Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 202

To reach the Galia Kingdom from Britannia, one must cross two borders.

Fortunately, it’s located south of El Ahad.

The lords there are friendly to Cainchel, making it a place where passage is generally permitted without special authorization.

The gatekeeper of Britannia swallowed hard, his face stiff.

He never imagined he’d encounter the protagonist of the upheaval from two days ago so soon.

“It’s an honor to meet you in person, Chef… No, Swordmaster Cainchel, the diligent one.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Then, if you note the number of people and the destination, we’ll prepare everything immediately.”

After obtaining the title of Virtue, movement within Britannia became much freer.

You can use the gate whenever you wish without waiting in line.

It was for good reason that Elizabeth could enter and exit the Zistad estate as if it were her own home.

The manager who received the application form from Cainchel widened his eyes.

“Swordmaster… a Vampire, and even an Automata… Besides, this person is a… a Dragon!?”

To use the gate, you must clearly identify yourself.

This is because there’s a risk of magical interference if you’re not careful.

Therefore, those who manage this place pledge not to reveal what they’ve learned. There’s no need to conceal one’s identity.

“Haha, hahaha. I’ve met so many people working here, but this is the first time I’ve served so many amazing individuals at once. So, it’s okay for five people to use it?”

“There’s still one person… Ah, here he comes.”

The conference room door opened, and a man with his hair slicked back entered.

The man smiled with a refreshing expression and waved at Cainchel.

“Wow! Long time no see, brother! Huh? Brother Leman seems to be getting younger and younger.”

“It’s not that I’m getting younger; it’s because it’s a doppelganger!”

Morgana’s eyes narrowed at the sight of Detective Zeke.

“Cainchel, why is this man here?”

“I believe we lack sufficient information about Bathory. Despite his personality, I acknowledge his investigative skills and reasoning ability.”

Morgana shook her head with a look of disgust.

It seemed she knew Zeke well.

“He’s a man I dislike, but this journey is to reclaim my soul, so I’ll tolerate him. I’ll rest for a while, so please call me when you’re ready.”

With those words, she leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

She had replenished her lost blood, but it seemed to have taken a toll on her stamina.

“First of all, I conducted a brief investigation into Countess Bathory Erzsébet yesterday. She’s surprisingly well-known.”

“You’ve already started investigating? As expected, Mr. Zeke is fast.”

“Before that, from now on, we’re not just assistants but formally employer and mercenary, right? Shouldn’t we get paid before we start?”

Cainchel took out a bag full of gold coins and handed it over. Zeke’s eyes widened as he checked the amount.

It contained about 30% more than promised.

“I included a generous amount, covering both the down payment and activity expenses.”

“Kuh! As expected, brother! You’re truly generous! Oh, congratulations on becoming a new Virtue. I knew you’d be a big deal someday.”

With this, Zeke would be Cainchel’s direct subordinate for the next three years. Zeke began his report on Countess Bathory in earnest.

“She is the lord of Marseille in Provence and was originally a member of the royal family.”

‘Provence is next to the Mediterranean Sea, so it’s famous for its seafood, right?’

Cainchel had eaten bouillabaisse [a traditional Provençal fish stew] made by Bruno from there.

It was so delicious that it still makes his mouth water.

The Provence region is famous not only for fish dishes but also for producing fresh vegetables such as tomatoes, eggplants, pumpkins, onions, shallots, and paprika.

But he never imagined that Bathory was a noble from there.

Zeke’s explanation continued.

“Countess Bathory is famous for her nickname, the Crimson Witch. Do you know that Galia still has a slavery system?”

“…Slavery?”

“Many people died due to the civil war that lasted nearly a hundred years. In the end, there was a shortage of people to work, and they had no choice but to import slaves in large quantities.”

“To think that such a side was hidden in Galia, which is famous for its cuisine…”

There are two reasons why Countess Bathory is called the Crimson Witch.

First, she is still young and beautiful enough to dazzle, even though she is nearly 40 years old.

Looking younger than her actual age is said to be a characteristic of a witch who sold her soul to the devil.

‘I’m glad Elizabeth isn’t here.’

The second reason is that Countess Bathory buys dozens of female slaves every year.

“She buys so many slaves?”

“Yes. Besides, the Countess takes the female slaves she buys to a warehouse by the river. But every night, chilling screams echo from there.”

“…”

“That’s not all. Residents living nearby have occasionally witnessed the river turning blood red. So, the nickname she got is…”

“…The Crimson Witch.”

“That’s right, brother. Besides, there are rumors that she killed her husband, Count Ferenc, with her own hands to take over the territory. She’s such a witch-like woman that I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that she actually made a contract with the devil.”

“At that point, it wouldn’t be strange if she disappeared into the dew of the execution ground right now, but how is she still alive?”

“She’s not a direct descendant, but she seems to have Swordmaster Marquis Beast as her patron because she’s a member of the royal family.”

Cainchel had heard of the name Marquis Beast.

He was a man who was cursed and became a werewolf but overcame it and rose to the position of Swordmaster.

In the end, Bathory Erzsébet is a villainous woman who committed numerous atrocities with a Swordmaster behind her.

That was the conclusion Cainchel came to.

If Zeke were an ordinary informant, it would have ended here.

However, he possessed excellent reasoning skills, enough to call himself a detective.

“But brother, if Countess Bathory is actually a witch, something is strange.”

“That’s right. There are no con artists who go around saying they’re con artists, and you don’t pick someone else’s pocket with the mark of a thief on you.”

Her actions are so witch-like that it’s suspicious.

Bathory is a witch. If so, she should move much more secretly to avoid being exposed.

“I think this is the limit of what we can do in Britannia. I think we’ll have to go to Marseille and investigate in detail.”

Cainchel nodded. The gate was ready.

“Then, I’ll ask you to do it. Please take care of me this time, too.”

“Of course, brother. Have I ever disappointed you?”

With Zeke joining, the group increased to six, and they headed to Marseille, which is ruled by Countess Bathory Erzsébet.

@

When they arrived in Marseille, Zeke made a fuss.

“Wow hahaha! Galia, the country of gastronomy! This body has arrived!”

Then, he looked around at the food sold at nearby stalls and restaurants and muttered with a disappointed expression.

“…I thought Galians ate snails, foie gras [fattened duck or goose liver], and steak every meal. But look. They’re eating vegetable soup and hard bread. Could it be that the gate malfunctioned, and we ended up in the wrong place?”

Certainly, unlike the luxurious image of French cuisine, the food they actually ate was ordinary.

“Of course, they eat that too. The Galians’ obsession with gastronomy is terrifying. But most of them can only afford it on special occasions. Usually, they eat simple terrine or pâté [a paste of ground meat, fish, or vegetables], salad with pieces of raw ham, bread, and wine.”

“Ugh! It’s strange, but I’m getting hungry just listening to what you’re saying, brother.”

“Then, shall we eat something simple first?”

From now on, we have to investigate Countess Bathory, but eating is also important.

In particular, Calliope needs to eat as much of Cainchel’s cooking as possible to recover her mana.

She was still mumbling about a honey butter sandwich.

“What they’re selling at that stall looks like pottery. No, it is pottery!?”

What Zeke was pointing at was terrine.

It originally refers to a long and thick piece of pottery placed in an oven. You can think of it as a long earthenware pot, like a pound cake mold.

Terrine is a dish made by mincing meat, fish, poultry, etc., with various subsidiary ingredients and baking it in the oven.

It was a dish named after the pottery used for its preparation.

“The contents use a lot of ingredients produced in each region. Usually, it’s taken out and eaten as is, but it’s also hardened in a container coated with jelly. Then it’s chewy, soft, and very delicious.”

“Ugh. Can you see the drool flowing now? Then let’s eat terrine for lunch today.”

“Terrine… Then shall I make it for the first time in a while?”

“Hoo! Are you going to make it yourself, brother?”

“Then I’ll give you money, so go buy a few bottles of wine. A red wine with a good aroma.”

Terrine alone is not enough. If you come to Provence, you have to eat bouillabaisse.

Cainchel headed to the market with Morgana. There, he bought the ingredients needed for cooking.

“Ugh, the smell is really bad. It comes in through my mouth even if I cover my nose, and I can’t stand it. How can you be in this place with such a nonchalant expression?”

“That’s because Morgana’s sense of smell is too sensitive.”

“…Hmph. Your nose is dull.”

She was grumbling, but she was quietly following Cainchel.

It seemed she had become completely Cainchel’s prisoner with just one 7-star veal liver dish.

Cainchel, who had purchased all the necessary ingredients, borrowed an empty stall. He was going to cook there.

“Bouillabaisse was definitely a soup dish made with various seafood, right? I can’t eat that because it smells too fishy.”

“That’s because it’s cooked with ingredients that aren’t fresh. If you cook it with seafood that’s just been caught like this, the flavor is amazing. Besides, you’ve never had proper scallops before, have you? It’s chewy and savory…”

Morgana bowed her head and declared surrender.

“…I’m sorry. I was being presumptuous. I’ll just wait quietly.”

If she listened any longer, she might eat uncooked scallops raw.

Cainchel decided to make seafood broth using the remaining fish bones, lobster heads, and crab shells after filleting the fish.

First, heat olive oil in a heated pot, add onions, celery, and garlic, and start frying.

‘Hmm. The smell of onions and garlic is excellent. After all, cooking should be made with the ingredients of that country to taste the best.’

What I’m going to make from now on is a dish that you can never taste in Britannia.

When the aroma of onions and garlic comes out to some extent, take a few bay leaves and add them.

And you have to fry the lobster head and crab shell with a little thyme.

You have to fry it once first so that the extract comes out well.

When the ingredients are fried well, pour water until the pot is full and simmer the broth with the fish bones.

‘Shall I add a little white wine to get rid of the fishy smell and add flavor? And the rest can be left to Fragarach.’

When he activated Igieoggeom, Fragarach, with a ladle in front of him, flew to the pot.

And he began to remove the foam that came up with plausible skill.

Morgana, who was watching from the side, fell backward in her chair.

“Su, surely, that’s, the technique used when making broth… What on earth am I fighting…?”

Cainchel shrugged his shoulders instead of answering.

While the broth was boiling, he had to make croutons to eat with it. But an unexpected visitor came.

“I never thought you’d be boiling such delicious fish broth at a stall. If you don’t mind, can I have a bowl too?”

Cainchel looked at the place where he heard the voice. Then a wolf in armor smiled brightly.

“We, Werewolf!?”

The wolf shrugged his shoulders and replied.

“Judging from the fact that you don’t know me, you must be a foreigner. Ah, I’m late for the introduction. I’m Marquis Beast. Judging from the unusual aura emanating from the ladle boiling the broth, you seem to be a Swordmaster.”

It seems that the bouillabaisse that Cainchel is boiling has attracted the wolf of Marseille.