The Grill-Wielding Saintess of the Dead

Chapter 78 The World Tree Leaf Pancake 6 – Det…?

“Alright, is it true that Shia has entered the Elf Kingdom?”

[Yes.]

Hearing the voice from beyond the smartwatch, Yujin let out a small sigh.

“Keep following her, Tia. Report to me if anything happens. If it becomes an emergency, join forces with the Saintess of the Dead.”

[Just one question.]

“What is it?”

[Why aren’t you going yourself?]

“……..”

Hearing that, Yujin, who had been about to drink water in the kitchen, froze.

“Do I need a reason to explain myself?”

Although Yujin spoke in his usual tone, she felt his voice trembling.

“Because I couldn’t be bothered. Because I didn’t want to go. Does that answer your question?”

[…Let’s leave it at that.]

Yujin, about to take a sip of water, put it down roughly in response to Tia’s almost sarcastic tone, as if letting it slide this time.

It broke.

Sigh, even after decades, I still can’t control my emotions.

“Tia Lauria.”

[Yes.]

“I’m sorry, but we agreed not to ask unnecessary questions between us. Both you and I.”

[True. It was just personal curiosity. I apologize if it offended you.]

“It’s fine. I was a bit sensitive, too. Let’s end this here.”

The usually uptight skeleton knight sure talks a lot at times like these.

Sigh…

Yujin turned off the smartwatch and buried himself into the sofa.

He was exhausted.

Even though he hadn’t broadcasted, entered a dungeon, or gone on a raid, Yujin felt utterly tired.

Ever since Shia accepted his request, Yujin hadn’t been able to relax for a moment.

Not only that, but he hadn’t been able to sleep either, feeling like someone was constantly squeezing his throat.

Of course, there was no one around to harm Yujin.

As the first S-rank returnee and one who had operated for decades after Yeonseo, he was a powerful S-rank hunter.

But Yujin didn’t care about his strength.

How could I ever return there?

How could I ever face them again, the elves?

No matter how strong I am, can I solve their problem?

No.

My power is false.

My power is an illusion.

My achievements are hypocrisy.

How could I, with my lies, face them again?

Of course, no one knew what Yujin had done.

“Olga…”

When he closed his eyes, the memories returned.

The image of her, telling me it was okay, her hands drenched in blood, came flooding back.

“I’m the one who burned it down. How could I ever forget?”

Even if they said it was okay, or even if they denied it,

Yujin knew he would never forget.

Yujin would curse himself forever.

●●●●●

Elf food was delicious.

The unknown lotus root, paired with a tangy sauce, had a crunchy texture that made it a superb side dish.

On top of that, the rice made from grains cultivated by the elves was warm and perfectly textured, making each bite shatter the concept of the rice I once knew.

“Chew, chew…”

It was delicious.

Everything was delicious.

It was incredibly delicious.

But…

There was no meat.

“…….Hng….”

“Shia, try this too! Normally, we elves steam tofu without seasoning to savor its pure taste, but we asked the elf chefs to create a special recipe with vegetables and seasoning just for you!”

Yes, the tofu was delicious.

It was probably made from soybeans blessed by the World Tree and the Great Forest, far superior to the cheap tofu bought near my house.

I’ve never been a huge fan of tofu, but I can say without a doubt that no other tofu could possibly bring out such a rich, wholesome flavor.

Yes, this is also extremely tasty.

If you soak the tofu in a sweet and slightly salty sauce and mix it with the rice, it becomes a heavenly dish.

But still, no meat.

“Elves don’t usually eat bread as dessert, but we worked hard since Shia was coming. It’s delicious, right?”

“…Yes, it’s delicious.”

Chew, chew…

About 70 years ago, when I was still in school, I used to detest bread with raisins.

The dried-up raisins’ odd smell and sweetness ruined the bread’s texture and flavor for me.

But the elves’ bread was different.

It was so sweet and fresh, as if they’d put fresh grapes in instead of raisins.

To top it off, they even packed the bread with large chestnuts. If there were a bread contest outside, I would bet my wrist that this bread would win first place.

This bread was really… unbelievably good.

A taste I had never experienced before.

It deserved all the praise in the world.

But there was still no meat.

This, too, had no meat.

Meat. Meat. Meat.

There was no meat.

“……….Thank you for the meal.”

“Hehe, was it good?”

“Yes, it was really delicious.”

That was not a lie.

Every dish the elves gave me was truly divine.

But there was no meat.

I was truly relieved that Olgania didn’t ask, “Was the meal satisfactory?”

Had she asked that, I, who cannot tell a lie, might have been forced to break my own rules and speak falsehood.

“Hng… another bowl, please.”

“Yes! Agatha, the guest wants more!”

“Understood, Olgania.”

In the end, I couldn’t ignore the meal placed before me, so I decided to eat everything without leaving anything behind.

Leaving food uneaten was a sin.

Disrespecting food is a grave crime against the earth that raised the crops and seeds.

It is also an offense against the sky that provides sunlight, wind, and rain, and an immense disrespect to those who grew and prepared the food.

So, in my dictionary, leaving food behind was unacceptable.

Besides, the elves, though pretending not to, couldn’t hide their curious glances as they watched me, an uncommon outsider, eat with them.

“Wow, ten bowls already…”

“The cook from the Oak Tree House really put in the effort at Olgania’s request.”

“I get that it’s delicious, but do humans normally eat that much?”

“Not really, the strong guys I met last time couldn’t even eat half of that…”

“She really can eat.”

It was known that elves eat sparingly, replenishing their body’s energy and vitality from the spirits and nature’s life force.

They eat less than half of what an average adult male would consume in a day.

From their perspective, seeing someone eat as much as I do must have been a first.

There’s a joke among the elves that a good eater makes an ideal groom or bride.

Well, just because I eat well doesn’t mean I’m going to become an ideal spouse for an elf.

Because there’s no meat.

Ah, that root vegetable salad would be perfect with meat…

Ah, this warm rice would be perfect with meat…

Ah, this bread, if only I could stuff some meat in it…

Ah, if I could just slice a few pieces of bacon into this potato soup…

Ugh, meat.

Meat.

Meat…

Meat…

“Isn’t it delicious?”

“Yes, it’s… delicious…”

With Olgania’s bright smile, my meal time slowly came to an end.

○○○○

And a bit later, at midnight,

I secretly sneaked out of my room.

The Great Forest’s night was stunning.

The glowing light of the spirits and the life-filled forest, emitting a much softer and bluish glow than the moon and stars, illuminated the dark.

Even in pitch-black darkness, the light of the Great Forest continued to guide the elves living within its warm embrace, gently consuming the world as if the Mother World Tree herself whispered, “I’ll caress my children tonight.”

Aside from the elves in the knights’ order and the guards, most elves fell asleep as early as 10 p.m.

Their lifestyle was similar to elderly villagers, going to bed early around 9 or 10 p.m. and waking up at 6 a.m. to pay homage to the Mother World Tree, starting their assigned duties with a vibrant morning.

Growl…

On the other hand, I, the corrupted Saintess of the Dead, had long since adapted to the urban life of staying up late, glued to my smartwatch and the internet, and then crashing at dawn.

Not to mention, I experience automatic withdrawal symptoms if I don’t eat meat for even a single day.

How am I supposed to survive here?!

Fortunately, though elves have sharper senses compared to humans, it wasn’t difficult to slip past the guards at the front of the building unless it was someone like that elf I had clashed with earlier, Elanarre.

Though I wasn’t as adept at stealth as Menelapie, if I wrapped myself in holy power to hide my presence, I could manage.

“Cough, cough!”

“Are you alright, sister? If it’s too much, you should rest.”

“No, I’m fine. I can endure it.”

“Let us know if you need help. Several of our sisters have already fallen ill.”

Luckily, the elves were busy chatting amongst themselves and didn’t notice me sneaking out.

It did concern me a bit to see elves coughing even with the blessings of spirits and the World Tree…

But for now, calming my growling stomach took priority.

Though the elves had sharp night vision, no one seemed to notice me as I slipped into the forest.

“Phew…”

I took out the drone camera I had hidden in my chest and was relieved to see that it was intact.

“Oh, it didn’t break.”

Given that my body was stronger than steel, I had been a bit worried the pressure of hiding the drone in my chest might damage it.

Fortunately, the drone’s durability surpassed my expectations.

It was still working properly, and the mute mode was functioning fine.

The drone, built with returnee technology, seemed as large as my head from the outside, but the internal storage space was far larger than it appeared.

Last time, when I went to the raid dungeon in Andong, we managed to pack a month’s worth of supplies in a single transportation drone.

The Hunter Association-issued drone, while useful for broadcasting, was even more impressive for its storage capacity.

Thanks to that, I always kept a supply of seasonings, condiments, scallions, flour, water, and cooking wine stored inside the drone.

Originally, Yeonhwa had packed in-flight meals for me.

She bought them because she was worried the elf’s diet wouldn’t suit my taste.

Even though I had eaten plenty on the plane, I had ordered enough to last me throughout my stay in the Elf Kingdom, but because of the crazy hijacking by the damned Kaanf bastards…

“No, forget it. Let it go. I’m a saint.”

What good would being angry do?

The incident had already happened.

It wasn’t as if I could kill an elf just because I lost my in-flight meals.

Moreover, once I had been accepted as Olgania’s guest, the elves acknowledged our mutual misunderstanding, and the knight commander Elanarre personally bowed her head to apologize.

I’ve heard that elves rarely bow, so for the knight commander to bow must mean she was truly sorry.

Anyway, I was now wandering alone in the great forest of the elves.

Why?

Because there was no meat at dinner.

“…..”

I came out to look for a suitable prey, but the great forest of the elves was very quiet.

I could hear the occasional sound of insects, but I wasn’t desperate enough to think about grilling bugs unless I was on the verge of starving.

For now, I was simply trying to fill the subtle, malignant void created by my lack of meat.

By the way, meat generally contains a subtle amount of malevolent energy.

It’s nothing compared to humans or monsters, but food carries emotions.

For example, when cows are slaughtered, the fear and pain they experience leave faint traces in the meat.

As a result, by eating beef, I can absorb a small amount of malevolent energy.

Of course, the amount of malevolent energy I gain from eating beef is about as impactful as adding a drop of water to a giant dam, but still.

“Hmm, what can I eat…”

I looked towards the elves’ stables in the distance.

By the way, elves don’t ride horses; they ride large deer called Silvermoon Deer.

These deer, much larger than typical horses, were the elves’ main cavalry and greatly enhanced their mobility.

Of course, these deer are wild and aggressive, and only elves blessed by the World Tree and the spirits can tame them.

I’ve eaten Silvermoon Deer before in the past, and it was quite tasty.

No, not just quite tasty.

It was one of the best meals I’ve ever had as the Saintess of the Dead.

It was probably when I visited the desert elves.

The Silvermoon Deer they roasted was far more delicious than most meats.

At the time, I had gone to the desert elves with Menelapie and Teresa to assist with restoration efforts after the war against the Demon King.

The desert elves, in honor of us as distinguished guests, prepared a special dish for me, Menelapie, and Teresa.

It wasn’t just a simple meat roast.

They carefully washed flowers, pistachios, tomatoes, paprika, potatoes, onions, and various other vegetables, then cooked rice made from the desert elves’ staple grain with a soft, bubbling texture.

They then marinated the front leg of a Silvermoon Deer for a day, slicing and grinding it finely.

They mixed it with spices, the vegetables, and the rice, and finished the dish with a luxurious saffron flower seasoning.

This created the desert elves’ specialty: Silvermoon Deer pilaf.

It was incredibly delicious.

It was so good that even Teresa, who usually refused to eat most food, applauded after just one bite.

If possible, I’d love to eat it again, and there it was, right in front of me… that precious Silvermoon Deer…

“……..Drool.”

[….!!!]

[Uooong!!!]

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong!?”

A few of the Silvermoon Deer, sensing my hungry gaze, woke up and began panicking in their pens.

The elf guarding the stable hurried over to calm the startled deer.

“Tch…”

No, I wouldn’t actually eat the elves’ property or their pets, the Silvermoon Deer.

…To be honest, if there hadn’t been a guard, I might have succumbed to temptation and snatched one for dinner.

No, I’m a saint.

No matter how hungry I am, I can’t eat someone else’s pet or livestock.

Get a grip, Shia!

“But what should I eat…”

The great forest of the elves is so rich with life that even eating random weeds would be enough to replenish human nutrients.

However, for me, this place is a green hell of starvation.

What in the world can I eat?

“Ugh…”

Eating tree branches wouldn’t work either—it just wasn’t appealing.

I could easily imagine myself gnawing at bark like an insect, but no matter what, I’m still a saint, so I need to maintain some dignity…

“Sniff, sniff…”

Suddenly, a fragrant smell reached my nose, making me lift my head.

That smell… was it from meat?

No, wait.

Correction.

It wasn’t a meat smell.

It was the scent of malevolent energy.

A very strong one, at that.

But the wind hadn’t changed, and there were no signs of a Chaos Ant swarm.

I spread out my holy power to check, but I didn’t sense any Chaos Ants in the vicinity.

“Guess I’ll follow it.”

Following the enticing scent of malevolent energy, I began walking.

Honestly, I wanted to turn on my drone camera, chat with my viewers, and prepare a meal, but… that probably wasn’t a good idea.

“Is it here?”

After following the smell of malevolent energy for a while, I arrived at a giant tree.

“…Why is it so big?”

It wasn’t just large.

The tree was so massive that it seemed to fill the entire night sky.

Its size and presence were entirely different from the other trees.

Whatever, that didn’t matter.

The delicious scent coming from this tree was irresistible.

Since there was no meat, I figured I might as well eat this.

Again, let me remind you, the great forest of the elves is filled with not just delicious weeds, but nutritious tree bark as well.

Even if I were stranded here, I wouldn’t have to worry about starving, so I had high hopes for the taste.

“Let’s see.”

I plucked a leaf from the tree and sniffed it.

It smelled fragrant.

Yes, it had the usual herbal, aromatic smell, but there was a faint trace of malevolent energy that made my mouth water.

It was like watching ramen bubbling at midnight and automatically drooling.

“Hmm, but what can I make with a leaf?”

Leaf… leaf… cabbage leaf?

The only thing that came to mind was cabbage leaf pancakes or flower pancakes.

Flower pancakes have a lot of variations depending on the season.

In spring, people make azalea flower pancakes, in summer, yellow rose pancakes, in autumn, chrysanthemum pancakes, and in winter, when flowers are scarce, they use jujube or mugwort.

Personally, mugwort pancakes were one of my favorite dishes.

Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since I’ve had them…

Alright.

Tonight, I’ll make a leaf pancake, a variation of flower pancakes or cabbage pancakes.

Where else would I find such a large leaf, full of nutrients and even laced with malevolent energy?

It wasn’t meat, which was a shame, but the malevolent energy alone was enough to justify its worth.

“First, let’s gather some suitable leaves…”

I particularly remembered my grandmother making flower pancakes for me when I was young.

Though I no longer remember my grandmother’s face, I vividly recall her kneading sticky dough for a long time to make delicious pancakes, shaping them into flat circles, and frying them in an oil-filled pan.

Since she didn’t put the flowers directly into the batter at first, but added them later, the flowers didn’t burn and remained beautifully decorated, enhancing both the appearance and taste of the pancakes.

Anyway, today I planned to make something similar—leaf pancakes.

Honestly, I didn’t have high expectations.

How delicious could a leaf be?

The only reason I was going to eat it was because of the subtle amount of malevolent energy in the tree.

“First, two cups of pancake mix, and one cup of water.”

It was important to mix the batter well until it became nice and thick.

A Saintess of the Dead, alone in the middle of the night, relying on fireflies’ light to mix pancake batter… If anyone saw this, they’d probably burst out laughing.

Ah, I heard you should add eggs, too.

Fortunately, I had a jar of wyvern egg yolks stored in my drone.

I didn’t expect something I had prepared just in case to come in handy like this.

“Hehe, I’m going to raid all the wyvern eggs when I get back.”

Wyvern eggs are the best.

Versatile and tasty.

For now, I needed to focus on these giant leaves.

Once the pancake batter thickened nicely, I added a bit of salt for flavor…

“Frying pan… frying pan…”

Wait, I don’t have one…

“What should I do…?”

Looking around, I decided to pick up a flat stone.

It was a bit thick, but with my strength, I could easily shave it down.

Just to be safe, I used a purification miracle to get rid of any dust, creating a makeshift frying pan.

It wasn’t difficult to light a fire with my holy power.

Using a stone as a frying pan required stronger heat than a gas burner, so I needed to use holy power to get the stone hot enough for cooking.

Now that I think about it, this was similar to when Yeonhwa and I grilled Black Minotaur meat for the first time.

That Black Minotaur flank was insanely delicious…

No, focus on the leaf pancakes.

“First, pour some oil onto the stone…”

Sizzle!

“Kyaa!?”

The oil sizzled and splattered more than I expected, spraying in all directions as soon as it hit the stone.

Of course, the oil got all over my clothes and skin. While the tough body of the Saintess of the Dead wasn’t burned, I felt like I was reeking of oil.

“Damn it…”

Nothing’s going right today.

What even are leaf pancakes, anyway…

“Sigh, focus.”

I moved the stone a little away from the fire to control the temperature.

Alright, that’s better.

Now it was ready.

“Now, let’s slather the pancake batter onto the leaf… Oh, it looks decent.”

Thanks to the thick batter and the added wyvern yolk, the leaf’s appearance turned out better than expected.

Now, I placed it on the stone.

Sizzle…!

“Oh, oh… oh…”

It smelled amazing.

Why does it smell so good?

No, seriously, why does it smell so good?

I wasn’t just cooking a leaf; it smelled like a perfectly salted and aged beef steak.

The kind of smell that makes your mouth water just by smelling it.

If it smelled this good, there was no way it wouldn’t taste amazing.

“…Drool, this looks delicious.”

In all my life, I never thought I’d be craving leaf pancakes.

I didn’t expect this at all.

Once the front side was cooked, I flipped it over to cook the other side.

Sizzle…

The sizzling sound of the oil frying the leaf pancake was enough to whet anyone’s appetite.

I mean, this whole situation was absurd.

I didn’t understand why I was making leaf pancakes, let alone why they smelled so delicious.

“Alright, it’s done.”

It was done cooking.

Since my hands don’t burn, and I don’t feel pain from heat, I picked up the leaf pancake with my bare hands.

First, the color… was beautiful.

With the right amount of pancake batter and wyvern yolk, it would be weird if the color didn’t turn out nicely.

And inside was the leaf.

I had grilled a leaf the size of my face—no, my chest.

It smelled as good as, if not better than, a well-grilled beef steak, and it even contained the malevolent energy I needed.

This had to be delicious.

“Chomp.”

Chew, chew.

It was delicious.

Delicious.

Delicious!

This was way better than the veggies the elves gave me earlier!

“Mmmm!!!”

Maybe it was because I hadn’t eaten meat since the in-flight meal, but this malevolent energy-filled leaf tasted unbelievably good.

It was really delicious.

Even though I didn’t understand why, it was genuinely tasty!

The soft texture of the leaf combined with the mild flavor of the wyvern yolk lingered in my mouth.

Alright, I could spend all night gorging on leaf pancakes…

“Shia?”

“Hmm? Gulp.”

Olgania…?

It’s Olgania?

Why was Olgania here?

In the middle of the night?

Still chewing my leaf pancake, I looked at Olgania.

Ah, maybe Olga was hungry too and secretly followed me?

If that’s the case, I could share some with her.

I could make a fresh batch without the wyvern egg yolk for her…

“Shia, what are you doing with the leaves of the World Tree?”

“…………Huh?”

Clatter!

The moment I heard her words, I dropped the bowl of pancake batter I was holding.