Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 15 - Chapter 3.4

4

And so the sun set, and with that came the solemn start of the birthday banquet.

“Our clan head Dan Rutim has lived for forty-one whole years as of today. It is a great joy to those of us who are part of his family that he has been able to live vigorously for so long,” Dan Rutim’s son Gazraan Rutim stated in a clear voice while being illuminated by the bonfire. “May our clan head’s great strength continue to carry us into the future. Tonight, we grant our thanks to our mother forest that he has been able to pass another year in good health. Happy birthday to our clan head, Dan Rutim.”

“Happy birthday!” a chorus shouted in response as bottles of fruit wine were lifted into the air.

The man of the evening was right there beside his son grinning away, raising his own bottle as well.

“My thanks to our related clan members from the Ruu, Lea, Min, Maam, and Ririn for coming all this way to celebrate today! And to the Rutim and Ruu women, as well as our friend Asuta of the Fa clan, the Deen woman who assisted him, and the Ruu’s guest Lem Dom for preparing tonight’s meal! Everything they’ve made tonight looks delicious, so go ahead and dig in!”

Though it wasn’t on the scale of the one at the Ruu settlement, the Rutim had something of a plaza in between their houses. Naturally, they didn’t have the time needed to construct stoves there, so instead there were cloths laid out here and there to place the dishes on top of.

For the previous banquet, we had used suurub leaves in place of plates, but the Ruu had since prepared a large number of wooden plates to use for such occasions. Borrowing those, Sheera Ruu’s group served up the steak and the meat and vegetable stir-fry they had prepared, along with a big helping of baked poitan. Then Reina Ruu’s group carried out the teriyaki meat soup they had made in a branch house kitchen and hurriedly passed it around.

There were only about half as many people present as there were for the banquet at Gazraan and Ama Min Rutim’s wedding, but it was still every bit as lively. Only a few minutes had passed since the event kicked off, but there was already a tremendous amount of noise and enthusiasm filling the space.

“Dan Rutim, I’ve brought the first special dish of the night.”

Toor Deen and I carried a pan over to Dan Rutim, who was seated right in front of the brilliantly blazing ritual flame.

“Ooh, well done, Asuta!” Dan Rutim exclaimed with a joyous grin, surrounded all around by colorful flowers picked by the women. “Hmm, it sure smells spicy! Is this the same dish I tasted a few days ago at the Ruu settlement?”

“Yes. It’s called giba curry. The taste is a lot closer to being perfected now, so please, give it a try,” I said as I removed the lid, and the smell of heated curry instantly burst forth. Everyone nearby crowded in a bit, wondering just what sort of dish it was. “It has a powerful flavor, so the way you eat it is by scooping some up with a baked poitan.”

“I see, I see. It’s no surprise, but this smell sure is making me hungry!”

After I served up some giba curry onto a plate and handed it to him, Dan Rutim dunked a baked poitan right on in. Then, he showed no trepidation whatsoever as he took a hearty bite.

“Ooh! This really has changed a lot! It’s absolutely delicious, Asuta!”

“Thank you. So would you say it met your expectations at least somewhat?”

“It certainly has! It’s definitely a bit of an unusual flavor, but it’s also undoubtedly tasty! And this spiciness is making me drink down my fruit wine even quicker!” he replied with a hearty chuckle, and then he looked around at his relatives. “You should all give it a try too! It’s got a powerful smell, but it’s incredibly good!”

I handed out plate after plate as one of the Rutim women present portioned out the giba curry. And after taking note of the shock on everyone’s faces, I headed back into the kitchen.

“All right, let’s carry that one out too.”

“Right, understood.”

With Toor Deen’s help, I carried a pot that had been waiting on a stove outside. The young girl really was stronger than she looked, but I could see a bit of exhaustion on her face. She had helped with the preparations for work at the Fa house in the morning, worked the stalls during the day, and then in the evening she did prep work for this banquet. It really had been a more busy day for her than usual.

“Sorry about this. Once we carry this one out and the one other dish, you can go ahead and enjoy the banquet, Toor Deen.”

“Ah, no, I’m just here to help man the stove... Besides, I don’t know many people here, so I wouldn’t even know what to do if I left your side.”

Now that she mentioned it, everyone Toor Deen knew was busy helping set things out. And so, I shot the young girl a smile as we carefully slipped through the crowd.

“Well then, how about we enjoy things together after we finish working? I don’t know many people here either, outside of the main Rutim house, so I was having some trouble trying to figure out what to do with myself too.”

“Right,” Toor Deen replied with a gentle smile.

Ai Fa had arrived around sunset, and she must have been enjoying herself somewhere alongside Lem Dom, who had finished up her work manning the stove. If we just met up with them, that would likely be just fine for Toor Deen.

At any rate, when we made it back to Dan Rutim, I found a pair of familiar young men also waiting there: Ludo Ruu and Rau Lea.

“Oh, so you two came? Hey there.”

“Hey, long time no see, Asuta! That spicy yellow dish was pretty tasty! And that one you’ve got there smells good too!” Rau Lea greeted.

I had just seen Ludo Ruu the other day, but with Rau Lea, it had definitely been a while. And yet he seemed just the same as always, a carefree smile on his slim, androgynous-yet-gallant face.

“I’m not certain if it will be to your tastes, as this is even more of a work in progress than the giba curry.”

The giba curry pot had already been emptied out, so I went ahead and placed this new one down in front of the Rutim clan head.

“Dan Rutim, this is the dish I mentioned to you before.”

“Ooh, the one that uses giba brains and eyeballs?! You sure did make an outlandish dish!” Dan Rutim said, his eyes shining brightly with curiosity. “So the eyes and brain are sunk down in there? I can’t really see through the red from the tarapa!”

“I’ll portion it out onto some plates, so please go ahead and dig in.”

The broth had a tarapa base. In addition to myamuu and pico leaves, I had also employed plenty of herbs from Sym, so there wasn’t any issue in terms of smell.

I had revised how I handled the crucial brains and eyeballs in the dish a bit too. Rather than just boiling them, I first roasted the surface over a flame while they were still in the skull before I added them to the pot. Brains and eyeballs both had extremely distinctive textures to them. And so, roasting the surface helped with that at least a little, and then I just needed to heat them through by boiling them in the pot. That was the conclusion I had arrived at over the course of the past few days.

“Hmm, now where did they get to?”

I had used the skull with the organs still inside to make the stock, and when that was done I discarded the bone after removing the eyes and brain to return them to the soup. Once I found them in the tarapa sauce, I sliced off around a fourth of the brain and added it to a plate alongside a whole eyeball.

“Go right ahead. Though keep in mind these are considered something of a delicacy rather than being just plain tasty.”

“A delicacy, is it?! Well, I won’t go complaining before I’ve even taken a bite!” Dan Rutim said with a chuckle, and then with an unsurprising lack of hesitation he started off by taking a bite of the brains.

As he munched on his food with a “Hrmm...” Dan Rutim’s eyes opened wide. “It certainly is an unusual taste. But, well, I suppose it sort of reminds me of cooking using innards.”

Chiming in with, “Let us see too,” Rau Lea and Ludo Ruu both reached out. And they had a similar reaction.

“Ah, it’s not bad... In fact, the broth is seriously delicious!”

“Yeah, this is tasty. The brain has a weird stickiness to it though.”

What about the eyeballs? Since there were two giba, I was only able to prepare four of them, and in no time at all three of them ended up in the mouths of these guys who were absolutely brimming with curiosity.

“Hmm, it’s not really tasty enough to earn special praise... I guess I’d call it average?”

“That’s true. It’s not exactly any more delicious than ordinary meat.”

“It’s not bad, though! But more importantly, this broth is great!”

It seemed that was the best evaluation I could earn at the moment. But, well, I figured it was okay since they at least weren’t calling it bad.

Around then, Morun Rutim approached, holding a large wooden plate.

“Asuta, it’s finished grilling too. Dad, this is giba tongue.”

“Tongue? You can even eat the tongue?”

That was Rau Lea acting shocked, as Dan Rutim had already been informed in advance.

Today’s giba tongue used other seasonings in addition to the sheel juice that provided a base. It was a salty sauce that combined diced sautéed aria, salt, sugar, pico leaves, and fruit wine all together. And fortunately, this dish earned pure straightforward praise.

“This is delicious! It’s just like normal meat!”

“No, it’s even tastier than ordinary meat, isn’t it?”

“Hmm, it certainly is tasty! It’s got plenty of fat, and a fantastic chewiness too!”

It seemed the people of the forest’s edge unsurprisingly preferred more meaty cuts to brains and eyeballs. But, well, I didn’t have any objection to that fact. I wasn’t exactly used to handling brains and eyeballs, so I just had to keep on experimenting with them whenever I got the chance.

“Dan Rutim, please have some of this too,” Reina Ruu said as her group carried over some soup and steak.

As he sampled those dishes, Dan Rutim looked truly blissful. “All of these dishes are so good that I can’t find the words! Thank you so much, everyone!”

“It was an honor to be entrusted with the stove on such an important day,” I replied.

“Yes, this has been a splendid birthday! Still, these aren’t all the dishes you’ve prepared, are they?” Dan Rutim asked, looking my way as he ate.

I went ahead and shot him back a smile.

“Of course not. There’s still one final special dish left, so make sure you leave enough space for it.”

“My stomach’s still got a third or so left to fill! If you don’t mind, I’d love to try that dish out as soon as possible!”

“Hold on for just a moment, then.”

With that, I headed back to the kitchen along with Toor Deen.

The experimental giba curry and the brain, eyeballs, and tongue dishes were all what I’d call appetizers. But this final special dish was something I had prepared specifically with Dan Rutim in mind. With Toor Deen’s help, I lifted up the pot that had been sitting atop a lit stove to stay warm. And as we exited the kitchen, we ran right into Ai Fa.

“Huh? Weren’t you with Lem Dom?”

“I left that fool behind somewhere. She was getting out of control after chugging down all that fruit wine.”

Had she fallen prey to excess clinginess again? Despite the fact that it was a banquet, Ai Fa looked seriously fed up.

“Did you get a proper chance to eat, Ai Fa? It doesn’t look like you went anywhere near these pots, though.”

“My mouth still stings too much for that curry or other dishes with herbs. You didn’t use anything spicy in that dish, did you?”

“I didn’t. The most that’s in here is a bit for scent.”

“In that case, give me some of that. After Dan Rutim, of course.”

And so, we ended up heading over to the Rutim clan head as a group of three.

The crowd really seemed to be enjoying the banquet. Oura and Tsuvai were huddling close together as they had some of Reina Ruu’s soup. And everyone must have finished setting things out, as I also spied Morun Rutim chatting with some young women.

Gazraan and Ama Min Rutim were together. And that especially large figure standing in front of them must have been Ji Maam. He was also here at the banquet as a guest, and I couldn’t help but wonder what they were talking about. If nothing else, the husband and wife pair wore bright smiles as they talked with the big guy.

I couldn’t help but be reminded of the festival of the hunt at the Ruu settlement. But there was probably no helping that since the festival and Gazraan and Ama Min Rutim’s wedding were the only banquets I had participated in. Back on that night, Darmu Ruu’s words had seriously shaken me. But today, I could feel calm and at ease as I enjoyed the banquet.

As I stole a glance over at Ai Fa next to me, we hurried on over to Dan Rutim.

“Ooh, I was getting tired of waiting, Asuta!”

There was someone new there next to the smiling Rutim clan head now. The man had just as robust of a build as Dan Rutim, and sat there with his legs crossed. It was the Ruu clan head, Donda Ruu.

I guess it made sense that for the Rutim head’s birthday celebration, the head of their parent clan would make a personal appearance. And as always, it really was quite a sight, having the two of them side by side.

After giving a bow, I went ahead and sat the pot in front of Dan Rutim.

“Sorry for the wait. Here’s your giba ribs.”

“Perfect! Can’t get the party started without these!” he replied with a wide grin as he stared into the pot.

“Today I rubbed a specially-made sauce over them, then grilled them over charcoal.”

I tried thinking up all sorts of ideas for the ribs, but plain grilled meat felt best suited to Dan Rutim, so this is what I ended up with. The sauce was practically identical to what I employed for the giba meat poitan wraps, just with the addition of mamaria vinegar. After making free use of the variety of seasonings I had at hand, this was the end result. To prepare the meat itself, I rubbed in salt and pico leaves, as well as a number of herbs. While it was all quite simple, this dish also utilized the results of the experimentation I had been doing lately.

“Well then, time to dig in!” Dan Rutim proclaimed as he grabbed one of the ribs portioned out atop a wooden plate. When he bit down, he tore off around eighty percent of the meat and broke out into an even bigger grin. Meanwhile, everyone else held back and waited till he finished that bite.

The Rutim clan head took so long chewing that it seemed like he thought it was a shame that he’d eventually have to swallow, but when he did he loudly declared, “Delicious! Asuta, these ribs are the best I’ve ever had!”

“I’m glad to hear that you like them,” I replied, feeling a great joy welling up inside of me.

“Right!” Dan Rutim nodded as he grabbed a fresh rib, then he glanced all around. “No need to hold back! Everyone, dig in! There’s enough here that there are no worries about needing to scramble for them! Please, eat alongside me and share in this joy!”

We had prepared enough ribs that it seemed like they would come spilling out of the pot. But I figured if we didn’t have that many at the ready, Dan Rutim wouldn’t be able to feel completely comfortable sharing with everyone else.

Ludo Ruu and Rau Lea had obviously been eagerly waiting as they instantly reached out, and it wasn’t long before people started gathering from all around. Ai Fa and Donda Ruu grabbed some ribs, and so did Toor Deen and I now that we had finished up our work.

These ribs had layers of fat and meat to them. Though a good bit of fat was removed when grilling them for a long period of time, they were still incredibly juicy. Thanks to the myamuu and herbs, they had a strong aroma, and they tasted salty-sweet. The tau oil, sugar, chitt seeds, mamaria vinegar, and finely chopped aria all came together to make an exquisite flavor. I really was satisfied with how they had turned out.

Still, I’ve got to keep on training my skills as hard as I can.

My intention was to continue working hard so that I wouldn’t lose out to my young rival...and so I could keep on seeing smiles from those around me.

As I had that thought, Dan Rutim suddenly shot to his feet. And as he stood there supported by his grigee cane, he spoke loudly to no one in particular. “Today truly has been a wonderful day! And on this joyous occasion, I have something I wish to tell you all!”

The crowd, all enjoying the various dishes, cheered in response.

With a satisfied nod, Dan Rutim continued on. “Where’s Gazraan? Come on over to me, son!”

“Yes? What is it, clan head?” a large figure questioned while approaching in the dim light.

Facing that way, Dan Rutim let out a hearty chuckle. “I’ve got something important to discuss! And since the head of our parent clan Donda Ruu is here too, this is the perfect chance! My comrades in the Rutim! And our fellows from the Ruu, Lea, Min, Maam, Muufa, and Ririn! Listen to these words from Dan Rutim, head of the main Rutim house!” he loudly proclaimed as he raised up his container of fruit wine. “I declare here and now that I’ll be yielding my seat as clan head to my eldest son, Gazraan Rutim!”

The cheers came to a sudden stop.

With a calm look on his face, Gazraan Rutim took several more steps forward. “What is this all about, father? I believe it’s still much too soon for you to be giving up your position as clan head.”

“That’s not true at all! I was figuring I’d quit right here and now!” Dan Rutim said with a hearty grin as he stared straight at his son. “Thanks to this leg injury, I’ve had to take more than a month off from hunting. Because of that, I was able to see just how much strength you had gained! And I’m convinced you can lead our people better than I can, Gazraan!”

“No, but...”

“It should take less than another month for my leg to heal back up. When that time comes, I’ll devote my strength to serving as a single hunter under the Rutim! My own father Raa yielded his position as clan head to me before he lost his strength as a hunter! But I suppose a young fellow like you wouldn’t yet understand the joy that I feel as both a clan head and a father to be able to do the same, Gazraan!” At that, Dan Rutim took a swig from his fruit wine, and then he thrust the bottle out toward his son. “Once my leg is healed, if we were to have a contest of strength as hunters, I still can’t imagine I would be the one to hit the ground! But what qualifies someone as a clan head isn’t the same as what makes someone a great hunter! And you’re already better suited to being clan head than I am!”

His son didn’t say a word.

“Take this wine with my blessing! Tonight, the Rutim clan head Dan Rutim yields his position to his eldest son, Gazraan Rutim!”

The young man silently closed his eyes. It felt so quiet that I could almost hear my heart pounding...and when Gazraan Rutim opened his eyes again, there was a stronger light blazing in them than ever before. His gaze was very calm and gentle, yet also filled with an awe-inspiring resolve, and somehow it reminded me of the piercing hawk-like glare of Raa Rutim.

“I humbly accept,” Gazraan Rutim declared, taking a sip of the fruit wine.

Seeming satisfied at the sight, Dan Rutim then looked down toward the ground. “Donda Ruu! As the head of our parent clan, do we have your blessing?”

“Hmph... You’re younger than I am, so I never figured you’d be stepping down as clan head first,” Donda Ruu grumbled as he slowly rose to his feet.

Despite the sour look on his leader’s face, Dan Rutim still responded with a hearty chuckle. “Aw, don’t go trying to act like my elder when there’s only a two-year difference between us! And actually, between today and your next birthday, it’s only a difference of one year.”

“Hmph!” Donda Ruu grumbled, accepting the fruit wine container. “I give my blessing to the new Rutim clan head, Gazraan Rutim,” he proclaimed, taking a sip.

At that, five hunters stepped up beside him. One of them was Rau Lea, and another was Ji Maam. They must have belonged to each of the clans under the Ruu. And every one of them then gave their blessing and took a sip of fruit wine.

“I became the Lea clan head at the age of sixteen. You’re already twenty and some years old, so you shouldn’t have any problems at all. I give my blessing to the new Rutim clan head, Gazraan Rutim!” Rau Lea declared as the final one in the group, and then a cheer erupted.

It seemed the Rutim clan members had finally gotten over their shock. And as those cheers filled the air, Ai Fa stepped forward in front of the eldest Rutim son.

“Gazraan Rutim, I have no blood ties to your clan, but even so, allow me to offer my blessing.”

“Thank you, Ai Fa. I hope that you and Asuta will both continue to be good friends to the Rutim.”

“Of course,” Ai Fa replied with a firm nod.

At that point, I hurried up next to her. After showing me an even gentler smile than usual, Gazraan Rutim turned to face his clan members.

“My fellow members of the Rutim! I swear here and now that I shall use all my strength to guide you and not bring shame to the post of clan head that my father Dan has yielded to me! Please, help me to lead our people down the proper path!”

The crowd now roared, giving their blessings to their new clan head.

As I felt their tremendous passion wash over me, I turned toward the now former Rutim clan head.

“Dan Rutim, I don’t really know what’s appropriate to say at a time like this, but...well, thanks for everything you’ve done.”

“Sure! I’m really glad I was able to have you two friends of the Rutim present for the announcement!” Dan Rutim replied, his face brimming with pure joy. And then, his big expressive eyes started to tear up a bit.

Despite the tight feeling in my chest, I still somehow managed to smile at him. “I’m sure someone as young as me could never imagine how you’re feeling, but you must be happy, right?”

“Of course! I must be the happiest man in the whole forest’s edge right now,” Dan Rutim said, then he lifted his arms up overhead. “Well then, let’s keep this party going! There’s still food left to be had, so everyone enjoy yourselves and keep on chowing down till there’s not so much as a single morsel left!”

A stirring cheer filled the air in response. As I listened to those voices, I could feel a deep exhaustion washing over my head.

Li Sudra is pregnant, and Dan Rutim yielded the position of clan head to Gazraan Rutim... The days really do keep on turning...

I thought to myself how today was a day that would never come again. Now matter how hard or joyful a day may be, it would eventually end and become a part of the past. I had lost that precious time in my home country, but I had gained this new home after that, and had overcome great challenges with my new comrades to arrive at a day like today. There was little doubt that more hardship and joy was still to come. But I keenly hoped that I would overcome those tough times with the people precious to me, and share the good times with them too.

“What are you making such a gloomy face for?! That’s no sort of look to be wearing on such a joyous day, Asuta!” Dan Rutim said with a grin and a slap on my back.

Gazraan Rutim smiled too.

Just what sort of expression had I been making? Maybe it was a sort of mix of joy and sorrow, like when you’re smiling through your tears.

As I wondered about that, Ai Fa came in close without making a sound. Her blue eyes just calmly stared straight at me.

“Your work manning the stove is finished, isn’t it? So you should come and enjoy the rest of the banquet with our friends in the Rutim clan.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Impulsively, I reached out and grabbed Ai Fa’s hand.

Though she responded with a bit of a suspicious look, she didn’t shake me off. Instead, she led me over to the pot and silently shoved a rib into my mouth.

When I took a bite, I murmured, “Delicious.”

At that, Ai Fa finally broke out in a smile, with a gleam in her eyes that reminded me of a small child.

The twenty-sixth of the black month had been an utterly unforgettable day for me, and it was now finally coming to a close.