Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 134

As if to prove it, a group of men dragged in a miner bound in chains.

His eyes were wild with madness, and hateful words poured from his mouth.

“Ki-kill them… All of them… Kill them…”

The man who brought him scratched the back of his head and said, “He’s incredibly strong; I almost died bringing him here. Ah, I’ll have the curry with plenty of meat and vegetables.”

It seemed they were used to bringing people suffering from these fits of madness here.

Kainchel scooped a generous portion of freshly cooked rice and topped it with curry.

‘As I suspected, everyone cursed is a miner.’

Goldrush was a town famous for its mines, but not all its residents were miners.

Rather, there were more family members or peddlers who bought and sold minerals.

Yet, strangely, only those working in the mines were afflicted by the curse of rage.

He sensed an invisible conspiracy stirring deep underground.

Just in case, he entered the mine in the dead of night when no one was around to investigate.

However, nothing came of it.

‘It’s not like the source of the curse takes a nap at night. Then there’s only one answer.’

The one spreading the curse is human.

Someone in a position where it wouldn’t be strange to be mixed among the miners.

Kainchel narrowed his eyes and looked at the people gathered to buy curry.

The culprit might be hiding among them.

‘Either way, if I keep cooking here, I’ll get some attention. From the perspective of the person spreading the curse, I’ll be an eyesore.’

He felt like a fisherman casting a line and waiting. He decided to carefully observe those who approached for a while.

At that moment, the crowd parted, and several armed guards approached.

“What, another person with madness?”

A situation that would have made everyone in line nervous.

However, the miner who brought the berserker only had an awkward smile on his face.

“Did you come to eat curry too, soldier?”

“Yeah, I live for this these days.”

He sat down at a table marked ‘Reserved’ and raised his hand.

“Five mutton curries here! And that… what was it? That salty pickled vegetable is really delicious.”

Rolf, who was helping with the stall, shouted in a cheerful voice, “Then I’ll bring you the vinaigrette first.”

“Ah, right, that! It’s not like I didn’t know; I was just testing if you knew.”

It was a dish made by finely chopping onions, paprika, and bell peppers and seasoning them with vinegar [a type of pickled vegetable dish].

It goes well with rich meat dishes as well as curry.

Even the guards who were taking away the person with madness had become customers here.

At first, some people were startled and screamed.

The shaggy-haired soldier who saw it said with a bitter smile, “You think we’re monsters who capture people? Do you think we feel comfortable? I was born here too. But it’s a secret from the captain.”

Kainchel was able to get some information from the shaggy-haired soldier who had become a regular.

“The people who were taken away… They say they’ll find a way to cure the madness, but who can believe it? It’s been half a year, and no one has returned.”

“Do you know where they went?”

“I don’t know exactly, but I think Count Algedi took them.”

The shaggy-haired soldier said he had escorted people with madness several times.

It ended with chaining their whole bodies, loading them onto an iron carriage, and handing them over to a group of people who looked like knights.

“Oh, they even gave me silver coins as a reward. It looks like hush money no matter how you look at it. There’s something fishy.”

The shaggy-haired soldier’s hand trembled. He lowered his voice and said, “But the armor of the knight who took over had a Sea Serpent drawn on it. That’s Count Algedi… the emblem of the great lord who rules all of Krolltra. You know what that means, right?”

“Thank you for this valuable information.”

“No, we’re the ones who are grateful. The food you make is really delicious. I really live for this these days, you know?”

“Then I should give you a service.”

Kainchel piled a lot of meat onto the shaggy-haired soldier’s plate.

“Oh, that looks really delicious? Anyway, thank you so much. You’ve taken a load off my mind.”

It was a sincere word from the shaggy-haired soldier.

The soldiers started eating curry, talking loudly among themselves.

‘Count Algedi…’

Kainchel quietly muttered his name.

Could it be that Count Algedi was also the one who spread the curse of rage?

@

It wasn’t just the miners and soldiers who were fascinated by the taste of curry.

In Goldrush, not only peddlers who buy and sell minerals but also merchants leading caravans stayed.

Kainchel bought a large amount of spices to use in the curry from them.

He even started using it to promote curry.

It was a quiet time when there were no customers. A peddler with a thick beard sat down in front of Kainchel.

He was a peddler known to have a wide reach in this area.

“I think you came this morning too; you must like the curry.”

“Ah, it’s really delicious. Using so many precious spices at such a cheap price…”

The peddler, who paused for a moment, looked at Kainchel with sparkling eyes and said, “Besides, it cures madness when you eat it. It’s a waste to sell such a precious thing for less than 1 silver.”

In a few days, the number of merchants approaching in this way was already in double digits.

That’s how amazing the curry Kainchel made was.

‘Money, huh.’

Kainchel could increase his skill proficiency and increase various resistances by cooking.

To do that, it was important to satisfy many customers.

But give up customers just to make a few bucks?

Besides, the Sand Worm Curry Kainchel sells is by no means cheap: 1 silver for two plates.

If you add a little more, you can eat a full course at a high-end restaurant.

‘That’s cheap; it’s different because it’s a mining town.’

As Kainchel pondered, the peddler began to calculate on the abacus.

“If you go to the next town, there is a baron who has a son with madness. If you go to such people, not 1 silver but 1 gold…”

“I’m sorry, but I have no intention of raising the price any further here. After all, the smile of a customer who enjoys it is the most important, right?”

Of course, in reality, proficiency and experience were the best, but there was no need to tell them that.

The peddler, confirming Kainchel’s unwavering will, sighed.

“Hoo, I understand. If you run out of ingredients, please tell me. The village I trade with is famous for potatoes. Three days… No, if you give me two days, I’ll get you as much as you want.”

“Potatoes, that’s good too. But you’re giving me this offer; you must like the curry I made.”

“Yes, even if you take away the effect of curing madness, this is really delicious.”

Kainchel grinned.

It was time to throw the bait.

“This is a special thing I only tell you, Tommy.”

As Kainchel lowered his voice, the peddler Tommy’s eyes widened.

The smell of money began to smell enormously.

“In fact, my curry is effective not only for madness but also for somnolence [drowsiness or sleepiness].”

Gulp-

The sound of swallowing could be heard by Kainchel, who was sitting across from him.

“If it’s somnolence, are you talking about the epidemic that puts you in a deep sleep and doesn’t wake up for a while?”

“Is there any other somnolence?”

“······!”

Tommy quickly realized how valuable this information was.

A merchant sells anything that makes money. That goes for information as well.

“Do you plan to do business here until when?”

“I plan to stay here for a while.”

The peddler Tommy thought about how much money he could make using this information.

Among the people he knows, there are about ten people suffering from madness and somnolence.

How much referral fee can he get from them?

At least he can make a lot more money than selling carrots.

Tommy rummaged through his pocket and handed over a sparkling silver coin.

And he smiled as if to thank him for giving him this amazing information.

“Ah, I forgot to order. I’ll have the special curry today.”

Kainchel brought Tommy a warm special curry. He ate it quickly and asked, “Is this effective even when it’s cold?”

“If you need packaging, I’ll give you rice and curry separately. Of course, it tastes a little worse when it’s cold.”

“That’s enough.”

He’s probably thinking of using that to test it.

‘Good, I’ve spread it to about twenty people with this. I can’t go around looking for people who are cursed one by one, so guide me well here.’

Using the mouth of a peddler who travels all over Krolltra is the best way to spread rumors.

A merchant who knows the value of information will move very secretly to earn even one more penny.

Of course, in the end, it will reach Count Algedi’s ears, but that was also what Kainchel wanted.

‘Then how many customers will flock to eat curry in the future?’

Surely the honey butter sandwich won’t even compare.

@

Anvil was a village between Iron Hammer and Goldrush and was a place where all kinds of information gathered.

There, Tommy was talking to the owner of a general store in shabby clothes.

“Brother, is sister-in-law still asleep?”

Then the owner of the general store sighed deeply.

“Hoo! Don’t mention it. Suddenly, she fell into a deep sleep, and it’s been a month since she couldn’t open her eyes. I shook out my small change and showed it to the doctor, but he said it was an unknown epidemic. He said she usually wakes up in a week, but I don’t know why she’s still like that.”

Tommy took out the curry in a pot from the horse and handed it to his brother.

“Maybe this will wake up sister-in-law. It’s a little cold, but if you heat it up, it won’t taste much worse.”

He didn’t completely believe that curry was effective for somnolence.

What if he introduces it to the nobles and nothing happens?

Tommy knew that the owner of the general store’s wife was suffering from a disease that she couldn’t wake up from after falling asleep.

That’s because he was asked to find a special medicine if he found one.

“Re-really? I’ll heat it up right now!”

The owner of the general store ran to the kitchen with the pot as if it were a treasure.

When he lit the fire in the stove and put the curry on it, an indescribably good smell wafted out.

“Ha, haha… This is no joke?”

How many minutes had passed? Someone knocked on the door of the general store, which had been tightly closed.

Knock knock knock!

“Hey! What delicious thing are you eating! I smelled it, and my stomach is growling!”

He was just heating up the curry, but people gathered after smelling it.

The owner of the general store swallowed hard. If this wasn’t a special medicine for somnolence, he might have eaten it without knowing it.

But everything is for his wife. He exerted superhuman patience and headed to the bed where his wife was lying with the pot.

“Honey… Open your eyes… Tommy brought you some very delicious food…”

Twitch-

The owner of the general store’s eyes widened. His wife’s body, which hadn’t moved, moved.

It was by no means a delusion.

“Yo, honey!”

The owner of the general store approached his wife with red eyes. And he blew on the hot curry and put it in his wife’s mouth.

And a miracle happened.

Tommy stared blankly at the owner of the general store coming out of the room.

Does curry really have the effect of curing somnolence?

“Brother, how is it going?”

There was no need to hear the answer.

The owner of the general store’s wife walked out after him.

“Se-the world… It was real!”

The owner of the general store shouted, hugging Tommy’s body.

“To-Tommy! Thank you so much! My wife, who had been asleep for a month, opened her eyes after eating the food you brought! How can I express this gratitude…”

Tommy’s eyes trembled with confusion.

He had to feel a strange sense of guilt. The owner of the general store trusted his close brother and asked him to find a special medicine.

But what did he do?

Didn’t he use his sister-in-law to experiment?

“Tommy, thank you so much. You said I was asleep for a month?”

Seeing the smiling face of his sister-in-law, who had recovered from her illness, Tommy’s frozen heart melted away.

He became a fan of Kainchel’s cooking.

Melilot #1