Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 13 - Chapter SS

Intermezzo: The Harmonious Rutim Clan

“The sun’s getting pretty close to setting... Guess that dinner party in the castle town will be kicking off soon, eh?” the Rutim clan head Dan Rutim remarked.

He was in the main house’s kitchen, where Ama Min Rutim was preparing dinner along with her sister-in-law, Morun Rutim. Since they were tackling a somewhat elaborate dish, they were more restless than usual as they worked away.

“Just what sort of dishes are Asuta and the girls planning on serving? Agh, just thinking about it has my stomach rumbling!”

Dan Rutim was just standing there in the doorway, talking to no one in particular. Normally the men didn’t go near the kitchen very often, but since he finished the day’s giba hunt early, Dan Rutim had apparently visited in search of someone to talk to.

“If I had been selected for guard duty, I’d get to eat the same stuff too... Ugh, why was Donda Ruu so mean to me, his friend of many years?”

“I wouldn’t say he was being mean or anything of the sort. He was simply respecting the custom of the forest’s edge that either the clan head or their heir should remain to protect their home,” Morun Rutim replied with a smile as she stirred the contents of the boiling pot.

She was Dan Rutim’s daughter, age fifteen. And she was quite a cute girl, with a plump yet truly healthy appearance. Though she could be just as intense as her father when angered, she rarely ever got mad, and had a kind and gentle temperament.

“But at that meeting with the nobles, both Gazraan and I were allowed to leave the house. So why do I have to be ordered to hold down the fort now?”

“That was because the situation with the meeting was so dangerous that they absolutely needed your strength, wasn’t it? But things are peaceful with the nobles now, so there’s no need to drag you along.”

“They still brought along four hunters as bodyguards though, didn’t they? So it should have been just fine for me to come along too.”

“Goodness, you’re being stubborn... Did you really want to eat their cooking that badly, father?” Morun Rutim asked.

“Of course!” Dan Rutim replied, puffing out his thick chest. “Chances to eat Asuta’s cooking don’t come around that often! So obviously I’m unhappy with having one of those precious chances snatched away from me!”

With a, “Hmph,” Morun Rutim smiled at her father. “We’ve been working as hard as we can to make dinner for our family, and yet you’re unhappy with that? How sad.”

“Ah, no, it’s not like I have an issue with your cooking... What I’m saying has nothing to do with that.”

“It certainly sounds like it does. What do you think, Ama Min?”

Naturally, this was just some light jesting between family members. And so, Ama Min Rutim smiled and chimed in, “Let’s see... We’ve been training too, but we’re still a long way from Asuta’s skill level. And so I suppose we’ll have to work even harder so as to not be so disappointing to our clan head.”

“I’m telling you, that’s not what I’m saying. Are you two being mean to me now too?”

“Like I said, no one is being mean to you, father. We’ll be handling the finishing touches shortly, so could you just wait patiently in the main hall?”

At that, Dan Rutim exited the kitchen, grumbling as he went.

Normally the man was practically cheerfulness personified, so he was surely yearning greatly for Asuta’s cooking. Despite the fact that he was a skilled enough hunter to stand equal with Donda Ruu, Dan Rutim really could be quite childish.

“Goodness, father really is noisy when it comes to Asuta’s cooking. Well, not that I can’t understand.”

“Right. Asuta really is a wonderful cook, after all,” Ama Min Rutim replied as she transferred the meat that had been marinating in a sauce made from tau oil and fruit wine to a plate.

It had already been over two months since Ama Min Rutim had married into the Rutim clan. Naturally she thought of her husband Gazraan Rutim as family now, but the same went for his little sister Morun Rutim, his father Dan Rutim, and his grandfather Raa Rutim.

“We’re finally reforming our bonds with the nobles, and that’s something to be happy about. I couldn’t stop worrying when they brought father along before, though...”

“Yes, that’s for sure... I really was relieved when everybody returned to the forest’s edge safe and sound.”

“That certainly was a rough day. And we all had to gather in the Ruu settlement because we didn’t know what the nobles might try to...” Morun Rutim started to reply, but somewhat unnaturally stopped partway.

“What’s the matter?” Ama Min Rutim asked.

“It’s nothing,” Morun Rutim replied, her plump face flushing as she shook her head.

“It certainly didn’t look like nothing... Did something happen back then?”

“No, I’m telling you, it’s nothing!” Morun Rutim insisted, her face turning even redder.

And when she saw that, Ama Min Rutim finally remembered something.

“Now that I think about it, the hunters from the north also came and gathered in the Ruu settlement on that day, didn’t they?”

Morun Rutim didn’t reply.

“It was my first time seeing any of them, but they all seemed like splendid hunters. They were every bit as dauntless as the men of the Ruu clan, just like you’d think after hearing of their reputation.”

“Y-Yeah, maybe...”

On that day, Morun Rutim had talked with one of the hunters from the north. And back then, she had worn the same look on her face as now.

What was his name again...? Ama Min Rutim wondered. He was even bigger than Donda Ruu and Dan Rutim, and since he wore a giba skull atop his head he must have been a hunter from the Dom clan.

Did she fall for that hunter, perhaps?

Still, the Ruu and the clans from the north had been at odds for many years. Even though they were trying to reform their bonds after the fall of the Suun clan, neither were the sort to forge such bonds lightly, especially not through blood. If Morun fell for a guy like that, she would definitely have a lot of hardship ahead of her.

Is that why Morun won’t just come out and say it? Still, I don’t feel like the clan head or Gazraan would just flat out object from the start or anything.

In some ways that might have made it harder to speak up, though. The Rutim fell under the Ruu while the Dom were under the Zaza, so joining together like that risked causing significant trouble for even their parent clans.

I’ll have to give Morun my support whenever she decides to talk about it, Ama Min Rutim concluded, shooting the younger girl a smile.

“It certainly has gotten dark out, hasn’t it? Let’s hurry up and get this giba meat ready.”

“Y-Yeah, right,” Morun Rutim replied with a relieved grin.

The twilight streaming in through the windows only made the light from the flames in the kitchen seem all the brighter.

◇

Not long after that, dinner was ready.

As they carried it into the house’s main hall, Dan Rutim excitedly called out, “Ooh! So it’s finally done?! I’ve been starving here!”

“We’re bringing the rest of the food now, so please hold on just a little longer.”

Since Gazraan Rutim had accompanied the leading clan heads to the castle town, today there were only four members of their house present. The former Rutim clan head and current elder Raa Rutim was seated there beside his noisy son, and was just as quiet as always.

“This main hall sure does feel big when Gazraan’s not around! Come to think of it, isn’t this our first time eating without him?”

“That’s true. Last time both you and Gazraan left together, and it felt even bigger then, father.”

She was referring to the night before the meeting attended by the leading clan heads. Back then, both Dan and Gazraan Rutim had dinner at the Ruu settlement.

“You know, you ate Asuta’s cooking back then too, didn’t you? We haven’t had a proper chance to try it since Gazraan and Ama Min’s wedding banquet, though.”

“What, you’re still mad, Morun? Like I said, I’m not unhappy with your cooking. Of course not,” Dan Rutim retorted with a childish frown. And as she shot him back a smile, Morun Rutim sat down in her spot. Then, Ama Min Rutim kneeled down next to her.

“Well then, here is your long-awaited dinner.”

“Right! We give thanks for the blessings of the forest, and we offer our gratitude to Ama Min and Morun, who manned the flame and gave us our life for this night!”

It was certainly unusual for someone to give such an energetic pre-dinner chant. And so, Ama Min Rutim couldn’t help but smile as she also recited a chant of her own.

“It sure seems like there are a lot of plates today! And I don’t think I recognize this dish...”

“Right. It was our first time making that one. Go ahead and see if it turned out properly.”

“On it!” Dan Rutim replied with a grin, pulling over that wooden plate. As they ladled out soup from the metal pot, Ama Min and Morun Rutim stole glances over his way.

With a totally unsuspecting smile, Dan Rutim took a hearty bite. And as he chewed away, his already big eyes opened even wider.

“Morun, wh-what is this dish...?!”

“Ugh, don’t talk with your mouth full. Swallow it properly first.”

With an odd “grup” sound, Dan Rutim kept on moving his mouth. He seemed to be thinking that he wanted to ask his question as soon as possible, but also that he didn’t want to waste this bite by swallowing without properly savoring it first.

Around when his soup was placed in front of him, Dan Rutim finally loudly exploded, “What is this dish?!”

“What do you mean? It’s a giba dish, of course.”

“I can tell that much! But this...this is just as tasty as those giba cutlets!”

“I see. Sounds like a big success then, right?” Morun Rutim said with a joyful smile, turning to face Ama Min Rutim. And when she did so, the girl nodded back with much the same expression.

“That’s a dish called tatsuta age. Just like with the giba cutlets, it’s made by frying with giba fat.”

“Ooh! I didn’t see this dish even at the big dinner at the Ruu settlement!”

“I believe this dish was created after that. After all, Asuta perfected it for today.”

Dan Rutim excitedly took a second bite, savored it fully, gulped it down, and then turned again toward Morun Rutim.

“Then, the leading clan heads and those nobles are eating the same dish right about now?”

“Yes, or at least that’s what Asuta said he planned on. That’s why we went to the Ruu house to learn how to make it too.”

Asuta was currently staying at the Ruu settlement. And the Rutim women had been heading there for a while now for cooking lessons, so they were able to study directly under him these last few days.

“This dish requires more time to prepare than even the giba cutlets. First you need to turn chatchi into powder, and that’s quite an undertaking. But in return, it’s quite tasty, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s delicious! So much that it’s an even match for Asuta’s giba cutlets! There isn’t any sauce over it, so why does it have such flavor?”

“That’s because we soaked the giba meat in a marinade in advance. And I think it would be tasty squeezing some sheel juice over it too,” Ama Min Rutim replied, at which Dan Rutim vigorously nodded his head while chowing down on giba tatsuta age. And just as Asuta had instructed, he was eating plenty of shredded tino along with it.

“Make sure you eat the other dishes too. We prepared all this for you, after all.”

“Hmm? For me?”

“Yup. Today’s dishes are the same ones Asuta made in the castle town. This is cold shabu-shabu, and this is okonomiyaki.”

Even the soup dish was the same giba soup prepared with tau oil. They didn’t have enough chatchi starch for that chatchi mochi dish that Asuta called a “sweet,” and he also made an “appetizer” by chopping up raw gigo. They also didn’t have the ingredients for that “mayonnaise” that Asuta added over the okonomiyaki, but other than that, they had recreated the meal that Asuta had made in the castle town.

“Of course, Asuta’s a way better cook, but this should cheer you up at least a little, right? Ama Min and I worked real hard on it, you know!”

“It’s delicious! These dishes are unbelievably tasty!” Dan Rutim said with a hearty chuckle as he looked over the two of them. “But why did you hide all this? If you thought I was being a pest, then you could have shut me up by just telling me in advance.”

“But wasn’t it more enjoyable because we kept it a secret till you ate it?”

“Yes, and if we got your expectations up beforehand, you could have ended up being let down.”

“As if I could ever feel let down by such delicious food! You two really have grown skilled!” Dan Rutim declared with a grin of true satisfaction. It was such a smile of pure bliss that it seemed to wipe away all the day’s hardships.

With a happy grin of her own, Morun Rutim turned to face the untalkative elder of the clan.

“There weren’t any dishes you had a problem with, were there, Grandpa Raa?”

“No, they were all delicious.”

The elder Raa Rutim was a tall and lean old man. His white beard dangled down to his chest, and underneath his high eyebrows his sunken eyes shone with a piercing glare. Aside from the bald head and tall frame, he really didn’t look at all like his son Dan Rutim.

“Still...even someone who knows nothing of manning the stove such as myself can tell how much effort you put into these dishes. It almost makes it hard to remember the age when we only slurped down poitan stew.”

“Right?! I feel like I’m on the verge of forgetting there ever was such a time!”

“And yet, I lived that way for nearly sixty years... That’s not something that can be forgotten in just a few months.”

At that, Dan Rutim shot his father a puzzled look.

“What’s the matter, dad? You don’t have some sort of issue with the delicious food Asuta brought to us, do you?”

“Of course not. Rather, since Asuta of the Fa clan was welcomed as one of our people, life here at the settlement has undergone a shocking amount of change. I certainly never could have imagined our fellow people of the forest’s edge cooking dishes and selling them to the townsfolk.” It was rare for the untalkative elder to say so much. Instinctively, Ama Min Rutim sat up straight. “And there’s the matter with the Suun clan too. For many years, we built up our strength in order to eventually take them down, but it’s no exaggeration to say that Asuta’s presence brought them to an end.”

“And what could be better than accomplishing that goal without the need for any bloodshed?! Just what are you upset with, dad?”

“Like I said, I’m not upset about anything. It’s just...for an old man like me, this much change can’t help but feel dizzying,” Raa Rutim replied, staring off into the distance. “I have deep gratitude toward Asuta for saving the elder Jiba Ruu. And for bringing our people greater strength and joy through his delicious cooking. Such drastic changes may be too much for an old fool like me to handle, but Asuta is an irreplaceable asset for us all.”

“What fainthearted words! If you go saying stuff like that, you really will end up growing old and decrepit, dad!” Dan Rutim remarked with a hearty guffaw, slapping his father on the back. Dan Rutim was the only one in the whole settlement at the forest’s edge who could treat the elder Raa Rutim like that. “You should share in this joy and keep on walking alongside us! Even after eighty years of life, Jiba Ruu has regained so much of her vitality now, right? Elder or infant, we’re all equals as children before our mother forest!”

“Hmph, so you’ve got no intention of letting this bag of bones rest, then? You sure don’t hold back, you know.”

“That’s because I’m your son, dad! There shouldn’t be any holding back with your precious family!” Dan Rutim proclaimed as he took a slurp of soup. “It’s only been three months at most since Asuta arrived at the forest’s edge, hasn’t it? And yet he’s been able to bring about so much change! I’m sure things will be even more enjoyable a year down the line, or five, or even ten! It’d be a waste if your soul returned to the forest before you could see what’s coming, dad!”

“That’s true. You should live a long life like Jiba Ruu, Grandpa Raa,” Morun Rutim chimed in, leaning forwards and placing a hand atop her grandfather’s withered knee. Closing his eyes, Raa Rutim nodded, “Indeed.” And as she watched over that sight, Ama Min Rutim was once again overwhelmed by how blessed she felt to have married into this house.

Even on days like this when her precious husband was absent, she could still have such warm, pleasant experiences. And the reason she was able to enjoy such happiness was surely because everyone had come together to bring down the Suun clan and those wicked nobles.

Just what sort of lives will be living one, five, or ten years down the line...? I’m sure there will be changes that I can’t even imagine.

However, Ama Min Rutim didn’t feel any worry or doubt in her heart. No matter what changes awaited her, she had so many comrades walking that same path alongside her. And so, surely, what lay ahead was hope and joy.

“Anyway, that’s enough talking! We’ve got all this food in front of us, so let’s dig in before it gets cold!” Dan Rutim proclaimed, thrusting his now empty soup plate toward Ama Min Rutim.

As she accepted it, she chuckled back, “Right.”