As the highly classified discussion came to an end, Sato finally could breathe. The back and forth between mother and son was very serious. They eventually finished up their meals and rested in their rooms respectively.
Although Sato and Gray were dating, they still respected each other's boundaries. Right now, the young man wasn't intimate enough with Gray yet. And so, they slept in their own bedrooms.
After playing a bit of Ray Of Light, Sato decided to sleep. In the game, Sato and Gray had slowly progressed up the ranks in the Dragoon Family, eventually becoming a trustworthy adventurer in their eyes. After completing numerous missions, they had managed to increase their favorability rating from Favourable to Trusting. With their newly found privelege, they figured out that there were indeed signs of Demons in the Family.
With the S tier mission of "Destruction Of The Dragoon Family", if completed, it would definitely help Sato in destroying the entire Demon Clan.
Their next big mission requested by the Dragoon Family, was "Escorting The Dragoon Head".
*Escorting The Dragoon Head
*Help to escort the Head of the Dragoon Family to the Tutachi Desert Plains in the west.
*Failure to complete the mission will result in - 2 player's level. Trust level will lower from Trusting to Despised. (This does not apply to races in the Neutral factions)
The mission was set to start on Friday night next week, leaving Sato and Gray some leeway to get ready. If they wanted to get rid of the Dragoon family head, now was the best time to do that.
Sato's sleepless night soon started. He didn't know how to describe the feeling that was inside him right now. Was he worried? Excited? Nervous? Maybe it was a culmination of all of the above.
Gray in his own room, after playing the game, also could not sleep. Unlike Sato that worried about the meeting with his parents, Gray was up thinking about Yroth and the Armageddon Project. Since Gray was in charge of the Operations Division, a sizable chunk of his manpower would need to be allocated for reconnaissance in Country N. Not only that, he would need to leave behind some of his men in his own country to deal with Yroth.
The safety of those he was closest to were the most important factor that he had to consider. He did not want any harm to come on his mother, who was planning to stay in their Country Z house for an indefinite period of time. Not only that, his beloved Sato was with him too.
...
The night went by slowly, with Sato barely getting any sleep. Below his eyes were dark eye bags due to the lack of sleep. When he went downstairs early in the morning, the sun had not rose yet, the skies were still dark.
Seeing that he was the first awake, Sato decided that he should make breakfast for both Gray and his mother. The housemaids were going to help the boy, but he kindly declined. Instead, he asked them to just carry on with their daily chores.
Sato looked into the packed refrigerator, taking out some dumpling skins and some meat paste. He decided to make his very own dumplings that he used to make in his old house. It was cheap, delicious and convenient, since he could make the dumplings the night before and simply steam it the next day.
Mixing a proportionate amount of seasoning, Sato kneaded the meat with other vegetables like green onions, ginger, before folding it within the dumpling skin. He skillfully folded the dumpling skin and as a result, numerous cute and bite-sized dumplings were formed.
When finished, Sato decided that he should steam it now, seeing that the sun started to rise over the horizon. The two of them should be waking up soon. And just as Sato had predicted, the pair of mother and son arrived in the dining room timely. There were welcomed with the sound of the steaming pot whistling in excitement. The dumplings were cooked to perfection.
Melanie sat down with a smile on her face. She observed the well-mannered Sato help prepare for breakfast. Of course, Gray went along to help Sato in the setting up of the table. The housemaids could only watch in the sidelines as the two guys stole their jobs.
Two piping plates of dumplings were served up to the dining table. Smoke drifted in the air playfully as the white plump dumplings looked perfect on the porcelain plates.
"Thank you for making these dumplings, young Sato." Melanie said with gratitude.
"Oh, it's my pleasure, auntie." Sato went ahead to deliver one directly to her plate. "Please try it and tell me if the taste is to your liking."
"Okay, then I won't stand on ceromony." Melanie placed the well sized dumpling into her eye after blowing on it a few times. As she chewed down, an explosion of flavour wrapped around the inside of her mouth. Her lips involuntarily curled upwards.
"This is really delicious." Melanie praised.
"Really?"
"Yes. I'm one to not lie when it comes to food."
Sato sighed in relief, knowing that Gray's mother liked his food. Gray too, tried Sato's dumplings and smiled in delight. The trio had their breakfast, before Gray and Sato departed out of the house.
The first stop was none other than, the barber.