Chapter 58
They opened the door and Aeris and Grudo entered the room . Both of them were carrying large baskets .
“Something smells nice . ”
Chiharu said as she sniffed the air . Aeris scanned the room and then approached the table where tea had been prepared . Then he opened the basket .
“Wow!”
“Wow!”
It was full of delicacies that they had wanted to eat at the party but were unable to . Then Grudo opened his basket .
“Drink!”
“Drink!”
There were small cups and many bottles inside .
“I thought you hadn’t been able to eat much since you were surrounded by dwarves . ”
“You probably didn’t have time to get a drink either . ”
They knew .
“Of course, Kaider and Edwy knew about it too . But young men are not allowed to visit ladies so late at night . ”
Grudo explained . Aeris then added,
“But it’s fine if it’s us . ”
“No one will suspect anything . ”
“I am a veteran . And I don’t have any silly pride as a man . Now, eat up . ”
Maki and Chiharu laughed at this rare joke by Aeris . Then they sat down and started setting the food while the drinks were being poured . As breakfast was sometimes eaten in this room, the table was quite large .
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“The wine tastes so much better when I think about how bitter the other two will be . ”
“That is so true . ”
Aeris and Grudo said mockingly, but Maki and Chiharu were too focused on their food to hear them . There were vegetables that had been cut into bite-size pieces and also meat for the main course . There was also bread that you could put them on . Maki had already sandwiched her meat in the bread and was eating it .
Chiharu cut out a bite of fruit cake and brought it to her mouth .
“Wait-wait-wait . Chiharu . You should eat the meat first . ”
“Why? No one’s watching us?”
“You can’t . We have to eat dessert together . So eat your dinner first . ”
Maki instructed . And so Chiharu somberly pushed the cake away .
“Well, you two . If you are going to eat meat, then have this too . ”
Grudo said as he poured them some red wine . That would go really well with the meat . And so Chiharu happily brought the meat to her mouth . The meat was also cooked in red wine, and it fell apart in her mouth .
“This is mutton . And this is chicken . It’s really good . ”
Grudo said as he pointed to some meat cooked in herbs . It was cut into smaller pieces .
“Oh, it’s so juicy . ”
“This skin is covered in salt and herbs and is really crispy . ”
Maki and Chiharu talked in surprise as they ate . Grudo looked very happy as he explained each item to them .
“Yes, that . The skin has been covered in honey . The honey is from the elf territories . They usually use tree sap that has a distinct smell . But today is a special day, and so they used honey . ”
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I see . I see . Chiharu thought that she would like to taste the tree sap one as well .
“Speaking of honey, the elves are really good at acquiring such blessings from nature . I remember being able to harvest honey close to where I grew up . The bees are hard workers . ”
“Yes, Aeris . It was really surprising the first time I saw it . Those bees were so much larger than the ones in the dwarf lands . ”
“Hmm . If you ask me, it’s the bees that are everywhere else that are too small . ”
Those two must have not been able to drink much at the party either . They talked happily as they drank .
“Hey, Aeris . How big are these bees?”
Maki asked with deep curiosity . Maki . Chiharu sighed . She hadn’t asked this question herself for a reason .
“Yes, about this big . ”
Aeris made a large circle with both of his hands .
“What?”
“Like this . ”
Grudo also made a circle . Chiharu had already had enough of this subject . And she drained her cup of wine .
“What are you saying, Grudo? Your hands are much too small . It’s like this . ”
Aeris made another circle with his bigger hands .
“Too small? Ahahaha!”
Grudo laughed as if this were very funny . Maki then asked Aeris hesitantly .
“Uh, are they like small gazers then?”
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“Hmm? Oh, you’re right, Maki . Since they both fly . That’s a good comparison . Hahaha!”
“Hahaha . ”
Aeris seemed very amused . However, Chiharu was rubbing her forehead . She looked just like Arthur .
“It’s because the bees are so big that honey is cheap in the elf lands . ”
“I see . By the way…”
Maki began . Chiharu glared at her . But Maki didn’t notice .
“Are there any other useful bugs?”
“There are . For instance…”
“Ahh . Uh . Um…”
“What is it, Chiharu?”
“My throat is starting to hurt . ”
“Oh . But Chiharu…”
Maki suddenly realized her mistake . She didn’t mind talk of bugs at all . However, it was an issue that girls were split on . Some were fine and others hated it . Chiharu was the later . She generally did not like things that wiggled or had lots of legs, including that black one that showed up in the summer . But bees were fine . Even if they were a little big . But anything else…
“There are silkworms that spit out silk thread . ”
There! Wiggly! Gross! No, maybe it wasn’t too bad? No, it was too much .
“About this big . ”
“Uh, um . Aeris . I would like to eat dessert now . ”
Maki interrupted him .
“I see . The one that Chiharu was about to eat was very good . ”
“Oh, that cake looks very good too . ”
Maki said with excitement . Aeris looked happy as he continued to talk .
“Yes, that one uses honey . They stretch the batter out with flour and then spread oil over it before folding . Then it roasted with lots of nuts and honey . Ah, Chiharu . You have honey on your chin . ”
Aeris’s voice was sweet like honey .
“Hmm? Here?”
“On the other side . ”
Aeris stretched out his hand and wiped it with a napkin . Chiharu quietly let him .
So sweet . Maki looked away in order to avoid laughing, and her eyes met Grudo’s . Grudo chuckled in exasperation . Maki then picked up a piece of cake and tasted it . Yes, it was really sweet .
They finished off the meal with some apple wine . And then Grudo and Aeris left, both in a good mood .
Of course, Maki and Chiharu were also satisfied .
And so they turned off the lights and snuggled into bed . It was just as they began to doze off, that Chiharu mumbled .
“Maybe we shouldn’t go to the elf lands . ”
Bugs could not be ignored . Maki laughed . She was a little drunk .
“We’ll think about it tomorrow . ”
“Yes . Goodnight . ”
“Goodnight . ”
And then they fell asleep .