Chapter 33

Ruri brought out a pot of something unidentifiable and set it before everyone.

...

It was impossible to tell what was cooking inside. It bubbled away, the dark red broth resembling the bedrock of hell.

Is this... a dish from hell? Since Ruri made it, Leon had to taste it no matter what. With that resolve, he scooped a spoonful expressionlessly and slowly brought it to his lips.

What a true Hero! The Druid girl stared dumbfounded. No wonder he was so strong—his daily diet was clearly otherworldly too.

"Leon... wait! Let me test it first!" Just as the spoon neared his mouth, Naya grabbed his hand, twisted it toward herself, and took the spoon into her mouth.

Was this poison testing...?

Everyone held their breath, watching Naya's reaction. Even Ruri looked unsure.

This flavor—this texture—Naya felt incredulous. Was what she saw really the same as what she tasted?

"Delicious...! It's a little spicy, but surprisingly good."

"Huh?? Let me try too." Aile picked up a spoon. "I won't fish out squid tentacles or something, right?"

"Don't worry. Ruri knows you don't eat tentacle-based ingredients." Leon used the same spoon Naya had licked, scooped another bite, and put it in his mouth. "Mm, not bad. The look is grotesque, but the taste is surprisingly good."

Hearing Leon's praise, Ruri gave a shy smile.

"Does your spellbook have a magic to make ingredients delicious?" Aile asked, still disbelieving after her first bite.

"No! Ruri just threw all the ingredients into the pot."

"The style and taste don't match at all! Magic! It must be magic!"

"Anya, won't you try some?" Leon asked the Druid girl. She hadn't tasted it yet, only watching them praise something that looked like it came straight from hell. She must be shocked.

"Um... there's meat in it, right? By our Druid faith, we don't eat market-slaughtered meat. Only animals that died naturally or by accident in the wild."

"Naturally died? Would you even be able to chew such old meat?" Leon said.

"And if it died from disease, wouldn't it be bad for you to eat...?" Naya added.

"Of course! When an animal population overruns, we Druids can hunt and eat them too," Anya quickly clarified.

"Huh?? Your Archdruid made the volcano erupt—could it be to boil overpopulated adventurers in hot pot?" Aile stared at her in shock.

"No! Absolutely not!" The Druid girl flatly denied it.

It seemed the Druids' diet was even more bizarre than the look of Ruri's stew.

"Um... there's a washed carrot left in the kitchen. Ruri didn't add it all because the taste felt a bit off," Ruri told her.

"That's a huge help!!" With a *poof*, Anya turned into a cat and dashed into the kitchen.

"Have you ever seen a cat eat a carrot—?" Leon asked.

The girls all shook their heads.

Late at night—

They'd already agreed to head to the Murmuring Forest tomorrow.

Ruri sat on her bed, wearing the black dress Leon bought her, hugging a hardcover spellbook.

She seemed to be savoring every moment with Leon.

"Leon is so amazing. He actually defeated the Archdruid possessed by Nature's Will. Aile says he's the Hero chosen by Aio!"

No one else was in the room. She was speaking more to the spellbook.

"And Aile is amazing too. She saved everyone at the critical moment of the volcanic eruption."

She flipped noisily through the pages.

"So Aio is a real god. If Ruri hadn't witnessed those miracles, she wouldn't have believed it at first."

"If... if Ruri had met Aio ten years ago instead of Rothschild."

"Ruri would have become a Priestess like Naya."

She stared at the page.

...

"Sorry, Ruri isn't complaining."

"I'm very content now."

"Because Leon said he'll take care of me forever."

Ruri snapped the spellbook shut.

To be continued.