Chapter 110 : Chapter 110
Chapter 110 : The Cabin Father & Son (5)
Making the cabin owner's worry needless, the dinner prepared with the child's skill boasted plausible appearance and smell.
Everyone sitting around the table reached for the food at the delicious smell stimulating their noses.
"It's delicious!"
Ria, who took a bite of the steaming hot bread, shouted with a flushed face.
I agreed with her words.
The freshly baked bread was a bit tough on the outside, but the inside was savory and soft.
Especially compared to the last few days of eating hard, stale bread melted in thin soup boiled with beef jerky.
"It's been a while since we had such elaborately prepared food."
Jing also added praise, meaning he agreed with Ria's words.
Just for this time, the temple guide also focused on eating food without being grumpy.
Of course, it might just be that he was busy securing his share while wary of Ratel's intake speed, but anyway.
The brat, who was observing our reactions with a slightly nervous face, picked up bread and started eating only after seeing us take the food with satisfied faces.
And he glanced sideways at his father who was savoring the trout dish he grilled.
"See. I told you I could do it well."
The brat whispered to his father who was eating trout silently.
"Hmph, don't be conceited. There's still a fishy smell remaining, what."
While complaining, half of the trout on the plate had already disappeared.
The brat also glanced at that and smiled.
"Geez. It's better to leave this much than pouring spices to get rid of the fishy smell like Father does. And the fishy smell might just be coming from Father's philtrum...... Ack!"
Seeing the table shake, I could tell the brat suffered retaliation under the table.
Thanks to that, the guide's plate, who was eating diligently, shook.
For a guide, it seemed the long-suppressed irritation was on the verge of exploding.
His gaze headed to the father and son who were still bickering.
"Ah, why are you hitting me! Everyone says it's delicious but only Father......."
"It tastes bad."
The one who cut off the grumbling brat's words was not the guide but an unexpected person, Ratel.
The guy showed inconsistency in words and actions despite eating diligently as if burying his face in the plate.
"T-Tastes bad?"
The brat asked, unable to hide his gaze heading unknowingly to Ratel's empty bowl.
"It smells fishy."
At Ratel's plain, rude, and unadult-like evaluation, the brat's face crumpled.
"Ah, no, of course it might smell a bit fishy but......."
As his son was visibly disheartened, the flustered father looked at Ratel.
"Ahem, still, originally fish dishes cannot completely eliminate the fishy smell. Besides, a certain amount of fishy smell adds flavor......."
"Yours tastes bad too."
Ratel simply took away his vitality as well.
"Y-Yes?"
The flustered man stammered back to Ratel wondering if he heard wrong, but the guy's answer didn't change.
"The fish taste doesn't even come out because it's covered by the taste of grass."
Ratel said while munching on the father's dish.
"Above all, both are noisy so it's annoying."
At the following harsh evaluation from Ratel, the father and son shut their mouths.
It was the start of a quiet and peaceful but awkward meal.
Although Ria comforted them in between saying both were delicious, the two strikingly similar father and son couldn't easily escape the shock.
***
"Really, really not going?"
Ria asked me while packing a fishing rod on the boat with a very excited voice.
"It's the fifth time I'm saying this already, but I'm not going."
At my fifth refusal, Ria looked at me with a regretful face.
"But it's fishing."
She tried to draw my interest for the last time, but the category of fishing wasn't tempting enough to go out to the river risking danger.
"You two go. I'll just be watching from here."
Perhaps really giving up at my final refusal, Ria sighed.
"Jing and Ratel also said they aren't in the mood for fishing. We can receive the blessing at the temple tomorrow, I don't know why everyone is in such a bad mood. Or shall I ask Ratel one last time?"
"No!"
The brat, who rejected Ria's proposal instead of me, scratched his head awkwardly as my and Ria's gazes gathered.
"No, I mean, well......."
"You're scared of Ratel?"
As Ria finished the unspoken words teasingly, the child's face turned red.
"......It is a little like that."
The guy, who opened and closed his mouth a few times, eventually confessed.
At that honest answer, Ria laughed out loud.
"Even if his face is a bit scary, he's not that scary of a person. You'll find out soon too?"
At Ria's words, the cabin brat shook his head as if it was nonsense.
"Everyone is leaving tomorrow anyway. I don't really want to know until then either."
Seeing him at this firm, it seemed he was quite scared of Ratel.
"You can't tell that mister about this!"
Seeing him add urgently, it was definitely so.
Ria burst into laughter again at the title 'mister'.
This time, the corners of my mouth went up unknowingly too.
As expected, I wasn't the only one who thought that guy looked old for his age.
"Even if he looks like that, there probably isn't much age difference with you? He's only 17 years old."
At my answer, the brat's eyes grew wide as if they would pop out.
"Don't lie! Then there's only a two-year difference with me, but he's that big?!"
"Who knows. In 2 years, you might become big like him too."
If my memory is correct, Ratel wasn't that big until 6 years ago either.
If this guy also eats well and grows well from now on, he will grow unrecognizable.
Of course, he would have to move his residence to somewhere other than this cabin.
"I really wish that happened. Even if I grow just as big as hyung, it would be good."
The guy muttered unknowingly.
Belatedly, I realized the 'hyung' he mentioned referred to me.
Perhaps surprised that he called me hyung himself, the brat shut his mouth tightly this time too.
"Th..., I'm sorry. Without realizing......."
He looked at my reaction, but I wasn't particularly angry.
There's someone called mister, so what.
"Just go and catch lots of fish already. You must have seen that mister eating earlier. One or two won't be enough."
As I changed the subject, the cabin brat grinned and nodded.
"Don't worry. Fish are caught very well here. About ten is no problem."
Even ten would probably be insufficient.
While I was contemplating whether to advise the guy who still hadn't grasped Ratel's appetite, Ria beside me tilted her head as if puzzled.
"There are so many fish but not a single animal around. Is it because it's winter?"
As Ria muttered looking around the quiet forest, the child shook his head.
"No, other seasons are similar to now. It's not completely absent, but not many either. Sometimes things like rabbits or deer come out."
At the child's answer, Ria's eyes grew wide.
"It's a forest but no animals? So you mainly catch fish to eat?"
At Ria's question, the child shook his head again.
"Usually we catch mountain animals too. But when welcoming guests from Lucha, we are told to serve fish unconditionally."
"Who on earth?"
As Ria asked while helping the child pulling up the heavy rope with a groan, the brat bowed and answered.
"That is of course the temple people."
The child who answered calmly got on the boat and grabbed the oars as if it was nothing.
As if no further explanation was needed, and there was no reason to question it anymore.
***
A large shadow fell over me, who was watching the two leave after boasting they would make us full for dinner tonight too.
I could tell who it was without checking.
"What are you here for, mister."
"Can you communicate with fish too?"
Raising my head to look at the protagonist's bastard spouting the second most novel nonsense I heard today, I had to contemplate for a moment.
Perhaps I made a stupid mistake like El.
Actually, maybe there was another person named Ratel, and there was some mistake in the middle.
No, maybe Amica's priests took the wrong person.
"What are you thinking?"
Perhaps feeling an unpleasant vibe from my gaze looking at him silently, he frowned.
"If you could communicate with fish, you wouldn't make those two suffer on such a cold day."
I answered by gesturing with my eyes to the brat and Ria who went out to the river on a boat far away.
On the boat breaking through the river with thin ice, the two were moving here and there holding fishing rods, excited about something.
Actually, this guy played a big role in those two launching a boat saying they would fish on this cold day.
Considering he shocked the father and son saying it tasted bad, he emptied the food completely, and thanks to that, the father and son had to serve even the salted fish as a meal.
Even what was left for dinner ingredients.
Jing, feeling sorry for no reason, said they could make do with the beef jerky he brought, but this time the guide caused trouble.
He started insisting he wouldn't eat meat until arrival.
In this case, it seemed most reasonable for Ratel to go fishing, but I didn't welcome that.
Because of the premonition that letting him go close to the river wasn't a good choice.
Because his sudden actions always brought troublesome things along.
"Seeing you can have a conversation with a horse, there's nothing saying you can't with fish."
Besides, there was also the problem that the option of reading other people's moods wasn't inputted in his head.
"How does a person have a conversation with a horse?"
"In Lucha, and when we arrived here too. Normally humans don't commune with horses like that."
Let's say in Lucha it was so, but if it's a while ago, is he talking about when I talked briefly while unloading luggage?
Feeling great fear and a bit of creepiness at his thorough surveillance, I pretended not to know and tilted the fishing rod to the river again.
"It's neither conversation nor communion. Just talking to it. Conversation requires mutual communication."
Actually, I couldn't understand things like what they said.
I just received a feeling that they seemed to understand to some extent when I spoke.
"Is that really all?"
"That's all."
He looked at me suspiciously, but I feigned ignorance.
Anyway, the only people with this ability in the world were me and El.
Above all, if Ratel was certain I was hiding an ability, my head wouldn't be attached properly on my neck right now.
"You lie whenever you open your mouth, so I can't trust you."
Perhaps having no sharp way to reveal I was hiding something, even racking his brain, this time he muttered without beating around the bush.
"Whatever I do, there's nothing that will harm you. I'm a person who wants to see you win."
This time at least, it was sincere.
Because the more obstacles laid on his path, my life here was also a gravel field.
So hurry up and become strong to defeat the Imperial Family or whatever, you young bastard.
"So hurry up and become strong to defeat the Imperial Family, you young bastard."
As much as he showed his honest feelings, I also confessed the most sincere truth of my inner thoughts.
Though Ratel didn't seem to like it very much.
It was the moment his face crumpled.
"Kyaaaack!!!"
"Uuuaaaaaack!!!"
Two unwelcome screams announced the end of this conversation.
While I quickly got up and took my eyes off for a moment, I looked at the two who fell into a situation screaming desperately.
Although it wasn't visible well because it was far, one thing seemed certain.
That the cause was something Ria fished up.