Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 16 - Chapter 3.4

4

“Thank you for feeding me dinner again. I truly appreciate it.”

That night, Lem Dom visited the Fa house after the sun had completely set. She was holding a wooden tray she had crafted herself, atop which sat a lit candlestick and tonight’s dinner.

“Hey Lem Dom, I know it isn’t all that far, but isn’t it dangerous to be out walking at night? Can’t you come while it’s still at least a little brighter out?”

“My apologies. When I’m training, I tend to forget the passage of time. I’ll do my best to avoid interfering with your dinner plans as much as possible, though.”

“Ah, you don’t need to worry about us...”

“And you needn’t worry about me either. If I run into a giba or a mundt, I’ll just hide up a tree,” Lem Dom replied with a daring grin before elegantly turning around. “I’ll see you again tomorrow. And please give my regards to Ai Fa.”

With a sigh, I closed the door. Then after patting Gilulu on his tilted, questioning head, I returned to the main hall where dinner was waiting.

“So she left? Good work,” Ai Fa calmly called out. As I sat down in my own spot, I looked over at her.

“It’s been seven days now since Lem Dom left her clan. Just how long does she plan on living like this?”

“I couldn’t say. Only Lem Dom herself knows what she’s thinking. It isn’t something outsiders should involve themselves in.”

“I get that, but aren’t you still worried about her? I mean, Deek Dom’s every bit as stubborn as she is. If neither of them bends, Lem Dom will end up never returning to her clan.”

“That is what it means to aim to become a hunter despite being a woman... In my case, my mother was opposed until the bitter end,” Ai Fa said, a somber look in her eyes. “Still, I might have been more fortunate than Lem Dom, considering how my father raised me to be a hunter...but at any rate, you cannot become a female hunter at the forest’s edge without overcoming such suffering.”

“It doesn’t seem like Bartha had to face any of that. But, well, I can’t say I know much about Masara.”

“Masara has its own customs, as does the forest’s edge. There is no point in comparing them... Let’s hurry up and eat before the food gets cold, Asuta.”

“Ah, yeah. Right.”

With that said, though, my dinner was almost finished already. Ai Fa’s plate was nearly empty too.

“What did you think of tonight’s dinner? I’m sorry for having you do nothing but taste tests for a while now, so I worked extra hard to make it good,” I asked, getting myself back on track, only to earn a glare for some reason.

“Do I look like I’m dissatisfied to you?”

“No, you look very much the opposite.”

“Then stop asking that every single night.”

Since tonight’s dinner was hamburger steak for the first time in a while, that really might have been a thoughtless question.

“Well then, what about the taste test from last night? Since it was a meal meant for nobles, I doubt you were quite so happy with it.”

“Not so. I’ve never complained, even when you offered that kind of food for dinner, have I?”

“But it’s not like you loved all of them, right?”

In response to my question, Ai Fa gave a cute tilt of her head.

“Well...if nothing else, I don’t feel much need for that appetizer and the sweet dish.”

“Right, guess that’s no surprise when it comes to the raw fish and the dessert. Though Rimee Ruu seems really fond of sweets.”

“And then there’s that poitan dish. At first I was surprised you were making something so bizarre...but after a few days, I can’t say I especially dislike it.”

She was referring to a dish I had been developing for a while now. I had been trying out a whole new way of eating poitan, which involved blending it with fuwano and adding kimyuus egg. Since it seemed appropriate, I was planning on unveiling my new recipe in the castle town.

“I have no issues calling the meat and soup dishes delicious. As for the vegetable dish...well, I cannot see any strong reason to hate it, I suppose,” Ai Fa added, thinking as hard as she could on the matter. “As a whole, I would say it was enjoyable. Still, the meat dish seems even more complicated than the giba cutlets... And how should I put this? I can’t imagine wanting to eat it every day. Perhaps it would be fitting for banquets here at the forest’s edge, though.”

“I see. I didn’t have any plans for making those dishes here at the forest’s edge either. And if I were to make them, I’d want to revise them to better fit the tastes of the people who’d be eating them.”

“Then I see even less of an issue,” Ai Fa replied, placing her now empty plate down atop the rug. With that in mind, I figured I had a decent enough chance of satisfying Dari Sauti with the food at the welcome banquet.

But at any rate, that night’s dinner came to a smooth close. As I cleaned up the utensils I had used, I called out, “Oh, right. Now that I think about it, what’s your opinion about that one thing? We somehow managed to get Donda Ruu’s permission.”

“You mean the idea of heading outside of Genos?” Ai Fa asked back as she similarly picked up her utensils, her eyes shining like a cat’s in the dark. “I’m surprised Donda Ruu approved. If you head to that Dabagg place, you won’t return for two days, correct?”

“Yeah. Donda Ruu was real reluctant at first, but supposedly Reina and Rimee Ruu managed to convince him after a few days. But he said he wants to have the same number of hunters as chefs guarding us, minimum.”

I had expressed a desire to go observe a karon ranch in Dabagg to Ai Fa and Donda Ruu. After she set her utensils down beside the stove, my clan head stood there in front of me with a frown.

“So how many chefs wish to visit that town? I believe there was Reina, Rimee, and Sheera Ruu.”

“Yeah, and if you approve, I was thinking of discussing the matter with the Deen clan too. So that would make for five of us.”

“Can you truly get five hunters to accompany you when it isn’t even a break period?”

“Well, Jeeda and Bartha are apparently locked in. They aren’t from the forest’s edge to begin with, so there’s no need to worry about them neglecting their giba hunting duty or anything. And having those two from outside Genos to guide us on the journey makes it feel a lot safer,” I replied, recalling what I had heard during the day at the Ruu house. “And supposedly Dan Rutim and one more member from his clan will join in. Remember, Dan Rutim and that novice hunter who was injured along with him will already be guarding us for the welcome banquet, right? Since they’re both still recovering, that makes them a good fit for leaving the forest’s edge.”

“In other words, you’re saying they’re still injured. Can you really leave guard duty to them with that in mind?”

“Even if they are injured, I can’t imagine bandits or whatever being any match for hunters of the forest’s edge. And besides, supposedly Donda Ruu selected them personally.”

Ai Fa crossed her arms and gave a displeased pout.

“Even so, that’s still only four. That’s one short of matching the number of chefs.”

“Right. Donda Ruu kind of assumed you’d be coming along...but can you really not take two days off from hunting after all?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. As if I could ever let you leave town on your own,” Ai Fa shot back, scratching her head.

“But you don’t like taking time off hunting because of us chefs, right?”

“I have been hunting down more giba than is necessary for a hunter. Ever since the end of the break period, I have been taking down roughly one a day, and yesterday I even caught two.”

“Yeah, it really has been an incredible haul. I mean, since there are only two of us in the Fa house, hunting down just one every five days would be plenty,” I agreed, looking back at Ai Fa while feeling both anticipation and unease.

With one more big frown, Ai Fa asked me, “Is heading to that Dabagg place really so important to you? That is the one point I just can’t understand.”

“I think it’s essential. Maybe I won’t be using karon meat all that often in the future, but milk, milk fat, and dried milk are all important ingredients, so it should be a good experience for all of us.”

And if everything worked out, it was possible even Mikel and Myme could join us. I figured just having Mikel along would make the journey that much more meaningful.

Besides, there was also an element of research to it, seeing what sort of cuisine there was in the town closest to Genos, what they thought of the people of the forest’s edge, and whether or not giba jerky and sausages could be sold there. The goal wasn’t just to satisfy a passing curiosity on my part. If it was, Donda Ruu never would have allowed his beloved daughters to leave Genos.

“In that case...” Ai Fa started, her voice clearly sounding displeased. “You have my approval too.”

“You mean it? And you’ll accompany us too?”

“Of course.”

“Hooray! Thanks, Ai Fa! I really owe you one!”

At that, Ai Fa’s pout vanished, and she shot me a confused look.

“Does it really make you that happy?”

“Of course it does. To be honest, I half thought you would refuse! Besides, I never imagined we would be going on an overnight trip together. Even if it’s ultimately for work, it still makes me really happy.”

Ai Fa’s brow deeply furrowed. A moment later, she abruptly grabbed my head with both hands. “That feels unfair somehow, Asuta.”

“U-Unfair? What do you mean?”

Ai Fa’s face pressed in close, and then she rustled my hair. “First you look all worried like a child, then suddenly you’re making such an adorable face...”

“A-Adorable? Me?”

“It’s so unfair that it annoys me.”

“Owww! Not so rough, boss!”

“Quiet, you,” Ai Fa grumbled as she released my head.

Just as I was feeling relieved, those slender arms containing the strength of a hunter wrapped firmly around my torso.

“Gyah!” I shouted, but she didn’t let go. I felt a tingle of premonition run up my spine, that she might seriously break my ribs.

“I’m glad you’re not worrying...”

“Aggggh... Huh? Did you say something just now?”

“You had a terribly pained look in your eyes on the day that Sym girl who was accompanying Polarth made those strange comments to you. But that shadow no longer seems to be hanging over you.”

That Sym girl... The star reader Arishuna.

My body now half supported by Ai Fa’s arms, which had mercifully loosened up, I told her, “I’m fine. She just reconfirmed something I already knew, so it’s nothing to worry about. And now that I think about it, the star reader from the Silver Vase said he couldn’t see my star either.”

“Sym fortune telling is of no concern to me. You exist here before me now, and that’s all that matters.” Ai Fa’s sweet-smelling hair brushed up against my cheek. “I believe that you feel the same.”

“Yeah, and I won’t betray your trust.”

Had I really been letting my feelings show that much? If so, I regretted making Ai Fa worry.

“Being tossed around by your selfish whims is nothing compared to that. Still, it’s quite unfair of you to make me feel that way, Asuta...”

“I get it, I get it. But could you please not injure my ribs any more than you already have?”

With a “Hmph,” Ai Fa tightened her grip around my body.

Though my bones were creaking just a bit, even that pain brought me joy.