“Look, it's a Blue Giant.”

Shilky points her finger toward the ocean.

There is a huge, blue humanoid shape far away in the ocean.

Since I can barely distinguish its features, it has to be pretty far away. However, being able to see it from this distance is the proof that it is indeed colossal, and there exists only one humanoid race of that size : the Blue Giant. It is one of the five races of the alliance along with the Tail Foxes and the Arachnes. They are often feared by other monsters because of their size, but they are friendly towards other races of the alliance.

“It seems to be fighting against something.”

Now that she mentions it, I notice that there is something other than clothes wrapped around him.

“Let’s get closer.”

I carry Luxe on my back in fox form and follow the shore line until we reach the closest location to it. Even though the water only reaches the waist of the blue giant, it has to be at least twenty meters deep.

I can see a round octopus head. And knowing that it might be a Kraken, I can recognize what is wrapped around the giant as tentacles. Even among the sea creatures, there is only one colossal monster sharing those aspects.

“The thing he is fighting against, isn't that a Kraken?”

“That seems to be the case. Well, I guess he will be alright, then.”

Shilky snickers.

Krakens are one of the blue giants' staple food. Since Krakens rely on their size and strength of their tentacles, the Blue Giants that are superior in both size and strength are their natural enemies.

The sight of two colossal monsters fighting each other is a sight to behold. As I thought, Luxe was fixated on the scene.

As Shilky predicted, the movements from the Kraken gets scarcer as the time passes, and the Blue Giant walks towards us holding the Kraken on his back.

As it comes closer to the shore, its lower body comes out of the water, and its colossal figure becomes fully visible. If it came right in front of us, his feet alone would be taller than us.

“Hello, little ones. Isn't this Rina the three tailed fox?”

A low- pitched voice resounds from above. Just like I did, it seems that he recognized me.

“Yeah, but I don't want to be shouting at your feet, so do something about it!”

“My bad. It has been a while since the last time I talked to the small ones.”

He puts his hand on the ground and urges us to mount onto it.

He raises us on top of his palm to meet his eyes. His blue face alone is several times bigger than my fox body.

“So, Rina and an Arachne? And is this one a human?”

His yellow eyes roll to observe each of us.

“I'm Shilky, and this is Luxe. Who might you be?”

“I'm Babor, a Blue Giant. An Arachne to come all the way to the ocean is one thing, but for a human girl to stay calm in front of me, what a rare sight.”

Oh no, that's right. I forgot about it because of how she has been acting around Shilky, but the sight of a Blue Giant should be intimidating enough by itself. Me and Shilky are okay because we know that they won't attack those from the alliance, but Luxe doesn't know that. Moreover, we are now several dozen meters above the ground, so she might even be trembling in fear by now! How could I forget about this?

Contrary to my worries, she is not trembling nor cowering down. Instead, her eyes are just focused on something. What is she even looking at? Is there something to pay more attention to than those huge yellow eyes of his in this situation? When I follow her gaze, I see the Kraken on Babor's back, still twitching occasionally.

No, there is no way what I am thinking is the case, right?

Yeah, she must have realized that Babor is not a threat, and is being wary of the Kraken instead.

That has to be the case.

“... Luxe, do you like octopuses?”

“Octopus...”

Yep, I clearly saw her gulping just now.

But you ate so much! How come it is the only thing you are thinking about in this situation? Argh, I don't get it anymore. It has been all incomprehensible ever since Shilky joined!

Wait, talking about Shilky, I suddenly have chills running down my spine.

I carefully turn around, hoping that what I am thinking is not the case.

And there, Shilky is also eagerly looking at the Kraken.

“... Babor, do you mind sharing your food with us?”

“What an unusual request. Surely I don't mind, but I didn't bring cooking utensils, since I was planning to bring it home.”

“Don't worry, I can take care of it.”

I feel like it has been the only thing I have been doing, but with the two gluttons looking at me with sparkly eyes, I have no other choice.

“Are you two sure that you can eat more right now? I won't help even if you get a stomach ache later.”

“Hmph, Arachnes have a separate stomach for octopuses!”

You obviously just made that up!

“Kraken... Grilled octopus... Chilli sauce? Mayonnaise?”

It's no good, she is saying incomprehensible things, but I can tell that she is determined to eat.

I create a huge pot. This time, the size is a lot bigger than the previous one, since it has to contain the Kraken.

“As always, your transformation magic is ridiculous.”

“Well, it is our tribe's pride after all.”

“Even so, I'm quite jealous since we Blue Giants have no affinity for magic.”

As he said, the Blue Giants aren't able to use any magic. Instead, they have the ridiculous strength and resistance. Just with that, their individual fighting ability is the highest among the five races of the alliance.

One would think that they are lacking in intelligence because of that, but that is a huge mistake. Their intelligence is quite high, and combined with their long life span, they are very knowledgeable. It's a shame that they can't use any magic with those specs, but at the same time, they would have completely broken the ecosystem if they could.

“I think you are fine the way you are.”

“... Well, that aside, if you are going to cook, let me add this.”

Declaring as such, he takes something out of his pocket and puts it in the pot.

“What was that?”

“It is an Appalachian Dewberry. It's flavor will help with the Kraken's taste.”

Once the pot starts boiling, I try tasting it with Babor's help. I thought that since the pot is so huge, the flavor Babor added wouldn't make any difference, but it seems I had underestimated him.

The strong flavor of the Dewberry is diluted in the pot to give a slightly spicy taste that mixes perfectly with the sweet salty taste of the octopus. It seems the Blue Giants know what they are doing with their food.

“Amazing! I didn't think adding a berry like that would make such a difference.”

“It is a secret recipe exclusive for Krakens. I'm glad you like it!”

Babor laughs in satisfaction.

Ah so it's like that. I heard that Krakens are staple food for them, but I must have instinctively thought that they don't eat them that often. Like, who would eat those huge and powerful ocean monsters every day? But for Blue Giants that are able to catch them easily, it is not an issue. I nod as I fully understand the true meaning of Kraken being a staple food.

But Blue Giants season their dishes, huh? It's the first time I heard about it. Well, it's not like anyone really gets invited by them to eat food, so it's no surprise that it is not a well known fact. Actually, if I didn't study human cooking before, I myself would not have realized it neither.

The biggest problem I have had in cooking is the limited knowledge about recipes and such. Even though my magic helps tremendously when it comes to cooking, I am still a beginner when I try matching humans’ taste. Since Babor's sense of taste is most likely similar to that of humans, I think I can learn a lot from him.

Receiving Babor's help in my human form, I bring a huge tentacle to the table I created for Luxe and Shilky. Since I am too full from the Ocean Kakes earlier, I cut the Kraken's tentacle in a size that makes it easy to eat and serve them.

“What is this tangy taste? It's similar to that of poisonous monsters.”

Shilky cuts the skin off and takes the inner part of the Kraken's tentacle.

“As I thought, this part doesn't have the tangy taste. Luxe, eat this one instead, it's also more tender so it will be easier to eat.”

She declares as she replaces some of the Luxe's share with the tender part.

“You shouldn't be picky about food.”

Luxe responds indifferently while eating.

“But doesn't it taste weird?”

“You will feel differently once you get used to it. I like spicy food.”

“If you say so, then I will give it a try.”

Shilky reluctantly accepts and goes back to eating. This time, she eats the whole thing without putting aside the skin.

They somehow look closer now. Shilky is also calling her by her name now too. Even though I'm supposed to be her best friend, why do they look closer now? Is it because I can't eat anymore?

I glare at them for a while, but they don't even notice me because they are too focused on eating.

Since there is nothing I can do about it, I turn back to Babor. Being unable to see his face when I talk to him is such a pain, though. So I decide to climb on his shoulder. I transform back to my fox form and aim for the top of his knees first.

Once he notices me climbing, he carries me to the top of his shoulder.

“Hey, do you know other recipes and seasonings?”

“I do know some that I usually use for myself, yes.”

Babor responds, staring at Shilky and Luxe still eating.

“Your seasoning seem to satisfy the human sense of taste pretty well. I'd like to know more about the other recipes if they are similar.”

“About that, I got those from an old friend. He used to visit me and tell me about his adventures. Those were good old days.”

The Blue Giants don't really leave their place. If they did, because they can be seen from far away they will be immediately feared by everyone and get hunted down in a group. Even though they are powerful, they are too easy of a target, and they can't handle it if the opponents send armies against them. That's why they live near the shore, surrounded by mountains on one side and ocean on the other.

With the five tribes alliance having been formed, it has become safe for them to move around in the region, but they still choose to not do so, since they will destroy everything in their path if they decided to move around.

“Was he not a Blue Giant?”

“He was a beastman. He was a small fellow that was not scared of me just like the human girl over there. He used to come here often and tell me about his adventures. In one of them he...”

He has this habit of going on and on about past events when he starts, so I quickly interrupt him.

“Oh, so are they beastman recipes that you have?”

“That is indeed the case.”

“Can you introduce me to your friend? I want to know more about it.”

“Unfortunately, he no longer lives in this world. He was such a great fellow, though. Yes, he was.”

Well, Babor is even older than my mother, so I had expected it to be the case, to a certain extent. It's a shame, since I thought I can learn more about human cooking if I met him.

“If you are interested in cooking, I can teach you. I also have been doing research on my own.”

“Really?”

“Yes, but before that, is it the human cooking that you are interested in?”

He turns his head towards me and I can see his huge yellow eyes.

“That is indeed the case.”

“Is it for the little girl over there?”

“Yes, she loves eating delicious food, and it makes me happy just looking at her.”

Wait, would he find it weird that I am just enjoying feeding her? I need to correct myself quickly.

“I mean, I also have human taste in my transformed state, and I do enjoy it as well.

… Is it weird?”

Babor turns back his head. How his shoulder doesn't move at all while he turns his head shows how careful he is being in the process.

“Caring for others, I think that feeling is respectable.”

It's as if he saw through my thought. I feel my cheeks becoming hot.

“I could just tell you the recipes I know of but, you Tail Foxes are already skilled at cooking. Instead of learning new recipes, I think you should first learn to apply that talent to the human cooking. That's why I have another suggestion.”

“Sure, go ahead.”

“Your particularity is that you can use water magic to process the ingredients. I think if you can make the best use of it, you will be able to create incredible dishes, even better than the ones I know of.”

I see, as expected of our tribe's prided magic.

“So, I want to know first, what are you capable of doing with water magic?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Like what kind of processing are you able to do? What are the limits of your abilities?”

Since I never thought of it that way, I can't answer immediately. Let's see, if I know the method for it, I can transform sugar and milk into cream. If I know the composition, I can figure out how I should manipulate my mana to perform my magic.

But the limits? I don't think that is all I am capable of doing. After all, I can also make pancakes out of all the ingredients without having to cook, as long as I know how it is made.

“I think it just depends on my understanding of the material. Our transformation magic is able to do pretty much do anything as long as we know the composition. And having performed a cooking process with a recipe should be enough to give me the knowledge about it.”

“So would you be able to make any complicated dish as long as you have the ingredients and the recipe?”

“Yes, I would have to have made the dish myself using the recipe first, though. No, wait. If it is too complicated, then the magical process will be too complicated for me to handle. My mother might be able to do it, though.”

“I see, of course, there would be limitations due to how much magic you can use at once. I assume it would be the same for the quantity?”

“Indeed, I won't be able to transform an infinite amount of ingredients at once, so that would be the case.”

“If those are the only limitations, that is truly amazing. You would be able to perform so many different ways of cooking that wouldn't be possible otherwise.”

“What do you mean? I don't think I can do anything exceptional that can't be done without the magic. As I said, I need to follow a recipe first.”

“Yes, that would be the case if you only followed the recipe, you won't be able to do anything more than the recipe is able to do. That's why you don't merely follow the recipe, extend it.”

“Do you mean that I can make my own recipe? I don't think I'm that creative... Transformation magic is pretty complicated, you know?”

“Let me give you an example. Say you are draining blood from a piece of meat, alright? Have you already done that before?”

“Yes, of course. The method for draining blood is basic knowledge.”

“And are you capable of completely draining the blood out of it?”

“If you mean leaving no blood in the meat, then yes I can.”

“Well, with normal methods, it is impossible to completely drain blood of a piece of meat. The one who wrote the recipe for draining blood must have had that in mind, but Rina, you are able to do it.”

“What?”

“Yes, and that is exactly what I mean that you are capable of doing much more than what the recipe states.”

Draining blood is a simple process of separation. Once I know what I need to do to, it is but a simple repetition to completely drain it.

“But why is it impossible to do with normal methods? Don't you have to just repeat what they did to drain the blood in the first place?”

“It's because the magic you use is of a completely different nature than the usual process. Usually, you would dry or freeze dry the meat to drain the blood, and it will always leave some blood in the meat. However, what you do is messing with the composition of the material, and it doesn't have such limitations.”

“Huh?”

I never thought that I have been doing such things. I have only been following recipes. Naturally, I thought I was just making whatever it could be made with other methods.

“But what good does it do to drain blood completely? Don't you even leave them in on purpose sometimes?”

“It depends on what you are making. Some dishes simply don't go well with the blood, so it needs to be drained as much as possible. However, it isn't possible to do it completely.”

“So if I made it, I could make it tastier?”

“Exactly. And it's not just about draining blood. It also applies to lots of other methods. And if you master your cooking even further, you will be able to make your own dishes that will use the method only your tribe can use.”

“...”

To be honest, all he is saying is too good to believe. I mean, our tribe is one of the strongest demon tribes, and being specialized in magic, we have confidence in our transformation magic. But cooking with it has only been just one of the side effects of it, and nobody really thought too much about it.

How come I am finding out that it can be that amazing just now?

“But if what you are saying is true, then someone else should have already done it before, right? It is really too good to be true.”

“Do the other members of your tribe actively research ways to improve their cooking?”

“No, but...”

“I might sound like I am boasting about myself, but I have lived long and have seen a lot. And not many think out of the box, especially when it doesn't benefit them.”

Now that I think about it, there were human cooking books in the village, but nobody really makes human food. Some are able to make a few human dishes, but that is just as far as it goes. They have no reason to push it even further.

As for the Tail Foxes' sense of taste, we prefer eating our food raw, so our main focus has been improving the breed on the fruits and the grains. If I think about it way, it all makes sense.

“I see, then what should I start with?”

I feel so motivated to make something now. I feel like I have so much to explore in the ways of cooking.

I see Barbo's hand moving towards me from a distance. On top of his palm, I can see green hair sticking out.

“Luxe?”

As Barbo's hand reaches close enough to his shoulder, she jumps down from his palm. To the shoulder. With her long green hair fluttering in the air, and wearing a white dress, she looks like an angel.

'Ah, is that what Shilky meant by tending to her hair?'

I quickly transform into my human form to assist with her landing.

“Be careful, Luxe. You might fall if you don't.”

“Rina, can you make a coke?”

Luxe inquires with her emerald eyes looking straight at me. I can see that you are cute, but I don't understand what you are saying, sorry.

“What is that?”

“... It's a sweet water with air sparkling out?”

“...”

Even though she desperately explains herself, I can't grasp her meaning.

“... There are bubbles inside sweet water, and it pops on your tongue when you drink...?”

Wow, I think it is the longest sentence she has ever said. She seems to be making a lot of effort, but how should I tell her?

“Luxe, you are so cute.”

“I think she is talking about carbonated drinks.”

Barbor interjects.

“Carbonated drink?”

“Yes, I have seen it before. An old friend of mine knew someone who had a magical tool to create it, so I got to try it out. The taste back then fits her description.”

“Do you know how to make it?”

“Unfortunately, no. He explained to me how the machine worked, but I didn't really get any of it except that you combine some kind of air with the water.”

“Rina, make me a bottle.”

Luxe suddenly makes a request. I'm glad that she is relying on me, but what she has been saying is incomprehensible since a while ago.

Opening the lid, she starts gathering her mana.

“Is this wind magic? This delicate control, how interesting.”

Babor's yellow eyes sparkle with interest. It appears he really likes gathering new knowledge.

“Yep, she is amazing! She can even use light magic, you know?”

For some reason, having her complimented makes me proud, so I puff up my chest.

“For a human to be so proficient at that age. You brought such an interesting person today.”

Finishing her magic, Luxe closes the lid of the bottle and hands it over to me.

“Mix it with the water.”

The air inside the bottle looks like just normal air. I know she did something, but I can't really tell from looking at it.

So what, do I put it in water or something?

…

The experiments lasted for a long time. Whenever I failed to mix the air in the water, Luxe made me a new bottle to work with. I am totally exhausted now, but at least I made something.

At first, when I just put the air inside the seawater, it came straight back out.

After a couple of tries, Luxe suggested that I freeze the water when I do that. Since freezing is basic of the ice magic of water attribute, there was no problem doing that, but the result was just a block of ice with air inside.

Looking at how it was going, Babor suggested to remove the salt from the seawater. Since I know about the water and the salt, I managed to separate them successfully.

I noticed that freezing the water became a lot easier, but the problem remained. It would just become a block of ice with air inside, and we were stuck there at that step for a while.

“Can you freeze it without it becoming ice?”

Luxe asked as such. I thought it was  nonsense, since freezing means making ice, but then, Babor told us a story.

“I heard about a sanctuary where the water doesn't get frozen no matter what. It is said that most creatures become crushed to death upon entering that place, and only the most powerful beings are able to enter.”

I was so confused about what that had to do with this, but Luxe told me to try once again.

I could feel her using some wind magic besides me while I repeated the process. The water's volume became smaller for some reason, and to my surprise, the water didn't freeze no matter how much I tried to make it into ice.

“Was that… air pressure you just applied on the water?”

Babor admires, but I have no clue what is going on.

And when I have mixed in the air into the water, to my surprise, it didn't come out and stayed inside.

When the whole process ended, it was already night.

…

“So, how is it?”

We spent the whole day trying to make this, and now me and Babor are all looking at Luxe with high expectations. It is the moment of truth where we find out if it was successful.

“...”

She drinks the water, and stays motionless. I can't tell because she isn't expressing anything, but it has to be no good. As I am about to suggest that we should try this another day, she continues.

“It pops.”

“Really?”

I hurriedly take the water Luxe gives me, and try tasting it.

“Eeek, what is this? Did you really want to make this?”

To my reaction, Luxe just nods silently. As I am about to continue questioning her the reason behind her request, I notice that her eyes became somewhat wet.

'Tears?'

That Luxe who doesn't express anything has tears in her eyes?

“Are you hurt somewhere? Is your mana exhausted? We need a doctor, wait, you are the doctor!”

…

“Shilky, wake up already.”

I kick Shilky's spider body who has been sleeping all along.

“I can't eat anymore. I'll take that for tomorrow.”

Still half asleep, she waves her spider legs to urge me to go away.

“That's not it. We made something special, so I want you to taste it.”

“Huh? New food?”

She suddenly gets up, as if her laziness so far has been just an act.

I pass her a bottle of carbonated water, and try to control my expression.

“This is it. Try tasting it.”

“Huh? But it's just some normal water. Are you kidding me? No, looking closely, I can see some bubbles. What is this?”

She inspects the bottle with her ten red eyes.

Unable to wait any longer, Shilky starts drinking it.

Soon after, she throws the bottle away and starts shouting.

“What are you making me drink, is this another poison? Come at me if you are looking for a fight!”

Looking at her reaction, I am unable to hold my laughter. After all, that must have been how I looked like when I first tasted it.

“But it's true, Luxe wanted to make it, and this is the product of it.”

I point towards Luxe who is holding dearly onto a bottle of carbonated water.

Shilky examines her curiously, and responds.

“Is it also something that is good once you get used to?”

“Incomplete product. Need to put sugar in it and test.”

Apparently, it is a material for something she wanted to make. Since the rest of the process doesn't seem to be difficult, it should be done in no time.

“Seeing you small ones being so lively brings me back to old memories.”

The deep voice of Babor resonates from above.

“Stop sounding like an old man. You did this together with us, didn't you?”

Seriously, everything is good with Babor, except how he keeps going on and on about old stories sometimes.

“That's right. We worked hard together to make it.”

I don't know why, but his voice sounds somewhat sad.

“What's up, Babor? You don't sound well.”

“It's just that I remembered this old friend of mine who used to visit me every day...”

Oh no, this is the sign he is going to start his rambling again. I need to interrupt him quickly.

“Enough about that, so just say the conclusion.”

“... It has been a long time since it has been this lively.”

With a small sigh, he continues.

“There has not really been anything going on ever since we settled down in this location. You must have learned that we Blue Giants have been living here forever, and there are no enemies for us. On top of this, we have such a low fertility rate and our numbers are low. Because of that, there have been no children for over a hundred years now.”

After a small break, he continues.

“The old ones of our race just live on lifelessly. Others might envy our long lifespan and powerful nature, but it only has been torture for me. It is especially true in my case, because a friend of mine used to come here often and talk to me about his adventures. I have always been missing those days, and that's why today's experiences brought me back to those memories and made me really happy.”

Even though I have known Babor for a long time, I never knew that he harbored those kinds of feelings. As I stay speechless, Shilky responds instead.

“Why are you talking as if it is all over now? We are going to come back to eat more food next time.”

“Rina also has to learn more recipes.”

Luxe completes what Shilky was saying.

It's true that Babor promised to teach me his recipes, and I was planning to come back to learn. But why are you the one saying that?

“I see. You are free to come and eat all you want whenever you want. After all, whatever amount you small ones eat is insignificant to me.”

Blue Giants are probably the only one that are able to say that after seeing how much they just ate.

“Yep, we will definitely come back, so prepare some good recipes for us!”

Even though today's processing was a success, it is only the first step towards mastering the possibility Babor spoke of.

“Hahaha, I will just show you how vast a long lived Blue Giant's knowledge is. You will have to learn for years at least to master everything.”

It would be annoying if it actually took years. But since he sounds so happy, I'll just leave it at that.

With the loud laugh resonating throughout the sky, we head back to cross the mountain.