Is That My Alter Ego - Chapter 125



Chapter 125 – The Main Dish

The caviar and gourmet pancake I tasted for the first time in my life were nothing short of divine.

Of course, there must have been clear differences from the caviar on Earth, and I had eaten enough that the caviar was thicker than the pancake.

Still, for someone like me, who had always been curious about caviar, it offered a flavor I would never forget.

“Ariel, thank you. This caviar… it’s truly delicious!”

“Heh… hehehe… I’m glad to hear that! Wait, I’ll give you more!”

Ariel, brimming with excitement, placed another pancake on the plate, ready to top it with caviar.

“…Huh?”

But the caviar that had already entered my stomach was all there was, and I looked at the caviar can with a bewildered expression.

…I thought she was just joking when she said she’d put an entire jar on it, but she really did dump a whole jar onto one pancake?

What an overwhelming luxury… A splurge so extravagant that someone like me, a mere commoner, would be turned away even in dreams…!

Yet, it was a bit disappointing not to be able to eat more caviar. The blend of sweetness, a touch of bitterness, and the rich taste of the sea still lingered in my mouth.

From noble mtl dot com

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“Hoho. Then it’s my turn, is it? Ah, go ahead.”

And just as Ariel’s eyes trembled seriously, her mouth twitching as if to call for a servant at any moment, Royu thrust a spoon toward me.

Upon closer inspection, the small spoon held what the staff had described earlier as an extraordinary ice cream.

The white ice cream, piled like fresh snow, bore a delicate pink swirl. And atop the shimmering treat rested a fruit resembling a cherry.

Being someone who had always enjoyed ice cream, I found myself even more curious than about caviar.

The only ice creams I had tasted were the melon-flavored ones brought back from the market, chocolate popsicles adorned with primitive drawings, and cones that seemed to encapsulate the world.

And if I were to indulge a little, there was the vanilla ice cream shared with friends, and the exquisite cube ice cream—those were all I knew.

The notion of “gourmet ice cream” was something I had only seen in videos showcasing the lives of the wealthy, so I felt a flicker of anticipation.

“Ah…”

Nom.

I filled my mouth with the spoon Royu offered. Then, with my eyes closed once more, I began to savor it.

“……..!”

And I had no choice but to open my eyes wide.

Though my mouth didn’t feel cold, the ice cream had just the right chill to lift my spirits.

As for the flavor, it was a blend so rich it felt as if only the finest ingredients had been used.

Chocolate, vanilla, fruit flavors, and more. The tastes intertwined to the point where I couldn’t discern which was the core flavor, yet the combination was anything but chaotic.

While a mix of numerous flavors could easily lead to dissonance, this ice cream presented a series of flavors that appeared and vanished, each swiftly followed by the next.

A parade of ‘taste’ struck my palate.

Crunch.

As I bit into the tiny fruit rolling around in my mouth, I was struck by the illusion that I was drooling uncontrollably, though I knew that wasn’t the case.

Before the parade of flavors could conclude, the essence of ‘sweetness’ manifested itself in a way that felt almost surreal, a refined and sophisticated sweetness that ravaged my mouth.

“U…Wow…”

Heaven. It is heaven…! The only word that could encapsulate this taste was that one!

The flavor, which seemed to gather the sweetness of the entire universe and condense it into one place, transcended the very ground beneath my feet, reaching into the cosmos. It could rightly be called paradise!

“Puhuh. Is it really that delicious?”

“Yes… Yes! Without a doubt, it’s the best ice cream I’ve ever had in my life…!”

“Hoho… It brings back memories.”

I longed to bury my face in the appetizer that had been so delicious, to inhale it entirely, but with Royu and Ariel’s advice echoing in my mind not to fill up on appetizers, I had to turn away from my small, precious bites, tears brimming in my eyes.

*

An appetizer. A simple meal meant to whet the appetite before the main course, yet it was so fantastically delicious that my brain trembled. What kind of food and flavors could the main dish possibly hold?

I perched on the edge of the chair, my feet swinging back and forth.

It might look a bit ridiculous, but it’s not because I’m small; it’s the chair that’s too high.

In any case, it felt like I had been waiting forever, as if I had stepped into a chamber of time and spirit, straining my neck in anticipation.

“Excuse me. The main dish is ready.”

A face appeared, almost welcome now, as several staff members began to set down plates covered with round lids on the table behind him.

But when one thinks of a plate, it’s usually something like a pasta dish that comes to mind. That size would be more than enough to hold food.

“…What is this? Is this even a plate?”

Like Kali’s incredulous mutter. The plate set before us was so enormous that I could have fit on it with room to spare.

“You can look forward to it, Venice.”

“Hmm… So, it seems ‘that’ is about to be revealed.”

“Gulp…!”

I swallowed involuntarily. If seasoned veterans like Ariel and Seris were saying such things, what kind of food could possibly be coming out?

“The main dish prepared for you is the ‘Leviathan Lobster Gratin,’ sourced from the depths of the abyss.”

As the staff lifted the colossal lid, what emerged was a lobster so large it seemed to require two of my bodies to match its size!

What the hell, what is this?! Is this even a lobster?!

What kind of lobster has six claws! It must have over twenty legs! Each of those limbs was the size of my head. The claws were as big as my torso.

“…What the hell! What is this!!”

The moment Kali laid eyes on the majestic form of the ‘Leviathan Lobster,’ she gasped and let out a loud curse.

In truth, it was so shocking that I nearly let a curse slip myself, so I understood her feelings well.

“B-but how on earth do we eat this?”

At this size, it seemed like it would take quite a while to dismantle…

“Finally, it’s my turn to shine!”

Clatter!

“…Knife!”

And at that moment, Seris sprang up from her seat, muttering something as she drew two small knives from the belt at her waist, one in each hand.

What is she planning to do with those? Wait, no way!

“Huah!”

Swoosh!

The instant I realized what Seris was about to do, she began to swing the knives with a speed so fast that she was nearly invisible to my eyes.

I couldn’t quite grasp it, but beyond the faintly visible trajectories, it seemed like something blue, akin to mana, was swirling around.

….Wait, hold on! Using a blade to dismantle a lobster?!

Chop, chop, chop.

An attack so swift it defies description? It aimed for the lobster, and it began to come apart with alarming speed.

The shell, which seemed impenetrable, shattered like tofu, revealing a tender interior that belied its strong exterior.

“Wow…!”

As the creamy flesh, larger than my own body, was unveiled, an involuntary gasp escaped my lips.

From that delicate meat, the unmistakable richness and deep flavor of the sea would surely emerge.

“Ahh. All done!”

In less than ten seconds, the overwhelmingly massive ‘Leviathan Lobster’ was reduced to bite-sized pieces by Seris’s deft hands.

The knife she held glimmered before vanishing into the scabbard at her waist.

Thud.

Tremble, tremble, tremble…!

“Y-Your Excellency…! Please, I beg you…!”

Seris, with trembling hands and body as if shaken by an earthquake, speared a piece of claw meat with her fork and thrust it toward me.

…It was a bit ironic, considering she had just wielded her knife with such wild abandon moments ago.

“Ahh…”

“W-What is this!”

Nom.

Unable to contain my curiosity about the lobster’s flavor, I stepped forward, grasped Seris’s wrist, and guided the fork into my mouth.

“Y-Your Excellency held my hand…! And while saying ‘Ahh’…! Now I could die without regrets…”

As Seris began to mutter madly and laugh ominously, I averted my gaze, closing my eyes to savor the lobster’s flesh.

Swoosh…

“………?”

And in that moment, the raucous sounds that had filled the air vanished, leaving only the quiet crash of waves.

What on earth… is happening?

I opened my eyes, and the scene before me left me speechless.

“The sea…?”

I stood in the midst of a split ocean, gazing at the crashing waves, inhaling the scent of the sea!

Incredibly tender and rich flesh began to dance in my mouth. Perhaps the innards had been mixed like a sauce, as I could taste a hint of sweetness.

Kugugugung…!

And in that moment, when I savored a taste so fantastical it defied words, the sea began to part once more, revealing a colossal something emerging from the depths.

Grrrrrr!

What lay before me was none other than a leviathan lobster, its size dwarfing even the mountains! As I gazed upon the golden crown perched atop its head, the truth dawned upon me.

“…It is a king! The king of the sea….!”

I beheld the ocean’s sovereign, resplendent and imposing, looking down upon me with regal grace.

This flavor… it is a gift from one who encompasses the sea….!

Grrrrrrr!!!

With each thunderous roar of the gigantic leviathan lobster, its claws snapping with ferocity, a sensation akin to fireworks erupted within my mouth.

…It is moving. Truly moving…!

This is what it means to be the finest restaurant in the empire…!

I could no longer hold back the tears that flowed from my eyes and mouth.