Chapter 307: Taste Test

“Alright… we’ve made it this far, no problems now.”

“Yeah, all thanks to Rest’s magic!”

“If it weren’t for Yuri’s brute strength, we couldn’t have done it… no, seriously.”

They had managed to escape far enough from the wyvern’s nest.
With a sense of accomplishment for completing their mission, Rest and Yuri praised each other’s efforts.

The sun had already set, and the diurnal wyverns wouldn’t be chasing them anymore.
Although Rest and Yuri had to spend the night in the mountains, there should be no problem as long as they descended at sunrise.

“Still… we only caught one. Maybe we should’ve gotten two or three?”

“Nah… that’s more than enough.” 

Rest replied, exasperated by Yuri’s suggestion.

A wyvern was the size of an elephant and probably weighed over five tons.
It was shocking enough that Yuri had dragged it here without magical aid, but even more surprising was that such a massive monster could even fly.

(Come to think of it… pteranodons had wingspans close to ten meters but weighed only as much as a human child. They could only fly because their weight was reduced to the absolute minimum…)

Recalling what he’d learned during a middle school summer project in his previous life, Rest once again turned his gaze toward the wyvern’s corpse.

For something this large and heavy to fly freely, wing lift alone wouldn’t suffice — it must’ve been aided by magic.

(Maybe monsters unconsciously use magic, too… If I were a scholar, I’d definitely want to study this properly.)

But Rest had no real interest in the biological makeup of wyverns.
Even if properly studied and published, it might be a major discovery — but what mattered more to him now was the meat.

“With this much, it’ll be more than enough for the party. Let’s not get greedy — time to bring it back.”

Assuming they could harvest 30% of its weight in meat, they’d still end up with over a ton — plenty for a main dish.

“Oh right, there’ll be other dishes too. We can’t get full just on wyvern meat.”

Yuri nodded, arms crossed in agreement.

“Actually… this might even be too much. Maybe we should trim some off now?”

“If you want to sample it, just say so… well, a little taste won’t hurt.”

Conveniently, the spot blasted by Amaterasu’s solar beam was giving off a delicious aroma.
Rest drew a knife and sliced off some of the roasted meat.

After sprinkling a bit of salt from his supplies, he handed it to Yuri.

“Here, go ahead and try it.”

“Don’t mind if I do… It’s delicious!!”

Yuri chomped down on the wyvern meat and immediately burst out in praise.

“Crispy on the outside, chewy and tender inside. Soft, yet with a satisfying bite, and the more you chew, the more flavor bursts out… It’s like eating freshly grilled meat!”

“Well, I mean… it is grilled meat.”

“Come on, Rest — you try some too! Aah—”

“…Aaah.”

Rest opened his mouth, and Yuri fed him a bite.

Chewing it thoughtfully… he had to admit, it really was good.

Even with just salt as seasoning, the flavor was bold and wild.

The meat fibers seemed to pop in his mouth, and every bite brought a new burst of taste.

“This is amazing… Hey, Rest — can I have more?”

“Better not… there’s no end to it.”

Rest held back the drooling Yuri, who looked like she’d devour the whole thing.

“Then how about we go hunt a few more? It’s fine, it’s not like they’re going anywhere.”

“They probably will go somewhere… Let’s save that for next time.”

Though the idea was tempting, Rest prioritized safety and turned it down.

He used magic to freeze the wyvern and prevent spoilage.
To appease Yuri’s disappointment, he stuffed her mouth with some dried rations.

And so, they set up camp and spent the night outdoors.

Previous chapter | TOC | Next chapter