Enchanted in the Moonlight ~ Shinra ~ Main Story

2.3 Dinner with ayakashi

Back at the counter, Ikumi pokes me with her elbow. "The hot boy wanted to talk with you. I'm so jealous."

(Ikumi doesn't know what's going on. She's the lucky one.)

I sigh. "What I would give for a hot human boy..."

Ikumi turns towards me. "Hm? You said something?"

"Nothing."

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"I'm hooome!"

Samon greets me: "Hey, Ayame."

(Ergh... Samon.)

Samon, who suddenly came out as an ayakashi last night.

(I can't believe he's one of them, too.)

According to them, he's a zashiki-warashi. A house spirit. That he came ahead of the others, waiting for me to awaken.

(Samon seems harmless, though. Not like those others...)

"I went all out on tonight's dinner. It's sukiyaki*." Samon says friendly.

"Thanks..."

In the living room, the table looks like a battlefield.

Shinra asks: "Miyabi, why do you have to put fried tofu in everything?"

"Is that any of your business?" Miyabi snaps back.

(So foxes really love fried tofu.)

"But there's no fried tofu in sukiyaki..." Shinra says.

"Shinra, aren't you taking too much meat? You have to eat your veggies, too, you know?" Kyoga means after he looked into Shinra's plate.

Shinra sulks. "It isn't like I'll die."

"Heh..."

(He's like a child.)

Shinra grumbles at me. "Are you making fun of me?"

"N-no."

"You're really a brad!" Miyabi says mockingly.

"What's that now?" Shinra snaps.

Yukinojo says threateningly: "Shinra!"

"Ugh..." Shinra seems to remember last night and qiuets down.

"I'm definitely a silken tofu man myself." Kyoga says in attempt to lighten the mood.

Shinra asks curiously: "Why?"

"It's exactly like a girl's soft, porcelain skin." Kyoga explains.

(It's embarrassing just listening to him...)

Miyabi cuts in: "Well, I like a girl with smooth, creamy skin."

"What are you talking about?" Chikage scornfully asks.

Miyabi turns towards him. "What kind of girl do you like, Chikage?"

"Like I said, what are you talking about?" Chikage, still contemptuous, reaches for the pickled daikon*.

Miyabi teases: "Oh, I see. So you like a girl with stumpy daikon legs. You've got interesting taste."

"Mm, mature girls." Kyoga laughs.

Chikage growls: "You..."

"Alright now. This is dinner. Everyone, be nice." Yukinojo points his chopsticks toward the pot of sukiyaki, when...

Suddenly the others yell: "YUKINOJO, WAIT!"

"Huh?" Yukinojo looks confused. But he has already picked up a piece of konnyaku*. And the second he does, the pot freezes over.

"We were to late." Kyoga sighs.

Miyabi gripes: "How many times do we have to go through this?"

"Samon, reheat the pot." Shinra turns towards Samon.

Samon says friendly: "Well, now. Again?"

"I'm very sorry..." Yukinojo is saddened.

(It must be rough being a snow spirit... It's funny. Ayakashi eat food the same as anyone.)

I'm fast becoming an expert when it comes to ayakashi trivia. I finish eating, then get ready to take a bath.

(What an exhausting day... But there's nothing like a nice long bath!)
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*Sukiyaki is a soup with meat, vegetables, soy sauce and sugar.

*Daikon is a white root vegetable. It looks like a carrot.

*Konnyaku is made from a kind of potato called Konnyaku-potato. It's pretty healthy.