Koutarou turned the basket he had used to carry the ingredients and made a table for Kii. He put the soup, bread and kabob down along with tableware. With those three dishes in front of her, Kii's eyes opened as wide as they possibly could and sparkled.
“Can I eat it!? Can I!?”
“Go ahead. Make sure you don't get it stuck―”
“Thank you for the food!”
“―in your throat”
Kii had started eating before Koutarou could even finish his sentence. Holding a spoon for the soup in her right hand and a kabob in her left, she alternated between eating the soup and chicken. Her pace was rapid, and one could imagine that she liked the taste.
“I'm glad you're so energetic”
Sensing that Kii was satisfied, Koutarou showed a small smile and picked up some bread for himself. He then split the bread and put chicken between it. That was his favorite way of eating in Forthorthe. After a bite, a familiar taste spread throughout his mouth. It was a nostalgic taste that reminded him of his time in Forthorthe.
I'm sure Clan will give this a passing grade...
While eating his dinner, Koutarou thought of his partner, who had shut herself in her laboratory. Since she was raised as a princess, she was picky about taste. But he was sure she would surely compliment today's dishes. He was proud of the dishes he had made today.
That was when Koutarou looked up as he sensed someone's glance.
“...”
As he did, he found a pair of large eyes. It was Kii who was staring at his hands.
“I want to try too!”
Kii mimicked Koutarou; she split the bread, put some meat in between and took a bite.
“Delicious!”
She seemed to enjoy that way of eating as she took even more bites. And now she looked like a squirrel eating a nut.
“If you eat that fast, you'll―”
“Hueh”
Just before Koutarou could warn Kii about choking on her food, a piece of bread got stuck in her throat.
“Uuuh, Huhuhuu”
“Here, drink this”
Koutarou quickly presented Kii with the soup. In response, Kii began drinking directly from the plate. After doing that for several seconds, Kii removed her lips from the plate while sighing.
“Haaaah, I thought I was going to die...”
Fortunately, the bread that Kii was choking on slipped down her throat and into her stomach. Relieved, the girl's expression returned to the normal cheerful one.
“It's because you eat it so fast”
“But it's just so good”
Kii had an embarrassed blush when Koutarou admonished her.
“I'm glad you like it, but nobody is going to take it from you, and there's more to get, so you can eat slower”
“O-Okay, I will. Ehe, Ehehehe”
Eventually Kii let out an embarrassed laugh. Seeing that, Koutarou showed a small smile and began eating again.
This kind of reminds me of everyone...
It was a noisy but fun dinner, just like in room 106 and the past Forthorthe. Even though he was far away from either of those, it reminded Koutarou of his everyday life. Kii's appearance right now reminded him of that.
“Hehehe... ehehe... uhhh”
While Koutarou was reminiscing, Kii's laughter changed its tone. It was a soft laughter, with what sounded like sobs mixed in. And the light from the fire reflected off of the tears running down her cheeks.
Kii was crying.
“What's wrong? Did it taste bad?”
Koutarou panicked and tasted his own soup, but the taste was alright.
Then why?
Confused, Koutarou looked at Kii. Despite tears running down her cheeks she had a calming smile.
“That's not it. It's good, it's really good. And I'm so happy...”
Kii shook her head as she said that. But even though she said she was happy, her tears weren't stopping.
“It's just... it's been a long time since I had such a good and happy dinner... so, so I... ehehe, I don't... understand either...”
Hearing her words, Koutarou could imagine what was going on in her mind.
I see... Kii-chan really misses her mother...
After losing her mother, Kii and her father misunderstanding each other was the final straw that caused her to run away from home. It had been quite a long time since she had been able to smile at the dinner table. It reminded her of the times when she had been happy. Just like when Koutarou was reminded of his everyday life, Kii was reminded of her time with her family. Since Koutarou had gone through a similar experience as her, he understood how she felt.