♣Me at Age Eight
♣Me at Age Eight
“HM?”
“What is it, Tina?”
The one who answered me was Nakona Ril, my stepsister who had moved into our home that doubled as an inn the year before last. She’s a pretty girl who wears her pink hair in a braid.
We didn’t start off on the best terms, but since she opened up to me, she became a kind older sister who looks out for me. Since she always helped with managing the inn, I felt comfortable picking up the notebook I was writing in and showing her what I was working on.
“I feel like the food we’ve been serving has been getting repetitive recently. We’ve just been making the same dishes, so I’ve been wondering if we could diversify our menu…”
“Oh, yeah, I get what you mean. But is it really that bad? Most of our guests are travelers, anyway. They stay here for three, maybe four days tops.”
“Yeah, but I feel like we shouldn’t be satisfied leaving it this way… Oh! I know, maybe we can add a dish that changes every month? If we just add in one new meal, it shouldn’t be much of a burden, and maybe it’ll increase the number of returning guests every month!”
“Why not? I think that’s a good idea.”
“I’ll go tell Dad!”
“Have fun!”
With that decided, I struck while the iron was hot! I hurried out of the inn’s coffee corner and over to Dad, who was cleaning up around Lake Rhiode. But as I approached him, I discovered something looked off.
“Dad? What’s wrong?”
“Mm? Ah, Tina. Look at this.”
“What is it?”
Dad pointed at a thicket by the trees and then raised his hand, as if signaling me to not come any closer.
“Th-That’s…!”
Bees! A bunch of bees were swarming around the thicket. And not just any bees…but honeybees!
I think this is the first time I’ve seen honeybees in this world! Wait, doesn’t this mean we could…?
“Dad! Let’s raise these bees!”
“Wh-Where did that crazy idea come from all of a sudden?”
“Beekeeping isn’t crazy! Remember that flower field halfway up the mountain? If we raise the bees there, they’ll multiply, and we’ll get a steady supply of honey…!”
“Honey?”
“Honey! You can spread it on bread, put it in tea or milk, transmute it into medicine, mix it in with soap… There’s no end to its uses!”
This is a stroke of luck! Let’s catch them so we can get a good supply of honey!
“How are you even going to catch these bees anyway?”
“Well, erm. I figured maybe…we could use a box?”
“What kind of box?”
“E-Er…”
Oh no! I don’t know how beehives are built. I think it’s something along the lines of dividing the interior of a large box with planks, and…
I tried to explain it to Dad while drawing on memories of my past life, and he eventually seemed to catch on to what I was trying to get across.
“Real beehives have layers, so you create what looks like a fake hive with the box. Is that the gist of it?” Dad deserves all the credit for being smart enough to understand me. My explanation wasn’t all that good. “That sounds interesting. Let’s try to make it!”
“It will be fun! And if we can get the bees to go inside the box, we should move them to the flower field. We wouldn’t want them to sting the guests around the inn…”
“Good idea. Sounds like a great way to spare both the bees and us from any unfortunate fates.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking!”
And not just that! We’ll be able to live in symbiosis, Dad!
“By the way, didn’t you come out here to talk to me about something?”
“Oh, right! I actually wanted to discuss our menu with you…”
I told Dad about the monthly menu idea, to which he replied with an impressed smile, “I’m surprised you came up with that.” He patted me on the head. He wasn’t opposed to doing it, but we decided the monthly dishes would be my responsibility.
With honey, we’d be able to make various sweets. Sweets were a precious, rare commodity in this world, so they’d definitely draw attention if we sold them.
“That just leaves…” Dad started pensively.
“Hm?”
“A boat.”
“A boat for what…?”
“When I was little, we had a boat here. You know how Lake Rhiode is a big lake? Well, people used to go fishing from the boat rentals we had back then.”
“Oh! That sounds like fun!”
“Yeah, it was. Ma and Pops would sail out to the heart of the lake and say sweet nothings to each other…”
“How romantic!”
That sounds so sweet! If more travelers like Roin and Enofa show up, I’d love to recommend that to them!
“Yeah, but I have no idea how to make a boat. I’ll have to ask a carpenter from Fei Lu to do it. Wouldn’t want to put people on a badly cobbled-together boat that ends up sinking in the middle of the lake.”
A boat… Of course, I didn’t know how to make one either. Dad simply shrugged it off, saying that we were short on money and that there were more important things to get before a boat. Asking someone else to do it would be expensive…
Honestly, the inn had a lot of things that needed fixing up. We were two girls living with a one-armed knight. Bandits often tried to attack us. But thankfully, there weren’t any bandits around that were stronger than Dad or Nakona.
“Mm?”
Just as Dad made to return to the inn, he noticed someone approaching us on horseback. People rarely came during the morning, and it was especially rare for someone who didn’t look like they could fight to show up. And while this person was on horseback, they weren’t armed.
“Oh, my apologies. This is the Rofola Lodge, yes?”
Who is this?
What I thought was a horse at first turned out to be a donkey. And the rider had what looked like a yellow cockatiel sitting perched on their shoulder. They had a beard, and after getting off the donkey in a single motion, they took off their hat, bowing their head respectfully. They looked very gentlemanly and were clad in expensive clothes…
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Jilril, a friend of Sirius… You remember Sirius, yes?”
“Oh? Ah, erm, yes!”
“Oh, that man…”
So is he a…?
I looked at the man’s ears and found that they were round and perfectly humanlike. So he isn’t an elf. The fact he was Sirius’s friend made me awfully cautious of him, though…
I mean, Sirius was a nice man. He was, but yeah…
“Sirius recommended this place to me. ‘There’s a talented girl living at this one inn, so you’d do well to visit her,’ he said!”
“Huh?!” Dad and I exclaimed in unison.
“I assume you’re that talented girl?”
“U-Uh…”
T-Talented girl?! Who, me?!
Having Sirius shower me with compliments felt pretty nice at the time, but if anyone’s talented here, it’s Nakona! She applies her efforts in a whole different direction from me, but she’s plenty talented!
“That shady, half-elf adventurer… I mean, I understand that both my girls are talented little geniuses. You said you came to see her… Do you have some kind of business with Tina?”
Whoa, Dad, you’re in anti-weirdo mode! What would you do if he just came to stay at the inn?!
“I’d love to see her talents at work. Despite appearances, I’m actually a chairman at an academy in Saikorea. I love to scout talented children to my academy and offer them aid.”
“A-An academy in Saikorea…?!”
Sirius suggested it at the time, but can I really go study alchemy there…? Did he really go this far to get me into a school?!
I mean, I’m interested in learning more, but I also want to renovate the Rofola Lodge and bring in more guests. And I’d also like to try to recreate some of my past life’s cooking, too. Besides, staying at this inn is beneficial for medicine making in its own way.
“That’s right. Well, honestly, having come this far, I can certainly see the need for an inn in this area. To that end, I won’t try to twist your arm on this. Building up talent is important, but if one isn’t in the right environment, they’ll never truly grow.”
“Um, I guess so…”
“However, if the talented have the desire to learn…then I believe I can make their wish come true by preparing the right environment for their development. I want to give those who wish to learn the chance to do so.”
I fell into a pensive silence and looked up at Dad. I do think this Jilril person is a strange man, but…he’s nowhere near as shady as Sirius was. Honestly, he just looks like someone who takes pleasure in teaching others.
“With all that said, I would like to see just how much the young miss knows. You don’t mind, do you?”
“Uh…well, yes, I do… No, wait, give me a moment. What do you want to do about him, Tina?” Dad asked me.
“Hm, well…I get the feeling he means well, one way or another…”
“Does he? He looks like he’s more occupied with his own intellectual curiosity. Like that old stooge, Sirius.”
Wh-When you put it like that, I kind of start feeling the same way!
“Now, young miss, speak to me about any topic you’d like! Oh! I’ve heard you’re a budding alchemical apothecary. Perhaps you could show me how you concoct something?”
“W-Well, I, erm, don’t have many ingredients on hand right now… I can’t make anything impressive!”
“I don’t mind! Show me your work process, even if it’s for a low-grade brew.”
“Aaah…”
“Anyway, if you’re going to stay with us, could you check in at the counter?”
Nice, Dad! Way to get him off my back!
“Oh, yes, of course. Incidentally, are you all right with me bringing a pet?”
“A pet?”
“Chirp chirp! Papa! Kanet not pet! Kanet Papa’s child!”
“Right you are. My apologies, Kanet. You’re not a pet, you’re my precious son.”
“Chirp chirp!”
“Whoa…”
The bird on Mister Jilril’s shoulder talked! And really fluently at that! It’s so cute!
“This little one is Kanet. And this lass right here is Roxanne,” he added, gesturing to the donkey. “I hope you can get along with them too.”
“I’m called Tinaris. Nice to meet you, Kanet!”
“Nice to meet! Nice to meet!”
“My smart boy,” Mister Jilril said affectionately. “He can sing, too.”
“It can sing?” Dad and I asked as one.
“He can! Maybe I’ll have him entertain us during dinner. Now then, do we have somewhere safe to let poor Roxanne rest?”
“Oh, yes, the stable’s this way.”
We led Roxanne over to the stable and Jilril and Kanet over to one of the cottages. For now, it looked like this man had an interest in me, or rather, in my talents. He said he wanted to see me concoct medicine, so I got to work on making something simple.
“Oh ho! I see you have your own workshop.”
“Yes. A very simple one, though…”
“Oh, no, it’s quite wonderful!”
Making a low-grade tonic, also known as the healing salve, is quite simple. The ingredients are Duana flowers and water, and the tools are a pot and a stirring rod. You need to stir the materials and feed the concoction mana until it lights up. Once it does, the tonic should be complete. The results should look like a light-pink fluid.
It can heal scrapes and cuts, but ideal quality ones can be as effective as a medium-grade tonic. That can bump its price up, but it’d still be cheaper than a normal quality medium-grade tonic.
As it happened, the tonic I just made was ideal quality. Hehe!
“The process, the ingredients, and your mana… All of them, wonderful! Yes, you certainly would make for a wonderful student.”
“Er…thank you?”
“Incidentally, do you usually make medicine like this for adventurers?”
“Ah, well, yes.”
“It’s a bit of a waste, I’ll admit. Have you considered making ingested medicine for household use? There’s medicine for treating stomachaches, headaches, stiff shoulders, fatigue, nutrient additives, and even compresses for treating muscle pain…”
“Ah!”
I never made any of those, and they all sound like they’d be useful for the inn! Lico taught me how to make medicine for menstrual pain, but I haven’t tried anything else. And the recipe book in the study was old, so it didn’t have any recipes for compresses!
“I’d like to make those!”
“Splendid! I’ll write down their recipes. Could I have a pen and paper?”
“Here you go!” I said, handing him a pen and paper I had in my workshop. As I did, he smiled for some reason.
Wh-What?
“Young Tinaris, do you know how ink and paper are made?”
“How?”
I didn’t. We always got them from Giyaga. Come to think of it, though, it seems like paper should be really difficult to make… It’s not like there are paper mills around like there were in Japan. And what about ink?
I didn’t wonder too much about how it was made in my past life. But now that he brought it up, maybe…!
“Could it be…?”
“Exactly. Alchemists make them. Paper is extremely important, so there are alchemists who make producing paper their specialty. Demand for it never goes down, so they never run out of work. And it’s a fiber, so it can be reused. Many potential alchemists choose to become alchemical paper craftsmen as it ensures a steady income.”
Really?!
I could understand where they were coming from. Paper was useful for a lot of things. When Grandpa needed medicine, kitchen paper was part of the process.
Making paper with alchemy… Why haven’t I thought of that? And it’s important, so it’s good for business too!
“Well, medicine is also quite important and sells for high prices, too. Adventurers wouldn’t get far without them. Household remedies and medicine for use in hospitals are just as important, though. Not just alchemists, but apothecaries must always keep their skills polished.”
“Yes!”
I agree! I want to learn how to make all sorts of stuff!
“Erm, all the medicine you just described, and paper, and ink… Could you teach me how to transmute all these daily necessities, please…?”
“Heheh! Very good! Just like Sirius said, your desire to learn is quite impressive! Of course I can. It’s why I came here!”
“Thank you very much!”
“What would you like to start with? I’ll jot everything down in order.”
“Please do! I think first should be, um, a painkiller.”
“Mm-hm. A painkiller.”
Mister Jilril went on to teach me all sorts of recipes, but I lacked the ingredients for many of them, so I had to make do with just listening to the recipe. But paper required tree bark and either Amamo seaweed or spider webs. So I hurried over to the shed to get some bark from our firewood.
That just leaves the spider webs, but…
“Tina, it’s almost time for dinner.” Nakona approached me. “Huh. What are you doing over by the shed?”
“Mister Jilril taught me the recipe for transmuting paper, so I thought I’d try it out,” I explained. “But I can’t find any spider webs…”
“Huh? Spider webs? Y-You use spider webs for alchemy?”
“I do!” I nodded with a grin as Nakona took a startled step back.
Hehe. She’s probably better off not knowing I use it to make soap.
“Is Mister Jilril our only guest today?”
“Yep. The group that stayed here yesterday checked out this morning. Speaking of which, how long do you think he’s going to stay?”
“I don’t think he decided on an exact length yet.”
“He looks kind of weird… You all right with him?”
“Yeah. He is a little strange, but he taught me all sorts of recipes.”
“Mm? Just don’t spend too much time with him alone. You’re a cute girl, after all!”
Nakona is the one person in the house I don’t want to hear that from. She put most pretty girls to shame with her looks. She’s even cute when she’s angry! Still, I get what she’s trying to say, and I appreciate the concern.
“Yeah. You be careful too, Nakona.”
“I’ll be fine. I beat a boar and a big bear with one punch today!”
“Yes, yes.”
It feels like the local wildlife is growing more helpless against her by the day.
“Anyway, I’m counting on you to dry some jerky for tomorrow ☆!”
“Y-Yes, ma’am…”
You can use alchemical drying to turn meat into dried jerky. You just season it with salt and dry it like you would any other ingredient. That’s all! It’s simple and easy to make a lot of, so the pantry on the inn’s second floor is full of jerky. But since I sell it to customers, just like the medicine, it actually gets consumed rather quickly.
And besides, if we hunt too many carnivores, the herbivores might start to overpopulate. Taking too much from nature can bring all sorts of complicated consequences.
I’d considered making dried fish provisions, but apparently, dried fish looked pretty disgusting to people in this world. Nakona and Dad were repulsed by the idea.
It’s tasty, though…
I tried roasting it in a fire and had Dad eat the results. He changed his mind at once and went, “Gods of De Marl, this is so tasty. I can’t stop eating it, I need some booze!” But that made him drink so much alcohol, I had to stop.
On that day, I received a grim reminder of how scary dried fish provisions can be in the wrong hands.
But I did want to make some, since they were useful as ingredients for other recipes, but Dad might snack on them while drinking… This, too, has complicated consequences…
“Oh, right, since it’s just Mister Jilril here, we should ask him if there’s anything in particular he wants to eat.”
“Well, if there are no other guests, why not? I’m looking forward to trying your new dish, Tina!”
“You make it sound like it’s already been decided!”
I mean, if we have the ingredients ready, I guess I could. But shouldn’t we ask Mister Jilril what he wants first?
“Dad, about Mister Jilril…”
“When I told him we have a hot spring, he went to take a dip, and he said he wants something hot enough to burn his mouth for dinner… Got any ideas, Tina?”
Wh-What? That’s an unusual request.
Dad had already asked him what he wanted to eat, but the answer was so weird, it made me completely forget to thank Dad.
“I didn’t understand what he meant either, so I asked him five more times.”
That’s some thorough double-checking!
“Wh-What do you think, Tina?” Dad asked me uncomfortably. “Personally, I think food shouldn’t burn your mouth, but…”
“I-I think so, too…”
“He did say that even if it sears his tongue, he’d just drink some tonic, and it would heal him at once.”
“I don’t think that’s the problem here.”
“Probably not… So, what do we do?”
What do we do? Something hot enough to burn the mouth? Why would he ask for that?
N-No, if that’s what the guest wants, we should accommodate. Still, the order is so vague, I can’t even begin to imagine where to start with it. I don’t get it!
But if he wanted to eat something hot, I had a few recipes—from both this life and my past life—that would fit the bill. I could make hamburger steak with what we’ve got. Nakona hunted some boars and bears, so if we can just get the smell out of them, it should be simple enough. If what he wanted was piping hot food, a well-stirred hamburger steak should do the trick, right?
There were other options like steak, boar stew, a hot pot…
Oh, right! A hot pot! How about that?
But I wasn’t sure how to actually make hot pot. We don’t even have any earthen pots anyway… Earth pots… Earthen…pots…
“Earthen pots…”
“Erfen pots? What’s that?”
“Earthen pots are pots made from dirt! Er, I read about it in a book! You use clay from the ground and fashion it into a pot, and then roast it in real hot fire until its shape solidifies. It creates a really good pot that doesn’t let the heat escape!”
“Hmm. That sounds interesting, but going that far just for one guest feels a little…well, excessive.”
“…Yeah.”
Going as far as making earthen pots for this feels like a waste. So, I guess a well-stirred hamburger steak would work.
“All right! I know what I’m making!”
“Oh, good work. So, do I leave dinner to you?”
“Yeah! I’ll handle it!”
So that’s decided. Tonight, we’re having well-fried hamburger steak!
♣♣♣
I went into the kitchen, where I began mincing up the meat. Of course, working on it tired me out, so I relied on Nakona and her superior physical prowess to handle it for me.
“What, are you making sausages?” she asked me when I came to her for help.
“No, I’m making well-fried hamburger steak… He said he wants to eat something piping hot, so I figured a hamburger steak would do.”
“Well-fried…hamburger? You mean, like those tasty hamburgers you made a while back?”
“The very same!”
The memories from my past life were a bit hazy, but I remembered meat dishes were pretty popular.
With that in mind, we minced up some boar meat. We also cut oniuns (this world’s version of onions) and mixed together eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and rugmegs (this world’s version of nutmeg, I think). Also, since the meat had a strong, gamey smell, we put in a lot of jaji (this world’s version of ginger) to mask the scent.
Since Dad and Nakona didn’t like vegetables, I added Eas leaves to soak away the smell. Eas leaves don’t have much of a flavor, so they wouldn’t spoil the dish for them.
After mixing everything up, I rolled the mixture into balls slightly larger than palm-size and then struck them with both hands to get the air out. I put the prepared patties onto a slightly warm frying pan and heated them on a strong fire until their surface became grilled. I let the burgers heat up until they changed shape and then flipped them over and roasted them on a weaker flame.
But this wasn’t enough to be called well-fried hamburger steak. To that end, I decided to make some soup today. I used milk—not cow milk, but Rofolamem milk. Rofolamems are basically goats. I added sliced timates (tomatoes) and lots of water. Salt, pepper, Ruel grass, sliced oniuns, jaji, and some vegetable broth I had ready. I added freshly picked mushrooms, butter, and a tiny bit of mana.
I used an iron plate with a deep bottom to cook it in.
“It looks good. What’s the soup in that pot for?”
“That’s a good question, Nakona. It’s to do this with these well-roasted hamburgers!” I said grandly as I dipped the patties into the soup.
“Whoaaaa?! Why’d you put them in the soup?! You just finished frying them!”
“Well, technically, it’s not soup. It’s a sauce.”
I then boiled the patties for a while longer in the sauce. Stir, stir, stir stir stir.
Mm, it smells nice! Oh, I gotta flip them over as they cook every now and then, so one side doesn’t get burnt… And…
“It’s ready!”
“Wow, this looks tasty, too…! But I wanted to eat that hamburger steak as is.”
“Well-fried hamburger is hamburger, too. Try it! You’ll see it’s good.”
“Well, I’m not doubting that. You made it, after all.”
Why, thank you!
♣♣♣
“OOH, this looks wonderful!” Mister Jilril exclaimed upon seeing the meal.
“You asked for something that would burn your mouth, so I made some of the burn medicine you taught me today.”
“Oh ho, that’s quite considerate of you. Now, we shouldn’t let it go cold! Bring it over. I’ll have the whole pot, actually! I’ll eat the pot itself!”
Yep, you’re a creep~❤!
“I actually wanted to make some hot pot, but we don’t have any earthen pots…”
“Hot pot…? Are earthen pots like those pots made of clay the dwarves use in the demi-human continent?”
“Oh! You know about them?!”
This world has earthen pots, after all?!
Even this world has hot pots in its culture! Why, with an earthen pot, I could…make hot pot dishes! Lots of them! If I knead flouel powder with salt and water, I could make noodles! And then, after eating a hot pot dish, I could have noodles the next day with the leftover broth…!
“I-I think that’s the kind of earthen pot I mean, yes!”
“I thought so.”
Jilril then leaned back and took an earthen pot out of his back.
I repeat. Jilril. Took an earthen pot! Out of his back!
You might not understand what I’m saying. Even I’m not really sure what I’m talking about. But as I put what I saw into words, I came to the realization that this man is, indeed, the same kind of person as Sirius.
“What the?” I could only manage this shocked reply.
“A dwarf made me this earthen pot when I visited the demi-human continent… And yes, most of the food cooked in this pot is indeed quite hot.”
I imagine it was, since earthen pots are good at containing heat. Anything you boil in them is going to stay that way for a while. Making it perfect for a man with unique preferences like Mister Jilril… But, well, it’s useful even for people who aren’t looking to burn their mouths. Touching it with your hands can get you burned, too… Though getting burned shouldn’t be your objective!
“Excuse me, that pot…!”
“What say you, miss? Will you exchange this dish’s recipe for this earthen pot?”
“You mean you want the recipe for the well-fried hamburger?”
“I do indeed. This is the first time I’ve tasted anything like it. It’s quite fascinating…” Mister Jilril said, taking gluttonous bites out of the patty.
He writhed in his chair, mouthing the words “Mmm, hot” as he ate it delightedly. Seeing him enjoy his food made me happy, since I was the one who cooked it, but for reasons that were actually quite clear to me, I was getting some mixed feelings about that reaction of his…!
But still, this exchange is perfect for me…!
“Of course I can give you the recipe! If you’d let me, I’ll even cook the next one with this pot!”
“Oh ho? That’s a pretty bold statement you’ve made there.”
It is? Is he thinking I won’t know how to use this pot properly?
“The dwarves use these pots to make snacks that go with alcohol. They were made to simmer this extremely hard mushroom called the Gondelz.”
“G-Gondelz?”
Just the name gave me a bad feeling about it…
“This mushroom right here, actually,” he said, leaning back to pull something out of his back again.
“You’ve got one?!” Dad, Nakona, and me all exclaimed at the same time.
What’s going on with this man’s back?! I’m scared!
He pulled out what looked like a goosefish. Or, well, something grotesque that looked like a goosefish, but he called it a mushroom… I fearfully took a step closer to examine it, but Dad and Nakona grabbed me by the shoulders.
“What are you doing, Tina?! That looks dangerous!”
“W-Well, I figured since he brought it, I should cook it…”
“You shouldn’t go near that thing! Let daddy handle this!” Dad exclaimed.
“H-Huuuuh?!”
I appreciate how reliable you’re being, but isn’t this exaggerated?!
With those heated words, Dad nervously approached the mushroom Mister Jilril was holding out. Mister Jilril was eyeing our reactions with amusement, but I suppose Dad didn’t notice that.
“…It does look like a mushroom,” he said after accepting it from Mister Jilril and examining it cautiously.
“…Oh? Could it be a…” I took a step forward.
“Stay back, Tina!” Nakona warned me. “Don’t go near it until Daddy says it’s safe!”
“I-It’s fine,” I said, shrugging her off. I appreciated her concern but still approached the Gondelz mushroom Dad was holding.
That’s… Yeah, I knew it! That’s what it reminds me of…!
It was abnormally large—about as big as an adult male’s torso—but its shape reminded me of a shiitake mushroom!
Yeah, if you boil it and drink it along with booze, it should taste good. And given how large it is, I can see why they’d need an earthen pot to do it.
The dwarves’ pot was larger than any I’d seen in my past life, but it’d have to be that big to boil this giant mushroom.
“Well?” Mister Jilril asked me. “Think you can cook this Gondelz mushroom?”
“I can!” I asserted. “With this pot, it should be easy!”
“Oh!” he exclaimed, impressed.
“Tina? Are you sure about this?” Nakona asked me, her face contorted with a hint of disgust. “This mushroom looks gross…”
“Don’t worry! I’ll handle it. Tomorrow, we’ll be having udon in a pot of broth!”
“What in a pot of what?” Dad asked, visibly confused.
“Isn’t udon that thing you made the other day?” Nakona asked.
“Yeah! I’ll simmer it in this pot! Hehe! For tomorrow’s dinner, we’ll be having a hot pot party!”
“A hot what party?”
“A hot pot party!”
A party where you gather around a hot pot and eat your fill!
♣♣♣
AND so, the next day, I brought the pot outside, where we had a dwarf-style bonfire to hold our hot pot party! Dwarf-style bonfires have rocks on four sides, meant to support the heavy earthen pot. You then start the bonfire under the pot. You keep the fire going, letting it heat the pot throughout the evening.
They munch on the Gondelz mushroom as they drink the night away. That’s the dwarves’ way of having fun, it seems. Jilril is human, but he liked dwarf eating habits where they drank alcohol while stuffing their mouths with food hot enough to burn their tongue.
So, yeah, Mister Jilril has weird fetishes. No doubting that.
But since he went as far as supplying me with the earthen pot necessary to cook what he wants, I’ll do as our guest requested!
“Well? What are you gonna make after keeping the fire running all day long?”
“We start with this!” I said, holding up a plate of fish.
“Fish?”
“Yep. I’ll dry these fish right here, and the other fish I’ll simmer in the pot.”
“Soup stock?”
“That’s right!”
The Gondelz mushroom should produce some tasty broth, too, but I figured I’d play it safe and go with some small fish soup stock. I also wanted to test what would happen if I put the fish in water with mana before turning it into soup. Would the fish melt entirely into the water, making the perfect soup stock?
“Let’s do this!”
“You’re using alchemy?!” Nakona asked me, her eyes wide.
“Yeah. It’s fine! Alchemy is basically no different from cooking.”
“A-Are you sure about that?”
“Don’t worry about it. I mean, sure, I might mess it up sometimes… But, based on my experience, nothing weird should happen!”
“Really now?” She sounded skeptical.
Wow, rude!
But while I sounded confident, I couldn’t deny being a bit anxious. This was my first time trying it, after all.
But hey, I’m just putting some mana into dried fish and water. It shouldn’t explode.
“Let’s do this!” I said again.
I’m challenging an unestablished recipe and delving into unexplored territory! Even the dried fish is something I came up with by applying a technique I learned to make Grandpa’s medicine. It’ll go fine this time, too! I just know it! And besides, making fish soup stock is a world in and of itself.
I was using small river fish instead of dried sardines, but the taste wasn’t any match for real sardines. I also tried drying some algae from the lake, but it wasn’t as good as the kelp I knew, either… Not that I ate kelp much, anyway.
The same thing happened when I tried imitating making dried bonito flakes. Bonito were fish found in the sea, so I naturally couldn’t find anything like them at the lake. Since I didn’t have anything exactly like them on hand, I tried using larger fish that inhabited the lake, but it didn’t work out at all.
Also, once…in my past life, I saw a cooking show where they made soup stock from vegetable leftovers, and I tried to make it, but…that ended up being more sweet than savory.
The thing is, making just vegetable soup stock is kind of hard… In my old life, you could take a string bag of mandarins and boil it for a few hours. But here, I’d have to get a thin cloth bag and boil it for half a day in a campfire outside. It’s a little too much effort for that flavor…!
So, the easiest way of making soup stock here is by using dried fish. To that end, if this experiment works out, I’ll be able to greatly expand the repertoire of dishes I can cook!
“Ah!”
“Oh, it lit up!”
“Yeah… The color looks good.”
“Huh? It does? It looks kind of muddy.”
“Yeah, but that’s how soup stock is supposed to look, right?”
Really transparent soup stock kind of looks like kelp soup stock.
Kelp… Will we ever meet again…? How I long for you, kelp…
I shook off my reveries. Time to taste it! I scooped up a bit with a small saucer and gave it a taste.
“How is it?” Nakona peered into my face.
I remained silent for a moment.
“That’s a pretty long pause.”
“…Mm. Well…it’s a little different from what I expected.”
“What, did it turn out bad?”
“I wouldn’t call it bad, it’s just… A bit too bitter, I guess. It’s probably because I dried the fish without cleaning out the entrails…”
“Bitter, huh? How bitter are we talking here?”
“Wanna try it?”
Nakona nodded, so I scooped up more of the soup and hand the saucer over to her. As soon as she brought it to her lips, she furrowed her brows.
“Yeah, it’s not bad, but it’s…bitter.”
“Well, it’s perfectly edible, so let’s use it as is for now,” I concluded and proceeded to jot down the recipe.
I noted that next time, I should use bigger fish and remove their entrails before drying them. I had more things to test out before the recipe was perfect.
“So, what do we do with how bitter it is?”
“Let’s use vegetables! They’re savory; that should cancel it out.”
Bitterness can accentuate a dish, so trying to gloss over it wouldn’t be wise. So, we should use it, instead. Nakona and I still had a childish sense of taste, so the bitterness was probably too strong for us. But for adults like Dad and Mister Jilril, it probably wouldn’t seem as bitter. With that in mind, I chopped up some vegetables and sprinkled them into the pot.
Nakona panicked upon seeing this, asking, “Are you sure you should stuff it all in the pot like that?!”
Veggies soften when you simmer them, so it’s fine!
“Oh, by the way, Big Sis, since you’re so strong, could you make me some udon noodles?” I asked her, faking a baby voice.
“…Oh, those long things? That’s tiring to make.”
“…You won’t do it for me?” I gazed at her, doing my best impression of a baby doe.
“I’m not saying that. It’s tiring…but it does taste good.”
You’re staring off into the distance, though!
“I’ll get the udon flouel ready, then!”
“Yeah, yeah…”
I should do this while she’s still motivated!
Udon is made from wheat flour, called flouel in this world, along with salt and just enough water to make it sticky. I collected enough so the powder didn’t stick to my fingers and handed it over to Nakona. Normally, you’d spread a vinyl sheet and have multiple people stomp on it, but…
“Araaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”
Nakona delivered a flurry of punches! The impact of the blows made the flouel change shape multiple times in midair! As the flouel dropped back down, Nakona delivered her combo, preventing it from falling to the ground.
But this isn’t enough. If we don’t knead it more, the udon won’t be springy enough!
“Keep going, Nakona!”
“I’ll do it! Atatatatatatatatatatatatatatatata!”
As Nakona did her thing, I sat next to her and practiced some of the household medicine recipes I learned yesterday while watching over the pot. Yep, the veggies were shriveling up nicely.
I’d like to put some meat in there, but we’ll be using the Gondelz mushroom this time!
I cut it up into six pieces.
It looks horrible!
Imagine a huge, black shiitake mushroom covering a pot! Even though I’m fond of shiitake mushrooms, it still grosses me out…!
But it does smell nice. It’ll be good, for sure! Thick, juicy shiitake mushrooms that have taken in the soup stock’s flavor… It’ll be great!
“Tiiiiina, is the udon flouel ready?”
“Lemme see!”
I can’t forget the other main dish!
I checked the udon flouel I had Nakona beat up, and… Yep! It’s looking good!
“I’ll handle the rest!”
“I’m pooped!” Nakona fell to the ground and let out an exhausted sigh.
“Thanks, Nakona!”
I took the udon flouel Nakona kneaded for me and spread it out over the clean table. I cut it into pieces of appropriate length and set it on the plate.
Preparations are complete!
“Oh, something smells nice,” Dad said, coming over with some firewood under his arm.
“Thanks for chopping the wood, Dad!”
“Did you really use that monster mushroom in your cooking?”
“Hehe… Wanna give it a taste?”
Dad and Nakona both regarded me with morbid silence. I can understand their aversion given how nasty the mushroom looked, but still, they should see how it tastes before they jump to conclusions.
Honestly, I was pretty curious about how it tasted. It looks like a shiitake mushroom, but who’s to say if it really is the same? I cut a piece of the mushroom, put it on a wooden plate, and then divided it into three parts with a fork.
“Whoa…!”
“Wow, for how bad it looks, it sure smells nice!” Nakona exclaimed.
“Yeah, it does smell good. Still, it looks kind of blegh…”
Well, since you two are so scared of trying it, I’ll take responsibility as the cook and taste it!
Nom!
“Mmmmmm!” I let out a delighted squeak. “It’s so good! It took in all the soup stock and it’s so juicy! The more I chew on it, the more it fits the mushroom’s texture! It’s so good!”
Dad and Nakona exchanged wary glances, but I regarded their mixed reactions with a smile. That made the two of them drum up the courage to bring the Gondelz mushroom to their lips. Their expressions lit up at once, telling me they understood what I meant now.
“You’re right! It’s completely different from what I thought it’d be like!”
“It’s kind of squishy, but the more I chew it, the more I can taste the soup! It’s got a kind of elasticity that reminds me of meat…!”
Right?! That’s the best part about shiitake mushrooms!
In my past life, high-quality shiitake were called shiitake steaks! I even had one once. I roasted one side with soy sauce and butter and ate it that way… I could use cheese for flavor, too, or roast it in the oven with mayonnaise… Wait, this isn’t a story about shiitake cuisine!
A-Anyway, this should meet Mister Jilril’s demands! I added more soup stock and put the udon in it, cooking them together.
“Something smells nice!”
Oh, the smell lured Mister Jilril over. It’s not evening yet, so what do we do? The pot’s almost done, and we’re all in one place.
“Yes, it’s nice and ready!”
“Oh, it’s ready this soon?”
“Yes, but there’s still time until the hot pot party can begin.”
“Mm? What do you mean?”
I looked up at Dad. What do we do? Do we start eating? It’s still early.
“Moving dinner up once in a while isn’t a crime. We’ve only got one guest here tonight, after all.”
“Yay! Then let’s start eating!” Nakona cheered.
“Now, now, Nakona. We can’t start eating before the guest does. What do you say, Mister Jilril? Would you mind if we eat a bit early?”
“Yes, well, I think eating outside at this time of day can be pleasant every once in a while. Eating while hearing some tales of the Azure Demon Wolf of De Marl’s heroism might be a fine way to pass the time.”
“Ugh! Could you spare me from that? I’m not fond of talking about old times,” Dad groaned.
“Ahaha, that’s a shame.”
“Why? I want to hear stories from when you were a knight, Daddy!” Nakona protested.
“Me too!” I joined in.
It wasn’t often that Dad talked about his past! Stories about wars are kind of scary, so I don’t like hearing detailed descriptions of battle, but… I want to hear about the demi-human continent!
It has elves and dwarves, and the dwarves have earthen pots! Who knows, maybe the demi-human continent had pressure cookers, chopping tools, fridges…and something like electronics…!
Okay, probably not that.
But since the mythical continent was said to be a treasure trove of mysterious materials, the demi-human continent might be home to all sorts of curious ingredients! Plus, my image of dwarves had them wielding impressive technology! Maybe they could make Dad a more efficient prosthetic arm…
Of course, if I make the supreme tonic, we won’t need that anymore.
“Mm? What’s this white, stretchy thing at the bottom?” Mister Jilril asked.
“Oh, that’s udon! It’s made from mixing flouel with a little salt and water that you then cut into strips.”
“It’s quite delicious.”
“Making it is really hard!” Nakona piped up. “I spent a long time beating it into shape, so you better relish it!”
“B-Beating it into shape…? Ahem! Well, I suppose I should have some more, then!”
Ahaha, “beat it into shape” sounds scary. Makes sense he’d be weirded out. Not that she’s wrong!
Mister Jilril dipped his fork into the bottom of the pot, scooped up some udon noodles, and—much to my horror—carried it right up to his mouth.
That’s bad manners! You’re supposed to slurp them!
We all watched him with stiff smiles. His insistence… No, his obsession with hot food is impressive.
“…Mm, that hits the spot! It really does burn my lips and tongue.”
“…I tried making the burn medicine you taught me yesterday. Do you want some?”
“Much appreciated.”
♣♣♣
THE next morning, Mister Jilril handed me a bag full of seeds while having breakfast at the coffee corner.
“What’s this…?”
“Gondelz seeds. Find a tall, moist spot in a Hihi tree, and plant them in a hole there. It should be ready to harvest six months later.”
“Oh, thank you…”
This is something that I don’t have the first idea how to use.
“Incidentally, if you use the pot I gave you to dry a Gondelz and make it into a fine powder, you can make even better soup stock out of it.”
“Ah!”
Dried shiitake soup! Right, you can use shiitake for soup stock, too! So that’s one use for these seeds!
“Th-Thank you!”
“Heheh, I’m glad you catch on quick. If you come to Saikorea, I can teach you all kinds of other things, but…”
“…I’m sorry. I like it here.”
“I understand. Well, if you change your mind, come anytime. I’ll be sure to be generous with your scholarship. Would you mind if I take your ideas and have a restaurant for potted udon opened in Saikorea?”
“G-Go ahead!”
I just hope Mister Jilril can find a chef and an investor who actually understands his weird food preferences…