Chapter 5
Chapter 5: The Blonde Tanned Rogue Girl
The ingredients dropped by the Grass Cow were two chunks of beef—and a massive piece of bone.
"Master…. The meat…! Meat! Meat!!"
"Yes. The drop is meat."
Yuna's eyes were shining, drool practically spilling from her lips. If I didn't cook it soon, she might just tear into it raw.
I don't have a game-style status screen, so I had no way of knowing whether that meat was safe to eat as tartare or not. I quickly retrieved it before Yuna could revert to being a caveman.
"The meat…. Meat! If we just meat—!"
"I know. I know. Let's check the quality first and then cook it."
"Okay!!"
‘Demeter Academy. Is this really fine?’
‘Is it really alright for someone like this to serve as Student Council President?’
"As I suspected, the meat quality isn't great."
"The meat…. It's not good meat?"
"Correct. The tendons run all through the cuts. It'll be passable, but it'll be quite chewy."
"My mother always praised me for having strong teeth."
‘That's not the issue here.’
‘Braised meat would be ideal, but this world doesn't have soy sauce for that.’
‘Then a stew…. Of course. A stew….’
"I've thought of something good. Let's make a soup."
"A soup…? With the meat, you mean? Isn't soup something you can eat with just water added?"
"That seems a bit wasteful, doesn't it? Just wait a moment."
"How long do I have to wait, Master?"
"Ten hours?"
"T-that's…. Can't I…. just chew it raw…?"
Yuna's eyes had completely glazed over. As much as she wanted to, I couldn't allow that—there was no telling how clean it was.
It couldn't be helped.
Perhaps I'd write a little more of the 'script.'
"Understood. I'll figure something out within one hour."
"One hour…. Yes! Understood!"
When I pulled a portable table and cooking station out of my pack, Yuna's eyes went wide.
"Master, where did you…. A table out of that pack…. A chair…. A cooking station…. Hm? Does all that fit in that size?"
"Clearly it wouldn't, would it? This is a pack with a spatial distortion formation inscribed inside."
A so-called magic item.
Of course, even something of this capacity alone holds enough value to buy an entire castle. In my case, of course, the pack itself is ordinary—I simply use magic inside it.
This alone risks being detected by my Master…. But I plan on using the pack only inside dungeons, so unless my Master comes into this dungeon, that won't happen.
Being as careful as possible is the right approach, but there's no way my Master would be wandering around in the Demeter Dungeon of all places.
Anyway. I grabbed a large kitchen knife and cut straight through the bone with a slice—the entire bone was severed clean.
"Wow…. Master. You have incredible strength…."
"It's just the occupational bonus to food processing."
"Hmm…. If you consider all monsters as ingredients, does that make Master the strongest of humanity…. What even is an ingredient? How should it be defined…."
Yuna started muttering nonsense.
"Take this pot with the bones, go to the river, fill it with plenty of water, and wait there."
"Oh…. Yes! Understood!"
Yuna headed toward the river with the bones, and I cut the meat into bite-sized pieces, kneaded some flour into dough, then paused in thought.
"I had intended to avoid using magic, but since this is their first hunt, and the kid worked hard…. I suppose it can't be helped."
I steeled myself. Inside the dungeon, I'd make do with using it only when truly necessary.
And if I ran into my Master while doing so?
I'd just die.
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"Master. I've filled it with water!"
"Good. Just a moment."
"Yes! I will wait exactly one hour! I am a Student Council President of patience!"
I looked at the pot of river water Yuna had filled, then pressed my palm against it. I opened the magic formation within my body and channeled a pressure-type spell into the cut bones. Juuuuu—the blood trapped inside the bones was drawn out. I exchanged the water several times, and once all the blood had drained, I brought it back and set a fire under the pot.
The roaring flame had the water bubbling and boiling away. After bringing it to a boil once and discarding the water, I brought it to a second boil.
This was where the truly difficult part began. Normally, the process of simmering this down would take eight hours, but I decided to try cutting that down with magic.
I had no talent in time magic, but I aimed to shorten it as much as possible through the interplay of pressure control and thermal conduction. The magic fortunately worked to a degree, and a milky-white broth began to rise.
After simmering to a satisfactory point, I tasted the broth—it was decent enough.
"Wh-what is this? The incredibly rich aroma…."
"It's called Gomtang. Normally it needs to simmer for a full eight hours before the real flavor comes through, but…. If we're compromising at one hour, there's not much else to do."[1]
"……"
Yuna fell silent at my words and sank into thought.
"It should be roughly palatable. Why aren't you saying anything?"
"Master. If we wait eight hours, can we eat it at its absolute best?"
"Yes."
At my answer, Yuna clasped both hands together, squeezed her eyes shut, and stretched out her neck.
"Then—would you please knock me unconscious for eight hours…?"
"Unconscious?"
"Yes. I've heard that every seasoned adventurer has at least one skill to knock out a party member. You have one too, don't you, Master?"
Of course I do. It's a skill you simply can't do without.
The deeper you descend into a dungeon's lower levels, the stronger the monsters' attacks become, and recovery methods become just as critical.
The most easily applied form of healing.
The only problem with healing is that the recipient suffers unbearable pain.
There have been those who went mad from receiving treatment while fully conscious.
So the idea arose that it was better to knock them out, heal them, and then bring them around—and every adventurer of the middle levels or below has one such incapacitation skill.
‘This kid.’
‘She's planning to use that to spend eight hours?’
‘That's the strangest use I've ever heard of in my life.’
"If I were the type to do something improper, don't go saying such things—I might actually do it."
"I appreciate the warning! But I trust you, Master. If you were going to do something, you would have done it when I got sent flying by the Grass Cow, wouldn't you?"
‘She had a point there.’
‘This little one. Her mind works quickly.’
"You want to eat something that good?"
"Since I came all this way down—I want to eat the best possible meal. I'm counting on you."
At those words, full of conviction and resolution, I gave a nod.
How could I turn away someone who carried such a righteous philosophy about life?
I brought my finger to the space between her brows and applied a Stun.
"Kkyueng."
Yuna made a sound and fell unconscious. I caught her before she hit the ground, cast an air cushion so no dirt or insects would cling to her, and set her down near the campfire.
Her skin might dry out and suffer, so I thoroughly applied a moisture spell nearby with water magic, then crouched down and looked at her face.
"Good grief. Upright, trusting others easily—how is she going to survive in this harsh world."
Seeing a kid who was genuinely trying to live so honestly made me want to give her even more.
Watching the Gomtang slowly simmering over a low flame, a satisfied smile escaped me.
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Eight hours later.
Yuna opened her eyes, looked at me, looked at the sky, looked at the embers of the campfire, and stretched.
"Good evening…. Master…."
"Yes. Good evening. Dinner is nearly ready, so get up. Go wash your face at the river."
"Dinner…. Oh. Yes! I'm getting up right now!"
Yuna leapt to her feet and sprinted off toward the river.
We had entered this dungeon early in the morning, and factoring in hunting and cooking time, it was now around seven in the evening. A perfectly reasonable hour for a meal.
I finished preparing the meal by the time Yuna returned, and her eyes lit up at the sight of two bowls on the table.
"Is this the dish you mentioned, Master?"
"That's right. I've seasoned it basically, but if it's bland, add more salt."
"What is this dish called?"
A milky-white broth with flour sujebi and beef stirred in. Gomtang seasoned simply with salt.
"It's Sagol Sujebi. A regional specialty of sorts."[2]
"O-ohh…! Sagol Sujebi. Thank you for the meal!"
"Yes. Eat as much as you like."
Yuna picked up her spoon and took a sip of the sujebi broth, then—
"Haaaa…. Hnnnggg…. Hoooooyeeeee…!!"
She curled her body in for a long moment, trembling head to toe, then let out a moan with breathless excitement.
The sound reminded me of a construction foreman. I laughed before I could stop myself.
"Is it good?"
"It's the best! This rich, heavy broth—and the meat, cooked so long inside it, so tender! And this piece made of flour too…! It's like a single cow offered its entire self to make this one fantastical bowl!"
"Haha. Is that so? I'd say so too. Good expression. By the way—it's called Sujebi, not a piece."
I tasted it as well.
There were no green onions inside, no pepper, none of the zucchini or other usual accompaniments that Sujebi would typically have—yet I could still feel it.
The flavor of my homeland, to which I can never return, and whose path back I no longer know.
"It's warm."
"Yes. It's truly delicious! The absolute best!"
"Yes. Yes. Eat plenty."
A lingering echo of home, found on the 1st floor of the Demeter Dungeon, filled my chest completely.
"Once you're finished, let's prepare to head back. Today's adventure ends here. Understood?"
"I want to go to the 2nd floor! Master!"
"No. We have to keep to curfew. And for the time being, I'll be gathering ingredients on the 1st floor. I don't know what else the Grass Cow might drop, and I'll need enough ingredients to register Sagol Sujebi as a proper menu item."
"Oh…. Yes! Understood! I'll finish eating before it gets cold, Master!"
"Yes. Yes."
Yuna drained the bowl clean to the last drop and smiled, satisfied.
"More, please!"
‘Not satisfied after all?’
"Understood."
"If you could add a bit more meat…. Yes, just like that…. Oh. And the broth too…. I mean…. And the Sujebi too…."
"There's plenty to eat your fill."
"Hmm…. Hmm. A little short of…. Is it enough…?"
Yuna looked not at her bowl but at the large pot, then tilted her head.
I genuinely had no idea how much could fit in that small body of hers.
"In any case. Eat until you're satisfied. If there isn't enough, we can just hunt more and make more."
"Ahh…. Yes! Understood!"
‘What a lovely smile.’
‘Children, after all, are at their finest when they eat plenty and laugh often.’
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Demeter Academy is poor. Its student body is small.
Those with talent had transferred elsewhere, and only those without remained enrolled.
Even a graduation certificate from a rural academy like this could get you into a mercenary company or, if fortune smiled, the city guard.
In that regard, Student Council President Yuna Linforce was an oddity.
She could surely have aimed to become a knight, which would have afforded her a far better life.
And yet she had become Student Council President and stayed here at Demeter.
Her own sharp discipline. Her striking looks.
In a place that wouldn't have been out of place being called a gathering of leftovers, Yuna Linforce was unmistakably in a different class.
The gap was so vast that Yuna Linforce had very few friends.
A rumor had begun circulating about the otherwise flawless Student Council President Yuna.
That she left somewhere every morning at the crack of dawn to work.
The rumor was that she was fulfilling mandatory community service hours for some transgression she'd committed at school.
And the transgression, the rumor went, was on account of a man.
In summary, the rumor went like this: Yuna had been messing around with a man and missed curfew at the dormitory, got caught by a professor for it, and now had to make up community service hours—and was spending even those service hours with the man in question.
It was so absurd that most dismissed it as an unfounded rumor, yet it still carried the scent of someone wanting to confirm the truth for themselves.
"Hmmm…. Seriously? That uptight Student Council President messing around with a man? An outside man, even?"
From a distance, she watched Yuna exchanging words with members of the Student Council.
Neatly arranged long black hair. Crisp posture. A perpetually smiling face that never once let her guard slip.
The picture-perfect Student Council President to anyone who looked.
Even in this small academy, there were many who looked up to someone like Yuna.
The very picture of being born graceful and lovely. She probably ate little too.
"How annoying."
A girl with snow-white skin, lips painted in red lipstick, a modified uniform, and attractive blond hair worn to one side had heard this rumor.
Silen Artre.
A girl living at Demeter Academy, and by unique occupational nature—a Rogue.
Occupation is like a mark of fate that no person can escape. She had been born with a talent for bows and daggers, a knack for Lockpicking, and a quick-moving body.
Rogues are inclined to curse their own talent, but she was different.
To what degree—the Rogue Guild was already eyeing her as their next ace candidate, and the Adventurer's Guild was certain she would become an outstanding adventurer in due course.
It was a mystery as to why she was still at Demeter.
It was this Silen Artre, with the natural aptitudes of a Rogue, who moved to personally confirm the truth of the rumor—because those with rogue inclinations love rumors, and love teasing others even more, so it was only natural that she would want to confirm the truth of a rumor about the noble and pristine Student Council President.
And so, Silen headed to the forest, the source of the rumor.
There was a stall there.
Several tables and chairs were set out, and there was a cooking station.
A man stood there cooking.
So this was the man who had drawn in the Student Council President.
She had gotten good information.
Perhaps she'd spy a little more….
Just as she thought this and moved to slip away—
"Are all the students at this school coming to spy on my shop?"
The voice had addressed her.
A Rogue's Stealth skill is absolutely undetectable by those of equal standing. That is why Rogues always train Stealth as their top priority and take on the role of a party's scouts.
Silen undoubtedly possessed stealth capabilities on par with active professional Rogues, yet the voice from across the way had pointed to her with perfect precision.
She realized she had already stepped inside his range, so rather than attempting to flee, Silen raised both hands.
"Mister. How did you know?"
"How could I not? One would have to quit adventuring if they couldn't detect such shoddy stealth."
"Oh, right. Quite impressive, aren't you, Mister."
"Yes. Enormously so."
"Hmph. So what is this place?"
"Can't you tell just by looking? It's a place that sells food. No fixed menu—each day I sell what I've brought back from the Demeter Dungeon. Satisfied? Spy."
"Oh. Is that so? I'm a little sorry for the spying then."
Silen wasn't particularly fond of Yujin inwardly.
Her stealth should have been flawless—there was no way someone as ordinary as this man should have caught it.
This old man definitely had a detection magic tool on him somewhere and was just pretending he'd caught her through skill. A fraud.
"This is a restaurant. If you'd like to apologize for your rudeness, order something. The price is a flat 4,500 Sel."
Not a bad price.
The problem was that Silen didn't have that money on her.
Oh. A good idea came to her.
Eat something, and if it's bad—or even if it's good—just insult it and leave.
Silen had no intention of forgiving the humiliation this had brought upon herself.
"Well then, give me something."
‘Whatever comes out, I'll tear it apart. I'm a Rogue and I know plenty of bad words.’
She resolved herself accordingly.
And that resolve lasted precisely until Yujin's cooking began—right up until the moment before the signature bowl he was so proud of was brought out.
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