The Buffet Omelette

Once I confirmed Alexia was ready, I opened the door and stepped out.

I planned to stay at this inn until the development work was finished. I had my valuables on me but left the rest of our luggage in the room.

The inn had baths, and the beds were quite good. More than worth the price.

Sleep quality was directly affected by bedding, and skimping on that was a surefire way to regret it.

Waiting outside our room was Azu, with Elza in tow.

"Good morning."

"Morning. Sleep well?"

"Um, well… yes."

I'd been expecting an immediate answer, so the slight hesitation caught me off guard.

Elza, for some reason, was fighting back laughter.

"Nothing happened, I swear. So please don't pry, okay?"

"Saying that just makes me more curious."

When I turned my eyes to Azu, she hastily crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Really, nothing happened! Come on, Master, let's go."

"All right, all right. Stop pushing."

Azu pressed against my back, urging me forward.

Maybe they'd stayed up a bit late chatting. As long as it didn't affect their work, I wouldn't scold them, but they were still growing, so they needed their sleep.

When I said as much, Azu nodded obediently.

"Elza, you're the older one here, so make sure you keep things in check."

"Oh dear, I'm in the line of fire now."

Hard to tell whether she was listening or not.

She always pulled through when it mattered, so I wasn't worried.

This inn included breakfast for all guests except those in the dormitory rooms.

It was buffet-style, with an assortment of dishes laid out in the dining hall.

I signed my name in the register and secured a table first.

It was early morning, so the place was quite empty.

The food was freshly made, too.

We each took an empty plate and helped ourselves to whatever caught our eye.

At times like these, what people chose and how they arranged it said a lot about their character.

Elza had neatly arranged yogurt, bread, ham, and sliced fruit.

The portions, however, were considerable.

Still, the fact that it all looked presentable despite the volume was impressive.

Alexia had piled pasta onto her plate, then heaped on meat as if the first serving wasn't enough.

Yet even so, the arrangement never looked vulgar, probably thanks to her upbringing.

Her table manners were equally elegant and refined.

The contrast between the mountain of meat and the pasta was a little amusing.

Azu's plate was well-balanced.

She'd even prepared a salad.

Though the generous helping of her favorite lamb stew she'd brought along was a nice touch.

Eat plenty.

Rather than just critiquing everyone else's plates, I needed to sort out my own.

After loading up on various dishes, I moved to the omelette station.

Apparently, this was a make-your-own setup.

A bowl of beaten eggs sat covered on ice, ready to go.

Beside it, three skillets were laid out, rigged with a magical tool that produced flame.

I ladled up some beaten egg and poured it into a heated skillet.

Eggs set quickly with heat, so I started rocking the pan the instant the liquid hit, spreading it evenly.

The heat was strong and cooked it fast, so before it fully set, I grabbed the spatula resting in water and rolled the egg.

These were quality tools.

The omelette didn't stick to the pan at all and came together without tearing.

I pulled it off the heat, tapped the handle three times to shape it, and slid it onto my plate.

Two sauces were available for seasoning: a warmed ground-meat-and-tomato sauce and a cream stew.

I chose the tomato sauce and drizzled it over.

Restaurant-quality, if I did say so myself.

I was admiring my handiwork when I felt eyes on me.

I turned around. All three of them were staring.

More specifically, at the omelette.

"… Want me to make you some?"

"Please!"

I ended up making omelettes for everyone.

Oh well.

The omelettes were delicious.

With breakfast finished and our energy fully restored, we left the inn.

The weather was clear, but the sun offered little warmth. Our breath came out white.

I wanted to be back in Kassad before true winter set in.

First, I needed to submit a letter delivery quest at the Adventurer's Guild.

The Adventurer's Guild, even in a city of this size, was deserted at this hour.

It would fill up all at once when the quests were posted.

I left my letter with the receptionist and offered the standard quest fee.

The request was accepted without issue.

If an adventurer happened to be heading to Kassad, they'd carry it along.

Letters required patience. You never knew when they'd arrive.

Still, better sent than not.

The receptionists were carrying stacks of quest forms toward the board.

Staying would only be in the way, so we left the guild.

We exited through Alsarm's city walls toward the development site.

Looking at the gate guards outside, I noticed a tense edge to the atmosphere.

And there were four of them, a lot for this early in the morning.

They were probably on high alert after the attack.

I could see sentries posted along the top of the walls, too.

No restrictions on coming and going yet, but I had a bad feeling about it.

"… The city itself seemed normal enough, but judging by that, it's like a wartime atmosphere out here."

"Yeah, that's what it looks like to me too."

Once we were some distance from the walls, Alexia made her observation.

Elza agreed.

"That was pretty grim. If it were actually heading toward war, you'd think the Adventurer's Guild would be mobilizing too."

"Adventurers are always the last to hear anything. Best case, nothing comes of it, but after an attack like that, there's no way the nobility stays quiet."

An assault on a duke's residence. An attempted abduction of his daughter.

Nobles took face seriously. They couldn't afford to let it go unanswered.

Show weakness, and everything fell apart.

The Church of the Sun God was the likeliest suspect, and they'd surely deny involvement, but what did the duke intend to do about it?

We debated back and forth as we walked, and before long we arrived at the development site.