Chapter 10 – The Son Powers Up from the Evil Dragon’s Cooking 【Part 1】

The morning after they finished the far-too-easy-mode first subjugation quest.

In the living room of their home, Ryuuji was eating breakfast.

On the table before him was an incredibly heavy menu for so early in the day: steak, bread, and stew.

“Mom, you’re staying put at home today, got it?”

Ryuuji spoke as he slurped down the rich cheese cream stew.

sluuuurp…

The sour tang of the cheese and the creamy texture were absolutely delicious.

It was filled with chunks of chicken, and with each bite, the juices overflowed.

squish

His groggy body was filled with Vitality.

“And don’t go clearing the dungeon ahead of me!”

As of yesterday, Ryuuji had already figured out his mother’s crime.

“Aww.”

“It’s not ‘aww,’ honestly!”

“Alright, alright.”

Karma, timing it perfectly for when Ryuuji finished his stew, poured a second helping onto his plate.

(I was just thinking I wanted more.)

(She can read the room so well when it comes to things like this, so why does her ability to read the situation go in the complete opposite direction when it comes to her son’s safety…?)

Ryuuji sighed.

“Do you really get it?”

“I really get it.”

Ryuuji moved on to the garlic toast.

The toast was baked to a perfect crisp. She must have spread butter and grated garlic on it before baking.

CRUNCH.

As he chewed, the flavor of garlic spread with the butter.

sizzle…

His body started to feel warm… and he felt like he was brimming with energy.

His mother stared intently at him as he ate.

She had a disgruntled look on her face.

Then, Karma suddenly averted her gaze from Ryuuji.

She turned to the beastman, Sheila, who was wolfing down food beside him, and spoke.

“Is it really so strange for a mother to accompany her son on an adventure?”

“Um, uh…”

Sheila chewed for a moment before answering.

“Well… I certainly understand why Okaa-sama is worried about Ryu-kun. My mother also cried about wanting to come with me when I was leaving home. But…”

She was about to continue with “but,” when—

“SEEEEEEEEEE!! Did you hear that, Ryu-kun?!”

Karma turned a brilliant smile on her son, wearing a triumphant look that said, I told you so!

“It’s only natural for a parent to worry about their child! See, it’s the same in other families!”

Hmph!

Karma snorted.

“Okay, that’s enough…”

Haaaah… Ryuuji heaved a deep sigh.

He finally ate the main dish, the steak.

Sizzzzzle…

The round cut of meat cooked on the small iron plate.

The juices overflowed endlessly, sizzling and evaporating in the plate’s heat.

The fragrant smell hit his nostrils and stimulated his appetite.

When he put his knife to the meat, it cut through with surprising ease.

slice…

It was as effortless as cutting through butter.

He pierced the meat with his fork and brought it to his mouth.

With every bite… drip, drip… a sweet oil oozed from the lean meat.

Each time, his body grew warmer… and for some reason, it felt like my body had gotten lighter. And a warmth spread through my lower back.

(…But what is this?)

(It’s delicious, but… what is it?)

(It’s not beef. Not pork, and not chicken, either.)

It was the meat of an animal he’d never eaten before.

“Mom, what kind of meat is this?”

At that, Karma replied, “Aah, it’s becoming my son’s flesh and blood. Such bliss…,” with an ecstatic smile on her face.

(…I have a terribly bad feeling about this.)

“Mom… Hey, what kind of meat is this?”

Ryuuji asked, but his mother still wore a dreamy expression.

“It will become Ryu-kun’s blood, become his flesh, and eventually we shall become one. How wonderful… To think I can fuse with my angel… I’m so glad I’m alive…”

(…I have an intensely bad feeling about this.)

“Mom!”

He raised his voice, and his mother snapped out of it.

“What kind of meat is this!?”

“Did it not suit your taste?”

“No, it was delicious, but…”

“Then I’m glad.”

Smiling brightly, his mother answered.

“It’s a dragon’s tail.”

………………………

Ryuuji thought he must have misheard.

“Uh, one more time.”

“I said, it’s a dragon’s tail. It’s dragon steak. They eat it all the time in the Royal Capital, you know.”

(…H-Heh,) Ryuuji’s face twitched.

Q. What kind of meat is this?

A. It’s dragon meat.

Q. Where did you get it?

…………

He was too scared to ask his mother.

Just… everything about it was scary…

Putting that aside.

After finishing the meal his mother had made, Ryuuji and Sheila prepared to depart on their adventure.

His mother saw them off at the entrance.

“Are you sure I can’t come with you?”

“Nope. Be good and wait at home.”

“Mmmph…”

“And no going ahead of us, either!”

“Tch.”

Ryuuji hammered in the warnings.

“I understand. In that case, Mother will wait at home for Ryu-kun’s return.”

His mother backed down surprisingly easily.

Seeing that, Ryuuji became incredibly anxious.

(Isn’t this ridiculously overprotective mother of mine giving up a little too easily…?)

“You really can’t come with us, okay?”

“I know.”

“And no going ahead to the dungeon.”

“I’ve got it.”

“And I’m giving back the items!”

“I suppose it can’t be helped.”

The more he hammered the point home, the more the sense of wrongness stood out.

His mother wasn’t coming, he didn’t have the super-rare items, yet she was sending him off on an adventure.

(…This was incredibly suspicious.)

(“There’s no way I can let you do something so dangerous! If you absolutely insist on leaving, I’ll just have to destroy this planet!”)

That’s the kind of thing this ridiculously over-the-top mom of mine would normally say.

(…The suspicion was there. But as for what she’d done, he had no idea.)

This mother of his was far too unpredictable.

“…We’re heading out.”

“Yes, take care. Sheila, you be careful and protect Ryu-kun, you hear?”

“Yes, yes, I will!”

…And so, this time for sure, Ryuuji departed on a normal adventure.