Water Magician

After walking for an entire day, they could see the city in the distance by evening.

“Abel, I can see the city.”

“Yeah, finally. That’s probably the City of Kyradea.”

Ryo was surprised and inadvertently looked at Abel.

“How do you know that?”

It was no wonder that he was surprised.

There were no signs or markings on the road they walked on and they didn’t pass by anyone.

The location that they came down the mountain must have been quite remote so Ryo couldn’t think of any reason how he could identify the city.

“As an adventurer, I’ve been to various cities. Especially the cities in the Kingdom, I recognize most of them.”

“That means that is a city in the Kingdom of Knightley…”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“I’m glad it wasn’t the Debuhi Empire.”

“Like I said, the Empire is further north … The City of Kyradea is the southeasternmost city of the Kingdom. It’s not that big, but if we walk northwest from there for about a day, we’ll be in the City of Rune.”

Abel looked a little further ahead and looked beyond Kyradea.

“Rune … that’s the city Abel is aiming for, right?”

“Yes. Ryo, if you want to register as an adventurer, you should register with Rune instead of Kyradea.”

“Eh? Is that so?”

“Rune is the largest city at the frontier, so a lot of people and supplies gather there. As I said before, having the only dungeon in the central nations is one of the reasons why people and materials gather too. If you register Rune as your home city, you’ll get quite some flexibility in the city. Even if it is officially claimed to be equal, local adventurers are still given preferential treatment.”

Upon hearing that, Ryo nodded.

“I see. But when I enter the City of Kyradea, I have to prove my identity …”

“That’s okay as I can act as your guarantor. I’m a B-class adventurer after all. You would still need to pay a silver coin for entry tax but I’ll pay for you.”

“Oh, Abel, you’re such a good person. Of course, I’ve always thought so. It’s the truth, you know?”

Abel looked at Ryo with a look of doubt.

However, he quickly pushed it out of his mind and said.

“Right, Ryo. We’ll be staying one night in the City of Kyradea, but I have a dish I recommend. I definitely want Ryo to try it.”

They arrived at the eastern gate of the City of Kyradea right before the sun had completely set.

Ryo, following Abel’s advice, hung his bag over his shoulder and wore his robe over it.

It made it difficult to see the inside of the bag.

Abel himself carried his bag inside his cloak too.

There were a lot of Wyvern magic stones in their bags.

They made it less noticeable so as not to cause unnecessary trouble.

They were able to enter the city without any trouble.

Abel, a B-class adventurer, guaranteed Ryo’s identity and paid the entry tax of one silver coin.

That’s all that was needed and they entered the city without any issue.

Ryo, who had a slight expectation of a development like a guard taking an arrogant attitude, causing trouble, and the guard’s boss had to come over, was disappointed.

The inn was a place that Abel regularly used when he comes to the City of Kyradea for requests.

“There is a dining room on the first floor here where you can eat the usual meals.”

After completing the inn procedures, the two took their seats in the dining room on the first floor.

“Welcome. What would you like today?”

A plain but pleasant girl came to take their orders.

“I and this fellow here will have curry.”

Abel said 『Curry』 with a really cool pronunciation.

“Okay, right away.”

The girl took the order and went back to the kitchen.

“If it is not enough, just order another serving. The meal here is on me.”

“Abel! What a good person Abel is!”

A person who treats you is a good person.

At least, someone who treats is better than someone who doesn’t, right?

They waited for about two minutes?

A somehow nostalgic, but fragrant, appetizing, and seductive scent drifted from the kitchen.

(No way, this scent is …)

With that thought in his mind, the girl earlier carried a large platter over with both hands.

“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting, here’s your curry.”

What appeared was … yellow on white rice … that looked like it had plenty of spices … with a thick and gooey consistency…

“No way, curry …” (TLN: Abel pronounced ‘curry’ while Ryo knows it as ‘kare’ in Japanese)

Yes, in front of Ryo was a plate of curry rice, one of the Japanese national dishes.

(Speaking of curry rice, it is also a classic in reincarnation stories … but it is a standard in the sense that the main character has to struggle, spend a lot of time, and only finally succeed in reproducing it after traveling the world. But it already exists in 『Phi』 …)

“I was reminded of curry when Ryo served rice in the Rondo Forest. Let’s eat.”

“Ye-yeah…”

Ryo carried the curry scooped with a spoon to his mouth, trembling so minutely that no one could tell.

One bite.

Yes, it was unmistakably 『curry rice』.

Moreover, it was a curry rice with a terrifyingly high level of familiarity.

Nobody would notice even if it was served on Earth.

To Ryo, it was his first curry rice in 20 years (Ryo’s body clock).

He ate it slowly but his spoon never stopped.

“Ryo, if you like it, you can ask for seconds.”

“!”

That sentence from Abel was gospel for Ryo.

“Seconds please!”

“I-I’m glad you like it.”

Abel was slightly taken aback by Ryo’s intensity.

After that, Abel had seconds too and both of them had a very satisfying supper.

“Abel, is there curry in the City of Rune too?”

Yes, confirming that was very important.

If curry could only be had in the City of Kyradea, his home base would not be in the City of Rune but this city…

“Oh, you can eat it in Rune too. The spices used for the yellow soup on top can only be found around Kyradea so you might only find them in shops that are a little expensive. Well, Rune is the largest city on the frontier so many shops compete for business and as a result, the food quality is high. You can usually find curry in the southern cities of the Kingdom.”

“Oh, that’s great!”

“Ryo seems to like it a lot.”

Ryo nodded strongly.

“Yes, it was delicious.”

One day, when I return to the Rondo Forest, I definitely want to reproduce it there … Ryo swore firmly in his heart.