Chapter 42 - Grilled Meat Lunch
After finishing the cleanup, Dahlia looked out the window and saw that the sun had risen to the center of the sky.
"What shall we do for lunch? With this much food, I thought it might be best to cook, but... my skills might not be up to your tastes, Volf."
"The cheese fondue from last time was really delicious, so I trust your cooking skills, Dahlia. And, if it’s just grilling meat, I think I can manage, at least somewhat."
"Huh? Volf, you can cook?"
While it was troubling to have her cooking skills trusted because of the cheese fondue, what really caught Dahlia off guard was the idea of Volf cooking.
Last time, he had done the dishes, and it seemed it was true that in monster hunting expeditions, there were no distinctions between nobles and commoners.
"I can only manage things like butchering and grilling. During expeditions, we were allowed to eat animals or monsters we hunted, so I asked the chefs and learned the basics. Honestly, grilling uncured meat without any preparation or eating charred meat was tough. It really hits you in the stomach later..."
Going on a life-risking monster hunting mission only to eat charred meat seemed too pitiful. Besides, if it made them sick, it would defeat the purpose altogether.
"Wouldn't it be better to grill the meat on a magic stove?"
“Yeah, that way, we won’t have to worry about burning it.”
"Why don’t we try grilling meat with a compact magic stove for lunch?"
"I’d really appreciate that."
If it’s just grilling meat, there wouldn’t be much pressure on the cooking skills. Dahlia felt a bit relieved.
The two of them stood in the kitchen, with Volf slicing the meat while Dahlia prepared the vegetables and made a simple salad.
"Beef, pork, and lightly-salted pickled kraken... for now, I'll just cut these up randomly."
There was an unusually glossy and impressive-looking piece of meat in front of them, but Dahlia wondered if it was just her imagination.
Also, the lightly-salted pickled kraken looked very much like octopus, but as long as they sliced and grilled it, there shouldn’t be a problem.
While washing the vegetables, Dahlia noticed that Volf was slicing the pork into pieces over 2 cm thick.
"Volf, don’t you think that’s too thick...?"
"Since it's not a campfire, I guess it needs to be thinner."
"Maybe just a quarter of that thickness?"
"Isn’t that too thin?"
In the end, they decided to prepare the meat in several thickness variations.
Dahlia washed two types of leafy greens and arranged cheese and bread on a plate.
Though simple, the high quality of the ingredients made it look delicious even without further preparation.
They placed two magic stoves diagonally across from each other on the table, with shallow pots and pans acting as the grill. It didn’t look too great, but Dahlia hoped it would work out.
Thinking about the magic enchantment for the dagger in the afternoon, both decided to have fruit juice for lunch.
After lightly greasing the pan, she began grilling the meat. Volf would glance at what Dahlia was doing, copying what she did.
"Here’s salt, pepper, lemon, and, over here, a sauce. It’s made with fish sauce, garlic, sesame, and grated apple. Try it with your meat when you eat.”
The beef was the first to be ready, so they sprinkled salt on it and ate.
Unlike the meat she was used to, it melted on the tongue, and the fat left behind a sweet taste. It was clear that good meat made a difference, and Dahlia chewed thoughtfully before swallowing.
For the pork, they made sure to cook it thoroughly before adding salt and pepper. It had a firm texture, but still had a sweet, non-gamey flavor, unlike the beef.
Dahlia found herself thinking that this could be delicious in other dishes as well.
Dahlia was so engrossed in eating that she didn’t notice Volf on the other side of the table, completely exceeding the number of necessary chews.
His mouth was curled into a perfect smile, and his eyes were shut.
The atmosphere was such that Dahlia hesitated to speak, so she decided to continue grilling and eating the vegetables for a while.
"This is really delicious... being able to grill it to my own liking and eat it while it’s hot is great."
"I’m glad you think so."
The young man finally turned back to Dahlia, but his intense gaze was still fixed on the meat sizzling on the grill.
"...Your magic stove is quite sinful, isn’t it?"
"Huh?!"
Dahlia froze, unable to understand the sudden comment.
"If we’d had something like this on past expeditions, I think many of our comrades would still be with us..."
The conversation had turned unexpectedly heavy.
She didn’t intend to develop a product tied to life-and-death situations, but now she couldn’t understand where these things were connected. Was it possible that someone had died from eating charred meat already?
"Um, did something happen?"
"No, it’s not that. Some people left the squad because they couldn’t stand the food during the expeditions, and others quit due to easily upset stomachs. If we’d had this, maybe we could have kept the unit together, that’s all..."
Food was the foundation of life. There would be limits to how much anyone could endure eating bad food just because it was part of their job.
She wondered if the Chivalric Order’s budget could allow them to buy magic stoves for the expeditions. At this point, she didn’t even care if couldn’t get a personal profit from it.
To lighten the mood, Dahlia decided to grill some of the lightly-salted pickled kraken.
When placed in the pan, it made a sizzling sound, shrinking steadily.
"I didn’t expect it to shrink by half. It feels kind of sad, doesn’t it?"
She wished he wouldn't gaze at the pot with such golden eyes, exuding an air of melancholy.
Also, that kind of gaze should be reserved for a bouquet of roses or a love letter, not pieces of salted kraken.
"Octopus and squid are also when you cook them, so next time, we should cut them a bit bigger."
The lightly-salted pickled kraken was a little too salty, but still delicious.
It would probably go well with rice.
Although the rice brought into the capital was a bit on the long side, it might pair well with this next time.
"Wait, Volf, you haven’t eaten a single bell pepper, have you?”
"...Actually, bell peppers don’t like me."
Dahlia noticed and pointed it out, but Volf avoided her gaze as he replied.
His reasoning was exactly the same as that of a relative's child from her previous life.
"I’d say you can’t grow if you don’t eat properly, but honestly, if you grew any taller, that might be troublesome."
"There are people much taller than me in the Chivalric Order. One said they kept bumping into doors. So, I don’t want to grow any taller."
"Yes, that’s true. A lot of kids don’t like bell peppers."
She said it lightly, but regretted it as soon as she saw Volf's stern expression.
He stared silently at the bell peppers before beginning to line them up on the bottom of the pan.
"Volf, although I said that, everyone has their preferences, so you don’t have to force yourself to eat it..."
"No, I think this is a wall I have to overcome."
His gaze at the pot was incredibly scary. Bell peppers were neither a wall, nor a monster, nor an enemy.
She wished he would stop soon, for the sake of her own heart.
"...It’s best to cook them thoroughly, then dip them in sauce with the meat."
Dahlia offered some advice, though a tense atmosphere lingered.
Volf carefully cooked the bell peppers and meat, then put them in his mouth, closing his eyes as he chewed.
"Huh? ...It’s good."
"They say that your taste buds change as you get older, so things you didn’t like as a kid might taste good later."
"It’s actually good... I think I’ve been missing out."
Dahlia wondered if making stir-fried meat with peppers might turn him into a fan. She decided she would try it someday.
After some additional slicing of meat, they finally finished their grilled meat lunch.
Though they had opened the windows, the room was filled with the distinct smell of grilled meat.
"I’d like to take this stove on an expedition, even if it’s just as personal equipment, but if I eat alone, I’d definitely get exterminated...”
"The smell of grilled meat attracts people, after all..."
"Dahlia, would you be willing to come and teach the Monster Subjugation Force how to use it?"
"Oh, that sounds good. I’d be happy to help improve the food situation on expeditions."
It was a rather elaborate joke. Dahlia chuckled softly.
Only a select few merchant companies could enter the royal castle. The hurdles were incredibly high, from letters of recommendation to guarantors.
The royal castle wasn’t a place where ordinary people could just stroll into.
Perhaps this was a difference in their perception.
"Well then, let’s clean up and get to the enchantment for the dagger."
"Got it. Leave it to me."
Dahlia firmly stopped Volf from trying to carry everything—plates, the magic stoves, and more—all at once, and finally began the cleanup.
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