The Witch's Appetite
The heat between the noblewoman and the two black-haired women showed no signs of cooling. Isabella climbed on top of me like she was mounting a horse, rolling her hips, while Paula, ever the loyal knight, helped excite me to assist her mistress. When Isabella collapsed from exhaustion, Paula spread her legs and kept the momentum going, and once Isabella recovered, she crawled back into my arms. There were moments when Isabella and I tormented Paula together, and Paula even demonstrated the proxy masturbation she performed to sate Isabella's desires.
“We’ll be going now.”
“Nngh…”
“Ah… hah… hnngh…”
After quite the intense session, I walked out of Isabella’s room completely unscathed—aside from being drenched in their fluids and covered in kiss marks.
“Good work.”
Eos greeted me calmly as I stepped outside.
“You didn’t sleep.”
“I’m not tired. We didn’t do anything.”
As Eos said, the witch’s spell had controlled our bodies, but no one had been seriously injured. After all, the witch’s target had only ever been me.
“What happened to Vera?”
I’d seen Vera arguing with her sister outside the witch’s villa. I was curious how it ended.
“Her sister took her back to Kidichi Territory.”
“So she really did sneak out.”
“Yes.”
Even if she was just an apprentice knight whose growth had stopped, she was still a valuable asset to the territory. Running off on her own would cause problems for the noble family. I figured her sister would personally re-educate her.
“She’ll be surprised by Vera’s skills.”
“I think so too.”
Eos and I headed toward the room with our luggage.
—Click… creak…
“Why are you only coming back now?”
When I opened the door, Syucali glared at me accusingly.
“…Mother.”
From the way she spoke, it was obvious Myu was possessing Syucali’s body.
“Master.”
“It’s fine.”
I stopped Eos from raising her mana.
“You went along with the plan I made.”
“I’m grateful.”
“Not only that, but I lost my villa, all the offerings I’d gathered, and even the precious man I’d been keeping.”
Syucali walked right up to me and glared.
“So the price for that…!”
—Grrrowl…
“…”
“…”
The hungry stomach alarm echoing through the serious atmosphere made everyone freeze.
“Let’s eat first.”
“…R-right. Even an immortal feels hunger.”
Myu rubbed her stomach before she could start listing complaints.
“I’ll cook for you myself.”
“Huh? You’re a chef?”
“It’s just a small skill.”
Together with Eos and Myu possessing Syucali’s body, I headed to the inn’s kitchen. Since it was late at night, the staff had already gone home, so I freely used whatever ingredients and tools I could find.
—Fwoosh…!
—Bubble bubble…
Late at night when hunger strikes—nobody dislikes a late-night snack.
“What’s that curly thing?”
“Giant hog intestines.”
“Ugh… You’re eating that?”
Myu frowned as she stared at the food.
“Yes. I quite like it.”
“Ugh… Black-haired people really are strange.”
Even while giving me a thoroughly disgusted look, she seemed torn between her hunger and her revulsion. Eos looked much the same, eyeing the intestines with clear wariness.
“I’ll have it ready soon.”
I rinsed the giant hog intestines thoroughly with flour and salt, then blanched them to remove impurities. While they cooked, I prepared and sliced vegetables. Since we didn’t have cabbage, onions, green onions, or garlic, I used whatever similar vegetables were available and made noodles from the flour I’d set aside.
“I wonder if it’ll actually taste good.”
Myu watched me cook while munching on an apple like a judge at a cooking contest.
Next, I made the seasoning sauce. For a late-night meal, spiciness, sweetness, and saltiness were essential. I took out herbs similar to chili peppers, ground the dried ones into powder, and squeezed juice from fruit stacked beside Syucali to create sweetness, simmering it down in a pan.
“You’re using a lot of salt.”
Salt was hard to come by in this world and quite expensive, so I usually used it sparingly. But since this was someone else’s kitchen, I used it generously. I ground dried mushrooms with the salt to add both saltiness and umami.
After mixing the spicy, sweet, and salty elements together, the sauce was complete.
“Sniff sniff… Now it’s starting to smell good.”
I placed the blanched intestines in the pan, seared them, and splashed on some liquor to remove any remaining odor. Once the fat rendered out, I cut the intestines into bite-sized pieces, added the sauce, and stir-fried everything over high heat. When the sauce coated everything evenly and gave it a nice sheen, I added the vegetables in order and cooked them just until they wilted.
“Whoa… gulp…”
Finally, I took out some fragrant herbs similar to perilla leaves, crushed them by hand to release their aroma, tore them up, and used them as a finishing touch for the vegetable gopchang.
“Please try it.”
I’d originally planned to serve it as a simple grilled dish, but since both of them seemed put off by the intestines, I’d added seasoning and vegetables to make it more approachable. Wiping my hands on a dry cloth, I cleaned up the cooking tools while watching them.
“Ugh… It smells good, but…”
“…I’ll try it.”
Still, Eos, who had some trust in my cooking, went first.
“Nom… chew… chew…”
Eos’s wary expression didn’t last. Even as she chewed, she kept adding more stir-fried vegetables and gopchang to her mouth.
“W-what… It’s good?”
Eos just nodded once and kept eating.
—Grrrowl…
“Ugh… I can’t believe I’m eating this.”
Drawn in by the smell and Eos’s reaction, Myu stabbed a piece of gopchang with her fork, hesitated, then put it in her mouth.
“Ugh… nom… chew… ugh… Huh? It’s chewy. And savory, with some spice… Ah… it’s gone…”
Seeing her mouth empty, Myu immediately stabbed another piece and ate it.
“Ugh… ugh~”
By the second bite, she was smiling without realizing it. It suited her taste. Well, it was hard for it not to—rich, stimulating seasoning paired with the late hour.
“This absolutely needs alcohol!”
“I’ll pour you a glass.”
—Glug glug…
Once her cup was filled, Myu downed it in one go.
“Nom! Gulp… gulp… Hah…!”
Myu stared at the gopchang dish with sparkling eyes. It wasn’t much different from the way she used to look at me.
“Goodness, how can it be this savory? I thought it was just tough, smelly cooking material, but boiling it makes all the difference? It’s actually pretty good.”
“I’m glad you like it. Speaking of which—”
“Hm?”
“Why don’t you come out of Syucali’s body and eat? It’ll taste even better.”
“Oh, right! It’ll definitely taste better that way! I need to feel it myself!”
Myu hurriedly left Syucali’s body and devoured the gopchang.
“Ugh… Where am I…”
“You’re awake.”
“Ah… Kang Seo-ja…”
“Pull yourself together… It’s a late-night snack.”
“Ah… I was hungry… Thank you.”
Though Syucali was still half-asleep, she didn’t refuse the meal I’d prepared. The three women proceeded to demolish the stir-fried gopchang like they might get dragged away at any moment.
“Ugh… It’s all good, but something’s missing…”
Myu’s gaze turned toward the potatoes piled in the corner.
“I prepared noodles, just in case.”
“Noodles?”
I added the wheat noodles I’d prepared earlier into the same pan I’d used for the seasoned gopchang and stir-fried them again. After eating protein and vegetables, I figured carbohydrates would be the perfect finish.
“It’s stir-fried noodles.”
“H-how is this possible…”
Staring at the glossy stir-fried noodles glistening with gopchang oil, Myu swallowed again. I quickly added a side of vegetable salad made with mountain liquor, then stir-fried more noodles under Eos’s gaze.
“Nom… slurp… nom nom… nom nom…! Hooop!!”
“Slurp… As expected of Master.”
“Kang Seo-ja’s cooking is so lovely~”
Myu didn’t stop until she’d licked my cooking clean off the plate. Eos had already finished and was washing dishes nearby, while Syucali had passed out again after Myu forced more drinks on her.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“This is the first time I’ve had cooking like this in seven hundred years.”
Myu’s gaze sparkled so brightly it was almost burdensome.
“Could you consider this partial payment for what I owe?”
“Hm? Ah~ Hehehe.”
Myu playfully patted my butt like I was being cute.
“One time isn’t enough~”
“I’ll prepare it whenever you visit.”
“Then I’ll let it slide. You’re the first chef to satisfy my palate. Ah~ The same goes for your nighttime services~”
Myu clung to me even more possessively, rubbing her cheek against mine, then climbed onto my lap.
“Pet me.”
“Yes.”
I stroked Myu’s head as she sat on me.
“Is it all right if I stay here?”
“I’ve set up a barrier with magic, so the common folk won’t notice.”
“There are other witches besides people.”
“Staying in Kron Village for a few days won’t be a problem.”
“That means another witch is watching Mother.”
“Well… the greatest threat to a witch is another witch.”
“Just like humans.”
“Hehe… Exactly.”
Even a powerful witch like her was under surveillance. While I understood that other witches with royal authority would be wary of her, it still seemed excessive.
“You’re a witch, yet you’re acting just like humans.”
Myu showed clear hostility, clearly displeased that witches with human-like power existed.
“You don’t like it.”
“No. Since when did witches start meddling in the human world like this? Those young ones have completely lost their minds.”
I’d thought witches were all close to each other, but it was clear there was friction between them. With alcohol in her system, Myu began venting her pent-up frustrations to me—the immortal witches, their mutual wariness, and her own discontent.
‘If I play this right…’
“This will require caution.”
“Exactly. Those arrogant girls… I need to put them in their place.”
“Do you have a plan in mind?”
“I’m preparing something, but…”
“If you tell me what it is, I’ll help.”
“Huh? You will?”
“Yes.”
I needed Myu. She trusted me more than the other witches and likely possessed information and influence to keep them in check. I couldn’t let this connection break. Just as Isabella had held onto me tightly, I needed to grasp this witch’s lifeline and nurture it carefully.
—Grin…
“That sounds promising.”
Myu smiled wickedly.