The members of the Wharf of Shikumu party all wore an awkward expression on their faces . I first met them when they came to Gimuru to sell the Bloody Slime .
“It’s been a while . Shin-san, Sein-san, Peiron-san . ” [Ryouma]
“Yeah…” [Shin]
“Ahh…” [Sein]
“…” [Peiron]
“Supper is ready, Boys! So make some room so we can get started!” [Mother]
Fortunately for them, the mother of the family appeared and immediately changed the situation .
They cleared the area from the earthen floor all the way to the sunken fireplace, and then they brought in a large pot, several bowls for all of us, and a round thing knitted with plants .
That round thing seems to be boiling something inside it .
The smell isn’t that strong, but I feel like I’ve smelled it from before somewhere .
One thing is for sure, though . It’s definitely seafood . I mean this is a fishing village, after all .
Word has it that they have a lot of seafood here, something I normally can’t eat back at Gimuru, so I’m actually really looking forward to tonight’s supper .
“Geh! This is tonight’s food?” [Kei]
“? Do you not like the food, Kai-san?” [Ryouma]
“I like it, but people from other places don’t . ” [Kai]
Since they’d already lifted the lid, I went ahead and peeked inside .
“Crab!?” [Ryouma]
That round thing was packed to the brim with bright red crabs boiled to a turn!
“Wow, that’s really nostalgic!” [Ryouma]
Crab… It’s taken from the lake here, so it’s probably a freshwater variety like Sawagani (Japanese Freshwater Crab) .
I’ve eaten crab back on Earth, but only as a luxury, and this is my first time seeing crab since coming to this world .
“So this village also catches crabs on top of fishes?” [Ryouma]
“We can catch a lot if we set some traps, but still… I’m surprised you don’t mind them . ” [Hoi]
“We eat crab at my hometown . In fact, it’s my favorite . ” [Ryouma]
“Oh, really? Well, at least you like the food . That’s a relief . We prepared some fish just in case, but we have a lot of those crabs of yours, so just eat as much as you want . ” [Mother]
The mother of the family lined up the skewered fish on the sunken fireplace and served me seafood soup .
For some reason, she looked happy as she served me a bowl of soup packed with ingredients .
“Don’t be shy . Eat as much as you want!” [Hoi]
I took one crab boiled in salt, plucked one of its legs, and brought it to my mouth .
…It was fairly elastic considering how thin and tight it was . With each bite, the sweetness of the crab would ooze out accompanied by the exquisite seasoning of salt… A plain taste, but that is exactly what makes it so delicious!
“As expected, it’s really delicious!” [Ryouma]
Because the crab was small, the leg I took was also small, so it was really convenient for a child like myself to eat .
“I like how you eat . Keep eating . Here’s another one . Have some soup too . ” [Mei]
“Thank you very much, Mei-san . Yeah, this soup is delicious too . ” [Ryouma]
There’s a strong taste of mustard mixed in with the soup, but it works really well when combined with the fish stock .
“Look, Boy . More of that favorite food of yours . ” [Hoi]
“Itadakimasu . ” [Ryouma]
I just can’t have enough of the crab here and my hands won’t stop moving either .
“Here you go! Eat as much as you want!” [Mother]
Crabs are so delicious!
Everyone is paying attention to me and offering me more and more food .
Because of that I just kept on eating and eating .
When I had eaten my fill, my welcome party and supper ended .
The members of the Wharf of Shikumu Shin-san, Peiron-san, and Sein-san all went back to their houses .
And then Mei-san told me to go to sleep early since I would have to work early tomorrow, not to mention the fact that I must’ve been exhausted from the trip . When I entered the futon I had been given inside my room, it suddenly hit me .
We were supposed to talk over supper, but I was so focused on eating the crabs that I barely said a word outside of food . Oops .