sword almost dropped me out of surprise.
ďź
Sword carried me under his arm all the way to Char while I played dead, and finally tossed me inside.
âLetâs have a victory party. Make a feast for us.â
âŚIs that how you ask others for a favor?
But, no helping it, I guess. It seems like he was awfully worried before we entered the dungeon.
ââŚGo and take a bath. I have to get everything ready anyway.â
I shooed Sword away with a hand. And while Sword cheerfully went into the bathroom, I prepared all the dishes.
StillâŚa feast? Because he feels refreshed after getting rid of his regrets?
Well, if weâre talking about a feast, itâs got to be a hamburger, Iâd say. Guess Iâll also place a sunny-side-up fried egg on top, too. As a garnish, I think Iâll go with French fries and a salad with  onion dressing. As an appetizer, a cold consommĂŠ jelly made out of steamed veggies and meat.
As I made the dishes while humming, Char informed me, âMother, a visitor has arrived, you know?â
A visitor? Who?
When I tilted my head in confusion, Ryoku told me, âThe one you call Ms. Ivana.â
So I went outside.
âHmm? Ms. Ivana? Whatâs wrong?â
It was definitely Ms. Ivana. She looked at me, bewildered.
âUmm, you were Indra, right?â
âCorrect. So, whatâs up? Sword is currently taking a bath. If you have a message for him, Iâll take it.â
Ms. Ivana pulled a conflicted expression.
âIâd like to tell him in person. Would that be okay?â
âI see⌠Hmm, itâll take a while. Thatâs fine with you?â
The baths of commoners in this world were open air. But, our bath allowed us to soak in a bathtub.
I think itâs going to take around thirty minutes for the whole routine. Ah, also including the drying.
ďź
Seeing me troubled, Ms. Ivana smiled broadly, âWould it be alright for me to wait inside?â
Being asked that, I cocked my head.
âŚItâs fine if itâs the little sister of Swordâs lover, right?
âWell, youâre Swordâs guest. And this golem called Char belongs to Sword. So it should be fine, probably.â
I invited her.
ďź
As soon as Ms. Ivana stepped inside, she became speechless.
âIâve made it bigger by using expansion magic. Well, I suppose you could call it a slightly luxurious tent. The furniture not being movable since itâs fixed is a necessary evil, though. I mean, I took into account that Char could topple over.â
Ms. Ivana remained frozen for a while.
ââŚThis here is the room which Mr. Sword always uses, right?â She emphasized.
âYou could say so, I guess.â
For some reason her face beamed upon hearing that. I donât really get it, but since it was the same for Damsel Scarlet as well, it might be popular among women.
âOkay, sit down here and wait for a while. Ah, donât wander off too much. This place has a fairly sophisticated security system. If you prowl around all over the place out of curiosity, youâll be warned, and depending on the place, the crime prevention system might boot up.â
Ms. Ivana got startled.
ďź
âWhat are you making?â
Ms. Ivana showed up in the kitchen space as I was cooking.
âA fest. It was Swordâs request. âŚIt looks like he cleared his regrets after talking with the dungeon boss, so he wants to hold a victory party, or so he said.â
âHmm. âŚShould I help you? Itâs a lot of work for you alone, isnât it?â
I remained silent for a while.
ââItâs not really all that much work for me, but maybe sheâs bored. She seems good at cooking, and women bond when cooking together!
âOkay! Youâre right. Then, could you please lend me a hand?â
I guess Iâll have her make the French fries. Those donât require that much skill and since Sword does like them, there might be no loss in having Ms. Ivana learn how to make them either.
âPlease slice the potatoes like this. Use this one here as an example.â
âGot it.â
She started to cut while smiling cheerfullyâŚ
âAh!â
When I turned around upon her outcry, she was in the middle of dropping the bowl with the ingredients.
So, I caught it.
ââŚEh?â
âYou okay?â
âY-Yes.â
âSorry. Weâre inside a golem, so the kitchen is rather small. Letâs place this over here.â
ââŚâŚâ
While Ms. Ivana was standing still and watching, I moved things. This way she wonât run into anything.