11 Divine Cat Mii-chan is shocked by Nero’s pun
Leaving the Willa Tool Shop, I returned to the inn. I placed my newly acquired items in my room and headed to the dining hall. I found the innkeeper there and asked if I could use the kitchen again.
“Got another good idea?” he asked.
“Yes, could you lend me a hand?” I replied.
“If it means getting some tasty food, I’ll be happy to help.”
In the kitchen, his son was peeling vegetables.
“Making something again?” he asked.
“Yes, I’ll just be a minute,” I replied.
What I planned to make now was mayonnaise. It’s tricky to make, but the ingredients are pretty common. Let’s see if I can pull this off.
I started by mixing egg yolk with vinegar, salt, and a bit of sugar. Unfortunately, there was no pepper available. I stirred it well, and from here, the success or failure would depend on the next steps. I had the innkeeper continuously whisk the mixture while I slowly added small amounts of oil and occasionally a bit of vinegar.
“Is it ready yet?” the innkeeper asked, clearly getting tired.
“Not yet,” I responded.
“Ugh!” he groaned.
The key is not to add the oil all at once. You have to add it slowly while whisking continuously. It’s tough, but it’s starting to look good.
“We’re done,” I said, relieved.
“Whew, what a tiring process,” the innkeeper sighed.
“If you don’t add the oil slowly and whisk properly, it’ll separate,” I explained.
We made some sandwiches like the ones I had for breakfast, but with an added layer of the freshly made mayo. Those sandwiches were good, but they felt a bit lacking.
I brought the sandwiches to the dining hall, where the landlady was playing with Mii-chan.
“Is it ready?” she asked.
“Yes, thanks to the innkeeper’s hard work, it’s perfect,” I replied.
We all tried the sandwiches, while Mii-chan had her usual cat food.
“This is… incredible,” the innkeeper exclaimed.
“It feels like a completely different dish,” the landlady added.
“But it seems pretty tough to make,” the son noted.
“If you want to store it, be sure to keep it in the refrigerator,” I advised.
I returned to the kitchen to boil some pasta. While the pasta was cooking, I fried some meat and sliced onions.
Once the pasta was cooked, I mixed it with the meat, onions, and mayo. Voilà, mayo spaghetti. I also made a vegetable salad to go with it. I plated everything and brought it to the dining hall for everyone to try.
Everyone dug in, tasting the new creation.
“This is amazing!”
“It’s got an addictive flavor.”
“But it’s a pain to make,” the innkeeper’s son noted, watching us with a mixed expression, likely understanding that he’d be the one making it next time.
“If we had some pepper, it would have a bit more kick,” I said.
“Pepper’s too expensive for us to use,” the innkeeper replied. “It’s great for cooking meat, but it’s just not affordable.”
I sighed. Using it personally might be feasible, but for business, it wouldn’t be cost-effective.
With our stomachs full and some time before my evening job, I decided to take a nap. Leaving the innkeeper and his son to mull over their new culinary challenges, I headed to my room with Mii-chan in my arms.
I set the new alarm clock for three hours later and summoned a can of cat food and a bottle of mineral water. The summoning still felt strange, but I was getting used to it.
As I lay down, Mii-chan curled up beside me. I covered her with a towel. “Goodnight…”
The alarm woke me with a retro buzz. It wasn’t bad. I drank some mineral water to wake myself up completely. Mii-chan, with a puzzled look, woke up too. “Want some water?”
“Mii~,” she replied.
I poured some into a dish for her, and her dainty lapping was adorable. I lost track of time watching her until the clock struck three.
Time to go. I tied a red ribbon around Mii-chan’s neck, picked her up, and headed downstairs. I greeted the landlady before leaving the inn. As I walked out, I heard a triumphant shout from the kitchen. It seemed they decided to use the mayo in their dishes. Good luck with your culinary endeavors, everyone. It’s not just for me; it’s for all of us.
When I entered the guild from the back, Pamir-san grabbed my arm and pulled me into an empty room. Could this be a threat to my chastity? Even with Mii-chan here…
“Nero-kun!”
“Please, be gentle…”
“Huh? I’m not angry. More importantly, what did you give Gais-san to drink?”
Oh, that’s all? I got a little flustered for nothing.
“Um, it was a basic universal medicine, so it’s not poison.”
“!?”
Why is she reacting like that? Did I mess up by giving it to him?
“How much did he drink?”
I pulled out an empty plastic bottle from my bag to show her.
“What a strange flask. It doesn’t seem to be made of glass…”
Pamir-san nodded as if she understood something.
“Gais-san came by earlier and asked me to give this to you,” she said, placing a small cloth bag on the table.
Once again, Pamir-san grabbed my arm and pulled me into an empty room at the back of the guild. Could this be another threat to my chastity, especially with Mii-chan still with me…
“Nero-kun!”
“Please, be gentle…”
“Huh? I’m not angry. More importantly, what did you give Gais-san to drink?”
Oh, that’s all? I got a little flustered for nothing.
“Um, it was a basic universal medicine, so it’s not poison.”
“!?”
Why is she reacting like that? Did I mess up by giving it to him?
“How much did he drink?”
I pulled out an empty plastic bottle from my bag to show her.
“What a strange flask. It doesn’t seem to be made of glass…”
Pamir-san nodded as if she understood something.
“Gais-san came by earlier and asked me to give this to you,” she said, placing a small cloth bag on the table.
I wondered what it could be. When I opened the bag, there were ten gold coins inside. What is this?
“It’s the payment for the universal medicine that Gais-san drank. Honestly, it’s still not enough.”
“But… it was my mistake to give it to him.”
“Even so, universal medicine is a valuable item. More importantly, how did you, Nero-kun, come to possess something like that?”
Pamir-san’s gaze was intimidating… but I knew this was coming. I had been thinking about it since this morning.
I decided to tell her a story I had prepared. I explained that I was an orphan raised by an old herbalist woman in the mountains. I trained to be an herbalist but lacked the talent and eventually gave up. Before she passed away, the old woman told me to live in the city where I could interact with many people. Though I lacked talent, I could make the secret universal medicine she taught me. In reality, I had aimed to become a pharmacist and was preparing for a pharmaceutical university in Japan.
“I see… I’m sorry to hear that. It must have been tough.”
“Don’t worry about it. As long as I have Mii-chan with me, I’ve never felt it was tough.”
“Mii~”
“So, you can make universal medicine?”
“That’s the only thing I can make.”
“Wouldn’t it have been better for you to work at the Herbalist Guild?”
“The old lady told me I had no talent…”
“I’m really sorry… Please, take this money!”
“But…”
“It’s good medicine for Gais-san. That man’s daily habits are… mumbling.”
Good medicine for good people. Hehe.
“Mii…”
Huh? Mii-chan, didn’t you find it funny? Or is it just me imagining that you’re giving me a look of exasperation?
“Uh, could you please keep this a secret? I don’t want to be running around making medicine all the time.”
“Why? It could be a good source of income.”
“Those nightmares…”
“Oh, I see. Got it. But please help us if we really need it. Being a hunter is a life-threatening job. Of course, I’ll keep it a secret that you made it. It’ll be just between the two of us. Hehehe…”
“Mii~”
“Oh, sorry. It’s a secret with Mii-chan too, isn’t it?”
“Mii~”
I’ve told a lot of lies, but I think I managed to get through it somehow. I should write this backstory in my how-to book so I don’t forget. We don’t want any slip-ups, do we, Mii-chan?
“Mii~”