Watching the other three—including Loki—turn their heads in unison, Riveria deliberately paused.
Only after the other three began to look a little anxious did she curl her lips into a satisfied smile.
"It was the Killing Emperor, Valetta..."
When Gareth and Loki both widened their eyes and Finn furrowed his brow, Riveria added, "At the time, Noah had a slight advantage and left Valetta so badly wounded that she had to flee."
That was too much for Loki to sit still through. With a move of astonishing difficulty, she sprang up from the sofa.
"Hey! You never told me about this before! What happened?"
Faced with her own god's accusation, Riveria pushed back with a hundred times the force!
"Because before I could tell you in private, you dragged that child into the bedroom like a demon!"
Looking at the beautiful, delicate face of the elf, usually clear and spirited but now radiating a demon's menace, Loki-chan's divine aura crumpled in layers right where she stood.
"W-well, I was just afraid the kid would run off!"
Feeling her god's pleading gaze, Finn sighed.
"Come on, I think we should go meet our new recruit. I heard he volunteered to take charge of dinner tonight, so let's go and enjoy his cooking."
Finn and the others had only been joking around at first, but when they reached the floor below, they noticed something was off.
Although the dining hall was the largest room in Twilight Manor, it still felt cramped when more than forty people crowded inside.
Usually, the dining hall would be incredibly noisy at this hour—you could hear it even from across the tower.
But today, Finn and the others couldn't hear any commotion.
No, there was noise, but hardly anyone was talking.
What was going on?
As the saying went, if the members weren't talking, they had to be up to something!
Just as Finn and Riveria exchanged puzzled looks, they both suddenly caught the rich aroma filling the air. Their eyes widened.
"That smell? Hahaha, looks like we're in for a treat!"
As soon as he stepped into the dining hall, Finn saw the members—who would normally be making a racket at this hour—all sitting in their seats, gulping down food with blissful expressions. They hadn't even noticed the four of them enter.
If there hadn't been no scent of alcohol in the air, he might have thought the members had been drinking Soma Familia's divine wine.
Fortunately, a few members hadn't become completely lost in the food. They spotted Finn and the others and hurriedly stood up.
"C-Captain! Miss Riveria, Mr. Gareth!"
Well, they hadn't greeted Loki. It showed just how little respect the members had for their god.
Seeing the members flushed from eating, and smelling the aroma drifting through the air, Finn felt his long-dormant appetite stir. He couldn't help swallowing.
"Mm, go on. Don't mind us."
Finn swept his gaze around the dining hall before spotting the silver-haired boy by the kitchen.
That must be him.
Meanwhile, Noah was looking at the scene in the dining hall, lost in thought.
That's strange. I didn't put anything in the food.
In this life, Noah had no interest in power or wealth. If he had to name a hobby, it would be food.
But he wasn't a king who could live in a palace and have people wait on him all day. Where was he supposed to get a personal chef? He'd have to cook for himself.
Over time, he'd honed his cooking skills.
But the problem was, Noah was certain his cooking had been good before, but never this good.
As he thought back over the cooking process, he suddenly noticed something unusual.
Unless they were professional chefs, no matter how often people cooked, they'd still end up thinking "close enough" when handling ingredients, judging the heat, or measuring seasonings. Noah had been no different.
But while cooking just now, he seemed to have gained an innate grasp of the finer details. It was as if the moment he started, he simply knew how to do everything perfectly.
That feeling... It was just like his swordsmanship!
A vague intuition made Noah recall his skill, Ode to Spring.
Mm, no doubt about it!
If I can use this intuition to learn magic, forge weapons, or even fight...
Wow, does that mean I can become a genius at anything I do?!
Falna, you're amazing!
As Noah imagined the future, he noticed movement in his peripheral vision. He turned and met the gaze of a blond Hobbit.
From what he'd learned in the city, Noah knew this was the captain of Loki Familia—and his future captain.
"You're Noah, right? I'm Finn Deimne, captain of Loki Familia. It's nice to meet you. I look forward to working with you."
Seeing Finn's warm, sunny smile, Noah bowed politely.
"I'm Noah Cipher. I look forward to working with you!"
At first glance, Noah was sure Finn was the "reliable captain" he'd been looking for.
Finally, I can switch my brain off!
What Noah didn't know was that Finn had been just as excited to see him.
It wasn't a skill, but Finn's right thumb would ache faintly whenever he sensed danger was coming, giving him a strong intuition.
This time, it wasn't a premonition of something ominous, but at first glance, Finn was certain that the boy in front of him was the same kind of person as him—a stand-in!
They were both the type who were good at manipulating tactics and had hearts as black as they came!
Well, in that case, could I train him as a commander and give myself a chance to relax?
It's been a long time since I've had a proper fight myself!
Chapter 22: Veteran
"Whoooooo! Come on, you lot! Drink up!"
After Riveria and the others took their seats, Loki stepped onto the table, holding a wine cup in one hand, and let out a roar like a beastman.
"Yeah!!!"
"Drink!"
More than forty members raised their cups of wine or water and roared so loudly it nearly lifted the roof.
It was probably only at times like this that the members went along so enthusiastically with their irreverent god.
After handing the remaining food-serving duties to a catgirl with long black hair and several elves, Noah carried his own meal to a corner of the dining hall.
As for introductions?
Considering he'd stopped more than ten times to greet people in fewer than ten meters, it seemed there was no need.
Noah spooned some meat soup into his mouth and couldn't help closing his eyes in enjoyment.
Mm! As expected of me!
For adventurers who risked their lives every day, their most important companions were the weapons in their hands and the food in their stomachs. Most adventurers spent the money they earned risking their lives on those two things.
As one of the two greatest familias in the city, Loki Familia naturally didn't skimp on meals. All their ingredients came from Demeter Familia, a major agricultural faction based outside the city.
Demeter Familia often worked with Loki Familia to obtain special ingredients from the Dungeon. They used divine knowledge and their Familia's techniques to improve and cultivate them, making the ingredients far tastier than ordinary farm produce.
Even without Demeter Familia intending to, they were still heavily squeezing outside grain out of Orario's market.
Maybe it was a case of "killing you has nothing to do with me"?
The only problem was that, whether by coincidence or because of their Familia's preferences, all the ingredients Demeter Familia cultivated were sweet.
But for Noah, who already had a sweet tooth, this wasn't a problem at all. If anything, it was a real advantage.
Of course, Noah liked sweets, but that didn't mean he made every dish sweet. That would be a complete waste of good ingredients!
Every ingredient had its own delicious qualities. Noah just needed to bring them out—that was the true essence of cooking!
After downing a cup of wine, the members picked up their spoons again.
Having already eaten enough to fill their stomachs earlier, none of the members were completely lost in the food this time. Exclamations and praise began to ring out around the dining hall.
"Mm! This bread! It's so fragrant and crispy, and dipped in this meat gravy... Mmm!"
"Vegetable buns? I've never seen these before... They're completely vegetarian? But this is the first time I've thought something tastes better than meat!"
"This meat soup is so delicious. It tastes lighter than usual, but it's so fragrant!"
"Wow! With cooking like this alone, finding this new guy was a huge win for us! Who knew Loki could actually do something right for once!"
"Hey, you just said something rude about Loki! Get over here!"
Hearing the members' teasing, Loki widened her eyes. With her mouth full of steak, she could only make an indistinct protest.
In Orario, male adventurers who could cook were rare.
Actually, adventurers who could cook at all were rare.
Otherwise, the entire western side of Orario wouldn't have been taken up by taverns and restaurants.
As Noah enjoyed his cooking, several people approached him.
"Hey, kid, that lemon meat pie was delicious! This old man ate two or three of them!"
The speaker was an elderly human man. His face was covered in wrinkles, but his back was still straight and strong. Combined with his combat clothes, which resembled a kimono from the Far East, he had the sharp air of a swordsman.
"I'm Noel Charlson."
Although he didn't know who they were, Noah still stood up and shook the old man's hand.
"Finishing a dish is a compliment to the chef. Thank you very much."
Behind the old man stood an Amazoness who looked to be around forty. She still held a large piece of meat on the bone, tearing at it with wild gusto.
"Ah, kid! Your cooking might be the best in all of Orario. Even if you stop being an adventurer someday, you could make a fine chef!"
Noah accepted the compliment quite calmly and nodded.
"I think so too. When it comes to cooking, I don't think I lose to anyone!"
"Oh? You're that confident, kid?"
"Actually, I know I'm not especially good at much. But there are three things I'm pretty confident about."
The old man and the Amazoness exchanged puzzled glances.
"What three things?"
"I'm handsome, my swordsmanship is strong, and my cooking is excellent!"
After a brief silence, Noel, the Amazoness, and a dwarf man standing nearby all burst into laughter. Their laughter even drowned out the noise of the dining hall for a moment.
Loki and the others turned curious gazes toward them, watching the exchange between the veteran and the newcomer.
"This kid's really something! Loki found herself a good recruit this time! Looks like things won't be boring from now on."
"If I were twenty years younger, I'd definitely fall for you!"
"I'm honored, but I'm afraid you're not my type!"
Before you continue