Chapter 76

After completing the adventurer registration, Sara and the others returned to the inn. Since I had taken them around a lot, I needed to get a room for them to rest.

"Oh, these kids are from the slums, aren't they? What happened?"

Before I could start the conversation, Martha cut in with her usual laid-back attitude.

"Well, yes. The reputation of spirit mages is so bad that I decided to take them as apprentices. I hope they can change the bad reputation of spirit mages. Do you know them?"

"Sure, they occasionally came to the inn for leftovers. So, you guys are in luck. This customer has a bad reputation, but doesn't seem to be a bad person. Try to make the most of this opportunity."

Sara and the others had been taken care of here before. I remember they mentioned coming for leftovers. They thanked Martha and pledged to work hard. They seem to be more attached to her than to me. Kika is even talking with a smile, which makes me feel a bit lonely.

"Well, for that reason, I'd like to request an additional room. Just for one night."

"Sure thing."

She offered to let us stay for free as a thank you for the recipe, but I insisted on paying the room fee since I didn't want to be a burden.

"Alright. Sara and the others must be tired. It's best to rest in the room until dinner. After the meal, we'll do a bit of spirit mage training."

"Understood," "Got it" (…Yeah)

They look a bit anxious, but since they've survived in the slums, they'll probably get used to it quickly. I'll rest too.

"Sylph, how are Bell and the others doing?"

"Give me a moment. They seem to be checking out various food stalls. They've really taken an interest in eating."

It's good that they enjoy eating. Even though nutrition doesn't matter to spirits, they seem to find it delicious, so there must be some meaning to it.

Since they were checking out the food stalls, they must be hungry. I'll let them eat before dinner. I'll summon Bell and the others.

"I'm back," "Kyu-kyu," "I'm back," "Ku"

"Welcome back, everyone. Did you have fun?"

"It was fun. We found lots of delicious things," "Kyu-kyu-kyu," "We found something we wanted to eat," "Ku-ku"

They all seem to have found something they liked and are explaining it to me. …I can't understand a thing. I can barely understand Tulu's explanation, but Rain and Tamamo's words are completely incomprehensible.

"You found something you liked, huh? Since we're going back to the Land of Death tomorrow, let's buy lots of food from the stalls."

Bell, Rain, Tulu, and Tamamo started flying around the room happily. "Soup" seems to be Bell's favorite, so I'm curious what kind of soup it is.

After calming down the flying Bell and the others, I asked them what they wanted to eat today. After a brief discussion, they decided on a thick oak meat sandwich. Watching them eat the sandwiches with big bites and happy faces is very soothing.

By the way, when I asked Sylph if she wanted to eat, she politely declined. It seems that normal food doesn't interest her much.

"Alright, let's go eat dinner. Bell and the others, stay in the room and relax. After we finish eating, I have something I need your help with, okay?"

Leaving Bell and the others in the room, I went to meet Sara and the others and headed to the dining room. As I entered, the dining room fell silent. The usual atmosphere.

"Is it okay if everyone tries the new menu? It's a dish called Napolitan that a customer taught me."

Oh, Napolitan, I'm looking forward to it. I'll go with that. I should ask Sara and the others if they have any preferences.

"Sure. Does anyone have something they want to eat?"

When I asked, they all shook their heads, so I ordered the new menu. While we waited for the food, I talked about our plans. Martha brought the Napolitan.

Wow, it smells great. It looks quite like Napolitan, but the pasta is flat, which feels a bit off. I wonder if they don't have dried pasta? It might be worth looking into.

"Everyone, go ahead and eat. If you need more, feel free to ask for seconds."

"Master, can we really have seconds?"

The meals here are usually large, so I'm not sure if they can finish it. The Napolitan is piled high.

"Yeah, but I'll make sure you eat well every day from now on, so you don't need to force yourself. Stop when you're full."

Since they haven't been eating much, overeating might be bad for their health. With that, Marco scooped up the pasta with his fork and started eating. I need to teach him how to use the fork properly.

"Delicious,"

"Marco, don't talk with food in your mouth. It's bad manners. Also, twirl the pasta with your fork before putting it in your mouth."

Marco nodded, still with pasta in his mouth. Sara and Kika, watching him, also picked up their forks and started eating.

Watching them chew the pasta, their faces gradually turned into smiles. It seems to suit them.

"Master, it's delicious," "It's good."

Kika, with a thin voice, also gave her opinion. It seems to be going well. Food is great. I should eat too.

I twirled the Napolitan and put it in my mouth. …Hmm. The pasta itself has a bit of a rough flavor. Maybe the quality of the tomatoes or the amount of sugar in the ketchup is off, making it lack sweetness. Also, I'm used to eating Napolitan with dried pasta, so the flat pasta feels a bit off.

It feels a bit disappointing. But the oak meat is delicious, and overall, it's a satisfying taste. I wish I had some powdered cheese and some spices.

As I was tasting it, I heard footsteps approaching.

"How does it taste? I've never had it before, so I adjusted the flavor by feel, but I think it's not bad."

"Well, I'm from far away, so keep in mind that my taste might be different."

Not just far away, but from a different planet. I should consider the possibility of a taste difference.

"Hmm? That's true. That's a possibility. Well, I'll try it, so give me your honest opinion."

"Sure. I think it needs more sugar or sweetness in the ketchup, and the noodles should be a bit thinner. Adding powdered cheese or some spice would also be good."

"Got it. More sweetness. Hmm. Powdered cheese and spice sound good. I'll see if I can get thinner noodles from the supplier."

With that, he muttered to himself and went back to the kitchen. He's probably going to stay up all night.

"Master, did you teach this dish?"

"Yeah. The dishes from my hometown are rare here. Did you like it?"

"Yeah, it's really delicious."

I feel more respected than when I tamed the Fire Dragon. Sara is looking at me with sparkling eyes. Maybe she's interested in cooking?

"I'm glad you liked it. Eat as much as you want."

Since they were used to a poor diet, Sara barely managed to finish, and Kika gave up halfway. Marco finished his plate and Kika's leftovers, looking a bit uncomfortable. I told them not to overdo it, but oh well.

After thanking Martha for the meal and giving her my honest opinion, we returned to the room.

"Yuta, who's there?" "Kyu?" "I don't know," "Ku"

When we entered the room, Bell and the others were curious and asked. Since I let them play before meeting Sara, this is expected. Sara and the others, sensing Bell and the others, looked confused.

"These are Sara, Marco, and Kika. They're my apprentices, so everyone, be nice to them."

"Okay," "Kyu," "Got it," "Ku"

Bell and the others, curious, started flying around Sara and the others, making them even more confused. I need to explain.

"Sara, Marco, Kika, you can probably sense their presence. I wasn't talking to myself; I was introducing you to the spirits I've contracted with."

"Master has contracted with many spirits, I see."

"Yeah. You can't see them, but I'll introduce them to you."

I introduced each spirit by name, attribute, and appearance to Sara and the others. Bell and the others were also saying "Nice to meet you" but they couldn't hear it.

"Today, we won't do anything difficult. Let's try to communicate with the spirits."

I thought about a way to communicate and decided to try it. Since they can sense the presence, it should be possible. I explained the method to both Sara and the spirits.

"Since Bell and the others understand words, Sara and the others can try asking questions by gently extending their hands forward. If the answer is yes, Bell and the others will move to the right hand. If no, to the left hand. If they don't understand, they'll stay in place."

Bell, Rain, Tulu, and Tamamo, excited about the increased number of people they can communicate with, were eagerly waiting.

"Wow, that's interesting. I never thought we could communicate with spirits this way."

"Really? Since you can sense their presence, I thought everyone would try it. Some people could talk to spirits or see them, right?"

It seems like anyone could think of this.

"Now that you mention it, that's true. But magicians generally keep their techniques secret, and the people they teach can only sense the presence. So, it didn't spread. Now, they focus mainly on spell research, which has become confusing."

It seems spirit mages went in the wrong direction. Using difficult words can lead to misunderstandings. I understand. I'll tell Sara and the others to keep the training method secret to avoid misuse. If they want to spread it, they should think of a countermeasure first.

Thank you for reading.