Chapter split into two(2) pages

Kaldia’s Budding Spring – Part Nine

The snow snake has a unique and smooth texture. The closest thing it can be compared to would maybe be the gray layer between the salmon’s body and skin? Though the former has almost no smell and the taste isn’t as strong… I almost never ate salmon though.

“Mmm, tasty….” Mefuri unintentionally murmured as she felt the soft texture.

Immediately after, I added a few herbs to the snake soup to change its taste, their citric feeling was quite refreshing… She took her time savoring it.

Vanita had a troubled expression as he looked back and forth between me and Mefuri while holding his bowl, though he stopped staggering with Mefuri’s words, and took a sip of the liquid.

“Y-yummy…!” He proclaimed after a small wait.

He murmured with an absurd amount of amazement. Could you please avoid being so expressive about it when talking about good food?
The snow snake is an excellent ingredient that can be much tastier than a rabbit if cooked properly. Well, it’s not a very common meal, so it’s understandable.

“Mefuri, could you share the herbs?” I extended my hand to receive them.

Vanita watched while Mefuri gave them after a moment of staggering, I wanted him to taste the snake by itself, so it would be meaningless to have added the herbs from the start.

“T-thank you.” Vanita said after I pa.s.sed them to him.

As he received the herbs, Vanita kept on looking back and forth between me and Mefuri. After some hesitation, he tried talking to her.

“… Back when you grew up, was it common to eat snakes in the place you lived in?”

Mefuri seemed to be panicking at his attempt to start a conversation, she directed me a pleading gaze, but I couldn’t help her, as I didn’t know where she came from in the first place.

Considering the dark color of her skin, it is unknown rather she really is from Rindarl or not.
When I brought her to live here, I heard about what kind of life she went through while growing up, but I don’t know any details.
What I know is essentially that she was brought up as a spy, learned magic whenever possible, and had the knowledge of how to escape through mountains and forests drilled into her head.

When I shrugged my shoulders to her plea for help, Mefuri resigned herself to it, and bit by bit started putting an answer together.

“I don’t know if other people ate it, but whenever I got hungry, snake was the first thing I went after… It was easier to catch than other types of meat.”

That is certainly true, it’s the same reason I ate snakes in the first place.

“I started eating other types of meat recently, but… I think snake is the tastiest.”

“… Is that so?”

Vanita nodded awkwardly. Well, it’s hard to feel at ease when hearing about Mefuri’s past.