Chapter 548

Chapter 548: Food Customs.

Nina had looked forward to the trip to Lightwind Harbor for a long time, and she had looked forward to the food of the Elven city-state for just as long.

Now she finally faced the cruel reality of the Mortal Realm.

She sat blank-eyed at the table, staring at the dark heap in front of her.

It was a stack of overbaked pancakes, piled high with some kind of fermented beans that stretched into strings and bubbled.

Even without tasting it, she could imagine how shocking the flavor must be.

This had already gone beyond Nina’s idea of “food”. It looked more like some kind of abstract artwork.

Shirley, sitting across from her, was clearly not doing much better.

In front of Shirley lay the “locally improved Elven version” of sweet crepes. The smell from the fermented cheese on top was so strong that her face had gone a little green.

After a long time, Shirley finally lifted her head, looked at Nina across the table, then raised a hand to point at the food:

“They said this thing is sweet crepes…”

“How can they insult sweet crepes like this…” Nina looked as if she was about to cry. “This has been my favorite food since I was little…”

“But this really is Lightwind Harbor’s sweet crepes,” said Taran Ael, who sat at the other end of the table.

This Grand Scholar, who was quite famous even in Truth Academy, actually looked a little nervous and uneasy.

No one knew if it was because he felt he was neglecting Captain Duncan’s Retainer, or because he simply could not face the almost resentful gazes of the two girls.

“As far as I know, many outsiders really can’t get used to it at first… but some people like it very much once they do.”

Nina stared at him in horror: “But these beans are rotten! Not just rotten, they even stretch into strings! The slime is bubbling!”

“But they taste very good, truly,” Taran Ael tried his best to explain sincerely. “And there is absolutely no problem with health—on the contrary, they are very good for the digestive system…”

Nina and Shirley listened to the Grand Scholar’s explanation with expressions like their souls had left their bodies.

It seemed their minds could no longer keep up with the logic of the Mortal Realm.

When Duncan arrived, this was exactly the scene he saw—just as he had expected.

He could not help laughing. He walked forward and rubbed Nina’s hair:

“I told you before. You might not be able to get used to the food in Lightwind Harbor. The Elves changed many local specialties to fit their own tastes.”

Nina muttered under her breath: “I just couldn’t imagine what they would change them into…”

“I did not think this through,” Taran Ael said at once.

The moment he saw Duncan appear he had tensed up on reflex, but after traveling with them this far he had at least learned how to adjust himself.

He quickly calmed down and spoke apologetically to the two very disappointed girls:

“I should have recommended some foods that are not quite so ‘local’ first.

“The bread and smoked meat rolls in Lightwind Harbor are the same as anywhere else.

“We can just put these things aside.”

But to everyone’s surprise, as soon as Taran Ael said that, Shirley suddenly pressed her lips together and picked up the strange-smelling “crepe” in front of her.

Lucretia, who had been watching the fun from the side, blinked in surprise:

“Shirley?”

“It’s food,” Shirley muttered.

Then, as if making a huge decision, she shut her eyes and shoved the crepe into her mouth.

She chewed hard, speaking in a muffled voice:

“It’s… not that bad…”

Nina stared at her friend across the table in shock.

After a moment, she seemed to think of something.

Then, without a word, she picked up the things on her own plate.

The two girls almost wolfed down all the food that Taran Ael had bought.

Then they wiped their mouths at almost the same time, lifted their heads, looked at each other, and broke into matching grins.

The living room suddenly went a bit quiet.

Duncan smiled, patted Nina on the shoulder, then walked over and wiped the “sauce” off Shirley’s face.

Taran Ael, after staring blankly for a few seconds, finally reacted.

With a trace of awkwardness, he broke the silence:

“Very few outsiders can adapt to these dishes so quickly…

“Oh, by the way, if you are not used to the fermented foods here in Lightwind Harbor, we do have many dishes that keep the flavor of their place of origin.

“Besides the bread and smoked meat rolls I just mentioned, there are Central Seas–style cream stews, lanjing-grass braised meat, northern mushroom stew, and red-vegetable egg custard…”

As Nina listened, her eyes went wide, and a bit of hopeful light returned to them:

“So you do have food that tastes normal?! Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

Taran Ael spread his hands:

“Because it is not time for dessert yet.”

Nina’s face, which had just brightened, went dull again:

“…Dessert?”

“Yes,” Taran Ael nodded. “What I just listed are all desserts.

“We usually mash them into a paste and use them as a dip for honey cakes.”

This time, not only Nina, but even Duncan was deeply shocked.

Across the table, Shirley instantly grabbed her head and groaned weakly:

“Damn it, I want to go back to the ship… What kind of Subspace execution ground is this…”

Duncan thought for a moment.

[Even in Subspace, no one eats things like this.]

But with Taran Ael, a native Elf of this city-state, standing right there, he did not say it aloud.

Just then, a burst of electric bell chimes rang from the direction of the front door, suddenly cutting off the talk in the living room.

Lucretia frowned, almost too slightly to notice.

A “footman” in a servant’s uniform stepped out of the living room with stiff, mechanical strides.

A moment later, the male servant returned from the entrance hall, walked up to his Mistress, and bowed slightly:

“A Visitor from City Hall. Governor Sara Mell invites you to come discuss affairs.”

Lucretia frowned, impatience showing in her face:

“Tell him I am not going. I am entertaining more important guests and have no time.”

“But the messenger said that what Governor Sara Mell wishes to discuss is directly related to your ‘honored guests’,” the footman said in the same mechanical, wooden tone. “And there is also the witness of the Four Gods in this matter.”

Lucretia’s expression finally changed a little.

She lifted her head on reflex and glanced at Duncan.

Duncan had of course heard the exchange between her and the footman, but he looked quite unconcerned.

He simply waved a hand:

“It is normal. I walked into the city right beside you, in full view.

“Other city-states might not care, but in an Elven city-state, someone like me—a ‘Adventurer’ who was still active a hundred years ago—is hardly a stranger’s face.”

“Then he should come in person,” Lucretia said, her tone holding some displeasure. “Sending someone over so casually is not proper courtesy.”

“Think about Tyrian’s schedule right now. A city-state’s Governor is not that free,” Duncan said with a small laugh.

He gave a glance at the “Sea Witch” who looked cold and arrogant on the surface, but who in truth only refused to go out because she hated trouble and was lazy.

“Go out this once. Hear what the Governor has to say.

“I am quite curious too, about how he managed to drag in the ‘witness of the Four Gods’.

“Or I could go with you?”

“Ah, I can go by myself!” Lucretia said quickly.

Then she sighed, nodded a farewell to the others in the living room, and turned to leave.

Two or three pieces of colored paper fluttered out from beside her, but in the next second, they all flew back into her body.

Lucretia suddenly stopped, turned her head with a strange look to glance at Duncan, forced out a stiff smile, and then stepped out of the living room.

Duncan’s face stayed completely calm the whole time.

After Lucretia left, Taran Ael scratched his head in confusion and looked around at the others in the room:

“When she goes out alone, doesn’t she usually just use spells to travel straight there?

“Why did she suddenly agree to walk today…”

Duncan crossed his arms and said, as if it had nothing to do with him:

“How would I know.”

…

Sara Mell looked in mild surprise at the “Sea Witch” who had walked into his office.

He was not surprised that she came on time.

He was surprised that this Witch had come in through the front door of City Hall like a normal person, had ridden the elevator up like a normal person, and had walked along the corridor to his door and pushed it open like a normal person.

“I have already opened the window for you,” said the elderly Elven Governor, lifting a hand to point at the open window beside them. “I thought you would fly in as usual.”

“Glass cannot block phantoms. I could come in even without a window,” Lucretia said, giving him a stern look. Her tone sounded a little unnatural. “But today… I just felt like walking a bit.”

“Oh, yes, light exercise is good for the body, especially for a Scholar like you who throws herself into research,” Sara Mell said.

For some reason, he kept feeling that the Witch’s attitude and way of speaking were a little strange today, even the aura she gave off was different from before.

But he soon set that sense of wrongness aside.

“Please sit, and take a look at the letter on the desk.”

Lucretia had noticed that letter from the start.

It was already opened and bore the striking seal of the Church of the Four Gods.

She nodded, sat down opposite Sara Mell, picked up the paper, and let her eyes sweep quickly over the lines.

Soon, the Witch lifted her eyebrows.

The content clearly surprised her—and in that surprise, there was also a hint of subtle “interest”.

She raised the sheet of paper:

“This letter was sent to all the city-states on the Boundless Sea?”

“Yes. The Governors of each city-state should all be receiving it around this time,” Sara Mell nodded.

“I am quite interested in what their reactions will be when they do.

“But before that, I want to hear your view first.

“As Captain Duncan’s Spawn—and as the Spawn who has just reestablished contact with him—what do you think of the Church of the Four Gods’ attitude in this matter?”

Lucretia thought for a moment:

“…The Church. They are more devoted than I expected, and more ‘open-minded’ too.”

“Strictly speaking, it is the four great Pilgrimage Arks whose attitude is open-minded,” Sara Mell said.

“Many people have a set impression of them. They think the popes, and the ‘pilgrim bishop corps’ around them, are the most rigid, rule-bound people in the world.

“But in fact, things are often the other way around.”

“You do not seem to be bound by these ‘common views’,” Lucretia said.

“If you live long enough, you learn more,” Sara Mell shrugged.

“I was surprised for a moment when I first received the letter.

“But after I thought back over what has happened recently, and the Church of the Four Gods’ activities in this period, I was no longer surprised by what it said.”

Lucretia frowned:

“The Church’s recent activities?”

Sara Mell did not answer her directly.

Instead, he suddenly asked another question:

“…When was the last time you ran into a patrol fleet of the Church near the border?”

—