Mage And Wolf
Chapter 88

Chapter 88: Chapter 88

The dinner goes off flawlessly. Hundreds of gallons of stew, matched with fresh baked Naan bread go out. They too only knew hard biscuits, suitable for travel. Unfortunate souls.

Dozens of side dishes are prepared and served, then we get to the crowning moment. Dessert. Neither cinnamon nor nutmeg are available in the region, but I found suitable tasting substitutes back at the Shadowed Blade.

In the medicine hall, not the kitchens.

Sweet spiced pumpkin pie with vanilla whipped cream from a magical cow. The Arcana residents would love this, I hope they have found cow beasts by now. If not I’ll have to go portal hunting until I do and bring some back.

Everyone has eaten themselves silly, or gotten insensible on drink when I notice incense bearers going around. "To aid digestion" Elder Han assures me. Apparently they do this at every meal, as part of their rituals, which gives me a great idea.

I sneak away, claiming to need the privy, and bury the pill into an incense censer marked day 1 evening that is only a few away from the censer I just saw taken and lit.

After a few more minutes of conversation on my return, and formal farewells to the Sect Master and Elders, thanking them for the honor of being able to cook for them, I collect my wages and head back to town. Flashing my participants token to get in without a fee.

I don’t get far when I’m waylaid by the High River Sect, accompanied by Elder Song. We join with a couple other all female sects and drink until the early hours of the morning, except a few disciples who have alchemy competitions the next day.

I don’t hear any uproar, so I’m a bit concerned that my plan failed. I don’t have a plan B though, so I’m not sure how I’m going to fulfill this bargain if the pill didn’t burn, or didn’t have the desired effect.

Late morning however, brings the expected uproar. Our intelligence gatherers say none of the Divine Fist contestants arrived for their alchemy competitions and the 30 minute warning to first fights has sounded with not a single member in sight. This is very unusual.

I am headed out to gather the gossip when I see Elder Han downstairs in my hotel.

"Esteemed Elder, what brings you here this morning? Would you like if I should prepare an early lunch? I’m certain the hotel staff wouldn’t mind." I greet him happily.

He flushes in embarrassment and I see a short, slightly chubby redhead in transparent robes in his lap. OH, that’s what he’s doing here. ’Cultivating’

I wave and laugh before heading to the kitchen. I prepare puddings to go with the almost ready lunch, enough for everyone including staff, and bring out the first set of meals to Elder Han and his companion.

Another of the disciples from Sect Mistress Becky’s Forbidden Treasure Sect comes to join us, going on about how amazing the stew I made at the competition was. Guess she was part of the crowd, I’m surprised I didn’t notice the robes, unless she was incognito.

Discussing the wonders of pudding takes us past the start of the first fights. Mission accomplished, to some degree at least. Elder Po is giving me the thumbs up signaling there were missing Divine Fist competitors.

I agree to head back to the Divine Fist compound with Elder Han. If anyone asks, he says, we were talking recipes all night and he certainly wasn’t frolicking with a Devil cultivator.

"Your secret is safe with me friend. The alchemists should be hungry, let’s go make some more puddings so your staff can memorize them." I tell him with a wink.

The first thing that hits me is the smell. It is horrendous. Elder Han notices a moment after me, before picking me up in his arms and running into the compound. There are bodies everywhere, and a lingering pleasant scent that is making my body tingle in a most amazing way, with an utterly vile under tone.

"Retreat, I don’t know what happened here, but it’s not good!" He shouts at me.

I pull an aphrodisiac antidote pill from my storage and it works immediately. I toss another to him, indicating with a nod of my chin that he should take it and he immediately looks relieved.

"What is that pill?"

"Aphrodisiac antidote. Most female cultivators carry them, just in case." I explain and he nods in recognition.

"Let’s investigate." He says.

The first bodies we see near the gates are of town guard, likely sent to rouse the competitors. They’re asleep with silly grins on their face, and don’t rouse easily, only opening an eye briefly after a kick in the guts.

"Forget them, let’s find the other Elders first" I suggest to Elder Han who is poking one curiously with his toe.

"I sense someone conscious near the center of camp" he indicates, pointing with his chin.

We head over slowly, avoiding stepping on bodies, some in suspiciously wet robes that give me an idea what happened.

The center brings us to the Sect Master’s tent, the sound of someone trying to wake up inside, rustling bed sheets, and a faint mist of incense smoke still floating from the open flaps.

"Hold your breath" Elder Han suggests before stepping inside.

He goes to rousing the Sect Master, an extremely heavy set man with a face blotchy from years of excessive drinking, while I toss the censer into his shaving bowl, before removing the no longer smoldering remains of the pill to my storage ring. The air clears up in seconds and the Sect Master snaps to attention.

"What, who is it? Where did the twins go? Bring back the twins!"

"Sect Master, wake up. It’s me, Han" the head cook shouts at him.

"What happened? What time is it?" The Sect Master asks suspiciously.

"We suspect the evening incense was drugged, yours was the last one burning and you woke up as soon as we doused it."

"Suspect? Where were you, and who is this?" he asks pointing at me.

"Sect Master, I am called Katrina, I was the winner of the cooking competition invited to cook for the evening. Myself and Elder Han retired to my hotel to study recipes and have drinks with my Master after the feast ended. We have only now returned"

"Detain her until we determine the food was not tampered with" The Sect Master orders. Oh fudge, this is not good.

"Yes Master" Elder Han replies, taking me by the shoulders. "She will be detained in the Elders tent under intense supervision"

The Sect Master waves us away and we take the long way back, past the kitchens where Elder Han picks up pots and ingredients to make pudding.

"Trust me girl, you will be intensely supervised all day. Especially after the first batch of pudding is done" Ender Han is laughing, but I’m more than a bit concerned about the quality of my disguise.

Everyone is starting to wake up, cries of dismay and mocking laughter fill the compound. The smell of sweat and other bodily fluids is still overwhelming to my sensitive nose though.

"Can we please go somewhere with fresh air?" I beg, giving him my best puppy dog eyes.

"Afraid not, but I’ll have someone clear the air, the scent turns even my stomach. We don’t dare burn any incense though."

The Elders are all awake when we arrive and start setting up a mobile kitchen in their grand yurt style tent. Elder Han quickly explains the situation and one of the more powerful feeling Elders waves his hand, creating a small tornado that draws air in from the top and forces the stale, reeking air out.

Every Elder goes to wash up, coming back smelling like soap and wearing fresh clothes.

"They’ll never notice a young lady’s perfume now. Everyone smells so lovely." I joke, spraying a bit of perfume of my own and Elder Han shoots me a thankful look.

The scent is floral and all natural, as chemicals are harsh to a Lycans sense of smell. It’s also a close match to what his evening companion was wearing.

"Now pudding." Ender Han says.

"Aren’t you afraid she’ll drug us all? She is a prisoner." One of the Elders asks concerned.

I hold out my hands in front of me "Would you prefer me all tied up?" I ask in my best innocent voice and he turns red all the way down his neck before fleeing the room to raucous laughter.

"Oh, she’s good, hitting him where it hurts. As long as you vouch for her we’ll let things be" another says.

"She was with me all night, talking recipes at a hotel in town." Elder Han lies smoothly. "This is the cook that made last night’s feast. She’s here until it’s verified that the food wasn’t poisoned."

Half the Elders set out, and shouting fills the air. Some of the first day contestants haven’t been called to fight yet, so they’re all being rushed out to the arenas to try to salvage the situation.

Two hours pass and we’ve got a fine collection of pudding. Elder Han even made a delectable batch by himself the last time. The first of the investigating Elders returns with a bowl of leftover stew in his hands.

"Food is fine. You’re free to go miss" he smiles at us. "Sorry for the mess, but we’d be happy to have you cook for us anytime."

"I’ve given Head Chef Han some recipes I think might add variety to your kitchen. So soon enough you may not even need me"

In reality, I scrawled a dozen essential recipes this morning when I agreed to cover for him, and his sharp memory should be able to recreate most of what I made last night to a passable degree.