131 — Camping (1)

Since then, the paradise beneath the cave where the silver fish live has become our camping site.

When I have a headache, looking at the clear sky through the ceiling of the cave above the lake makes all my worries feel pointless.

Of course, all those worries are caused by Rurin.

The distance between us.

The physical intimacy that has progressed to the point where we can kiss naturally, and the path forward.

One day, getting married, having children with Rurin, and raising them.

Growing old together like that.

Marriage itself is the greatest darkness and abyss sleeping in Rurin’s heart.

I plan to wait until I can solve the incident related to her mother and proudly announce our marriage in front of her…

I’m not sure what to do about this distance between Rurin and me.

Of course, the more I think about it, the more I feel it’s a useless worry. Now that I’ve lifted the restrictions in my heart.

Just let it flow naturally,

naturally,

not too hastily,

slowly moving forward.

For Rurin, all of this is a first experience. After all, it’s her first time in this world.

Laughing, getting annoyed, getting angry… She’s lived for hundreds of years sealing away all those emotions.

Anyway.

Rurin and I are slowly progressing, and today we have a tagalong.

Sereina, who followed us here, and Elena, who came along unintentionally, are camping with us.

Well, sometimes this is nice too.

There are many people like the Greek boy, the Mate brothers, and the Knoll couple, but only these four can stay comfortably without hiding anything.

Those who know my true identity, my real power, and we know each other’s identities, with nothing to hide.

Since camping should be comfortable, this group is just right, with no mistakes and full use of mana.

The term “people” isn’t quite accurate, though.

In short, members who can be with each other without hesitation.

“What is this place? The ceiling… It could be made similar by drilling with breath, but it would be unnatural. Here it’s different. Like a terrain formed over hundreds of millions of years…”

Sereina began a geological analysis of the strange structure of the underground lake in the cave.

Of course, it’s a very useless endeavor.

I think the best way to enjoy a scenic view is simply to appreciate it as it is.

“Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Yes, it’s beautiful. What have you two been doing here? How sneaky.”

“What does ‘sneaky’ mean?”

Then Rurin unusually asked Sereina a question.

“Sneaky can sometimes be a good thing, I guess? It’s like that.”

“So what does that mean! It’s frustrating! Damn hag!”

“Hey, who’s a hag? Live your whole life without knowing, you brat!”

Yeah, it’s normal for you two to fight.

Rurin and Sereina bickering has become so natural. It’s a scene that’s as certain as a law of the universe, so I just ignored them and shut my mind off from the two.

Unlike the two dragons who are fighting, Elena is calm as usual.

I looked over to see what she was doing and found her crouching by the lake, quietly watching the scenery.

“Nature is truly amazing.”

She said something so typical of an elf.

Her ears twitching showed she was in a very good mood, so I didn’t feel like disturbing her.

“Then, shall I make some food?”

When I said that to Rurin and Sereina, Rurin stopped fighting with Sereina and ran over to me, giggling.

“We don’t need food. I brought a lunchbox! Of course, there’s none for them.”

“Huh?”

And I had to question my ears. A lunchbox from Rurin?

---

This happened yesterday.

When El suggested taking a day off from the restaurant and going out, Rurin recalled a magazine she saw in the storage room.

It was an article on ‘The Ultimate Newlywed Picnic Special’.

It clearly stated that a delicious lunchbox is essential for a picnic.

A moment to deepen love with the wife’s lunchbox.

Remembering the article’s title, Rurin made a lunchbox. But cooking is troublesome.

No, beyond troublesome, El’s cooking is naturally delicious. But she was very interested in the idea of deepening love.

To the extent that it overcame the inconvenience.

So, how to make the lunchbox?

Rurin fell into that thought. She stared at the kitchen. It’s not that she couldn’t cook.

El had taught her a few times, and she always received praise for doing well.

But that was when El helped.

When she does it alone, she can’t control her strength. Her fireball is too powerful, and it ends up a mess.

She vividly recalled almost dying from tasting the food she tried to cook when El had a cold.

She also remembered two boys rummaging through the trash enjoying it. She wasn’t sure, but she thought those boys worked on the ranch.

She was so uninterested in other beings that she wasn’t sure.

And now it doesn’t matter at all. Soon, in Rurin’s brain, Mate and Linte disintegrated into subatomic particles and disappeared.

The important thing is that she couldn’t cook alone.

She just tried to cook again and ended up causing an explosion.

Fortunately, El had gone to the Lord’s castle to collect money.

“Sigh, this lunchbox thing is hard.”

Then Rurin had a good idea. With traces of the explosion still on her face and hair, she went into the storage room.

She pursed her lips and wandered around, sniffing like a stray cat looking for food.

[Pack what your tired husband likes. He might return with a surprising gift!]

The magazine said so.

What El likes.

Finally, Rurin’s eyes spotted the target. This storage room mainly held processed goods from El’s world.

There, she found food that both she and El often enjoyed with beer.

Rurin started laughing with black ash on her cheeks.

“Isn’t this enough? Easy. Hehe.”

Forgetting about sincerity, Rurin became obsessed with the word “lunchbox” and started moving her hands.

---

“You? The great Rurin?”

“Yes.”

Rurin nodded confidently.

She confidently nodded and handed me the lunchbox.

Her overconfidence makes me uneasy. What is this feeling?

“Tada!”

Then Rurin opened the lid.

“I’m not eating that. It’s a love lunchbox for the two of you, so I’ll step aside. Hoho.”

Sereina glanced at the lunchbox and turned her head away, retreating backward and disappearing.

“You never had any in the first place.”

Rurin glared at Sereina as if asking what nonsense she was spouting, then looked back at me.

Her eyes were smiling.

“Well, thanks for the lunchbox. It’s thoughtful.”

“Really? Hehe!”

I patted Rurin’s head. After softly stroking her silky hair, I chose my words carefully and got to the point.

“But…”

“What? Oh, if you ask, I could feed you.”

“Well, it’s just…”

Rurin’s face filled with question marks.

Her face was full of question marks.

“No matter how you look at it, calling rice topped with snacks a lunchbox…”

“Isn’t it okay? It’s your favorite snack!”

The lunchbox Rurin handed over.

Next to the white rice were potato chips. Sure, if you think of eating potatoes with rice, it’s not wrong. After all, the main ingredient of potato chips is potatoes.

“This isn’t something you made, you just transferred it!”

“How did you know? Are you a god!”

“How did I know? The rice is also what I cooked.”

“The magazine said if I pack a lunchbox for a picnic, my husband would like it. So…”

“I’ll teach you how to make a proper lunchbox next time. Try it.”

“Really? Actually, I felt something was off too! But when I tried, the kitchen exploded! Ah!”

Rurin covered her mouth with both hands as she said that.

Then she took a step back.

“Hey, you pretended not to know, but it was you who did it in the kitchen!”

“I, I don’t know!”

In the end, Rurin handed me the lunchbox with potato chips and started running away.

A lunchbox made by Rurin.

Although the side dish is a snack, it’s her first time making a lunchbox for me, so the thought of giving it to someone else or throwing it away never crossed my mind.

It’s fine to eat them separately.

Eating them together would be, well, very strange.

Unfortunately, the potato chips were already covered with rice grains. That’s how sticky rice is.

After circling around the cave, Rurin came back and squatted in front of me. She asked curiously.

“Are you eating that?”

“Yes. I’m hungry, so I’ll eat.”

“Is it good?”

“Want to try?”

“No. Not that.”

“Hey, you… You just said ‘not that’…!”

“When did I say that? I don’t know! Hehehe.”

Rurin laughed confidently and changed the subject.

“You! I’m hungry too!”

So confident.

She gestured for me to give her something better since she gave me the lunchbox.

Well, this is normal.

And so, the lunchbox issue was settled.

I started preparing to cook as originally planned.

Then Sereina, who had been horrified, finally smiled in satisfaction.

“Yes, that’s the way it should be. In a place like this, we should eat something delicious. Our elf here doesn’t move, just taking in the wonders of nature.”

Elena was still crouched in front of the lake.

I thought she could stay like that for a whole year.

“Ms. Elena, could you help me with the cooking?”

I asked her gently, and Elena’s still body twitched slightly.

“C-cooking? Oh, okay!”

And surprisingly, the dazed expression she had while immersed in nature vanished as she ran over to me and looked at the camping cooking set.

Camping calls for curry.

Camping curry is a menu with a unique flavor.

“What can I help with?”

I’m the one who asked for help. Of course, the two freeloading dragons would ignore it even if I asked for their help.

Elena was very serious and asked with a face full of curiosity.

But there’s nothing for now.

So I had her wait.

“Just a moment. For now, just watch.”

“I see.”

Since Elena is here, the curry won’t have meat. Anyway, it’s not a full-fledged curry.

It’s not the kind of curry made from scratch with spices, but the powder-type curry popular in Korea.

This yellow powder curry is very famous in Korea. There are solid and powder types, but the taste is similar.

It’s not like the curry from a professional Indian restaurant, but for camping, this ready-made curry powder is the best.

In various settings like MT (membership training) or camping with friends, Korean curry is quite popular.

It’s easy to make, after all.

Of course, I’ve never actually experienced camping with friends or MT.

Having cooked for survival with fellow soldiers on the battlefield, I briefly thought camping with friends might be similar, but it must be different.

Anyway, among powdered curries, Ottogi curry is the most famous, and there was also a similar series called 3-minute curry.

The 3-minute curry comes complete with vegetables and just needs heating, but with curry powder, you have to prepare everything except the crucial curry powder, which is a bit different.