On the night Rei returned to Gilm, the courtyard table at Marina's house was laden with dishes.
It was a celebration party for Rei and his group's return from the other world.
...Though it was called a party, it was nothing grandiose — more of a luxurious banquet.
"This soup has a nice tang to it."
Rei murmured this after trying a red soup that looked fiery at a glance.
It was not as spicy as it appeared. A tartness that belied its looks surprised the palate, but it did more than simply startle — one could savor the chicken flavor beneath it, and a generous helping of various vegetables was packed inside as well.
(Tom yum goong, was it? I'm pretty sure there was a sour and spicy soup. Thai or Taiwanese cuisine, I think it was from around there.)
What Rei knew was strictly book knowledge; he had never actually tasted tom yum goong.
In his hometown in the countryside of Tohoku, restaurants serving foreign cuisine were few and far between, and as far as Rei knew, none served tom yum goong.
Retort pouch versions were sold at supermarkets, and mail order was also an option, but Rei had never bothered with any of that.
So he simply assumed on his own that this sour and spicy — though the spiciness was considerably milder — soup was probably close in flavor to a dish called tom yum goong.
"Ah, that dish? It's from a new restaurant that opened while you were in the other world. ...Gilm has so many people gathered here now that there's far more variety in food than before."
"...I see."
That was enough to convince Rei.
Even before the Expansion Construction began, Gilm had drawn many people to it as the Kingdom of Mireana's sole frontier.
But naturally, only those with sufficient skill — or incredible luck — could safely reach Gilm.
Given that, it was inevitable that fewer people arrived back then compared to now, when crowds were pouring in for the Expansion Construction.
And with more people came not just adventurers but individuals with all manner of skills. Among them, it would be no surprise to find someone talented in the kitchen.
Of course, most of those now flocking to Gilm came seeking work for the Expansion Construction... but for one reason or another, some ended up in other lines of work instead — selling their specialty cooking at a food stall, or if fortune smiled upon them, even opening a restaurant.
Those who seized such fortune were surely only a tiny handful... but regardless, the soup that resembled tom yum goong — strictly based on Rei's secondhand knowledge — had likely been purchased from a shop opened by one such person.
"The seasoning is a bit unusual, isn't it? That's what makes it popular."
"Being summer might have something to do with it too."
Again, this was just Rei's impression, but when he thought of spicy food, curry came to mind — and the association between summer and curry wasn't particularly far-fetched.
As for sourness — considering that chilled Chinese noodles became a staple once summer rolled around... it was a somewhat forced connection, but Rei convinced himself nonetheless.
Beyond those dishes, fare both familiar and unfamiliar spread across the table as the party celebrating the group's return carried on.
"Nn."
Byune held out an Orc meat skewer to Vihera.
An ordinary skewer was made by simply piercing meat with a stick and grilling it.
Of course, that was just the basic method. It required a host of finer skills — which part of the meat to pierce, the eye to read the meat's condition as it grilled, the timing of seasoning...
Even with identical ingredients, the difference in flavor could be astonishing depending on the skill of whoever tended the fire.
Skewers were that profound a dish, yet the one Byune offered Vihera was a cut above.
Before skewering and grilling the meat, she had steamed it.
This left the Orc meat tender even after grilling, while still allowing one to enjoy the savory char on the surface.
"Fufu, thank you."
Vihera accepted the skewer from Byune and took a bite.
Byune's ability to communicate with others was by no means high.
She had always covered that shortcoming by acting alongside Vihera — but this time, Vihera had been away in the other world for an extended period.
Which meant Byune had naturally needed to manage the work on her own.
(She definitely struggled. That much is certain.)
Watching Byune cling to Vihera's side, Rei thought to himself earnestly.
For one thing, Byune only ever uttered the word "nn."
How she had managed to communicate with anyone in Vihera's absence was something Rei genuinely wondered about.
"So? Elena and Ara are going to the Treant Forest tomorrow too, right? Byune aside, what about you, Vihera? I can't take time off from the clinic because of work."
Once they had largely satisfied their hunger, Marina addressed everyone present.
Naturally, the matter of the fairies had been shared with Byune as well.
However, Byune — who was supposed to be keenly sensitive to making money — showed, for whatever reason, no interest in the fairies.
The reason was unclear. Rei would have preferred Byune to cooperate with the fairy search if possible, but her answer was that she would do patrol rounds through town instead.
...He hadn't gathered this through conversation — he understood it via Vihera's interpretation.
"That's right. Thinking about how I left Byune on her own all this time, I should do the town patrol with her. If Byune were willing, I could've joined the fairy search... but I'll yield this time."
With that, Vihera's gaze shifted to Elena.
Marina was busy with the clinic, and Vihera herself would handle patrols alongside Byune.
Which meant the one at Rei's side this time would be Elena.
...In practice, Ara would be coming with Elena, and Anastasia and Fana were highly likely to join as well.
For Anastasia, the Wisp beneath the Treant Forest — which had been under investigation right up until it connected to the other world — and the other world beyond it, where the Centaurs lived, both held the promise of satisfying her curiosity.
But the very existence of fairies was more than enough to capture Anastasia's interest on its own.
So where would her curiosity turn?
(Probably the fairies.)
The Wisp had been under investigation up until the connection to the other world was established.
The other world — while she hadn't fully satisfied her curiosity, she had still spent a considerable length of time there.
Compared to those two, she had only encountered fairies for the first time today.
Where among those three her interest would settle was obvious without a second thought.
"In that case, wouldn't Ielo be useful for the fairy search too, not just Set?"
At Marina's words, everyone's gaze turned to Ielo, who was eating alongside Set.
If this had been Set, it would have noticed the attention and looked up — but the still-small Ielo was too absorbed in its meal to realize it was being watched.
"Ielo can conduct a proper search when it puts its mind to it. I'll vouch for that."
Elena, who had been watching Ielo devour its food, eventually stated with conviction.
Ielo had in fact carried out reconnaissance-like tasks on several occasions before, so the words carried weight.
"Then tomorrow it's me, Set, Elena, Ara, and Ielo. ...Plus Anastasia and Fana, though that's not confirmed yet."
"Sounds like quite the crowd. But what about Elena and Ara? Are they going by horse?"
At Marina's question, Elena glanced at Set.
In the stables of Marina's house, Elena's horse was stabled.
To be precise, it was the horse that pulled Elena's Magic Item carriage on long journeys — naturally, a first-class animal.
It had spent a long time alongside Set, so it didn't fear him.
It didn't fear him, but... horses were by no means adept at navigating woods and forests.
Set, who was larger than any horse, ran through the Treant Forest without issue — but that was largely because Set was special in a variety of ways.
That said, when it came to what they would ride to travel through the Treant Forest, the fact remained that there was no obvious alternative to a horse.
(Ielo's... out of the question for now.)
In the future, Ielo would grow into a Black Dragon and could carry Elena on its back.
But that was strictly a distant prospect — not a matter of years but potentially decades, or even centuries depending on how things went.
The current Ielo was still small, and having someone ride its back was simply not an option.
What's more, even if one could ride Ielo, it flew through the sky, making it difficult to see the ground through the tree branches below.
"Then it's Set after all? ...It'll be both Elena and Ara, but that should be fine."
Until recently, carrying both Anastasia and Fana at the same time had been nothing unusual.
Surely, then, carrying Elena and Ara wouldn't be a problem either — or so Rei reasoned.
Of course, compared to Anastasia and Fana, Elena and Ara carried different weight.
Anastasia was an adult Elf, but her frame was slender, and Fana was small in stature.
By contrast, Elena possessed a very feminine, curvaceous figure, and Ara was similarly well-endowed.
And unlike Anastasia and Fana, who were both researchers, Elena and Ara were warriors as well.
Since muscle weighed more than fat, just because Set could carry Anastasia and Fana without trouble didn't necessarily mean the same would hold for Elena and Ara. It was a close call.
(Well, Set has enough raw strength to carry and fly with a bear, so two women shouldn't be an issue at all.)
Having reached that conclusion, Rei spoke up.
"Then Elena and Ara will ride Set with me. That works, right?"
"I have no objections, but... is it truly alright?"
"Yeah. Two people like Elena and Ara riding along with me won't be a problem. ...Set's ride is different from a horse's, though, so you might be a little thrown off at first. ...Right?"
Rei directed his gaze at Vihera, who had ridden Set with him in the other world.
Since Rei rode Set constantly, he never really noticed the difference, but Vihera — no stranger to horseback riding — might be able to put the distinction into words.
"That's right. I think it comes down to the difference in body structure, but the ride quality is definitely different. That said, riding an animal is riding an animal, so Elena and Ara might be a little unsure at first, but I think they'll adjust quickly. Besides... if it comes down to it, they can just lean back against Rei and let him handle everything."
"...In that case, I wouldn't mind, but wouldn't that be awkward for Ara?"
Elena implicitly made it clear that she would be the one riding behind Rei.
Ara, however, had no intention of competing with Elena for that spot, so she raised no objection.
"In that case, I'll ride behind Lady Elena, so as long as I follow her lead, there should be no problem."
And just like that, the matter was settled.
With tomorrow's arrangements out of the way, the conversation naturally turned to what had transpired in the other world...
"A Spirit Egg... How fascinating."
As one might expect, Marina — whose skill as a Spirit Mage surpassed even first-rate — was drawn to the Spirit Egg.
"Anastasia couldn't do anything with it, but Marina, you might be able to figure something out. ...That said, if you can't take time off from the clinic, you won't be able to go there until winter."
"But Centaurs are a nomadic people, aren't they? If so, once autumn arrives — let alone winter — isn't there a real chance they'll already be gone?"
"That's... well, true."
Marina had a point.
They could pack up and move from their current location at any time without it being the least bit surprising.
Now that the Dragonias issue was resolved, they might move as early as tomorrow.
"In that case, I'd like to make it there as soon as I possibly can... I want to bring Marina to the other world at least once."
With that thought in mind, the group continued to enjoy the party — discussing the Dragonias Queen and other topics as the night wore on.