In the morning, I got the miso, the soy sauce, and other seasonings from Pioro-san
I was feeling good, so I decided to hand in the herbs I collected as well as the tusks of the smash boar to the guild. The clerk at the front desk told me that they would immediately prepare the reward. It seems the male clerk had properly informed them yesterday.
I thought of all sorts of reasons to prove that it really was just a coincidence, but it seems it wasn’t necessary… Well, I’m just saying that now because things turned out like this. But normally they would have pursued the matter to some extent. It’s just that Ken-san and Co. were around that I don’t have to deal with that anymore.
While I was thinking that, the clerk came back with my reward and thanked me personally. When I asked him why he was thanking me, apparently, those three were his friends. I asked him about the other two adventurers, and it turns out that they’ve already been apprehended.
The E Rank adventurers were having a party at the bar after work last night, and the guild got word that those two adventurers were there, so they swiftly went into action and caught them. The two admitted to their crimes and it was also found out that their guild cards were fake. They were involved with other crimes too, so the guild decided to expel them from the guild. After a through investigation, it was decided that they would either end up working in the mines for 5 years minimum or be slaves for an indefinite period of time.
“You can fake the guild card?” [Ryouma]
“Well, the guild itself does add and remove information to the card, so it’s not impossible. But you’ll need a special magic tool to do the job, so it’s not something that a mere adventurer could do. In this case, the method they used was much simpler, and they simply used ‘another person’s’ card.
They picked up another person’s card and left one side as is while destroying the other side, then they connected that to the important part of another card. It’s not unusual for the guild cards to end up damaged due to poor handling, but – and not that it’s something praiseworthy – but they managed to make the combination of the two cards appear natural. It seems they learned from some workshop as apprentices, though they were also expelled from there due to again causing some trouble.” [Clerk]
So they forged a card by combining two genuine products, huh? Their character aside, it seems they’re rather skilled.
“It seems I need take better care of my card.” [Ryouma]
“Fu fu. Please do.” [Clerk]
“Thank you for the information.” [Ryouma]
I thanked the clerk for the information and left the guild.
Now then… What to do? I’ve already finished what I came here to do. I should go back to Pioro-san’s store for now.
“Takebayashi-sama, the president was looking for you just now.” [Employee]
When I got back, an employee told me that. I told him that I could meet him now and was brought to his office.
I wonder what could possibly be so urgent.
Pioro-san and I talked over tea.
“Ryouma, can you think of any dish that uses smash boar meat and ingredients like soy sauce or miso?” [Pioro]
“A dish?” [Ryouma]
If you want to make Japanese cuisine using pork, then there’s Pork Miso Soup, Pork Shabu (Shabu-Shabu with pork instead of beef), Butadon (rice with pork and veggies), and pork fried with ginger.
“I know a few.” [Ryouma]
“Could you teach me? grilled fish and miso soup taste good, but it’s tiresome eating the same thing over and over. I’ve always believed that ingredients like miso and soy sauce would sell more if there were more ways to sell them.” [Pioro]
I see. It would be great for me too if Japanese cuisine became more accessible, so I guess I’ll teach him.
“Alright, how about pork fried with gin— I mean smash boar meat fried with jija?” [Ryouma]
There’s meat, soy sauce, and mirin, and as for the ginger, it can be bought from a pharmacy, so we can make a real pork fried with ginger!
“I know it’s not right to ask this from a guest, but can you cook me that dish? You can use as much ingredients as you want.” [Pioro]
“You sure?” [Ryouma]
“If anything, I’ll be profiting since I get to learn a new dish.” [Pioro]
Like that I ended up making our lunch. Surprisingly, though, Kurana-san and Miyabi-san were going to be cooking with me. I thought I would be teaching a servant, I told them, and they laughed.
“Mom often says that cooking is something that women should be interested in. I don’t hate cooking myself, but not being able to cook when we sell food ingredients just ain’t right.” [Miyabi]
“I’m looking forward to seeing the new dish and your skills, Ryouma-han.” [Kurana]
As the two of them looked at me, I got the ingredients and tools prepared beforehand and started cooking.
First was to wash the rice and cook it over fire. I never did cook rice on a stove back in my previous life, so this is a new experience for me.
I have to make some pork miso soup too to eat alongside the pork fried with ginger, so I made dashi (stock soup) using kelp-like seaweed and some small fishes, then I added onions, great burdock, mushrooms, and smash boar meat with all sorts of vegetables to the soup. Ever since going out to town, I’ve noticed that there’s a lot of vegetables with the same name or similar to those from Earth. This might be another one of the otherworlders influence.
While I was making the pork miso soup, Miyabi-san was mostly taking care of the rice, she looked how I was doing.
When I was about done with the pork miso soup, I made a little more than would be needed, so I took out a vial from my Item Box, and filled it with the excess stock soup. I then tuned its taste with a combination of soy sauce, mirin and vinegar.
“Ryouma-han, what is that?” [Kurana]
“Flavoring made with soy sauce, mirin, and stock soup. The taste changes according to the ratio of the ingredients, so it’s best to make it according to one’s taste. If you want, you can also add some ramon juice to give it a refreshing taste. It works well for salads, meat, and fishes.” [Ryouma]
“To think there was something like that…” [Kurana]
Kurana-san stared at the vial for a bit, but then she quickly went back to the pork miso soup.
After a while, the pork miso soup was done. Next, I should make the pork fried with ginger.
I cut the meat into thin slices and fried it. At the same time, I grated the jija and mixed it together with soy sauce and mirin to create a sauce.
I put that over fire and when its color changed, its fragrant smell filled me, causing me to exclaim. Kurana and Miyabi were focused on the meat, but all that’s left now is to mixed it with the sauce. And voila! The pork fried with ginger is done! Simple and delicious.
There are various ways to make pork fried with ginger, some marinading the meat with the sauce, but this is how I make it. As for why, that’s because in my previous life I preferred food that were quick an delicious. Although, I suppose I can try my hand at those other methods now, but let’s leave that for another time.
After that I cut the cabbage into fine thin strips and divided an oddly sized tomato – bigger than a cherry tomato but smaller than a normal tomato – into four. Good. The rice is also done, so…
When I approached the rice, I noticed a man with black hair at the corner of my vision.
“Pioro-san? Since when were you there?” [Ryouma]
Pioro-san walked out from the shadow of the kitchen’s entrance and revealed himself. It was strangely awkward.
“Ah~ Forgive me~ The smell was so good I couldn’t help myself. Before I knew it, I was already standing here.” [Pioro]
The smell of cooked rice and pork fried with ginger must’ve whet his appetite.
“Dad, it’s not good to sneak around. If you want to watch, just say so.” [Miyabi]
I ignored the scene of the daughter scolding her dad as I served four portions for ourselves.
“All done.” [Ryouma]
“Really? Then, what are we waiting for? Let’s eat!” [Pioro]
Pioro called for the servants to bring the food to the table.
At the dining table…
“This is smash boar meat fried with jija. Please enjoy.” [Ryouma]
“It looks so delicious. Don’t mind if I dig in. Itadakimasu!” [Miyabi]
Miyabi-san started eating. She skillfully took a piece of meat with her chopsticks and took a bite. In the next moment, her ears perked up and stretched themselves, then she exclaimed.
“Delicious! It’s so delicious!” [Miyabi]
“Oh, my. You’re not kidding. It’s so good. I thought it would be delicious even while it was still being cooked, but having a taste of the real thing, I have to say it’s even better than I’d thought.” [Kurana]
“The fried jija is good, alright, but this soup is also something else. What do you call this? Pork miso soup? It’s delicious. On top of that, it’s healthy too with all these vegetables. If this dish were to gain popularity, soy sauce and miso will surely sell!” [Pioro]
Looks like they like it. I’m glad they’re enjoying themselves. Pioro-san keeps looking at it from a merchant’s perspective, but there’s no doubt that he genuinely enjoys it too.
While explaining the dish myself, I tasted the food I cooked and was filled with satisfaction.
Pioro-san liked the pork fried with jija so much that he declared that he would have it made available in the delicatessen starting this evening.
He sure works fast…
The next day.
After having breakfast, I went out the front door to go to the store, but then a carriage stopped right in front of the Saionji Firm.
Hmm? Is that…
“Carla-san!” [Ryouma]
“Huh? Boss!” [Carla]
So, it really was her. She had her back on me and was giving orders to some people that’s why she didn’t notice.
“So, you’ve arrived. It was a long trip, wasn’t it?” [Ryouma]
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Boss. Where’s the store?” [Carla]
“It’s across the street. That one.” [Ryouma]
I pointed at the store and gave orders to people I don’t know to bring the carriage to the store. They must be the new recruits.
After that I took Carla-san and Caulkin-san’s group to greet Pioro-san, then we went ahead and began preparations to open the store.
4 days later.
We took two days to decide the particulars of the store, then after checking everything and making sure everyone knew their roles, we opened the store on the third day.
There are five new recruits for the branch store. They had a short course of training previously, so they were able to work well. Of the five, one was the chef, and the remaining 4 were the employees and bodyguards of the store.
As for why they’re also working as bodyguards, that’s because they’re former C Rank adventurers. When I asked them why they would want to work at my store, they said that they did just fine as adventurers, but when they were approaching their limits, a monster appeared and cost them two of their friends.
At the time, they didn’t know a thing about the monster that appeared, and they could do nothing more than run. The only reason they survived was because of luck and because their dead comrades got the monster’s attention. Their two friends knew that they couldn’t run anymore because of their injuries and that they wouldn’t last long enough to reach town, so they used whatever remained of their lives to get the monster’s attention.
When they managed to reach town, they immediately went to the guild and told them about the monster. Fortunately, there was an A Rank party at the time, and the monster was easily dealt with. When they went to see the monster and the place where it died in order to sort out their feelings, they found out that it was a B Rank monster.
A monster that was so strong that they couldn’t do anything against it but run was just one rank above theirs. To make things worse, there was a party that could easily hunt said monster. After that they gave up trying to become B Rankers.
They could make enough money just working C Rank jobs, so they started saving up and looked for another job where they could settle down. That’s when they found my store.
They’re former C Rankers. They might not be a match for B Rank monsters, but they’re more than strong enough to deal with some ruffians. As such, the guild master gave a stamp approval, certifying that they’re suitable to bodyguards.
Knowing I’m an adventurer too, they gave me some advise, telling me to prioritize safety above all. They’re definitely good guys. If it’s them, I’m sure they’ll be able to get along with other people.
Speaking of which, a few days ago, when the store had just opened, Ken-san and the others came. There were barely any customers just yet, so I gave them a short explanation of the store, how it works, and asked them to become regulars, but… The conversation very quickly turned to the smash boar. Their experience resonated with the experience of my adventurer employees, so as a result, my employees ended up giving them various advice and even told them their story of why they gave up being adventurers. Actually, this was when I first learned about their story.
Anyway, with the store functional, there was no longer any reason for me to stay at Renauph. As such, I decided to leave the store to Carla-san and go back to Gimuru.
Pioro-san, Carla-san, and the others saw me off.
“Ryouma, do your best. It’s a match from now on, you hear me? You have to keep building more stores!” [Pioro]
“Be careful.” [Kurana]
“Boss, don’t worry. I’ll be sure to take good care of the store.” [Carla]
“We’ll do our best to learn store management as quickly as possible!” [Tony]
“Leave it to me. I won’t waste money like before anymore. Just you wait, I’ll show you a store overflowing with money!!” [Caulkin]
“Boss, please take care of your body.” [Robelia]
“You take care too.” [Ryouma]
“Ryouma-han, be sure not to push yourself too hard, alright? I don’t know when we’ll meet again, but please don’t die.” [Miyabi]
“But of course. I don’t plan on dying just yet.” [Ryouma]
There were still a lot of things left to do. My grandparents inheritance and research… My slimes… My promise with Elia…
Oh, right. Miyabi did say she’s going to the academy. In that case, she might meet Elia. Elia said she didn’t have any friends and Miyabi is going there with the sole intention of making connections, so…
“Miyabi-san.” [Ryouma]
“What’s up?” [Miyabi]
“You’re going to the academy at the capital this year, right?” [Ryouma]
“That’s right. What about it?” [Miyabi]
“In that case, there’s something I’d like to ask you.” [Ryouma]
“Oh? What is it?” [Miyabi]
“There’s a girl who’ll be enrolling this year. Her name is Elialia. If you can, it would be great if you could get along with her. She’s a good girl and she’s also a noble, so you’ll be able to make one of your connections with her. Also, can you pass her a message from me? Tell her ‘Good luck’.” [Ryouma]
“As long as that girl isn’t involved with some weird people, then sure.” [Miyabi]
“Thanks. I wish you well too.” [Ryouma]
“Of course. And you too.” [Miyabi]
I thanked everyone for sending me off, then I went back to Gimuru.
