After finally reaching the building where her Monsters were, with that long walk along the City that almost blew Craydon’s mind, Meryda delivered the paper she had kept to the man in the small room, right after the entrance for the Monsters.
He confirmed the list and the number of Monsters and went inside through a door behind his desk after telling Meryda to wait outside.
One by one, the Monsters joined her outside, with Demon Manananggal waiting for her to tame the other two Drakes she brought.
As the Drakes were taking off with their riders firmly holding in place the Black Shucks and the Sub-Monsters, Craydon and Meryda looked at the City as they were going up in the air.
During the day, it was even more impressive. There were more tall buildings than they could see as they walked, and a lot of people were in the streets, with so many waggons, carriages driven by Magic, and carriages pulled by horses in the mix that the entire City appeared to be booming with life.
As the Drakes were flying east, following Demon Manananggal’s directions, Craydon looked down, and he realized that the shadows he saw on the previous night, sparsely illuminated by the moonlight, were rectangular cropped fields of farms upon farms, with houses separating every ten squares. There were villages every one hundred squares or so, with clusters of trees and plenty of forests nearby.
What neither Craydon, Meryda, nor the Fae could see were Monsters roaming around freely or attacking villages. What they could see once in a while were fields with fences around them, with Monsters or farm animals in there, like Bone Boars, Fur Cows, pigs, and chickens.
As the day went by, Meryda and Craydon kept feasting their eyes on the scenery below, so what could be a very boring voyage was instead extremely exciting because of all the differences between that country and the Oomans’ and Demis’ countries they flew above.
By noon, Demon Manananggal pointed to an approaching City, not as enormous as the previous one they were before, but still bigger than Oka’s capital, the biggest city they visited on the other side of the mountain range.
When the Drakes landed, they followed the same procedure. A Demi-Dog man came with a wooden board; he noted down the number and species of Monsters that Meryda had; she signed the sheets of paper; and off they went to rest in the enormous building.
As they were walking on the sidewalk of a street, Demon Manananggal explained, “We are going to eat in a restaurant right on that corner ahead, and then we will continue our voyage. We are not that far from our capital, but I thought it would be better if you ate something and rested for a while before we came any closer to our biggest City. If you thought Byadri was big, wait until you see our capital, Kaihua.”
Craydon gulped. The City where they slept, the one called Byadri, was an enormous metropolis. If the capital was even bigger, he couldn’t even imagine what marvels he would see there.
He noticed that many people recognized Demon Manananggal because they would either smile and make a deep bow at her if they were close, or they would wave at her and then bow if they were far away. But everyone recognized and greeted her.
When she finally stopped in front of a building, Craydon gasped. There was a massive window from which he could see the interior, between the tiny spaces in the two curtains. It looked like a high-end restaurant on Earth, with the enormous chandeliers, the richly decorated tables with white tablecloths, and the intricate transparent glasses and plates. He could swear he saw a glimpse of golden tableware over some empty tables, but he wasn’t sure.
In front of that restaurant, a waiter was standing, dressed in a black uniform with a coat, trousers, and an impeccable white shirt.
He made a deep bow as he greeted the High Demon in front of him and graciously opened the door for her and her group. When he saw that Meryda had three Monsters with her, he became apprehensive and said, “High Demon Manananggal, I am sorry for asking, but is it wise to let these Monsters enter?”
“Of course it is. Our young Monster Tamer will make them behave, won’t you, Meryda? We can’t risk destroying the impeccable reputation of this fine establishment.”
“Yes… they will behave…” Meryda answered while looking apprehensively at the smiling green being at her side, who said in a low tone, “We will watch over the Salamander and the Emptiness so that you can eat in peace.”
When Craydon entered, he gasped. There was indeed golden tableware on the tables, and even though not too many people were there, considering the rich clothes they were wearing, that was not a restaurant where he could afford a meal if it weren’t for that strangely beautiful woman’s invitation.
A waiter came rushing from the counter, and after a deep bow, he moved back a chair at a table so that Manananggal could sit, and he then helped Meryda and the Fae in the same way, leaving Craydon unattended, except for a slight smile and a nod to him.
He stood straight, not too far from the table, after delivering a paper to Demon Manananggal, one that she glanced over and then called the waiter again, pointing to a few things on the menu as she said their names and Craydon couldn’t even figure out what they were made of.
Noticing how Craydon looked so puzzled, Manananggal gave him the paper and said, “Do you want to look at the list? I took the liberty of choosing what everyone would be eating, but if you see something that catches your attention, you can order it, of course.”
With a smile, he looked at the paper and frowned at the strange plate names in there. One item took his full attention, and he asked, “Brogglie Nectar? What is that?”
“It is an alcoholic beverage from Brogglie fruits,” answered Demon Manananggal, and she continued when she saw how puzzled Craydon looked: “It is a dark purple fruit that grows in groups from a small bush, which people let grow until waist size and trim once a year to keep it at that height. We have fields over fields of Brogglie bushes up north. I already ordered a bottle for us because I believe you will enjoy it. But we can’t drink much of it because it is quite potent, and we still have some flight to do.”
While Craydon kept reading the names on the list, the same waiter returned holding a strangely shaped glass bottle with a cork on top. He used a utensil to remove the cork, which he rotated little by little until the cork got out with a popping sound. As the waiter poured the dark purple liquid into Manananggal’s glass, Craydon kept frowning because it looked like wine.
When the waiter poured the liquid into his glass, Craydon held the glass near his nose and sniffed it softly, mumbling, “No way…” He took a sip of it and exclaimed, “It is wine! And a very good one! I had no idea such a drink existed in this World!”
Demon Manananggal frowned a little as she was looking at the glass bottle. “Wine? I never heard that word. We call it Brogglie Nectar. And since when did you know about this drink? Because I am sure Brogglie bushes don’t exist in any Demi or Ooman country!”
Craydon felt the Fae kick him under the table, making him realize he had made a blunder, and he answered, trying to sound as casual as possible, “I saw a few experiences by using Brot fruits, but it was never this good. People called it wine. I also thought it was a weird word. But you have fruits in the north of this country, and people make this drink from them?”
“Not only this one, but a few alcoholic beverages are very different from this, but still strong. I know one of those drinks that has even more alcohol. We have distinct qualities of alcoholic beverages, each with a different price. This one is very expensive, so you better make sure you enjoy it.”
“You don’t need to tell me that! And by the looks of it, it seems like a good drink to have with a meat dish.”
“I also think the same; that is why I ordered one just like that. Oh, they are already bringing the food.”
Three waiters arrived, each of them carrying on their hands trays with one big plate and several small dishes that they skilfully put on the table.
When Craydon saw the waiters placing plates in front of Manananggal, he said, “I thought High Demons didn’t eat normal food.”
“Usually, we don’t, but that doesn’t mean we can’t. I don’t think it is very polite to be at this table watching you all eat, so I am making an exception today. Please enjoy, but leave some space for dessert. The chefs here make the most exquisite desserts, and I am sure you will all like them.” As soon as she saw Craydon’s puzzled look, she explained, “Chefs is an unknown word to you, isn’t it? It is the evolution of a cook. Anyone with enough hard work and dedication can be a cook, but any cook can’t become a chef. It requires years of training, dedication, and a very good amount of talent to become a chef.”
Right on the first bite, Craydon felt the meat melting in his mouth. He could barely believe such tenderness and flavour could ever exist in that world, a world that, until then, he thought was retrograde and lacking knowledge about the simplest things, being taste and flavour one of them.
Bite after bite, side dish after side dish, Craydon was becoming more and more surprised. He looked at his daughter and saw her eating, delighted with the food.
Between one of her bites, she said, “Just like your food, dad! I was thinking I was going to miss your cooking, but this tastes just like something you would make!”
“Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. The food we ate in Oka’s castle was not even half this good because some lacked salt and others were bland. But this is very well-made.”
Their conversation made Demon Manananggal smile, and she said, “A man of many talents, I see. I wouldn’t mind knowing more about you if you don’t mind telling me. Or demonstrating one day.”
That last wink made Craydon gulp, because he could perfectly see what she meant by that.
They spent the rest of the meal with some mockery from a smiling High Demon towards her nervous guest, with Meryda and the Fae laughing their hearts out every time Craydon found some excuse to avoid Manananggal’s advances and praises.
Even the desserts’ arrival did not stop Manananggal’s teasing. In fact, it was becoming worse, and it was then that Craydon noticed that she was in her third glass of wine, and when one waiter was going to pour more wine into her glass, Craydon stopped him by saying, “I think she had enough. It seems High Demon Manananggal can’t hold her alcohol, and we have more flying to do. I don’t want her to fall from her Drake and smash her beautiful face on the ground.”
With an enormous smile and red cheeks, Manananggal said, “Oh, worried about me, are you? Didn’t you notice my big wings? I don’t need a Drake to fly. If I fall, I can fly by myself.”
When she was about to stretch her wings, she suddenly closed them and said with a serious look, when she noticed where they were. “I… might have had a few more drinks than I should have. Maybe I need a cup of wake-up juice instead of dessert.”
The waiter nodded and left, leaving Craydon wondering what that beverage was.
When the waiters cleaned the table and a new group came with plates with slices of cake and caramelized drops of strange fruits that Craydon never saw, one waiter gave Manananggal a cup with a strange dark liquid inside.
Noticing his stare, she offered him a sip, which he gladly accepted, only to gasp at the taste, “No way… Coffee… There is even coffee here? What the heck?”
