Humming happily with her purchases from the magic tool shop, Rosette headed towards a popular restaurant nearby together with Issac and Hugo.

‘Little Tree Trunk’ was its name. The shop was well known for its Koran cuisine, and because it also opened a nice affordable inn for overnight stays, many of its customers were travellers and merchants.

Hugo had reserved a table at a corner with partitioned plank walls and curtains - making it a pseudo-private room. Similar rooms were lined on second floor of the restaurant building. These were usually rented by merchants and middle-class commoners to carry out business in a semi-formal setting. Naturally, there was a cost for private room booking.

As noon approached and lunch time was near, the shop slowly filled with customers. Though the partitions helped other people from seeing you and reduced noises to a point, footsteps could be heard as people walked through the hallway. And if you concentrate enough, you could hear the ongoing conversation in the adjacent private room.

Like the one going on right now in the room on their left.

“Haaah I got caught.”

“Did someone see your face?”

“…..”

“You’re silent. That must mean a yes.”

The conversation suggested something illegal going on.

”I keep telling you not to wander off alone and yet you manage to escape like a slippery eel covered in glycerin.” A long sigh was heard. “Continue giving me trouble and I’ll quit.”

“I get it sorry sorry” a voice apologised, not sounding apologetic at all. “... why was she there to begin with?”

“Who was?”

“You wouldn’t know.”

“I heard the capital knights got delayed on the way.”

“Isn’t that good? I get more freedom that way.”

Rosette didn’t want to get into drama by thinking too much about a conversation that had nothing to do with her.

In the first place, you should be more mindful of your volume when you’re discussing such matters. These are not sound-proof room.

‘Ignore them ignore them.’

Unlike main characters in certain novels, she had no plan to go ‘Oh I don’t want to get involved~’ and yet poke their nose into every possible troublesome situation saying ‘It cannot be helped.’

Cannot be helped my ass! There were over 7000 ways you could’ve ignored the drama and get on with your life. But noooooo~
Everything was for the sake of plot convenience.

When the waitress came to deliver the menu, Rosette's eyes flashed a predatory glint.

‘YES! Finally, SOME GOOD FUCKING FOOD!'

After holding back from ordering every single dish on the menu and much deliberation choosing a few dishes she craved most, she felt her mouth salivate in hunger.

“Food~ Food~”

“I’ve never seen you this happy.” Issac commented when he saw Rosette’s childish enthusiasm.

‘Well yes, I’ve not eaten any anything delicious for the past two months. I feel like I’m chewing cardboard every meal.

What? Steaming and boiling is the main cooking method for Alban cuisine?

What the hell is with that? If I get reincarnated, get me somewhere with good fucking food, god dammit.’

“I’m just happy to be eating together with my brother and uncle.”

“I see. I’m happy to eat with you too!”

Ordered dishes soon got delivered to the table, and sweet smelling food aroma tickled Rosette’s nostrils.

Stir fries. Deep fries. Yes. Frying was not common in Alban Kingdom, but it was the main method of cooking in Koran empire where large woks were main cooking vessels and oil their main cooking ingredient.

Though there are certain recipes which come to mind when you mention deep-fries (e.g. Tempura, Karaage, etc) the usage of breadcrumbs while cooking may not have been introduced to this world.

That’s fine. Right now Rosette just wanted to eat something which didn’t taste like styrofoam.

She quickly held a spoon and dug into stir-fried rice.

"Mmh!"

Her eyes teared with inexplicable feeling joy. Words cannot describe enough how much she missed these little starch grains.

She waited to see Issac eat his portion, anticipating how he’d react.

Is this what it feels like when you wait for someone to try food from your hometown and wait for their review?

Issac ate a spoonful and beamed a huge smile at Rosette.

“Delicious!”

She felt a satisfied grin spread her face. 

“YES~! I know!!”

Her hands then moved towards the deep fried chicken drumstick, reminding her of all the fast food chains in her previous world.

She gulped down her saliva, bringing the drumstick closer to her mouth as each nanosecond passed.

When she bit into it, the juicy flesh tore and umami flooded onto her tongue.

‘UUuuuuuuWAHHHH DELICIOUS!!!!’

As she chewed the food in her mouth with imaginary tears streaming down her cheeks, she only craved for a particular drink.

‘When you eat chicken, obviously you need to have cola to drown the grease.’

Green tea was commonly served together with Koran’s greasy cuisine, it had a clean taste which clears the palate after eating fried food.

However, pairing hot food and hot drink just didn’t sit well with Rosette. A hot meal and cold cola is the way to go. But needless to say, cola didn’t exist in this world.

‘Fuck I really want a cola-’

“I’d kill to have a cola right now.”

‘Eh?? Did I say that out loud?’

“What’s koh-la?”

‘No. That’s coming from the other room.’

Did she mishear it? Is there something else with a similarly pronounced name called Cola?

“It’s a black sugary drink. Gassy, sweet and cold - it’s the best.”

‘No way’

“I’ve never heard of that drink”

“That’s because it doesn’t exist.”

“You’re talking non-sense again."

‘No. fucking. way.’