D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

--- Kat ---

"So what do dryads like to snack on?" asked Kat as she was walking around the city. After leaving Malve and checking on Lily again it was decided they'd go visit Mint. Mostly because after questioning Eleanora it was revealed they had to pass right by the park to get to the place Lily was staying and it was maybe a five minute walk away at most. That meant if an issue came up Kat could be there in much less time if she was unconcerned with damage. Even better, if she carried Eleanora along the elf could attack from a good distance dropping response time to near zero.

Of course, just bugging Mint felt rude, especially when she seemed so stressed last time Lily had seen her. Hence the plan to get her a little something. Kat also didn't want to be accused of bribing Mint, or for Mint to feel like she was trying to. So a nice snack, possible to share, seemed like the best idea.

"Do you know if Mint has working tastebuds yet mistress?" asked Eleanora.

"Um… no idea, why?" returned Kat.

"Because dryads can enjoy the texture of food as long as they have some sense of touch but taste is a lot more complicated and many simply don't bother. Now, individual dryad pallets can vary wildly so it still isn't a great way to work out what they might like, but knowing if taste needs to be considered is useful information," explained Eleanora.

"Um… yeah no idea. I think… no, I know that she didn't have tastebuds hooked up last time I spoke to her but she was working on getting more used to a humanoid body and taste was on the list of things," offered Kat.

"Best to get something with a good texture and no strong flavour then mistress. Even if she does have tastebuds operating anything too overwhelming for her will likely not be enjoyed. It takes a lot for them to get used to taste apparently and I doubt she's had the time," explained Eleanora.

"Huh… alright I suppose that makes sense. What are you thinking we should pick up then?" asked Kat.

"It depends what sort of textures she likes… but as you don't seem to know about that we've got a few basic options. The first is something chewy. It gives someone time to enjoy the texture and simply enjoying the act of chewing on something is fairly common not just amongst dryads.

You could go for something crunchy if you want to be bold… but I find most dryads not to be a fan. It sounds far too much like breaking branches for them. Puts them on edge… but some of them really do enjoy that. I know of a dryad that visits the city often and will go around trying all of the hard candy they can," explained Eleanora.

"Wait… aren't you meant to suck on hard candy?" asked Kat with a frown.

"I don't know if they even generate spit or not. It's entirely possible that they can't effectively suck on anything… and even if they could the jaw on that body can clearly take the abuse at this point. They'd been doing it long before I met them and I wasn't going to tell them how to enjoy their candy,"

"Alright… so… what just pick something chewy?" said Kat.

"Possibly? You can also go with something like bread with a somewhat hard shell on the outside and a soft middle. Something with crunchy spots that aren't too hard like cookies. You could go for because it's really the SOUND that's the issue not the texture itself. There are plenty of options," said Eleanora.

Kat sighed, "So basically 'anything that's not too crunchy' which is… essentially everything."

"No, I was quite clear that keeping the taste simple so that it is not overwhelming was important," retorted Eleanora.

Kat nodded, "Alright then… what do you recommend? Bread? That… hmm… I feel like that's the answer for some reason but it also feels… like not all that much? It's not special at all?"

"Perhaps a donut then mistress?" offered Eleanora. "One with a touch of sugar on it. The sugar will make it expensive and the shape might not be all that common outside of the bigger cities. Plus, we can acquire additional foods if it turns out Mint does have working tastebuds?"

Kat shrugged, "Alright lead on then," Eleanora sped up a bit and moved through the city, passing more than one bakery and even the park itself before reaching the one she'd clearly been looking for. Kat was surprised. It also happened to be the bakery that the assassin's guild ran. *I… huh. I didn't tell Eleanora which bakery it was or… I don't think I mentioned that it was at all. And Lily's not directly under the shop from what I can sense. Still… weird.*

"I'd like a box of six standard donuts, then a second box with two jelly, two chocolate, an extra mix, and a caramel donut. I'd also like three cookies, a croissant with ham and cheese and… hmm… and give me a cupcake with slime jelly," listed Eleanora.

The woman behind the counter nodded, "Right, let me just get some of the stock from the back for such a large order," As she turned around and entered the back room she yelled out "Get me a standard six, a two, two, one, one mix pack while I deal with the rest of the order,"

"Got it!" was the return shout. Apparently they kept some stock in the back room?

"Why keep extras in the back?" asked Kat.

"Oh this shop uses preservation charms. They only cook the more standard items here and I believe the sandwiches are made in house. To balance this, they use an enchantment to help preserve the baked goods in the back. It's not perfect, but it's pretty good. I think most of the degradation is actually during transport, but that's just a guess. They won't tell me the details," said Eleanora with a pout.

*I wonder… does she know that this place is run by assassins? Is that why they have the preservation enchantments? To store poisons and other volatile ingredients without anyone wondering why they have them in the first place? I… do I WANT to ask and give the secret away?*

"So why this bakery anyway? I know was passed a few on the way to get here," asked Kat.

"Because the assassins here make the best sweets in the city," answered Eleanora and Kat froze. *What?*

"What?" asked Kat allowed after another second.

"I thought my answer was clear?" returned Eleanora.

"No… I mean… you know this place is run by assassins?" Kat asked.

"Well, yeah. Slime cupcakes are pretty poisonous you know, I just love the taste. Not sure who else has worked it out, but for me it was obvious. They only poison my food occasionally and it always tastes great," answered Eleanora as the woman came back with two boxes and a few bags.

"We told you that was a mistake," grumbled the woman.

"Yes, the first time perhaps. But that was meant to be instantly lethal to anyone below Rank 2 who ingested it and the poison itself is worth about a decades worth of MY pay. The poisoners and the bakers were clearly a bit miffed I ate it, and they've been poisoning my orders occasionally ever since," answered Eleanora.

"I'm telling you, we don't do that," insisted the woman, seemingly annoyed.

Eleanora rolled her eyes, took the boxes and called out. "Jeffery! Did you make sure the slime cupcake had real slime in it for me?"

"Of course Eleanora! Even included some extra malifness powder on it!" shouted Jeffery from the back causing Eleanora to turn to the woman at the counter and smirk.

"Get the fuck out of my shop," growled the woman.

"Sure, sure. I'm leaving, I'm leaving… but we'll be back later for a different pickup and I'd hate for my favourite bakery to need to be demolished," said Eleanora as she pulled Kat out of the door and back onto the street.

"What was that?" asked Kat once they were a bit away from the store.

"Well, that counter girl was new so I bet she's not quite up to date on who knows what's going on there. She was probably trained to deny it if people mention the assassin thing. It was pretty funny because of how clearly annoyed she was with me,"

"Is it really a good idea to antagonise the assassins running the bakery you like?" asked Kat.

"Well what are they going to do to me? Poison my food?" retorted Eleanora.

*I… I mean it's a fair point I suppose? If they're already poisoning her food AND she enjoys it… then I'm really not sure how they could make things worse. Well, no they could stop serving her but I suppose the unspoken threat is she'd just report them like she's meant to. Heck, is a bunch of the higher ups probably already know. Weird.*