Chapter 17
「Mo-nst-er-nya! Nemu want to fight them with all her might-nya!」
「I feel so empty like I'm fighting the air. ......」
The next day, they spent another lazy day on the floor.
Going downhill is unexpectedly more tiring, and once again their legs are swollen.
The soles of their feet are hot and throbbing with pain, and their knees are shaking uncontrollably.
If even Mars is not recovering from fatigue, then everyone else must be feeling it even more.
「......We might as well take tomorrow off. We'll check outside a few times, but basically, it's a day off. I'm starting to feel like I'm in danger if I don't change things up a bit.」
Mars turned his head and looked up at the ceiling as he made the suggestion.
He thought it was not only for everyone's benefit but also for his own, that he needed a rest.
Clearly, his mental state is off.
He was tired, of course, but also strangely relaxed.
Even though he has a lot of things to do, he doesn't feel like doing anything, and as a result, he feels bored. Many people have probably fallen into a similar state when studying or working. It is a similar feeling.
「Nya! If it's a day off, Nemu'll do all the puzzles she bought the other day-nyaa! There are 1000 piece-nya!」
「That sounds great! I want to have sex so badly! I want to fill in all the bumps and dents just like puzzles!」
「Pervert.....Honestly, I feel like I want to sleep all day. I seem to be mentally exhausted more than I thought. My body is also tired. In fact, my muscle pain is severe.」
Lilia took a deep breath and let out a sigh.
Her legs were aching and she was rubbing them very hard. Everyone was in a similar state.
The one who was the strongest in this situation was Sion.
Mentally, she was normal. Even though her body should be more tired than anyone else.
Even though the sea is vast, the scenery was mostly unchanged.
Having lived in such a world for seven hundred years, she was accustomed to the boredom.
「Everyone, would you like me to prepare your meal today? You all look tired.」
「Sion-san's cooking!? I want the mermaid's cooking!」
「Oh, I'm looking forward to it. I want to try some local cuisine, too.」
Sion easily adapted to surface cooking techniques.
Perhaps because she was a housewife even as a shrine maiden, she had a basic knowledge of cooking.
She could make even better mermaid dishes than she was used to making.
「Now that I know everyone's taste preferences, I'll make some adjustments and give it a try. In the meantime, feel free to take a bath or something. May I use any ingredients?」
「Of course. Feel free to use any of them.」
「Fish is good-nya! Can Nemu help-nya?」
「Thank you, Nemu-senpai! In that case, I'll ask for your help.」
Although she calls Nemu "senpai," Sion already knows how to handle Nemu.
Nemu, who is only fifteen years old and has little knowledge of the outside world, is like a child.
She has the ability to see through people's true nature, but her mental age is only about that of a junior high school student.
「As expected, you are good at processing fish. ...... There is no waster at all.」
Mars, while saying this, realizes that Sion is a professional among professionals who have been handling fish for seven hundred years.
「Because the knives on the surface are very sharp. Even I am surprised at my own progress.」
「Nemu thinks she is getting better at it, too-nya. ......」
「No, you are very good. You are very skilled. At this rate, you'll surpass me in no time.」
Although there are still some rough edges, Nemu is also quite skilled at filleting fish.
Nemu is very sincere when it comes to making things.
――I think this kind of time is important. But I don't feel like it's now.
It was a leisurely and hazy time.
It was enjoyable, but something was missing, a lack of stimulation.
The monotony of the time has erased any sense of urgency or crisis from their mind.
Even if they feel bad, they cannot switch off the switch.
Simply put, they lack motivation.
Thinking that the endless, unknown road ahead might continue forever without change makes Mars's heart sink.
He was so prepared for this unknown place that the reaction was even greater than he had expected.
「I'll go to the bath first. ――I'm only taking a bath today, so I'll be back soon! Especially since Sion-san is making something for us.」
"Understood," Sion replies shortly with a smile.
Only Nemu is a little skeptical.
This is because Hazuki, who is abstinent, is in the bathroom. But it was only for a day.
◇
「So, what do you guys think of this dungeon?」
While the three of them were soaking in the bath side by side, Mars asked Lilia and Hazuki.
Lilia, who had rested her eyes with a towel, answered in a tired voice.
「I can't express it well, but this dungeon really crushes my spirit. I used to think that the safer it was, the better it was, but now that it's actually that way, I can't help but feel let down. The lack of combat is really anticlimactic.」
「I also want to cast some magic. My magic power has been building up and it's a weird feeling... I feel like I need to let it out to feel better.」
Hazuki, who was also resting her face on a towel, replied after removing it, "I feel the same way."
Lilia reacted instantly to Hazuki's words and immediately blushed. Her facial expression was evident.
Mars guessed that it wasn't just the temperature of the bath causing it, so he decided to make a joke about it
「......」
「Hey, Lilia, did you just think it's like semen?」
「!? N-No, I didn't! I'm not a pervert, okay!?」
「Wow, wow, wow! You're such a pervert! But now that you mention it, magic and semen are kind of similar, aren't they? If you don't release them, things could get weird!」
Hazuki poked Lilia's arm and teased her, laughing.
Lilia gritted her teeth, looking frustrated.
「Back then, she used to hate anything remotely sexual......, but I miss that version of Lilia.」
「Ah, back then, huh ...... I also had a sense of disgust for humans.」
At first, she was more of a tsundere than anything else and a pretty aggressive one at that
She wouldn't even make eye contact with him, and their conversations were minimal. They slept far apart, and she didn't eat until Mars had finished his meal and confirmed that it wasn't poisoned
She was unwilling to receive any treatment.
She even tried to strangle him in his sleep.
But then, she softened her attitude when she realized her feelings for him.
Basically, Lilia was just shy and couldn't express herself.
「I want to hear about you and your love story!」
「A-A love story?...... Well, it's normal, I guess. We spent time together, and I began to realize that this person values me and is special to me. And then, I just started to like him more and more. It wasn't dramatic...That's the end! This story is over! It's embarrassing!」
「Hyuhh! More! Give us more! Lilia-san's female face is so cute!」
「What is a female face!?」
――I'm coming too.
Seeing Lilia, who had a strong sense of pride, feeling embarrassed only made him want to see more.
「This is the most adorable thing about her. The part where she's not honest.」
「I get you! She's also paying attention to me quite well, isn't she!?」
「Enough already!」
Placing a towel on top of her, Lilia hid her embarrassed face and sank into the bathtub.
「Delicious!」
「So this is another way of cooking...! It's my first time tasting this, but it's easy to eat!」
Everyone gathered around Sion's cooking and praised it.
The taste of the ingredients was cherished and enhanced to the maximum extent.
The lack of seasoning is what makes this dish so special.
In the case of Mars, he still cheats a little and relies on seasonings, but Sion is different.
Lilia, who leaned towards naturalism, tasted the dish several times and nodded in appreciation.
It was made with such care that it was almost like a high-end kaiseki dish.
「I really like this! Actually, I'm not very good at fish, but this one is not too fishy and easy to eat.」
「I see... So you don't like it. I thought it might be a little too light. That's why I always made it with something Lilia could eat too.」
「I am sorry ...... It's just that I'm not used to it. It depends on the type of fish, but I do like some of them.」
Mars had already noticed this from their daily routine, so he always made sure to prepare vegetable and meat dishes at the same time.
The three of them had different dietary preferences, with Lilia being the only one who didn't eat meat.
「Thank goodness ......I was worried about whether or not you would like it. It's so satisfying when someone enjoys your cooking, isn't it?「
With a happy expression on her face, Sion was relieved.
「Can this make me your comrade now......?」
This was probably Shion's first ritual to become their comrade.
From the beginning, she was somewhat reserved. There was always an air of distance between them.
Even though they had become close, their differences in race made Sion feel somewhat isolated.
If they could share this primal desire for food, they could live together.
If they slept and ate together for a long time, they would be comrades.
「Of course. Let's continue to work well together from now on.」
「Yes!」
Then let's finish the rest of the meal! And the banquet begins.
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