Chapter 153.1: The Gods’ Respite II - (1) (1/2)

It was a weird time of day, just before noon but still too early to prepare lunch.

When I returned home from the basement……

I was astounded by what I found in the kotatsu.

One of them was my god, a gray cat with long hair(but she doesn't shed because she’s a god) and golden eyes. Her belly was exposed and her upper body was sticking out of the kotatsu.

The other was a lioness.

It was also half out of the kotatsu and relaxing like a cat.

I had wondered if there were lions in the alternate world, but what is one doing in this city, no no no, in my home?

「Souya, you're back at last. What were you and the dwarf talking about for so long?」

Said my god.

「From time immemorial, the only things adventurers talk about with dwarves have always been weapons and armor」

Said the lioness that I didn’t know.

Huh, I recognize that voice though. Could it be……

「Gladvain-sama?」

「That’s right. Oh, I forgot, you've never seen me in this form before」

The lioness that was Gladvain-sama got out of the kotatsu and stretched.

「I'm more comfortable in human form, you see? Though I do like to change into this form every now and then」

There was a flash of light and Gladvain-sama returned to her usual form.

With her long, wavy blonde hair and healthy, tanned skin, she was the perfect image of an Amazon. Her face looked dignified and fearless and a strong will shone in her eyes.

Her abs showed through the high-leg dress she had on. The muscles in her arms and legs were supple yet thick and strong. It was a little chilly today, so she had a cloak thrown over her shoulders. Her large sword hung from her hip.

Even though she's a woman, what an imposing physique she has. As expected of a god of war and martial arts.

「It's unusual to see you here in my home. Is there something you wanted?」

Rana is training at the dormitory again today, so I would have been happy to go over there if she had called me.

「Mmm, today, umm………」

「?」

Gladvain-sama clammed up.

There was another burst of light and Misuranika-sama also took human form.

She was a beautiful woman in a black dress with a large opening in the back. Her long black hair shone as if wet, and she had a cute and cheeky face. Her figure was thin and slender, and for some reason, she was barefoot.

Compared to the god of war, she's a more diminutive god. She looks like a Japanese-style vampire.

「She wants to eat ramen apparently」

「Eh, ramen?」

If that's the case, you didn’t have to come all the way to my home and could have eaten it at any other store……

「Mmm, it's a little embarrassing, but there's a ramen store near our dormitory that has gained quite a reputation. I was curious about it, so I took my kin there, but that ended up scaring the storekeeper. That made him mess up the seasoning of the ramen, it seemed, and he brought out his whole family to prostrate in apology. The ramen that I ate under such circumstances………I couldn't even tell what it tasted like」

I feel for you.

The people of the ramen store.

「It's no wonder, isn't it? A group of fierce-looking guys with a god of war at their head showed up at their store. Of course their cooking skills would waver. Can't you stand in the shoes of ordinary people a little?」

「Ur, urgh」

Gladvain-sama groaned.

Misuranika-sama came up to me and whispered into my ear.

（Souya, treat her to some ramen. But make me that one, you know, that one）

（Oh, okay）

A cute but evil look came over her face.

「Gladvain-sama, I'll make you some ramen, but do you have any requests?」

「I want the ramen that the flame religion serves. A god like me can't possibly line up at a human's soup kitchen after all」

「Understood. If that's what you want, I still have the broth, so it'll be done in no time」

The two gods went back into the kotatsu while I went into the kitchen.

I reheated the leftover ramen broth, filled a pot with water, then put it on the fire.

I thought about what to use as ingredients, then figured that since it was for Gladvain-sama, I couldn’t go wrong with a luxurious helping of the chashu.

I took some mixed miso from a jar and put it into a porcelain bowl. Then I drizzled a little spiced oil and vinegar into it as well.

For Misuranika-sama, I added miso, soy sauce, and a garlic-based sauce into a smaller porcelain bowl. I added some slices of chashu, fried onions, and powdered dried fish.

Next, I cut leeks into thin slices, rubbed them with salt, then put them aside.

I threw plenty of fresh noodles into the pot of water, which had come to a boil.

I flipped over an hourglass to measure the time.

After pouring the re-heated broth into the porcelain bowl, I taste-tasted it as I adjusted its taste by adding seasonings. I took out the jar of spicy miso, then waited for the noodles to be done.

Oh, I almost forgot.

「Misuranika-sama~, which alcohol should I serve?」

「A moderately expensive one」

「Understood」

I opened the cabinet and picked out a bottle of alcohol.

I can’t tell the difference between alcohol and don’t have much knowledge of them, so all the alcohol in our home have their prices labeled on them.

The ones that Misuranika-sama calls moderately expensive cost about five silver coins.

Wait, the contents of the bottles whose prices are in the gold coins range have dwindled considerably. Who's been drinking them?

Taking two glasses and a bottle of alcohol worth six silver coins, I placed them on the kotatsu’s table.

「Souya, I'd rather not drink. I'm sorry」

「Then I'll drink the guest's share as well」

Surprisingly, Gladvain-sama doesn't seem to drink alcohol. She seems like she'd be a strong drinker though.

That being the case, I brought her something else and poured it into her glass.

「Gladvain-sama, it's sweet, but do give it a try」

「What’s this?」

「It's a drink from the foreign lands. It contains no alcohol」

What I gave her was diluted Dr. Pepper.

「I don't like that one」

「You don't like it because it's carbonated, right? You prefer wine to ale after all」

「I just really dislike that bubbly stuff」

Her opinion may be childish, but she's a god who drinks like a fish.

「Ooh, I don't mind it」

Gladvain-sama downed it in one gulp then poured more for herself.

The sound of the pot boiling brought me back to the kitchen.

The hourglass had just run out. I scooped up the noodles with a colander, drained the water, then put Gladvain-sama's portion into the broth and loosened the noodles using chopsticks so that they wouldn't stick together. On top of the noodles, I placed slices of chashu until they completely covered the noodles, then placed a dollop of spicy miso in the center.

For Misuranika-sama's noodles, I soaked them in water before draining them and putting them into a separate porcelain bowl.

I washed the sliced leeks with water and placed them on top. I put boiled eggs on a separate plate as a side dish.

「Alright」

They were completed.

「Thank you for waiting~」

「You're slow, Souya」

「No, that's fast, isn't it?」

My god rushed me while the god of war came to my defense.

I placed the ramen on top of the kotatsu.

「First, Gladvain-sama's ramen. It's chashu ramen. There are noodles and broth under that meat. Please eat it while dissolving as much of the spicy miso as suits your taste」

「Ummm, Souya」

Huh? Gladvain-sama looks troubled for some reason.

That's not the reaction I was expecting.

「It's not good to only have meat, you know? You need a good balance of vegetables, grains, meat, and broth」

「………………Got it」

She’s right.

The thought that serving meat to a god of war would surely be well-received was a shallow one.

「It can't be helped~ I'll eat some of your meat for you then」

The god of misdeeds stole three slices of chashu and submerged them into her own broth.

「I have mixed feelings about that, but hmm? Hey, Misuranika, what's that ramen you have there?」

「Fufufu, what's this, you ask? It's a new type of ramen that no one in this city has eaten before」

Said my god with a smug look on her face.

「A new type of ramen, huh? Wait, ramen is plenty new in itself, isn't it?」

「Kukuku, there's much more to it. This ”Tsukemen[1]” is an evolved version of ramen. In other words, what I'm eating is the future of yours」

That's not true though.

I made tsukemen for Misuranika-sama simply because she's bad with hot food.

「Watch and learn. First, you pick up the noodles like this」

Misuranika-sama used the chopsticks with an unaccustomed hand. After picking up some noodles, she dunked them into the broth, brought her mouth close to the bowl, then started eating it little by little.

It's so adorable.

My god's way of eating ramen is super cute. My god is super cute.

「By the way, Souya, why is Misuranika using sticks to eat?」

「They're called chopsticks. They're used in my country as a substitute for spoons and forks」

「Souya, I'll eat using them too. Lend me a pair」

「Oh, okay. One moment please」

Leaving the spork on the table, I left then quickly returned with a pair of chopsticks.

「Here you go, Okaa-sama」

「Hmm. But first, Souya, show me how you use them」

「Huh? Okay」

I held my chopsticks the standard way and took a slice of Misuranika-sama's chashu. When I stuffed it into my mouth, it melted and the sweet and spicy flavor almost made me swoon.

「Souya! How dare you?!」

「I got a little hungry too」

「Next time you steal meat from me, I'll play a terrible prank on you when you're asleep!」

Actually, please do.

「Hmm, let’s see……」

Gladvain-sama took the chopsticks from me and somehow managed to eat her ramen without too much trouble.

「Oh, this meat. It's similar to the braised dungeon pork squares you made in the past. If it's meat like this, then I don't mind having lots of it」

Next, she slurped up the noodles smoothly.

「Eh, Okaa-sama, where did you learn how to use chopsticks?」

「I just learned it from watching you. This is good for training the fingers. I shall start using them in my dormitory」

Chopsticks ended up making their debut in the alternate world.

「And what do you think of the taste of the ramen?」

「Mmm, it's delicious. There has never been a time when you've served food that tastes bad. That's basically all Rana and Ea talk about all the time」

Are the sisters seen as ravenous characters by other people, I wonder?

「Souya, you properly half-boiled the eggs, I trust?」

Misuranika-sama stabbed a boiled egg with her chopsticks.

「It's half-boiled, of course」

「Hmm, then it's fine」

Misuranika-sama took a bite out of the half-boiled egg and sucked out the yolk.

My god loves half-boiled eggs. Her tastes are completely that of a child’s.

「Lanseal likes hers to be hard. Even when she eats it as a snack, she always makes it hard. Hard is not good. I can't stress enough how delicious and succulent runny yolk is」

My God is charming in so many ways. I want to hug her from behind and rub my cheek against hers. But I won't because I'd look like a criminal. I'll just have to bear it.

「Ahh, so this is the egg of the bipedal bird that Ea talked about」

「Oh, do you think of it as a bizarre food as well, Okaa-sama?」

「No, not at all. When I lived on the left continent, we ate anything that was safe to cook, except humans. Not eating bipedal birds is a custom that originated from the center continent. There was no such custom on the right continent in the past」

「Hmm~」

I hadn't known that. So, everyone treats chickens as a bizarre food because of an imported custom?

Okaa-sama picked up a half-boiled egg with her chopsticks and ate it whole.

「Oh, this is delicious. This egg's yolk is thicker and more flavorful than that of the large egg. If I were to give them to my kin, they would surely fight over them」

「Then I'll make a lot and bring them with me next time I go over」