Apology Pie

Chapter 95

Elim watched with interest as the clear jewel sunk into the pond. As it went, the water started to clear up, and it seemed to vanish in the depths. The pond didn't become as glass clear as the well, but there was a distinct shift in its appearance.

It didn't seem like much, but Elim still felt wonder as he watched. He'd done the same thing all morning. Finding water sources and dropping purification stones in them never got old.

Elim's mild horror at how much some of the water changed in appearance was also unabated. He was truly glad his family kept to its well rather than the ones in town. It had only changed mildly in color, unlike the one in the village center. It was no wonder that travelers often took sick after drinking from it.

"Done, Mistress," Elim said to the air. He'd had a voice call open with 42 all morning as he went about his work.

"Nice, take the rest of the day and have lunch with your family," 42 replied graciously.

"Wouldn't it be better to try and finish the village today?" Elim asked. He'd arrived home the day before, and after some cursory greetings, he'd been sent out with the excuse of quality time with Bess. Tiller and his mother had a very long talk while he was gone, to his dismay.

When Elim had returned home a few hours afterward, it had been to find the pair companionably drinking tea. A fine turn of events that was, it was good they got on well. The problem was they'd both been wearing twin looks of exasperation for him.

After that, Elim had been glad 42's plan required him to be out of the house. It seemed the only female not upset with him was Bess. She'd followed him around all morning like a duckling but gone on home in anticipation of lunch and her afternoon nap.

"I've got enough crystals for it, but you shouldn't push yourself too much. You've been crawling around in mud and dank all morning as it is," 42 replied. Elim hadn't told her about his home issue, so she was being massively unhelpful with her sweet consideration.

"Right… still feels like I should do more," Elim ventured.

"Well, it would be good to start working on getting people to take the potions. Do you have a tradition of mixing drinks? I don't know how a potion would interact with beer, but you might be able to trick them with something like a saki bomb," 42 offered.

"Saki bomb?" Elim asked with open confusion.

"Ah, right. Saki is a kind of rice wine. It makes beer foam up so people would drop a shot glass of it in," 42 explained.

"If you know a drink the potion would pair with taste-wise, you could mix them, and I'd check if it was safe in the inventory. Then, if it works, you can get people to take it by throwing a party or something," 42 continued.

"The yellow ones, right?" Elim asked. 42 hummed in confirmation, and he helped himself.

"Cider or mead," Elim said after a few tentative sips. The potion wasn't foul-tasting but kind of bland and herbal, like a weak mixed tea. It needed something that would bring out its flavors pleasantly and give sweetness.

"Easily done then… you have non-alcoholic cider, right? The kids should drink this too," 42 asked.

"Yeah, though I don't see why they'd need it specially," Elim said.

"The potion or the cider?" 42 asked.

"The cider. I mean, they shouldn't have much of the hard stuff because it's usually potent, but everyone drinks ale," Elim explained. 42 had mentioned him being too young to drink beer when they first met. It made him wonder what kind of rules her kind had and how long they lived for him to seem too young for it.

"Right, I keep forgetting… Look, I know it makes water safe to drink, and that's probably most of why you do it, but it's not good for children. Or pregnant women. I get stuff like rubbing whiskey on a teeth child's gums seems like a good idea, but it's really not," 42 explained.

"If you say so. I'll mix some test batches now," Elim offered. He figured 42 probably had a reason for saying all that, but it was probably complicated, and he wasn't in a mood for lengthy explanations. So instead, he took out more potions along with small bottles of the drinks they'd discussed, including hard cider and not. He combined them and then put them back for 42 to check.

"Looks like they're safe and still effective. Time for a final taste test," 42 said simply. Elim obliged and found he'd been on the mark for flavors. He wasn't a proper cook, but he generally knew how to pair things together in an edible fashion. Gods be kind to anyone eating something he'd made from scratch instead of cobbling it together out of rations, though.

"Not bad," Elim said for 42's benefit.

"Would it seem out of place for you to have a couple of small barrels of this stuff at home? I could premix it, then you throw a party and serve it," 42 asked.

"Not really. I mean, we make all of the local mead since my mum keeps bees. Be a bit harder to explain the cider," Elim mused.

"Well, maybe not. I could just say I bought some barrels of juice when I was last home, and it's finally set up. Though they might ask mum how she did it," Elim said as he considered it. His mother had taught him to make mead, it wasn't hard, but he didn't know a thing about cider. Not properly anyway. Leaving juice in a barrel till it turned would not do as an explanation to anyone nosey.

"I broke one down, and the recipe isn't complicated. Just juice, yeast, some stuff for the yeast, and flavorings," 42 offered.

"Wait, you have the recipe? Like the full list of the stuff they add for flavor too?" Elim asked. He understood she could copy things with startling accuracy, but he hadn't considered what the full scope of her powers might include.

"Yeah, I can get one for anything I break down. I even have the same apples they used to make the juice. I get a pattern with instructions, leather, and what not when I break down boots too," 42 explained.

"Mistress, truly, you are a wonder," Elim said appreciatively.

"Neat, thanks," 42 replied, sounding suspicious of him. Rightfully so, Elim knew. If there were ever going to be a way to dig himself out of the hole he'd dug with his mother, this would be it. He just needed a plan now.

"The families that have taken sick already won't be coming round the village. So it would be neighborly of me to drop by with some food and drink. People helped my mother after all, and one should look after their neighbors," Elim offered.

"That's… an excellent idea. I fixed up that hand cart you picked up yesterday. Once you get close to a house, you can pull it out and fill it with goods for a care package," 42 agreed happily. Elim sighed and laughed. It was easy to forget that she'd asked him to send strangers to their doom not long before.

"42… Would it be alright if I were honest when baiting people your way? For me to outright tell them there's a dungeon?" Elim asked. It was a question that had been burning at the back of his throat since that day in the tavern. He'd blatantly hinted at it to the "heroes", but he hadn't flat out said it.

"Yeah? I mean, I assumed you would. I can't really see adventurers coming this far out unless they thought something worthwhile was waiting for them," 42 replied, like it was natural.

"I supposed not," Elim agreed. He felt a weight taken from his shoulders. The group with the strange magic had been some form of threat to Tiller so he hadn't minded screwing them over. Despite that, lying didn't sit well with him. It was one thing for someone to knowingly choose to go and risk themselves for a reward. It was another to trick people.

"I'll do what I can to find people who aren't too strong," Elim said. He'd already done it once and was contract-bound to do most of what 42 asked. Despite that this was the first time he formally agreed to do as she'd asked.

"Thanks. Honestly, I'm banking on anyone you tell being too greedy to share the news to keep things manageable. Still, someone too strong showing up is a risk," 42 said softly, almost as if talking to herself. Elim nodded soberly, he hadn't considered that. Even if he aimed for the relatively weak, there was a chance they'd pass along word to someone dangerous.

"That's… You've got those fire dogs. I mean, not many can stand up to those. I'm sure they'll be enough," Elim offered. He felt a rather uncomfortable pang at the idea of 42 getting into trouble. She was a bit strange, and a literal monster, but he rather liked her. That she was too far away for him to help her if something happened didn't help.

"Very true Elim, I'm sure I'll be fine," 42 replied gently.

"Now, is there any particular cider you want me to break down? I've got like fifteen different kinds thanks to your alcoholism," 42 added with a chuckle. Elim laughed too though he had no idea what alcoholism was.

"Oh, the bacon one, the Mirth of Tima, and that really sweet one with the flowers on the bottle," Elim replied easily. Most ciders didn't have names proper and were just a house drink at various taverns. Elim had made a point of tossing one into the inventory every time he came across a new one. Mirth of Tima was an exception as it was the product of a church, holy symbol on the jug and all.

"I have a question though. Can you get the recipe for a food if I give you some? Like for a pie, would you need a whole one or would a slice or two be enough?" Elim asked.

"A slice should be fine. I've never really bothered figuring out minimum sample sizes but it worked just fine with that slice of blueberry you dropped in," 42 explained.

"Good, good… So, just suppose, if I were to uhm… acquire some foods you wouldn't mind giving me the recipes?" Elim asked.

"Elim," 42 said flatly. Elim winced and wondered what malicious deity had given everything female that way of saying a man's name that made him feel like he was five and caught with his hand in a jam jar.

"Look, I'm in hot water with my mum. I figure she'll forgive me though if I can get Doris Holt's pie recipe," Elim admitted.

"Doris Holt?" 42 asked, sounding completely confused.

"She's nice enough, but she always beats my mum at the pies and is a total sow about it. If we leave like we've planned it will be just after the next fete. I figure mum would fancy being able to beat her the once before we go," Elim explained.

"What did you fuck up so badly that you're resorting to pie-based espionage?" 42 asked. Elim didn't know what espionage was and was past caring about odd words. He got the gist of what she was asking.

"Well, I didn't exactly…" he fumbled.

"Tiller told her what you are," Elim admitted.

"Oh… well… You get that pie. I'll help out as much as I can," 42 said weakly.