Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 16

A week had passed since the duel with Julius.

During that time, several changes occurred for Cainchel van Jistad.

First, he heard fewer jeers or taunts.

Of course, they hadn’t disappeared entirely, but he almost never heard them openly anymore.

Moreover, he had won three consecutive matches in the official ranking battles, earning the rank of number 36.

A wry smile appeared on Cainchel’s face.

Two of the trainee knights who fell to his sword had already left the Knight Training Center.

The guy who lost in yesterday’s ranking battle was said to be holed up in his dormitory right now.

He, too, would likely leave the Training Center soon.

‘It’s just that those who were going to leave, left.’

The rate of advancement to the upper class at the Stanis Knight Training Center is about fifty percent.

Each year, about a hundred trainee knights enter, but only about twenty of them ultimately become knights.

Most become frustrated with the difficult training and stagnant rankings, and submit their withdrawal applications.

Cainchel, who had remained in the Rookie Class for three years, was a very unusual case.

And as for what happened to Julius, who lost the duel…

His nose was broken, and he had to wear a brace for a while.

Moreover, he was seen cleaning the toilets in front of numerous trainee knights.

There was no way Julius Conrad, the heir to the Conrad Margrave [a noble title, similar to a Marquis], had ever done such a thing.

He reportedly gnashed his teeth, calling Cainchel’s name with a very humiliated expression.

‘The only one who could make Julius clean toilets is that Vincent guy. There must have been some kind of deal.’

In any case, the duel with Julius Conrad was just the beginning of the coming storm.

He couldn’t reach his goal of becoming a Swordmaster without overcoming Vincent.

To do that, he had to become a Chevalier Class [a higher rank within the knighthood] as soon as possible.

There were two reasons why Cainchel was able to win the duel with Julius.

The fraudulent ability of Fallen Star to read the opponent’s hostility, and Julius’s personality, who couldn’t control his anger and rushed in with the slightest provocation.

Cainchel used both to his advantage.

‘I’m really glad that I went prepared with maximum fire resistance in case of the Flame Emperor [referring to Julius’s fighting style].’

How many steaks did he have to grill to achieve that? He still felt like he smelled of meat.

Julius suffered great internal damage from this incident.

His acquisition of Aura Sword [a technique where one’s weapon is imbued with magical energy] would be delayed by more than half a year than planned.

Cainchel’s eyes narrowed coldly.

He wanted to become stronger.

—That’s impossible! What kind of cheating did he do?

—That’s right! He must have used some kind of trick!

So overwhelmingly that they couldn’t even suspect it.

Then Instructor Ian, who had been watching anxiously from the side, asked.

“Cainchel. Does that piglet have some kind of past-life grudge against you? Why are you glaring at it so fiercely?”

“…It becomes more delicious this way.”

“Really?”

“No. I’m kidding.”

“You’ve even learned to make jokes. Looks like you have some leeway in your mind, Cainchel. Then grill it as deliciously as you confidently said.”

“Yes, Instructor.”

Cainchel grinned.

After the duel, Instructor Ian offered to buy him beef for some reason.

However, steak was a food he had eaten so much while practicing grilling that he was sick of it. Cainchel refused, shaking his head.

Then he suggested doing a whole pig barbecue with a piglet, and Ian agreed to that.

‘I also wanted to try making it at least once.’

He would also get a lot of experience points.

That’s how Cainchel ended up cooking in the kitchen attached to the bachelor officers’ quarters.

Usually, whole piglet barbecue is made by skewering it and grilling it over firewood.

But what Cainchel was going to do was cochinillo [a Spanish dish of roasted suckling pig], one of the dishes representing the Tuscan Alliance.

It is placed in a large earthenware pot, put in a bread-baking oven, and slowly baked for a long time.

It was a day off once a week, so Instructor Ian had taken off his armor and was wearing comfortable clothes.

“But you had this kind of talent. You have a good posture?”

“Instructor, why don’t you have a martini over there?”

Meaning, don’t disturb him from the side.

Today was a gathering of brothers who had shared meals for three years. The conversation between the two had become much softer.

“If it’s not delicious, I’ll make you dig trenches all day long.”

Cainchel knew that Instructor Ian was a man with a rough exterior but a warm heart.

A smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

“Okay, let’s grill it!”

What was in front of him was a very special pig raised for whole barbecue.

After feeding the mother pig high-quality feed, the piglets are fed only breast milk for about three weeks after they are born.

When they weigh about 4-5 kilograms, they are caught and used as ingredients.

The piglet had its head still attached, with only the internal organs removed.

The whole barbecue is completed by grilling it while preserving the original shape as much as possible.

“As expected, pine wood is good for firewood.”

The unique pine resin scent permeates it, so the meat smells good even without smoking it separately.

Moreover, the fire is transmitted slowly, so the meat cooks evenly.

Cainchel placed the halved pig on top of a large earthenware pot, with the inside facing up.

The ingredients used were salt, oil, garlic, white wine, bay leaf, thyme, and water parsley.

He had prepared it in advance last night, so all he had to do was grill it.

“Oh, I almost forgot.”

He had to apply pig oil to the skin before grilling.

This makes it even more crispy and golden brown.

After setting up, Cainchel put the piglet in the earthenware pot into the bread-baking oven.

Bake it slowly over low heat for about 3 hours.

Then, to bring out the crispy texture, it was finished by baking it for about 30 minutes with the heat turned up to the maximum.

“Fallen Star――!!!”

Then he could feel the temperature of the ingredients and the oven.

The inside of the oven was in the optimal state for grilling meat.

It was standard practice to test it with a small piece of flour dough.

But Cainchel had Fallen Star.

Using it, he could know the temperature of the oven in 1-degree increments.

An exclamation came from Cainchel’s mouth as he looked at the oven.

“…It’s perfectly wonderful.”

All the settings were finished, and now all that was left was to wait.

Then Instructor Ian came over, swinging his arms.

“You said it would take a couple of hours, right? Let’s loosen up our bodies in the meantime, Cainchel.”

Although he couldn’t use Aura Sword, Instructor Ian was a tremendous technician who had mastered intermediate swordsmanship.

Cainchel grinned and picked up the practice sword he had placed in the corner.

@

“Is this really what you made? Wow, it’s really amazing?”

To check if the cochinillo is well-grilled, the neck is hit with a plate to cut it off.

After that, the plate is thrown to the floor and broken to prove that it is a real plate.

This shows the guest how well the meat is grilled and how tender it is.

“…Let’s skip those useless rituals and eat right away. I’m starving to death too.”

“Hahaha. That’s all because you lack stamina. You’re panting after climbing a few mountains.”

“Instructor, your stamina is absurd.”

Cainchel sliced the cochinillo with a large kitchen knife and placed it on a plate.

As side dishes, he prepared garnish and fudioones bean dishes [likely a fictional bean dish, but kept for world-building consistency].

“Instructor. This is piglet whole barbecue cochinillo. You can enjoy it with the skin.”

“I don’t have time to listen to such explanations! I’ll enjoy it, Cainchel!”

Ian raised his fork and knife as if the pig was his enemy from a past life.

The moment he put the knife to the meat, there was an unbelievably clear crisp sound.

The skin was very crispy and had a delicious golden color because it had been carefully oiled before grilling.

Ian cut it into a large piece and put it in his mouth.

Crisp, crisp-

“What, what is this? Why is it so crispy!”

The savory and sweet pig skin crumbled with a pleasant sound.

It disappeared as soon as he put it in his mouth as if it were melting.

Next is the lean meat.

It was soft and moist because it was grilled with various spices and pine firewood.

“The meat is also amazing? It has a subtle pine resin scent and the oil is completely removed, so it’s very light. I can eat as much as this.”

“Since it’s a whole piglet grilled, there’s a lot of meat, so you can eat as much as you want.”

“Wow, crazy. The beans and grilled vegetables are also delicious?”

In particular, the taste was the best when the vegetables were dipped in the pork broth that was abundant on the plate.

“Cainchel. You could sell this if you have nothing to do. It’s really amazing.”

“I’m glad you like it. It’s the first time I’ve made this dish.”

“…This is your first time?”

Instructor Ian’s face was filled with astonishment.

It was an expression he hadn’t shown even when he won the duel with Julius.

In that way, Cainchel and Ian continued their meal affectionately as if they were brothers.

“Slurp. By the way, what are you going to do now that it’s almost the hottest time of the year?”

The Britannia Empire has a period of extreme heat when it is too hot to do anything, and a period of extreme cold when everything freezes.

At that time, it was impossible to train, so trainee knights were given a month’s vacation each.

However, trainee knights who had no home to return to or wanted to stay and train separately could stay in the dormitory.

Cainchel sighed softly.

He was already worried about this.

Until now, he had stayed in the dormitory and done physical training and swordsmanship practice as usual.

But now the situation was different.

Cainchel’s level and stats increase when he cooks.

‘But during the hottest time of the year, most of the trainee knights go home, so I don’t make that much food.’

Then the ingredients to be handled also decrease.

The experience points that can be obtained during the hottest period are reduced to 1/10.

It was a very unfortunate situation for Cainchel, who didn’t want to waste even an hour to overcome Vincent.

Then why don’t you buy ingredients and make them?

Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that either. Cainchel was worried about even the living expenses during the hottest period.

‘I don’t have the money to buy ingredients, but I want to cook somehow, but is there any good way…’

Koo-oong!

At that moment, lightning flashed through Cainchel’s mind.

It was because he remembered Instructor Ian’s exclamation while eating cochinillo a moment ago.

-You could sell this?-

‘That’s right! There was that option!’

The reason why food is provided free of charge is because this is a Knight Training Center.

Isn’t it natural to sell well-made dishes for money?

A smile appeared on Cainchel’s face.

A very plausible plan was forming.

‘There is a commercial city, Citizen, not far from here. A big festival is held there every year during the hottest time of the year. If I can make and sell food there…’

He can make money and gain experience points.

The hottest time of the year is so hot that it’s hard to describe. The only time you can move your body and practice swordsmanship is when there is no sun.

What would happen if he made and sold food at the festival when other trainee knights couldn’t properly level up?

The gap can be narrowed in an instant.

The problem is what to make and ‘sell’…

‘There’s still time, so let’s think about that slowly.’

“Hoo…. I ate well. It was really amazing, Cainchel.”

Surprisingly, Instructor Ian ate all the dishes that would have been enough for 4-5 people.

As expected of a job that uses the body, the amount of food was also enormous.

[The guest is satisfied with your cooking.]

A smile also appeared on Cainchel’s face. Ian was the only one who believed in him and waited for him to grow.

He wouldn’t have been able to endure here for three years without him.

And in the end, he got an amazing opportunity.

Everything was thanks to Instructor Ian.

“I will make it for you if you bring the ingredients in the future.”

“Oh, really? I’m looking forward to this.”

The two sat facing each other and chuckled for a while.

How long had it been since they had eaten so comfortably?

Cainchel said as if he suddenly remembered.

“Instructor. When the hottest time of the year is over, training will enter the second season, right?”

“…You know it well. Well, it’s been three years in the Rookie Class.”

If the first season focuses on building stamina and basic swordsmanship training to learn swordsmanship, the second season learns more practical skills.

How to deal with monsters.

How to build a wooden camp and lead a battle to your advantage.

In other words, training outside the Training Center becomes the main focus. And there is one special feature there. If you receive the highest grades in all training, you have the opportunity to skip the Senior Class and advance directly to the Chevalier Class.

So-called ‘Double Class Up’.

Only one person has succeeded in that so far.

And he is now a Swordmaster guarding the Empire.

Cainchel told Instructor Ian about his plan.

“I plan to be number one in all the training in the second season.”

“What, what did you say?”

“And I will challenge to become a Chevalier Class in the promotion exam that will be held in half a year.”

As if making a vow, Cainchel’s voice was filled with strong will.

The smile disappeared from Instructor Ian’s face.

Before he knew it, he had an expression suitable for a demon instructor.

“But that’s not enough even at the speed of raising beginner swordsmanship to 10 stars in a month.”

“I know. But I will definitely do it.”

Only then can he overcome Vincent.

I will become a Swordmaster no matter what.

He was going to show Cainchel van Jistad’s abilities to everyone who had ignored him.

Cainchel sensed it.

This would be the beginning of the many commotions he would cause.

Honey Butter Sandwich #1