Chapter 14 (1/2)

The new bizarre life together with Kunette was unexpectedly ordinary. Kunette was a quiet child. Or was she a cub? She never spoke or showed any expression. But strangely, she didn’t have a problem with following Isaac around. In fact, she was always following Isaac.

When Mazelan came down to check on how they were doing, he fell head over heels for Kunette’s cuteness and tried to give her a hug. She immediately retaliated with a single swipe from her paws, breaking one of Mazelan’s ribs. Other than that small incident, there was no change to Isaac’s life.

“Phew! Now that’s a catch.”

Isaac finally understood the feelings of a fisherman as he pulled out an arm-sized fish after 10 minutes of struggle. It was a fish he’d never seen before. Then again, he wasn’t familiar with any kind of fish since the only fish he’d ever seen were on a plate in a sus.h.i.+ restaurant.

“Do you want some?”

Isaac asked Kunette who was squatting next to him, watching the ocean’s tides ebb and flow. After a single glimpse at the fish, she turned away and shook her head. Isaac was bothered at first by Kunette’s silent yet constant trailing, but soon got over it since he didn’t care much about being social either.

Isaac took out a knife and began cutting the fish for sas.h.i.+mi. He chopped its head off, cut its stomach to remove its organ and finished the process by removing its tail and scales.

“You’re not cooking it?”

“A fresh catch tastes best when you eat it raw.”

The cut was amateur at best and thicker than it should have been, but none of it mattered as it tasted irresistible. It must have been the result of this clean environment which was untouched by pollution, unlike the world in his former life.

“Kuh, delicious.”

It was a shame there wasn’t any sas.h.i.+mi sauce or soju to go along with it, but he was still satisfied with the tender and delicious sas.h.i.+mi that melted in his mouth.

“Hm?”

It seemed Isaac was too convincing with the way he was eating. Kunette placed her adorable front paws on Isaac’s knees.

“You want some?”

She nodded.

“Then say ahh.”

“…Ahh.”

Watching her open that small mouth of hers, Isaac placed a piece of sas.h.i.+mi in Kunette’s mouth.

‘I feel like I’m working in a zoo now.’

While Isaac made some pointless thoughts to himself, Kunette took a few bites then spat out the rest of the fish from her mouth.

“Ew. Isaac lied…. Bad.”

“Tsk tsk, it’s a taste only grown-ups can understand.”

Crack!

“Ahhh! My fis.h.i.+ng rod! That was my only one!”

Kunette stomped her way back as Isaac’s cry echoed behind her.

Isaac had realised that Kunette hated to be treated like a child or be told she’s adorable. He considered ignoring that fact at first, but there was no benefit to annoying someone from the College.

When it was so obvious that Kunette’s popularity would soar due to her cuteness in the Campus, Isaac’s friendly relations.h.i.+p with the girls in the Campus would end abruptly if Kunette openly stood against him. He needed to find a way to appease her.

“What are you making?”

“Some cookies to have as snacks.”

“Cookie?”

“Yeah. Have you eaten them before?”

“Cookies tasty. I want to help.”

“Then can you knead the dough for me?”

Isaac believed the dough tasted best when it’s hand-kneaded, but that was impossible with a bear’s paws. Her furs would end up making up half the content of the dough itself, making it inedible. So he threw a wooden spoon along with the bowl of flour, and Kunette sat down on the floor and began mixing the dough with all her strength.

Kunette was no expert and much of the contents in the dough splashed all over the kitchen. Only half of what Isaac had given remained, but Isaac couldn’t say no to Kunette’s eyes sparkling with an expectation of praise.

“Well done… Thanks.”

Embarra.s.sed, Kunette ran out of the kitchen. Isaac contemplated on what to do with what was just a clump of flour, but then decided to go ahead anyway. It wasn’t like he knew how to bake cookies properly anyway. He’s just acting like he knows what he’s doing by remembering what Eliza did when he watched her cook.

“Let’s see. Would 5 minutes be enough?”

It felt like he was skipping a step, but whatever. After shaping and arranging the dough in order, he placed them in the oven and turned the clock.

As the dough began to rise, it began to release delicious fragrance in the air. The problem was that it only smelled good.

“Tastes like flour.”

The cookie was rock hard on the outside, dry on the inside. The perfect failure. As Isaac wondered on what to do, Kunette appeared next to him with her adorable eyes once again, this time asking for the cookies. It was obvious she would get mad if she tasted this.

“It’s expensive but I guess I have no choice.”

Sweets were not common in this world, as sugar didn’t seem to exist yet. Fruit jams did exist, but the glucose content in the jam was lacking with the absence of sugar, making it quite bland for Isaac’s taste.

After shuffling through the cabinet, he took out a pot the size of his hand. After opening the pot he dipped his finger and licked it. The taste was acceptable.