ISTHR 151

１５１

Haruka’s husband told me sternly to wash my hands after touching raw meat. I look at my hands, thinking that it’ll be fine if I just wash them this much. I wish there was a water supply inside the house. No, that’s not the case. When using raw meat, I should just do it in the garden from the start. I’ve always done it in the kitchen out of habit, but I’ll do it in the garden just for meat.

Today was the first time I’d bought a raw block of meat. Usually it’s thin meat that you can just grill as is. When I want a hearty meat meal, I just buy it pre-cooked from a food stall, so I was late in realizing this. I’ll have to wipe the doorknob properly later.

Now that my hands are washed, the next step is to wash the rice. I put the rice in a pot and add water from the well. I scrub it well and drain it. I stand up to do it again, but Saine is already there, with water already drawn and waiting for me. He’s really quick to notice.

You can’t wash rice too much, Granny Haru told me. So I stopped after washing it three times. Apparently over there you soak the rice in water for a while, but if you do that in this world the rice dissolves in the water. Granny Haru did that and ended up making cloudy white water many times.

I put the rice and water in the pot. Uhh, the water is up to the first knuckle joint, wasn’t it? I put my hand inside the pot and measure the water so that my fingertips are touching the rice. Okay, this should be about right. As I was about to try and haul the pot, Saine already lifted it before me.

The thicker the pot, the better the rice will cook. And the heavier the lid, the better. That’s why our pot is quite heavy. The pot we use to cook rice doesn’t have a handle, so I always had trouble fitting it into the stove. But Saine easily lifted the pot and fitted it perfectly into the hole in the stove.

[I’ll leave this to cook here. You handle the meat.]

[But….. Saine, aren’t you tired?]

It feels like a long time ago, but the monster incident was only three days ago.

[A day’s rest is enough. I’m not tired at all.]

Saine chuckled and ruffled my head. It was a relief to see Saine’s smile after such a long time. It felt like the huge stone sitting in my chest was melting away.

[It’s faster for the both of us to cook together. Let’s quickly make our meal and eat.]

The sky is still blue. It’s probably around 2PM. We didn’t eat lunch so is this a late lunch? My stomach was certainly growling.

[You’re right. If we don’t eat quickly, dinner will be late, too.]

We’ll have tonkatsu for lunch, and fried pork belly for dinner. I’ll make soup with the remaining pork belly. That way we can eat it tomorrow morning.

[Dinner? I don’t know if you can eat that.]

[Why?]

Saine grinned and pulled me to him.

[Because we’re going to eat quickly and have s*x.]

Saine’s cr*tch was already ready as it was pressed tightly against me.

[Huh? Huh? Why?]

I waved my hands around in a panic, but he wouldn’t let go. He pressed down on me even harder.

[Are you going to say that again? That it’s not night.]

[I-I won’t say that, but… why so suddenly?]

[Is it sudden?]

[That’s right. I mean… Saine, weren’t you angry?]

He’s been angry ever since we left the guild. No, that’s not it. Ever since the monsters disappeared. It feels like he’s been angry ever since that black monster disappeared.

[I’m not angry.]

[That’s a lie. Saine, you’ve been angry the whole time. The atmosphere was kind of tense.]

If I say something like that, I might make him even angrier. An alarm was ringing in the back of my head, but I stupidly didn’t stop talking.

[You’ve been mad ever since the monster disappeared. I must have done something wrong…… I’m sorry. You might get mad and tell me not to apologize without understanding why, but still, I know that I must’ve been in the wrong. So… I’m sorry.]

I clenched my fists around the fabric of Saine’s clothes and pressed my head against his firm chest. Saine stayed silent for a long time. Then, with an exasperated sigh, he finally spoke. The long breath he let out made my shoulders jerk in surprise.

[Don’t be scared of me. Because you, scare me.]

[……How come?]

[I’m scared that you will disappear. That you’ll go somewhere.]

[Where am I going? You’re my husband. I’m not going anywhere unless you sell me.]

When I looked up, Saine was looking down at me with a bit of sorrowf in his eyes.

[I will not sell you. But you… I feel like you could easily step over the rules of this world and never look back.]

The relationship between a husband and a Reincarnator isn’t something that is defined by law or official rules—it’s just an unspoken agreement. But it’s an unbreakable rule.

[I follow the rules. And even if that wasn’t the case, I still want to be with you, Saine. I want to be with you forever.]

I’ve said it so many times. Maybe every single day. But I never get a response. The silence makes me anxious, so I say it again.

[Saine… I love you. I love you so much. That’s why I want to stay with you forever.]

Saine stays silent as I expected, looking down at me.

[Hey… what am I to you?]

I think this is what women say. I’m a guy, what on earth am I saying? Even though I was so ashamed of myself, I couldn’t help myself from asking. My heart is already at its limit. I need the answer as to what I am to Saine.

[You are my Reincarnator.]

[I know that. That’s not what I mean, what I want to know is what you think of me.] 

Saine frowned as if he’s stumped. 

Am I troubling him? Is he stumped because he can’t tell me the answer?

[You’re my Reincarnator.]

Saine murmurs as if convincing himself, then gently wraps his arms around me.

It feels like he’s dodging the question. I never got an answer. Still, despite my frustration, the tonkatsu I made turned out amazing. Freshly fried, crispy, and packed with flavor. Eating it with steaming hot rice—bite after bite after bite—it’s perfection. No sauce, just a strong hit of salt and pepper. I think this is what they call the pure taste of the ingredients. It was so good that I couldn’t stop eating. I even ended up finishing the ras meat karaage I had prepared for dinner.

Turns out, rice-flour fried chicken is delicious. I probably ate twice as much as usual. Saine, too, must have felt the same, because after devouring everything, we just sat there, staring at each other in a daze.

My heart still feels restless, but with a full stomach, I can’t help but feel happy. I’m so simple, really.

[What kind of dish is this?]

Saine points with his eyes to the empty plate that once held the tonkatsu.

[It’s tonkatsu.]

[Tonkatsu…]

Saine mutters “tonkatsu” several times and nods.

[Okay, I remember. It’s tonkatsu.]

He grins and stands up. Saine remembers the names of dishes he likes and occasionally requests them. Looks like tonkatsu has now been added to the “Saine menu.”

Following Saine, who left the room first, I grab the used dishes and head to the yard. While I’m washing them, Saine heats up the bath.

Naturally, we end up bathing together. Before stepping into the bathhouse, I glance up—the sky is still blue.

The soap I had taken outside earlier—I forgot to put it back, but it was already in its usual spot. Saine must have noticed and returned it. The soap here is amazing. You can wash your entire body, including your hair, with just one bar. Saine lathers it up and washes my hair for me.

I ate a little too much, and my belly is sticking out slightly. But despite eating even more than I did, Saine’s stomach remains firm. I reach out and pat his body—his muscles are solid everywhere. Why doesn’t he get a food belly even after overeating? As I press and squeeze at his stomach, a puzzled voice comes from above.

[What are you doing?]

[Saine, why doesn’t your stomach stick out?]

[Because I work out.]

[That’s true, but doesn’t it normally stick out if you eat too much?]

Look, his big hand stroked my stomach that I stuck out to show him.

[Your stomach does not have muscles.]

[Hmph…… That’s not true. It’s just from time to time, but I do some sit-ups.]

And push-ups, too. But could it be because I don’t do it daily that it’s not effective? I tried bending my arm, but the bulge was the same as before, it hadn’t gotten any bigger.

[You’re fine the way you are.]

Saine bent down a little and gave me a kiss.