A Promise in the Kitchen
“Alright, everyone! We need to hurry!”
With bowls of bean powder set before them, the chefs wear troubled expressions.
“U-um, what should we even do with this…”
“Just follow my instructions. Let’s start by grinding all of this up.”
Multiple mortars are immediately prepared, and the chefs carry the four bowls of bean powder to begin turning them into fine powder.
“No, Hero-nim… you want to eat this?”
Lily. You’re really clear about distinguishing work and rest, aren’t you? You could call me “oppa” a little more, you know?
“Yeah. Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s bean powder.”
“That’s why I brought the chefs, right?”
“You’re going to cook the powder? What are you talking about?”
“Hey. Why are you just standing there. Bring what I asked you to get earlier.”
“Aigoo, I just wanted to stay with oppa a little longer~”
Lily pulls my arm close and says.
“Even if you act spoiled, it won’t work. ‘Tsk.’ Lily leaves grumbling while pouting.
Lily returns with the lye water she fetched. Normally used for making soap, today it will be for the protein I need for my muscles.
The lye water is alkaline and will dissolve the proteins inside the bean powder. Then, after adding vinegar to neutralize it…
Only the protein will separate again. Praise the food science department. The most useful major in this other world.
“Well done.” She pats my back. “Ugh.” I have to give proper praise.
Lily mixes the lye water with the prepared salted radish water and tastes it.
The purple water turns a deep green with the addition of the lye water.
“Eh, what is this? How did you do that? You know magic too, oppa?”
“Um, this isn’t magic, it’s science at a kid’s level…”
“It’s ready. Distribute it to the chefs. Everyone! Pour this into the previously ground mixture and mix for three hours!”
“What? For three hours?”
“Yes, please.”
“What? No training today either.”
“Tomorrow will be fine. Tomorrow.”
“Tsk. Again with that. Then what do we do for three hours?”
“Well, let’s eat.”
“You’re not going to that place again? After eating that, your stomach hurt all the time.”
“Um, shall we make it ourselves today?”
“Hmph, hmph, hmph~” Our Lily is really happy. She’s even humming.
“You’re too happy, aren’t you?”
“We’re cooking with oppa? Of course I’m happy!”
“Yeah, I like that too. But I don’t know what to do.”
“Hey, but now that I think about it, I don’t know how to cook.”
“Then why did you say let’s eat it?”
“Sorry, sorry.”
“Well, I’ll help, so don’t worry~”
“So, what are we making?”
“Um, let’s try making roasted chicken and a simple vegetable stew.”
Clang. Lily splits the chicken in half with the cleaver. The chicken that half-opened by accident has its innards pulled out by Lily.
“You handle this really well…”
“I’ve been working here for a while. Why, did you think I couldn’t do this?”
“That’s not it, but you’re still a kid, aren’t you.”
“I’m not a kid! I know everything!”
But even so, for someone with almost forty years of mind, she’s still a kid.
“Stop teasing me, I’ve gutted this, so put it in the oven and come back. I’ll cut the vegetables.”
She puts the chicken, now filled with seasonings instead of its own innards, into the oven.
“Eh, put it in.”
“Yeah, oppa did well… Ah!”
“Hey, why are you doing that!”
“No, it’s nothing! Really okay!”
“Your hand is bleeding…”
Probably cut her hand while cutting vegetables and turning away when she saw me.
“Hey, if you’re distracted with the knife, what will you do! You could have gotten seriously hurt!”
“S-sorry.”
“Sigh. It’s not you who should apologize. I’m the one worried about you.”
Fortunately, it wasn’t deep. Just wash with clean water and it’ll be fine.
“Sit and rest. You must have been scared too. I’ll cut the vegetables. You can do that much.”
She sits Lily down and checks the vegetables. Onions, leeks, carrots, pumpkin—why so many?
Just chop them all like kimchi?
While starting to cut, something feels on her back.
“Sigh, oppa…”
Lily. Recently she showed lively, a bit tsundere, and straightforward to me,
but touching her, I realize. She’s too small and still fragile.
“What, what is it.”
“Just, I wanted to cook for oppa… I’m sorry. Instead, I wanted to hug you.”
“Who asked you to hug?”
“Oppa is good at that too, right?”
Can’t deny it.
“Yeah, now we’re going to cook, so loosen up. We need to cut.”
“Wait! Wait… there’s something to talk about.”
“I told you I came to this world as a refugee, right? Actually… it was really hard. Wandering around. And even after coming here… I had to keep hiding that I’m a beastman. People hate things that are different from themselves.”
“So, so I… kept waiting. The person who will defeat the Demon King. The Hero. And… oppa came. At first, the Hero was cool. But then, it was just oppa I liked. I liked the person named Kyle.”
“Oppa met me not long ago, but even in that short time, I knew oppa is a really good person. Maybe… maybe there is another good person like this. And we’ve become close, right?”
“So, what I’m saying is…”
She feels her back getting wet.
“Hey, you don’t mean…”
“No! Don’t look back, I haven’t finished what I have to say.”
“I like oppa. Sincerely. But… oppa is the Hero? There are many people waiting for oppa? Not just me. Many people need oppa more than me?”
“Frankly. I want to throw away the Hero thing for oppa and live somewhere with you, pressing close. As long as oppa is okay.”
“Lily…”
“I know! I know there are people who need oppa. That’s why I didn’t say that. I thought just watching over oppa from the side would be enough.”
“But there’s something. Suddenly it scares me. If I don’t grab oppa somehow, oppa might go to do the Hero’s work. Am I selfish?”
“Lily.”
“Don’t look…”
“Lily. I won’t leave you here and go.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
I wipe Lily’s tears with my hand and hug her.
“I’ll protect you…”
I didn’t mean to say the promise. Do I like Lily? Like how Lily likes me?
Actually, I don’t know.
Maybe, because of Floris’s betrayal, I couldn’t give my feelings to anyone?
Unknown.
But promises are promises.
Lily, I’ll be by your side.
“The broth is ready, vegetables are stir-fried, now just add water and boil.”
“What? The stew is easier than I thought? I should remember this.”
“Why, will you make it for me later?”
“Maybe one day.”
“Maybe. I’ll make it that way.”
“Hug me. Like before.”
“Come here.”
Wrap her arms around Lily and hug tightly.
“There… Hero-nim?”
“Don’t call me Hero-nim.”
“No, Hero-nim, it’s been a few hours already?”
Eh?
I snap out of it and see one of the chefs who was assigned the task earlier.
“Huuu…”
“Hey, come out, there’s someone!”
“Huh?”
Feeling her face turn red, Lily separates from me.
“Ah, I’ll go now. Lily, let’s eat the rice when we come back.”
“Ah, uh-huh.”
“Hey, my arms are going to fall off from stirring…”
The beans and lye water I stirred for three hours have become like congee.
“Hard work. Now cover with a cloth and strain the water here.”
The jar is full of cloudy water.
“Perfect. We’ll use this water. Lily, can you get some vinegar?”
“I’m still not sure what this is…”
“You’ll know soon. Pour a little vinegar little by little.”
Lily pours the vinegar, I stir, and things start floating up white.
“Eh, what’s appearing?”
“Yeah, filter this again, wash with water, and dry it.”
“We’ll do that… we’ll give it to you by tomorrow.”
“Thank you. Ah, if you grind the powder too, that would be better.”
“Yes, then we’ll do that.”
“Thank you. Lily, let’s go.”
“Done. Completely.”
“Um, yeah.”
I completely forgot I put the chicken in the oven.
“Maybe this is good. It’s showing respect for the chicken. Like makeup or something.”
“What are you saying…”
“Hey, by responsibility, isn’t it your fault? You did the gutting and forgot, right.”
“What… Ah, don’t talk about that, it’s embarrassing!”
“Why, because it’s sincere?”
“So, it’s embarrassing!”
“Then, won’t you answer?”
“Answer? It’s scary…”
“If you don’t like it, fine.”
“No, I have to hear it.”
“Then listen carefully. I’m saying this seriously. I like you too.”
Lily looks like she’s about to make a sound.
“Wait, wait. But that… I don’t know if it’s liking you as a woman.”
Lily’s expression turns into a pout.
“No, I’m not saying I don’t like you. I’m not saying I don’t like you. It’s just… how do I say this.
I had a big wound from something like this in the past. So I’m still scared. Giving my heart to someone.”
“So… I need time. For this wound to heal. Actually, I don’t know when it will heal. So, sorry, but this is the only way I can say it. Can you wait for me?”
Lily wiping her eyes with her hand.
“Ah, what a pain, confusing people. This isn’t a joke.”
“Sorry. But it’s not a joke.”
“I have to wait. Even if oppa says not to, I’ll wait. No matter how long it takes.”
“Thank you.”
“And, I won’t give you a wound. Even if I get wounded. I won’t give you a wound.”
“That too… thank you.”
“Ah, enough. Let’s eat.”
“Eh? Isn’t it all burned?”
“No, there’s still stew left. Have that too. I’ll reheat it, so wait a moment.”
Thanks.
Really.