"I'm pretty sure today is something in your honor. Now that you set up the Guild House in the Southern Continent, he can trade items with the Echoes, so there were a bunch of items that I didn't recognize in the kitchen when I passed by." Su shrugged, taking Cain's hand to lead him into the other room.
"Welcome Back Guild Master."
"Welcome home Sir."
"Greetings Master Cain."
Everyone they passed took a moment to welcome Cain back, and he marveled at the loyalty that Cyrene and the others had managed to instill in these new recruits. Most of them had never even met him, but still, they recognized him on sight and greeted him so politely. That level of loyalty was uncommon anywhere, much less among a Guild in this world, where everyone was usually drawn together by common interest and nothing more.
"How is the outreach work going? I heard that we have people stationed everywhere, but isn't that stretching things a bit too thin? It's all well and good to help out, but if the members are overworked they'll just burn out and won't be able to help anyone." Cain pointed out to Cyrene as he entered the dining room.
"You will see soon." She answered cryptically, not detaching herself from his waist and only unwrapping enough that she could drape over the arm of the chair next to him and access her own place.
The chair he chose was a throne of sorts that was here before he even bought the manor, but it looked disused. It was clean, but there weren't any of the usual signs of wear and the cushion had fluffed back up from disuse.
Cyrene took the seat to his right, while the Companions arranged themselves on either side of the table, directly across from their clones, leaving the seat to his left empty. Normally that would be Misha's seat, and it seemed that everyone was holding her place to wait for her to be returned.
This was part of the reason Cain had spent so long away, the memory alone was enough to frustrate him, and there was still nothing he could do about it. He didn't even know how to access the world that she had been taken to.
"Greetings everyone, we have a special meal tonight. Mythic Purple Leopard pan fried in Mystic Cow butter with shallots and carrots, plus an assortment of sides and a glass of Mythic Peach punch." The Lesser Watcher announced while the Puppets from the Manor brought in the dishes.
'Maybe they're not cooking, just arranging the meals, since there are puppets here with proper chef's skills.' Cain realized as the fragrant scent of fried Leopard reached his nose.
The scent was like nothing else that the others in the room had ever experienced, making mouths water at every seat as the plates were placed down.
"If everyone on the Southern Continent eats like this, I am totally moving." Kone sighed, sniffing at her dinner while she waited for everyone to be served.
"Strangely enough, almost none of them had tried eating the Mystic Beast meat. They would collect the parts that could be used as materials and then leave the rest of the corpse behind. It was Laura who first discovered how tasty this species was." Cain commended the Opal Prismatic Dragon, who was in her pixie-sized form, standing next to her plate.
"Less talking more eating." The dragon complained as the last of the plates were placed.
"Not yet, little dragon. Let us put out the juice first. It's a special blend by the Echoes. It's watered down a hundred to one, so the effects should be very mild, but it's a blend of the Peach, Pear, and Mango juices from the Guild's farm.
For those who don't know yet, don't get any ideas of looting them, the fruits are mythic quality and strictly regulated for their medicinal uses, which are vital to the well-being of the hunters protecting the awakened area from Mythic beasts." That calmed the room down a lot, but they are still eyeing the fragrant glasses of juice in anticipation.
"May the blessings of the gods be upon the Darklight Host and the Immortal Guild Master Cain." Cyrene intoned once the meal was served, causing Cain to give her a look of confusion.
"Amen." Everyone else in the room responded, and the Companions gave Cain a wink.
'That's definitely pushing the boundaries of Cult.' Cain thought, but she did invoke the blessings of the old gods, so maybe it was more like saying grace. That's not really a custom in this world, but it's likely that most of the transfers were familiar with the practice.
Even at a hundred to one dilution, the juice healed small wounds over the course of the meal and the mango juice in the mix cured the few cases of acne that were visible and faded mild scarring.
"This juice is incredible. I don't care how much this stuff costs, we need to market it. The sales would be incredible just for the skin care properties alone." One of the wolf kin ladies present at the table laughed, staring at her juice.
"My fur is so smooth now." The more bestial lady beside her agreed, running a delicate hand over the fur on her arm.
"The Mangoes are popular, but in lower demand than the other ingredients, so I think we might be able to get some to market. It will be pretty limited though." Cain agrees, making all the guests present cheer.
[They're so easy to please.] The copy of Nemu that was with him on the Southern Continent laughed, sipping her juice as she watched the room.
She didn't seem worried about a threat, to Cain it felt more like her thoughts were on an epic ballad. Maybe she was making up a new song, like the one that she shared with the little dancing girl a few weeks back. That was a more rowdy drinking song and not an original, but it was definitely an epic experience, just after she advanced. Being on the farm, she hasn't had much need to use her new singing skills.
"Once I finish with the tower, someone please get ahold of King James and arrange for a visit. I think bringing the Royals here for a party would help calm the tension in the region." Cain announced, startling everyone who wasn't aware of his plans.
"Tower? What tower do you mean?"
