The door to the cottage swung open. Chorus and Roque stepped out—both still half asleep—to check on the commotion. “What a fine morning, it looks like we caught something already.” Roque was acting cheery.
“Oh, it seems this prize has already been claimed by another,” Chorus pointed in Jaid’s direction.
“Uhh, no, you guys caught it so—” She didn’t want to abandon her prey, but that was the proper thing to do. The sun was just rising, so there’d be plenty of other creatures to find.
“No, that’s quite alright, dear,” Chorus assured her. “You were clearly after it, so it’s yours. Catching something like that would simply ruin the spirit of the hunt. That said-” A wardrobe popped up behind Chorus and their outfit changed to that of one of the tropiest looking hunters she’d ever seen. “-now I’m off.” Chorus dashed away, hunting rifle in hand.
“Good Morning, Jaid,” Roque was suddenly invading her personal space. “I would like to strike a deal. As you can see, I have this lovely cottage which comes with a fully-operational kitchen. We could use it to cook your monster if you like, and all I ask for in return is a small piece of meat I can use to complete the task. Before you get worked up over the rules, I’ve already verified with Nachi that we don’t have to hunt anything ourselves. The only requirement is that we obtain it somehow.”
Jaid’s mind started racing at this sudden proposal. Having actual cooking appliances would certainly ease this process. She wouldn’t need to build a fire. While she knew how and wouldn’t struggle, it would still be a hassle. On the other hand, taking Roque at his word for anything seemed unwise to the extreme.
“Think quickly,” Roque cut into her inner dilemma. “Your monster is already starting to rot. If we don’t cut out the meat soon, it’ll be worthless.” She glanced over to the carcass and the outside skin was indeed already starting to wilt and sizzle. “For an added bonus, I’ll even make us a lovely breakfast.”
Voicing its own opinion on the matter, her stomach gave a timely growl. “Fine!” Jaid relented. “Get the door and I’ll bring it in.” The pair worked quickly once they brought it inside. The small cottage had a surprising amount of counter space where they could fit the whole monster with just a bit of spillover.
“Take a look at this,” Roque pointed to the Flamingox’s leg with his knife. “Why isn’t it disintegrating? It looks like it’s already cooked.” He ripped the leg off, and it was lightly charred on the outside. Part of the inside was in fact cooked, but there were still raw bits. The important part was that there was no rot at all.
“Well, I did basically hit it with lightning. I guess that’s enough to fry whatever causes the degradation to begin with.” Jaid continued her work as if she was uninterested, but it lingered in the back of her mind. Her focus shattered when Roque took a bite.
“Hmm, not bad, needs spice.” Roque critiqued the leg. “Pretty spot on to the texture of any other cooked poultry skin. Bet it’d be good fried.” Jaid tried to ignore him, but was curious as to why he was so interested. “Very few humans have ever tasted monster meat, and when they do, it’s usually the more bland center. I bet some rich circles would love to try something this exotic.”
There it was finally, Roque’s scheme to make money off it somehow so Jaid could be at peace. Once they’d finished with and disposed of the carcass, Roque made good on his word to cook breakfast. First, he changed out of the obnoxiously comfortable looking pajamas he’d been in this whole time. Now, he was wearing a designer brand shirt and matching opulent apron. If it wasn’t for the ridiculous price tag, he’d almost look like a proper house-husband.
“Don’t worry about all these ingredients, I won’t be handing any of them in,” Roque referred to everything else he was using to make their breakfast as he worked. “As you can guess, my deal with Nachi is I know all the tests ahead of time and could properly prepare. For this cottage, though, she inspected it beforehand and knows what I have. So, I’d fail immediately if any of this food was presented.”
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Jaid hadn’t voiced her criticism at all, though it was in line with her thoughts. It was getting quite annoying how well people had been reading her lately. She couldn’t judge them on it really since she’d been doing the same. “Your Curse, right? It let you transport a cabin?”
“Yes indeedy,” Roque didn’t hesitate to answer. “I’ve actually had this cottage for a long time. It’s been using up one of my slots for years, as soon as I could coax something this big.”
“Okay, I get why you stayed here then,” Jaid couldn’t blame him for using every advantage. “But why did you let Chorus stay? That good of friends already?”
“Hmm, not particularly,” Roque was slightly thrown off by the question. “Friends aren’t really something I think about. Someone is worth my time, or they aren’t. Chorus has all the makings of a very lucrative partner in the future, so I won’t deny trying to buddy up with them. However, that has nothing to do with why I let them stay here. They just asked nicely.”
Jaid scrunched her face in disbelief. Asking nicely and being affected by such pleasantries didn’t seem plausible for either of them. “Oh, don’t give me that look,” Roque smirked when he peeked over his shoulder. “I’m not always some money grubber always out to make a profit. Sometimes it’s just nice to be nice. Though I did charge them an exorbitant amount to let them film in here. Now eat up.”
Roque slid a plate in front of her face: breakfast tacos made with shredded meat from the Flamingox. “You don’t have to doubt my cooking skills now too,” he commented on her once again telling face. “Let me tell you. The best revenge a man can have on a woman who says ‘you won’t be able to get by without me’, is to become better than her at everything she was proud of. My ex-wife loved cooking, but now I can only remember it as mediocre.”
After a hesitant first bite, Jaid almost wolfed down the whole thing, remembering her manners near the end. As if Roque had been expecting her appetite, he slid her another plate. “Now, I have a favor to ask,” Roque had entirely been ignoring his own food and started casually sliding it in her direction, as if to tempt her. “Feel free to say no, but may I see that sword of yours.”
Jaid stopped chewing as her whole body tensed—immediately defensive. “I won’t try to buy it from you or anything,” he attempted to persuade her further. “I also can’t take it from you with my Curse. It’s very loyal. Just… well, like many rich people, I’ve come to take an interest in antiques and artifacts. With your sword’s hilt parading around on your back, it’s certainly caught my eye.”
To be safe, Jaid made a clone of herself while holding her sword. This essentially infused the sword as part of her, and the clone couldn’t let go of the copy even if it wanted to. The clone obliged and laid the sword out on the table, but was forced to keep a finger on it still.
Roque immediately ran his fingers along the flat of the blade until he reached the hilt. “This is certainly an antique.” His interest had clearly been piqued. “This size and craftsmanship. Very few humans would or even could make this. Can you tell me what you know about its creation?”
“Uhh, sorry. It was my mother’s, and she never really talked about it,” Jaid apologized. “She’s had it my whole life, but was only able to start using it after she became a Lesser, I believe.”
“Hmm, alright, let me change the question.” Roque drew in closer, leaning over the sword and staring directly into Jaid’s eyes. “Have you ever heard the legend… That our history is a lie? That this is humanity's second chance?”
“Umm… uhh… you’re talking about those weird ancient cities right?” Jaid was utterly lost. Part of the breakfast taco she’d stolen from Roque’s plate slipped out of its shell and splattered. Was he saying her sword came from one of those?
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Roque immediately retracted. “It was an old tale spread long ago. Those who still spoke of it died in the Drazah war. I doubt even our precious leader knows about it. Don’t worry, though, it’s probably nonsense. You hear all kinds of crazy rumors and crackpot theories when you’re rich. I’ll tell you about all the tales of aliens and demi-gods at a later date.”
The conversation practically died after all that weirdness, and the pair started to clean up. Roque cut up a slab of the remaining meat for Jaid and gave it a quick roast. It looked about the same as if she’d cooked it over a fire, so they doubted anyone would question it. Roque put it in a bag for her for easier transport but she’d put it on a proper serving device later.
Now all Jaid needed was something foraged and some water which wouldn’t be too difficult to acquire. She’d crossed a stream last night and was pretty sure she’d seen some fruit while chasing the Flamingox. It was still very early in the morning as well, so there was no need to rush. However, while backtracking her steps, she heard a strange noise. It sounded like crying, but it wasn’t from an animal or a monster. It sounded human.