Inn Overlord: Reincarnated with Enhancement Magic, Now Worshipped as a Divine Messenger! - Chapter 14

“Two orders of ginger-sautéed orc meat for Table 3!”

“One for Table 1 as well!”

“Add ale and extra sauce for the skewers over here!”

“More bread, please!”

“Red wine and ginger-sautéed orc meat coming up!”

Today’s business was lively as usual.

After defeating the Orc General, we already had the necessary tools for butchering since we had set out under the pretense of hunting. David skillfully butchered the Orc General on the spot, and we took turns carrying the meat back to the Black Piglet Inn, going back and forth multiple times.

We tried to avoid drawing attention while transporting the meat, but the villagers still whispered about us. Some people even approached David to watch him butcher the carcass. However, by the time they arrived, the remains were unrecognizable as an Orc General, so it didn’t cause much commotion. In fact, David had intentionally changed his usual butchering process to prevent the identity of the meat from being obvious.

As expected of him.

Many people had seen us leave for what seemed like a picnic, and when they saw us carrying large amounts of meat, they assumed, “That must have been a big hunt!” or “Did they take down a huge one!?” They were already looking forward to eating.

And sure enough, everyone enjoyed the ginger-sautéed Orc General meat—essentially pork ginger stir-fry.

“This is amazing!”

“Well, it’s fresh from the hunt, after all!”

“So good!”

“I saw Seraph and the others carrying the meat, so I skipped eating all day to save my appetite!”

“What’s in this sauce!? How did you make it!?”

While serving customers, I responded with things like, “Thank you!” or “David’s cooking is incredible, isn’t it?” and “The sauce is a secret!”

Then, a regular named Hazan spoke up.

“Hey, Seraph. Ever thought about taking over this place someday?”

“Ah, I haven’t really thought about it! That’s still a long way off. But… I wouldn’t mind learning how to cook.”

“Good! You should! Keep this taste alive so I can enjoy it until the day I die! Wahaha!”

David’s cooking really was delicious. Watching everyone enjoy it made me happy too.

“Is this really orc meat?”

“Yeah… it does taste different…”

“Huh? Wait, so it’s not?”

“I’ve had orc meat before, and this tastes nothing like it…”

Adventurers like Albert and Setsuna seemed suspicious about the flavor, but since it tasted good, they decided not to overthink it and just enjoy the meal.

—Well, that’s because it’s not just orc meat. It’s Orc General meat. Of course, it’s different.

Inside the lively restaurant, Abigail and Luka were busy but seemed to be enjoying their work. Laura, David, and I felt the same way. But amidst all the excitement, my mother looked uneasy. She had been that way since the hunt.

As business hours ended, we saw off the last customers. The remaining guests headed up to their rooms, and we sat down to eat the leftover ginger-sautéed Orc General meat.

“So good!”

“Delicious!”

“Amazing!”

“It’s wonderful!”

“The best!”

“……”

As we ate, we discussed our plans moving forward.

“So, from now on, Luka and you will handle the hunting?”

At Laura’s question, Abigail still looked worried.

David simply said, “I’m counting on you,” to Luka, who responded with a firm, “Yes!”

A short silence followed before my mother hesitantly spoke.

“U-um—”

But at that moment, David spoke up.

“Listen, the fact that an Orc General showed up means something bad might be happening in the Demon Forest…”

My mother fell silent. Abigail turned to David.

“Something bad?”

“Normally, an Orc General would have a group of High Orcs and regular orcs under its command. But this one came alone… That’s what worries me.”

I recalled something.

“Oh yeah, Albert and the others mentioned it too. They said something seems off in the Demon Forest. Wait… did they say it smelled fishy?”

Laura spoke up.

“Should we ask the village chief to hire adventurers?”

“If we do that, we’ll have to explain what we saw about the Orc General.”

Everyone understood what that meant. Abigail muttered softly.

“That means…”

David crossed his arms and frowned.

“Yeah. We might have to talk about Luka and Seraph too. The goblins that kidnapped Luka and stole livestock were following the orders of a Hobgoblin, right? We know goblins have a settlement near the village, but a Hobgoblin would be deeper in the forest…”

“So the Demon Forest really is changing?”

“That’s what it looks like… Tomorrow, when Luca and I go hunting, we’ll check things out.”

David was a former B-rank adventurer. Instead of paying for adventurers through the village chief, he could act quickly and, more importantly, keep information about Luca and me a secret. He looked at each of us one by one, then turned to my mother.

“Marie, can I borrow Seraph for this?”

Still looking uneasy, my mother gave a small nod.

Come to think of it… what was she going to say earlier?

I never asked, and the next day arrived.