The visitors have increased when I return to the dining room.
"Wait Aze-sama, how long are you going to keep eating after saying that you'd only try a bite."
"But, it's delicious da mon."
"Da mon, not."
Lua-san, the miko, is scolding Aialize-san, the high elf, as she's eating beside Nea-san. This person really is like a child.
The afternoon on the day after our first meeting, Aialize-san came, led by Lua-san, to apologize for the prank. Since I honestly didn't mind about it at all, I accepted it frankly. I also apologized for Arisa.
It's fine and all with these two, but in fact, one of the elf elder actually also came as the representative to apologize the morning of that day. To be frank, I was troubled when he was apologizing so seriously, so I told him to not mind it in a light tone. By the way, he was the one who gave permission for me to tour the elf hometown.
"Welcome, Aialize-sama, Lua-san. Nea-san, please taste these hamburg steaks too."
After greeting the two, I present the dish to Nea-san.
I ask Liza and Lulu to help me bring the prepared dishes on the kitchen here.
I offer Aialize-san and Lua-san the dishes for the occasion. The pixies who have always been hanging around the kitchen, and the elves with free times are also helping to carry the dishes while coming here, no problem since I've made extra.
These pixies can only speak elf language, so the elves and me were going to act as interpreters, but Lua-san tactfully settled it with the translation rings that she took out out of nowhere to solve the problem. What a fantasy-like equipment. Even though it's a rare thing that isn't even among the loot from dragon's valley, Lua-san lets everyone to borrow the rings indefinitely. Apparently, there was an elf who zealously made translations rings a long time ago, so it's not something that unusual in Boruenan.
When the three are eating, some pixies who have enticed by the scents gather. And then, the elves begin to gather when they see those pixies, the pattern that I've gotten used to see for a few days is reproduced.
Apparently, the impact from, "The reproduction of the hero's will, hamburg", is really strong as more people have gathered than usual, and I'm made to replenish the dishes several times at the kitchen together with Lulu.
Lulu and me are looking at people who are enjoying the meal as if competing over it at the dining hall while we're eating fruits and presents on the small bowls that the elves who have come to eat have brought. I've used up a lot of meat I have in stock, but since there are still quite a lot even while excluding the whale meat, it's probably alright for the time being.
Besides, I've acquired a lot of cattle and goats from the elves. I keep the acquired cattle together with the horses in a giant hole beside the root of the arbor. I leave the care to the living dolls the elves have deployed.
Of course, Mia and her parents have also come. She wanted some tofu hamburg steak, so I put not only soybeans on it but also fat-less meat that made 30% of the steak. I couldn't taste the meat when I sampled it, so Mia ate it without problem too.
Let's tell Mia about it after I've increased the meat ratio a bit more.
◇
I'm exchanging hamburg steak recipes with Nea-san while drinking the green tea that Lulu's made. Nea-san usually talks with single words, but she becomes talkative when it's about cooking methods and ingredients. I've already given her the recipe itself that I've written on the paper earlier.
I can see Lua-san, the miko, pestering Aialize-san from the edge of my view.
Looks like they have some kind of business.
I entrust Lulu and Arisa to accompany Nea-san, and invite Lua-san and Aialize-san to another room.
"I'm really sorry, we've made you to attend us..."
I encourage them to sit while telling Lua-san to not mind about it.
Aialize-san seems to be shy of strangers as she's only fidgeting around without talking, so I'm mainly conversing with Lua-san. Then, the irritated Lua-san begins to press on Aialize-san.
"Go on, Aze-sama."
"Um, yes, that."
Aialize-san talks while facing Lua-san, not me, but Lua-san forcefully twists her head toward me. Err, I understand how you feel, but her neck will be hurt you know?
Aialize-san who crosses views with me and looks like she's on her wit's end speaks bombshell remarks at extreme pace.
"You're getting along well with the black dragon! Today you're not Kuro the hero are you!"
"Wait, Aze-sama."
Lua-san calms Aialize-san down in a hurry.
"Err, what are you talking about?"
"I'm sorry. Please allow me to talk about it."
I was playing dumb, but it seemed they had found out about me being the hero Kuro from the spirit light back then. People that let out spirit light seem to be abnormal even from Lua-san's memory, "There is no way there are two of them in the same time period." she smiles wryly.
It seems that Lua-san's familiar was watching the latter half of the rampage between the black dragon Heiron and me, and the party after that from afar. I surely felt a lot of frightened gazes at that time, it must have slipped among them.
Looks like they think I'm using an advanced nature magic spell, [Fake Patch], to make my name and title become different from that time.
"And now, as for the main subject--"
Normally, I expect them to demand, "Do this and that if you want us to not talk.", but somehow, I can't imagine the elves here to utter such words. Even if they wish something, they look like the type who will ask for help instead of bargaining for it.
"I will! Teach you!"
Aialize-san grasps her fists tightly and declares so as she stands up. I don't know what she's going to teach me, but I wait for her next words.
She seems to be embarrassed with my stare as she crouches down while turning red. She's the delicately troublesome type isn't she.
"So, that, like the way to suppress the spirit light! Or the way to prevent the spirits from gathering."
She continues her words as she hides herself behind Lua-san.
How do I say this, she looks like a timid teacher who's hiding behind her middle school student's back when she's doing that with the petite Lua-san like that.
Thus, I'm going to be taught by the extremely unreliable Aialize-sensei.