Isekai Mahou wa Okureteru! (LN) - Volume 7 - Chapter SS1

Bonus Short Stories 

It’s Cooking Time 

On a certain day at the Yakagi residence, Suimei had just emerged from his study. On his way down to the living room on the first floor, he couldn’t help noticing an abnormality in the kitchen as he walked by. 

“...Huh? What’re they doing in there?” he mumbled. 

“Oh, it seems the two of them are preparing a meal,” answered Felmenia, who was already in the living room. 

The “abnormality” in question was that Lefille and Liliana—neither of whom were regular fixtures in the kitchen—seemed to be up to something. Felmenia said they were preparing a meal, but that would be a Yakagi residence first. They’d never cooked anything together before, so hearing that they were suddenly attempting it now for some reason inspired a certain anxiety in Suimei’s gut. 

“Uh... is that really alright?” 

“There is no need to worry, Suimei-dono. Look, Lefille is with her.” 

“Yeah, but... Lefi-san is kinda tiny right now.” 

Despite Suimei’s express concern, Felmenia didn’t seem worried. She was normally the one to handle mealtimes for the household, so perhaps she was just happy to be off-duty for once. She was simply enjoying her time lounging in the living room while her friends did the cooking for her. 

Menia-san, you’re so pure... So, so pure... 

She was perfectly at peace, but Suimei was still concerned. It wasn’t like he didn’t have any faith in them, but this was the first he’d ever heard of either Lefille or Liliana cooking. Moreover, when Lefille shrank, she became proportionally klutzy, which only amplified his anxieties further. In an attempt to put himself at ease, he listened in on what was happening in the kitchen. 

“As expected... of Lefille. That cut... was splendid.” 

“Wasn’t it? Now it’s time to show these vegetables the sword skills I’ve cultivated. Here we go.” 

It sounded like they were in the middle of chopping ingredients. Encouraged, Suimei peeked in through the cracked door... but what he saw confounded him. 

“...Huh?” 

Lefille was holding a knife in her right hand and a vegetable in her left. But there was no cutting board—or anything close to resembling one—anywhere nearby. Just what was she planning on doing? 

“Hiyah!” 

Lefille let out a cute cry as she tossed the vegetable into the air and sliced right through it—just like a swordsman performing a street sideshow for tips would. Liliana observed this all with a joyful look. 

“Amazing. They all have... the same shape.” 

“Right? Severing vegetables is but a trifle to me.” 

However... 

“Right?” My ass! Use a chopping board, damn it! That’s food! Besides, that’s cutting, not severing! 

Suimei had used magicka to slice up potatoes for chips before, but he hadn’t had much of a choice without a mandolin or the like. But this... He didn’t even know where to start. 

“Next is... my turn. I will fry up... the cut vegetables.” 

Or so Liliana declared, but Suimei didn’t see a frying pan or oil anywhere nearby. Just what was she planning on doing? Before he could fully process that thought, a terrible feeling besieged Suimei. 

Wait, she’s not... 

“Oh Fire... Dance.” 

AAAAAAAAH! 

Just as Suimei’s mental alarm bells were sounding, Liliana chucked the vegetables in the air and used magickal fire to scorch them... It was all over in the blink of an eye. 

“Mm... Yes, splendid.” 

Or so Lefille said. And it did have that appearance—the vegetables looked to be nicely fried. Despite being burned by magickal fire, they were perfectly crisp. However... 

The flavor’s dead... That’s it. They killed it. 

Quite some time ago, the Society’s resident monster professor had gotten Suimei to drink tepid coffee that had been created in mass quantities several hundred years prior. It had an indescribable tastelessness, and all around just wasn’t good. When Suimei’s father had tried it too... 

“There’s a certain romance to such uses of magicka, but nothing romantic can come of it...” 

That was his reaction in the moment, but what he said applied to many things. Beautiful, simple results would never come from anything so overwrought. So no matter how thoroughly steeped in magicka a magician was, that didn’t equate to cooking skill. The craft of making things by hand was an entirely different art, and trying to produce something loving like that with magicka was no different than using a machine. And as Suimei pondered such nuance, the girls were moving full steam ahead. It seemed they’d gone from frying vegetables to making soup. 

“I-It’s salty! Did we put too much in?!” 

Aaah— Actually, that’s a fairly common problem when it comes to seasoning things. 

But as that thought crossed Suimei’s mind, in an attempt to correct their mistake, Liliana... 

“Honey... Let us add some honey.” 

Stoooooooop! That’s the worst thing you can dooooo! 

Before Suimei could even raise a word of objection, Liliana lifted up the jar of honey. 

Water! You’re supposed to use water! Even I know that! That’s a rookie mistake, you two! And proof neither one of you belongs in the kitchen! Ack, no, don’t do it! Don’t do it, damn it! Aaaaah! NOOOOO! 

Suimei’s inner despair was all in vain, and he watched helplessly as most of the honey jar was emptied into the cooking pot. After stirring it in, the girls gave the new soup a taste test. 

“Eww...” 

“Th-This is...” 

It was far more disgusting than they’d expected. The two of them were both squirming in agony. However, Lefille still clung to the prospect of victory. 

“No, we’re not finished yet! There’s still hope—a secret ingredient! They say cooking is all about the love you put into it!” 

“Then let us... add all the love we can!” 

And so the two girls began cheering for the soup and telling it to “get tasty.” It was really and truly an adorable sight, but all Suimei saw was two witches casting a curse over their cauldron.