Previously: In order to win Zenos’s heart, Liz kept the demi-humans away.
[St. Fabius Calendar, Year 304, Sixth Month, 14th Day (Night)]
By the time it was completely dark, Lily was in the kitchen preparing dinner.
That was when Liz appeared.
“It smells wonderful. Do you always do the cooking, Lily-san?”
“Zenos often cooks as well, but I handle it when things get busy.”
“Say, could you let me help?”
“Oh, you’re already helping with the cleaning. It’s really fine.”
Lily replied, feeling humbled.
“No, no, I was completely useless during the house repairs, so please let me do at least this.”
“But…”
Liz smiled at the hesitating elven girl and said.
“Then how about we each make two dishes? That way we’ll both only have to do half the work. I feel bad just imposing on you, so please.”
“…O-Okay.”
“Wonderful, thank you.”
Liz tied on one of Lily’s aprons and stood ready in the kitchen.
Humming a tune, she skillfully chopped vegetables, filleted a fish, sautéed meat, and even whipped up a homemade sauce.
“A-Amazing…”
Beside her, Lily’s eyes went wide, her kitchen knife still in hand.
Grilled Vegetables with Cheese.
A Pastry-wrapped Bake.
Cream Sauce Pasta with an abundance of shrimp.
Steak from the thigh of a One-horned Ox.
Translator’s note
Ikkaku-ushi (一角牛) literally means “one-horned cow/ox.”
In the blink of an eye, four beautifully plated dishes were ready.
“Um, Liz-san. You said two dishes each…”
“Ah, I’m sorry, I got a little carried away and made too much.”
Liz stuck her tongue out playfully and carried the plates to the dining room.
“But it would be a shame to let it go to waste, so let’s eat. Zenos-chan, dinner’s ready!”
Zenos, emerging from the clinic room, saw the table and exclaimed.
“Whoa, what’s with this incredible feast?”
“Oh, please, I just threw it together with what we had. Come, Lily-san.”
“Um, I haven’t even finished a single dish…”
Lily peeked out from the kitchen, looking apologetic.
“Oh, really…? Well, it’d be a shame to let it get cold, so why don’t we eat first?”
“O-Okay.”
Lily sat down at the table and took a bite of the food before her.
“I-It’s delicious…!”
“I’m so glad.”
Looking relieved, Liz turned her gaze to Zenos.
“Zenos-chan, I still can’t remember anything after the orphanage, but I’ve started to recall all sorts of things from when we were there.”
“I see. That’s great.”
“Like how we’d get so hungry we’d sneak past the adults’ watch to go gather nuts and berries in the mountains.”
“Yeah, that brings back memories.”
“Do you remember our secret base in the cave? There was a spring there, we used to bathe in it sometimes, didn’t we?”
“That’s right. The orphanage didn’t exactly have baths.”
“Marcus-chan nearly drowned once.”
“That was when he tried to grab what he thought was a rare shell at the bottom. It ended up just being a rock. That’s so him.”
“And Velitora-chan hated water, so she’d never get in.”
“She always had her weird hangups.”
“…”
While they were lost in their blossoming conversation about the past, Lily ate her food in silence.
Before long, the night deepened, and all the plates were empty.
As Lily carried the plates to the kitchen, she heard their conversation coming from the dining room.
“That was amazing, Liz-nee. Thank you.”
“Not at all. If you’re happy with this, I’ll cook for you every day.”
“Eh…”
In the kitchen, Lily’s shoulders slumped and she looked down.
The one dish she had started making sat on the edge of the counter, now completely cold.
“…”
Silently, she picked up the dish and tilted it toward the trash bin.
It was Zenos who stopped her hand.
“Wait a minute. Isn’t that the simmered dish you always make, Lily?”
“Oh, y-yes. I was still making it, but now…”
“Whoa, hold on. It’s a waste to throw away food like that.”
“B-But, it’s already gotten cold.”
“What’s a little cold? Back in the orphanage, rotten bread was a grand feast.”
Zenos took the dish from Lily’s hands and shoveled the food into his mouth.
“Mmm, delicious.”
“It’s not, especially compared to what Liz-san made…”
“I’ll admit, I was surprised by how good Liz-nee’s cooking was. But your food is comforting, Lily. Maybe it’s because it’s a taste I’m so used to.”
“Zenos…”
“Hm? Why do you look like you’re about to cry?”
“N-No, I’m not!”
Lily vigorously wiped her face and said with a smile.
“Then, I’ll make you a hot one next time, Zenos.”
Watching this scene from behind a wall, Liz bit her thumbnail in frustration.
“…Why? It was a perfect plan…”
Furthermore, a translucent woman was peering down at the scene from the second floor.
“I see now. First, she seeks to break her rival’s spirit by flaunting her overwhelming domestic skills. But she does not stop there. She then launches into nostalgic tales that only the two of them share, a sacred ground her rival cannot tread, thus excluding her while simultaneously demonstrating the strength of their bond. A classic method for asserting dominance, and she is most thorough in its execution.”
Camilla continued, impressed.
“However, though the time they have spent together is short, Lily is by no means inferior when it comes to the strength of their bond. For they have shared in hardship and happiness ever since the founding of this very clinic. Moreover, she is surprisingly formidable. Claiming the seat of the first wife will not be an easy task, O childhood friend. Kukuku…”
After a smirk, Camilla narrowed her eyes slightly.
“Be that as it may, the childhood friend’s mischief seems to be going a bit too far. It is not my policy to meddle in the affairs of the living, but… hmm, perhaps for the duration of her stay, I shall cast a small curse upon her to have nightmares of a woman’s severed head.”
After muttering something that sounded like an incantation, Camilla stroked her shapely chin.
“Still, I sense an almost obsessive drive from this childhood friend. I wonder if she has some desperate reason… In any case, she is not the sort to give up after this. Now, I wonder what trump card she will play next.”
And when that time comes, what choice will the dark healer at the center of this conflict of women ultimately make?
Stay tuned… an eerie voice echoed from the second floor.
A/N: That night, Liz was plagued by the most awful nightmares.