#1033 The Wives After the Yakiniku  

Haa...

The salt-fried yakisoba was delightful.

We got a nice balance of protein from all that meat and even threw in some carbs for good measure.

But I guess stuffing myself with carbs made me feel full a little early on, so our meat fest wound down quicker than I thought.

“Full! So full! That was so tasty! I am thoroughly satisfied!”

Even Platy seems thrilled, having stuffed herself silly with meat.

Her belly’s so round now… though, that might not just be from the food.

“Thank you so much, Dear! You really went all out planning this amazing feast! After all this pampering, I’ll be sure to give birth to a strong and healthy baby!!!”

Right, that’s the important part.

With all the energy and nutrients she’s recharged on today, I’m sure Platy’s going to be just fine when the big day comes.

“Haaa~ I’m so lucky to have such a thoughtful husband. It’s true, you know? People can be considerate, but not everyone’s on the same level.”

Platy keeps sneaking glances over to the other wives we invited.

Stop it!

I appreciate the husband praise, but showing off like this is going to make things awkward with the neighbors!!!

“Hey! My husband brought some thoughtful gifts, too, you know!”

Puffer jumps in, not backing down.

That’s right. Her husband, Arowana, did show up with a bunch of seafood and basically turned the whole thing into a cookout.

“That’s right… Platy, darling, when you trash-talk other people’s husbands, that includes mine, you know…”

Uh-oh, here comes Lady Mahi.

“Are you aware you’re talking about your own father?”

“I’m so sorry! I went too far! I got carried away, and I deeply apologize!!!”

And there goes Platy, bowing on the ground in a full-on apology.

Even her own daughter knows better than to insult Lady Mahi’s husband.

“But really, today was wonderful. Puffer and Lampeye got their fill of nourishment, and I’m sure we’re all recharged for whatever tomorrow brings!”

“I agree, mother-in-law!!!”

Puffer seems to have gotten pretty good at handling her relationship with Lady Mahi.

Since marrying into the Mermaid Kingdom, we don’t see her as often, but it looks like she’s matured in her own way.

“This was a truly meaningful day for me. Staring into the fire reminded me of its beauty as if I’d returned to the basics. You have taught me to rekindle my spirit, Lord Saint.”

That was Lampeye.

Uh, no...

That’s not even close to what this event was supposed to be about.

Not at all.

“Hey, hey, Dear! I have something to tell you!!!”

What is it now, Platy?

“I made a new mom friend! This is Arias, the daughter of that sneaky guy who once tried to marry me off to the Demon Kingdom!”

From that introduction, I’m really struggling to see how this could possibly lead to friendship.

I think I’ve seen her before, though.

Hm?

Wait, isn’t she Mamoru’s wife?

She’s got that ‘long-suffering spouse’ vibe going on.

I feel like she’s destined to deal with troublesome people.

“Oho! I can’t miss out on this gossip, meow!!!”

What is it this time?!

With a graceful leap, in springs Black Cat!

She is none other than the Guildmaster’s wife, visiting all the way from the Human Kingdom.

Oh, right, she’s expecting as well.

I wonder what kind of kid she and Silver Wolf are going to have?

“I heard that Heavenly One Meowmoru is best buds with my darling Silver Wolf, meow! So that makes us besties too, meow!!!”

“Whaaat?! Huuuuuuuuuuuuuh?!”

Hey, stop spinning around with her in your arms.

She’s got another life growing inside her!

It seems Black Cat has settled down a bit since getting married, but her feline instincts to cause chaos are still going strong.

Silver Wolf and Mamoru bonded over being overworked and underappreciated, so by that logic, you and Arias don’t really fit that mold, do you?!

But hey, who am I to question the strange reasons people become friends?

Thus, our barbecue ended up as a gathering of friendships, full of energy and laughter.

After all that careful planning, the big event was a success!!!

***

And once everyone finally left...

...Hm?

Someone’s still here?

Is that Zoth Syra?

She’s still grilling something all by herself over the last open flame.

Wait, there’s meat left?

If you were still hungry, we could’ve all shared, you know?

“Oh, saint. Welcome to my experiment.”

Experiment?

What exactly is she welcoming me to?

I have no idea what she’s trying to experiment with by grilling meat, but geniuses always see the world in ways us commoners can’t understand.

“What? Are you testing how burned meat can get before it’s still edible?”

“I wouldn’t insult the meat like that. Besides, everyone’s got their own preference for doneness. Some people even enjoy charred black bits, right?”

Really?

So then, what exactly are you experimenting with?

“What I’m grilling now isn’t the beef you brought, by the way. This is something I prepared myself.”

Huh?

“It’s meat from a homunculus I personally cultivated.”

“What?!”

“You see, I figured it’s smart to be prepared for future food shortages. You never know when a bad harvest might hit, so I thought if we had our own method of meat production, the people wouldn’t starve.”

What a ruler’s way of thinking.

She’s been complaining nonstop about quitting his position as prime minister, but here she is, ministering harder than ever!

But at the same time, she’s got a full-on mad scientist mindset, too.

She’s growing meat in a lab like something out of a sci-fi movie. A dystopian one, no less.

I mean, what about the ethics? Or health concerns?

And you’re just gonna start selling it at the market?!

Well, I guess that’s why she’s “experimenting” here first…

“I’ve already gone through countless trials and errors, but I think I’m at a pretty good point now. And just as I was thinking it’s time to get some expert feedback, along comes this yakiniku party. Perfect timing to try grilling it up just right.”

Wait, no way… Is this…?

Am I about to be the taste tester...?!

But, uh, I’m kind of full from that yakisoba earlier, so maybe I’ll pass…!

...Lies. I barely ate anything today since I’ve been playing server. One bowl of yakisoba isn’t going to fill me up.

Sadly.

“Here, eat up. I personally grilled this meat for you. You should feel honored.”

Uh, not really!

But there’s no getting out of this. I reluctantly put it in my mouth.

At least I have my emergency potion—aojiru with a bit of Yggdrasil leaf mixed in.

Even if my stomach melts, this should fix me up, no problem.

I can’t die yet! I have kids on the way—and the ones already here!!!

Okay! Time to survive this! Let’s gooo!

...

Chew chew chew chew chew chew chew…

Well, I mean… the taste…

The taste, yeah?

It’s kind of plain. Sort of like pork.

There’s no standout flavor, but that’s probably a good thing—it could be seasoned in a hundred different ways.

As for the texture…

...It’s like tripe?

No matter how much I chew, it’s got this firm, unyielding texture that refuses to break.

Definitely tripe vibes… or wait?

When I finally manage to bite through it, there’s this sudden pop of tenderness.

This is… beef tongue!

It’s got that exact chew of grilled beef tongue, everyone’s favorite at yakiniku joints!

But wait, the more I chew, the texture keeps changing, softening into something like prime kalbi—so tender!

It’s like a theme park of textures in my mouth!!!

This homunculus meat… could this be some kind of ultra-premium meat?!

The taste and texture are absolutely top-tier.

...But hold on.

If that’s true, what about the Minotaur beef I worked so hard to get my hands on?

I went through hell and back to snag that Minotaur beef, and now this stuff just casually comes along and blows it out of the water?!

I refuse to accept this!

I won’t acknowledge it so easily!!!

Zoth Syra’s homunculus meat may be delicious, but let’s not rush to conclusions just yet!