Chapter 4: Returning Home Part 4

Come to think of it, it hasn’t even been a few hours since I faced off against the Demon King.

The time I spent talking with the Goddess wasn’t that long either.

My companions are probably still sorting out the situation.

That said, I don’t think my companions suffered in the Demon King’s castle.

By the time we entered the castle, the kingdom’s army had already surrounded it.

While they dealt with the remnants, we received all the support we could to confront the Demon King and ventured into the castle’s depths.

If only the Demon King had surrendered without a final act of desperation, this situation might not have unfolded.

There’s no guarantee that time flows the same way in that world and this one, but the date displayed on my smartphone seems to roughly align with being five years after the day I left.

So, it makes sense to think that only a few hours have passed since I died there.

It’s regretful that I didn’t even have time to say my final goodbyes to my companions because of how frantic the last moments were.

I wonder if Arna is safe.

In the end, she stepped forward as if to protect me, facing the Demon King.

Considering her role as an elven archer, it wasn’t the best decision.

Even so, I’m glad I could step in during that fleeting moment.

It wasn’t her fault.

In that situation, if someone hadn’t sacrificed themselves, things could’ve gone far worse.

Everyone would have died, or only one of us would.

The Demon King’s final ultimatum left us with those choices.

I suppose he wanted us to argue and falter in the face of death.

If we were the type to abandon our convictions under such fear, we wouldn’t have made it that far.

Yet, until the very end, the Demon King only saw the world through his own perspective.

Lying on a soft bed, I stare blankly at the ceiling.

Outside the apartment, there was a rather large road, and cars were constantly passing by.

With a shopping mall nearby, there were plenty of people strolling along the streets.

Yet, no sound reached up here.

It was a testament to the apartment’s well-designed structure.

Or perhaps the height and solid construction lent itself to excellent soundproofing.

I raised my hand and repeatedly clenched and opened my fist in front of my eyes.

My palms were endlessly soft.

They were nothing like the calloused hands I had from gripping and swinging a sword, where countless blisters had formed, burst, and hardened.

Earlier, when I was washing myself and examining every corner of my body, I had no choice but to acknowledge that this body was quite attractive by a man’s standards.

While no specific features were exaggeratedly large, neither could they be called absent.

It was a charming figure indeed, befitting a body crafted by the Goddess herself.

Naturally, there were no scars from my journey, nor did there seem to be any signs of skin issues or blemishes.

There was still a lingering sense of discomfort, but it wasn’t unbearable.

Above all, this body was tailored to my wishes.

“Maybe I should’ve asked her to make me a man, though.”

I muttered to myself, but no reply came.

Right, I was alone.

During the journey, my companions were always by my side.

Whether lying on a hard floor or a pile of straw, we were never alone when sleeping outdoors—it was too dangerous.

Someone always stayed awake, ready to wake the others.

The same was true when gathering supplies in large cities or towns.

As someone from another world, I couldn’t help but be unfamiliar with the way things worked there, and the safety was far worse than in my original world.

Of course, no one dared to brandish a weapon at the hero, but con artists were everywhere.

Regardless of the hero’s status as the Goddess’s agent, there were always those who didn’t believe in the divine.

So, we always formed pairs or groups to move together, and even when I muttered to myself, there was usually someone to reply.

I quietly closed my eyes.

The body I had pushed to its limits before capturing the Demon King was no longer here.

With the new body I received, all the fatigue accumulated until then had completely vanished.

The sun outside hadn’t set yet.

During the journey with the hero’s party, sleeping at such an early hour was unthinkable.

But…

Would I truly be able to sleep comfortably?

A soft bed that my body half-sank into.

A quiet house that blocked almost all outside noise.

A perfectly safe space with no threats.

But no one to share it with.

In this peaceful space, I was more tense than ever.

Even so, I must’ve been more exhausted than I thought.

At some point, I fell asleep and woke up.

The sky was still tinged with the colors of sunset, so I thought I’d only napped briefly.

But as it turned out, the sun wasn’t setting—it was rising.

Perhaps it was because I’d had a proper rest for the first time in years, but my body felt incredibly light.

And at the same time—

Growl.

My stomach let out a loud rumble.

Only then did I remember that the refrigerator in this house was completely empty.

Not just the refrigerator, but any food was entirely absent.

While the essentials for living were all in place, there was nothing to eat.

It wasn’t as though I couldn’t buy food—I had money, after all.

“……Ah.”

I suddenly realize something.

That’s right.

I can eat the food in this world.

It’s not as though I didn’t eat well in that other world.

While food wasn’t abundant, it wasn’t scarce either.

Especially for our hero’s party, we always had more than enough supplies.

Whenever we liberated a region, the kingdom would promptly secure supply routes and establish forward bases.

They’d dispatch skilled chefs to feed us hearty meals and provide us with plenty of preserved foods like jerky or salted provisions.

The reason we were able to march forward tirelessly for five years was because of such robust support.

The royal chefs’ dishes were delicious.

In fact, almost all the food in that world was “handmade.”

Whether it was cheap food for commoners or exquisite meals for nobles and royalty, everything was crafted by the hands of a chef.

Even if the variety of ingredients was slightly lacking compared to this world, the care put into each dish was second to none.

As long as the dish wasn’t made by someone with particularly poor skills, it was bound to be delicious.

You might ask, isn’t it the same in this world? But…

The fact that most food was handmade also meant there were no synthetic flavorings, mass-produced seasonings, factory-made snacks or instant foods, carbonated drinks, or franchised restaurants where sauces and ingredients were centrally managed by headquarters.

Additionally, the food I could eat there was mostly Western-style.

Spices like chili or pepper were in short supply.

Since all farming had to be done within the protective barrier shielding the kingdom and its people from the demons, priority was always given to wheat and barley.

If there were grasslands, livestock had to be raised. Ingredients used purely for enhancing flavor were a lower priority, so even nobles and royalty couldn’t afford to waste them.

As for pepper, it was often so expensive it rivaled the price of gold because it had to be acquired through maritime trade with a distant nation on the other side of the continent, across demon territory.

Thankfully, the kingdom had salt mines within its borders, so at least there was no shortage of salt.

But in this world, I don’t have to think about such limitations.

With slightly trembling hands, I picked up my smartphone.

Nervously, I downloaded a food delivery app—

And right there, spread out before me on the screen, were all the foods I had craved but couldn’t eat, dishes I had only imagined in my head for so long.

I thought I had grown quite accustomed to the food of that other world over the past five years, but it seems it’s not so easy to forget the flavors I grew up with.

I stared intently at the words “Installing…”

And I started to think about what I should eat.

Nothing in particular stood out as something I absolutely wanted.

If I had to put my thoughts into words, it would be more like, “I just want to eat something.”

Black bean noodles, tteokbokki, pork cutlet, curry.

Now that I think about it, the kingdom didn’t have a culture of eating raw food, so it’s been ages since I last had sushi.

Well, not that I used to eat much sushi anyway.

It wasn’t until my third year of high school that my family’s financial situation improved slightly, allowing us to occasionally afford it.

After much deliberation, I decided to order a set of black bean noodles and sweet and sour pork.

I could’ve ordered a variety of dishes since I had enough money, but I didn’t feel like doing that.

I’ve always had a reluctance to waste food since I was young… and if I ordered too much at once, I might get tired of it halfway through.

Instead, it seemed better to take my time and order the dishes I wanted one by one.

Soon, I received a notification that the food preparation had started.

I waited anxiously for the food I ordered to arrive.

Growl.

My stomach let out another loud rumble.