Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 283

Keinzel gave a bitter smile.

Marcus had been in charge of the Oakland Cowboy branch for a long time.

Yet, he had fainted at the mere sight of a monster’s corpse.

It could be considered a tremendous disgrace.

However, most people would react the same way upon suddenly seeing a ‘Sea Serpent’ with its eyes wide open.

Fortunately, Marcus quickly regained consciousness and let out a belated scream.

“Ugh, ugh, aaaaah! T-t-there really is a Sea Serpent?!

He managed to salvage what little pride he had left by reflexively drawing the sword he carried at his waist.

Marcus stared at the scene outside the window with a dazed expression.

It was definitely not a delusion or illusion. No matter how many times he checked, it was definitely a Sea Serpent.

Moreover, blood was flowing from the severed section, as if it had just been cut off.

“C-could you please explain?”

Keinzel explained in a light tone, as if he had just hunted a rabbit in the backyard.

After hearing everything, Marcus sighed.

“…So, you were chasing a fleeing Kraken [a legendary sea monster] and ended up at its nest. And there, you found an injured sea serpent and took care of it as a side job?”

“Orc, monster caught. Want reward.”

Marcus’s body trembled. This was literally a jackpot. To think they would catch an A-class monster on their first request.

Of course, he didn’t blindly trust the Orc’s words.

However, there was undeniable evidence in front of him: the Sea Serpent they had successfully defeated.

“Let me be honest. I’m sorry, but the Oakland branch’s current financial situation doesn’t allow us to provide compensation for defeating the Sea Serpent. But could you wait just ten days? Then, I promise to give you ten times the amount you received just now, with my responsibility.”

Keinzel roughly counted the gold coins in his pocket and grinned.

“Orc, get many gold coins. Get one thousand.”

“…Yes, I will definitely make sure you get that much.”

One thousand gold was a huge sum, hard to earn even by catching thousands of E~D class monsters.

However, the Sea Serpent was a monster officially designated by the federal government.

If the fact that it had been successfully defeated became known, the branch’s status would rise by one level… no, at least three levels.

Moreover, sailors would be able to go out to sea with much more peace of mind.

Oakland would surely become the largest port city in Argon.

Considering that, it wasn’t a losing proposition for Marcus either.

“However, it wouldn’t look good if we said you caught it as a bonus, so how about coming up with a plausible reason? For example, saying you set out to defeat it for the sake of sailors suffering from monster attacks.”

“Orc don’t know difficult things. Do it yourself.”

“Haha, I understand. Just trust me. I’ll make you a hero.”

Marcus was convinced that Gray would become a great Cowboy who would go down in history.

And he would become a master who raised a hero.

Keinzel stared at Marcus’s eyes, which gleamed with a strange desire.

‘As planned, the fact that the Sea Serpent is dead will be plausibly packaged and announced.’

Now, all that remained was to wait for the fame of the Sea Serpent Slayer who appeared in Oakland to spread.

* * *

The next day, Keinzel’s monster subjugation began in earnest.

First, he scanned the request board, which was filled with requests. Then, as if waiting for him, a receptionist approached and rubbed his hands together.

“You’ve already come to find new work, even though it hasn’t been a day since you returned from subjugation?”

“Orc, make money. Make lots of money.”

“Haha, from the branch’s perspective, we’re really grateful if you work hard. Anyway, the branch manager told me to treat you as a Load Cowboy [elite-ranked Cowboy] from today. He said Load Gray deserves it.”

Load.

It was a title given to Cowboys with the best skills.

The commission for subjugation requests was reduced by half, and they received a fixed amount of money every month even if they did nothing.

If they wanted, they would even build a house in the residential area.

Originally, one had to complete at least a hundred requests to become a Load Cowboy.

In short, it meant they would give him the best treatment possible, so please settle down.

At first, some people opposed it, but after hearing that they had defeated the Sea Serpent with just two people, they had no choice but to admit it.

The receptionist tore off a request from the center of the board and said.

“This is the one with the highest reward among the requests we have now. The target monster is a B-class Black Troll, but three of them travel together. So they’re called the Black Triad…”

Information necessary for the request poured out of his mouth.

In cases where multiple monsters appear, a plus grade is attached, and the reward is more than doubled.

Keinzel shook his head and pointed to the upper left of the board.

“Orc, do this. From this…”

“Yes? Isn’t that a Lizardman subjugation request? I don’t think the reward is enough for Load Gray to take on.”

“…All of them here.”

Then, he tore off all the requests in the center of the board and handed them to the receptionist.

The number was over twenty.

Most of them were dangerous monsters that other Cowboys couldn’t even touch.

“A-alright. But even if it’s other monsters, I don’t think you should include the Thunderbird. It’s a giant bird that spews electricity and is very dangerous. It’s hard to deal with without ballistae or catapults capable of anti-air attacks.”

Keinzel grinned and pulled out Durandal, which he was wearing at his waist.

“Orc, strong. Sword enough.”

The receptionist sighed. What could he do when the person himself wanted it?

Besides, the person in front of him was a skilled warrior who had even subjugated the Sea Serpent. If he were human, he could have become a Royal Knight.

Keinzel left the branch and divided the requests in half with Gawain.

“But why are most of them insect-type monsters for me? That Thunderbird or whatever is a monster you can’t see in Britannia. I was going to test how far my Heaven-shattering, Earth-crushing technique would go…”

“If you did that, it would be so smashed that you couldn’t even eat it.”

“Ah…! Don’t tell me you thought that far ahead and divided them like this?”

When Keinzel nodded, Gawain hummed a tune and set off to slice up the monsters.

To obtain high-quality meat, one must pay attention to the butchering process from the start.

The requests contained very detailed information about the places where monsters mainly appeared.

After following it for about half a day, they arrived at a forest called Redwood.

‘The monsters that appear here are the Thunderbird and the Black Triad. Should I catch the electric bird first?’

Kkiruruluk!

It was a calf-sized bird with as many as four wings. It was somewhat small among the wyvern species, but the electricity spewing from its feathers was terrifying.

Normally, it was a monster that could only be found deep in the forest. But this was only the entrance.

Why had it already appeared?

The reason was soon clear. The screams of men cutting down trees with axes echoed loudly.

“Damn it, it’s a Thunderbird!”

“What? They said it was safe as long as we didn’t go deep into the forest?!”

“W-we’re all dead…!”

The Redwood Forest had become a remote area with little human access because it was the habitat of the Thunderbird. So, lush trees grew so tall that the sky was not visible.

The lumberjacks had come to log, aiming for that.

Keinzel approached the screaming lumberjack and handed him a Kraken skewer he had prepared just in case.

“Eat it. Then you’ll be okay even if you get struck by lightning.”

“O-Orc…? N-no one would ever eat food given by an Orc…”

“If you don’t eat it, you’ll die.”

The Kraken was steaming as if it had just been grilled. Moreover, it smelled savory, perhaps because it was generously coated with butter.

The lumberjack swallowed his saliva without realizing it, even though the Thunderbird was circling overhead.

“Hic. Oh well, I don’t care. It’s the same whether I die like this or like that…”

As he tore off a large chunk and put it in his mouth, he felt the taste of the chewy skin.

It was savory and slightly salty, perhaps because it was grilled with plenty of butter. As he chewed slowly, the unbelievably soft flesh revealed itself.

“Hehe, this is really delicious. You should try it too. This is really delicious.”

“Is that really so?”

“…Y-yes! It’s chewy and salty, and it’s incredibly delicious! But strangely, it’s a taste that makes me want to drink beer.”

It was the moment when the three lumberjacks, as if possessed by something, put the Kraken skewer in their mouths.

Just as it flashed, an enormous electric shock was emitted from the Thunderbird’s body.

It had a habit of grilling its prey with electricity from its body.

The scary thing about electricity is that even if you are near someone who has been directly hit, you will be electrocuted in the same way.

It was the same ability as the 6th circle lightning magic Chain Lightning [a powerful spell].

However, the lumberjacks’ bodies were fine. Not even a small scorch mark was left.

“…Huh? I was definitely struck by lightning, but how am I still alive?”

“Is the Thunderbird broken?”

“S-surely the strange meat the Orc gave us is really…”

I’m sorry to the lumberjacks, but there was no time to answer them leisurely.

The Thunderbird generates electricity from the muscles of its entire body.

However, the amount is not infinite. If it consumes it to the limit, the meat quality will deteriorate. It had to be taken care of neatly before that.

When the Thunderbird began to prepare to emit electricity again, flapping its two pairs of wings.

Dozens of strands of pasta sprang from Keinzel’s hands and wrapped around the Thunderbird’s entire body.

“Fish and Chips…!”

Kkiruruluk-!

At the same time, fourteen sword strikes pierced the wind and struck the Thunderbird’s body.

* * *

After a month, Gray and Green’s names became so famous that there was no one in the vicinity of Oakland who didn’t know them.

However, they were not treated as heroes as Marcus wanted.

“Have you heard the rumor? Gray has finally defeated the Ogre Lord.”

“Huh, are you talking about the guy called the ruler of the green forest?”

“Not only that. Yesterday, he even single-handedly defeated the Giant Sand Worm, which was a nuisance on the central highway.”

“He’s really scary strong.”

“Haa, it’s good that the number of monsters has decreased and we can walk around with peace of mind. But I don’t think we can just be happy about it.”

“Isn’t it good that it’s good?”

“Think about it carefully. If the slaves get any crazy ideas and run away, you’ll be in trouble too. In a farm in the next village, a few young Orcs ran away, saying they would become Cowboys. Those nasty things. They don’t even know the grace of being fed and clothed…”

Keinzel, who was hiding in the back alley and listening to the story of the farm owner, smiled bitterly.

At that rate, they were no different from livestock.

He also felt it at the Oakland branch, but the treatment of Orc slaves was worse than he thought.

Ribbit-

At that time, an unidentified frog croaked near Keinzel’s feet.

The frog jumped up and landed on Keinzel’s left shoulder.

“Nice to meet you. Great warrior Load Gray. I am the shaman Royten, who has brought the message of the great chieftain Ol Talmus.”

Orc shamans can turn their bodies into frogs.

Of course, even if you step on it and kill it, it won’t harm the main body. It was a kind of possession that only moved the spirit to the frog.

Keinzel’s eyes narrowed. The messenger he had been waiting for had finally arrived.