Chapter 85

As cherry blossoms petals danced in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of the promise written there.

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Surrounded by knights, they seemed to be worried about my state and called out to me one after another. From their conversations, it seemed that Lord Aristide often took some risks within the range of what he considered manageable. Even when he was injured during the Bergenion attack, Lord Aristide had called us "too worried," but the range of what Lord Aristide considered manageable must be quite broad.

I distributed fruit water and soup to the knights gathering around me, repeatedly telling myself:

(It's okay, everyone is right, it will surely be fine.)

I forced myself to accept this and focused on my work. There were still many knights coming for their breaks. Suddenly, a shadow fell over me.

"I would like a drink and some salt."

"Y-Yes! Fruit water and salt, right?"

The shadow turned out to be Ducas, the commander of East Elsenei Fort. I hurriedly handed him the fruit water and a basket containing crushed rock salt. Ducas, carrying a large shield, grabbed a few pieces of rock salt with his large hand and threw them into his mouth.

"I thought you were resting, my lady."

Ducas, who had been chewing the rock salt with a crunching sound, asked me quietly with an unreadable expression.

"I've taken a nap, so I can keep going until morning."

As I answered, Ducas slowly started drinking the fruit water. The knights who had been chatting noisily around me moved away respectfully, perhaps because Ducas, as the fort commander, had arrived.

"You don't need to worry, my lady."

Ducas's gray eyes met mine. The knights of East Elsenei Fort were responsible for protecting us from the monsters that had gathered at the salt lake to prey on the centipede crabs. Under Ducas's command, they worked in perfect coordination to slay the monsters, earning them the reputation of being the "Iron Wall of Protection." Indeed, the knights of East Elsenei Fort were all well-built and heavily armored. Just being looked down upon by Ducas, who exuded a sense of authority, made me feel a bit uneasy.

"Um, what do you mean?"

"His Excellency—"

My question and Ducas's response overlapped. Feeling a bit awkward, I gestured for Ducas to continue.

"His Excellency is safe. Chaos, Yanish, and Gylle are with him."

He paused, then finished the remaining fruit water in one gulp and wiped his mouth.

"I was asked by the previous commander to keep an eye on him, but I've always struggled with his unconventional actions. However—"

Ducas shifted his gaze from me to the salt lake, and I followed his gaze. On the west side of the salt lake, several lights had been launched to search for Lord Aristide, making that area as bright as daytime. Suddenly,

(What, what is that light?!)

A pillar of white light shot up from the water, piercing the night sky. Despite the considerable distance, it was so bright that I squinted, shielding my eyes with my palm. The knights who had been sitting down stood up, and everyone's attention was drawn to the pillar of light.

"His Excellency will do what needs to be done, regardless of the method."

Ducas's murmur reached my ears at the same time as the resonant stone of someone nearby echoed with Chaos's voice shouting, "Sir!" and Yanish's laughter. It seemed the white pillar of light was Lord Aristide's magic. Relieved to know he was safe, tears welled up in my eyes. The knights who had been cheering me up also seemed worried about Lord Aristide, and sighs of relief could be heard from all around.

"Well, I have one more task to attend to."

"Ah, be careful, Ducas."

I pinched the corners of my eyes and turned back to Ducas. Ducas removed his large shield, gave me a silent salute, and said,

"I hope you don't overexert yourself, Lady Melfiela. Chaos has told me that you are of the same kind, so please be careful."

"Um, what, um?!"

Ignoring my confusion, Ducas turned and left. It was surprising to learn that Ducas had been assigned to keep an eye on Lord Aristide. I wondered if he could tell me stories about Lord Aristide from his childhood if I asked.

As the pillar of light that had stretched to the sky disappeared, the knights returned to their posts, energized. It was clear that Lord Aristide was truly the core of Galbreath.

(Alright! I have to do my best too.)

After seeing Ducas off, I resolved to be the first to welcome Lord Aristide when he returned. He would likely put himself last, so I needed to keep a close eye on him with Chaos.

(By the way, how does Chaos describe me?)

I wasn't as reckless as Lord Aristide, and my strengths were different (I was weak and not skilled in swordsmanship or martial arts). The smile on Ducas's face when he called us "of the same kind" wasn't just my imagination, I hoped.

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After a long, long night, the sun rose, and the situation around the salt lake became visible. We had successfully buried over fifty furlongs of Ygulosh centipede crabs, completing the mission. There were no serious injuries, and Lord Aristide was safe. The knights mobilized to clean up, and Captain Blanche and Lillian were tending to the salt-covered equipment.

The rear support tents had calmed down, but the cooks were still busy. In front of me were the processed centipede crabs, and the cooks, including Reina, were serious.

"Since we have to bury the burned remains of the centipede crabs anyway, we'll dig some holes."

I took the knights up on their offer and had them dig several holes for steaming. They lined the holes with large stones and then filled them with smaller stones. This was where Lord Aristide came in.

"Lord Aristide, are you really sure you're okay to stay up?"

I pressed the point with Lord Aristide, who was standing next to me. He had agreed to heat the stones, but I was worried because he had been in battle and casting spells for a long time, and he had fallen into the salt lake, getting drenched from head to toe.

"I'm fine, Melfi."

"Do you have any chills?"

"I took a quick bath, and the saltiness was washed off. The soup warmed me from the inside."

I had thoroughly checked Lord Aristide for injuries during his bath, and there were no major wounds, so he was truly fine. After treating his minor injuries and changing into a spare knight's uniform, Lord Aristide seemed in high spirits. He kept touching my hair and unconsciously holding my hand. Since he had returned about an hour before dawn, he had been in this mood (he had been arguing with Chaos when I greeted him, but after taking care of him, he had calmed down).

"His Excellency, we're about to start cooking. Can you heat the stones until I say it's okay?"

The experienced cook from the cooking team was supervising the steaming. Lord Aristide stood in front of the holes lined with stones.

"Is the heat not a problem?"

"Please keep it at a level where the stones won't explode from overheating."

Lord Aristide chanted a spell, and red flames, not white, burned on the stones. While he said it was "difficult to adjust," the flames were warmer than usual, gradually heating the air. When the stones turned red, we moved on to the next step.

"It's okay now, His Excellency. Please heat the stones for the top layer. Everyone, quickly lay the Kazuro leaves."

Following the experienced cook's instructions, Lord Aristide heated the stones piled next to the holes (the knights were warming themselves by the stones, saying they were just right). Others laid the Kazuro leaves, which Zef and the others had collected, on the heated stones. I joined Reina in the line to transport the leaves, handing them to the cooks next to the holes. The Kazuro leaves contained a lot of water, so a lot of steam rose from the holes, making it quite hot.

"Ouch!"

"Don't burn yourself!"

"Alright, let's start putting in the centipede crabs. Put the big ones at the bottom and the small ones on top."

The processed centipede crabs were efficiently placed in the holes on top of the layered Kazuro leaves. After stacking them to a certain height, they were covered with more Kazuro leaves, and the heated stones were placed on top. Finally, the experienced cook arrived with a bucket of water from the salt lake.

"Then, we'll steam them slowly. Please leave the rest to us."

He had everyone step back and poured the water over the stones with a splash. Steam rose instantly, enveloping the area in a white mist.

(This is steaming!)

I was excited to see a cooking method I had never seen before in the Marshall Raid. It was a simple, primitive method that didn't use any cooking utensils, but the steaming and temperature control relied on the cook's skill. I spoke to Reina, who was watching the experienced cook's work.

"Steaming seems easy at first glance, but it looks very difficult."

"Yes, it relies on the cook's experience and intuition. Anyone can cook the food, but to bring out the best in the ingredients, it requires a lot of skill."

Reina's serious gaze impressed me. Her dedication to cooking was truly admirable. Although our fields were different, her passion for mastering her craft was palpable.

After a while, people who had stepped back to wait for a while gathered again. The smell of cooked Kazuro leaves mixed with the scent of centipede crabs, and the knights who had finished their work came over in droves. Lord Aristide, who had been in the tent for a strategy meeting with the fort commanders, also arrived with everyone, including Mullan, Zef, Ambry, Yanish, and Gylle.

"Hmm... It smells like the sea."

Chaos, who looked refreshed after cleaning up, walked over with a happy expression. It was rare to see Chaos's expression relaxed, as he usually had a serious face or, as Lord Aristide put it, "the usual frown."

"Lady Melfiela, is it almost ready?"

Chaos, like me, couldn't contain his excitement.

"They're about to taste it. They're going to open one of the smaller centipede crabs from the top."

"Tasting! I would like to participate too."

"By the way, I heard Chaos is a big fan of crabs."

"Yes! After hearing that they are even better than rainbow crabs, I've been looking forward to this moment."

Behind the smiling Chaos, Yanish arrived. He had a few scratches but looked very energetic.

"Hey, princess! I'm so hungry I could fall over. Is it ready yet?"

"Yes, they're about to check the cooking now. Ah, look!"

Everyone's attention was on the experienced cook. He inserted a long steel rod into a gap in the Kazuro leaves, pushed it in with force, and slowly pulled it out. At the end of the rod was a centipede crab, its shell turned red from the high heat.