[17] Eggcellent Adventures Cracking the Code of Tamago Kake Gohan

"Then, crack the egg and let it fall into the indentation. Make sure to crack it properly. Don't be nervous; you can hit it against the edge of the table or the bowl."

Crash! Well, it's the first time handling an egg. Things like this happen. "It's okay to make mistakes, but make sure to clean up any spills. It hardens if it dries."

Somehow, everyone managed to place their eggs on the rice. Their success rate was about 67%.

"Now it's time for soy sauce. This clear container holds the soy sauce. It's salty and not meant for drinking, but think of it as a sauce. Drizzle it like this over the raw egg."

Since I hadn't bought a soy sauce dispenser, we'll have to pour it directly from the packet. But if they hold it with both hands and pour slowly, even the kids should be able to manage it. At first, everyone drizzled the soy sauce cautiously over the raw eggs.

"Next, mix the raw egg with the rice. Like this. Be careful not to stir too hard, or it will splatter."

Holding the chopsticks normally is fine, but I clenched them into a fist and stirred the contents of my bowl.

"That's it, we're ready. Once it's done, everyone should give it a try. This is how you hold chopsticks, but if it feels tricky, using a spoon is fine too."

"Oh, I almost forgot! It's considered rude to leave your bowl on the table while eating, so hold it with your left hand and use your chopsticks." I demonstrated by holding the bowl in my left hand.

Although I offered them the option to use spoons, everyone chose to eat with chopsticks. Their movements were clumsy, but at this rate, it seemed like they'd soon get the hang of it, including Lisa.

"So, how is it? Delicious, right?" I asked, but everyone fell silent. "Hey? Is it good?"

"Y-Yes, it's delicious!" they finally replied. It was a stroke of luck that my taste buds aligned with theirs.

"If you find the flavor lacking, feel free to sprinkle some of this on top." I presented several types of furikake. Opening a bag, I sprinkled bonito furikake over the egg over rice.

"This part of the bag is designed to reseal, so make sure to close it up when you're done using it. You can seal it when you finish eating."

Everyone cautiously shook some furikake over their egg over rice.

"It's delicious!" This time, I didn't have to prompt them to say so.

Feeling revitalized after the meal, I decided to check out the home improvement store in Japan after making today's batch of healer potions.

Before the transfer, I told Lisa, "Don't eat anything raw except for the eggs I'll give you." She replied, "Of course." It's likely common knowledge outside Japan that raw eggs aren't typically eaten. I haven't researched prices here, but raw eggs probably aren't cheap. Knowing this only strengthens the theory that Lisa comes from a well-off background.

At the home center, I planned to buy charcoal as a carbon source, along with a bowl and soy sauce dispenser that I forgot to get yesterday. If there are any useful items I come across, I'll pick those up too. While I could probably find charcoal in the New World, I thought it best to stick with the familiar home center.

On the way to the home center, if there's a supermarket, I also intend to buy instant miso soup. Although some instant versions contain real miso, I think choosing granulated miso would be better since my companions will be seeing miso for the first time and might find it daunting.

Speaking of instant foods, there's ramen, but since Lisa will be cooking, I don't need to rely on instant meals for now. I might crave it later, but for the moment, I'm fine without it. When I do decide to buy it, I'll need a timer. However, since the numerical displays differ between Earth and the New World, a digital timer might prove inconvenient. A three-minute hourglass could be handy instead.

In the afternoon, I planned to head back to the temple because the stone used for potion bottles was running low. I intended to venture into the outskirts to replenish my supplies of stone and soil. It would be ideal if there were rivers nearby for gathering water, but I was uncertain about what I would find. If the morning shopping left me too tired, I could always postpone until tomorrow.

I was familiar with the route to the home improvement store, but I couldn't recall the surroundings well enough to use my teleportation skill. Instead, I transferred as close to the store as possible and walked about a kilometer to reach it. To facilitate a direct transfer next time, I took the opportunity to carefully observe a quieter area near the store.

Once I entered through the front entrance, I grabbed a cart and began to explore the aisles, looking at various products.

"Oh! This could be useful!"

"This one seems promising too... and this one as well."

Though I hadn't yet found the charcoal I was after, my cart was filling up. After checking out, I found a secluded spot to store my items in the item box. I was surprised at how much I ended up spending—my funds were dwindling significantly. I reminded myself to withdraw some cash later with my debit card.

After making a substantial haul before even finding my desired items, I transferred near the bank. At the bank, I withdrew about 200,000, which filled my money pouch to the brim, so I moved some of it to my item box.

After I teleported directly back to the home center, I filled my cart with various useful items and picked up the charcoal I needed before heading to the checkout. I made sure to also grab bowls and a soy sauce dispenser. I noticed a rice paddle and decided to buy that too.

Though my shopping was done, I still had time before noon to return to New World. I thought I might relax with some tea in the mansion while waiting for lunch, so I teleported to the living room.

Lisa, realizing I was back, brought me tea without saying a word. It felt quite luxurious. The children, after unloading the supplies, were following Lisa's instructions to clean the mansion and weed the grounds.

Once I finished my tea, lunch was ready, and the children returned from the garden, washed their hands, and we all sat down to eat together.

"Let's eat!" we chorused.

While having lunch, I asked Lisa, "Do you know of any nearby places with rocks lying around?"

"I'm not very familiar with the area, but if you go out the south gate and walk for a bit, I believe there's a field or expanse with stones scattered about. You should find what you're looking for there."

"Thanks. I'll head out after lunch."

"By the way, I've heard that the land south of the city belongs to the temple, and only temple personnel are allowed to enter," Lisa added.

"Hmm. So, it's an item belonging to the temple. It's nothing I care about, but thanks for letting me know."

After finishing lunch and taking a brief break, I transferred to a spot I recognized, likely the closest place to the southern gate of the city, and headed that way.

At the southern gate, I found no gatekeeper, and it seemed people could come and go freely. Instead, a soldier stood on watch atop the gate, alert for anything suspicious beyond the city walls. I didn't know if they were expecting an attack from somewhere, but it seemed like a tough job.

As I stepped outside the city gates, I walked south along a roadway, keeping an eye out for any sizeable stones along the path. Unfortunately, it appeared that the area around the road was well-maintained, with no prominent stones in sight. Although the dirt here might suffice as material for ceramic potion bottles, digging up the nicely maintained road would be a bad idea. So, I veered off the path toward what was said to be uncultivated land owned by the temple, hoping to find a stream or spring to gather water.

Trudging through the wilderness were three girls accompanied by a guard from the temple, though at this moment, it seemed to be two girls and one. The task of spotting any game fell to Kazuha Tahara, a ranger with Exploration Level 3.

"Shh! Up ahead, 50 meters. There's something in the bushes...

It might be a wild boar, and it's coming this way."

"Leave it to me!

You can just watch from behind, Miya-san."

Hero Emily Yamada unsheathed her longsword, while Kazuha Tahara did the same, ready for action. Instead of wielding her mace, Miya Hana prepared spells—Haste and Fire Arrow—so she could respond to whatever emerged. Being told to stay back, she decided to cast Haste on herself, as casting it on Keiko or Ichiyo might throw off her own sense of timing with the sword. With Haste, she figured dodging a wild boar would be easy. Still, she doubted the boar would charge towards her with the Hero and Ranger in the way.

As the three focused on the bushes, they heard the wild boar's heavy breathing and the sound of its hooves pounding the ground. Then, the bushes rustled and the boar charged straight at Emily Yamada, the lead Hero.

Emily Yamada held her sword in an upper guard with both hands, but to Hana watching from behind, that stance seemed alarmingly vulnerable. The sword appeared to tremble as well. Though being a Hero, Emily Yamada was unlikely to suffer a fatal blow from a wild boar, Hana couldn't shake a feeling of unease.

Kazuha Tahara stood one step back from Hero, sword raised at the mid-level, but he clearly appeared hesitant. Just like Hero, his sword tip seemed to tremble.

The temple guards, stationed behind Sangen-in Hana, seemed to sense the tension and unsheathed their weapons.

It might be unwise to leave these two to handle the situation alone.

Assessing this in an instant, Sangen-in Hana released the fire arrow she had prepared, aiming it at the boar.

The arrow struck the beast between the eyes just as it was about to charge at Emily Yamada, instantly killing it. However, the boar continued its momentum, crashing into Emily Yamada, who stood frozen and failed to dodge.

Fortunately, by the time of the impact, the boar's speed had waned, and Emily was only pushed back a step.

Once she regained her senses, Emily realized that the boar had fallen victim to Hana's magic, and she had done nothing to help. In a reflexive motion, she turned and clicked her tongue in irritation, glaring at Sangen-in Hana. Kazuha Tahara reacted similarly, glancing back as well.

Their responses were exactly as Sangen-in Hana had anticipated. Although she did not feel much pride in unleashing the fire arrow without warning, witnessing Emily's childlike reaction made Hana certain that she could not work with these two.

I veered off the main road and made my way through the desolate land that supposedly belonged to a temple. Before long, I stumbled upon a moderately sized tent, set up in the middle of the overgrown wasteland. I had no idea what it was doing there, and I wanted to avoid any trouble from whoever might come out, so I quickly moved away while stowing the stones I found along the way into my item box, heading south.

I'd managed to gather quite a few stones, and as I contemplated heading back, I heard the unmistakable sound of swords being drawn from the nearby underbrush—at least four or five of them. While I acknowledged that I was trespassing, the truth was, if I hadn't been abducted to this world in the first place, I wouldn't even be here. So, I wasn't at fault at all.