Is That My Alter Ego - Chapter 126



Chapter 126 – Mi Mi

…..s.

Ah… this exquisite delicacy of the sea resonates within my heart.

……Nis.

O sea. You flow gracefully, embodying endless life, yet within my mouth, you writhe with intensity…

“….Venice!”

“Eh… eh?”

And just as I was lost in the fervor of my name being called, my body swaying, I found myself back in a neat and splendid restaurant, not in the parted sea.

“What’s wrong, Venice! Suddenly crying and unable to comprehend…!”

“Captain! We called you several times, and you didn’t respond, it startled us!”

“…I thought something was wrong and was about to go after that staff member. Thank goodness…”

“You scared us! What happened all of a sudden?”

It was the four women, looking down at me with concern, who jolted my mind back from the waves of emotion I had been riding.

According to their explanations, the moment I bit into the lobster that Celis had handed me, my eyes glazed over, and tears streamed down my face, rendering me deaf to all sounds.

…To be honest, it was a bit embarrassing to admit, but since they thought I was unwell, I decided to share my experience candidly.

“Pu…puhuh. What was that? Was it really that delicious?”

“It’s… it’s alright, Captain! You were just so adorable…!”

“If you want, I can fetch you a hundred of these creatures!”

“….Ha, it’s really hard to hold back.”

I had tried not to speak of this. The anxious and worried gazes directed at me shifted in an instant, as if they were looking at a small child.

…Is something off with Royu? Yet, I did not seek to understand. My mind desperately blocked it…

“Y-You all should try it! I’m not saying this for no reason…!”

“…I’ve eaten this a lot.”

“I know… what it tastes like.”

“Really? Should I take a bite?”

“Wait. Why is everyone so clueless!”

“……….?”

Just as everyone was about to reach for the lobster and bring it to their mouths, Royu looked at them with a cold expression, as if to say, ‘You’ve lost all sense.’

“You all. Are you just going to eat that? With ‘Venice’ right here?”

“…………!”

Though many words were left unsaid, it was likely that no one failed to grasp Royu’s meaning.

Their eyes, tinged with shock, turned to Royu with a gaze of longing, as if they were beholding a deity.

Royu, with her usual mysterious smile, turned her gaze toward me.

“Venice? Are you just going to take it?”

“…Is that really what you want?”

“Of course! Everyone’s making such desperate faces because they want it, right?”

“Ugh… this feels a bit off…”

“Then, are you saying you’ll just take it and do nothing?”

As I subtly tried to refuse again, Royu suddenly grew serious and spoke words that pricked at my conscience.

“……”

And it was impossible to turn away from the earnest gazes of the others.

Truly… I don’t quite understand why I’m so caught up in this act of feeding and being fed. But as Royu said, I cannot live a pitiful life of merely taking.

“Ah… I understand…”

“Great!”

“Royu…! You…!”

“You… are the first to catch my interest.”

“Are you a genius?!”

From noble mtl dot com

Yes. If they could become even a little closer because of me, if they could smile, then my embarrassment is a sacrifice I can bear.

“Then, then, who will you give it to first?”

“Ugh… umm… I’ll just give it to the first person I see!”

I decided to take the plunge myself, lest another unexpected incident occur if I left it to them again.

So… right in front of me is Royu, so I suppose I should start with her.

Thud.

Royu offered me a piece of lobster meat from her plate, and I speared it with my fork, glancing at her face.

For the record, I had intended to pick it up with a new fork, but all of them had politely insisted that I use my fork instead, so here I was, using my own.

“Here, here…”

“No, that’s not it!”

“Ugh… ugh…”

“Come on?”

“….Ah—”

“Ahh~ yum.”

I never thought I’d find myself doing this in my life. It seems that the path of living is one shrouded in mystery.

“Umm~! So delicious! Maybe it’s even tastier because Venice is feeding me!”

Royu wore a blissful expression, eagerly chewing the lobster meat before settling back into her chair with a satisfied look.

“Then… next is… Kali?”

“Yay! It’s my turn!”

“Tch…”

“….This is absurd! It makes no sense…”

Let’s just get it over with. The longer it drags on, the more I feel my face might burst from embarrassment.

This time, I picked up the meat from Kali’s plate and looked at her.

“Quick… quick…! Do it for me….!”

“Ah… ahh~?”

“Hah… heeek… ah… ahh!”

Kali gasped for breath like a madwoman and bit down on my fork with her sharp teeth.

Crunch.

“….Huh?”

A sinister sound echoed, and I hurriedly pulled the fork away, but it was no longer a fork that could fulfill its purpose.

The sharp prongs that once pierced food were gone, leaving only the handle in my hand as I stared blankly at the ruined utensil, quietly looking at Kali’s face.

Squish— squish.

“Ugh… Mmm! De…licious! It’s the best…!”

“……..”

Even as I heard the sound of metal crunching and breaking in my own mouth, Kali blissfully chewed and swallowed, as if she truly knew nothing of the horror.

…I recall a jest among adults that it was fine for a child to chew and swallow stones.

But… Kali was no child, and what she swallowed was not a stone, but a piece of metal.

Let’s not mention that, shall we?

“…Crazy girl.”

“Huh….”

“Come on, Venice. I never imagined this.”

Eriel and Seris looked at Kali with expressions of disdain, as if they had witnessed something truly grotesque, while Royu awkwardly handed me a new fork.

“It was the most delicious food ever…! Lobster, it’s really tasty!”

“….Uh, well. That’s—”

“I’ll give the next one to Seris!!”

As Eriel opened her mouth, intent on revealing the truth, I hurriedly blocked her words and called for the next round.

Eriel, are you a capital T? To me, Eriel seems like a grand, grand, grand T.

“Um… I’d like to ask too, Captain!”

As Kali settled back into her seat with a satisfied expression, Seris extended a plate to me with a solemn look.

Now accustomed to the act, I didn’t hesitate to stab a piece of lobster meat with the fork (brand new) and offered it to Seris.

“Ahh, please. Ahh!!!!”

“Ah… Ahh…”

“Ahh!!!!!!!”

The way she fought for the lobster meat was reminiscent of Kali, but at least she didn’t chew on the fork.

“Wh… what a heavenly taste…! It’s a flavor so exquisite that comparing it to the lonely tears I shed while eating alone would be an insult…! Truly, even if it were something of no value, touched by the Captain’s hand—”

“Th-That’s enough, Eriel!”

But as Seris began to speak in a rapid-fire manner, tears streaming down her face without taking a breath, I felt a surge of fear and immediately turned to Eriel.

“…It’s a shame this is the last one. Still… it’s truly a moment I’ve dreamed of and longed for. Let’s not be nervous.”

“Excuse me? What did you say?”

“Oh, nothing. Just… hurry and give me some too!”

“Yes. Understood. Ahh—”

Nom.

Munch, munch—gulp.

Eriel did not make a fuss as she usually did; instead, she quietly savored the lobster meat before swallowing it whole.

Slurp.

“Ugh… hick… it’s delicious… more than any food in this world…”

“W-what? Eriel…! Why are you suddenly like this…?!”

“Ugh… hick… I-I’m sorry… the lobster… it’s just so good…”

As Eriel suddenly began to weep, I found myself repeatedly spearing the meat and feeding it to her.

And it was not just me who stood by, watching in silence; three other women had joined the fray.

In the end, I had to keep prodding the fork into the lobster’s massive body, which was now stripped of its flesh, like a mother bird feeding her chick, without ever tasting the meat myself.

*

We finished the main dish, the Leviathan lobster, and then elegantly sliced into the A+++ steak that followed.

Seris, eager to cut my steak for me, seemed to apply too much force, and not only did she slice through the steak, but the table itself was also cleaved in two.

Eriel offered to use her cutting magic, but the steak ended up in 280 pieces, rendering it impossible to eat.

And… I hadn’t even bothered to ask Kali for help. In the end, it was Royu who cut my steak into manageable pieces.

As for the taste? It was, in comparison to the others, rather ordinary. Of course, it was a steak bursting with flavor, but it was a taste I could somewhat grasp, so I didn’t make a fuss over it.

After we had devoured our satisfying main course, we were enjoying tea and dessert like elegant nobles, engaging in various conversations when—

Crash—bang—!

“E-Eriel—!”

“Hi… hic!”

The door we had entered through burst open violently, slamming against the wall and shattering, and I couldn’t help but gasp in surprise.

With a hint of petulance, I turned to the sudden intruder, and I could only stare in shock.

“What the hell are you doing, you b*stard! You startled our master!”

“…Wait. Why are you even here?”

“Oho…? What’s this all about?”

It seemed the others were equally taken aback, all wearing expressions that screamed, “What are you doing here?” Of course, Kali remained unfazed.

“…Father?”

And then, the man who had entered, who seemed incomprehensible to Eriel, called out, not as a stranger, but as her father.