"Hoh."
At the sight of the beef Rei produced, the rest of the group let out a murmur of appreciation.
Just looking at the cut was enough to tell it was high-quality meat.
Byune, who was every bit as greedy as Rei when it came to food, didn't vocalize like the others—but her eyes were locked onto the meat with an unwavering stare.
It must have looked that appealing to her.
There was no doubt the others found it equally mouthwatering.
"Marina, could you cook this meat for us?"
"Yes, I don't mind, but..."
Marina, who would normally accept Rei's requests without hesitation, gave a somewhat hesitant nod.
Noticing her demeanor, Rei asked, "What's wrong?"
"No, it's just... looking at the quality of this meat, I thought it might be better to have a more skilled cook prepare it."
Marina was certainly the best cook among them.
...That said, the others were not particularly skilled at cooking to begin with, so while Marina's ability stood out within the group, the unspoken qualifier "for an amateur" always preceded any assessment of her skills.
Marina understood this herself, which was likely why she wondered whether she should be the one to cook such premium ingredients.
Even so, it wasn't unheard of for amateurs to sometimes produce better dishes than professionals.
Professional cooks earned money by making food, after all. Amateurs, on the other hand, mostly cooked as a hobby.
There were plenty who cooked without the slightest regard for cost, and in that sense, it wasn't strange for them to turn out better food than a professional.
Of course, using expensive ingredients with inadequate technique would only ruin them. It was only when someone possessed enough skill to be called semi-professional that they could surpass a working cook.
Among those who ran food stalls as a hobby rather than a business, such people did exist. Naturally, using expensive ingredients meant operating at a loss—but precisely because it was a hobby, that was apparently acceptable.
Since Marina's skill was sufficient to qualify as semi-professional, Rei felt confident entrusting the meat to her.
"Whatever you cook for us will be delicious. Though I think this kind of high-quality meat is best grilled simply with salt and spices."
"You're right. But with meat this good, getting the grilling right will be the challenge. Honestly, I'm not sure I can do it justice. ...Still want to try?"
When Marina asked, everyone present nodded in agreement.
Ultimately, if they wanted to eat this beef today—right now, in fact—someone had to cook it. And naturally, if it was going to be cooked, they wanted to leave it to the most capable person.
Regarded by the expectant gazes around her, Marina thought for a moment... and then nodded.
"Alright. I'll go cook this meat, so wait a little. That said, there isn't enough time to make anything elaborate right now, so it'll be a simple dish like Rei suggested. Is that fine?"
No one had any objection, and all nodded.
Marina watched them with a satisfied expression.
Given that it was already somewhat late for dinner, if anyone had told her to make something more involved rather than simply grilling it, Marina would have looked at them with a full smile—a smile where her mouth curved upward but her eyes didn't smile at all.
"Then, Rei, bring out more meat. This much won't be nearly enough for everyone, you know?"
"Got it. It's still in block form, though. Will that be alright?"
No matter how skilled the craftsmen at the Laurie Dissection Shop were, the meat remained in blocks.
In the first place, meat was used differently depending on the dish—thick cuts grilled like steak, bite-sized pieces for stews, thin slices stir-fried with other ingredients, and so on. Given that, the craftsmen couldn't just decide the cut on their own.
That was why it was handed over as a block, leaving the recipient to cut it as needed.
"No problem. We can manage that much here, so go ahead and bring it out."
Prompted by Marina, Rei took out a block of meat. It was from the thigh area—optimal for enjoying high-quality red meat.
"Hmm... This is quite..."
Looking at the block, Marina murmured in admiration. Even through the eyes of someone who had lived as long as she had, the meat was clearly of exceptional quality.
Having been invited to noble estates, including Daskar's, on many occasions, Marina had naturally seen a great many dishes. That was why she could recognize that the meat Rei produced was a truly outstanding ingredient.
"How is it?"
"No problems. And I don't think cutting it will be an issue, either."
With that, Marina casually lifted the block of meat. It was quite heavy, but she didn't seem to feel its weight at all—a testament to her considerable physical ability.
Marina was a Spirit Mage, but she also used the bow as her weapon. Because of that, her arm strength was clearly above that of a typical mage.
...Or perhaps it had something to do with being the Shrine Maiden of the World Tree.
The Shrine Maiden of the World Tree, huh. If that's the case, would she know anything about the Dark World Tree? Though if she found out it was named the Dark World Tree, Marina would probably get angry.
Watching Marina carry the block of meat back inside—her back exposed by the party dress—Rei pondered this.
How much the World Tree meant to Marina, Rei couldn't know. She had left her homeland where the World Tree stood and now lived here in Gilm, and it had been quite a long time since she became an adventurer. In that sense, even as the Shrine Maiden of the World Tree, there was a possibility she didn't hold strong feelings toward the World Tree itself.
But considering the time he had visited Marina's homeland before, he had the feeling she did harbor strong feelings for it despite everything.
The Guild should already be analyzing the magic stones and materials from the Dark World Tree, so there's a chance they'll uncover various things. I suppose it's fine to get the details after we receive their results. ...Though if Marina put her mind to it, she could probably extract as much information as she wanted from the Guild.
Worker would certainly separate work from private matters, but among the others, many had been helped by Marina at some point. Such people would likely find it hard to refuse if she asked. Or perhaps they would simply be swayed by her charm.
"Rei, I heard the town was in quite an uproar over the Festival. How was it?"
"Hm? Ah, right. Like Marina said earlier, the sudden announcement has a lot of people confused, but there are just as many who are looking forward to it."
The brawl he had encountered on the way home may have been related to exactly that.
Rei thought so as he answered Elena.
"Hmm, I see. ...Ah, come to think of it, I apologize for this morning."
At the abrupt change of topic, Rei couldn't immediately grasp what she was referring to. But after a moment's thought, he understood—she must be talking about those who had come seeking to meet him.
"Waking up to find that many people in the house was a surprise, but I escaped to the courtyard right away. I've already heard about it from Ara, so don't worry about it."
If the Nobles had forced their way into the courtyard, Rei might have voiced his displeasure. However, the Nobles who had come to see Elena—more precisely, seeking to meet Rei—had not crossed that line.
Being permitted into Marina's house already guaranteed a certain level of character. At the same time, they likely understood that causing trouble here would disgrace Elena. Thanks to that, Rei was spared the annoyance.
"So, what happened to that lot? They don't seem to be here anymore."
From what he could see from the courtyard, it didn't appear any Nobles who had come to see Elena were still inside.
If so, they had surely gone home.
Of course, Rei had woken up before noon. It was now around eight in the evening—more than eight hours since he had gotten up. Given that, the Nobles couldn't have stayed in the house indefinitely.
Had they done so, it would no longer be a matter of meeting Rei—they would be regarded as an unpleasant presence by Elena herself. For the Nobles, such behavior was absolutely unacceptable.
If the person they had come to see had been someone other than Elena—Ara, for instance—it wouldn't have been strange for some among them to refuse to leave until they met Rei. But the person they came to see was Elena.
She bore the alias Princess General and was the daughter of Duke Kerebel's House, which led the Noble's Faction. Naturally, they would not want to do anything to displease such a person.
"Indeed. Once they confirmed Rei was gone, most of them went home."
"I see. Then it doesn't sound like it was too noisy. ...But coming to see me—does that mean they'll come back tomorrow? That'd be a hassle in its own right."
Even as he said this, if Rei had woken up at his usual time, it wouldn't have been much of a problem. The Nobles who came to meet Elena, naturally, did not have that as their only task.
They had to scrutinize the intelligence gathered in Gilm to send back to their family estates. Beyond that, it was not uncommon for Nobles to host parties at night—inviting other Nobles to gather information or maintain connections—or, less elaborately, hold dinner gatherings.
Moreover, with the Festival now announced, all manner of information was flying about. It would be no surprise if a large number of Nobles were trying to gather intelligence, and as a result, staying up quite late.
Rei generally woke early in the morning, and it wasn't unusual for him to conduct combat training with Elena or Vihera. By the time the Nobles arrived to meet Elena, Rei was already gone from the house. Today he had woken up late due to lingering fatigue from the previous day, but that was a rare occurrence.
"Given the Festival as well, they will still come, but the numbers won't be as large as today."
"I see. So the closer we get to the Festival, the fewer people will come?"
"That's likely. Though once the Festival ends, the numbers will surge again."
"...Figured."
Rei muttered with an expression that said it was a hassle.
At the Festival, the corpse of the Crystal Dragon that Rei had slain would be displayed—an S-Rank Monster, and a new species of Dragon at that.
It would be announced that the one who had slain such a Dragon inhabiting the Forest of Magic was a Dragon Slayer, and that he had become an A-Rank Adventurer.
Many of those already in Gilm believed Rei had passed the Promotion Exam. Only a very small number—those who had bet on him failing—refused to acknowledge it.
Under such circumstances, once the Crystal Dragon's corpse and the Dragon Slayer title became known, the number of people wanting to meet Rei would undoubtedly increase. Incomparable to this morning, in fact.
It goes without saying, but this is going to be quite troublesome. The Alchemists will definitely come seeking materials, too.
For the Alchemists who performed magical processing on Treant Forest wood, materials from a new species of Dragon were something they would want so badly they could taste it. Given that, it was certain to become a troublesome affair.
...The one saving grace was that Rei no longer had to transport lumber felled in the Treant Forest himself.
Thinking such thoughts, he waited for the meat dish to be ready.