The Journey Begins in DanMachi

Riveria paused deliberately, watching as the other three, including Loki, turned their heads in unison.

Only after she saw a flicker of anxiety on their faces did she allow a satisfied smile to curl the corners of her lips.

"It was the Killing Emperor, Valetta..."

After Gareth and Loki widened their eyes and Finn furrowed his brows, Riveria added another sentence.

"Noah had the upper hand at the time, forcing Valetta to flee while covered in wounds."

At this, Loki could no longer sit still, leaping off the sofa with a move of extreme difficulty.

"Hey! You didn't mention this before! What the hell is going on?"

Facing the accusations of her own deity, Riveria pressed back with a hundredfold intensity!

"Because before I could tell you in private, you dragged that child into the bedroom like a demon!"

Looking at the exquisite face of the elf, usually so elegant and heroic, now radiating the aura of a demon, Loki froze in place, her status as a deity crumbling layer by layer.

"Th-this, I was just worried the kid would run away, wasn't I?"

Sensing the desperate plea for help from her deity, Finn sighed.

"Alright, I think we should go meet the newcomer. I heard he volunteered to take charge of dinner tonight, so let's go and properly taste his handiwork."

Finn and the others had originally intended it as a joke, but upon arriving downstairs, they discovered something unusual.

Although the dining hall was the most spacious room in Twilight Manor, it still felt quite crowded after accommodating over forty people at once.

Under normal circumstances, the dining hall at this hour would be exceptionally noisy, audible even from across the tower.

However, today, Finn and the others heard no such clamor.

No, that is to say, there was noise, but no one was speaking.

What is this?

As the saying goes, when members are silent, they must be up to no good!

Just as Finn and Riveria exchanged puzzled glances, both suddenly caught a rich, fragrant aroma permeating the air, and their eyes widened involuntarily.

"This scent? Haha, it seems we are in for a treat!"

Upon entering the dining hall, Finn saw the members who would usually be rowdy at this hour sitting in their seats, gulping down food with expressions of bliss, so engrossed they didn't even notice the four of them walk in.

If not for the lack of the scent of alcohol in the air, he might have thought the members had consumed the divine wine of the Soma Familia.

Fortunately, a few members were not completely lost to the food, and upon seeing the four of them, they quickly stood up.

"Ca-Captain! Miss Riveria, Mr. Gareth!"

Well, they didn't greet Loki, which shows just how little respect this deity commands within the Familia.

Seeing the members eating until their faces were flushed, combined with the aroma drifting through the air, Finn felt his own appetite stirred for the first time in a long while, and he couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Hmm, carry on, don't mind us."

Scanning the dining hall, Finn finally spotted the silver-haired youth in front of the kitchen.

Yes, that must be him.

Meanwhile, Noah was also looking at the scene in the dining hall, lost in thought.

Strange, I didn't drug the food.

Noah had never been interested in power or wealth in his life; if he had to name a hobby, it would be food.

But he wasn't a king living in a palace served by others, so how could he have a chef on hand? He had to cook for himself.

Over time, he had honed his culinary skills.

But the problem was, Noah was certain that while his cooking had been good before, it had never reached this level of effect.

Recalling the cooking process just now, Noah suddenly sensed something unusual.

Unless one is a professional chef, most people—no matter how much they cook—tend to settle for "good enough" when it comes to ingredient preparation, heat control, and seasoning, and Noah was no exception.

Yet, just now, while cooking, he seemed to have a natural grasp of the details; it was as if the moment he started, he understood exactly how to achieve the best result.

That feeling... it was just like his swordsmanship!

An inexplicable intuition made Noah recall his skill, [Ode to Spring].

Yes, that must be it!

If this intuition could be applied to learning magic, forging weapons, or even in combat...

Wow, doesn't that mean I could become a genius at anything I do?!

The Falna is truly amazing!

As Noah daydreamed about the future, he noticed movement in his field of vision and turned his head to meet the gaze of a blonde Pallum.

Through the information he had gathered in the city, Noah knew this was the captain of the Loki Familia, his future leader.

"You must be Noah, right? I am Finn Deimne, captain of the Loki Familia. It is a pleasure to meet you; I look forward to working with you."

Noah looked at Finn, whose face was brimming with a bright, gentle smile, and took the initiative to bow.

"I am Noah Cipher, please take care of me!"

Just at first glance, Noah was certain that this Finn was the 'reliable captain' he was looking for.

Now he could finally relax his mind!

What Noah didn't know was that Finn was also very impressed the moment he saw Noah.

Although it wasn't a skill, Finn's right thumb would ache faintly when he sensed danger, giving him a strong intuition.

Now, although it wasn't a premonition of ill fortune, Finn was certain at first glance that the boy before him was the same type of... person as him!

Both were people who were good at playing with tactics and had dirty minds!

Well, if that's the case, could he be trained as a commander so he could relax a bit?

He himself hadn't had a good, hearty fight in a long time!

22 Old Soldier

"Ooooh!! My lads!! Let's drink to our heart's content!"

After Riveria and the others were seated, Loki stomped on the table, a wine glass in one hand, and let out a beast-like roar.

"Ooh!!"

"Drink!!"

More than forty party members raised their glasses of wine or water, their roars deafening, almost shaking the roof off.

Perhaps only at this moment would the Familia members cater to their unreliable god so enthusiastically.

After handing over the remaining food distribution work to a cat-eared woman with long black hair draped over her shoulders and a few elves, Noah took his food to a corner of the cafeteria.

As for self-introductions?

Considering that Noah had stopped to greet people more than ten times in less than ten meters, it seemed unnecessary.

Scooping a spoonful of meat broth into his mouth, Noah couldn't help but close his eyes slightly in enjoyment.

Hmm! As expected of me!

For adventurers who faced life and death daily, their most important companions were naturally the weapons in their hands and the food they ate. Most of the money earned by adventurers through life-and-death struggles was spent on these two things.

As one of the two major Familias in the city, Loki Familia would naturally not be stingy with their food. All ingredients were sent by the agricultural major faction 'Demeter' Familia, located outside the city.

Demeter Familia often cooperated with Loki Familia to obtain special ingredients from the Dungeon. They improved and cultivated them through divine knowledge and Familia technology, making the ingredients far more delicious than those grown by ordinary farmers.

Even if Demeter Familia did not have subjective intentions, they were still greatly suppressing the external food supply in Orario's market.

This was probably a case of, "I killed you, and it had nothing to do with you, right?"

The only problem was that, perhaps due to the Familia's preferences, the ingredients cultivated by Demeter Familia were all very sweet.

However, for Noah, who already had a sweet tooth, this was not a problem at all; rather, it was a significant advantage.

Of course, although Noah liked sweets, it didn't mean he would make all dishes sweet; that would be a complete waste of good ingredients!

Every ingredient had its own unique deliciousness, and Noah only needed to bring it out; this was the true essence of the culinary path!

After a cup of wine, when the Familia members picked up their spoons again.

After having their hunger somewhat sated, this time no Familia member was completely lost in their own world, and various exclamations and praises echoed throughout the cafeteria.

"Mmm! This bread! It's so fragrant and crispy, dipped in this gravy, sob sob sob!"

"Vegetable buns? I've never seen them before... Are these purely vegetarian? But for the first time, I find them tastier than meat!"

"This meat soup is too delicious! I thought it was lighter than usual, but it's so fragrant!"

"Wow! Just for this culinary skill, we've hit the jackpot by recruiting this newcomer! What the heck, Loki can actually do something useful sometimes!"

"Hey, what are you mumbling about? Get out here!"

The teasing and mockery from the Familia members made the god Loki's eyes widen, and he let out an unintelligible protest with his mouth full of meat.

In Orario, male adventurers who could cook were a rare species.

Rather, adventurers who could cook were rare species in general.

Otherwise, the west side of Orario wouldn't be occupied by a whole street of taverns and restaurants.

As Noah ate and enjoyed his own cooking, a few people approached.

"Yo, kid, that lemon meat pie was truly delicious. This old man ate two or three of them!"

The newcomer was an old human man. Although his face was covered in wrinkles, his back was still straight and firm. Coupled with his battle attire that resembled a traditional Japanese kimono, he exuded the sharpness of a swordsman.

"I am Noel Charlson."

Although he didn't know their identities, Noah still stood up and shook hands with the elderly man leading the group.

"Finishing the meal is a compliment to the chef. Thank you very much."

Behind the old man was an Amazon who looked about forty years old. She still held a large piece of bone-in meat in her hand, tearing at it with a wild motion.

"Ah, kid! Your cooking is probably unmatched in Orario. Even if you stop being an adventurer, being a chef wouldn't be bad!"

Noah accepted this compliment calmly.

"I thought as much. When it comes to culinary arts, I don't believe I'd lose to anyone!"

"Oh my, kid, you're that confident?"

"Quite the contrary. I know I don't have much talent, but I am fairly confident in three things."

The elderly man and the Amazon exchanged a glance, confusion etched onto their faces.

"And those three things are?"

"My looks are handsome, my swordsmanship is strong, and my cooking is superb!"

After a brief silence, Noel, the Amazon, and a dwarf man nearby burst into raucous laughter, their voices momentarily drowning out the din of the cafeteria.

Loki also cast a curious gaze their way, watching the exchange between the veteran of the familia and the newcomer.

"This kid is interesting, indeed! Did Loki find a decent recruit this time? It seems things won't be boring from now on."

"If I were twenty years younger, I would definitely have fallen for you!"

"I'm deeply touched, but I'm afraid you aren't quite my type!"