Chapter 1: Minced Meat Cutlet

Chapter 1:
Minced Meat Cutlet

It is said that the profession of “adventurer” came into existence some seventy years ago, when four legendary heroes ended the long, long war against the demon race.

Just like that, the number of battlefields around the world began to dwindle (though they never totally disappeared), which meant that mercenaries and soldiers suddenly had to find a new way of living. Some became knights, taking up their swords for nobles, or soldiers of fortune who traveled from rare battlefield to battlefield to make a living. Many abandoned the sword entirely, choosing to become artisans of some type, farmers, or merchants. Sadly, there were even those who pointed their blades at the innocent, choosing to become violent bandits instead.

But among those warriors were a small group who decided to walk a new path in life as adventurers.

Adventurers: those who fought against dangerous monsters and bandits, protected merchants traveling from town to town, solved all kinds of problems in cities, and found riches in the old ruins across the Eastern Continent. In exchange for having the protection of none, they chose to live a life of freedom.

It had been seventy years since the birth of the adventurer. New adventurers were born every day, but not all of them found their way into great fortune. There were only a small number who won riches and great renown. Greater in number were those who retired in peace, having found some moderate success in their craft. Even greater in number were the poor fools who eventually ended up as corpses in some dark cave.

This is the tale of one adventurer on a quest of rediscovery.

Her name was Sarah. She was a type of adventurer called a treasure hunter: one who specialized in extracting riches from ruins.

She carefully made her way down the rope, descending into the darkness of the ruins.

I’m sure it’s supposed to be today. But that’s why I have to be more careful than ever, she thought to herself, keeping tabs on her surroundings. She had traversed through this cave multiple times. In fact, she already knew the whole route from the entrance to her destination by heart. Sarah had even taken out any and all monsters that were lurking in the area. That, however, was no excuse to let her guard down, and she knew it.

Like hell I’m gonna be one of those jokers who ends up dying just before getting their hands on the goods.

“If you let your guard down during the last stretch, you end up paying the price more often than not.” When Sarah was much younger, her treasure hunter cousin had made sure to hammer that point into her head.

Unfortunately, that very same cousin would go on to find a secret room connected to the final area of some elven ruins and go missing the very next day. Sarah was well aware of the fact that their body was never found, and so she promised to abide by the words they left for her. It was thanks to her caution that she ultimately arrived at her final destination unscathed.

“What the heck?” Sarah raised her voice, confused at the sight before her.

***

Five years ago, the legendary treasure hunter, William Gold, passed away. He spent his final years in a small mining town. It was rumored that he settled in this dry town some ten years ago because he had hidden part of his vast collection of treasures within the mines.

Needless to say, this was all hearsay. Even his remaining relatives in the Gold Firm, one of the very few large merchant families in the Kingdom, had no public records of William leaving behind any hidden treasure. However, the reason Sarah came to this old town was because she got her hands on William Gold’s journal from his final years. According to his writings, after moving here, he would visit the mines every seven days without fail.

Today is the Day of Satur. Time to go to the mines. William left behind few other words on the subject but always made sure to make note of this “Day of Satur” every seven days. For as long as his body allowed it, he would go to the mines on this very specific day. When he eventually succumbed to illness and was confined to bed, he would still write in his journal, Today is the Day of Satur… If only my cursed body could still move.

At one point, perhaps as a result of his old age, he visited the mines on the eighth day. Alongside a flurry of curses, all William noted about that day was that it was “a massive waste of time.”

Despite her age, Sarah was a talented treasure hunter. Compared to other youngsters and assorted bandits, she felt confident that she was a step above the rest. Her instincts cried out to her that this journal was the real deal and that she needed to visit the mines on the very same day that William had: the “Day of Satur.”

Thoughts of William’s secret treasure filled her mind as she infiltrated the old mines. She found a secret passage that he’d hidden, one that no rookie treasure hunter would ever be able to find on their own. Sarah’s journey down this path would put her against monsters that only professionals could handle. She eventually drew up a map, figured out a safe path to her goal, and today, on this “Day of Satur,” finally made her way to the deepest part of the mines…

That was when she saw it.

A door.

On this door was painted a cat, but even stranger was the sign hanging from it. Written across it were strange characters that even Sarah, well versed in the languages of both the Western and Eastern Continent, as well as that of the elves and the dwarves, could not read. As of yesterday, this ivory door had not existed.

“It’s a door…right?”

After examining it briefly, Sarah found that the door wasn’t rigged with any sort of traps. Heck, it wasn’t even locked. This meant that she could go in immediately if she so chose to.

“Well, I’m not going to get any farther unless I go through it!” Sarah said.

Thinking over it briefly, Sarah decided to enter the door. She had prepared for the day that she would finally come face to face with William’s legacy. She even brought an elixir with her, a medicine that could heal all manner of major wounds in one gulp, and outfitted herself with the best equipment before coming here. There was no turning back.

“If I die here, I guess it’ll just prove that I wasn’t much of a treasure hunter. Here goes nothing.”

Ring, ring.

The sound of a bell rang out from the other side of the door.

An alarm?! Sarah instinctively drew her trusty dagger and took a defensive stance.

“Welcome. Can I ask you to put the blade away, ma’am?”

Inside the door was a single middle-aged man with a somewhat exasperated look on his face, asking her to tuck her dagger away.

“What the heck?” she said for the second time.

***

A little while later…

“Nekoya?” After putting her dagger away, Sarah asked the restaurant’s master about his strange “business.”

“Well, yeah. Just an ordinary Western… er, eatery.”

“An eatery, this deep in the mines?”

The master raised his shoulders in response to Sarah’s question. “Mines? Ah, I’m guessing you used the same door William did to come here, ma’am.”

“The door William used…” In response to the master’s answer, Sarah turned back to look at the entrance she came through earlier. It was a large door made of black ivory with a gold bell hanging from the top and a picture of a cat with its right paw raised on the front.

“Is it some sort of magic item?”

Examining it once more, Sarah realized that the tiny bell contained incredibly strong magic energies within it. In response to her question, the master nodded his head.

“Yeah, you could say that. Not that I really get how it all works. One of the old regulars here says it bends space-time and creates a bunch of ‘doors’ in another world. That said, it only connects once every seven days.”

“Another world?” asked Sarah. “Are you saying I’m in another world?”

She immediately scanned the inside of the restaurant. The gods and demons of old who left this world behind also created all sorts of parallel realms. The demon realm, hell, the heavenly realm, the mirror world, the fairy kingdom… All of these could be called “other worlds.” Although Sarah never personally visited one, other more famous treasure hunters such as William Gold had traveled to them and brought back powerful items, like a staff made from the wood of the Holy Tree. William even sold it to the great sage, one of the four legendary heroes, for a large sum of money. It was a famous story among treasure hunters.

And so Sarah herself didn’t doubt the existence of other worlds. She simply found it hard to believe that the restaurant she was standing in was one of them.

“It looks pretty normal to me… Or not.”

This time, Sarah looked at her surroundings with the eye of a pro treasure hunter, and she immediately changed her mind. This was nothing like the “restaurants” she was familiar with.

The room appeared to be cut away from a larger basement, with no windows anywhere to be found. On the ceiling were orbs of light, most likely powered by magic, that warmly lit the interior as if it were the middle of the day. Both the chairs and tables were kept in pristine condition as well. Said tables were set with fairly expensive looking glasses and small, porcelain water pitchers.

Things like this were impossible to find in all but the most expensive of restaurants, and yet there was no sign of any servants. If anything, it looked as if the whole place was run by the one man in front of her.

“We’re just an ordinary little restaurant, you know?” he said. “How about it. Care to grab a bite? Things are gonna get kinda rowdy here in a bit, but since it’s still early, I’ve got some free time on my hands.”

“Sure,” Sarah said doubtfully. “I guess I’ll give it a try.”

A meal recommended to her by a total stranger. Sarah initially wondered if it was some sort of trap but remembered that this was the place William had been so enamored with: a Restaurant to Another World. She couldn’t help but be interested in the food that captured his very heart.

“Glad to hear it! Sit wherever you’d like.” With that, the master retreated to the kitchen.

Food from another world, huh? she thought to herself. What am I going to be served? I hope it’s not anything too strange.

Sarah grabbed herself a seat and took a closer look at the objects on her table. At the far edge were a series of glasses: one filled with some sort of red liquid, another filled with what she assumed to be salt of a sort. One of the containers appeared to have a bunch of tiny, sharp wooden sticks in it. There were tags on them, most likely explaining their purpose, but unfortunately they were all written in the language of a world that Sarah was unfamiliar with.

The master returned from the back as she examined the strange black liquid and white particles in the containers. “Ma’am, can you read the Eastern Continent’s language?” he asked.

“Yes, of course,” Sarah nodded her head.

The Eastern Continent’s language had been used since ancient times. A resident of the land herself, Sarah would not have survived as a treasure hunter if she could not read or write.

“Then here’s our menu. Take your time!”

The master then handed her a sharp-cornered menu card written in the language of the Eastern Continent and placed a transparent cup filled with ice and water in front of her.

“Excuse me, I didn’t order any water,” Sarah grumpily replied as she watched him.

While it was true that she was thirsty and considered ordering water, it’d be bad news if she let the strange man impose his will on her. Coming from a long line of merchants, Sarah was careful when it came to matters of money. In this day and age, acquiring ice water required the use of magic, which meant paying upward of a silver coin. There was no way she was going to let this man force her to pick up the bill.

Much to her surprise, however, the master simply laughed at her response. “Oh, the lemon water is on the house. Refills are free, too, so help yourself!”

The master once again returned to the kitchen, beginning his work within Sarah’s line of sight.

“What’s with this place?” It appeared as though this really was another world. Having once again confirmed this for herself, she took a sip of the water from her cup.

It was cold and delicious. There was just a hint of fruit juice in the water, giving it a refreshing taste that spread throughout her mouth. After spending ages traversing the old mines, this was enough to bring her back to life. Without her even realizing it, all the stress in her body began to fade away. Considering the hard-to-argue price of free, she gulped down the water as she looked over the menu. There she found all sorts of dishes written in the language of the Eastern Continent…but none that she recognized.

“Hm. I think I know what I’m getting into with roasted beef and the like, but I have no idea what the rest of this is.”

Next to the name of each dish was a single sentence explaining what it was. As far as she could tell, the Western Continent beyond the ocean had a great many dishes that utilized rice. There were also dishes that utilized fried bread crumbs of some kind. These were all foods well outside of Sarah’s knowledge.

“Honestly, I’m not sure what to order… Oh.”

Sarah’s eyes found their way to a particular menu item just as she was beginning to feel lost. The daily special. Apparently, it was a dish that changed every day, recommended by the master. It was even two silver coins cheaper than everything else.

After taking a look at it, Sarah decided to go with the special. Since she wasn’t sure what was good anyway, she thought she might as well go with the cheapest item on the menu.

“Are you ready to order, ma’am?” the master asked.

“Yes. I’ll have the daily special, please.”

“Great. That’s one daily special coming right up. Please wait a moment,” the master replied.

“Oh, excuse me!” Sarah called out to the master just as he was returning to the kitchen.

“Yes?”

“Um, what exactly is today’s special?” Sarah didn’t expect to recognize the name but thought to ask anyway.

“Um, let’s see… Hah hah, this must be fate.” The master laughed out loud as he went on to explain. “It’s minced meat cutlet. It was William’s favorite dish.”

The master retreated back into the kitchen, and Sarah heard the sounds of oil sizzling a moment later. She tried to piece things together.

Looks like this really is the reason why William Gold settled here in his final years.

Once every seven days… A suspicious little restaurant that could only be visited on the “Day of Satur.” This was what William meant. Looking at all the information available to her, it was clear that this little place was the reason why William settled in this old mining town.

Which would mean that the food here has to be even better than the fancy joints in the capital, right?

William used the fortune that he acquired in life and business to build a spectacular mansion in the capital. The most prosperous city in all of the Eastern Continent, the capital was where all manner of people and things gathered, including the most delicious of restaurants.

As far as Sarah was aware, in his late years, William was known in the capital to be one of the wealthiest men of them all. He had more than enough money to spend on good food should he have so wished. Yet despite all of that, he still chose to live here, near this specific restaurant. The only conclusion to be drawn was that the food was on another level.

Eventually, the master returned to Sarah with her plate.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. Here’s your minced meat cutlet set.”

The master placed down several different dishes in front of Sarah. A quick glance at the various foods in front of her served as further confirmation that this really was a Restaurant to Another World. That was just how beyond her experience all of this was.

The large dish in front of her held two large, brown, sizzling balls the size of an adult’s fist. Next to those sat a fruit sliced into four pieces and a mixture of steamed vegetables and pasta with a white sauce over them. On the other side was a pile of delicately cut fresh vegetables.

The plate next to that one had two pieces of bread on it with what appeared to be butter wrapped in some kind of silver paper. Last but not least was a bowl of soup with minced onions and smoked meat floating in it.

Sarah’s stomach let out a roar. She hadn’t eaten since leaving the inn earlier that day. Her face turned bright red as the master smiled and let out a laugh.

“Free refills on the bread and soup, so feel free to dig in. Give me a holler if you want more! Oh, and the minced meat cutlet tastes even better with the sauce in the pitcher and a dash of lemon juice on it.”

He pointed at the porcelain pitcher with the blue lid.

“Please enjoy!”

And just like that, the master returned to the kitchen, leaving only Sarah and the delicious smelling lunch set in front of her.

“What the?! This is amazing!”

Sarah went for the soup first, thinking she knew what to expect from it. Instead, her mouth was overwhelmed by an unexpected mix of flavors. The sweetness of the oranie (onion in the other world) combined with the savory nature of the dried meat was one thing. However, while it seemed like those were the only two things in the soup, it was actually filled with the flavors of various other vegetables and meat. These various flavors intermingled without overpowering any single element, leading to a refreshing taste.

She drank it all in a single gulp.

The soup alone was far beyond anything she’d ever had at a restaurant before.

“Oh gosh, it’s so soft!”

Next up was the bread. Sarah could barely contain her shock at how soft it was. How was this possible? It was white bread, but so much softer than anything she’d eaten at home. Just putting some of the butter from the mysterious silver wrapping on it was enough to make it taste incredible. The salty flavor of the melted butter combined with the soft and sweet flour of the bread brought out its taste in the best of ways.

It was gone in the blink of an eye.

“Excuse me! Could I get refills on the bread and soup?!” Sarah called.

“Sure, coming right up!”

Sarah then turned her attention to the main course: the mysterious brown objects. She pointed her knife and fork at the minced meat cutlet.

She was salivating despite being confronted with a food that didn’t particularly look delicious from the outside. This was all brand new to Sarah, but as far as she was concerned, if the bread and soup were that good, the main course must be on a different level. There was simply no way it could be bad.

At some point, her initial cautiousness turned into expectation. She carefully used her knife to cut a sizable portion of the cutlet off. Just as her knife entered the ball, meat juices began to flow out from the toasty brown opening. As far as she could tell, the food in question was made of delicately minced meats. With all the expectation in the world, she brought the fork to her mouth.

“…Wha?”

That was all she could say. That’s how delicious it was.

The meat’s plentiful juices mixed with the lightly-textured coating, saturated with fine oil, as they burst and flowed out in her mouth. It was a simultaneous rush of meat, seasoned with just the right balance of salt and pepper, bringing out the best of the meat as well as the oranie mixed in with it.

It was as if Sarah had been invited into a delicious new world of possibilities.

“O-oh, that’s right. He said this tastes good with lemon juice and sauce over it.”

Having already devoured one of the two minced meat cutlets whole, Sarah recalled the master’s words and carefully cut the remaining cutlet in two before grabbing the blue pitcher.

She slowly tilted the opening toward the cutlet, and a thick brown sauce came flowing out and onto it. The dark, thick sauce covered the light fried coating of the meat. Sarah then reached for a lemon and squeezed some of its juice onto the cutlet. It absorbed the fruit juice and softened just a tiny bit. Once again, Sarah brought the meat to her mouth…

What came next was complete silence. If there was time to speak, there was time to enjoy the flavor more.

The complex arrangement of flavors in the sauce was heightened by the sourness of the lemon. Adding those new elements to the cutlet somehow made the first one she had eaten lack a certain something by comparison. What the flavorful meat juice and sweet oranie lacked was sourness. By adding this sauce and lemon, a fruit with practically no sweetness at all, the minced meat cutlet had evolved into its perfect form.

The meat and coating alone should have been more than enough to satisfy one’s hunger. Just a few bites and the heaviness would normally kick in, forcing a diner to stop in their tracks. This is where the sourness came in, balancing all these elements together to leave a person feeling refreshed rather than heavy.

One could eat this forever. It was nothing less than the food of the gods in the celestial realm.

Sarah then went on to order seconds of her minced meat cutlet. Occasionally she would reach for more bread or soup. The master eventually instructed her to sandwich the cutlet between bread and a leafy vegetable (called lettuce in the other world). As expected, the texture and flavor of the cutlet melded perfectly with that of the bread and the lettuce. All she had done was put the foods together, and yet, somehow, she felt they had become an entirely new dish.

Eventually, Sarah placed her fork and knife on the table when she reached the absolute limit of what her stomach could hold.

“Whew… That was incredible.”

She took out a silver coin and multiple copper coins, placing them on the table.

“Thanks a bunch,” the master said. After checking the payment, he handed Sarah a bag. “Oh, ma’am, would you mind taking this?”

“What is it?”

“Takeout.”

The master thought back on when one of his regulars was still alive and well, smiled sadly, and explained the contents to Sarah. “It’s a minced meat cutlet sandwich. William would always order one of these with his favorite meal. Since you looked like you were enjoying the food so much, I just kinda ended up making one out of habit. It’s totally on the house, so please take it with you. It’s still dang good when cold, but I recommend eating it as soon as you get the chance.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, surprised by the master’s offer. Given how full she’d become, she wasn’t exactly ready to eat more. That said, she knew she’d want to taste that amazing meal again once her load lightened. Plus, she had only just discovered how great this sandwich thing was. If she wasn’t so full, she’d probably cram it down now.

“Absolutely. Let’s just say this one’s on William,” he said.

“Then I’ll take you up on your offer.” Sarah nodded at the master and took the bag from his hands. The still-warm sauce emanated an aroma that somehow managed to stimulate her appetite despite her full stomach.

“I’ll be going. Bye now.”

“Thank you for coming. We look forward to your next visit.”

Just like that, Sarah turned toward the exit. She opened the door, greeted with the familiar sound of the bell ringing, and looked out into the old mine.

“Oh, one question…”

Sarah turned when she heard the master behind her.

“How did William…?”

“I hear he went peacefully. If anything, he seemed frustrated that he couldn’t come here anymore,” she answered.

And with that, the door closed behind her and disappeared, leaving only the quiet, old mine in its wake.

“The legendary treasure hunter’s final hidden treasure…” Sarah mused. She stared at the now-empty wall where the door once was, thinking over all that had happened. “I get it now. A hidden treasure truly worthy of William Gold.”

William had been poor as a child. Sarah recalled hearing that her great-grandfather was something of a foodie.

Sarah Gold, the budding young treasure hunter and up-and-coming ladyship of the massive merchant organization, the Gold Firm, hurried home. She couldn’t wait until the next Day of Satur.