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506 -「…Somehow, I Feel Like I’ve Lost.」

Unfortunately, the kitchen barely had any ingredients that could be used for actual cooking. Most of the food stored in the cathedral was prepackaged, ready-to-eat meals from the Holy Vuelzarus Empire. These were the type that only required tearing open the packaging and heating them. There was a miso soup-like or perhaps pork soup-like item that could be transferred to a pot and heated, but even that was just a freeze-dried concoction that needed to be rehydrated in water before warming. It seemed difficult to use for real cooking.

Well, I suppose I could just take out some of the ingredients and use them. But then the question becomes, what do I do with the rest once I’ve taken out the ingredients I need?

Throwing the rest away would be a waste. The waste monster will come after me if I do that. 1

「Oh, surprisingly good. Boss, this is delish.」

「Hmm… it’s simple but quite tasty.」

It seemed like the improvised fried rice I made was a hit with Tina and Konoha. As Konoha said, it’s a simple and rough dish, but considering the circumstances, I think I did a pretty good job.

As mentioned earlier, there weren’t any proper ingredients in the kitchen. But after some searching, I managed to find a package of salty sausages—the ones from the Grakkan Empire rations—along with some spices and something that resembled soy sauce imported from the Holy Vuelzarus Empire. On top of that, the kitchen equipment was decent, and there were large frying pans and various cooking utensils available.

So, I finely chopped the faux sausages, fried them in some sort of cooking oil of unknown origin, added pre-packaged rice to the mix, stir-fried it, and then drizzled a bit of the soy sauce over it. Once the soy sauce began to give off a fragrant aroma, I quickly sprinkled some spices and cobbled together this improvised fried rice.

It’s a slapdash dish, but perhaps thanks to the oil and spices, it turned out rather well, if I do say so myself.

「You really have developed some weird skills, huh? Sigh, this would go great with some alcohol.」

「Hmm, delicious. Instant meals aren’t bad, but it feels like I’m finally eating a proper dish after a long time.」

Elma and Ranshin were nibbling on the fried rice while sipping their drinks. They looked like old men at a ramen shop in the entertainment district, enjoying a beer with fried rice as a side dish.

「Hiro-sama’s cooking is quite popular.」

「Well, the usual meals here are nice, but they have a refined, delicate flavor that can feel a little thin sometimes. I think sometimes people crave something a bit rougher, junkier, and with a heavier flavor.」

As for me, while watching my crew and the Shrine staff devour the large batch of fried rice I made, I was enjoying the standard meal of the Shrine, prepared by Mimi, Kugi, and Moegi. The menu consisted of a hearty soup, similar to pork soup, and something resembling a rolled omelet. Apparently, this rolled omelet was also a freeze-dried dish. I’m not sure how they manage that, but it’s impressive technology.

「…Somehow, I feel like I’ve lost.」

「My Lord is incredibly talented, so this outcome was expected.」

Moegi was sulking a little, making a face like a Tibetan fox as she slowly brought an onigiri to her mouth. Incidentally, she had also sampled a small portion of my fried rice on a small plate.

By the way, Kugi-san, are you really trying to console her? I doubt that would help anyone…

Hmm, salted onigiri aren’t bad, but they lose flavor once they cool down. If only there was some seaweed, that would help, but I’ve never seen any seaweed around here… Now that I think about it, there is that.

「Why don’t you try making grilled onigiri? It could expand your variety.」

「Grilled onigiri…?」

「Huh? You’ve never heard of it?」

There was something peculiar about the culinary traditions in this universe. It felt like some of their food knowledge had gaps, almost as if certain things were lost in the mist of history. The variety of food was rich, yet it was strange that they had some things but lacked others that should logically go with them. I imagine it might have to do with space travel—maybe certain ingredients or cooking methods didn’t fare well in low pressure, or the heat and smoke were too much for the first life support systems. Perhaps cooking as a cultural practice was neglected or lost over time… Isn’t there anyone who is studying the history of food in this universe?

☆★☆

After giving Moegi a quick lesson on how to make grilled onigiri, I decided to call it a day. It seems that she’d bring some to Fushin later. Speaking of which, Fushin wasn’t present during the meal. Apparently, since he was the head of the Shrine, his presence at meals tended to make others feel uneasy, so he usually ate alone in his office. That sounds a bit lonely, but then again, considering they can all communicate via telepathy whenever they want, maybe it’s not as bad as it seems.

「So, did you manage to make any progress with psionic technology?」

「No, not at all, it feels like we’ll need to start learning from the very basics to get anywhere.」

「The technology is just too different. We’re completely lost.」

「There are no rules to it, it’s like telling you that 1 + 1 equals 5 or 8 depending on the mood of the numbers at the time. I’m beginning to think it’s impossible for me.」

「I was ‘bout to shout, ‘What the hell d’ya mean by mood?’ really.」

「I see… Well, don’t give up. Keep at it a little more.」

If it leads to improving the Krishna, then it’ll be worth the effort. Or maybe it could give us a hint on how to fight the Holy Vuelzarus Empire’s ships in case we find ourselves at odds with them …though that’s probably not going to happen. I doubt we’ll ever end up fighting them, and if we do, we’d be in serious trouble. I intend to avoid that scenario as much as possible. If worst comes to worst, I’d have to make a desperate threat like, ‘If you don’t let us go, I’ll blow up myself and will take the entire star system with me’ to try to escape. But even that seems like it would have a low chance of success.

「So, what’s the plan for tomorrow? I don’t want to impose on them too much by hanging around every day. We’re ready to leave, right?」

「Yes! Everything’s in perfect order!」

Mimi replied with a bright smile and a thumbs-up.

While I hadn’t personally done much to prepare, there wasn’t anything special I needed anyway. Mei was in charge of managing my personal supplies, so I had no doubt everything was taken care of.

Honestly, I do feel a bit guilty about leaving everything to Mei. But as my maidroid, she insists that managing such things is non-negotiable. She won’t take no for an answer, so I’ve reluctantly let her handle it. I guess if I truly put my foot down, she’d probably relent, but it’s not worth the trouble.

Is this how humans gradually become dependent on maidroids—or more broadly, artificial intelligences?

「Then let’s take it easy on the ship tomorrow.」

「Ehh? But I still wanna do more research on psionic technology.」

「It’d be better to learn the basics properly when we get to the Holy Vuelzarus Empire rather than half-learn things here.」

「I agree with him, Sis, it’s fascinating, no doubt, but we’re nowhere near grasping even the basics right now.」

「Mm… Nothin’ I can do then.」

Tina finally relented, swayed by Wiska’s support of my suggestion. I glanced at Dr. Shouko, and she was nodding as well. It seemed she agreed with me too.

「We also need to keep Neve-kun’s treatment on track. She should be able to come out of the pod soon.」

「That’s news to me. How soon are we talking? A couple of days from now? 」

「It won’t be that quick, no. But I’d say give it about a week.」

「A week, huh? That’s still pretty fast.」

It seems the materials we spent a fortune on back in the imperial capital are paying off. In any case, seeing Neve walk again on her own two feet will be a welcome sight. I hope Dr. Shouko keeps up the good work and we can see Neve free from the pod soon.

TN1: The original Japanese was: ‘もったいないお化けが出てくるよ’ It’s a common saying in Japanese that has a meaning similar to the English saying ‘Waste not, want not’, but I felt the English equivalent didn’t fit well with the tone, so I translated the Japanese one literally. I think it’s still understandable and fits better.