Chapter 21

On the table, a variety of colorful dishes were arranged.

On the right side was a creamy stew made with a leafy vegetable called Harpezi.

The dish retained the crisp texture of the ingredients while being infused with the gentle flavor of the cream, making it a standout dish.

In the center was the main dish, a pan-fried Genofish.

Although the Genofish is a D-rank aquatic monster, some can grow up to 2 meters in size.

However, the one in front of Flamm was only about 50 cm, but it still had a significant presence.

The surface, browned by aromatic oil, was gently steaming.

When Flamm took a deep breath through her nose, the fragrant and spicy aroma filled her chest.

Inside the crispy skin, the flesh was soft and fluffy.

Just looking at it made her mouth water.

Moreover, there were stir-fried minced meat and vegetables, a soup made from the broth of the Genofish's head, and freshly baked bread lined up—

When all the dishes were ready, Flamm, Eterna, and Sera, who had been eagerly waiting, clasped their hands and exclaimed, "Itadakimasu!" and dug in.

Their enthusiasm made Milkit smile as she said, "Enjoy your meal."

Today was the day Milkit invited Sera to enjoy her cooking, fulfilling a promise from the past.

She put in more effort than usual to ensure she didn't disappoint, resulting in a clearly luxurious menu.

During the cooking process, Flamm hugged her from behind to peek, Eterna sneakily tasted the dishes, and Sera tried to do the same but was caught and stopped—

The girls waiting for the meal to be completed were restless and fidgety.

To be honest, Flamm was the only one who wasn't slightly in the way, but Milkit didn't mind.

After all, before meeting her, no one had ever looked forward to her cooking.

"Delicious, this is so good!"

"Yeah, it's delicious. Ha, ha, ha, Milkit's cooking is the best!"

"...Delicious."

With food in their mouths, it was impossible to tell who was saying what.

However, the fact that they found it delicious was clear, which was a strange phenomenon.

Milkit didn't touch her own portion and watched the three of them happily eating with full mouths.

Unable to bear it, Flamm cut a piece of the pan-fried Genofish from her plate, skewered it with a fork, and offered it to Milkit.

"Here, aah."

"Master, I can eat by myself, it's fine."

"But you're not moving at all. Here, aah!"

"A, aah..."

Pressed by the very insistent Flamm, Milkit opened her mouth.

As the fish entered, the rich aroma of the fish and spices spread.

It was indeed delicious, but being embarrassed made it hard to focus on the taste.

"They're so close, those two."

"Always like that."

"Her face is healed, but she still wears bandages. I don't get it."

"She only wants to show it to Flamm."

"...They're so close."

"Yeah, that's the feeling."

While continuously eating, Sera and Eterna observed the two playfully interacting and exchanged words.

When Sera was invited to the house, she was surprised to be greeted by the hero Eterna, but now she had adapted to the situation.

Perhaps it was due to her youth or a similar wavelength.

"By the way."

Stopping her hand holding the fork, Sera asked Eterna with a serious expression.

"Wasn't Maria-sama with you?"

"Yeah, sort of."

"How is she? Is she doing well?"

"I didn't talk to her much, so I'm not sure. But... she seemed to be hiding something."

"...Hiding something?"

Sera wasn't particularly surprised.

She stabbed the Harpezi with her fork and brought it to her mouth.

Chewing with a "shak, shak" sound, she swallowed and continued.

"Unlike me, Maria-sama is important, so there are many church matters to consider."

"The church can't be trusted... I feel bad saying that in front of a nun. Sorry."

"It's okay, I agree."

Since returning from Enichide, Sera had been trying to gather information about the research facility.

However, she couldn't find any information.

If the research on those monsters with cores embedded in them was still ongoing—considering the abandoned state of the facility, it must have advanced even further.

Even a relatively weak monster like an Ogre required both of them to defeat it.

If such a thing were to be embedded in a powerful monster or an adventurer—

"Maybe it's better to leave the difficult stuff for later."

"Right, let's enjoy Milkit's cooking for now!"

"That's good... hamu."

"Hugu, fuga!"

The two emptied their minds and stuffed their mouths with side dishes and bit into the bread.

Meanwhile, Flamm, for some reason, made Milkit hold a fork and said "aah" while opening her mouth.

◇◇◇

After clearing up, the four sat back at the table, holding the tea that Milkit had brewed, and began exchanging information.

They wanted to have a pleasant conversation and see Sera off, but there were issues that couldn't be ignored.

"I've been investigating the research facility, but I haven't found anything."

"What about the document that had the location of the Kiarali marked?"

"I think it was probably in the possession of the bishop of the Central District Church... but it was just left unguarded in the room by chance."

"In other words, the bishop knows the details."

At Eterna's words, Sera nodded, saying, "Probably."

"But there are only a few places we can follow them to."

"Can we approach from a different angle, like other district churches?"

"The cathedral in the North District is definitely out of the question, so it would be the East or West District. But the West District... I have a few acquaintances among the church knights, but I don't think it's that kind of place."

"Why can you say that so confidently?"

Milkit asked.

Surprised by her more active participation in the conversation, Sera answered.

"There's an orphanage attached. The West District has poor security, and many children are abandoned, so it also serves to protect them. I've been inside before, and I don't think it's possible to hide a secret research facility there."

Alternatively, it could be used as a cover, but Sera didn't believe the church was that corrupt.

Moreover, since she had actually been inside, there were no suspicious aspects within her range of investigation.

"So, the only place we can investigate now is the church in the East District..."

"The East District is a wealthy area, so I don't think they would do anything too conspicuous. Besides, the research facility itself is likely located outside, so investigating the church might not yield any results."

"True, there's no guarantee that the research is still ongoing."

At that, Eterna interjected.

"The history of human experimentation in the kingdom is surprisingly old, and I think it's more likely that it's still continuing."

"Old?"

"It was already happening when I was born."

Everyone in the room silently thought, "We have no idea when that was..."

At least, Eterna was undoubtedly much older than the other three.

"The facility with the monsters that had cores embedded in them. The fact that they built such a facility underground is proof that both the kingdom and the church were invested in it. I don't think they would give up just because one location was destroyed."

However, her words had a mysterious persuasiveness.

It didn't seem like she was lying or making wild guesses, so it was probably better to consider that the research was still ongoing.

"For now, I'll try to see if I can get into the East District or the cathedral and investigate."

"Sorry, we're not much help."

"It's okay, I have a personal interest in this. If the church I belong to is doing something wrong, I want to bring it to light."

She had been raised by the Origin Church.

She didn't want to doubt it, but after seeing the monsters and the numerous bodies in the research facility, the church had committed some kind of sin.

Evil must be punished, as the people of the church had taught her.

"By the way, what about Dain? Have you thought of a way to take him down?"

"Well... he's been unusually quiet lately. Thanks to that, the West District is peaceful, and he hasn't bothered me at all. It's actually making things harder... It seems like he's planning something big behind the scenes."

"Bad feeling..."

"Yeah, for now, I'm trying to get a rough idea of his plan while completing quests."

In the end, they still hadn't obtained any concrete information.

When Flamm said, "We just have to be patient," everyone nodded.

Compared to Flamm and her group, both Dain's faction and the church were much larger organizations.

It was impossible to find useful information immediately, so they had no choice but to search diligently.

After that, they spent a peaceful time together, and when the third cup of tea was finished, the meal ended.

Sera said, "I'm fine!" but it was too dangerous to let a 10-year-old girl walk the streets of the West District at night.

In the end, Flamm decided to see Sera home.

◇◇◇

In the middle of the night, a man's rough voice echoed through the alleys of the West District.

"K, come no... come noooooo!"

He looked to be in his mid-20s.

Wearing a cloak and a light leather armor, it was easy to imagine he was an adventurer.

The man readied the hand axe he was carrying and faced his enemy, but he had no idea how to fight the approaching threat.

If it were a human or a monster, there might have been a way to counter it.

But the enemy was just an "eye."

Not a monster shaped like an eye.

Just a human eye, rolling and rolling, getting closer and closer to him.

But there were too many of them.

The ground of the alley, the walls of the surrounding buildings, and even the roofs were densely covered with eyes, all of which were staring at him.

There was no place to run.

When his back hit the wall,

"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!"

He realized he was going to die and sat down, lamenting.

Still, the instinct to protect his life made him swing his axe in a futile attempt.

Plop.

A few eyes were crushed, but it was like pouring water on a burning stone.

Finally, the wet orbs touched his body.

From his toes to his knees, from his knees to his thighs, and then up to his torso and shoulders—

Zuzu, they slipped into his body.

There was no pain.

Just a tickling sensation and the strange feeling of a foreign object entering his body, making him groan and gag.

When it was completely inside, a new arm sprouted from his body.

It had a sense of touch and could move freely.

It was undoubtedly a part of his body.

"A... ah...!"

He was completely confused.

He had just followed Dain's orders to threaten someone related to the church.

On his way back, he noticed what he thought were eyes on the ground, and their number gradually increased.

When they covered the entire road, he tried to run, but was cornered, and the eyes entered his body, and his arms multiplied.

He couldn't understand anything from start to finish.

What was he fighting?

But there was no answer, as more and more eyes rolled up his body and sank inside.

The lack of pain was the most terrifying thing.

If it had hurt, he might have been able to scream and distract himself from the fear.

"Ugh, ah, aaaaaah!"

"My right thumb has two of them."

"My legs have three."

"My stomach is swollen—no, it has two of them."

"I can feel my heart beating in several places with a time delay."

"My arms have already multiplied to five on each side."

"Then the eyes entered my neck—"

"Aaaaaah!"

"Aaaa, aaaaaaaah!"

The screams were in unison.

Now he had two heads.

New necks grew from the middle of his original neck, like branches of a tree, and two identical faces appeared side by side.

His consciousness mixed, and he couldn't tell whose body it was, losing even the freedom to crawl away.

If this was the punishment for threatening someone related to the church, it was more than enough.

"Stop it, please!"

"Kill me, please!"

"No, I don't want to die!"

"Kill me as a human, please!"

But it didn't stop.

The eyes flooded his body and entered inside.

As more and more heads grew