Lun, feeling taken aback, stared at him intently.
Ferdikion finally lowered his gaze and muttered something, but the content was far from ordinary.
- Could it be that those water clan bastards took advantage of my brother’s innocence...
Lun wanted to believe that he had misread his lips.
Somehow, when he felt sparks in Ferdikion’s eyes, Lun thought he should intervene.
"Taking advantage? There’s no one like that. Amelia also became friends and helped out."
"Is that the name of that reckless Blue Dragon?"
Ferdikion’s eyes grew even more fierce, which undoubtedly had a counterproductive effect.
"How long have you known each other to call it a friendship? Could it be... closer than me?"
If he answered wrong here, his anger would surely flare up again.
"Huuuuh. Oh, it’s Lord Ferdikion!"
Just then, Heukmi yawned and stepped over the teleportation circle, cutting off the conversation at the right moment.
Lun greeted Heukmi calmly.
"You look quite tired. Did you rest well?"
Despite her answer, another yawn followed.
Baekya, with his eyes half-closed, fidgeted with his beak.
Heukmi, who had covered her wide-open mouth with one hand, closed her eyes tightly and then opened them.
"Roar! I’m really awake now!"
Lun, hearing their various orders, checked the list in his mind.
‘Well, I don’t need to worry about the menu, so that’s a relief. I have quite a few ingredients that are good for recovering energy left over.’
Lun, recalling the state of the refrigerator, put a few dishes on the list.
Suddenly, Lun’s gaze turned to Dura.
Unfortunately, he had to stay and guard the place because of his promise to Christina.
‘While he seems quite comfortable here, it feels a bit off to just leave him like this.’
Dura, leaning against the wall, blinked his green eyes gloomily.
After a moment’s thought, Lun called out to Ferdikion.
"Brother. Can you spare some time after dinner? I’d like you to check on Dura, just like you did for Heukmi."
"Alright. Since he’s one of your subordinates."
Dura, who had been listening, glowed faintly green when his eyes met Ferdikion’s.
Ferdikion, perhaps feeling a competitive spirit, exchanged a few seconds of intense gazes with him.
As Lun checked Dura’s condition and recited the list of foods they had mentioned:
"Lun, shouldn’t you rest too?"
"I’m fine. I’m not as tired as I thought."
Thanks to fully possessing the power of darkness, he was less tired than expected.
However, Ferdikion shook his head and gestured with his chin.
"You won’t listen even if I tell you to stop... Lead the way to where you cook."
"Yes. I’ve been curious about how these mana-infused dishes are made. You’re not going to say no, are you?"
‘I just can’t practice the <Resurrection> incantation while cooking.’
Lun shook his head to indicate his agreement.
In his room, Lun retracted his sleeping avatar into his subspace pocket.
Despite the burning gaze of Ferdikion on his back, Lun moved to the kitchen without acknowledging it.
On the shelf where ingredients were placed, there was an additional recipe paper that Christina had been researching.
In a separate room set up as a workshop, neatly bound books filled the shelves.
From this, it was clear that he had produced a considerable number of results worth recording, not just conducting research.
‘He’s probably planning to make a recipe collection soon.’
Ferdikion, intrigued, looked around with a curious gaze.
"More like a laboratory... The mana here is so abundant, it feels like a magic research room."
Lun, who had laid out a cutting board and picked up a bottle of marinade oil and salt, turned his head toward Ferdikion.
"You’re right. It’s not about infusing mana after cooking, but treating all the ingredients here as magical samples from the start."
Lun sliced the meat with a knife made from dragon bone.
"Brother, do you know anything about alchemy?"
"I’ve heard stories. Turning stones into gold, creating the Philosopher’s Stone, the Elixir of Life, and such."
"Strictly speaking, it’s different... but similar."
In the end, both alchemy and cooking involved creating effects through the combination of ingredients.
Ferdikion, hearing this unexpected story, widened his eyes and then placed his thumb at the corner of his mouth.
"I see. Now that you mention it..."
He mumbled to himself and then looked at the meat Lun had sliced and the sparkling salt with interest.
"I’ll give it a try. Share the ingredients with me."
‘Well, he does handle the purest source of fire.’
Lun, with a subtle sense of expectation, took out a chunk of Minotaur meat from the refrigerator.
The fire in the kitchen stove blazed fiercely.
Lun’s face, which had been watching with interest, quickly turned to panic.
He hadn’t expected to see the so-called fire master of the clan unable to adjust the heat to a suitable level for cooking, and his expression showed raw surprise.
Ferdikion, seeing this, lightly cleared his throat and adjusted the fire.
"Ahem! I made a mistake. Let’s lower the heat."
But this time, the flames turned blue, and Lun was flabbergasted.
"The intensity of the fire decreased, but the temperature got hotter."
"I’ve never done this before. I’ll get better with practice."
‘What kind of fire master can’t control the heat? Who do you think you are, some noble’s son?’
It wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.
He could make the fire burn stronger and hotter, but adjusting it to cook the ingredients properly was a different story.
Burning down a thatched house was easy, but selectively burning a single animal hair while maintaining its shape was a different matter.
If he waited until Ferdikion got used to it, there was a risk of the kitchen being set on fire.
‘If this continues, it’s impossible to make a proper meal even if we stay in the kitchen all day. But I can’t just tell him to stop right away...’
Lun, after some thought, quickly sliced onions and carrots and cut the meat into pieces.
"Brother! I have a very important task for you now."
Lun pointed to the sliced ingredients and took out a dozen small plates from the cupboard.
"To get the exact combination, the amount and ratio of the ingredients are very important. Brother, can you weigh these and divide them into small plates in an 8:5:2 ratio?"
"Is this really such an important task?"
"Of course! Since it’s important, please check three times to avoid mistakes. I’m counting on you."
‘Since he didn’t come here to practice, it’s better to give him something he can do. Even if he wastes the ingredients, not being able to control the heat is too critical.’
Fortunately, Ferdikion nodded and headed toward the cutting board with the sliced vegetables and meat.
‘Good. I’ll finish the cooking as quickly as possible while he’s busy.’
Before Ferdikion finished the task and came to help, Lun had to make a proper meal.
Lun’s enthusiasm began to burn.
With quick knife work and skilled hands, Lun quickly prepared the dishes.
Ferdikion, watching him, was impressed.
"Lun, you’ve been practicing hard."
Though he was focused on cooking, he gave a casual reply, but Ferdikion looked at his brother with admiration.
He smiled, one corner of his mouth lifting, with a newfound interest.
"I’ll try harder. There’s a bit of a shortage of potato slices, so I’ll cut some more."
Ferdikion, with the kitchen knife balanced on his finger, spun it skillfully.
The sound of the knife sticking to his hand was distinct.
The little Fire Dragon, glancing at the kitchen knife in his hand, seemed quite satisfied.
"Quite a good kitchen knife."
In an instant, the potato peels were stripped off in a spiral, and the well-refined sword technique sliced the potato.
His sword skills were so excellent that they were almost a waste on the vegetables, carrots, onions, and meat.
Ferdikion, with the sliced ingredients laid out, looked back at Lun with satisfaction.
"If I put my mind to it, this is easy. What should I do next?"
"It might be a bit difficult, but how about trying this?"
Pleased by the compliment, Ferdikion, with a proud look, started to carve flower patterns into the carrots.
Since it was a bit challenging, he focused quite a bit, allowing Lun to cook in peace.
Heukmi, seeing the unusually lavish table, exclaimed in amazement.
"Wow! Are we having a feast today? This is amazing!"
The table was filled with luxurious dishes.
The mashed potatoes, rich with butter.
The beef steak decorated with truffle mushrooms.
And the main dish, a pork dish called Porgerta.
"Carrot roses! This is a rabbit!"
"…That’s not a rabbit, it’s a dog."
"Really? Yaaah! So cute!"
Ferdikion’s reply filled Heukmi’s eyes with joy.
Even Rai and Baekya, who approached with a shimmer, showed interest in the carrot and apple slices.