Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 251

It seemed as if an enormous radiance was erupting from the pot, and the stew transformed into an even more appetizing color.

Keinzel tentatively scooped up some of the beans, which had become soft after being thoroughly boiled, and brought them to his mouth.

‘Hmm… It’s delicious after all.’

The beans, having absorbed the unique, strong flavor of the monster meat, were so delicious that they elicited involuntary exclamations of admiration.

Both the taste and aroma were exactly as Keinzel remembered, with nothing to add or subtract.

In a way, it was only natural. Preservatives aren’t seasonings that make the taste better.

Keinzel examined the dish analyzed by the Gourmet skill.

[Erbseneintopf That Tastes Good Even When Cold]

* Lentil beans, having absorbed the flavor of Gorgon lard, instantly restore lost stamina.

* Thanks to the ‘Pharaoh’s Preservative,’ it can be preserved in its original state for up to 3 years.

‘……This is, seriously, amazing?’

He had thought of preservatives as something that could keep food from spoiling for a while.

Even that alone would have been incredibly useful.

But the Pharaoh’s Preservative had abilities beyond that.

To think it could maintain the taste, aroma, and even the added effects of the dish for three years!

If mass production were possible, things he had only imagined until now would become reality.

At the same time, a message popped up indicating that the Souvide skill slot was filling up.

[Souvide: 3/5]

Now, he only needed to create two more dishes with preservation abilities to acquire a new skill.

As Keinzel trembled with joy, Mayor Wilson, who was watching from the side, asked.

“Keinzel, is there something wrong?”

“It’s too perfect, that’s the problem.”

“……Pardon?”

Keinzel smiled and filled a small jar-shaped bowl with Erbseneintopf, handing it to him.

“Try the taste before distributing it to the workers.”

Mayor Wilson’s mouth stretched from ear to ear.

To think he would have the honor of being the first to taste a dish made by the Sword Master.

Of course, his heart ached when he thought about the large sum of money that would be leaving his pocket, but that was a problem he could think about later.

“Then, I will enjoy it.”

Mayor Wilson smacked his lips and picked up a rough spoon made of carved wood.

It seemed like a lot of broth had been added, but the beans had absorbed it all, leaving only a little at the bottom.

As he sniffed the aroma, a strong meaty scent burst forth. It was such an appealing dish that he couldn’t resist shoving it into his mouth right away.

He scooped up a generous portion of the steaming bean stew and brought it to his mouth.

Then, the taste of the beans and vegetables, which had turned into a soft, fluffy texture that didn’t even need to be chewed, spread throughout his mouth.

“……!”

The carrots, having fully absorbed the vegetable broth and softened to the point of melting.

Combined with the sweetness of the onions, they left a fantastic aftertaste on the tip of his tongue before disappearing into his stomach.

It was so delicious that tears welled up in his eyes.

And what about the lentil beans, having fully absorbed the oil from the meat?

When eaten with bacon, lightly fried in lard and thoroughly boiled, it had an unbelievably profound taste.

To think that such delicious food could be made with common ingredients like lentil beans, bacon, carrots, and onions.

Keinzel presented sourdough bread made with Fire Fist and natural yeast.

“It will taste even better if you eat it with this.”

“Ah……!”

Wilson, as if possessed, piled the bean stew on top of the bread and took a bite in one go.

The crust was slightly hard, but the inside was moist and soft.

It must have been baked with high-quality rye.

As he chewed, the bean stew oozed out from the soft dough.

While Wilson was eating ravenously, the workers had already formed a long line.

“Ah, it’s really delicious. You all should eat quickly.”

As if that were a signal, the city hall chefs who had been waiting began serving.

“Sob, I can finally eat……! Well then, I will enjoy it!”

But there was one strange thing.

“Huh? The amount of food being made is quite unusual, isn’t it? Even if we eat a lot, it doesn’t seem like we can eat all of that.”

The number of workers mobilized to repair the collapsed walls was about 100. Even with the added workers today, it doesn’t exceed 130.

But no matter how you looked at it, that was enough for almost 10 times that number of people to eat.

“Why worry about such things? It’s good to have plenty! Now, let’s eat until our bellies burst!”

“Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!”

Mayor Wilson, who had eaten not only a plate full of bean stew but also two large loaves of bread, wore a satisfied smile.

“As expected, the food made by Keinzel is really delicious……. Ugh, ugh……!”

At the same time, the muscles all over Wilson’s body began to convulse.

It wasn’t just the taste that was amazing.

“……Strength, strength is surging!”

It felt as if stamina was seeping through his throat and into his entire body.

With this much strength, wouldn’t he be able to lift the debris of the collapsed walls right now?

Moreover, Mayor Wilson hadn’t slept properly for days due to supporting the wall restoration work.

But his complexion had improved noticeably.

“M, Mayor?! You seem to have gotten a lot younger.”

“Hehe……. You should also try Keinzel’s stew. Then you’ll know what’s going on.”

Then, even the soldiers who were clearing the debris of the collapsed buildings rushed over.

“There’s plenty of food! Please keep the order!”

Only then did Wilson realize why Keinzel had made so much food.

If he had made exactly the amount for the workers, a rather troublesome situation would have occurred.

“Kuaaaah! Strength! Strength! Is overflowing!”

“Hey, why are you trying to run home? If you’ve eaten enough, go back to what you were doing.”

“Hmph. I should ask Justin to make bean stew for me tonight.”

After the distribution was somewhat complete, Keinzel explained to Wilson about the remaining 800 servings of food.

“Even if I’m not here, you can replenish your depleted stamina by heating this up and eating it. Roughly, the work should be finished in about three days, right?”

“……Won’t the food spoil in this hot weather?”

“That will never happen, so you don’t have to worry. I’ve taken special measures to prevent the food from spoiling.”

“Ooh…….”

Mayor Wilson would now believe Keinzel implicitly, even if he cooked with monster meat.

‘If I make food like this in advance, I can level up even while sleeping? Isn’t that totally awesome?’

However, he had already used nearly half of the preservative that was full in the ceramic jar.

To continue using it in cooking, he needed to increase the amount.

― Leave that to me, partner. Give me a week, and I’ll create a preservative with perfectly identical performance.

‘As expected of the alchemist of alchemy, Bishop! I’m counting on you.’

― Hmph. You’re only humble at times like this.

Keinzel turned around to go to the Magic Tower to entrust the preservative. It was at that moment.

“Oh my, I came because I smelled something delicious, and it was indeed the food made by the little one.”

A familiar and strangely sweet voice from behind.

Keinzel turned around in surprise.

There stood Elizabeth Metatron, the Sword Master of Benevolence and a half-succubus who exuded tremendous sex appeal just by walking, with a seductive smile on her face.

* * *

“Why is Elza-nim in Citizen?!”

“That’s what I want to ask. Weren’t you going to solve the problems facing the Ottoman Empire?”

“I just got back. Anyway, it’s been a really long time. Ah, would you like a bowl?”

“Ahaha! Well, if you offer, I won’t refuse. Anyway, was the Ottoman Empire issue properly resolved?”

“There are a few loose ends, but it ended reasonably well. You’ll probably hear from Sinbad……. No, Mustafa III soon.”

Elizabeth, with a spoon in her mouth, looked at the man standing behind Keinzel.

A strange aura was emanating from his body.

For a moment, a different light seemed to appear in her eyes, and she dropped what she was holding.

“That person……. No, that dragon is……!”

“Ah, I’m late with the introduction. This is Red Dragon Magnus-nim, who recently signed a guardian dragon contract with Gistad Territory.”

“Ugh! You should have given me a heads up if you were coming with someone like that! Ah, if I had known, I would have worn a dress…….”

Elizabeth roughly dusted off the leather clothes she was wearing and paid her respects to Magnus in front of him.

“It is an honor to meet the Lord of the great Dragon race. I am Elizabeth Metatron.”

“Hmm? A half-incubus using the name of the Archangel Metatron, strange things do happen. Well, this dragon is Magnus. I hate troublesome things, so please don’t talk to me if possible.”

“……I understand.”

Keinzel briefly told Elizabeth about what had happened, who was asking for an explanation.

She listened to Keinzel’s words, constantly uttering exclamations of admiration.

“……That’s how I came back to Britannia with Magnus-nim. Originally, it would have taken about a month longer.”

“Hmph…….”

Elizabeth looked at Magnus with narrowed eyes.

Even though she had obtained the ultimate trump card, the Dragon Lord, it was hard to expect more than a simple advisor role.

It was just a pity.

“Anyway, it’s good to see you. While the little one was away, Britannia has been in chaos.”

Through Elizabeth, Keinzel was able to hear in more detail about the situation Britannia was facing.

“The Urk, the natives of the New World, lost the god they followed a long time ago and were reduced to slaves. But it seems that their chieftain is trying to become independent under the pretext of liberating slaves.”

“Independence?”

“Yes, and they are demonstrating their power by demanding that the northwest of Britannia be handed over. They say they will build an empire for orcs there. Anyway, I don’t know how they regained their belligerence, but I think a large-scale all-out war will break out soon? Ugh, I’m so angry……! The humans of the New World were the ones who made them slaves in the first place, so why are they crossing the sea to cause trouble?”

Why were the natives of the New World aiming for the northwest of Britannia?

At that moment, Keinzel’s eyes widened.

There lies the gate to the Demon World and Calliope, who guards it.

“If it’s the northwest, it definitely includes the White Mountains, right? I smell something fishy.”

Then Elizabeth widened her eyes and brought her nose to her arm.

“Sniff sniff. Hmm? I don’t smell anything on my body? I haven’t been able to wash for a few days because I’ve been busy…….”

“Not that, maybe the war of independence is just a pretext.”

“They are definitely followers of the evil god, so the purpose may be to unseal the gate. Anyway, Emperor Aslan said he would respond strongly, saying he couldn’t give up even a small island. He said that there would be thorough retaliation for any armed provocation. Ah, I almost forgot.”

Elizabeth then gestured to Abel.

“Our cutie. Didn’t you miss your sister?”

“…….”

“Let’s save the reunion for later. There are a total of six Sword Masters in Britannia right now. Meliot and Hector died in the last year.”

Britannia has traditionally held seven Sword Masters.

So all formations are tailored to that. If even one seat is vacant, there will be a big problem in terms of power.

“So Emperor Aslan ordered the complete opening of the Tower of the Void to cultivate new Sword Masters as quickly as possible.”

The Tower of the Void, the sanctuary of Sword Masters.

It was a place famous for producing more than one Sword Master for generations.

No one knows what happens inside unless they are involved.

However, it is only known that it is the best guide for those who want to cross the wall even at the risk of their lives.

“Abel has been selected as a candidate. He’s my disciple for now, right? He’s a promising one. So, I’m sorry, but can I borrow our cutie for a while?”

Keinzel couldn’t understand why she was asking him for permission instead of Abel.

However, he pricked up his ears at the mention of the Tower of the Void.

“Elza-nim. Can I go up there too?”

“Hmph, you, little one? You can already use Aura Blade, so there doesn’t seem to be anything you can get there?”

“There’s something I’m concerned about.”

Keinzel grows stronger by cooking.

So he doesn’t know how other people became Sword Masters.

‘Maybe there are hints hidden in the Tower of the Void to obtain the true power of Signature.’

Elizabeth, realizing that Keinzel’s determination was firm, lit up her eyes.

“Well, if they see the little one, who was once a colleague, they will be motivated. Okay. I’m the tower master in the first place, so I don’t need to ask for separate permission, right? Ah, I’ll tell you in advance, you’ll see a welcome face there.”

“A welcome face?”

The next day, Keinzel was able to understand what Elizabeth meant.