"The fever has gone away already?" Kara puts her hand on Koji's forehead and feels that the heat from before is all gone. Her face lightens up, "How strange. The fever is already gone."
"Well, if that is the case, you're ready to start tomorrow," Minato said. "For tonight, get some rest. Marina, can you bring Koji to the empty room upstairs?"
Koji follows Marina as she leads him up the stairs and opens a room with the moonlight through the window.
There were some pictures on the wall attached in a frame. Different species of fish from the sea are on the blank canvas.
"This will be your room from now on," Marina said with a cute smile. "And the bathroom is at the far end of the hallway."
She was about to leave when Koji interrupted, "Will you also be studying cooking with me tomorrow?"
She shakes her head and smiles, "I'm not that good at cooking. My parents much prefer me not to ruin the ingredients. But if you ever cook any delicious dishes, I would be happy to try them out for you."
His eyes light up, "I will! One day I'll be making new dishes for you to taste!"
That night Koji found himself sleeping in peace, an experience he didn't have before. It seems like today was like a beautiful dream, and tomorrow, he will have to survive like before.
In the morning, when he finally woke up, there was the sound of the birds from the outside whispering their songs.
He took light steps off the wooden bed and walked down the stairs to the kitchen.
"You woke up in time," Minato, who read a newspaper on the kitchen table, beamed a smile.
"Marina and Kara haven't woken up yet?" Koji took a seat at the kitchen table as the array of delicious sits in front of him.
There is a massive stack of charcoal bread and a whole pot of stewed meat with another large pot with noodles.
"Those two always wake up late into the afternoon," Minato says with light laughter. "If you wait for the two of them, the food would already be cold. And Marina is more interested in hunting in the forest."
"Marina likes to hunt?" Koji asked as he put a large scoop of stewed meat on top of the noodles in his bowl. He was eating them fast as he drank the delicious broth soup.
"She usually comes back from her hunting in the evening," Minato said with thought. "That's how she was able to find you yesterday at the beach. You can find her deep in the forest at the east of the home."
This news made Koji interested to see what kind of prey Marina would catch today. He decided that he would come to find her later to have a delicious feast with her later in the evening.
Finishing his fill of breakfast, Koji and Minato started to walk through the trail. The trail leads through the grass field, and he can see the town center brimming with life.
The town seemed enormous, and there were shops in all directions.
With a gorgeous ocean view that people can see from the tables of the restaurants.
And there is also the taste of the ocean sea life, the salty taste of the ocean that fills the air.
He watches as the people greet Minato. The town folks all seem to know his name. And he would note down the name of the two folks as Minato greeted them back.
Soon they were in front of a restaurant by the fishing harbor. There was a large wooden sign on the top: Gourmet Island Restaurant.
Inside the restaurant, many tables were set up with a piece of white fabric covering them.
He wondered to himself how Minato handles so many customers all by himself.
But he was soon able to find out as tourists from the nearby hotels came by in a drive.
He tried to help out with his ability and memorize his cooking steps.
He watches as Minato seems to be able to clone himself and can do so many tasks with efficient ease.
His body was flying through the restaurant and the kitchen at a fast speed.
When evening time came, his body lacked strength and energy.
It was quieter now, so Koji could leave to find Marina, exploring the forest by herself.
He followed the trail back to their home and went to the forest close to the beach.
It was a quiet forest, and he felt peaceful inside as the birds swarmed in the sky together.
The warm smell of the grass in the air as the sun shone down through the forest.
Even though it was already evening, the sun still hadn't set in the sky and hung like a lamp up high.
He noticed a figure following behind a prey hiding disguised in the grass through the tall grass.
What surprised him the most was seeing the tiger with golden stripes a long distance.
He didn't dare to go any closer because he knew he was too weak to fight against such a mighty king.
The lion was finishing up eating the last strips of meat from the bones of its prey as it laid down on the grass. He was wiping away the blood stain on its beautiful fur with its black tongue.
Finally, the beast let down on its guard, closed its eyes, and fell asleep from the warmth of the heat.
Seeing that the animal had fallen asleep, Marina took a couple of steps closer. Blowing a thin noodle from a short bamboo pipe that had shot into the neck of the animal.
He watches as Marina moves closer to the animal with caution, brings out a knife, and gives a quick slice.
Killing the beast knocked out by the noodle's drug stuck inside its neck.
"You can come out now," Marina said with a smile. She turned her face to look at Koji with expectancy, more than 200 meters from afar.