Echoes of the Lost Elf-Chapter 48 - 47 : The Curry

The survival class had started off well enough. The lesson for today? Cooking in the wild, using monster meat.

Each pair had been given a selection of ingredients and a basic recipe to follow, but, as expected, some people were less competent than others when it came to cooking.

Specifically, Historias and Adriana.

They had settled on making curry rice—a seemingly simple dish. Except neither of them had the faintest clue what they were doing.

Adriana confidently peeled a potato... only for it to vanish the moment it left her hands.

"...Where did it go?" she asked, staring at the empty space where the potato had been.

Historias, who had just finished cutting Stormfang Beast meat, glanced over. "Did you perhaps, misplace the potato?"

"I peeled it! How does something just disappear?!"

Historias simply shrugged. "A mystery for another time."

Shrugging it off, they continued their cooking process, which quickly turned into an improvised experiment.

Instead of following the provided recipe, Historias adopted the "toss in whatever feels right" approach. Into the pot went:

Stormfang Beast Meat (which apparently had paralyzing properties when undercooked... not that they knew). Crimson Peppers (so spicy they were banned in several kingdoms). Gloomroot Mushrooms (which were definitely not meant for food, but Historias thought they looked interesting). Celestial Lotus Extract (he had no idea what it did, but the name sounded fancy).

Adriana, coming over to inspect the bubbling mess, frowned. "Something's missing..."

Historias stared at the murky, ominous mixture and nodded. "Indeed. But what?"

With all the confidence of a top chef, Adriana grabbed a handful of random spices and dumped them in. The curry immediately turned purple.

The two of them blinked.

"...Was it supposed to do that?" Adriana asked.

Historias rubbed his chin. "Unlikely."

She hummed. "Maybe it just needs more salt."

Before he could object, Adriana picked up the salt packet. However, instead of adding a pinch, she lost her grip, and the entire packet fell into the pot.

There was a long silence.

Then, purple fumes started rising from the bubbling abomination.

Historias calmly observed the ominous gas. "I do not believe that is normal."

Adriana, backing away slowly, nodded. "...Yeah."

Not wanting to deal with the consequences, she hastily slammed the pot lid shut. "There! Problem solved!"

Historias sighed. "Yes. Let us simply... hope for the best."

By the time everyone else had finished their cooking, students were wandering around, sampling each other's dishes.

Leon, Kael, Zephyr, and Diana approached the duo's workstation, eyeing the still fuming pot with visible suspicion.

Leon squinted. "Uh... what exactly did you guys make?"

Historias and Adriana exchanged a glance.

"...Curry?"

Zephyr's eyes narrowed. "Why does it look like a potion failure?"

Kael, ever the brave one, ignored their concerns. He lifted the wooden spoon, removed the lid, and without hesitation, took a bite.

The moment the cursed curry touched his tongue, Kael froze.

His eyes widened. His entire body went stiff.

And then—

He collapsed, foaming at the mouth.

The entire group screamed.

Zephyr pointed at the fallen elf. "KAEL'S DEAD!"

Leon grabbed Historias by the collar. "WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

Historias, completely unfazed, dusted off Leon's hands and adjusted his uniform. "It would seem... perhaps a tad too much salt was added."

Adriana nodded solemnly. "Yeah. Just a little bit too much."

Leon's eye twitched. "A little bit?! HE'S FOAMING AT THE MOUTH!"

Zephyr, checking Kael, shouted, "HIS SOUL IS LEAVING HIS BODY!"

Diana held her nose. "It smells toxic! What the hell did you two put in there?!"

Leon turned to Historias and Adriana with pure betrayal in his eyes. "Who. The. Hell. Let you two cook?!"

Zephyr pointed at the bubbling, cursed mixture. "This isn't food. This is biological warfare."

Leon gestured dramatically. "If you fed this to an army, you'd win the war instantly!"

Adriana scratched the back of her head. "Well... I mean, if you think about it, it's kinda impressive."

Historias nodded sagely. "Indeed. We have successfully created a dish that can incapacitate someone within mere seconds. A rather efficient result."

Zephyr gawked at them. "DO YOU HEAR YOURSELVES?!"

Just then, a deep voice interrupted the commotion.

The instructor, who had been silently watching the entire fiasco, pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"...Next time, you two are banned from the kitchen."

Historias and Adriana blinked.

"Wait, what?" Adriana frowned. "Why?"

Historias tilted his head. "I fail to see the issue."

The rest of the class erupted.

"YOU POISONED KAEL!"

"THIS ISN'T FOOD, IT'S A CRIME!"

"THE FUMES CHANGED COLORS THREE TIMES!"

"HE'S STILL TWITCHING!"

Meanwhile, Historias and Adriana exchanged a glance, utterly baffled.

"...I do not understand," Historias murmured.

Adriana crossed her arms. "Yeah. That seems a bit unfair."

Leon nearly had an aneurysm. "UNFAIR?!"

Zephyr grabbed Kael's twitching body. "HE CAN'T EVEN SPEAK!"

The instructor sighed again, rubbing his temples. "You two are never cooking again."

Adriana and Historias continued to look completely clueless as if they had been wrongfully accused.

..........

Kael, now lying stiffly on the ground like a corpse, was promptly given Ipecac by the instructor. The moment the bitter liquid hit his stomach, his body jerked upright like a resurrected zombie.

Everyone took a cautious step back.

Then—without a single word—Kael bolted toward the washroom.

They could hear violent retching echoing through the halls.

The students collectively winced.

"...He's purging the evil," Zephyr muttered.

Leon crossed his arms. "That's not evil. That's pure sin."

Diana sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Why would you even eat that, Kael?!"

Kael's muffled voice came from the washroom, filled with regret. "I DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS LETHAL!"

Everyone turned to the true culprits—Historias and Adriana, who were completely unaffected by the chaos they had just caused.

Instead of feeling guilty, they were standing over their pot, calmly discussing how to improve their "recipe."

"...Perhaps we should try adding Moonshadow Truffle next time?" Historias mused, stroking his chin. "I hear it enhances depth of flavor."

Adriana nodded. "Oh, good idea! And we could mix in Crimson Basil! That stuff is supposed to be really strong."

Historias smirked. "A bold choice. Perhaps even some Void Pepper?"

Adriana's eyes lit up. "Oh, and Eclipse Honey! I heard it reacts weirdly when heated—might add a surprise element!"

Leon's jaw dropped. "YOU'RE STILL THINKING ABOUT MAKING IT WORSE?!"

Zephyr visibly shuddered.

The entire class instinctively took three steps away from them.

At that moment, Kael returned—pale, shaken, and still sweating. He looked like a man who had seen the abyss and returned a changed elf.

The first thing he heard was:

"—and if we mix in a little bit of Gravebell Essence, it might counteract the fumes."

Kael's soul left his body.

Leon grabbed his shoulders. "Kael. Are you okay?"

Kael didn't blink. "...I have witnessed true horror."

Diana waved a hand in front of his face. "Do you need to sit down?"

He shook his head. "No. I need something stronger."

Historias looked at him curiously. "A fortifying potion, perhaps?"

Kael locked eyes with him and said in a haunted whisper:

"No. I need therapy."

The group collectively shuddered, horrified by what they had just witnessed.

And right then and there—at that precise moment—a sacred, unspoken pact was formed.

Never. Ever. Let Adriana and Historias cook again.

It wasn't just a rule.

It was self-preservation

.........

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