Chapter 41

“Listen up, Aurora. When eating karaage with multiple people, you mustn’t squeeze lemon over the whole plate without asking. Just keep some lemon juice in your own small dish, okay?”

“――!”

『Good girl.』

『Here, have a sugar cube.』

『』

Good, she understood. If Aurora had just gone, “Who cares? I’m squeezing it anyway!” things could have gotten ugly. That’s how deeply rooted the “karaage lemon issue” is in modern society.

Of course, if everyone agrees, adding lemon isn’t a problem. I personally like it on my karaage. But today, I’ve got more than just lemon.

“Tonight’s karaage companions are these!”

“――!?”

With that, I energetically lined up the following on the table: the undeniable classic—mayonnaise. Then, a punchy yuzu kosho, with its spicy kick and citrusy aroma that pairs perfectly with karaage. Sancheu, which somehow makes you feel like calories don’t count when you wrap food in it. The “Aho Mabushi” spice, a highly praised seasoning for fried chicken that I picked up at Super Kyūgan the other day. A steaming bowl of freshly cooked rice, because you can’t have fried chicken without it. And finally, a mysterious black liquid in an unmarked bottle, filled with small bits of something.

『Ahh, this is good stuff!』

『Such power!』

『What’s that liquid on the edge?』

『Homemade sauce?』

“You’ve got sharp eyes. As you’ve guessed, this is a sauce my family often made at home.”

The base is ponzu. To that, I add finely chopped green onions, ginger, garlic paste, and sesame oil, then let it sit for a while. It’s not that much work, so I make it pretty often. Lately, I’ve been thinking about adding myoga to it, but I keep forgetting to buy it.

“The only downside is that, since it’s homemade, the expiration date is kind of unclear. But it’s delicious.”

『There’s nothing in it that would go bad quickly, so let’s give it a shot.』

『Just mix everything together?』

“Yep. I use convenient tube pastes, but if you crush fresh ingredients yourself, it’s probably even better. You can kind of guess, but it goes well with yakiniku, hotpot… honestly, even plain rice.”

“――!”

“Oops, Aurora’s getting impatient. Let’s eat! Itadakimasu!”

“――♪”

Both of us put our hands together in thanks before picking up the Akaōdaishō karaage. Aurora tried to make hers small, but she insisted on having the same size as mine, so now she’s lifting a piece as big as her face with both hands.

Thinking back, this was the same Akaōdaishō that gave us such a hard time. Now it’s a fragrant, bite-sized karaage. Feeling nostalgic, I pop a whole piece into my mouth. It’s pretty hot, so I end up huffing and puffing, but once I calm down and take a bite… This is…!

“U-Umaaaai…!”

“――!”

『This is food porn.』

『Ah, this would go great with beer.』

As the comments suggest, washing it down with beer sends me straight to heaven. That said, the Akaōdaishō meat is surprisingly close to chicken. It’s not exactly the same, but it’s definitely a meat worth exploring in different dishes. Fortunately, this meal only used about 15% of the meat I brought back. There’s plenty left.

Aurora looks satisfied too. She’s already dipping a piece into my homemade sauce, shoveling rice into her mouth, and chasing it down with beer.

As for me, I wrap a piece in sancheu, drizzle it with mayonnaise, and take a bite. For some reason, wrapping food in sancheu makes me feel like I’m forgiven for everything. The homemade sauce is as good as ever. Topping rice with karaage, then pouring the sauce over it—pure bliss! Both the rice and alcohol are disappearing fast.

『By the way, how’s that wallet and belt?』

『Yeah, I’ve been curious. Tell us.』

“Oh, right.”

I glance over at the lucky snakeskin wallet, the red great serpent belt, and the mistletoe arrow within arm’s reach. I already showed the first two when I opened the treasure chest, but I never showed the mistletoe arrow. That one’s better left hidden. Its abilities would be too dangerous if made public.

“Alright, let’s go over them! First, this belt is――”

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“――And that’s how it works.”

『That’s basically an ATM disguised as a wallet, lol.』

『The belt is insane too.』

『Sell it to me.』

『Watch your back at night.』

“I don’t go out at night much since becoming an elf.”

…Aside from that hospital visit and the camping trip.

Judging by the comments, even they think the abilities are broken. For demonstration, I put a 1,000-yen bill in the wallet, wished for two 500-yen coins, and—voilà—two 500-yen coins came out. Like magic.

Oh, while talking, I ate all my karaage. A quick glance at Aurora’s plate reveals a massive stockpile of karaage. …Come on, Aurora, don’t give me that look. I’m not going to steal it. Besides, I’ve got a proper finisher prepared.

“Alright, I’ll go make the final dish. Aurora, hold down the fort.”

“――!”

『Not that we understand what Aurora’s saying, lol.』

『But she’s cute, so it’s fine.』

『Aurora, just eat. That alone is enough for us.』

My viewers are so generous… And Aurora, realizing it’s okay, immediately goes back to eating karaage.

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“Alright, thanks for waiting! Here’s T-Rex bone broth zosui!”

“――!!”

From the moment I stepped back into the streaming room, Aurora was bouncing off the walls. Judging by the comments, she’d been like this for a while before I even returned—probably because of the smell.

The zosui, served in a tea bowl, glows like pure gold thanks to the egg mixed in.

『Dinosaur meat just keeps proving its potential.』

『Dinosaurs have as few wasted parts as monkfish. –Chiba Takeshi 』

“Seriously, I’m so grateful to Chiba-san. Alright then, itadakimasu!”

“――!”

Neither Aurora nor I remember much about the moment we took our first bite. All we recall is an explosion of umami in our mouths as we chewed. Before we knew it, our bowls were empty. Aurora’s too. But I’m sorry… that was the last of it…!

When we asked the viewers what we looked like while eating, they said we were crying and smiling at the same time. According to Chiba-san, “Everyone goes through this the first time.”

Hey, can we edit out the eating scene? No? …Yeah, I figured.