Chapter 66: Liver-and-Garlic-Chive Stir-Fry with Bean Sprouts and Parents 

Because the village chief had lost far too much blood, I decided to prepare a meal using dragon liver, which was packed with iron and perfect for helping replenish his strength.

The first step was to slice the dragon liver into thin, bite-sized pieces. I placed them in a bowl filled with water and gently rinsed them two or three times, washing away the excess blood.

Next came the crucial step to remove the liver’s distinctive odor. I submerged the slices in milk and left them in the refrigerator to soak for a while.

“While we wait for the liver to lose that strong smell…”

I cut the garlic chives into roughly five-centimeter lengths, separating the tougher stalks from the tender leafy ends.

The bean sprouts came next. I emptied the bag into a colander and gave them a thorough rinse under cold water.

“That should be about long enough…”

I removed the dragon liver from the milk and transferred it to a strainer. After letting it drain, I carefully patted every piece dry with kitchen paper before kneading soy sauce and cooking sake into the meat.

That was all it needed for seasoning.

To keep the dragon liver from drying out after frying, I made sure to coat each slice with a light dusting of potato starch. The thin coating would help seal in the juices and keep the texture wonderfully tender.

Finally, I mixed together soy sauce, sugar, sake, and oyster sauce to make the seasoning sauce.

Preparation complete.

“Heat some oil in the frying pan and toss in the dragon liver!!”

The important thing here was to make sure none of the slices overlapped.

Once both sides had developed a beautiful golden-brown sear, I transferred the liver to a plate. Then I sautéed freshly grated garlic and ginger until their rich aroma filled the kitchen.

After that, I added the bean sprouts along with the tougher chive stalks, stir-frying everything over high heat. Finally, the leafy chive tips and the liver went back into the pan…

All that remained was to pour in the prepared sauce.

Just before turning off the heat, I drizzled a little sesame oil around the edge of the pan, letting its fragrance bloom with the residual heat—

“Bean Sprout and Garlic Chive Liver Stir-Fry… complete!!”

“Oooh, that smells wonderful,” the village chief exclaimed, his nose twitching appreciatively.

“That aroma from the garlic chives is absolutely irresistible!!”

Since we’d made plenty, I invited Tifana, Sabine, Grana, Luka, and the others to join us as well.

The adults eagerly dug into the stir-fry.

“This is my first time eating dragon liver, but it’s delicious. The rich, melt-in-your-mouth texture and that unique savory flavor… it’s surprisingly addictive.”

“Combined with the crisp crunch of the bean sprouts, I can’t stop reaching for another bite!!”

“Indeed. Excellent.”

“I wasn’t sure about eating internal organs, but this is much better than I expected.”

“The flavor really grows on you. I imagine it’d pair wonderfully with alcohol.”

Curious myself, I took a bite.

The instant it entered my mouth, the fragrant scent of garlic chives drifted through my nose. It was honestly quite good.

Unfortunately, Raphiel and the children weren’t nearly as impressed.

“I… don’t think liver and chives are really my thing.”

“I think it’s the texture of the liver that I don’t like…”

“I-I can’t do it either. I don’t know why… I just can’t.”

“Honestly, you kids are hopeless. Sure, the texture’s a little unusual, but if you’re picky about your food, you’ll never grow big and strong, you know?”

“I-I want to grow bigger, so I’ll eat it!!”

“Rio is amazing! I can’t let myself lose either!!”

Apparently, liver stir-fry was still a little too mature a dish for the children.

Well, I couldn’t exactly blame them. Back when I was a kid, I never understood what was supposed to be so delicious about liver either.

Still, it would have been unfair to simply tell them to eat it or go hungry. So I quickly whipped up a separate meat-and-vegetable stir-fry just for the children.

Times like this were exactly when that handy seasoning paste came in clutch.

“So then… Hijiri, what brings you here?”

“I accepted a top-secret request from His Majesty the King. Honestly, it wasn’t the kind of job an assassin normally takes, so I almost turned it down… but I couldn’t resist the amount they were offering.”

“Does that request have something to do with Papel Village?”

“Not directly. It concerns the shameless woman who tried to kidnap the noble children, and the Dragon King. I’ve been tasked with tracking down both the Dragon King, who was released from her seal, and the woman who helped free her.”

“Ah… so that’s why you came to Papel Village…”

As I nodded in understanding, Hijiri’s expression suddenly darkened.

“There’s one more thing… We’ve completely lost track of Saint Saril.”

“Wait a moment, Hijiri. What do you mean you can’t find Saril?”

Raphiel was the first to react.

Saril was her senior—a woman who had once come to bring Raphiel back.

In the end, however, Saril had respected the conclusion Raphiel reached after much soul-searching. Saying she needed to return to her duties, she had quietly left Papel Village…

“I believe that woman either imprisoned her… or killed her.”

“Impossible. I can’t even imagine Saril losing.”

“…My instincts aren’t exactly reliable, so I’d be happy if I were wrong. But at the very least, one thing is certain. Saint Saril is currently in a situation where she’s unable to contact the temple.”

“…I see.”

After glaring silently at Hijiri, Raphiel resumed eating her meat-and-vegetable stir-fry.

She looked noticeably irritated.

“I’m worried about Saril-san too… but are you really okay with this, Hijiri?”

“With what?”

“Well… you’re tracking that woman, the Dragon King, and Orvier, aren’t you? They already disappeared somewhere.”

“Ah, don’t worry. Now that I know what they’re after, I can predict where they’ll go next.”

“Huh?”

I already knew Hijiri was remarkably capable.

But perhaps he was even more talented than I’d ever realized.

“That woman’s goal is to release every part of the Dragon King’s body that’s sealed away across the world and restore her completely. Even if it’s a direct order from the king, I can’t simply enter another country without permission. From this point onward, diplomacy becomes necessary.”

“Oh… then why don’t you stay here and relax for a while? We’ve got plenty of spare rooms.”

“Oh? Really? In that case, I’ll gladly accept—Hm?”

Suddenly, Hijiri froze.

“…Hey, Eight.”

“What’s wrong?”

“This house has television… and internet, right?”

“Huh? Oh… yeah. Everything works normally.”

“Then… would this work too?”

He pointed toward the landline telephone sitting beside the television.

I nodded.

“I think so. I’ve never actually used it myself since there’s no one back in my old world I want to call, but it should work.”

“…Would you mind if I borrowed it for a little while?”

“Not at all. What are you planning to use it for?”

“I want… to call my parents.”

…Ah.

Of course.

I had already become someone with no family left in my old world. Kirara had severed ties with her parents as well.

But now that I thought about it, I’d never once asked Hijiri about his family.

Perhaps all this time, he’d been carrying the weight of leaving his parents—and maybe even brothers or sisters—behind in that other world.

“Go ahead. Use it as much as you like.”

“Thank you.”

Hijiri gently picked up the receiver.

As though cherishing every single moment, he slowly pressed each number one by one.

“『…Hello? May I ask who’s calling?』”

“I-It’s been a long time. My voice has changed, so you probably won’t recognize me… It’s Naoto.”

“『Nao…to? Is it really you, Naoto!?』”

“Yeah. It’s me.”

“『Where are you right now!? No… more importantly—Honey!! Come here quickly!! It’s Naoto! Naoto’s on the phone!!』”

…Parents, huh.

I’d long since passed the stage where loneliness consumed me.

Even so, simply hearing that conversation was enough to send my thoughts drifting into memories I’d believed had long settled at the bottom of my heart.

“Thank you, Eight. Thanks to you, I was able to speak with my parents again yesterday.”

“Don’t mention it. You can call them anytime you want.”

“Anyway, enough about that… Want to head to the beach?”

“Huh?”

Without any warning whatsoever, Hijiri suddenly invited me to go to the beach.