A large portion of frozen meat and instant noodles were taken out from the refrigerator and was neatly arranged on the countertop. They were on its way of being transformed into a meal that wouldn't tarnish my reputation as a homemade cook.

“A beef noodle soup seems possible with these.”

The pre flavored meat was in fact beef and wouldn't need further sautéing. A broth mixture was also included inside the pack of instant noodles, allowing the meal to be cooked in less than fifteen minutes. But before that-

I'll take off the gauntlets first.

Cooking while donning a full body armor was clearly unsanitary so I took it off without much effort, showing my pale white hands that were riddled with calluses and scars. In addition to that, I also wore a white apron over the pure black armor which created quite a contrast.

Oops I almost forgot.

Good sanitation was the first step in cooking something delicious so I immediately washed my hand using the faucet that was installed on the sink. Freezing water that came from the lake showered my skin but instead of shivering due to the cold, I felt revitalized. The fatigue dissipated quickly, as if a cooling energy was forcibly pumped into my nerves.

“Can I help?”

Out of nowhere, Lily adorably offered help while wearing an oversized plain white T shirt. Since she didn't have any extra clothes, I lent her some of mine. Enough to cover the skin until above her knees which further proved that our height wasn’t too far from each other.

“Of course, you can peel off the plastic wrappings.”

Welcoming her assistance with wide arms, I instructed Lily to peel off the plastic that covered the frozen meat. It was quite difficult since the meat was frozen solid but Lily persevered to accomplish the task.

“You should warm it up first with water.”

Seeing that Lily was unnecessarily using her strength for naught, I reluctantly gave her a hint. She must’ve been unfamiliar with household chores especially while living with a doting father like Professor Sanders. Nonetheless, she did her best and eventually managed to completely peel off a piece. But it seems that Lily wasn’t the only one doing her best.

“Mmmm…”

A pair of black ears that belonged to a cat was peeking barely at the edge of the counter where Lily was working at. Whenever Lily finishes a piece and puts it on a plate beside the pile of meat, the ear twitched in response. It was the beast girl named Ranxa if I remembered it correctly.

Even if she was dangerously close to Lily, Ranxa didn’t try to attack her and for some reason Lily didn’t mind her that much. It looked like she only wanted to catch a whiff of the meat but as soon as I started to boil the noodles, her ears twitched erratically. Ranxa was trying her best not to give in to her temptations.

While waiting for the noodles to cook, I chopped up the already peeled pieces of meat and threw them inside the pot. An appetizing aroma wafted throughout the kitchen with every piece of meat I put in. Ranxa immediately gave up her battle against hunger as she frantically tried to jump on top of the counter. Probably because her energy was almost depleted, she failed to jump high enough to reach the remaining pile of meat.

“It's almost finished so please go back to your seat.”

I instructed Ranxa, who was dangerously eyeing the direction of the delicious smell, with a serious tone. Surprisingly, she obediently nodded her head and went back to her seat with her black tail wiggling in delight. Despite the fact that I was wearing quite an intimidating armor, she didn’t seem to harbor any sort of negative feelings toward me.

“Lily, go fetch spoons and bowls for each of them including us.”

“Got it.”

Lily obediently followed my order and hurriedly went to the cupboard, which was located beside the refrigerator, and deftly picked up a handful of bowls. She then arranged the dishes in front of the guests while wearing a bright smile, perfectly showing to them that she wasn’t hostile in any way. As for me, I picked up the large pot of steaming soup with both hands and brought it on top of the table.

All of them had their eyes dilated, eyeing the contents hidden inside the pot. With the source right in front of their noses, the appetizing aroma was the only thing in their heads. My mouth began to salivate as well since I was also hungry myself. Lily was calm as usual but Ranxa openly licked her lips, anticipating for the food that would eventually fill her stomach. On the other hand, the princess and the others somehow kept their composure.

“I’ll be distributing the food so hand me your bowls.”

Reluctantly, they stood up from their seats and lined up in front of me. Not hesitating at all, Ranxa hurriedly approached me and held her bowl high. Such an innocent child who readily approved of me even though I was a complete stranger to her. Ranxa’s future was worrying indeed.

“Be sure to eat a lot.”

“Thank you very much.”

Suddenly a surge of nostalgia filled my head, remembering the days at the orphanage. Unintentionally, I blurted out a phrase that was filled with warmth and care. In response to that, she gladly expressed her gratitude with her tail and ears quivering in joy. Ranxa resembled most of the kids I’ve taken care of back then.Using a ladle, I scooped plenty and filled Ranxa’s bowl. Since the soup was still hot, she frantically went back to her seat after receiving the food.

Following Ranxa was the dwarf Nalmibella. She didn’t act irrationally in front of the soup but occasionally sneaked glances at me, specifically my armor. Usually focused on smithing, the dwarves depicted in tales and fantasy games. I guess it’s normal that she would be interested in my armor, even though it was clearly not forged.

Next was the pair of elven ladies. At first, they carried a mysterious vibe but as soon as they smelled the fragrance of the soup, their desires took over. Their beautiful eyes glittered whenever I pour soup inside their bowl.

Lastly, the princess and her attendant stood in front of me. Still, she was glaring at me fiercely. The attendant seemed to have calmed as he meekly followed Catherine’s back. Regardless of their horrifying experience that was dealt by me, the both of them were composed enough to offer the bowl in front of me. Nevertheless, they scurried back to their seats like small critters after receiving the bowls of soup.

“We’ll resume the talks after the meal.”

With that being said, everyone started to eat in varying ways. Ranxa was devouring the soup without a shred of manner, Nalmibella was eating normally, the elves were quite meticulous on how they take a spoonful of soup into their mouths, and the royalty duo exhibited exceptional table manners. Seeing that all of them were enjoying it, I poured servings for me and Lily who was already seated beside me.

I need to take off the helmet.

Eating anything was impossible since the helmet didn’t have any openings except for the tiny ventilation holes. Taking it off right now shouldn’t do me any harm seeing that all of them had already calmed down and was currently immersed in eating. Using both hands, I lifted the almost weightless helmet upwards and consequently revealed my face to them. Due to sweat, both my hair and skin felt sticky. As I got it off completely, a refreshing breeze brushed against my head.

This is bliss.

For a moment, I unknowingly closed my eyes. Feeling the comfort that was non-existent inside the armor, I savored the momentary bliss. But as soon as I opened my eyes, everyone started to act weirdly.

“Is there something on my face?”

All of them, except Ranxa who was still busy eating, were looking at me with widened eyes as if something unusual was plastered on my face. I instinctively touched every nook and cranny, confused as to why they were staring intently at me. Nonetheless, there was nothing at all. I was a bit sweaty but that’s it, my face was the same as usual.

“A…...F-firstborn!”

Suddenly, Geraint the scaredy attendant shouted at the top of his lungs with his index finger pointing at me. Everyone nodded at the attendant’s words and proceeded to keenly stare at me. Fascination and fear mixed in together, even the usually calm elves were taken aback by my appearance. However, Ranxa wasn’t fazed in the slightest and continued to swallow food with her tiny mouth. On the other hand, Lily was eagerly watching from the sidelines.

A firstborn?

“Is it some kind of monster?”

The first question that came into my mind was that. To cause such a reaction, this ‘firstborn’ seemed to be someone or something dangerous. I was teased and made fun because of my appearance, but I was sure that I don’t look like a monster.

“Firstborns are the most powerful species of vampires.”

Geraint was briefly confused by my question yet he still answered it. He shivered uncontrollably at the thought of me being a firstborn. Out of nowhere, a heavy atmosphere befell upon the whole kitchen. Even so, Ranxa was completely oblivious with everything that happened and was busy rubbing her belly in satisfaction.

“How can you be sure that I am a firstborn?”

Once again, I prompted him to spout out more information about it. To be mistaken for something so frightening, there should be something I have in common. Furthermore, a vital clue, as to why we were transported here, might be uncovered once I fully understood this vampire species.

“That white hair. Only a firstborn possess such a hair color.”

Instead of Geraint, Catherine was the one who answered my question. Contrary to her usual hot-headed countenance, she appeared scared and was trying her best not to meet eyes with me.

“Hmm…a vampire huh. I don’t have fangs though.”

Wanting to clear the confusion, I opened my mouth wide enough so they could see my canine teeth. It was normal of course and I was proud that it was always taken care of. Breaths of relief was followed by that action and successfully lightened up the atmosphere inside the room.

“Lily and I aren’t inhabitants of this place.”

Striking while the iron was hot, I blurted out a line that sounded outrageous. It was the truth for both Lily and I, but I purposely made it sound convincing in order to garner responses from the seemingly informative guests.

“.........................”

Silence enveloped the kitchen after that proclamation. As if having a hard time processing yet another incomprehensible thought, not a single answer was made even after a few minutes had passed.

“It makes sense.”

Geraint broke the ice as he mumbled something audible enough to cause the others to focus at him. Sounding like he had come up with a realization, he stood from his seat and directed his passionate gaze at me and Lily.

“It’s impossible to build a house this big inside the forest of beginnings. If the two of you are really alius, then it all makes sense. It will take an enormous amount of mana to transport such a large structure but it's still possible theoretically.”

The usually meek Geraint began to talk loudly. As if expressing his thoughts loudly could rapidly change his character, the attendant didn’t mind the atmosphere and continued to freely discuss his deductions.

Alius and mana.

Two consecutive terms, that peaked my interest, came out from Geraint’s mouth. Alius seemed to be another term for foreigners and mana was a common term in games that determined the amount of magic power a player possess. Come to think of it, Geraint performed something quite similar to magic back then. According to Geraint’s conclusion, mana was the thing that transported us here. Moreover, Alius were foreigners who were transported through mana.

“Yes, we were forcibly transported here and we wanted to go back if possible.”

The attendant surely knew a lot of things and was openly divulging information about our circumstance. As a follow up, I told him our main objective, hoping to know if it was possible to return.

“It is possible. But we need access to a level four magic circle.”

Hope bloomed inside my heart right after hearing Geraint’s answer. Even if I had no clue on how to get access to that magic circle, just knowing that there's a way, filled me with determination. Lily's expression had noticeably brightened as well, glad to hear that returning back home to her father wasn't impossible at all.

“Where can we find a level four magic circle?”

Appearing to have struck a treasure chest of knowledge, there's no way that I would let this opportunity pass. Especially since the attendant didn't seem suspicious of us at all.

“Level four magic circles are considered relics within each kingdoms. There are currently seven of them at the present, the nearest one is located at the Alteria Kingdom where I and her highness came from.”

The barrage of information was continued by the enthusiastic Geraint. Coincidentally, the level four magic circle he was talking about was found in their homeland. Even though there was a chance that he was manipulating the information in order receive our assistance, believing in him wouldn't’ hurt at all. Having positive relations with a somewhat reliable source like Geraint was in itself greatly beneficial for us, considering that we were totally clueless about this place.

“Do you know the way back to this ‘Alteria kingdom’?”

“Yes! I perfectly remembered the path we’ve taken to arrive here.”

Geraint openly presented the first lead we had despite all the tormenting I had subjected onto him. I certainly felt bad about it and wanted to apologize but maintaining our standing right now was more important.

“Let’s make a deal.”

Already catching a glimpse of what would happen from now on, I decided to close the negotiations with a deal that was equally beneficial for both parties. Fortunately, our goals had intersected with one another and we needed each other to fulfill them.

“We’ll help you get back home, in exchange we require your assistance in getting access to that magic circle.”

It was mentioned that those circles were considered relics in each kingdoms. Naturally, relics should be guarded by an organization that possessed high authority. If the princess was indeed a genuine member of the royal family, she could probably get us closer to that magic circle. If that didn’t work out, we could still force our way in.

“........................”

As expected, the other party was deep in thought after hearing my conditions. Catherine, who acted as the leader, showed an intellectual expression. Even though Geraint was the one who initiated the talks, the last decision should still be made by the princess.

“I’ll accept the deal.”

The rising tension was immediately brought down by her words. Seemingly not done with her answer, she imposingly stood up with her arms crossed and directed a serious gaze at my direction.

“But before that, it looks like there’s a problem you need to solve first.”

The princess self importantly announced while wearing an arrogant smirk on her face. Her line of sight clearly directed at my neck instead of my face.