Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 22 - Chapter 1.4

4

“This is a soup dish made with gigi leaves,” Varkas said.

We had some clay dishes lined up in front of us, which were currently being filled with a rich soup that had a jet black color very similar to the whole roast kimyuus we had seen at the previous event.

“Ooh. This dish looks like something really special,” Polarth said.

“The large amount of gigi leaves it contains is where it gets its color from. Please give it a try and see how it tastes before it cools off.”

Going along with his suggestion, I went ahead and picked up my spoon. It was easy to tell how viscous it was at a glance, and I couldn’t see what was in it whatsoever. The one only thing I could make out was the complex aroma of countless herbs intertwining.

I touched my spoon to the surface of the soup and was met with even more resistance than I had expected. It had a real weighty feel to it, almost like melted cheese. It might have been even thicker and heavier than the karon milk broth Myme had prepared.

Just what is this dish?

My anticipation heightened even more as I brought a bit of just the pitch-black liquid itself to my mouth.

Instantly, all sorts of flavors exploded in my mouth. It was an incredibly complicated taste. Just like with that whole-roast kimyuus, the main flavor was this deep bitterness, which was balanced out by whatever else was in there. Sweetness, spiciness, sourness, and bitterness... None of them stood out especially strongly, and they all seemed to combine together in perfect harmony.

The sweetness I sensed seemed to have the mellowness of fruit. Yes, it was definitely fruity, though the soup also had the sticky sweetness of honey.

The spiciness, meanwhile, felt more herbal. Rather than coming from something like chili peppers, it seemed to be a more nonspecific peppery spiciness. It was possible he had used pico leaves for that. The spiciness was also highly refreshing, which might have been a benefit of using that keru root from before.

As for the sourness, I could sense fruit and herbs in addition to mamaria vinegar. In all likelihood, that fruit was also contributing to the sweetness, and the same was true of the herbs and the spiciness. I couldn’t even hazard a guess as to how many types of fruit and herbs he had used.

He seemed to have also used more gigi leaves than he had for the whole-roast kimyuus, as the soup was distinctly bitter. It seemed to be the same sort of bitterness you got from cacao. Yes, after more than seven months, I had finally come across a flavor that reminded me of chocolate and cocoa.

Obviously, Varkas hadn’t just thrown that flavor out on its own, as he had also gotten a great stock from some meat and vegetables. It was rather oily, so he must have added milk fat too. And I got the feeling I was tasting some seafood in it to boot.

That was the result of taking just a single bite.

As I tried to restrain the excitement I was feeling, I dug around a bit to see what sort of ingredients had been added to the soup. The first one I captured looked like a chunk of chatchi. However, it was entangled in a web of meaty fibers. I went ahead and popped it into my mouth alongside a spoonful of soup.

The chatchi had been thoroughly boiled. The soup’s complex flavors had seeped into it, and it was so tender that there was no need to even bite into it. The stuff that was entangled around it, meanwhile, seemed to be karon meat fibers. It was a lot like beef sinew, so it was incredibly tender too.

It seemed that the solid bits were just as tasty as the soup itself. Despite how terribly complicated the soup’s flavor was, I honestly thought it was really good. Apparently, my tongue had grown fairly well accustomed to Varkas’s cooking by this point.

Aside from the chatchi, it also contained nenon and nanaar, but I wasn’t able to pick out anything else. However, I had to wonder if Varkas had employed a regular stock made from a large amount of vegetables for this soup, or if he had boiled the vegetables until they had basically dissolved. There wasn’t any proper meat in it, but the beef sinew-like karon fibers seemed to have spread evenly throughout.

It felt fantastic when I swallowed it too. It really was like melted cheese, with the way it went down gradually. As a result, the satisfying sensation of eating it remained for the entire extended length of time it took to experience even a single bite. The fact that this didn’t seem like a fault was part of what made the dish so unique.

How in the world had he made it so thick? Had he simply added a bunch of fuwano flour like Timalo had? Or had he made use of the stickiness of gigo?

“So this is what Varkas’s cooking is like...” Myme remarked in admiration, ultimately being the first person to speak up. “It’s incredibly delicious. Just how many different ingredients did you use?”

“How many of them can you identify?” Varkas countered.

“Huh?” Myme asked, her eyes widening. “My father has told me I can’t use a bunch of different ingredients, so I’ve only worked with half of what they sell just in the post town. All I can make out are the aria, chatchi, nenon, nanaar, gigo...and I think you also used sheema and ma gigo—Asuta’s had me taste test them before.”

I had gotten the feeling that there might have been aria dissolved in the soup, but I hadn’t sensed the presence of the daikon-like sheema or taro-like ma gigo at all.

“The meat is karon, though I don’t know the cut. I’ve only handled leg meat, after all. And for the seasonings, you have salt, sugar, tau oil, pico leaves, milk fat, and red mamaria vinegar. Then there are the herbs. I think you included several that Asuta uses in his curry, but I don’t work with them myself, so I’m not so sure... Ah, and there seemed to be crushed ramanpa nuts and some of those hoboi seeds and that keru root we just tried.”

“Correct on all fronts. What about the fruit?”

“Uh, you probably used sheel, arow, and ramam. And there were some other sweet or sour things in there that I didn’t recognize too.”

“That’s plenty. I believe there are only one or two people in the castle town capable of providing such an accurate analysis,” Varkas remarked with a satisfied nod. “You certainly seem to possess an exceptional sense of taste. I suspect that that is precisely what allows you to prepare such an excellent dish with so few ingredients.”

“Oh no, there’s still so much that I need to learn. Also, I think I can understand now why my father has so much praise for you,” Myme said, narrowing her eyes a bit. “Just like he told me, you’re an even better chef than he is. It’s actually really frustrating, how obvious that is now.”

“Only because Sir Mikel was forced to stop working. Had he continued to polish his skills as a chef, the meals he would be able to prepare now would surely be even more delicious than they were back then,” Varkas said, narrowing his own eyes as if his thoughts had wandered off to the distant past. “Though Sir Mikel is older than I am, he seemed to possess an incredible sense of taste. As humans pass their prime, they generally lose that fine sense of taste, so the fact that he retained his was truly surprising to me. If that is something you inherited from him, you might also keep that same sharpness as you grow older.”

“I don’t know about that, but at any rate, I want to offer my thanks to the western god again and again for allowing me the chance to sample your cooking today. And to Asuta, for inviting me along.”

“Yes, Sir Asuta himself is an exceptionally important person to me in his own right, but I am also truly grateful for how he put someone such as you in contact with me.”

I was left bewildered, suddenly finding myself sandwiched between compliments.

“No, Varkas, you and Mikel were deeply connected to begin with, so it’s the guidance of the gods that brought you two together. I may have guided her here, but, well, fate can be a strange thing.”

Now that I thought about it, Mikel’s path as a chef had been cut short by Cyclaeus, whereas when Varkas had caught that wicked noble’s attention, he had been able to gain even more experience because of it. I had made my last comment without really thinking about it much, but I had to wonder now whether this actually had happened due to some strange twist of fate, or if it truly had been the guidance of the western god that had led to Varkas encountering Mikel’s daughter Myme.

“There’s something I’d like to ask you, Varkas...” Sheera Ruu said in a reserved tone. “What sort of herbs are the gigi leaves you used in this dish? When Asuta was first creating his curry, we tried out the tastes of all the herbs from Sym that we could get, but I don’t recall any of them having this kind of color or taste.”

“Ah, yes. Gigi leaves are supposedly of no real use at all if just utilized as is,” Varkas remarked, then he glanced at Tatumai. “Tatumai, fetch a gigi leaf.”

“You don’t mind?”

“I do not. All of the chefs here are qualified to use whichever ingredients they please.”

Timalo would definitely have been displeased about having Varkas cast doubt on his qualifications if he were still here.

Anyway, Tatumai returned from the pantry with a single small leaf. It was dark brown and round, about five centimeters or so in diameter. Though it was small, it was also thick, and despite having surely been dried out, it didn’t look like it had shriveled up much.

I recognized that leaf. From what I could recall, it had been quite bitter, and I had decided it wouldn’t be useful as a spice for the curry.

“So this is a gigi leaf? Its color and scent seem to be completely different from when it’s cooked.”

“Yes. This is what is known as a tea leaf. In Selva we prefer zozo and chatchi tea, but in Sym they boil gigi for tea.”

“Oh yeah, I’ve heard that you can use chatchi skin to make tea. We had some when we visited Daleim a little while ago... So, is there a special technique for boiling gigi leaves?”

“Indeed there is. You put gigi leaves in a pot and place a lid on top, then use low heat so that they will not burn. When you do so, they turn black in color and take on their characteristic bitterness and aroma. Easterners then add hot water to them in order to make tea.”

“I see. So you don’t add any water during the heating process?”

“That is correct, as the process is actually meant to remove moisture. Simply drying them in the sun is not sufficient for that.”

In that case, it sounded like he was talking about a roasting process. It was quite interesting to think that that cacao-like flavor from before had come from leaves rather than beans.

“Will your people be able to make use of these gigi leaves, Sir Asuta? Such bitterness is quite difficult to handle.”

“Well, I would imagine Toor Deen might be able to make good use of them,” I said, just going with whatever had immediately come to mind, causing my precious young colleague to grow terribly flustered.

“Wh-Who, me? I could never handle such a difficult herb...”

“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking it could be useful for making sweets. I might have said more than I should have.”

It most definitely hadn’t been on purpose. However, Toor Deen still went and hid behind my back as if to escape from everyone’s gazes.

“Using gigi leaves in sweets, you say? But given how bitter they are, that seems like the type of dish they would be least suited for,” Varkas remarked.

I nodded at him. “Yeah. But back in my home country, it was something we did pretty frequently. Bitter flavors can enhance sweet flavors, just like sour ones do.”

“How terribly interesting. I certainly never would have imagined using gigi leaves in sweets even in my wildest dreams.”

“Oh really? For now, I’d like to bring some gigi leaves back with us so we can try a couple things with them. Of course, I would need your permission for that, Polarth.”

“You may of course bring back as many as you like. As previously agreed, we shall cover the expense of whatever you take to experiment with,” Polarth replied with a joyful smile, and then he looked at Toor Deen behind me. “If you use them to make some kind of delicious treat, then I hope that you will treat Lady Odifia to them. That young lady seems as if she will throw a temper tantrum if she is not allowed to invite you to a tea party at least once a month.”

“Yes, I understand...” Toor Deen answered in a voice so quiet that I wondered if it would even reach him as she clung tightly to my clothes behind my back.

“Well then, I do believe that concludes this taste testing. It certainly proved to be an enjoyable experience. All that is left is for our visitors to see the live gyama, and then we shall disperse. And as for your payment, it will be prepared for you in a separate room!”

We were told we could just leave the tableware, so we all promptly left the kitchen in a crowd through the far door. Other chefs would be preparing dinner in there for the noble visitors later. They had probably already started working in the small kitchen, but the time had to be after the lower fifth hour by now, so they had surely been impatiently waiting for this kitchen to be made available as well.

As we were leaving, a voice called out, “Hey.” However, it was actually Roy speaking to Reina Ruu rather than me. “You’ve been weirdly quiet this whole time today. Are you letting yourself get distracted because Varkas praised your skills?”

Reina Ruu instantly frowned and stared up at Roy’s face, which was displaying his usual sour look.

“What are you talking about? I can’t imagine why you would think you have the right to find fault with me.”

“At least let me say that much. I haven’t gotten Varkas to even try my cooking,” Roy grumbled as we walked. Ludo Ruu then casually moved to take up a position next to his sister, but Roy paid him no heed and continued. “Well, not that there’s anything special about my cooking in the least, so of course Varkas wouldn’t have any interest in it. But don’t forget that you only drew Varkas’s attention because of your relationship with Asuta.”

“You’re quite talkative today. You only seem to get that way when showing contempt for others.”

“I’m not showing contempt, I’m giving you advice. Varkas might actually remember your name if you keep making such excellent dishes.” Then Roy’s gaze turned somewhat forceful as he stared at Reina Ruu. “I worked under Mikel in the past, so I’m quite familiar with the cooking techniques he used. Whether or not I can actually use them myself is a whole other matter, though... But regardless, even if I was still working under him now, I could never surpass his daughter.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“You asked me about this a while ago, didn’t you? Why I chose to work under Varkas instead of Mikel,” Roy said, his gaze still fixed on Reina Ruu’s face. “At least for now, what I need is Varkas’s strength, not Mikel’s. Otherwise, all the ingredients piled up in this manor will go to waste. If I tried to become Mikel’s apprentice under these circumstances, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything at all.”

Reina Ruu furrowed her brow, looking troubled. But after glaring at her for a bit longer, Roy suddenly looked away.

“You shattered the last bit of self-respect I had to smithereens. So I’m going to become a better chef than you, no matter what.”

She offered no response to that statement.

“That dish from before was unbelievably delicious too, damn it...” Roy muttered, picking up his pace to catch up to Bozl and the others.

With her frown still firmly in place, Reina Ruu turned my way. “Wh-What am I supposed to say to that, Asuta?”

“Huh? I don’t think there’s any real need for you to say or do anything. Roy’s got a sharp tongue on him, but I don’t think he seriously sees you as his enemy or anything.”

“That’s not exactly what I was worried about. But based on what he said, doesn’t it seem like I was the one who threw his life out of order, rather than you or Myme?” Reina Ruu looked unusually flustered. She had a face that made her look younger than she actually was to begin with, so she looked downright childish at the moment.

“I wouldn’t put it that way. I would say that you got him fired up instead. He said something similar at the last taste testing, right?”

“But...”

“A long time ago, you got all frustrated because you thought Sheera Ruu had pulled ahead of you, right? I’m sure Roy felt similarly, which is what made him ask Varkas to accept him as an apprentice.”

That was all guesswork, but I was pretty sure it was right on the mark. Roy was short-tempered and awkward, and hated to lose above all else. Furthermore, his passion for cooking was just as strong as ours was.

“To put it simply, Roy’s been working hard in his own way, and he was just trying to express that to you. He hates to lose, so he can’t just come out and say these things directly, but I’m sure you’ve become really important to him.”

“I see...” Even so, Reina Ruu’s expression still didn’t brighten up. However, she didn’t seem angry or hurt. She looked more bewildered than anything. “I feel like I’m always thrown for a loop whenever I talk to that man...” she said with a little sigh.

Over her shoulder, I noticed Ludo Ruu grinning and giving me a wink. It wasn’t as if I didn’t know what he was thinking, but I had no intention of making light of the paths that lay ahead of those two, so I just shrugged.

“Now then, these are live gyama! There’s quite a beastly stench inside the pen, is there not?!” Polarth said, and sure enough, there they were in front of us.

They looked like goats, with long beards like you’d see on an old man. Unfortunately, their splendid horns that were like those of a buffalo had all been broken off. Milk-producing female gyama were considered to be quite valuable in Sym, so the ones that had been brought here were all male.

The stuffed head I had seen at The Sledgehammer had black fur, but there were white and brown ones here too. Their bodies were a little over one meter long, and they had surprisingly cute faces. The animals’ black eyes with their oblong pupils had clearly caught the attention of Rimee Ruu and the rest of the younger crowd, but what surprised me most of all, personally, was the fact that the gyama all had six legs.

With that, our work in the castle town had finally come to a close.

However, when we returned to the settlement, we learned of some truly shocking developments that had occurred in the meantime. During Melfried’s meeting with the leading clan heads of the forest’s edge, the castle had made two official requests. One concerned the Gamley Troupe, while the other had come from a merchant group from Sym known as the Black Flight Feathers...