"My father is surnamed Valo and my mother gave me the name Rant"
Rant Valo answered her question nonetheless. He won't lose anything anyway.
"Rant Valo. Rant Valo..."
Floriana Sabina murmured Rant Valo's name to herself. She made sure to remember it.
"What a nice name"
Floriana Sabina smiled gently at Rant Valo. It was the first time Rant Valo saw Floriana Sabina smile so gently. What he couldn't believe was that it was directed towards him.
Seeing him dazed like that embarrassed Floriana Sabina. She stood up and walked to sit atop a boulder beside the river.
"Say, Disciple. Do you think your parents loved you?"
Floriana Sabina stared into the distance. Her eyes were not focused as the silhouette of her mother resurfaced in her mind.
"I think they once did... but they eventually stopped caring for me"
Rant Valo was reminded of how his parents loved him in the past. They would dote on him and spoil him even though they just had a hard time farming outside.
"Huh... You see, my mother once loved me so much. So so much in fact, that I wanted to see her again..."
Floriana Sabina was forlorn. She can't remember much about her mother but from what she recalled recently, she felt her love for her mother. It was so strong that even a tiny piece of their memories together held such strength.
"Really? What happened?"
Rant Valo was curious. He saw another glimpse of the little girl she was ought to be.
"Nothing. Let's go! Teach me how to gut the fishes"
Floriana Sabina realized that she has been getting too emotional. It was not befitting for a Master like her to do so.
"Huh?"
Rant Valo couldn't keep up with her and just followed her with his gaze as she picked up a fish.
"Disciple, let's go!"
Floriana Sabina cheerfully pumped herself up. Cooking is something she wants to learn. Not just for her sake, but also for her mother's sake.
"O-oohh"
Rant Valo could only go with the flow and teach her how to gut a fish. He grabbed a knife before speaking.
"You slice the underside of the fish at its belly"
Rant Valo slit the underside of the fish and red blood came out. It exuded a strong fishy odor.
"This is the guts of the fish"
Rant Valo removed all of the guts inside the belly of the fish with the knife. It all came out including the worm-like intestines of the fish.
"Ew"
Floriana Sabina couldn't help but be disgusted when she saw the guts of the fish, especially the intestines. From what she knows that's where the poop of the fish is.
"You'll have to get used to this"
Rant Valo smiled as he grabbed another fish and gave it to her. He nudged at her and she accepted it.
Floriana Sabina held the fish nervously. Even though she was a cultivator, she was not someone who has dwelled in violence too much.
Her Master kept her locked up inside the sect to cultivate. She doesn't have much battle experience.
"Okay..."
Floriana Sabina imagined that she was just cutting a training dummy. It was one of the things she used to test out her combat techniques with.
Slice!
"What!"
Rant Valo saw the fish get sliced cleanly in half from its underside. It was like someone filleted the fish.
"Uh, oops"
Floriana Sabina awkwardly looked at the bisected fish. She didn't know that her control for strength has always been lacking. She guesses that being locked up cultivating made her lose fine control.
Rant Valo face palmed himself. Why does she have to repeat what she did just earlier? Doesn't she feel pity for this fish's poor souls in the afterlife? They must've been flopping furiously over there.
"Here, try again. Use the tiniest strength that you can use"
Rant Valo gave her another Spirit Fish. He silently prayed for that fish. It might become the third victim today if she doesn't get this right.
Floriana Sabina closed her eyes and concentrated. A while later she opened her eyes and exhaled a deep breath.
"Hah!"
Floriana Sabina did a tiny incision on the underside of the fish and the fish was not cut in half. She looked at Rant Valo happily.
"I did it!"
Rant Valo was surprised himself. He didn't think that she would be able to do it so fast considering that it took him teaching her for a while before she got to remove the gills of the fishes earlier.
"Nice!"
Rant Valo opened the incision and when he touched it red blood came out. He used the knife to show her the next step. The part where you simply have to push everything out with the knife.
The guts came out and when Rant Valo saw it, he couldn't help but be bewildered. They were all sliced in half! It seemed like she still had a long way to go.
He couldn't really understand if cultivators were supposed to be that inconsistent with their control of strength.
"It is passable right, Disciple?"
Floriana Sabina looked at Rant Valo excitedly. She was slowly learning how to cook. It was not like boring old cultivation. She never felt such a thrill before.
"Uh, maybe?"
Rant Valo didn't really have any special use for the guts so he didn't mind that she sliced them in half. Perhaps it will be easier for the other fishes in the river to feast if they are sliced like that.
"Hmph! You're just jealous that I did it better than you!"
Floriana Sabina was not happy with his reply. She only made one mistake and gutted the fish perfectly the next try.
"..."
Rant Valo was speechless at her self-centered ego. What happened to the little girl earlier? Please give her back, would you? Not this gorilla.
"What's with that look? Have a problem with me, Disciple?"
Floriana Sabina raised her chin and looked at Rant Valo like some princess of a kingdom.
Ah, the spoiled brat came back. Damn it!