Last Gun Alchemist

The call ended, and the holographic screen hovering above Ezra’s Starlix flickered for a brief moment before vanishing completely.

Ezra stared at the empty space where Elder Ivanhoe had just been.

Then he casually placed the Starlix 11 back on his bed and climbed down.

His eyes fell on the nylon bag containing his dirty clothes.

Then he picked it up.

The Elder really is energetic for an old man...

Ezra remembered how Elder Ivanhoe had been moving excitedly during the video call. Even with his face covered in oil and dust, the old man had shown no sign of slowing down. The heavy sounds of machinery behind him had also made it clear that he had been in the middle of work when Ezra finally returned his call.

You wouldn’t even be able to guess his age just by looking at how he moves.

Ezra thought to himself as he left his room and headed toward the laundry room.

The house was quiet.

Only the faint mechanical hum of several household Alchemy devices could be heard as Ezra walked through the corridor with the nylon bag hanging loosely from his hand.

After reaching the laundry room, he opened the Cloth Washing Device and placed his clothes inside.

The device was one of the many useful household inventions created by Harry Tech Ltd., a Viscount House that had a small connection with the Galehart House.

Ezra activated the device and watched it begin its work.

The machine didn’t require him to stand around and wait, so he moved away and allowed it to clean the clothes while he handled the other things that needed his attention.

Afterward, he transferred the washed clothes into the Cloth Dryer.

Which is produced by one of the branch houses belonging to the Burnwick Family.

Time slowly passed.

By the time Ezra finished taking care of his clothes, he had already ironed them, arranged them properly, and returned them to the wardrobe inside his room.

Only after that did he finally leave again.

This time, Ezra headed toward the kitchen.

”Afternoon, Master.”

Lucy immediately greeted him.

She gave Ezra a proper maid’s bow before raising her body again. At the moment, she was already preparing the kitchen for dinner, and several utensils had been arranged across the counters.

Ezra stopped and stared plainly at her.

Lucy continued taking out a few more kitchen utensils before noticing that her Master was still standing there.

She looked up.

”Lucy.”

Ezra called her name.

”Yes, Master?”

Lucy looked at him with curiosity.

”I think it’s time we tried one of those food ideas I showed you at the beginning of last year.”

Ezra said calmly.

Lucy’s eyes immediately widened.

”Really?”

She looked at her Master with a sudden feel of excitement.

Ezra had shown her several strange meals from his past-self world before, and although she had remembered the drawings and explanations, they had never actually tried making any of them.

”I thought you had forgotten about those different types of meals you showed me since you never mentioned them again.”

Lucy said.

”I didn’t forget.”

Ezra replied plainly.

”I just wasn’t interested in preparing them yet, especially with many other things going on.”

Lucy nodded in understanding.

That sounded exactly like her Master.

If Ezra wasn’t interested in doing something, then even if he had already prepared everything for it, he could simply leave the matter alone until the day he finally felt like doing it.

Ezra turned and walked toward the food storage room.

Lucy immediately followed behind him.

She carried a basket in her hands, ready to hold whatever ingredients Ezra planned to take out.

The food storage room was filled with shelves containing different materials that had been properly arranged. There were containers of grains, dried food, spices, vegetables, preserved materials, and several other ingredients they regularly used.

Ezra walked toward one of the shelves and took out a medium-sized container filled with flour.

He handed it to Lucy.

Lucy placed it inside the basket.

”So, which one among the meals are you going to make today?”

She asked with clear anticipation.

Even though it had been a long time since Ezra had shown her the drawings of the foods, Lucy still vividly remembered every one of them.

Ezra didn’t reply.

Instead, he took out another medium-sized container.

Lucy looked down.

Another load of flour.

She accepted it and placed it inside the basket.

Then Ezra moved toward another part of the storage room where the special spices were kept.

Lucy followed closely behind him.

Ezra began taking them out one after another.

Paprika.

Black pepper.

White pepper.

Garlic powder.

Onion powder.

Dried thyme.

Ground ginger.

Cayenne pepper.

Chili powder.

Lucy collected each container as Ezra handed them to her and carefully arranged them inside the basket.

However, when she saw the paprika, cayenne pepper, and chili powder...

Her expression changed slightly.

She remembered how much money it had cost them to acquire those spices.

The prices had been high, especially because some of the ingredients had to be transported over long distances or grown under conditions that weren’t common in Britannia.

And since they had bought them...

They had never actually used them.

This just solidifies my thoughts...

Lucy glanced toward Ezra’s back.

Master isn’t someone who wastes money on something he doesn’t value.

Her fingers tightened around the basket.

Which means...

Her thoughts moved toward the Sixth-Grade Ese Ezra had given her earlier.

I have to do my very best to break into the Binder Alchemist Rank once I drink the Sixth-Grade Ese.

Lucy tightened her free hand into a fist.

The Ese wasn’t something her Master had casually thrown money to buy.

If he had given something that valuable to her, then she needed to prove that she was worthy of the trust and resources he had invested in her.

More ingredients were added to the basket.

Tomatoes.

Potatoes.

Cooking oil.

Vinegar.

Sugar.

Honey.

Salt.

Onions.

And the other ingredients Ezra needed for the meal he planned to prepare.

Crispy spicy chicken.

Fries.

And sweet spicy ketchup.

Once everything had been gathered...

Ezra and Lucy returned to the kitchen.

Then they immediately got to work.

Ezra began preparing the mixture for the crispy spicy chicken, measuring out the flour and spices before combining them inside a large bowl.

Lucy moved toward the cold storage.

She returned shortly afterward with the already sliced parts of a whole chicken.

After placing the chicken on the kitchen counter, she began working on the sweet potatoes.

The sweet potatoes were another expensive ingredient.

Unlike Irish potatoes, which were easier to grow in a cold climate like Britannia’s, sweet potatoes required more suitable growing conditions, making them less common and more expensive.

The two continued cooking...

Lucy carefully peeled and cut them into even pieces.

Ezra occasionally glanced toward her work.

”Make them around the same size.”

Lucy immediately looked at the pieces she had already cut.

”Yes, Master.”

”If they’re too different in size, they won’t cook evenly.”

Ezra explained while continuing to mix the flour.

Lucy nodded.

She adjusted the next slice, which was easy for her to execute.

Considering how skilled she is when it comes to holding daggers.

After cutting the sweet potatoes, Ezra explained how she needed to mix the spices with them before frying them.

Lucy listened to every instruction carefully.

She wasn’t treating this as a simple cooking lesson.

As far as she was concerned, if her Master was willing to personally teach her something, then she had to remember every detail.

Ezra continued working on the chicken.

He coated the pieces with the mixed flour and spices, making sure the seasoning properly covered the surface.

Lucy prepared the sweet potatoes.

Before either of them realized it...

The entire kitchen had begun to fill with the smell of the spices and food.

The mixture of paprika, pepper, dried thyme, garlic, onion, and the other seasonings gradually spread through the room.

It was strong enough to make Lucy’s nose twitch slightly.

Fortunately, the kitchen’s air-filtering system prevented the concentrated mixture of spices from building up too heavily inside.

Otherwise, the powder and smell alone could have easily made them cough or sneeze.

Even so...

The pleasant aroma didn’t remain trapped inside Ezra’s residence.

It traveled beyond the house.

Outside, students and their attendants who had been standing around the neighborhood while talking in groups slowly began noticing the smell.

Some stopped in the middle of their conversations.

Others turned their heads.

A few students who had simply been taking calm walks through the East Wing found themselves looking around the street, trying to determine where the strange but delicious scent was coming from.

”What is that?”

”Did someone burn something?”

”No. That smells too good to be burnt.”

The aroma continued spreading.

And little by little...

People became curious.

At that same moment...

A Royal Steam Carriage arrived in front of Ezra’s residence.

The carriage slowed down before coming to a complete stop.

Cole stepped out first and moved toward the door.

He opened it.

Veda stepped out.

The moment both of his feet touched the ground, his expression immediately changed.

”What’s that smell?”

He asked while looking around, because of how pleasant the scent is that it was impossible to ignore.

Veda slowly turned his head.

Then his eyes landed on Ezra’s residence.

”What in the beauty is he cooking inside his home?”

”That’s what I want to know too.”

A voice suddenly came from beside him.

Veda turned calmly.

Cyrus was standing there.

Cole’s eyes immediately moved toward Cyrus.

His expression didn’t change much, but his attention clearly sharpened.

Since when did he get to our side?

Cole stared at Cyrus.

I couldn’t sense him, not even slightly.

His eyes widened slightly as he continued looking at him.

”You’re going to drill holes into my body, Mr. Butler.”

Cyrus said with an awkward smile.

Cole immediately realized that he had been staring too much.

”My apologies, Sir.”

He gave Cyrus a proper butler’s bow.

”So, you are Ezra’s neighbor, huh?”

Veda said.

He didn’t seem surprised by Cyrus’s sudden appearance in the slightest.

”No wonder the two of you became close.”

”I guess so.”

Cyrus scratched the back of his head.

”I mean, this is actually the first time I’ll be going to his home.”

Veda looked at him.

”Normally, I wouldn’t.”

Cyrus slowly turned his eyes toward Ezra’s residence.

Then he gulped.

The smell had become even stronger.

His lips parted slightly.

”I have to see.”

Without waiting any longer, Cyrus began walking toward Ezra’s house.

”Ha...”

Veda laughed lightly.

Then he followed him.

Cole remained behind for a moment to speak with the driver so the Royal Steam Carriage could be parked properly.

After giving the necessary instructions, he turned and followed his Young Lord.

Ding Dong!

The sound of the doorbell rang throughout Ezra’s residence.

At that same time...

Ezra had already finished preparing the sweet spicy ketchup.

The mixture was now inside a pot.

Tomatoes.

Vinegar.

Sugar.

Honey.

And the remaining ingredients had been properly combined before Ezra began heating them.

The ketchup had already reached its boiling point.

Ezra now reduced the heat.

”Now we let it simmer.”

He explained.

Lucy stood beside him while looking into the pot.

The mixture slowly began thickening as the excess liquid reduced.

At the same time, Lucy had finished frying the sweet potato fries.

She had also completed most of the spicy crispy chicken frying.

The golden-brown pieces rested on a tray as the oil slowly drained away.

The smell inside the kitchen became even stronger.

Then...

The doorbell rang again.

Ezra did not need to tell Lucy what to do.

She immediately understood.

”Yes, Master.”

Lucy quickly washed her hands and headed toward the door.

Ezra remained in the kitchen, keeping an eye on the ketchup and the remaining frying spicy crispy chicken on the cooker.

He already knew who had arrived.

And judging from the familiar presence outside...

Lucy could tell a little as well.

So, there was no reason for either of them to become alert.