The members of the Wharf of Shikumu party all wore an awkward expression on their faces. I first met them when they came to Gimuru to sell the Bloody Slime.
“It’s been a while. Shin-san, Sein-san, Peiron-san.” [Ryouma]
“Yeah…” [Shin]
“Ahh…” [Sein]
“…” [Peiron]
“Supper is ready, Boys! So make some room so we can get started!” [Mother]
Fortunately for them, the mother of the family appeared and immediately changed the situation.
They cleared the area from the earthen floor all the way to the sunken fireplace, and then they brought in a large pot, several bowls for all of us, and a round thing knitted with plants.
That round thing seems to be boiling something inside it.
The smell isn’t that strong, but I feel like I’ve smelled it from before somewhere.
One thing is for sure, though. It’s definitely seafood. I mean this is a fishing village, after all.
Word has it that they have a lot of seafood here, something I normally can’t eat back at Gimuru, so I’m actually really looking forward to tonight’s supper.
“Geh! This is tonight’s food?” [Kei]
“? Do you not like the food, Kai-san?” [Ryouma]
“I like it, but people from other places don’t.” [Kai]
Since they’d already lifted the lid, I went ahead and peeked inside.
“Crab!?” [Ryouma]
That round thing was packed to the brim with bright red crabs boiled to a turn!
“Wow, that’s really nostalgic!” [Ryouma]
Crab… It’s taken from the lake here, so it’s probably a freshwater variety like Sawagani (Japanese Freshwater Crab).
I’ve eaten crab back on Earth, but only as a luxury, and this is my first time seeing crab since coming to this world.
“So this village also catches crabs on top of fishes?” [Ryouma]
“We can catch a lot if we set some traps, but still… I’m surprised you don’t mind them.” [Hoi]
“We eat crab at my hometown. In fact, it’s my favorite.” [Ryouma]
“Oh, really? Well, at least you like the food. That’s a relief. We prepared some fish just in case, but we have a lot of those crabs of yours, so just eat as much as you want.” [Mother]
The mother of the family lined up the skewered fish on the sunken fireplace and served me seafood soup.
For some reason, she looked happy as she served me a bowl of soup packed with ingredients.
“Don’t be shy. Eat as much as you want!” [Hoi]
I took one crab boiled in salt, plucked one of its legs, and brought it to my mouth.
…It was fairly elastic considering how thin and tight it was. With each bite, the sweetness of the crab would ooze out accompanied by the exquisite seasoning of salt… A plain taste, but that is exactly what makes it so delicious!
“As expected, it’s really delicious!” [Ryouma]
Because the crab was small, the leg I took was also small, so it was really convenient for a child like myself to eat.
“I like how you eat. Keep eating. Here’s another one. Have some soup too.” [Mei]
“Thank you very much, Mei-san. Yeah, this soup is delicious too.” [Ryouma]
There’s a strong taste of mustard mixed in with the soup, but it works really well when combined with the fish stock.
“Look, Boy. More of that favorite food of yours.” [Hoi]
“Itadakimasu.” [Ryouma]
I just can’t have enough of the crab here and my hands won’t stop moving either.
“Here you go! Eat as much as you want!” [Mother]
Crabs are so delicious!
Everyone is paying attention to me and offering me more and more food.
Because of that I just kept on eating and eating.
When I had eaten my fill, my welcome party and supper ended.
The members of the Wharf of Shikumu Shin-san, Peiron-san, and Sein-san all went back to their houses.
And then Mei-san told me to go to sleep early since I would have to work early tomorrow, not to mention the fact that I must’ve been exhausted from the trip. When I entered the futon I had been given inside my room, it suddenly hit me.
We were supposed to talk over supper, but I was so focused on eating the crabs that I barely said a word outside of food. Oops.