Pancakes

Emi's plate was empty in seconds, with not a single sign of food remaining. The syrup had been licked clean as well.

"Wow! So good! What is this stuff?" Emi asked, a sticky substance around her lips.

Days before, Amaya bought all the necessary ingredients to make pancakes from scratch. She went through the trouble of making the syrup as well. Pancakes wouldn't be much good without it.

"They're called pancakes. It's a special dish of mine." Amaya answered, proudly.

Though it didn't take skill to make pancakes; this breakfast was unheard of in this world. So she could act like it was a big deal and not be called out for it.

"Pancakes? Why are they called that?"

"Well, simple. You make them in a pan and they're sweet like cake. So, they're pancakes."

"Ohhhhhh. That's smort." Emi held out her plate, "Please. Can I have more please?"

This was already her third plate and there were none left to be eaten.

But when Amaya saw her cheerful smile, she couldn't possibly decline.

"Sure. Why not."

Amaya got up from the table and went on to cook another batch. Once done, she stacked the pancakes in the middle of the plate then covered them with syrup.

"Annndd, here you go. My special special dish." Amaya put the plate down in front of her.

The very moment Amaya found herself to blink, the pancakes were already gone, reduced to nothing, not even crumbs.

"Yummmy!" Emi happily sang.

From the amount of syrup she consumed from all four plates, she was going to get a sugar rush sooner or later.

A firm knock came at the door.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

'Who could that be?' Amaya thought to herself.

When she twisted the door handle and pulled it open, Katsu's figure was standing there, a sheathed blade in hand.

"Here's the sword I promised."

[ Broadsword: 12 Damage ]

Amaya accepted it, "Woah. Thanks." she examined the blades sparkle under the sunlight, "Danngg. This one heck of a sword. This is like an early Christmas present."

Though it wasn't snowing around these parts, Christmas was still right around the corner. At least, it would've been if that existed here.

Out of the blue, Katsu's tone turned into a serious one.

"Amaya…What did you just say?"

His eyes weren't visible through his helmet, but Amaya could sense a harsh glare.

"Umm. Christmas? Just ignore that. It's a word I made up."

She wondered, 'Did I say something wrong?'

Why did Katsu's entire mood turn dark? Sure, he was always dark, but not in this way. It was like he figured out something serious.

This moment was tense.

Luckily, Emi peeked her head out of the doorway and lightened the vibe.

"Oh. Katsu! Hii! You should come try Amaya's pancakes! They are soooo delicious!"

Amaya frantically waved her hands around,"E-Emi. Let's not make him feel forced to eat. I'm sure he already had breakfast."

Someone like Katsu wouldn't possibly take an offer like this. He was too independent.

When Katsu gave his reply, it turned out to be a shocking one.

"Pancakes, huh. Sure... I'll try some."

He'd been up all night piecing tether evidence, and he even skipped breakfast this morning as wheel. His stomach was rumbling with hunger.

It wouldn't be efficient to go about his day without eating something first.

Katsu was seated at the table, his helmet on his lap as he was eating the syrup covered pancakes. His face didn't show it, but he genuinely enjoyed it. The sweet taste and the soft texture make him feel at home.

It had been a long time since he ate something like this. The bittersweet nostalgia came running in. Exactly 10 years ago, he remembered this taste. All his allies gathered around a table, lively conversations as they enjoyed breakfast together.

'This takes me back.'

Amaya watched tensely, her back and shoulders tensed. Sweat was even beginning to form down on her face. She could only hope that he liked what she prepared, though it wasn't likely.

Katsu finished the last bite on his plate.

"Nicely done. That wasn't bad at all." He gave her a nod of approval.

"Wha?! You actually liked it?? I thought you were going to be super picky! Or something." Amaya exclaimed.

"Picky is one thing I'm not. Especially if someone prepared something for me." His eyes glanced back down at the empty plate, "This was really good, Amaya. Thank you."

Honestly, Amaya felt herself blush a little. She played it off with a cool act.

"What can I say? I guess I'm just good at cooking."

It was the only thing bad luck couldn't ruin for her.

Katus rose from his seat, placing his helmet back on. Like before, the mood grew serious. Except, it was for a different reason this time.

"You know what today is, right?"

Right as his question reached Amaya's ears, a drop of sweat trickled down her face.

She nodded, "I do. Le'ts get it over with."

On the outskirts of town, they stood in the center of a grassy field, swinging their blades.

Clink! Ching!

With everything Amaya had, she swung her blade without stopping. None of her attacks posed much of a challenge to Katsu, who gently parried against her every time.

"You're getting better. Better than last time."

Amaya replied with a huff, "Yeah?...looks like you're barely even trying.."

At the beginning of the week, and at the end of it, they would alway go out to the field and spar. This was Katu's way of teaching her the way to properly use a sword. He'd become sort of like a mentor to her.

Compared to two months ago, Amaya had improved noticeably.

Still, Katsu was way more proficient and battle-hardened.

He was barely even moving his blade, yet, he still blocked each strike.

Amaya gathered all her arm strength, both hands gripped on the handle to her sword. With a leap forward, she slashed.

Swip!

ClinK!

Katsu swifty stepped aside, then wacked the sword from her hand. The tip of his broadsword was pressed against her shoulder. over.

The match was declared over.

It ended in loss for Amaya, like it always did.

"You did well." Katsu complemented.

Amaya stroud over and lifted her blade off the dirt, dusting it off.

"Not well enough, I guess. You still won."

She pushed her sword back into its scavern and sighed, "It's been like two months and I still haven't landed a single hit. You always know what I'm about to do."

Katsu shook his head, "Believe me, you're not that bad. You forget; I used to fight on the frontlines for this kingdom. For nine long years."

A bloody nine years it was. Katsu's skill with the sword came naturally, but even he had to work hard to become as he was now.

Amaya was just as good as any other knight, aside from the talented ones.

She was vastly underestimating herself. With a mindset like that, it would be difficult for her to grow.

There was one way to fix this, that would be to force her into a tough situation, only then, Amaya would realize her strength.

"Gosh. I'm starting to wonder if I can even get better at all."

Despite everything the Goddess had said last night, Amaya still didn't feel that special.

Katsu went on, tossing an idea.

"If it's alright with you, I'd like to bring you along with me tomorrow. I'm heading to a dungeon."

Hopefully then, she could realize her improvement.

Walking over to her side, Katsu continued, "This will be a test. I'll be leaving in a couple days. If you show me how much you've learned, you can tag along."

"You're leaving? Where to?"

"The kingdom's capital. There's something I'm investigating. Should take no more than a month. Are you up to it?"