Strolling Around the Town
Having cleared our worries and left the temple, and strolled through the town.
“”That looks yummy!””
“Umu, it certainly does.”
As soon as we entered the main street, the kids, as if called by the food, approached a stall.
Moreover, without even seeing what they were selling, they made somewhat odd statements.
“… You haven’t even looked at the merchandise yet, have you? If so, at least say it smells delicious.”
When I pointed it out, all three immediately corrected their statements.
“That’s right. So, judging by the smell, I think they’re grilling fish…”
Allen and Elena, who were walking slowly, suddenly dashed towards the stall.
“Allen, Elena, what happened?”
“”Found arrowfish~!””
“Oh, arrowfish, huh~”
Arrowfish, huh? It’s a magical creature, shaped like a fish dart.
Moreover, they were selling it grilled whole with salt. Come to think of it, we have obtained plenty of arrowfish fillets in the dungeon, but I’ve never had a whole one grilled.
“So, you can encounter arrowfish around here, huh?”
“If you go out to sea from the coast over there and head west, there’s a place that seems like the arrowfish’s nest. Be careful if you approach by boat. They’ll jump to sink the ship.”
They must jump out of the sea with tremendous force, just like when we encountered them in the Dungeon of Ripples… However, the way arrowfish attack is quite daring, isn’t it~ If they jump and get stuck in an awkward place, it seems like they might not come off easily and remain in that state.
“But if you can prepare a sturdy shield that won’t break or get them off when they’re stuck, capturing them alive is easy!”
Collecting arrowfish deliberately impaled on a shield.
That’s quite a risky fishing method~
“So, what do you think? Are we going to eat them?”
“Well, we are going to eat them, right?”
“How much are you planning to eat? One per person… Allen and Elena, are two too many for you guys?”
If we’re going to start eating various things, there’s no doubt Allen and Elena will want more than one each. Well, I don’t think it’s a problem for Kaiser, though.
“Allen and Elena will share one~”
“I’ll take one for myself.”
“Then I’ll have one too.—Uncle, please give us three.”
“Sure thing! Here you go!”
We received the arrowfish. With a rod-like structure at the tip of the head and a tail fin, we tried eating it by biting into it as instructed.
“I thought it might be difficult to eat with all the bones, but… it’s surprisingly easy.”
“That’s right. That’s why this way of eating is possible!”
The thick spine served as a straight skewer, and with hardly any small bones, it was quite easy to eat.
“Oh, that’s good to hear!”
“Takumi, Takumi, is it okay if we buy some more?”
“So you like it too, Kaiser”
“Yeah, I think it’ll go well with the Nippy Liquor you gave me, so I want to try eating it while drinking next time.”
Certainly, sake and grilled fish would make a good combination.
So, after buying up the currently grilled arrowfish, we started walking to find the next stall.
“By the way, Kaiser. Do you still have any sake left?”
While walking, I suddenly asked Kaiser about something. In response, Kaiser remained silent and subtly averted his eyes. This reaction… it seems the sake I gave him is all gone. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel⁂fire.net
“You finished it, huh? Well, that’s fine. I’ll share more with you.”
“I also have some new alcohol, so you can have that too.”
Judging by his reaction, Kaiser seems to be fond of alcohol. This time, if I share sake like Nippy Liquor with Kaiser, my stock will probably run low, so I need to remember to fetch more when I go to the Royal Capital next time.
“By the way, what happens if you drink alcohol when you’re in human form?”
“I revert back to my dragon form.”
“Okay, so when you’re in human form and acting with us, alcohol is off-limits.”
Kaiser had a face of “very disappointed” about the alcohol ban. However, well, perhaps he understood the risk, as he seemed to accept it properly.
“”Oniichan, Oniichan, next is that one~!””
“Yeah, that looks delicious too.”
While Kaiser and I were talking, the kids had diligently found another stall. They called out to us when our conversation paused.
“Takumi, what’s that?”
This time, it seemed that they wanted to try Frankfurters-like sausages.
“Will you guys have one each, or will you share one?”
“Got it. Kaiser, is one sausage enough for you, or do you want more?”
“For now, just one will do.”
“Got it.—Alright, sir, give us four.”
“Sure thing! Be careful, they’re hot.”
I ordered four, including mine, and they were handed over quickly.
Certainly, it was not a good idea to gulp them down immediately. The kids were blowing on them to cool them off.
“Umu, these are delicious too!”
However, Kaiser was already eating without concern for the heat.
Even though he’s a water attribute, I wondered if he’d get burned, but Kaiser had the Abnormal Status Resistance skill, so maybe that’s why he didn’t get burned.
Hmm? Does that mean he won’t get drunk from alcohol like me? Then, perhaps getting drunk didn’t cause him to revert to his dragon form. Maybe he just became more relaxed, and his control became lax? If that’s the case, then drinking alcohol in the town is definitely a bad idea.
“Yeah, this is tasty too.”
The sausages had a crispy skin, were juicy, and delicious, so we bought up what was available here as well.
After that, we continued to explore the stalls, sampling various foods. We peeked into shops, bought barrels of fruit wine for Kaiser, and searched for unfamiliar ingredients before finally looking for an inn to stay at.