Chapter 47: Chapter 47: Culture

Melanor felt the green tunic was completely drenched in sweat, she ignored his screaming as she said. "What made you wake up so early in the morning?" Reiki almost fell but managed to keep his balance, he placed his right hand on his heart and said. "Exercise, It's part of the reason why I passed…"

Taking a few deep breaths to calm his breathing he continued. "Melanor-san did you have to sneak up on me like that? You nearly gave me a heart attack." Melanor let out a chuckle and at the same time, Reiki felt the force entering his body again. She said. "I usually wake up to buy a few ingredients to make breakfast for three. Well, two since you're so adamant about having my daughter cook for you."

Ignoring the force entering he kept a straight face and noticed the Melanor was staring at him without hiding it, he said. "Can I come with you to buy the ingredients? If you think it'll be better for me to stay here I'll understand." Melanor had a small smile but her eyes were still reading his facial expression, she said. "Give me a reason to bring you along then."

Reiki scratched the back of his head and felt his hand brush against his wet hair, he brushed the hair that was blocking his eyes behind him and said. "I can carry all your things and help you pick high-quality ingredients." A small smirk appeared on her smile as she was interested and said. "The first one I can see you doing but, what made you offer the second condition?" 

Taking a couple of deep breaths he said. "I have some general knowledge of cooking, nothing too groundbreaking but enough experience to make a decent meal. And I have a good sense of smell which can easily tell the quality of the ingredients…" Just when she was about to say anything Reiki continued. "Speaking of smell, Melanor-san. Did you also do some exercise? You have a faint smell of sweat… I wanna say on you, but it smells more like it was near you…"

Melanor didn't react in any way, keeping her smile, she said. "Just a few things here and there, I took my robe off to make sure it stayed clean." Reiki looked at her green robe and stared at it for a few seconds, she said. "Don't stare too much Reiki." She turned her head to the right and saw her daughter was giving Reiki a look full of disdain. 

She continued. "We wear a few more white clothes underneath our robes to keep ourselves warm, but I can't blame you since you at that age where you're curious about the opposite gender." As she ruffled his wet hair, while he scratched his cheek and saw Moranor was glaring daggers at him. Melanor said. "Sure you can come with me to buy the ingredients, you don't even have to worry about being discriminated against. Moranor told her colleagues you saved her and by now the entire village should know about it."

Reiki excitedly said. "It's fine?! Really!?" Melanor wiped her hand clean that she used to ruffle his wet hair using the edge of her sleeve, she said. "It is, make sure to take a bath. I'll search for some spare clothes in Moranor's closet and bring them inside before you take one." Both of them walked inside as Reiki said. "Melanor-san, why are there some tables and chairs in the back part of the house?"

She opened the door and walked inside and watched as Reiki almost hit the floor but managed to catch herself. She said. "That's because it's the front door, follow me." She went to a door that was next to a window and hidden by a bookshelf, Melanor was blocking his view but when he saw the room he was surprised by what he was seeing.

It was a kitchen, a top-quality kitchen equipped with two large stainless steel four web stove with an oven, a large fridge with two doors, different types of knives that were in a knife holder but you could see the blade, a large sink with two sponges and a large liquid soap dispenser, and a couple of large cabinets that could be holding plates.

Looking around it was spotless, not a single speck of dirt in sight, he turned his head to the left and saw a large glass pane, and on the other side was more tables and chairs that were made out of wood. It had some white silk on the tables and a few chairs and a large painting of a fruit bowl on the side. Reiki had a look of disbelief on his face as he tried to absorb what he was seeing, Melanor had a smile on her face and said. "We run this restaurant, it's called. Growing Plant, we have a basement with a few formations to grow our herbs and a couple of spices."

Reiki pulled out one of the knives and saw that it wasn't made out of steel, he said. "Growing Plant…" Melanor saw Reiki was examining the knife in his hands, she said. "All those knives." She pointed at the knife holder as Reiki turned his head to look, she continued. "Are made out of elven steel." As she let out a smug giggle, with a closer look he could see a ring-like pattern on the knife he was holding, staring through the glass of the knife holder he saw the same patterns on most of the knives but a few of them looked like normal.

Carefully placing the knife back in the knife holder while looking around he said. "Kind of ironic she lives here yet has no cooking skills…" Melanor let out a chuckle, he continued. "If you don't mind me asking, how much money do you make? If you don't want to answer feel free to keep silent." He looked around the kitchen with a large smile on his face as he opened up one of the cabinets and saw plates and glasses inside.

Closing the cabinet he started looking around the kitchen and inspecting, Melanor said. "This is just my hobby, I built it with the thought of me retiring in the distant future and something Moranor can inherit when I'm gone. I know we elves can outlive generations of you humans but you never know what the future holds, hopefully by then this restaurant is self-efficient and all she has to do is to not spend all the money in one day." Running a single finger on the stove while keeping a close eye on it, he whispered. "How nice… Having your mother care for you…"

Before Melanor could say anything he turned around and immediately walked in front of her, he almost tripped over himself as he was able to keep his balance and say. "I can help!" Melanor had an amused look and said. "Okay, I'm all ears." Reiki let out a small chuckle and said. "I can clean, prepare the ingredients, and possibly even help improve your business."

Melanor was nodding to amuse him but when he finished his sentence he got her attention. She said. "How can you help improve it?" Reiki said. "When are you open? And how many employees do you have?" Melanor Keeping eye contact said. "We're open on weekdays and are closed on Sundays, no employees just me that does everything in the kitchen and my daughter to take and give them their orders." Reiki was taken back for a second and asked. "Then how many customers eat here, regularly?" Melanor placed her hand on her chin and thought about it for a moment and said. "About a dozen or so on a good week."

Reiki stared at her with wide eyes, he said. "I-I can work with this… Point me in the direction of your bathroom, next we'll go outside of the front door, and I'll start planning the next step..." Melanor went back through the same door they came from with Reiki behind her, a few steps inside the living she turned her head to face him and said. "Do you prefer showers or a bathtub?"

Reiki replied. "Showers, please." She nodded as she made a gesture for him to follow as they went upstairs and went to the door that they passed last night to go to their rooms. Melanor turned around to face him and said. "Here you are, give me a couple of minutes and I'll bring you some new clothes for you to wear a towel and I'll be sure to read the label on your clothes when I wash them." She opened the door and revealed a bathroom with a metal shower head with a few flowers embedded in as a design.

There was a rectangular box reaching about ankle height that was on the floor near the showerhead to prevent the water from flooding, a white ceramic toilet next to a roll of toilet paper, a sink with a few bottles of shampoo that had no brands it was just see-through and was colored lime green.

Reiki walked inside as he looked around and started to sniff the contents of the shampoo bottle a couple of times, Melanor closed the door behind him as she went to Moranor's room. He thought. Smells like a mixture of flowers… With a hint of grass that was washed in soap. With a knock from the door, Melanor opened it and saw Reiki had the shampoo bottle in his hand. She said. "We use that for both our hair and body."

She passed Reiki a new set of clothes, it was another green tunic, brown pants with a pocket on each side, and a pair of white boxers. He took the clothes off her hands and said. "Thank you, for letting me wear this." As he gave her an appreciating nod. He continued. "Melanor-san, if you don't mind me asking who owned this before?"

She let out a chuckle and said. "My daughter." With a playful smile on her face, she immediately closed the door and ignored his surprised look, behind the closed door she said. "When you're done make sure to bring your wet clothes with you." The sound of footsteps was coming from the stairs as it was slowly getting farther.

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Reiki started to remove his wet clothes and went inside the rectangular box of the showerhead and started to wring all the sweat out, he saw that the flooring inside was ceramic with a drain in the center. Doing it three to four times on all of his wet clothes he placed them by the sink and noticed there were two faucets to turn on the shower, using his hand he felt the one on the left. He thought. It's warm. He felt the faucet on the right. He thought. Much better. As he touched the faucet it felt it was cool to the touch, with a smile on his face he turned on the shower and used the shampoo he found on the sink.

~5 Minutes Later~

Reiki wore the clothes Melanor lent him and made sure he didn't leave his clothes as he held them with one hand, his wet hair was slicked to the back to prevent them from blocking his view. He twisted the doorknob and went outside, looking on his left and right he thought. I haven't seen Moranor since she gave me that cold look... 

He walked down the stairs to see Melanor sitting down on the couch and was reading some 'literature' and closed the book when he was getting closer. She vanished from her seat and was suddenly placing the book back on the shelf, she turned around to face him and said. "That was quick, did you enjoy your shower? Hopefully, the crystal for the warm water can be used for Moranor's shower later, she loves a warm shower after training. She claims it takes the stress away, and I have to agree with her on that."

Reiki held his clothes in one hand and said. "You don't have to worry about that, I used cold water to shower. It helps me wake up and cool down in the morning." Melanor was staring him up and down and with an approving nod, she said. "Those clothes look good on you, I always thought people of your country always take a bath, and here you are taking a cold shower. But anyway, we need to go make a quick trip, Moranor gets grumpy after training."

Making a gesture to indicate to him to follow she started to walk back inside the kitchen and pass all the tables and chairs, as she opened the door she revealed an amazing spot in the forest. There was a huge patch of grass and a few of the tree's had holes in them that had birds who made their nest inside, a faint chirping sound was audible as a waft of a cool breeze enveloped him making both of their clothes softly flutter in the wind. With a big smile on Melanor's face, she said. "Any comments on the view?"

Looking at the simple scenery it was a perfect place to relax and have a picnic, he said. "How much?..." A hostile look suddenly appeared on her face as she blandly said. "Huh?" Looking around the gorgeous place he continued. "How much did this cost you? This place is beautiful…" As he looked around the front place in awe.

The hostile look on her face froze for a second before she faked a cough and said. "Hmm… I'll just say this plot of land along with my house cost me my entire fortune and all of my achievements in battle, for us elves, the forest is our home, and having a house made out of wood shows our wealth." A smug look was on her face as she spoke, Reiki walked in the center as Melanor followed him, he turned to look at the two-story-tall house.

It looked like it was made by an expert with a simple yet modern design, it had a few small elegant carvings embedded in the house that would only become visible once you get closer. It had an aura of a comfy house because of the rich dark brown color of the wood. He whispered. "... Wow…" As his gaze was stuck on the house, Melanor said. "Didn't you say you went jogging around the house for exercise?"

Reiki still staring at the view said. "I did exercise but it was dark at that time…" he snapped himself back to reality and turned his head to face her and said. "Wait a minute, Melanor-san. How did you know I jogged around the house? I only saw you when I was finished." Her eyes widened for a split second as she quickly said. "I just assumed that because you don't know your way around the forest."

Reiki rolled his eyes and said. "We'll leave it at that, and on that note lead the way Melanor-san." She walked past him as she ruffled his wet hair that was brushed back, Reiki walked beside her as both of them walked in zigzags to avoid the tree. He said. "Melanor-san on a different note, I haven't seen Moranor other than that cold glare she gave me."

Melanor was looking around the scenery with a small smile on her face, she turned her head to face him and said. "You don't have to worry about her, she should just be reporting what happened to her superiors about those humans who trespassed. She'll be there to make you breakfast." She turned her head to face the front as she used the corner of her eye to discern him, he shrugged his shoulders as both of them avoided another tree and went to the left he said. "Then tell me more about your culture. You mentioned that having a house made out of wood is a luxury, but that can't be all of it. How about you explain to me how you've learned to blacksmith items and how often you eat meat."

He softly whispered to himself. "And maybe I could figure out your age if I ask politely." Melanor walked in the middle of two trees as she moved a branch to the side that was blocking the way, her left hand was covered with mana as she moved another branch upwards as it instantly turned invisible. Reiki followed her footsteps as she let go of the first branch he easily ducked as it missed, he let out a chuckle as Melanor moved her left hand as a second branch hit the top of his head.

[System: User has received 2 Damage.]

With a loud whack, the branch left some leaves in his hair and made it into a mess, Reiki stood in place with the branch on his head as he moved the stray strands of hair blocking his view and brushed it back again he saw Melanor with a grin on her face. He said. "A simple no would have sufficed Melanor-san." 

Melanor let out a small laugh as he walked beside and started walking again, she said. "You shouldn't ask a woman her age Reiki, that's a big no-no." Pulling a couple of leaves from his hair he said. "I thought that only applied to us, so it also applies to other cultures. Noted." Melanor kept her gaze in front and said. "You still have a lot to learn about the opposite gender." As she flashed him a mysterious smile at him. He said. "Why do I get the feeling that's neither a compliment nor an insult."

Melanor placed her hand on her chin and said. "I'll try to summarize it as much as I can, as you saw some of us have the occupation of a blacksmith. Although we can't replicate anything complicated like the dwarves it is enough to make a few things, and about your question about eating meat. We do actually, but there are a few rules for this. First, the animal must die of old age, then prepare the corpse by skinning it and making sure we removed all the innards and guts. Next, we placed them in large storage with a large inscription in freezing temperatures to preserve the meat. Then whenever someone's birthday is approaching he or she receives an entire cow and a chicken."

Reiki made sure he didn't step in the mud, as he kept his gaze on the ground he said. "I can understand that part since the lifespan of animals is short compared to others, but here's my question. How do you deal with eggs? Do you place all of them in the same pen? Or separate a few of the younger hens in a different one?"

Melanor stepped in some mud but didn't leave any footprints, he looked at the place she stepped on and saw the ground didn't even shift under her weight. She said. "We separate them by age and gender. The females lay eggs in their nests and if they are mature enough we placed them in the same pen and let nature take its course. Though we lose a few males here and there because of them pushing themselves, in these cases we just pluck their feathers and send them to the freezer." 

Reiki said. "How about agriculture? Yesterday you said you were going to buy some rice, do you plant the crops yourselves? Or do you buy from other sources?" Melanor patiently said. "We plant it ourselves silly." As she let out a chuckle, she continued. "With such fertile land why would we buy from others?" 

Reiki said. "Fair point. Last question, what do you think about human culture?" Melanor used her hand to move a branch, she said. "Honestly, your culture disgusts me to no end. Force-feeding animals and breeding dozens of them daily yet some of your population still goes hungry. Humans are selfish as they are greedy, and don't get me started on those 'weapons' those flimsy things are useless if a real war breaks out. Companies that would do anything to scam you of your money and let's not forget about how your kind pollutes our ocean and land…"

As she gave him a side glance glare. Reiki said. "Don't look at me Melanor-san, I wasn't even born when they decided to compensate for their weakness." Melanor let out a sigh and said. "True, but we do love a few things you humans made. The two most important things are fashion and food." He stopped walking and turned his head to face her and said. "Fashion and food?..." He thought. Is that the only thing we're famous for?... Melanor said. "Yes! Dozens of different types of cheese, fine wines, and sandwiches. You humans may be primitive in our eyes but we do give you respect when it comes to creativity. And-. Oh, we're here."

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