As the two girls finished telling their adventure the food had finished cooking and was ready to be served.
The maid girl called Apollo to the table that looked like a banquet for a King...except that the only ingredients were boar meat and tulips.... But still, there were more than twenty different dishes using one or both ingredients, cooked in many different ways, giving the impression of a King's meal which made Apollo incredibly satisfied.
Apollo sat on the table and started to eat absent minded as he remember the most important points he learned from their tale:
(1 - Those girls are quite useless in combat if they have no weapons in hand...well, they can dodge but nothing more than that, so I should always have weapons prepared for them! And I wonder if their combat knowledge is only for the soldier or it's also available for the servants as well. Let's find this out after this meal!)
(2 - They have incredible strength and stamina but because of their low body mass such advantage is completely useless against bigger opponents. Well, at least they can carry a lot of things on their back...)
(3 - It seems like they can contact the HQ all the time as long as they are close enough and there is no big interference like thick walls... I should test this ability for more details, but this is not a priority so I will leave it for later.)
(4 - I still can't believe that what saved the girl was a stalactite falling from the ceiling on the moment the boar dumped it's head against the wall! God, that would have fallen on her if the boar had moved a single step out of the way! Talk about luck! Just thinking about this gives me goosebumps! Anyway, that cave they found is extremely unstable and should be avoided or entered with extra care to ensure we don't suffer the same fate as the boar.)
(5 - The fallen stalactite, and probably the cave, seems to be full some grey metal that seems like steel. But this is absurd as I never heard of any natural cave of steel even in the fantasy novels... So it must be some rare ore I don't know. I want to try to research it, but that will have to wait until the girl's ability is fully unlocked. It's a bit of a gamble but if this metal has a chance of enabling new things I think it's worth a try.)
Finishing his thoughts he noticed the five girls were waiting by the wall all this time instead of eating. Looking at the half eaten food on the table and his dirt empty plate, he remembered a novel he read, about how rich folk from the old Earth used to treat their slaves, and felt a little bit bad for having eaten so much while making them wait for him like this. Then he remembered they were artificially made, so maybe they are different from common living beings? But looking at them again, it seems like the soldier girl was drooling over the boar meat while the research girl's eyes were fixed in the half eaten turnip soup.
"...Sorry the odd question, but do you girls would like to eat as well?"
The five of them nodded their head in a scary sync.
"Eh...No need to hold back, join the table and eat your fill."
""Thank you, Master!""
The five flashed to their chairs so fast it was hard to follow, then started to eat at an incredible speed and in less than five minutes most of the food was gone.
(Thank god I ate my fill first, or else the one who would be left hungry would be me....)
(It's cute and all eating together but if I end up hungry because of this it will be no fun.)
(Maybe I should teach them some table manners next time, but for now we got a lot of things to do.)
(The urgent need for food is gone for now, that boar should weight a few tons, so now I should produce some more variety without being scared of emptying my reserves and being stuck)
Looking at the researcher girl, Apollo readied himself to talk when he noticed he didn't knew her name.
(God, my head is such a mess that I didn't even name them yet! Wait...do I even have to name them? They are supposed to be tools right, tools need no name... But having no name is not just pitiful, its damn inconvenient! And looking at them eating like this on the table, can I really treat them as tools? Fuck! I really want to beat the crap of this Golden Fang for making me do this.)
"Master, is something wrong?"
The maid girl notices Apollo odd behavior and approach him with concern in her eyes.
(Arg!!!!!! Fuck all this shit! I don't care how, let's make these girls survive no matter what! Yeah, the fat boy is guilty but I am just as guilty as he is! It was I who gave them life, so the least I should do is take responsibility and ensure they live healthy and happy lives!)
(Unfortunately this is not quite possible in our current situation, but at least let's strive for it and sooner or later we shall find a way!)
Patting the maid's head, Apollo showed a strained smile and assured her.
"Don't worry, everything will be fine!"
Seeing all plates had been cleaned, and the soldier girl was literary licking her plate, Apollo decided that was enough and clapped his hands twice.
"All right girls, we have been busy all this morning and I didn't have time to name you girls, so I will be doing so now! Let's start from my left to my right!"
Looking at the Maid by his side, Apollo thought for a bit and said:
"From now on your name shall be Rose. A name worthy of a refined, calm and attentive lady who shall serve by my side and help me on my daily needs."
"Thank you, master!"
Next to her was the Researcher girl.
"You will be called Alyssa, this name is derived from the sweet alyssum flower and means 'rational', I think it's a perfect name for our little scientist and I expect you to use your intelligence and creativity to help your sisters"
"As you wish, master."
Looking at the Engineer girl, Apollo continued.
"For you, I give the name Leilani, it's the same name of a heavenly flower from a long lost paradise, and it will accompany you as you build new things to turn our home in our own paradise."
"..Y-Yes!!"
The following girl was the Farmer girl.
"Your name, from now on, shall be Briony. It means 'to sprout', and I want it to bless every field you work, bringing plenty of harvest and delicious food to our table."
"Thank you, master."
And finally the only one left was the Soldier girl, who looked like a puppy with an imaginary tail swinging around, eagerly waiting her turn.
(Looking at her, I really want to call her Poppy, but the bad jokes would accompany her for life like a curse, so I better not...)
"Daisy shall be your name! A name worthy a girl as energetic and positive as you. My wishes for you is that you always remain positive and energetic, emanating energy to all of us!"
"Yes! Master!"
(Great, now I have done it! My logical mind told me again and again that getting attached to them was a really bad idea, but in the end I impulsively followed my heart I will have to bear the consequences and see this through the end!)
(By naming them, I'm not only giving them acknowledgement, I'm creating an affective bond with them, making them part of my family. This means I will be unable to use them the most effective way and instead have to forge a plan where their well beings take priority.)
(Fuck! Why do I keep doing this to myself!? As if I had not enough problems already! And, unfortunately, disaster already has a set hour to happen, and the time is running out, so I better start making some defenses soon before it's too late.)
Pushing aside his conflicted thoughts to the back of his mind, Apollo started to move again, getting up his chair and saying:
"All right girls, now let's gather outside. I want to see what you can do!"