Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter 3.2

2

Several hours later, we had returned to the Ruu settlement in the same manner as yesterday, having finished our work on time.

However, there was a rather gloomy feeling hanging in the air today. And the rage of the hunters still hadn’t abated, with Ai Fa foremost among them.

“Ah, good work, everyone. What’s going on...? You lot are wearing some scary looks there, y’know,” Bartha of Masara called out with an inquisitive tilt of her head. She really had started to become just another member of the settlement, and was currently chopping firewood with a hatchet. Ryada Ruu was there keeping an eye on her again, and he furrowed his brow while Mida stared down at us vacantly.

“We ended up getting a real ridiculous message from one of Cyclaeus’s underlings. Ryada Ruu, is my old man still out in the forest...?”

“Yes. The sun’s still high in the sky, so I’d imagine it will be a while yet before he returns.”

“I see. He’s sure to be furious too. Well actually, sometimes he’s surprisingly calm about stuff that makes us rage...”

“Well, what in the world is it? As long as it’s something you can tell me, then out with it already.”

Bartha’s lion-like face was starting to look nervous, too.

Turning back her way, Ludo Ruu scratched his blond head of hair.

“It’s not exactly the sorta thing we need to hide from you. But you see, that Cyclaeus bastard went and thrust some ridiculous conditions on us for the meeting on the day after tomorrow.”

“Conditions?”

“Yeah. The first is that he’s shifting the place to his manor in the castle town instead of Turan. The excuse is that he’s not doing well, and it’d be troublesome to have to leave his home.”

That alone wouldn’t be enough to get angry over. And so, Bartha still looked confused as Ludo Ruu continued on.

“You can’t set foot in the castle town without a pass, though. And only ten people not participating directly in the meeting will be allowed through. It’s ridiculous, isn’t it?”

Since the people of the forest’s edge were going to bring along Zuuro Suun and the others, they planned to have dozens of hunters accompany them as bodyguards. It would just be a few hunters including the leading clan heads at the actual meeting place, but the others would have stood by outside the building, prepared to charge in if anything happened.

“Hmm... So our request to bring along Zuuro Suun and the others put them on edge, then?”

“Hmph! That would make a lot more sense than believing his illness conveniently just happened to worsen, right?!”

Of course Jimon ultimately kept insisting it was due to Cyclaeus being in poor health, and also that we didn’t need any more bodyguards at the meeting place. And his tone said that if we didn’t accept the demand, it would be seen as an act of rebellion.

“And the other demand was even more ridiculous. That damn noble bastard went and told us to bring Asuta to the meeting place!”

Even Ryada Ruu’s eyes opened wide in shock at hearing that.

“Bring along Asuta, you say? But this is ultimately a meeting between Cyclaeus and the leading clan heads of the forest’s edge, isn’t it? Asuta should have nothing to do with it.”

“I’ve got no clue what he’s thinking! He just went on and on about some nonsense!” Ludo Ruu shouted, kicking the ground.

It seemed like I might well have been the calmest one present, so I took up the role of explaining.

“Their excuse is that they see my birthplace as an issue, apparently. There’s no real example of welcoming someone from overseas into one’s clan, so they said it should be handled more carefully...”

I didn’t fully grasp the customs of this world myself, so I had quite a time trying to understand what Jimon was saying.

But the gist of it was that people from overseas were not children of the four great gods of this continent, and should have their own heathen gods. And so, someone with such a background shouldn’t be welcomed so recklessly.

“Asuta is a fellow person of the forest’s edge! He thinks so himself, and we don’t have any issue with it, so what business do you have butting in?!” Ludo Ruu had shouted out several hours back, but Jimon still looked cool-headed as he shook his head.

“Then you are saying Asuta of the Fa clan is also currently a child of Selva?”

“Yes, or at least I consider myself one.”

“In that case, provide proof of that fact.”

Naturally, I had no idea what he was talking about.

Jimon gave a condescending nod. “I wouldn’t mind even a ritual toward Jagar or Sym. As long as you are not a child of Mahyudra, the gates of Selva will remain open to you... But of course, as long as one is not a child of Selva, they cannot be allowed to live in the Morga forest’s edge, which is Genos land.”

“I’m sorry... I don’t really understand what you’re saying.”

“Indeed. In other words, that serves as proof that you do not come from this continent.”

“Hold on a moment! It’s not as if we get what you’re saying either!” Ludo Ruu loudly protested, earning him an icy glare from Jimon.

“It seems the people of the forest’s edge have not been required to learn the customs of the children of Selva. Though it’s quite difficult to understand, that was the agreement between Duke Genos and the leading clan head of the forest’s edge eighty years ago, and so nobody can blame you for that. You people of the forest’s edge are likely the only citizens of this continent who do not know how to perform a ritual to the gods.”

“Hmph! Then Asuta shouldn’t have to—”

“The people of the forest’s edge can be determined at a glance thanks to your unique appearances. And none of you have formed ties with people outside of the forest’s edge up until now, so there has been no need to question any of your backgrounds. And yet, now you advocate for this man from overseas, this Asuta of the Fa clan, as being a child of the western god, and he has been earning coins here in this land. Count Turan believes that to simply let this pass would create an improper precedent in regards to any other mysterious visitors from overseas,” Jimon stated, sounding unconcerned all the while. “Despite Lady Lefreya’s misconduct, we cannot simply ignore the presence of Asuta of the Fa clan. If he intends to continue living as a person of the forest’s edge and a citizen of Genos, it’s only natural that he will require the approval of Duke Marstein Genos.”

“In the same breath that he apologizes for her ‘misconduct,’ he goes and thrusts that ridiculous demand on us...?” Ai Fa questioned in a sharp, chilly tone like a blade of ice. “Does that Cyclaeus noble have no shame in his wretched soul?”

“You should watch your tongue, Ai Fa of the Fa clan. No matter how much anyone may slander him for it, the count cannot go turning a blind eye toward Asuta of the Fa clan’s lineage now that it is known.”

It was looking like a commotion that would inevitably end in the guards being called was about to erupt.

If I hadn’t mediated things by shouting out, “We should first ask the leading clan heads how to proceed!” things seriously might have taken a turn for the worse. That was just how furious Ai Fa and Ludo Ruu seemed.

“In other words, that Cyclaeus bastard wants to get a hold of Asuta and everyone from the Suun clan! It’s so obvious it’s laughable!” Ludo Ruu shouted as Ryada Ruu deeply furrowed his brows. Though the boy was deeply emotional and open, it really was rare seeing him this angry.

“Or maybe Cyclaeus is just afraid of the people of the forest’s edge running wild at the meeting. Maybe he thinks the leading clan heads wouldn’t go making any rash moves with a hindrance like me around.”

“That’s got nothing to do with it! I mean, we were already taking along Yamiru Lea and Tsuvai! That Cyclaeus jerk is definitely after you, just like his daughter was!”

Ludo Ruu’s eyes were searingly bright with the look of a hunter.

And while Ai Fa remained expressionless, there was an even more dangerous light shining away in her eyes.

“But you know just how resolved we are about the meeting two days from now, don’t you...? With that in mind, it makes sense for that Cyclaeus noble to be on guard, hearing tell of our intentions,” Ryada Ruu calmly stated. “And when they permitted Gazraan Rutim to spread that information, the leading clan heads were likely thinking that not only was it alright if that made Cyclaeus wary, but also that it would make it easier to measure the man’s true intentions.”

“What the heck?! If doing that put us at a disadvantage, it just makes us look like idiots, doesn’t it?!”

“The thought may be that any such disadvantage is too slight to truly count. At any rate, nothing will be settled by us causing a fuss. As Asuta said, we just have to wait to hear the decision of the leading clan heads.”

Still, it felt like the conclusion had long since been decided.

The other side was in charge as the ruling class. If we didn’t want it to be taken as rebellion, we had no way of fighting against them saying the meeting place was wherever they pleased, or that ten bodyguards was plenty. And it was the same for how my situation would be handled.

Ai Fa and Ludo Ruu were so furious precisely because they understood that. With just two days left till the meeting, Cyclaeus had reared his head to strike.

At any rate, though, we weren’t getting anywhere by discussing all this stuff without the leading clan heads, so for the time being we focused on the work at hand.

The hunters aside from Ai Fa and Ludo Ruu all departed, while the remaining members of our group headed for the kitchen. Rimee Ruu was on duty there today, and she had already started baking poitan.

“What are you so upset about, Ludo and Ai Fa?” the young girl asked with a tilt of her head, and so Ludo Ruu loudly started his explanation again as I began slicing meat.

With that, having accompanied us again today, Bartha called out, “Despite being at the heart of the matter, you sure look awful calm.”

“Yeah. I’ve just got to abide by the decision of the leading clan heads. I really don’t like the thought that I’m causing everyone trouble... But I don’t want to say something like, ‘If only I weren’t around,’ either.”

“Hmm... You’re surprisingly gutsy, eh, kid?”

“That’s not true at all. Inside, I’ve got plenty of anger and fear.”

But Ai Fa and the others were getting mad enough on my behalf that I just felt sorry and grateful, which left me in a strangely calm state of mind.

At any rate, this wasn’t just my personal issue here. I wanted to be a person of the forest’s edge, and had been accepted as such, which meant this was an issue shared by everyone. So I wanted to think it over with my comrades and choose the best path forward possible.

“Still, that sure is something, that you don’t even know how to perform the ritual to your god. I never figured there was a tribe like that here on this continent,” Bartha said, thrusting her burly right arm straight out as she spoke, and almost grabbing at her heart with her left hand. “‘I, Bartha of Masara, swear on my soul that I am a child of the western god Selva.’ That’s all you have to do.”

“Ah, and that serves as proof that you’re a western citizen?”

“It’s easy, right? But if someone lies in the ritual, their soul is shredded into four after death. Noble or bandit, this oath is the one thing that can’t be taken lightly,” Bartha said, then chuckled as she lowered her arms. “Well, not that you’ll be asked to prove your god as long as you don’t get closer to the border with Mahyudra. Still, folks with northern looks like that Kamyua Yoshu are made to do it here and there.”

“Ah, I see.”

If Shumiral married into the forest’s edge, he would never again be permitted to call himself a child of Sym.

And if he hid that and kept doing business in Mahyudra even so, he could someday be asked to prove himself and have his loyalty to the western god revealed... That was the sort of thing we were talking about.

Changing gods really is a big deal...

In that case, I needed to firmly resign myself to being a child of the western god Selva.

Fortunately, I wasn’t exactly religious back home. I believe my mom’s funeral was done in the Buddhist style, but honestly, I couldn’t even say which sect. So I wasn’t all that concerned about swearing myself to some god I knew nothing about... And if that was the only way I would be permitted to call myself a person of the forest’s edge, I didn’t exactly have a choice.

But the fact that those customs weren’t conveyed to the people of the forest’s edge... Doesn’t that mean the old lord of Genos hadn’t really felt like accepting them as true comrades right from the start?

Or maybe eighty years back, the leading clan head didn’t care about all that and had just ignored it.

And yet, the people of the forest’s edge were originally supposed to have come from the Southern Kingdom of Jagar. Granny Jiba had been alive back then, so would she know of that ritual to the gods? Or did the people of the forest’s edge always live solitary, secluded lives, never possessing such knowledge from the start?

The people of the forest’s edge really are an unusual tribe... I thought to myself, only to feel like giving an awkward chuckle at my own thoughtlessness there. After all, nobody was more unusual than me. For the sake of convenience I had been acting as if I came from overseas, but in actuality, I would have to say I came from another universe entirely.

And I had gone and died once already. I had leapt into a burning building, only to be crushed by falling debris. I couldn’t imagine that pain was nothing but a dream or illusion, and this new world I found myself in was full of stuff that fell outside of what I’d call common sense. And yet, I had kept on living this second life of mine.

I was supposed to have died, so why did I look just like I had in life? And this was a completely unfamiliar world, so how could I communicate with the people here? What sort of twist of fate had led me here to begin with, even...? I still didn’t have the slightest clue as I stood here in this place.

Even so, I decided to live as a person of the forest’s edge... As a member of the Fa clan, together with Ai Fa.

Since I had already died once, I surely had no way of returning to my original world.

The only reason that fact hadn’t driven me to despair was because I met Ai Fa.

And whatever suffering I had to face, I was prepared to do so head on in order to protect this new happiness I had found.

If Cyclaeus finds fault with that, then I’ll fight like a madman in order to protect my place here, I thought as I finished slicing up the meat for the myamuu giba.

“Alright, now let’s move on to preparing dinner,” I called out, causing Rimee Ruu to turn around.

“You’re making soup today, right, Asuta? What sort of soup is it, though?”

Fortunately, Rimee Ruu didn’t seem shaken at all, even after hearing what her brother had to say. She just seemed to trust in her clan head, saying, “It’ll all be fine if we just leave it to Papa Donda.” That apparently left Ludo Ruu dumbfounded, so he was leaning up against the wall and sulking.

“Yeah. Today, I’m planning on using karon milk. The stuff we brought by wagon yesterday.”

I had purchased ten liters of karon milk from Yang, and it was sealed in jars and being stored in the pantry. A night had passed now, so the fat should have floated to the surface by this point, making it finally time to produce some milk fat. And then, I would use the remaining skim milk to prepare a soup.

“Sorry, Asuta. Could I have a bit more time before helping you out?” Reina Ruu called out while working hard at making patties. For today, I had promised to instruct her on how to make milk fat and handle karon milk.

“Yeah, no need to rush. I’ll do a bit of experimenting on my own in the meantime.”

The lard I used yesterday was still sitting on one of the stoves. Naturally, I sealed it up as best I could in a suurub leaf, but once the stuff was used once, it couldn’t be put back in its jar. It would take several tests to determine how long the oil was still usable after oxidizing, and I intended to confirm that in the form of cooking practice.

Fortunately, I’ve got no lack of ideas for fried dishes.

Yesterday, in addition to the giba cutlets, I also used the same breading to coat minced giba meat and fried it to make menchi katsu for Granny Jiba, with her weak teeth. And for today, I was going to try out a third fried dish.

After lighting the stove, I first started by boiling chatchi. While that was cooking, I went ahead and minced some spare giba sirloin and rib meat bits.

“Is it hamburger steak...?” Ai Fa quietly asked.

“No, this is a different dish,” I replied.

“I see,” she said back, closing her eyes again.

“So if it’s not hamburger steak, then what is it? And you’re using chatchi, too?” Ludo Ruu questioned, peering curiously into the pot after finally regaining his calm. Now that I thought about it, he was quite fond of chatchi.

“Well, I’m working on a recipe to be sold. I’m trying to make a dish called croquettes here. Would you like to try a taste, Ludo Ruu...?”

“Is it really alright?” the boy asked, his eyes sparkling.

At that, Rimee Ruu whined, “No fair! Why does only Ludo get to try? I want some too!”

“Ah, sorry. I only planned to taste test it myself, so I just prepared enough for one.”

Perhaps I was being a bit of an excessive worrier, but I was planning on making some giba cutlets for tomorrow night’s dinner, so I wanted to hold back from having everyone eat fried foods multiple days in a row, even just as taste tests.

But I had gone ahead and responded to Ludo Ruu in spite of that in order to show at least a little gratitude to him for getting so angry on my behalf. Still, Rimee Ruu looked awfully upset.

“Like I explained yesterday, eating fried food every day can be bad for your health. And you’re little, Rimee Ruu, so I think it’s better to stay on the safe side.”

“Ludo’s little too, though!”

“Not as much as you are!”

My casual proposal had gone and incited a quarrel between the siblings.

Timidly, I turned to face Ai Fa, but fortunately she took the initiative and said, “I don’t need any. If it’s too delicious, then a taste test alone will leave me feeling unsatisfied.”

Her face also seemed to add, “And that’s not the dish I want to eat, either.”

“A-Anyway, I’m planning to make a few giba cutlets for dinner tomorrow night, so cut me some slack, okay? And this dish in particular is meant to be sold.”

“But if you’re making it, then it’s gotta be tasty!” Rimee Ruu adorably puffed up her cheeks.

“Ah, I’ve got a whole mountain of failed attempts nobody ever saw... But if you’re that curious, I’ll set aside a sample for you next time I make it, alright?”

Now the little girl’s eyebrows drooped as she stared up at me and asked, “You really mean it? Do you promise?”

“Yeah, I promise.”

“Hmm... Alright. Then I’ll let it go for now.”

With a dejected shrug of her shoulders, Rimee Ruu returned to baking poitan. And with a triumphant look, Ludo Ruu let out a “Hehehe!” The pair really did have a twisted relationship.

And with that, I collected my thoughts and got back to work.

First up, that meant dicing up aria and quickly frying them in a bit of lard.

Once the ingredients grew nice and soft, I added the minced meat, then adjusted the flavor with salt and pico leaves.

Following that, I picked out the chatchi once it was completely boiled, then mashed it with a grigee pole while it was still hot. Atop a wooden plate, I roughly mixed together the fried ingredients and chatchi, then made them into little sand bag shapes to finish the base.

After that, just like with yesterday, I used fuwano flour, a kimyuus egg, and baked fuwano crumbs in turn to create a coating, and then fried them in lard.

But for today, I also intended to make a replacement for Worcestershire sauce.

Since the people of the forest’s edge had previously only gotten by with the salt from their jerky, I felt like it was best not to go overboard on that front, just like with the oil. But the folks from the post town always ate meat pickled in salt rather than pico leaves and were probably more fond of salty flavors as a result, and they likely had a greater need of it in their diets too. And so, I whipped up my Worcestershire sauce replacement using plenty of tau oil.

I had already roughly worked out the recipe while I was being held at the Turan manor. First I boiled mashed tarapa and aria in a pot, then once it cooled down I added tau oil and fuwano flour. The sourness from the tarapa, the sweetness from the aria, and the thickness from the fuwano flour combined with the tau oil that was just like soy sauce to make something that tasted very close to Worcestershire sauce.

If I could dribble in some mamaria vinegar too the taste would get even closer, but that stuff only existed in the castle town. And I ultimately had to stick with ingredients that could be purchased in the post town when developing my dishes.

“Asuta, that dish certainly looks interesting...” Reina Ruu said with a pained look as she worked on her tarapa sauce.

“Ah, yeah. If it goes well, I was thinking of using it at an inn. And if that happens, I’ll be sure to teach you how to make it properly.”

The dish had even more chatchi in it than giba meat, and I was certain it would click well with the folks in the post town. But they supposedly got even less oil in their diets than the people of the forest’s edge, so I’d have to talk with the inn’s owner about that.

At any rate, I set about finishing the dish.

Just like yesterday, I sunk the base into the heated lard. And soon enough, a pleasant crackling sound once more filled the kitchen.

The lard was still clear, so that meant it should have been good for one or two more uses. But I had no tool for straining the oil, which made it a pain to remove the impurities each time.

Now that I think about it, can Diel still not come out to the post town?

If I was going to keep frying food, I’d really like to get a hold of some new cooking tool to help with that, like a wire mesh. There didn’t seem to be anything like that sold in the post town, though. And so, it was times like this that I really wished I had a reliable metalwork seller like Diel around.

But to her father, Cyclaeus is an important business partner, so he must not want to have dealings with any people of the forest’s edge.

And if we took down that wicked noble, they’d be out of a lot of work. Would that earn us their anger if it happened?

As I felt a vague lonely feeling at the thought of what my relationship with the girl would become if things played out that way, I lifted the now golden brown croquette out with metal skewers.

“It looks and smells perfectly tasty. You said it was called a croquette?”

“Yeah. I can’t quite call it a proper meat dish, so it may not suit the tastes of you people of the forest’s edge.”

But I figured in the post town, they could be sold in a small portion as a side dish.

To digress further, I also thought it might be good for the people of the forest’s edge to eat more side dishes, too.

Last night, I served up a shredded tino and tarapa salad alongside the giba cutlets, as well as boiled gigo. Since my meals undoubtedly used more salt, sugar, and oil than what they had eaten for dinner in the past, it seemed important to also add additional nutrition by pairing vegetables like that.

I feel like Ludo Ruu would probably enjoy it if I could make something like a potato salad with chatchi... I thought to myself as I lightly drizzled my sauce over the croquette, still dripping with excess oil.

“Alright, it’s done. It’s hot though, so take care not to burn yourself.”

After splitting the little croquette in two atop a fresh plate, I held out one half to Ludo Ruu.

And when I popped the other half into my mouth... A truly nostalgic croquette flavor burst forth.

I just couldn’t get enough of the piping hot potato-like chatchi. Normally the giba meat strongly asserted itself, but this time around it took a support role. Still, it had a nice chewiness and a delicious flavor as always. And the crunchiness added by the fuwano crumbs really was excellent.

Did my old man know that lard was this excellent for fried dishes? At the very least, I hadn’t.

My impression had been that such animal fats left a far more oily taste in your mouth, but that wasn’t the case at all. In fact, the aftertaste was actually refreshing instead, and seemed to include plenty of sweetness and delicious flavor.

Well, at any rate, the croquettes didn’t seem to lose out at all to the cutlets in terms of flavor.

Feeling totally convinced that this would work as a new dish to sell, I gave a big sigh... Only to suddenly have my collar grabbed.

“Huh? What the? What is it, Ludo Ruu?”

The young hunter wore an incredibly serious expression as he got right up in my face.

“It’s crazy good...”

“Ah, really? I’m glad to—”

“It’s the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted! Even more than steak and stew and hamburger and cutlets! Seriously, what the heck is it?!”

“Well, like I said, they’re called croquettes, and—”

“Make more! Lots more! That was nowhere near enough!”

Despite being smaller than me, Ludo Ruu was definitely stronger, and he was seriously shaking my head at the moment.

“Y-Yeah, but you know, fried dishes are a problem in terms of nutrition, so... I-I’ll make them again soon, alright?”

“When is ‘soon’?! Tomorrow?! The day after?!”

The contents of my head were being so thoroughly shaken that my vision was steadily growing white. Either I was about to faint, or I was heading for a concussion.

The one to ultimately save me, unsurprisingly, was Ai Fa.

“Ludo Ruu, you’re getting too worked up,” she stated in a low, calm voice. With that, the pressure vanished from my chest and Ludo Ruu stepped back.

And then, the world started swaying again. Or wait, was it my skull that wouldn’t sit still?

As I felt like I was about to bonelessly collapse, I was propped up by a strong force accompanied by warmth, and instantly a sweet smell seeped deep through my nose and into my mind.

“Asuta is as weak as a woman or child. You can’t be so rough with him.”

“But it was just so crazy tasty!” Ludo Ruu wailed like a little kid.

I could still see little white lights twinkling in my eyes, and that voice sounded so distant.

“At any rate, calm yourself so we can talk. Did we not just recently discuss how continuously eating any dish can prove dangerous?”

On the other hand, Ai Fa’s voice seemed real close. Like I could hear it from right behind my ear.

That made sense though, seeing as Ai Fa was hugging me tight from behind. Since I had no strength in my legs, my clan head was supporting my whole weight, and her arms were both wrapped firmly around my chest.

“Gah, sorry! I’m alright now, Ai Fa!”

“Which part of this do you call ‘alright’? There’s no strength in your body at all,” Ai Fa replied in a displeased tone, squeezing my body even tighter.

“But if you tried it too you’d get it, Ai Fa! It’s unbelievably tasty!”

“Each person has their own tastes, you know. I believe we already had this discussion involving steak in the past.”

“In that case, croquettes are definitely the tastiest dish out there for me!”

“Then that’s even more reason you just have to be patient. Think of it as a trial, in order prove Asuta’s strength is medicine rather than poison.”

Ai Fa had continued arguing with Ludo Ruu from over my shoulder.

And in the midst of that, Rimee Ruu butted in, “No fair! If it’s that tasty, then I want to try it too! You better make some for me too next time, okay?”

“R-Right.”

“I wanted to try it too. Even more so, seeing how it’s a dish meant to be sold.”

“Yeah, that’s for sure. I’d love to give it a shot.”

Even Sheera Ruu and Bartha were chiming in, now.

That nobody was even commenting on how Ai Fa was hugging me from behind was honestly making me feel so embarrassed I could die.

And then finally, even Reina Ruu added, “It really isn’t fair...” with a resentful look.

As I went and gave a deep sigh, Ai Fa whispered into my ear, “There’s no need for you to worry. To prove your strength is a medicine, it will sometimes require patience.”

“Y-Yeah...”

“I am bearing it as well, so it is illogical to think that Ludo Ruu and the others cannot do so. But if you handle us crudely as we are enduring, then you will face a fitting retribution...”

At that, there was such a firm pressure around my chest that I really did feel like I was about to die. Was this my recompense for failing to provide my beloved clan head with hamburger steak for so long?

At any rate, there was only a day and a half left until the meeting.