Volume 7, Chapter 38 – Strange… Cuisine

When Yisi’s group of seven stepped out of the first floor of the mine labyrinth, the sun had already completely set. But even so, the labyrinth entrance was a lively scene. The number of people entering had not decreased; in fact, there were even more than at noon. From what Yisi had gathered, this was because some of the monsters in the labyrinth slept at night, and these nocturnal adventurers were out to launch surprise attacks on them.

“I’m alive.”

As soon as she stepped out of the stone gate of the first floor, Tiffany let out a long sigh of relief, like a desert traveler who had finally found water. Although Tiffany, as a slime, had no muscles, the concept of fatigue also applied to her body. From Yisi’s [Omniscient Map], Tiffany’s stamina bar was less than 10%.

If it weren’t for the three levels she had gained, Tiffany would have probably been too tired to walk halfway and needed to be carried. Her stamina bar was a large chunk smaller than Camilla’s, who was also a magic chanter. Even so, Tiffany had persevered, fighting alongside her companions all the way from the tenth floor to the first. It was quite a good effort.

Thinking of this, Yisi extended her hand to Tiffany.

“Are you tired?”

“Yes.”

As if understanding Yisi’s meaning, Tiffany raised her arms towards her, making a gesture to be picked up.

“I know, I know. But I’ll put you down when we get to the church.”

Rеaⅾ оո KаtReаdinɡСаfе

“Super good job.”

Even though she was a youkai in her original world, she had remembered human language.

Ignoring Tiffany’s thumbs-up, Yisi picked her up in a princess carry.

Corresponding to her stamina bar, Tiffany’s weight was the second lightest in the group, only slightly heavier than Edith. Holding her was almost no burden at all, and her skin was soft, smooth, and cool to the touch. In a hot city like this one, it had a charm that made it hard to let go. Of course, Yisi only summarized these thoughts in her mind. If she relaxed her expression even a little, Tiffany would guess her general thoughts and then praise her for being a pervert in a monotone voice.

“Are the sleeping monsters worth so many adventurers coming out?” Watching the adventurers preparing their gear with great interest, Edith slowly retracted her gaze. “Let’s come back at night tomorrow. The monsters in the labyrinth are denser than in their normal state, and the leveling speed is faster. Before we entered, I felt I was only about halfway to the next level, but I didn’t expect to reach level 25 in just one afternoon. The longer we stay here, the more advantageous it is for us. It’s a pity the Blood Clan isn’t blessed by a labyrinth, otherwise we could quickly train a batch of elite warriors—no, the Taris territory and the Pescia territory are only separated by the Hermion earldom. In that case, if we just take the Hermion territory…”

“Wait! No matter how attractive the labyrinth is, it’s not worth starting a war between the Pescia territory and the Hels Kingdom. Besides, Andrea has only just secured her position as queen. The matter with the southern nobles hasn’t been settled yet, and now there’s trouble in the north. It would be terrible no matter how you look at it.”

“Then we’ll just make our move after the matter with the southern nobles is settled. A newly enthroned monarch needs a war to establish their authority, and the labyrinth is a good prize.”

Andrea would absolutely never agree to that.

Reαd οո КαtRеаdіոgСаfe

Grumbling internally, Yisi didn’t point this out.

“I smell burnt meat.”

Following behind the group, the empty-handed Mary sniffed the air.

Following the aroma to its source, Yisi soon spotted an open-air stall at the labyrinth entrance. In a very wasteland-like style, the cuisine of the mining city was mostly very rustic. The roasted meat on the stall was either cut into a large piece big enough for a full meal—a meal by Yisi’s standards—or the cutting process was skipped entirely, cooked in a style similar to a whole roasted rabbit or lamb.

Although the nuns would make dinner for them after they returned to the church, the church’s cooking was too refined for her group, and the flavors were very mild. Other than Edith and Camilla, the others couldn’t adapt to dishes that required slow, careful chewing. Yisi put Tiffany down and went to the most popular of the several stalls. Due to the large number of customers, it took her some effort to squeeze through the crowd.

“Ooh! This noble lady over here, how many servings would you like? This is a man-eating spider I just bought from an adventurer today. I recommend the legs and the head. Although the price is a little more expensive than the organs, they are absolutely top-notch delicious.”

As he spoke, the man in a white headscarf tapped the one and a half person tall spider leg with his tongs. Under the firelight, the black, spiky leg reflected an oily sheen, and the aroma of burnt meat rushed straight into her nostrils. The internal organs of this spider had already been hollowed out by the surrounding customers, leaving only the legs and a head slightly larger than a human’s.

It was a little unsettling.

Although the taste might indeed be as delicious as the stall owner claimed, it was too much to ask her to eat a spider whose leg alone was half her height. Even if it were smaller, it wouldn’t work. In the end, she simply couldn’t accept insect-based food.

Rеaԁ oո КatRеαԁіոgCаfе

Furthermore, Yisi also noticed that the customers who had eaten the spider’s organs all had a status called [Slightly Poisoned], and their eyes had become dazed, like those of a drunk person. If she wasn’t mistaken, the spider’s organs were probably poisonous. Of course, it was possible that the spider had eaten some kind of poisonous insect, and these customers had then eaten the undigested poisonous insect along with the spider.

Won’t he get complaints for this?

Thinking of this, Yisi suddenly realized that these customers were likely seeking out this dazed feeling. To them, these animal organs were as addictive as tobacco, alcohol, or a pureblood’s saliva.

Although she wouldn’t eat insects, some of her companions might like the taste. Yisi spent one copper coin to buy a spider leg and then left the crowd.

As soon as she returned to her companions, Edith frowned.

“What is this? It’s nauseating.”

“It looks like… the man-eating spider you killed yesterday, Onee-sama? Onee-sama, are our finances so tight that…”

“No, no, I’ve already given you the gold coins for safekeeping, haven’t I, Camilla? You know our finances better than I do. I just thought that the cuisine of a foreign land might have a unique flavor, so I bought a little.”

“If you eat this, Yisi, don’t touch me for a month.”

Rеaⅾ oո ΚαtRеаԁіոɡСαfе

“I… I also find it a little hard to accept.”

Edith and Refina refused with looks of disgust and a wry smile, respectively. Yisi could only turn her gaze to Camilla.

Camilla swallowed.

“If it is what you say, Onee-sama…”

No, no, I have absolutely no intention of ordering you. If you don’t like it, don’t force yourself.

Yisi refused the spider leg on Camilla’s behalf.

So, in the end, only Mary and Tiffany were willing to accept it. But the reason these two little ones were willing was that they would never refuse anything edible. Feeling like her current actions were akin to child abuse, Yisi could only confiscate the spider leg under their expectant gazes.

I’ll just buy some food that suits everyone’s tastes at an inn on the way back to the church. The spider leg can be given to the Cerberuses.