Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 159

Bishop arrived carrying a water bottle that looked heavy.

“I thought it would be best to check the taste of the carbonated water first, so I brought it. Try it.”

“So, this is pure carbonated water made only of water and carbon dioxide?”

“That’s right.”

Chiiiiik-!

The clear and delicate sound of carbonation echoed as the lid was opened. Even smelling and tasting it, there was no aftertaste.

However, the tingling sensation filling the mouth was intensely strong.

“It’s a really interesting taste.”

Until now, the concept of drinking carbonated water didn’t exist in Britannia.

There were natural carbonated water mines in the north, but the lime content was too high to drink directly.

It was only used as bathwater, said to be good for skin diseases.

Bishop stroked his chin and said,

“Using carbonated water from natural water mines is good, but you can also make carbonated water by compressing carbon dioxide into water. Or you can mix baking soda and citric acid. I’ve brought different kinds here, so please evaluate which carbonated water tastes best.”

Kainchel tasted the various types of carbonated water Bishop had made.

The purified carbonated water tasted the best, but the artificial carbonated water had a stronger carbonation.

It seemed necessary to mix them appropriately to find the ideal ratio.

“But you figured all that out just by tasting it?”

“My tongue can even find a drop of lemon juice in 100 liters of water. This is nothing.”

Red light flickered behind the iron mask.

“Hoo, I’d like to hear more about that if I get the chance. But it seems like I’m the only one asking questions. Feel free to ask me anything you’re curious about.”

The relationship between Kainchel and Bishop was based on give and take.

If you receive something, you must return something of equal value.

“Bishop’s main body is the slime inside the iron mask, right?”

“You could say that.”

“Then what’s inside that armor? Even if you can change the shape and properties of your body, it seems difficult to move the entire body.”

Bishop chuckled for a moment before answering.

“This is an artificial body automata [a self-operating machine] made by the puppeteer Astolfo. It’s easier to understand if you think of it as taking only the body part from an autonomous mobile doll.”

“Autonomous mobile doll······.”

“If a magic machine enhances the wearer’s physical abilities, an automata is a mechanical body.”

“By the way, when you say puppeteer, are you referring to an alchemist of dolls?”

“Hmm, some people call them that.”

Bishop opened his armor to show the inside, as if to confirm the structure of his body.

Then, a mechanical device made of steel and gears was revealed.

A complex structure that no one could figure out how it was made.

Bishop closed the lid and added a few explanations.

“The automata this body is using is 4-star. You can think of its ability as being roughly equivalent to a Sword Knight.”

And it is said that even a Sword Master cannot guarantee victory if three 5-star automatons gather.

“······If automatons are that strong, why are puppeteers researching in hiding? Even if they made a hundred, the history of the continent would have changed.”

“You’re making the production of automatons too easy. Do you know how long it took to make one 4-star like the one I’m using? Half a year, even after pouring everything into it. A 5-star would require at least five times that.”

And a huge amount of mana is consumed to operate the automata.

Bishop alone consumes several magic stones every day.

“Besides, to properly operate a 5-star automaton, you need a dragon heart. For a 6-star, you need a philosopher’s stone.”

In other words, it has terrible fuel efficiency.

Thanks to that, it seemed that we didn’t have to worry about hundreds of automatons trampling the continent.

“Then let’s get down to business. I’ll bring the cola. Try it.”

Kainchel nodded. The moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

@

Bishop used magic tools to chill five bottles of cola and placed them on the table.

“This is cola······.”

The glass bottle, sparkling in the light, was a work of art in itself.

Inside was a black liquid.

“This is the limit of what we could make with the cola tree your partner brought.”

Before he knew it, Bishop’s title for Kainchel had changed.

Was it because they shared a part of their body?

Kainchel cleared his throat, feeling strangely goosebumps.

“This is enough for a prototype.”

“And the reason for using glass bottles for cola is not just for beauty. No matter how tightly sealed, carbonation will leak out if stored in wood. Glass bottles are the most ideal cola bottles.”

It seemed that Bishop was also completely captivated by the charm of cola.

Certainly, even the appearance alone had a strange magic that attracted people.

Kainchel removed the cork stopper blocking the entrance.

Poong-!

With a cheerful sound, the refreshing sound of carbonation echoed.

As he put it to his mouth, the intense stimulation of carbonation was felt on the tip of his tongue.

‘Oh, this is really good? Then should I drink it?’

Gulp, gulp.

A liquid with a sweet and mysterious flavor passed down his throat along with a tingling sensation.

“Keuheuk······!”

A thrilling taste that sent shivers down his entire body!

Kainchel’s body trembled with excitement.

This is not a drink that can be expressed as a hit.

From now on, Britannia’s drinks will be divided into before and after the birth of cola.

It was that amazing.

Elizabeth, who smelled it from somewhere, burst into the kitchen in excitement.

“What is it? Oh, the cola is already finished! Wow, how stingy, leaving me out and eating it just the two of you.”

“I was just about to call you, Elizabeth.”

Kainchel smiled and threw a bottle of cola.

“You chilled it so sensuously. Then, shall we start tasting it right away?”

Pooshuuk-!

The carbonation, which was much more than beer, spewed out coolly.

Elizabeth’s eyes widened as she put it on the tip of her tongue.

“What, this. The moment it touches my tongue, I feel a tingling sensation······. Then where is the taste······.”

Elizabeth, who was only trying to take a sip as a test, couldn’t take her mouth off the cola bottle until it was empty.

“Hu, huwa······. Wh, what is this······. No joke?”

Cola was too intense for Elizabeth, who was experiencing the tingling sensation of carbonated water for the first time.

The thrilling pleasure spread throughout her body.

There are many delicious and sweet drinks.

However, this is the first drink that gives pleasure in the act of drinking itself.

Elizabeth felt a strange emotion and enjoyed the afterglow of the cola for a while.

“Haa.”

Elizabeth’s face, who rarely gets drunk no matter how much alcohol she drinks, turned red.

And she clung to Kainchel with a dazed expression.

“Kid······. Can I drink one more bottle? It’s really delicious.”

“We’re going to start production in earnest soon, so buy it and drink it.”

“Tch······.”

It seemed that she really liked cola.

Kainchel mixed wine and sugar with carbonated water to make a sweet and sour wine ade [a beverage made with carbonated water and syrup].

“I’m thinking of making various drinks with carbonated water, not just cola.”

“Huh? This is also delicious?”

Of course, cola is the best, but ade was also a sufficient drink to enjoy carbonation.

Besides, unlike cola, which strangely excites people, it was easier to drink without burden.

“By the way, how much will the initial production of cola be? No, what about the pricing policy?”

“Wouldn’t about 1 silver be appropriate? I’m thinking of making only about a thousand bottles first.”

To grow cola trees in the north in earnest, the World Tree must take root.

‘Until then, I have to import what’s growing in Eldrad and make it. Besides, I’m on bad terms with the 1st Prince, so I’ll have to be careful even if I use the Merchant Guild.’

Elizabeth smiled and wrapped her arms around Kainchel’s neck. And she said with a sweet sigh.

“Our kid. Don’t you want to get some investment from your sister? I can prepare about 1,000 gold right now.”

“1,000 gold?”

It was more than enough to buy the equipment needed for production.

“And what’s with being stingy with 1,000 bottles? Produce about a hundred times that. If it doesn’t sell, I’ll drink it all!”

1 silver for a bottle of cola.

And if you make 100,000 bottles and sell them all, you will have an income of 5,000 gold.

It was a huge sum equivalent to the annual budget of a small territory.

Elizabeth continued with an excited expression.

“This will sell like hotcakes as soon as it’s made. There will be people lining up who want to eat it even if they give several times that amount, not 1 silver?”

“······.”

“In the future, not only Britannia but the entire continent will be enthusiastic about cola. If I’m wrong, you don’t have to return the investment.”

Even if you are a Sword Master, 1,000 gold is a lot of money.

But Elizabeth was sure.

The birth of cola.

This is not just a hit, it will be recorded as a huge event that will go down in history.

She was so excited about what amazing things would happen in the future that she couldn’t stay still.

She was too restless to just watch.

She wanted to jump on stage and mingle with them.

Elizabeth decided to invest 1,000 gold to do so.

That’s how the cola alliance that would change the history of drinks was formed.

@

Kainchel didn’t forget to give Goethe a bottle of cola as a gift.

The ostensible reason was to repay him for the various help he had received.

But in fact, he wanted to be evaluated with his various expressions.

Goethe screamed after tasting the cola.

“Oh my god······. Did you really make this, Kainchel? It’s sweet, stimulating, and has a charm that attracts the soul. Besides, the intensity of the black liquid in the transparent bottle······. This is literally the devil’s drink!”

After leaving those words, Goethe began to write as if possessed by something.

And after writing nearly 20 pages of manuscript in half a day, he got up from his seat with a relieved expression.

“Thanks to you, I think I can describe the most beautiful and attractive devil.”

Goethe had fallen into a slump while writing a new novel with the theme of the devil.

He couldn’t decide how to describe the devil who tempts the protagonist.

As a result, he couldn’t write the novel at all for several months.

The readers waiting for the new work were more than impatient.

But after eating cola, the image of the devil came to mind clearly.

Goethe was overjoyed and grabbed Kainchel’s hands.

“Thank you so much, Kainchel. Ah, and if you’re okay with it, I’d like to write a review about cola. The magazine deadline is just around the corner, but I don’t have anything to write about.”

It was an unexpected harvest.

The magazine in which Goethe’s review is published is considered essential reading for Britannia’s high society.

If an article about cola were to be published there, it was impossible to even imagine how much of a reaction it would cause.

“······I’m sure I heard that you haven’t written reviews about food lately.”

Goethe said, grabbing the empty cola bottle.

“This is not just a drink. The devil’s drink······. No, it was the devil himself while drinking it. And how many people can overcome the temptation of the devil?”

It was an evaluation that touched my heart more than any praise.

And two weeks passed, and the day came when the magazine containing Goethe’s review was released.

That’s how people came to know the devil’s drink called cola.