I understood Kona's reaction, but I'm disappointed I didn't catch it sooner. Of course, I've changed. She knew me as the spineless coward who threw up at my first kill to opening the door to me standing in the middle of a massacre. Also, the fact that my eyes changed colour, she would see that every day, but it's something I, of course, can't see myself. I suppose the past few days she was seeing who I was, I was still me or if I was more Wrath. It would be hard to deny that he's influenced me a bit, mainly by putting me in horrible situations I don't want to be in, of course, it's those situations, not Wrath, that changed me… right?
"Shinya, do you know what day it is today?"
Kona's voice snapped me out of my deep thought. She sat across from me in the tavern, my back to the room, so I could eat without revealing my face. There are no bounties here for me, but some higher-ranking people or guards might have been told about me, so it's best to be safe.
"Today?"
I thought about it for a bit, today? Was today special? It's been hard to keep track of time lately, so I had no idea what day of the month it was.
"I don't even know what week it is."
She tilted her head and looked at me with half-lidded eyes. Looking at me with a half-serious disappointment that I had forgotten something. Just as she was about to say her answer, Anna came over with a large plate, serving a whole roast turkey on our table. Another person, a younger boy who looked around my age, placed two large flagons of beer on the table, one in front of each of us.
"That's what I call a feast."
Kona picked up her utensils and started to cut chunks of the turkey, placing them on her plate as she started to dig in. I watched for a moment as she happily devoured the meat and guzzled the alcohol. When the amount of food came out, I was concerned that we wouldn't be able to eat it all, but Kona is massive and probably requires a lot of food, yet this whole time, we've been eating the same amount. She must be starving. After today, I'll try to get her to eat more.
The two of us devoured the turkey and downed our beer. As we finished off the meal, Anna came and took away the butchered bird as the younger man came to refill our flagons.
"Kona, are you making sure you eat enough?"
"Mm?" She mumbled into her beer, placing the flagon down and swallowing.
"Normally, we eat the same amount of food, but you're a lot bigger than me, don't you need more?"
"Well, I mean, it's not that big of a deal. I've not been working out as much while we travel anyway, so I don't need as much food as usual."
"You just ate three-quarters of the food by yourself, and you ate like someone famished. From today on, I want you to eat as much food as you need."
"Won't that drain our funds faster?"
"We're cutting through the woods for the next leg. We can't spend any money there, so we might as well stock up now. Plus, I've heard this town's greatest export is fish from the black sea, so we could catch some ourselves. What I'm trying to say is, don't worry about it. We can always make more money."
"Thanks, I guess you did remember. That was a nice gift."
Anna came back and placed a small cake on the table, giving a smile to Kona. Shit, today's her birthday, isn't it?
"Anna. Pourrais-je commander un de ces champignons noirs pour elle? Je le paierai moi-même." [Anna. Could I order one of those black mushrooms for her? I'll pay for it myself.]
"Je les ai offerts gratuitement à mes meilleurs clients pour voir s'ils les appréciaient. Vous pouvez avoir le dernier gratuitement, puisque c'est son anniversaire." [I gave them away for free to my best customers to see if they liked them. You can have the last one for free, since it's his birthday.]
"Merci" [Thanks]
Kona cut a piece of the cake and stabbed it with her fork, holding it out to me.
"You gotta make sure you eat enough, too. You're still getting taller after all."
I smiled and leaned in, taking a bite of the cake. It was sweet and also tasted strongly of ground herbs, which my mother used to use a lot in cooking. But it was soft and fluffy with a bounce to it as you bit in. It was very enjoyable.
One of the two of us finished the cake. Anna brought out a black mushroom for Kona.
"J'ai réussi à améliorer la recette après quelques essais. Elle est simple, mais bien meilleure qu'avant." [I managed to improve the recipe already with a bit of experimentation. It's simple but tastes far better than before.]
Anna spoke to me as she put the dish down in front of Kona, who looked at the mushroom curiously. As Anna left, Kona pointed at the mushroom.
"I think I actually prefer the cake to these. Not to say these aren't bad."
Of course, we had eaten about half of the ones we gathered on the way here. Nothing else we had compared to it in terms of taste.
"I think you'll enjoy it. She cooked it a bit differently."
Kona poked the mushroom with the fork and lifted it to her mouth. As she bit into it, I watched her face light up, and it looked like it was melting from the pleasure of the flavour all at the same time. I have never seen a reaction like that to food before, even from the first time I had tried them. Before I knew it, she had eaten it all and was slouching back in the chair with her head back. I couldn't help but think that it looked similar to how she sometimes looked after being satisfied in bed. I wonder?
"Holy fuck, that was the best thing I've ever eaten in my life."
She mumbled softly. I smiled as I finished off my beer.
I watched as she started breathing a bit heavier, her chest pulsing rhythmically. Her face flushed red. I stood up and moved around the table to her.
"You okay? Was that a bit too much for you?"
She looked up at me with half-closed eyes, biting her bottom lip. Was she aroused? Did that food make her feel good in more places than just her mouth? Just what did Anna do to the mushroom to make it have this kind of effect? Before I could even think of something to say, Kona reached up and grabbed me by the collar of my cloak, pulling me into a deep kiss. Her force was overwhelming, her tongue pushing deep into my mouth, causing me to lose breath.
I heard whistling and hollering from the other patrons at the inn as I put both my hands on her shoulders and managed to push myself away, managing to catch my breath again.
Kona stood up, wrapped an arm around my torso and lifted me, carrying me under her arm up the nearby flight of stairs and to our room.
That night, we stayed up late enjoying each other. Or more Kona enjoying me. I had never had her be so dominant in bed before, and she made me go several rounds before she was satisfied. And in all truth, I kind of enjoyed it.
The next morning, I awoke in an empty bed. I felt a slight ache in my crotch from the intense activity from the night before. As I sat up, Kona opened the door to the room, holding a platter with food on it.
"Good timing, I got you breakfast."
"Breakfast?"
"Mmhm, that way you can stay and recover a bit longer. Sorry about last night, I got a bit… carried away."
She placed the platter down on my lap, and it had buttered toast, eggs, and bacon and plenty of it.
"It's okay, I actually really enjoyed it."
Kona squatted down and leaned in, kissing my cheek. "Glad to hear it, it was a great birthday gift."
I didn't know that was going to happen when I ordered the mushroom. I might have to tell Anna that how she cooked it gave it an unforeseen effect. By the look on her face last night while I was being carried away, it seems she wasn't expecting that outcome either. In fact, she could probably sell them for even more money, especially for that unexpected effect.
I sat in the bed and ate while Kona was packing our things. She left and went shopping for additional supplies that we might make use of while going through the woods. After my meal was done, I took it downstairs and returned it to Anna, explaining the unique effects of her mushroom recipe and asking her what she did to it. To my surprise, she only added oil and wine.
I met with Kona again, who had spent most of our remaining funds on food as well as supplies, including, of all things, a fishing rod. We were going to be near the black sea, so I suppose if we can actually catch our own food, we can save the long-lasting rations for when we're in the black lands themselves.
As we left the northern gate to the town, we passed by a pier with many small fishing boats with people coming or going. One saw us walking towards the woods and called out to us, telling us to steer clear of The Black Hollow at all costs. Of course, I had to translate for Kona.
"Black Hollow? Isn't that the name of the town?"
"Yes, but it's also the name of a tree. It's said to be evil. I don't know the story well; it's been a long time since I heard it last. Oh, that's right. Kona, about my eyes."
She stopped walking suddenly. I stopped and turned back to her. She stepped closer and reached out, cupping my cheek as she looked into my eyes with a smile.
"As long as they're still your eyes, that's all that matters."
I smiled and gave a nod, and we continued onward. Into the great forest.