Chapter 173

The morning light shone down on Daniela’s hands, which now had the gauntlets equipped.

‘Chained Ore Gauntlets – Gauntlets carved out of chained ore. Send magic into them to bind targets.’

That was what was displayed when viewing them through the Appraisal glasses. Yeah, they seemed like they would work.

Relieved, I took the glasses off and put them away in my bag.

We would prepare to leave today. This meant restocking on supplies. Tomorrow we would say our goodbyes and then leave Usk.

We shouldn’t have much trouble, as I took the time to study the surrounding terrain in the guild library. First, if you left Usk through the eastern gate and headed straight, you would reach a vast swamp. Going around it would eventually take you to a small town, and further on there would be a forest. There was a large town inside of the forest, and this was also the town closest to the imperial capital. In other words, we would reach the imperial capital once we were clear of the forest.

“I’m reminded of just how big this empire is.”

“Indeed. Much time has passed since we left Alessa, and yet the capital is still far away.”

Daniela thought back on our travels as we wandered from shop to shop. We would have had an accurate account of our days had we had a calendar to mark, but I had come to this world with nothing. And I didn’t really have the time to think about such things, so I only had a vague idea of how many days had passed.

I spent a few weeks at Fhiraldo, and it was around two months later that we reunited with Gardo. And I think it was about one month in Replant after that. Then we left Replant and reached Dana village. We killed the lesser wyvern and left after ten days?

I really wasn’t sure. I probably should care more about these things, but I had never developed such a habit. Still, it would probably be about four months by the time we left Usk. I think.

“…I think that is it, as far as preparation goes.”

“I’m looking forward to what kind of food the next place has.”

The hollow bag that Rachel made was a high-tech vintage bag with dimension magic. This ensured that the contents remained unaffected by time. The inner space was also vast. In other words, you could put a lot of food inside and it would never go bad. We could enjoy a hot meal of our choice, that in fact, came from a street stall in a faraway city. And I could also store other ingredients, which would always be fresh.

On top of it all, Merica, the granddaughter of the chief of Senka village, had given me a handmade mascot that made it very cute. I was careful to change the string once in a while, so that I wouldn’t lose it. It was quite important, after all. You might ask me why I didn’t put it away if it was so important, but these things have value because they are used. I would feel bad if it didn’t ever see the sun. I hoped that she was still well…

□ □ □ □

We stopped at a public bath before returning to the inn. The sun had just started to descend, and the world was bathed in a beautiful orange light. Daniela and I had planned to go to a certain place tonight. The curry restaurant.

“Daniela. Are you ready?”

“Aye, let us go.”

We left the inn together. This wasn’t our first time returning, either. We had gone several times while we waited for the clothes, and so its location was burned into my memory. It was surprisingly close by, which showed how off we had been that first time. It was really only about ten minutes away. It’s like they say, you can’t see the forest for the trees. Wait, no, that’s not it.

I looked up at the sky as we walked. The evening light shone down at an angle, splitting the surrounding walls in black and orange. The sun itself was making a soft landing over the buildings of Nicora, which could be seen beyond the river to the west. The sky above was still a pale blue, while to the east, it turned darker. I loved this time with these indescribable gradations spreading everywhere. It was the same in the other world, of course. Not that I had much opportunity to enjoy them. I mostly just got to see the sunrise…

By the time the sun was halfway hidden, we arrived at the curry restaurant. We were nearly familiar faces to the waitress now as we made our order.

After waiting for a few minutes, fresh naan bread and bowls of several types of curry were brought to us. Even if it was curry, the taste could change drastically depending on what ingredients and spices were inside. This place seemed to have done its own research, and so had a wide range of curries prepared. We tried different kinds each time, and were always surprised with every new discovery as we stuffed ourselves with naan.

This was the culmination of all our testing. We had chosen the three that we thought were the best.

I was really looking forward to enjoying them.

“Let’s eat.”

“Mgg…ggm…gmm…”

Daniela never really bothered to wait when it came to food, and she was already tearing through the naan and shoving them down her throat. I swallowed back the saliva that was pooling in my mouth at the sight of this, and scooped up some red curry with a piece of naan bread and carried it to my mouth. This spiciness was incredibly addictive. And it was the hottest thing they served here… I wiped away the sweat on my forehead and drank some water.

The other was a light-colored curry. It was mild, with butter and cream inside. But this butter chicken curry also had hints of sourness and spiciness as well. The chicken was so soft that it crumbled. With one bite, I felt like I had died and gone to heaven.

The last bowl was a keema curry filled with lots of ground meat. This was also incredible. In spite of the spices, the meat also had a strong presence. As a meat lover, Daniela considered it her favorite. Of course, I liked meat as well. Whether it was a steak or ground up. I put some of the thick curry onto the naan and tasted it. I couldn’t help but smile then. The finely chopped vegetables added so much texture, reminding you that there was more than just meat. It seemed so healthy that I had delusions of losing weight.

However, this time of joyfulness was about to come to a close. My stomach had reached full capacity. I could eat no more… I could see Daniela was loosening her belt in front of me. Why do people overeat like this…

“I’m done…I can’t eat…”

“Same…”

At this admission from Daniela, I called over the waitress and asked for a few more sets to take back with us. I wanted some naan as well, but I decided that we could just make it if we had the ingredients. Besides, I didn’t want to bother them too much. It was a busy night as it was.

The curry arrived in separate pots which I was able to put into the hollow bag. Now we could enjoy the curry whenever we wanted!

As full as we were, we could still be giddy about this prospect.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I handed her the money.

“I’m going to really miss this place after we leave tomorrow.”

“Oh, that is a shame. But I am sure you will be back.”

“Definitely. Definitely.”

Daniela declared with emotion. I felt the same.

“See you later then.”

“Yes, see you.”

“Thank you.”

We waved goodbye as we left the restaurant together.

The sky was now completely covered in the shadows of night. Still, the town itself was full of light, as if to suggest that things were only getting started.

“…It’s so pretty.”

“Aye.”

We looked at the lights below us. Each light was filled with things sweet and bitter, good and bad…

There was a bonfire next to us that burned a bright red. I felt like there must be something smart I could say here related to it, but I was just not perceptive enough to know what that was.