The sharp growl of a stomach echoed through the cramped stone hollow like a dungeon beast snarling for food.
Asher winced awake, groaning as he pushed himself upright. Every joint in his body complained. His injuries had sealed up nicely, but with only a second-tier healing skill, the pain still clung to his nerves.
But now, sothing else was joining the party: hunger.
His stomach felt hollow. Like his intestines were scraping against each other for survival.
"Ugh... I’m starving."
He glanced over to the two girls nearby. They were glaring at him with eyes laced with relief.
"How long was I out?" Shin croaked, his voice sandpapery.
"Um... Three days!" Ayaka chirped, bouncing slightly on her haunches. "Then Sensei was out for one whole day after dragging you here! She used all her mana!"
"So three days..." Asher sighed, eyes half-lidded. "No wonder I feel like I could eat an elephant."
Yuki waved a dismissive hand, the dried-leaf "clothing" she wore rustling over her body. "Wakey-wakey ans snacky-snacky! Behold!" She gestured grandly towards a small, crackling fire on the other side of their cramped refuge. "Roasted dungeon at!"
At the word at, Shin’s sliva welled up like a spring.
Until... his eyes landed on the so called ’at’.
What sat roasting over the fire was golden brown, glistening just right. It looked like a decent yakitori skewer... until his eyes locked onto the head still attached to the end of the stick.
He nearly gagged.
The creature wasn’t much larger than a rat, maybe a little chunkier. It was expertly gutted and butterflied flat against the stick jamd into the earth. Its cooked face, however, was a literal nightmare: bulbous, unblinking yellow eyes, a hairless, wrinkled snout, and a spiny tail curled behind it.
"Um... Yuki? What in the nine hells is that?" Shin managed to ask, pinching his nose.
Yuki’s eyes lit up. "Ah! Its a noble rotrat" she declared, reaching beside her and hauling up an uncooked specin by its spiny tail. It dangled, limp and pale. "Plentiful near the Glass Tsukuma’s territory. Fast little buggers, but we get the ones fleeing this way. Frog Fiends love ’em." She gave the corpse a fond, if slightly unsettling, pat.
Asher instinctively cupped his nose. "It stinks like sothing that crawled into its own grave!"
Ayaka giggled, nudging him. "Slls worse than it tastes, Oni-chan! Yuki Sensei’s a dungeon gourt!"
RotRat? Shin shuddered. The na fit.These things looked like soone shaved a diseased cat and slapped a lizard tail on it.
Yuki plucked the cooked skewers from the fire. She handed one to Ayaka, offered one to Shin (who took it like it might explode), and kept one for herself. She dug into hers without a care, biting off chunks of at and spitting out bones while humming a jaunty tune. Ayaka followed suit, nibbling daintily but enthusiastically. "Mmm... extra crispy today, Sensei!"
Well... when hunger strikes, beggars aren’t exactly gourt critics.
Shin shut his eyes, braced himself, and bit into the rotrat. Then his eyes snapped open, wider than saucers.
"Whoa! It... it slls like a bog troll’s sock drawer," he spluttered, swallowing hastily, "but... it’s surprisingly tender? Juicy, even? Am I hallucinating from starvation, or is this... weirdly okay?"
"Told ya!" Yuki bead, wiping grease from her chin. Her leaf attire rustled as she puffed out her chest. "Survival Chef Yuki, at your service! Mastered the art of making dungeon refuse taste... passable!"
"Ooh! Passable?" Ayaka piped up, clinging to Shin’s arm like a tick. "Make Oni-chan your ’special!’ The one with the... you know!" She waggled her eyebrows.
Yuki’s grin turned conspiratorial. "Oh, that one? Say less, apprentice! Caught a haul today!"
She reached over to her storage container—a dried-out brittle beast shell she’d killed days ago. It served as a backpack, a bowl, and a poor man’s pot.
From where Shin sat, all he could see was her back as she crouched beside the fire, working. He was surprised at how close Yuki and Ayaka had seed to get. Guess being stuck together really made them buddies.
Minutes passed, and soon, the shell was resting over hot stones as he heard rhythmic chopping, then the satisfying sizzle-hiss of fat hitting hot shell. The sll drifted across the cave, not foul this ti, but rich, aty, and almost... alluring?
"What sorcery is this now?" Shin called out, curiosity piqued despite himself
"Patience master," Yuki sang back. "Good things co to those who wait... and don’t complain about the appetizer!"
The stew began to sizzle, its fat crackling over the fla. From her corner of culinary pride, Yuki pulled out a bundle of dried blacklace kelp, a stringy seaweed scavenged from an underground shallow lake.
"What’s that?" Asher muttered.
"The seasoning," Ayaka replied, wrapping herself around his arm.
"It’s not quite salt..." Yuki said, slicing the kelp into strips with a clean swipe of her dagger, "but it’ll do."
Once the at browned, she wrapped it in kelp, letting the seaweed steam and wilt like dungeon cabbage. Then ca the final touch—thin slices of yellow-capped sponge fungus she’d picked off a skeleton. Edible. Allegedly.
After a few more monts of sizzling, she lifted the brittle shell off the heat and set it down with flair.
"Okay! Itadakimaaaasu~!"
Ayaka sprang forward like a goblin in a feast, grabbing a piece and chomping down.
The aroma alone was enough to convince Shin to eat without waiting for an invitation.
He took a bite. His eyes didn’t just widen; they practically launched from their sockets. "Holy shit, Yuki! This is... incredible!" He chewed, savoring. "Crispy, crackling skin... lt-in-your-mouth fat... unbelievably tender inside! And that flavor is mindblowing!"
"Told ya," Yuki said smugly. "That kelp brought out the umami. I am the Dungeon Chef Queen, after all."
"I could eat this forever!" Shin groaned in ecstasy as he instantly summoned a clone beside him.
"Double the pleasure!" the original Shin declared. The clone snatched another piece, and both n moaned in perfect, synchronized bliss. They ate with the fervor of starved badgers, grease shining on their chins.
All too soon, Shin (both of him) slumped back against the cave wall, bellies distended like overfilled wineskins. He rubbed his stomach with a contented sigh. "Ahhh... pure bliss. Now, if only we had an ice-cold Coke to wash it down..."
Ayaka giggled. "You really liked it that much, Oni-chan?"
Shin nodded dreamily, the clone dissipating in a wisp of smoke. "What was that glorious at? We need to hunt a whole herd!"
Ayaka blinked, her expression perfectly innocent. "Oh, that? Frog Fiend leg. The big, jumpy ones. Not as poisonous as their whole bodies. So, relax. You won’t get sick."
"FROG FIEND?!" Shin’s voice cracked, shooting him upright, his face turning green. "I ATE A DEMONIC FROG?! And I....LIKED IT?! URGH! My taste buds are betraying !" He gagged dramatically, clutching his throat.
Yuki and Ayaka dissolved into helpless laughter, the sound bouncing off the cave walls, warm and bright. Yuki wiped tears from her eyes. "See? Told you it was good!"
For a mont, huddled in their tiny cave, the scent of strange spices and charred monster at hanging in the air, they seed to forget the looming threats of the tsukuma’s and monsters that lurked in this dungeon. They had full bellies, they were finally together while.they laughed at the utterly absurd image of their master having a ltdown over enjoying frog legs.
Later that night, after chatting and sharing stories, the three of them finally drifted off to sleep. Ayaka slept nestled safely in the middle of Shin and Yuki. For the first ti since being dumped into this hellhole, Ayaka slept soundly. The usual nightmares about her past stayed away, replaced by the steady breathing of her makeshift family.
Morning ca chased by the guttural howls of distant monsters echoing through the dungeon. Shin was already awake. Not just awake, but drenched in sweat as he slamd out push-ups on the cold, uneven stone. Being around Ayaka had reminded him that this tiny girl had once almost matched him in push-ups. Almost.
And that wasn’t sothing he could let slide.
He gritted his teeth and pushed himself harder: seventy six... eight...
His arms scread, threatening mutiny. Eighty-six! He collapsed forward with a grunt, chest heaving. A hundred was the target. He hadn’t made it, but crushing his old 40-rep limit? That was pure, addictive progress.
"Morning, Master..." Yuki yawned, stretching like a cat in her leaf attire.
Ayaka blinked sleep from her bright eyes, instantly focused on Shin. "Morning, Onii-chan! Sleep good?" Her voice was morning-sweet.
Shin stood up, grabbed his dry, blood-stained shirt, and tossed it over his shoulders. "Perfect. I’m at full health. It’s ti we take down those Tsukuma bastards and get outta here."
Yuki frowned, casting her gaze down. "They’re tough. I couldn’t even scratch one."
"Yeah, and we can’t just sit here twiddling our thumbs. My fingers are twitching—itching for a fight!! I need so MP. I need to start farming!!!"
Yuki clenched her fists. "But the glass Tsukuma is a nightmare. One wrong step and it’ll cut you to ribbons. And if you die, I lose everything! All my skills—gone! I’ll be useless!"
"Then," Shin said, turning his sharp gaze toward her, "let’s make sure I don’t die."
His eyes flicked to Ayaka. "You too. Your skill is gonna be vital in this. You better have it under control by now."
"Hoi!!" Ayaka replied with a fiery spark in her eyes and a fist raised in the air.
"Good," Shin cracked his neck, his blood pumping hot. "Let’s warm up by slaughtering a few frog fiends. They’ve got so MP I need to leech."
To be continued...
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