What exactly had she done to make food smell this good?
Filled with confusion, the giant white python suddenly sped up.
A large patch of waist-high grass was instantly flattened beneath his massive body.
The commotion was loud enough that both Hayoon and Haeun, who were busy beside the stove, turned to look in his direction.
Minho raised the upper half of his body and transformed into his tall and imposing human form.
The fish-skin skirt stored in his spatial pouch automatically wrapped itself around his waist during the transformation.
He wore woven grass sandals on his feet, and his sharply defined handsome face carried the same calm and composed expression as always.
Only his slightly narrowed pupils and his faintly quickened footsteps revealed a trace of impatience.
The delicate-featured Hayoon was dressed in an old but neatly cleaned beast-hide.
Her dark, glossy eyes looked toward him, and her thin lips parted as she was just about to speak.
But Haeun beat her to it, cheering loudly, "Brother Minho is back! Sis, we can eat now, right?!"
Every word was filled with urgency, and he had already circled around the stove several times.
The edges of the stove had been built fairly wide, and several large wooden basins rested on top of it.
Large clean leaves covered the wooden trays.
Minho had already confirmed long ago that the irresistible fragrance was coming from there.
His gaze swept over the leaves before he asked the siblings, "Is there any work left unfinished?"
Hayoon smiled and replied, "There shouldn't be. Haeun and I already finished everything."
"Then shall we eat?"
"Mm."
"Wait a moment, I need to wash my hands."
Haeun volunteered immediately. "Brother Minho, I'll fetch water for you!"
Hayoon could not help but laugh at how eager he was.
She had actually finished preparing dinner about half an hour ago.
But since Minho had not returned yet, she and Haeun had not started eating.
They had only picked at a few scraps around the edges to have a small taste.
The moment Haeun tried it, his eyes widened in disbelief.
Whether he was helping clean up the stove, gathering firewood, or fetching water, he kept glancing into the distance, muttering under his breath, "Has Brother Minho come back yet? Why isn't Brother Minho back yet?"
Even from some distance away, Hayoon could hear the sound of him swallowing his saliva.
By the end, he had even wanted to transform into his beast form and run out to look for Minho himself.
And now that Minho had finally returned, Haeun was more enthusiastic than anyone, all so he could eat sooner.
Very quickly, Minho finished washing his hands.
Together with Haeun, he carried the large wooden basin into the grass shelter they had built.
Hayoon naturally brought over the pottery bowls and several pairs of chopsticks that she had polished until they were smooth.
After everyone sat down, Hayoon said, "Let's eat."
Haeun cheered and was the first to lift the leaves covering the wooden basin, revealing the food inside.
Minho asked, "This is... Rockmon's meat and Tangroot?"
As he spoke, he picked up a slice of meat with his chopsticks.
The beastmen usually ate roasted beast meat, and the cuts were normally large chunks.
But the piece held in his chopsticks was sliced thinly.
The cuts were not entirely even, but they were delicate and paper-thin.
With just a slight movement of his chopsticks, the slightly curled meat trembled gently, releasing the rich fragrance of rendered fat.
Its surface glistened with oil, shining with an enticing brown color.
Besides the beast meat, there were also Tangroot in the basin, though they had been peeled, cut into strips, and cooked until they had softened, their juices seeping out.
The usual sharp and unpleasant smell was gone.
Instead, they carried a faint sweetness that was deeply tempting.
Seeing that the sauce on the meat was about to drip, Minho did not hesitate to place it into his mouth.
The moment he tasted it, his movement paused.
Hayoon was in the middle of answering his question. "That's right. I chose a tender cut of Rockmon's meat and sliced it thinly. After peeling the Tangroot, I cut them into strips and stir-fried the two ingredients together."
Haeun was even faster than both of them.
His mouth was already stuffed full, and after only a few hurried chews, he swallowed everything with a loud gulp.
"I helped Sis peel the Tangroot. Sis said it was called... spicy! Right, super spicy! I accidentally rubbed my eyes, and it burned so badly I couldn't even open them. My tears wouldn't stop, and I had to rinse them with water for a long time!"
Hayoon said, "I told you to be careful. Next time I'll see if I can make a pair of gloves."
Minho heard their conversation, but his attention was completely elsewhere.
As he chewed the meat in his mouth, his eyes brightened slightly.
Rockmon's meat had always carried a very strong gamey smell.
It was not entirely gone now, but it had been reduced so much it was almost negligible.
And that remaining hint of gaminess actually enhanced the flavor of the dish.
Mixed together with the fragrance released from stir-frying the Tangroot, it tasted unbelievably delicious!
After swallowing the food in his mouth, Minho said quietly, "So it can be cooked like this..."
Because his expression remained calm and composed, Hayoon could not tell whether he actually liked the dish or not, so she asked, "How is it? Is the seasoning alright?"
Minho had already picked up a second bite with his chopsticks. As he lifted his silver-white eyelashes, he looked at her seriously and replied, "It's very good."
Hayoon relaxed slightly and broke into a smile. "That's good then. I made a lot, so eat as much as you want."
In modern times, she had tasted countless delicious foods, so this stir-fried Tangroot with Rockmon's meat naturally was not shocking to her.
Still, compared to simply boiling Rockmon's meat with root stems, it tasted infinitely better.