Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 123

“I don’t know which kitchen you worked in, but the dwarves are very picky eaters. They’ll even go on strike if they don’t like the food.”

Such a reaction was only natural.

Becoming a proper chef takes at least ten years, starting from preparing ingredients.

The effectiveness of the trait suppression also played a part.

While wearing the bracelet, Cainchel’s fallen noble and knightly traits became unnoticeable.

In the end, he just looked like a naive young man who had just come to the city from a rural estate.

‘Just by removing a few traits, his impression can change this much.’

Cainchel smiled, impressed by the power of the magical artifact.

“It’s alright. I’m quite confident in my cooking skills.”

“Hmm······.”

“If you don’t trust me, I can make something simple.”

“I’m sorry, but the atmosphere has been uneasy these past few days, so I haven’t been able to go shopping. There are no ingredients left.”

Cainchel looked at the ingredients left in the house. A few pieces of stale, dried-up bread. Some goat’s milk and a little salt.

There was really nothing else.

“It seems the hen has laid an egg. This is enough to make a great dish.”

“Really? There isn’t even an onion, which is usually common. Haha, I suddenly feel very sorry.”

Cainchel shrugged and headed to the kitchen.

First, he put the egg and goat’s milk in a large bowl and whisked it as if making meringue.

‘And then, pretending to add salt, I’ll sprinkle in some gem salt instead. Oh, the luster of the foam is different already?’

It felt a bit like cheating, but gem salt was still salt.

Goat’s milk has a unique grassy smell, so it’s mainly used to make yogurt or cheese.

The fishy taste doesn’t go well with bread.

But when the unique flavor of gem salt was mixed in, something amazing happened.

A sweet fragrance like high-end cream wafted out. It seemed like there was no need to add sugar separately.

Jack was impressed with the finished egg mixture.

He was a master craftsman who had worked in the smithy for a long time and had considerable insight.

Just by looking at the way he was whisking, he could tell that Cainchel’s skill was not ordinary.

“Haha, young man. Have you been whisking all your life?”

“It’s a very delicious-looking foam, isn’t it? Now, I’ll soak the bread in it.”

“Hmm!”

Cainchel lightly touched the surface of the bread with his finger.

It was rough and hard. It was amazing that it hadn’t gone bad yet.

He carefully placed the dried-up bread in the bowl, making sure the egg mixture soaked in evenly.

Then, as if blessed by a high priest, the dying bread was completely revived.

“Unbelievable! Is that really the bread we were going to throw away?”

French toast was originally created to use old, dried-out bread.

Freshly baked bread doesn’t absorb the egg mixture properly, making it less tasty.

“I’ll use a little butter I have with me. I could make butter from goat’s milk, but there’s not enough time.”

“Does the young man carry butter around with him?”

“Butter is essential for French cuisine.”

“Haha······.”

When he spread butter on the heated pan, a sizzling sound and a savory aroma filled the air.

French toast is a dish that needs to be cooked slowly over low heat.

‘Now, shall I leave the grilling to Fallen Star [likely a skill or item]?’

The French toast was browning nicely on the pan, with the temperature set to 0.1-degree increments.

It was agonizing for Zeke, who was watching.

There weren’t many pieces of bread. Jack might get some, but there wouldn’t be any for him.

When one side turned brown, he moved the pan and flipped it over. It only contained butter, eggs, and milk, but how could it smell so good?

“The smell of Cuban bread with lots of pork fat was amazing, but this is even better······.”

Jack saw the smile on Cainchel’s face as he cooked.

“To look so happy while cooking······.”

It reminded him of his apprentice days, and his heart felt warm.

Surely, food made with such joy would taste good.

The smell of melted butter and egg-soaked French toast filled the room, and Jack swallowed hard.

“Then, let’s try it.”

He took a fork and cut off a piece of the deliciously grilled French toast. The inside was so soft that it was hard to believe it had been dried-up bread just moments ago.

He brought it to his mouth.

“Oh, oh······.”

An unbelievably soft and fragrant taste. Even more surprising was the subtle sweetness, even though no sugar had been added.

“······It’s really soft. To bake dried-up bread this well, you must be good at grilling meat too.”

Jack put his hands on the table and lowered his head. This was a dish he couldn’t possibly evaluate.

“I’m sorry, young man. With this level of cooking skill, you can definitely satisfy the dwarves’ tastes.”

“Won’t you have more?”

“Is that alright?”

“Yes. You can eat it all. I made it for that purpose anyway.”

Cainchel smiled and sprinkled cinnamon powder on the remaining piece of French toast.

“Hoo, the flavor changes completely, as if it has become a different dish.”

That was the charm of French toast.

“It’s also delicious with maple syrup or strawberry jam.”

“I’d love to try it if I get the chance. Anyway, with this level of skill, I can safely tell you the location.”

The place where Blue Mountain was located was Ironforge, which could be reached by crossing the back alleys.

“You’ll find them entrenched and protesting there. Be careful, Ironforge is a place that emits heat so intense that it can melt even iron.”

Dwarves are born with high fire resistance. That’s why they can work near huge furnaces without breaking a sweat.

But humans are not. In the end, only dwarves could freely enter Ironforge.

“It’s alright. The flames in the kitchen are sometimes hotter than a furnace.”

@

A dwarf with an axe was guarding the entrance to Ironforge. He was short, but he didn’t look weak at all.

A natural miner and craftsman who creates all sorts of things. Moreover, the dwarves’ combat ability, with their tremendous fire resistance, is difficult to deal with even for Aura users [those who can manipulate their life energy].

It was said that if dwarves wielded axes instead of hammers, even the landscape of territorial wars would change.

‘They’re not just doing this because the food is bad. Moreover, their hostility towards humans has increased considerably. There must be another reason.’

“Brother, you’re not even sweating in this heat. Ugh, I’m sorry. I’ll go to the guild and gather some information.”

Zeke was sweating so much that his clothes were completely soaked. That’s how intense the heat emanating from Ironforge was.

“Then, could you find out if the dwarves are striking simply because of the food issue?”

“That’s not difficult!”

Cainchel watched Zeke’s retreating figure as he waved his hand.

He was a mysterious person.

A man who reached the top with his tracking and investigation skills, not swordsmanship. He had overcome many crises thanks to Zeke’s help.

Zeke went around saying that he could trade even his own life for money.

But is his goal really just money?

For some reason, he didn’t think so.

“Brother! Why do you look so serious? I got the information you wanted. Actually, there wasn’t much to it.”

“As expected of Zeke, you’re fast. Let’s hear it then.”

“The reason the dwarves are striking is indeed because of hunger. But the target is a bit special.”

Blue Mountain has a wife named Ethiopia. But she is suffering from severe homesickness. There’s no problem up to that point. It’s natural for anyone to miss their hometown.

The problem is that Ethiopia’s health suddenly deteriorated.

“Hmm······. It’s true that if the quality of food you eat suddenly worsens, it can harm your health.”

“Ethiopia’s homesickness worsened as she lay in bed. Then, she apparently said she wanted to eat her hometown’s cuisine before she died. Blue Mountain went crazy and demanded it. But it seems that it’s a dish that’s difficult for Britannia people to make. It requires a very special ingredient.”

“A special ingredient?”

“Yes, sand worm meat.”

“Is Ethiopia’s hometown the Ottoman Empire, by any chance?”

“Isn’t it funny?”

Cainchel quietly looked at the sand worm meat in his pocket.

He never thought that dwarves would enjoy sand worm meat.

‘Certainly, the heat of the desert wouldn’t be a big deal for dwarves with high fire resistance.’

Moreover, they have strong stamina, so hunting sand worms wouldn’t be difficult for them.

Now that he knew this much, there was no need to wait any longer. Cainchel fearlessly approached the entrance of Ironforge.

Then, the dwarf with the axe blocked Cainchel’s entry.

“Do you want to die, human! I told you that not even an ant would pass through unless our demands are met!”

‘This is definitely outside, but the temperature is over 37 degrees Celsius [98.6 degrees Fahrenheit]? If I go inside, it’ll be 40, no, 50 degrees Celsius [104-122 degrees Fahrenheit].’

Cainchel was surprised by the heat of Ironforge and took out a parchment from his pocket and held it out.

“Could you please deliver this to Blue Mountain? He’ll know.”

“Hmph! Do you think I’ll listen to a human!”

It seemed that a letter of introduction alone wouldn’t make the dwarf’s short legs move.

“Then, perhaps you need sand worm meat?”

“Where would you find sand worm meat······.”

The dwarf scoffed at the mention of sand worm meat.

It was a common meat in the Ottoman Empire, but this was Britannia. It was nearly impossible to obtain sand worm meat.

Cainchel took out the leftover sand worm meat from his dimensional pocket.

“Here it is.”

“U, uaaaaagh! I, it’s real sand worm meat!”

The dwarf stared at the sand worm meat with wide eyes. Only that meat had such a black color.

“Y, human! J, just wait a moment!”

The dwarf forgot that he was guarding the gate and went inside.

And he returned with a dwarf who had a long, blue beard, just like his name.

“B, Blue Mountain! Here! This human says he has sand worm meat!”

“Hoo······. Even Baron Briam is begging me to wait just one more week, and someone has already brought sand worm meat?”

Blue Mountain held his chin high and looked at Cainchel’s face.

“Unfamiliar face. Tell me if you know him. It’s hard for dwarves to distinguish human faces.”

Just as it was difficult for humans to distinguish dwarves, it was the same for dwarves.

Moreover, he had used a magical artifact to eliminate all his physical characteristics, so how could they recognize him?

“No, this is my first time meeting you. But could you please take a look at this for a moment?”

Cainchel handed over the letter of introduction written by Merchant Tas.

Blue Mountain read it at once and his eyes widened.

“Tas’s friend is as good as my friend. But, gee. You’ve come at a bad time.”

“Yes, I heard you’re on strike.”

“If you know that much, the story will be faster. Explain why you brought the letter of introduction and the sand worm meat, boy.”

“In addition to the letter of introduction, I would like to request a talent exchange.”

“Talent exchange?”

He wasn’t asking because he didn’t know.

Even by human standards, he was just surprised that a young man had requested a talent exchange from a virtuoso of the dwarf clan.

It was one of the customs of the dwarf clan, a kind of repayment of favor.

You can’t always return what you received from the other person in the same form.

Therefore, they use their talents to repay the value instead.

Dwarves with a talent for making money do it with money. Dwarves who are good at making weapons make weapons.

Sometimes they even demanded things like marriage, but Blue Mountain had no children.

“Talent exchanges should always be made between things of equal value. Is your trump card the letter of introduction and the sand worm meat······.”

Blue Mountain’s eyes softened. He brought the sand worm meat that his wife wanted so much. Surely, he would have to make him a decent sword or two in return.

But Cainchel wasn’t satisfied with just that.

Cainchel smiled and placed another card on his scale.

Hungry People #3