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Volume 9 Chapter 4 Part 5

In the meantime, we start preparing dinner. It’s gonna be pork cutlet tonight.

I have Vesta cut the meat and make breadcrumbs.

「I have finished making breadcrumbs.」

「Thank you. Things got easier thanks to Vesta’s help. I am glad that Vesta came to our home.」

「It is me who should be glad that I came here. What are you going to make?」

I had spare time since Vesta was helping me, so I decided to make crepe during that time.

I mix milk, wheat flour, sugar and eggs. I didn’t have any prior plans of making crepes, but I thought that something soft will be nice with the little milk we have left.

「It is a little test. Just stay there and watch.」

「Okay.」

I pour the mixture into the frying pan, and it spreads all over it. Since this is just a test, then making only a single one should be good enough. I also used the whole dough. It flows on the frying pan like syrup.

Was it too diluted? Perhaps it would be better if there was not as much milk in it? Still, I can’t say it is a failure yet.

Since the frying pan is well heated, it will harden soon.

I think the crepes that they were making at the stalls in the Imperial City had a somewhat similar feeling to them. It is probably good enough for something made the first time.

After a while, when the crepe has hardened enough, I fold it.

Ah, it is a failure, indeed.

When I tried to fold the crepe, it had burned inside the frying pan. It didn’t come off well, for it had crumpled. Should I have been more careful? Or should I have taken it out of the frying pan before folding it?

Well, it is fine since today was just a test run for it. I cut the crepe into five equal pieces and put the first piece in my mouth.

Oh, it tastes just like crepe. It looks like I managed to make a normal crepe after all.

Baking isobe-yaki was still impossible for me, but I was able to make a regular crepe. The softness, however, is probably not the same as the one I remember from back home.

「It is something I made as a test. Each of you gets to eat one piece of it.」

I offer it to the four of them.

「If it is something made by Master, I will definitely enjoy it.」

Roxanne takes a piece first. It seems like the order is still as important to her as ever.

Because I cut it roughly, however, the size seems to be different despite my best effort to make it as equal as possible, but now I see that it is hard to cut a single crepe into five equal pieces.

「Because this one was a test, it will be the real deal next time.」

It’s troublesome, though, as I have raised a hurdle for me because of their anticipation.

「This is Amazing. As expected of Master.」

「It’s soft, sweet and delicious.」

「Amazing, desu.」

「It’s delicious. I didn’t know there was something in this world that could be so fluffy, so puffy and so delicious at the same time.」

Sherry, Miria and Vesta take a piece of the crepe in order and eat it. All four of them seem to be rejoicing after tasting it, even though I probably made just a normal crepe without anything fancy to it.

Vesta especially seemed to like it.

「You never ate something like this before, Vesta?」

「Yes. I never imagined a day would ever come when I could eat delicious food. Thank you very much for the food everyday. No matter how much appreciation and gratitude I have toward Master, it will not be enough.」

The stimulus apparently was too strong for Vesta, but she still has some pork cutlet left to try, so I wonder if she’s going to be okay?

Vesta was deeply impressed with the pork cutlet but it probably wasn’t at the same level as crepe. She could have the same deep impression but I couldn’t feel it since it was the same. I could have missed that feeling because she had the same level of gratitude for both of the dishes that I prepared.

I’ll ask her to express her gratitude through actions next time.

Vesta has been assertive from the very beginning, but lately, she has gradually become more mellow in addition to that. It is definitely a good tendency.

On the next morning, I went to the Quratar Merchants Guild to receive the Kobold Skill Crystal from Luke. Since it is a spare and it has no use for now, we enter the Labyrinth after I got back home. Immediately after entering, we arrive at the Boss Room of the twentieth floor of Haruba’s Labyrinth.

The exploration advanced smoothly. After smoke gathered, two monsters appeared. Appearing before us is a Hat Bat and the Floor Boss, Pat Bat. I immediately rush to the small fry to get rid of it, but then I saw Vesta facing the Hat Bat from the front.

She’s huge.

「Why are you blocking my way?」 — is what I thought but then I remembered that I was the one who told her to do that during the Floor Boss battles. I totally forgot about it. I’m in a dilemma, though, whether I should be grateful to her for it or not.

Hat Bat flies around briskly, so it is difficult to hit it from the side when someone else is keeping it company from the front. If both of us attacked it from the front, we would probably be able to finish it off quickly. And because I have Durandal, I will recover the damage with 「HP Absorption」.

Well, it can’t be helped. If I issued instructions after the monster came out, it would be too late. But because I won’t be attacked if I hit from the side, it will be easy.

So I mustn’t complain.

The Hat Bat attacks Vesta. The monster is switching between left and right, eluding Vesta’s swords.

I approach it, making a big detour from the side. I somehow manage to reach the Hat Bat before it fixes its posture in the air, and unleash 「Slash」. The monster attacks Vesta again, it eludes again and moves opposite of me to the left.

It was an unpleasant move. I’m sure it was not intentional. Or was that its natural movement, perhaps? I chase it in a hurry, but I wasn’t able to arrive in time to perform 「Slash」.

Next, I attack one step ahead. I strike the place, where Vesta warded it off to, with Durandal.

Oops! The sound was good this time. Maybe this one was a critical hit? I land another blow on the Hat Bat that was trying to regain its balance. The monster attacks Vesta. I hit the place, where Vesta repelled it to, with Durandal and unleash another 「Slash」.

The Hat Bat drops down. Is it finally dead?

I was danced around by the Hat Bat. It wasted a lot of time. Without taking a breather, I join in the encirclement of the Floor Boss.

As for the Pat Bat, Roxanne warded off all its attacks using her shield without moving around too much. She took care of it. As expected of Roxanne.

「There was a big blow midway. As expected of Master.」

After knocking the Floor Boss down, Roxanne compliments me.

「Thank you.」

「As expected, desu.」

「Mine seems to be a characteristic of Dragon Knight job, but you are amazing, being able to do the same, master.」
And just like that, Roxanne coaxed everyone. Actually, two critical strikes hit the Pat Bat.

Vesta landed a critical hit on it as well. But why didn’t Miria manage to inflict petrifaction upon it?

「Sherry, can abnormal statuses be inflicted upon the Floor Boss?」

「There are some reports of such a thing being possible. The chance of that actually occurring is quite low, however.」

「Is that so?」

I ask the sole person who Roxanne didn’t manage to coax, Sherry, and the answer to the question satisfactorily returns to me, just like I was expecting of her.

Is it really that difficult for the Floor Boss to receive an abnormal status? It is to be expected since it is the Floor Boss, I guess. Or rather, isn’t it the situation where you are supposed to use 「Abnormal Status Resistance Down」?

Currently, since I have 「Sixth Job」 selected. I’m using both Gambler and Swordsman Jobs simultaneously. That must be why critical hit got procced.