Chapter 5.2

Chapter 5.2

Anywho, I’ll tell what they told me at the Association and what I gathered over some tea.」

「Okay. I have some sort of… Sweet-potato-ish snacks ready. Hold on.」

With that, Haruna went to the kitchen and poured tea into the pot. Haruna had crafted this pot in her own time as part of her practice for Tool Building. She had finally created something she liked after a dozen or so of failed attempts. (The failed products, by the way, were reverted back into their materials by Hiroshi’s Metalworking, because they would be a waste otherwise). Starting with the giant fold-up table almost occupying the entire dining room, most furniture in the flat were crafted by Haruna for practice, and then modified by Hiroshi.

Truth be told, Haruna herself had no intention of mastering Crating, but she at least wanted to bump her Sewing to a decent level. So, she had Hiroshi teach her some pointers at least until she could acquire Making Mastery.

「First, what they told me at the Association.」

「Uh-huh.」

「They want us to say that we only found five of ‘em silk balls at Piaranork’s web. They already told the same to everyone who helped out.」

「That means…」

「They probably don’t want people knowin’ those people are still alive at this point.」

Haruna responded with a nod.

「This spells a pair of good news and bad news for us.」

「The good news is that the Association is trying to protect us, and… The bad news is that we’re already way too deep into this mess, huh.」

「Right. We can’t drop ‘em off somewhere now, and there’s only so long a gag order can last.」

「Our edge is that we flew straight back to this room with the Transportation Stones, so even a loose gag order can buy us some time.」

「You’re right. The other thing is that it won’t look weird if we borrow another room, since people know we run the food stand. We can make an excuse that we need it for our equipment and supplies.」

「It would be cheaper to rent two of these flats than renting a single one with enough rooms.」

With a nod, they decided that they would wait and see where things were going with this before taking any action.

「Now, though, it’s all good news.」

「Oh yeah?」

「I gathered up some seaweed, kelp, and nori.」

「What? What??」

Haruna couldn’t contain her surprise. She couldn’t find them at the seafood market, so she had dismissed that they didn’t exist in this world.

「It looks like seaweed, especially kelp and its strong flavor, weren’t too popular in Farlane. They’re only used in selected locations.」

「Ah, I see.」

That made a lot of sense to Haruna. It wasn’t uncommon for Japanese people to dislike kelp itself, even if they enjoyed kelp broth. Besides, even if a food source is available around the world, many of them may be part of the culinary culture in one continent but not in the other. In Farlane, for example, seaweed was available but still not a part of their culinary culture.

「To be honest, they probably didn’t feel like they gotta munch on seaweed when they got so much good food from the ocean and the mountains.」

「Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.」

「Although, they’re still eatin’ octopus and squid, so it’s a pretty intrestin’ culinary culture they got here.」

「Well, it’s not like octopus and squid weren’t enjoyed in some parts of Europe, either.」

Hiroshi chuckled to her retort. At this point, seaweed is treated pretty much like garbage in Farlane. If any viable cooking methods or uses were to arise, a pile of garbage would turn into a pile of money. Many fishermen were on the lookout for such a fortune. Apparently, since they had gotten to know Hiroshi through him fixing their boats and whatnot, they gladly sun-dried these for him.

「And on top of that, I got us a bowl of soba noodles.」

「Wha-wha-wha…?」

With that, Hiroshi spread out his spoils of the day onto the table. His choice seemed very intentional, considering items like a fresh shrimp prime for tempura. Haruna cheered upon seeing the treasure trove in front of her.

「Azuma-kun.」

「Yeah?」

「How are we doing on our soy sauce and bonito flakes?」

「Still a little green if ya ask me, but we could definitely give ‘em a taste today.」

Hiroshi was well aware of the state of their condiments in mid-production. If he didn’t, even if they could just keep them in their spoil-proof bag, he would have never bought these combination of foods. It’s worth mentioning that Hiroshi had no intention of spending more time than needed on any condiment that requires aging. The first cooking equipment he crafted was an accelerator for aging food. Many high-level potions required fermentation, so this particular piece of equipment was vital for crafting those potions in large quantities, anyway.

「So, maybe we should check the broth before we dive into cooking.」

「I agree. Don’t want to be disappointed if it turns out it ain’t ready.」

「So, do you want to make the noodles? I don’t mind doing it.」

「No no no, you can concentrate on the broth, Toudou-san.」

Hiroshi was quick to hold back Haruna, who implied that she really wanted to do it herself. In the end, Hiroshi lost a game of rock-paper-scissors, and ended up grinding buckwheat into soba flour before extracting the starch from some potatoes.

***

An unfamiliar, appetizing scent tickled her nostrils. The little girl rapidly climbed out of her deep sleep in reaction.

Where am I…?

In a room more simple than any other she had been in before, barely large enough for two people to sleep in, but on a bed strangely well-made for a such a room, she had realized that she had been lying there with the female knight, who had been guarding her. Even though she was starting puberty, her still childlike stature prevented her from being too uncomfortable next to an adult. However, considering their background, this treatment was utterly unacceptable.

A quick glance of the room showed that it was a very, very tight room. It was barely big enough for the bed they were lying in, with no room any other furniture. The room was clearly only meant for sleeping and no other activity.

Why am I here…?

She had never had any experience with such a room (smaller than a broom closet, she thought), and couldn’t comprehend her current situation. She sat up, careful not to wake the knight beside her, and observed the room some more.

It was still rather empty. Anything that belongs to the room, other than the bed, were the potted plant on the window sill, and a magic-powered lamp by the bed. Other than that, there were nice pairs of clothes (which they must have been wearing) on the coat hangers on the wall, and the knight’s set of equipment in the corner of the room.

While it couldn’t help but seem drab due to its spatial constraints, this room still exhibit various efforts to improve the comfort of its occupants. It was just strange that everything from the bed to the magic-powered lamp obviously outclassed the room itself.

The lamp, especially, while it was simply designed with little to no adornments, its quality was comparable to ones used in the castle, and in nobles’ quarters at that. The little girl wasn’t able to grasp the monetary value of it, but she could tell that it, at the very least, did not belong in this room. In fact, she had no grasp on such monetary concepts, but she wasn’t sheltered enough not to see the distinguishable quality in these things.

The little girl found herself more and more mesmerized as she observed the room.

What do I remember…?

Holding back her mind, panicking from being in a mysterious room, she focused on trying to recall what had happened before she came to where she was. Soon, she recalled a man (whom she had always pinned as suspicious) appear in front of them as they were finishing up their daily duties, and transported all eight of them to the Giant Spider webs.

The knights on guard were ensnared with powerful Binding spells, which caused them to be wrapped up in silk to be eaten, without a fight. Her servant that had been with her to take care of errands, and the scholar who had been following her to execute paperwork didn’t have any strength to fight back to begin with. Even without a Binding spell on them, they would have been preyed upon in a flash.

Only the older knight and the female knight (who was lying beside her) weren’t completely affected by the Binding spells, and could buy some time, but not much, in their conditions where they could barely move. The only one unimpeded in the group was the little girl, who possessed a high rank and high resistance for magic. Alas, just like the scholar and servant, she had no combat skills. To boot, excluding a certain set of spells classified as Hereditary Magic, all of her spells were not up to par.

Naturally, she had no hopes of dispelling Binding spells strong enough to overpower the nationally renowned fighters beside her. So, as a desperate last resort, she activated a spell that would stop the flow of time in each of them, which she was required to learn because of her status.

The fact that she was alive signified that her gambit had resulted in some success, the three of them must’ve survived. However, as long as she didn’t know what kind of person this room belonged to, she couldn’t tell how much this small victory was worth.

First of all, it wasn’t too easy to dispel this particular spell. The fact that she was out of her coma meant that there was someone here powerful enough to pull that off. It was too early to call them an enemy, but she was not so naïve as to assume that just because this person saved her life, that they would be her ally.

Let’s see if I can move without hindrance, at least.

Whatever she would decide to do, she didn’t have much options if she was still incapacitated. She didn’t know how they dispelled her magic, but if it wasn’t the official method, she could have been out of it for days even after her body was healthy again. She presumed that, since she could get up rather easily, that she hadn’t suffered much physical deterioration, but she couldn’t be too sure.

Quickly checking the state that she was in, and confirming that she hadn’t lost much muscle mass at least, she climbed out of the bed as quietly as she could. Perhaps because of her immaculate upbringing, she subconsciously stepped into the pair of slippers by the foot of the bed.

Judging by the room, the building itself couldn’t be too large either. It was possible that the moment she opened the door she could face the residents of this place. If they were on her side, or at least not an enemy, this would be fine, but it would only spell trouble if they were a villainous figure.