Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2659: Chapter 2660: Gourmet Food

Scallion Egg Fried Rice?

At first, Cicia was reluctant. Although she had never heard of this food, she extremely disliked eggs, because no matter how they were made, she felt there was a fishy smell. Of course, if it was made by a Gourmet Sorcerer, it might be different. But the Head Maid Mana looked just like an ordinary lady and couldn’t possibly have the skills of a Gourmet Sorcerer.

Most importantly, she saw a whole pot of oil in the kitchen used for making egg shreds, which made her even more averse.

Since childhood, she never liked oily food, always feeling there was a raw flavor in the oil. The combination of raw and fishy flavors, her two most disliked tastes, made her reject it physiologically and psychologically.

If not for the warm hospitality of Head Maid Mana, she would have probably turned around and left by now.

However, no matter how warm Head Maid Mana was, she didn’t want to eat any scallion egg fried rice. She was already contemplating how to politely and tactfully refuse Mana’s invitation without hurting her.

Maybe using "I’m full" as an excuse would be suitable?

However, before Cicia could find the right moment to refuse, Head Maid Mana had already brought a porcelain plate filled with golden rice grains and placed it in front of her with a smile.

The tempting aroma and the sight of thin egg shreds wrapping around the long grains of rice, combined with the green scallions, made Cicia, who was originally thinking about refusing, experience a familiar sensation for the second time today—mouth watering.

The last time was when she drank cream of mushroom soup.

"Go ahead and try it, I specially brought a spoon for you. Originally, it’s best to use chopsticks for eating scallion egg fried rice, but chopsticks are hard to learn. I barely managed to use them after a long time, so a spoon is still better." Head Maid Mana said with a smile, sitting across from Cicia.

What are chopsticks? This question flashed in Cicia’s mind, but she did not voice it, as her attention was entirely captured by the plate of egg fried rice.

Perhaps, try a taste? It smells quite good, who knows, the taste might actually be nice?

If it’s really not good, she could always stop after a small taste.

With this thought, under the expectant look of Head Maid Mana, Cicia couldn’t help but reach out, tremulously picking up the spoon and digging into the mound of golden rice.

She took a small spoonful, put it into her mouth, and lightly chewed.

Cicia suddenly froze.

It’s... really fragrant!

She had thought it would be raw, fishy, and greasy, but when she actually tasted it, it was dry and fragrant. Moreover, each grain of rice was coated with egg shreds, giving a satisfying chew.

There was no trace of the raw or fishy taste... Perhaps this body made her taste buds less sensitive? That didn’t seem so bad either.

Without the raw or fishy taste, Cicia began spooning one bite after another into her mouth, each chew became more flavorful, and a satisfied expression naturally crept across her face.

The taste somewhat resembled hot salty cheese poured over black barley. But compared to the cheese and black barley combination, this was more loose, neither too greasy nor too salty. Although she still preferred the relatively lighter cream of mushroom soup, the flavor of the scallion egg fried rice was definitely not inferior to the cream of mushroom soup.

The unique taste experience even surpassed that of the cream of mushroom soup.

"Is it okay?" Head Maid Mana saw Cicia’s expression and could tell she wasn’t opposed to the taste of egg fried rice.

"I was originally worried you couldn’t eat scallions, and was thinking about making another plate of egg fried rice without scallions. But since you can eat scallions, there’s no problem."

Cicia: "So this green vegetable is scallion; the taste is indeed a bit strange, but when eaten with the egg shreds, it’s very harmonious."

Head Maid Mana: "According to Mr. Jon, scallions can suppress the eggy smell, improving the taste."

"So it’s used to neutralize the eggy smell." Cicia realized, no wonder she didn’t taste any eggy smell.

Speaking during meals or making loud chewing noises was quite impolite in the etiquette of the Baiyuanians. And Cicia was a classic well-educated lady who had always followed these etiquettes.

But at this very moment, facing the kindly smiling Head Maid Mana, Cicia completely disregarded the Baiyuanian etiquette.

There are hardly any Baiyuanians left; holding on to these outdated rules as commandments is laughable too.

"Head Maid Mana, may I ask you a question?"

Mana nodded gladly, "Of course you can. Also, Miss Cicia, just call me Auntie, calling me Head Maid feels so formal."

"Alright." Cicia nodded with a smile, "I just wanted to ask, is this scallion egg fried rice a specialty here?"

Covering her mouth, Mana chuckled: "I used to be asked this question all the time in reality, didn’t expect to get asked in the Wilderness of Dreams as well."

"This is not a specialty of the Wilderness of Dreams, it’s food from Mr. Jon’s homeland. Speaking of which, I’m not the best at making egg fried rice, at most ranking third in the manor."

"The best is Mr. Jon, the second best is Young Master Pat..."

Cicia asked in surprise, "Angel can cook?"

Head Maid Mana: "Not the young master, the older master. The young master actually also learned to make egg fried rice, but somehow, it always resulted in strange tastes; sometimes it’s quite good, but other times it’s just so-so."

"Although the older master cherished the young master, knowing the young master loved egg fried rice made by Mr. Jon, the older master specifically learned to make scallion egg fried rice for him. The older master’s cooking skills were exceptional, often adding other ingredients for garnish, not only not spoiling the taste, but making it more fragrant and delicious, something I can’t manage."

Cicia had a moment of enlightenment, it seemed Angel had a brother, and they were quite close.

"Since Jon makes the best, why doesn’t Jon make it for Angel? Instead, it’s Angel’s brother who does it?"

"That’s because Mr. Jon..." Head Maid Mana had just started explaining when footsteps sounded from outside.

Soon, a voice came in from outside: "Because Mr. Jon’s hands are better suited for playing the piano or doing academic research. Using them to make egg fried rice would be too much of a waste."

"It’s the young master." Upon hearing the voice, Mana’s eyes lit up, looking toward the door.

Sure enough, shortly after, Angel walked in with strides.

Mana was delighted to see Angel, but Cicia frowned slightly, seemingly reminded of something, giving him a cold glance, instantly turning the previously harmonious atmosphere in the dining room stiff.

Unaware of the change, Mana heard Angel say: "Good day, Head Maid Mana."

"Good day." Mana responded smoothly.

"I have some matters to discuss with Miss Cicia, could I trouble Head Maid Mana to prepare a couple of teas for us?"

Mana naturally understood that Angel intended to discuss private matters, and she nodded without hesitation, "Of course, please wait a moment, young master and Miss Cicia."

Mana gently bowed to the two, then slowly retreated.

Angel came up to Cicia: "So, what do you think? Is the fried rice tasty?"

Cicia replied evasively: "Mana the Head Maid is a good person."

Angel: "So?"

Cicia: "So I don’t want to answer your question."

Angel looked at Cicia’s serious expression, and inexplicably, he kind of understood what she meant.

She didn’t want to see Angel, so she wanted to answer his question in reverse. However, the fried rice was made by Mana the Head Maid, and she thought Mana was a good person, so she didn’t want to go against her conscience by saying the fried rice wasn’t good. But she also didn’t want to tell Angel it was good, so she chose not to answer the question.

A twisted line of thinking, but Angel felt he wasn’t wrong in his deduction.

As for why Cicia didn’t want to see him... it became clear from Cicia’s questioning.

Cicia: "Can you track my location, and do you know when I enter the Wilderness of Dreams?"

Although it was phrased as a question, Cicia stated it with certainty and disdain. Clearly, she believed she was being monitored by Angel, and naturally, she wasn’t pleased.

Angel originally wanted to make an excuse, but after some thought, he decided to be honest: "I’ve grasped an authority from the Wilderness of Dreams— the Gate of Dreams. This authority is also the foundation of flourishing as others appear here. At the same time, I can use this authority to mark specific individuals. When they enter, the authority will notify me."

"The individuals I marked include the Ancestral Spirit of the Barbarian Cave, the Controller of the Barbarian Cave, my Mentor... and some others I thought needed special attention, including you."

Cicia was initially annoyed, but after hearing what Angel said, she was somewhat taken aback.

Authority?! Can such an authority in this world be mastered by humans? Why tell her this? Is it appropriate to discuss such important matters with her?

Angel seemed to read Cicia’s thoughts and chuckled: "I’m not the only one who possesses authority, but mine is the most convenient. It can locate people at any time and can change their positions according to my wishes."

"However, I won’t use the authority casually unless it’s a matter of importance."

Cicia gave Angel a deep look, and she was relatively satisfied with his frankness because, at least, it eased her previous discontent about being monitored.

Cicia: "Why do I need special treatment?"

Angel looked at Cicia dubiously: "Isn’t that obvious? Have you forgotten the question you asked me before in the box?"

"My answer is still the same, because you are a Baiyuanian."

Cicia was slightly choked: "... Aren’t there other Baiyuanians in the Wilderness of Dreams?"

"Yes, so I have marked them as specific individuals too."

Seeing Angel’s matter-of-fact expression, Cicia suddenly didn’t know how to respond... because, what Angel said made sense.

Moreover, Angel’s so-called specific individuals also include the high ranks of the Barbarian Cave, thus, thinking about it, there’s not much to be dissatisfied with?

Seeing Cicia’s expression warm up, Angel knew she was getting drawn in, and quickly took the opportunity to ask: "If you want to know more, you can discover it yourself or consult Frode at the Sky Tower. But for now, let’s put this aside and talk about my matter."

"Your matter? What is it?"

"An urgent matter."

"Urgent matter?" Cicia asked, bewildered: "Did you guys retreat?"

Angel: "Retreat? What do you mean?"

Cicia: "Judging by the time you left from me, most of you should still be in the Other-dimensional Space. So the only urgent matter I can think of is you were under attack. If you were attacked despite having the Mark’s protection, then there’s only one possibility: you retreated."

"Because during a retreat, the Mark doesn’t follow. So if you retreated, you’d definitely fall into the Void... If someone really fell into the Void, if it’s those two apprentices, give it up; they can’t be saved. As for you, breaking open the Plane Corridor should suffice to leave."

Angel: "Are there Magic Monsters kept in the Void?"

Cicia: "Exactly. Don’t ask me what Magic Monsters are kept, why they are kept, or what’s deep in the Void... I can’t answer those, and I don’t know some of the answers myself."

Cicia blocked all of Angel’s attempts to inquire into the secrets of the Other-dimensional Space, and Angel could only temporarily give up on asking about it.

Instead, he returned to the main topic.

"No one retreated; the urgent matter I mentioned is something else." Angel: "The Black Earl has already left the Other-dimensional Space and has explored the Hanging Jail Stairway, which is more peculiar than I imagined..."

After a pause, Angel looked at Cicia: "I just want to know, how much do you know about the situation in the Hanging Jail Stairway? Also, when was the last time you were informed about the Hanging Jail Stairway?"

...

A while later, Cicia, holding the arm of Mana the Head Maid, left Pat Manor.

Cicia wanted to understand this place and also planned to visit the Sky Tower that Angel mentioned. Mana the Head Maid happened to be heading to the Sky Tower for work reports, so they decided to go together.

As for Angel, he was still sitting in the dining room on the second floor, with a slight frown on his face.

He had gotten a not-so-good piece of news from Cicia; what Cicia knew about the Hanging Jail Stairway was from six years ago.

In the eyes of Cicia, who has lived through thousands of years, six years is fleetingly short. However, considering the timidity of the Wood Spirit in the Hanging Jail Stairway, every minute and second in those six years could have brought unexpected changes.

Maybe, in these six years, it suddenly decided to leave?

However, not all the news was bad; there was one relatively good piece of news.

The bottom of the Hanging Jail Stairway wasn’t newly broken; it had already been damaged before the Wood Spirit even arrived there.

But, the damages were mostly on the edge walls or corners. Those places weren’t covered by the Magical Energy Array, and no matter how good the material was, it would succumb to time and naturally crack.

The main areas, like the main hall and stairways, still maintained their basic integrity.

If nothing else, as long as the Magical Energy Array isn’t destroyed, it could last for another thousand years.

As things stand, the good and bad news are balanced; there’s still a chance the Wood Spirit might continue pretending to be dead in the Hanging Jail Stairway. But that relies on the Wood Spirit knowing the Magical Energy Array can be sustained for another thousand years. If it doesn’t know, and it sees the surrounding structures constantly breaking down, the chance of it relocating is still high.

The only way to know for sure if it’s still there is to check in person.