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“Um, this is a problem for me…”

Ignoring Miss Recruit as she looked like she was about to cry from the helplessness of being unable to do anything, I twisted my upper body into the empty kitchen and rummaged for treasure while wagging my tail.

“Yay, grain for the first time in forever!” I was secretly overjoyed, and I was trying hard to wag my tail to express that, but it seemed Miss Recruit did not appreciate it.

However, I paid no mind to such things and advanced further while wagging my tail.

I have no intention of retreating. I seek further battle results.

Since it was a small watch fortress, the rooms being cramped was rather unfortunate.

After all that, I worked hard to pull out the spoils I had gathered in both hands.

“This should be about it.”

I nodded in satisfaction as I said that, while Miss Recruit had a tearful expression.

Incidentally, this recruit’s name was Ernestia Hawkwood, and astonishingly, despite her height, she was twenty years old, which was why I had started attaching “Miss” to her.

Her rank was corporal, but it seemed insignia designs differed between now and the old days.

According to what she told me, her father was apparently a big shot who held a seat on the Council… but it seemed that because she was the daughter of his mistress, the legal wife hated her, and she had been sent out to this remote frontier.

“I see. So that’s why her appearance is so refined,” I thought, unintentionally nodding in agreement while listening to her story.

In any case, right now I should check these spoils.

Because the ceiling was low, I crawled through the dining hall with a dragging motion and spread the food I had gathered in both hands across a large table.

“If you take too much, it will cause problems…”

“It’s fine. If the others ran away, you won’t be held responsible. Rather, since you limited the damage to food alone, you might even receive a commendation.”

“I don’t think that will happen,” she said, looking up at the ceiling, while I checked the spoils from the corner of my eye.

First was bread—the same staple food as in the past, and a solid amount that seemed to have been baked today remained.

I also took several pieces of hardtack, which were preserved food.

Next came vegetables… I would eat the fresh ones here and only take the ones that would keep.

And now, the long-awaited turn of meat.

Here it was: long, narrow, coiled processed meat—everyone’s beloved sausage.

Naturally, there was also bacon, so I secured that too.

Lastly, seasonings.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, taste of my homeland,” I said, deeply moved as I raised them up. They were ketchup and mustard.

There was also sugar and spices, so I had brought those too, meaning the range of my cooking would expand all at once from now on.

I had also remembered to take an iron plate, so the battle results were more than sufficient.

I could not wait any longer, so I went out to the courtyard and immediately began cooking.

Conveniently, something that looked like a barbecue set caught my eye, so I used that this time.

Fuel had already been put inside… or rather, this had probably been in use until I arrived, making them stop and flee.

As if serving as proof of that, I could see bits of scattered ingredients here and there.

“If morale is that low, of course they’d run…”

Ernestia had called this place a “frontier” too, and there was no way people who had been sent here would have any motivation.

To begin with, I had already eliminated the northern threat known as the Emperor, so it was easy to imagine that this place was basically a convenient relegation post.

I began to feel somewhat sorry for her as she followed me around, monitoring me.

So I tried recommending a meal to her, but she was still wary of me and gave no reply.

In that case, I would prepare to grill the meat without worrying about her.

Naturally, vegetables came next.

I did not forget to mince onions separately from the ones I would grill.

However, since the size was based on me, they were fairly chunky, and this would not produce what I wanted, so I asked Ernestia to continue.

Perhaps she was the type who could not refuse when someone acted forcefully, because Ernestia reluctantly accepted the onion-mincing task.

Leaving aside the fact that she was unexpectedly skilled, the preparations were now complete.

First was the meat… no, these sausages.

The style was to cut open bread, place minced onion and a warmed sausage inside, then add ketchup and mustard.

Rather than doing something tasteless like eating it in one bite, I first picked up the hot dog with my fingers and ate half of it.

The texture of the sausage as I bit through it made a cheer of “This is it!” rise inside my head.

“Old style, is it…”

As I was savoring the nostalgic taste, I heard that voice from the side.

“It is something recreated from what was written in Imperial books, but is that what it’s called in the Council-State?”

“I don’t know about the old days, but now pickles, onion, and chili sauce are standard. I remember that shops using ‘traditional’ as their selling point sold something like what you’re eating…”

“I’ve never eaten it myself,” she concluded.

In that case, I prepared one for her, and she looked at me as if she were seeing something bizarre.

“Chances to be offered a monster’s home cooking don’t come along often. Experience it while you can.”

“…I was the one who cut that.”

“And the ingredients are ours too,” she said, glaring at me.

Perhaps she was getting used to me, because her fear toward me was gradually fading.

Wondering what to do as she remained motionless, glaring at the hot dog she had been made to accept, I began grilling the prepared meat and vegetables to push her from behind.

“It is known that I cook. You can eat without worrying.”

“I’m telling you, they’re our ingredients.”

“Say they were eaten. You can report it in whatever way is convenient for you to some extent.”

Apparently, she was doing her job as a soldier quite seriously, and she was someone I could view favorably too.

I intended to be an exemplary soldier myself, but I was currently returning home—in other words, on leave—so a little leniency should be permitted.

As I was enjoying my second bite of the hot dog, my ears suddenly caught a certain sound.

“I will say it once more just in case: I am not so weak that that would kill me. That is exactly why you should also remember that I returned it to you.”

It was the sound of her taking the rifle from her shoulder behind me.

That was why I had warned her, but it seemed she had not intended to shoot.

“I understand. I know very well both the strengths and weaknesses of guns.”

Judging that it was an action meant to distract herself from her anxiety, I decided to propose something that would benefit her as well.

“Hmm. If you are a soldier, then I suppose you do need some kind of achievement…”

Perhaps wary of my knowing tone, Ernestia stepped back and tried to ready her gun, but then she noticed the hot dog in her hand and quietly returned it to where the ingredients were. That was a little cute.

Also, she seemed to be the kind of person who did not waste food, so my favorability toward her rose slightly.

“No need to rush. I’ll properly let you shoot me later.”

“…I don’t understand what you mean?”

“If the story becomes ‘a soldier ate and drank with a monster without even engaging it,’ you won’t be able to save face. Conversely, if you fire even one shot, that means you did your job. It’s a thanks for the map. I’ll cooperate.”

“I haven’t eaten anything,” she strongly denied, but I paid her no mind and devoured the grilled meat and vegetables.

There was also barbecue sauce prepared, and the nostalgia made my appetite advance.

“What benefit do you get from doing that?”

“I told you, it’s thanks. Let me say this: I truly didn’t know my current position, so you helped me.”

“So you’ll be shot for that?” she asked, still seemingly unconvinced, but unfortunately, there was even a possibility that a rifle of that level would not leave a single scratch on my body.

If it had been an Imperial-era weapon, that would be one thing, but could a gun made with the lowered technology of the modern age even inflict a fatal wound on me?

My fullness level was not doing its job, so I might have eaten a bit too much, but I was emotionally satisfied, so I ended the meal.

In the end, she did not eat and kept watching me the whole time.

And so, after draining a post-meal drink and letting out a long breath, I turned toward Ernestia, who had lowered her gun but had not relaxed her guard.

“Where do you want to do it?”

In response to my question about where she would shoot, she immediately answered, “The training ground,” and I began walking under her guidance.

I had forgotten to clean up, but… since I was letting her shoot me, I would count it, together with the map, as balancing out to zero.

Since it was a small fortress, we quickly arrived at a training ground where circular targets were visible.

Then I headed to the target area to become the target myself, raised one arm there, and pointed at it with my finger as if to say, “Aim here.”

I checked Ernestia’s gaze as she readied her gun, and her aim was probably properly on my arm, but… just in case, I gave a warning.

“Ah, if you aim here, I will regard it as hostile intent. Be prepared.”

Saying that, I tapped my own forehead with my finger.

“I understand that this is not an opponent I can kill with this.”

She said she had no intention of doing something pointless, but I felt her reply came one beat late.

Being told that had probably made the possibility cross her mind.

The possibility of “perhaps”—the temptation that she might be able to shoot through my head—was something she splendidly shook off.

“I thought she was an unreliable recruit, but she can think properly too.”

Raising my evaluation of her by one level, I kept one arm raised and waited for her to pull the trigger.

She did not seem confident in her marksmanship, and it took some time before she fired, but the shot properly hit a little above my elbow… which was fine, but it hurt more than I expected.

It hurt enough that I instinctively rubbed the shot area with my hand.

Moreover, though there was no bleeding, I confirmed that there was a dent in my outer skin.

“Hmm, so it really is about this much,” I said, trying to act calm, but regardless of that, the look she gave me was entirely serious.

She did not seem suited for it, but the fact that she was properly checking the damage showed that she was indeed acting as a soldier.

“For now, this should allow you to report that you ‘engaged’ me.”

“Yes. No matter what happens, I can make excuses now.”

Ernestia returned the rifle to her shoulder and turned her back to me, about to leave.

The place she headed toward was where I had just been eating and drinking, and it seemed she would clean up the barbecue set.

Feeling somehow sorry, I approached to help, but she refused.

“Rather than that, could you leave? This is not a place where you should be.”

What she said was so perfectly reasonable that I could say nothing and left the fortress behind.

I had thought she was an unreliable recruit, but she was unexpectedly solid as a person.

In any case, with this, I could return to exploring again.

There had been an unexpected event in the form of contact with a Council-State soldier, but considering her background, I believed I had given her enough to make use of, so she would surely handle things well.

If that happened, unnecessary information would stop with her, and I would no longer need to worry about my movements or area of activity being probed.

I would bear the disgraceful name of a food thief, but since I had repeatedly plundered salt, it was too late to worry about that now.

“A monster invaded the fortress in search of food, stole it, but we shot at it and succeeded in driving it away.”

It would probably be reported like that, but when written out, it was quite pathetic.

However, this would also be useful in making them underestimate me and judge my threat level as low.

The result was not bad.

I concluded this incident that way and ran north.

What I had not expected was that she would be even more faithful to her duties than I had predicted.

Leaving aside whether I should call that a miscalculation, I would end up being dragged into the Council-State’s movements caused by Ernestia disregarding her own position and telling them everything.

There was no way to know the future, and the predictions of an ordinary person were unreliable.

I had known that, but… ordinary people are ordinary because they are bad at learning.