Sozai Saishu 13

Chapter 13: Cooking inside the Forest

“…….I can’t find it. This is taking longer than I expected.”

I am currently in the southern forest, searching for the Full Moon Flower. It has taken a while already.

I still cannot discover the material I was tasked with.

Full Moon Flowers are rare. On top of that, there are way too many materials within this forest that it’s hard to see.

Furthermore, the fact that Detection is too excellent is hindering my search as well. It’s too easy to discover the locations of materials just by releasing my magic waves.

I cannot go against the high of a degree of temptation.

Even though I have this cheat skill called Detection, I still can’t find that flower.

I’ve been focusing my search in sunny locations only though.

The fact that it’s rare is not for show, it seems.

But, there’s no way I am giving up.

In collecting materials, there are times when you discover things immediately, and there are times when no matter how long you search, you can’t find it.

I will use my own two feet and my skill to find it in the end.

I told myself that inside my heart, but my stomach is empty.

Looking up, the sun has already passed midway, and it is clearly the afternoon now.

Since I woke up and ate breakfast early today, I am very hungry.

Looking for materials is important, but having a meal comes first.

With a famished condition, I cannot work effectively. Let’s eat lunch here for now.

Moving towards the shade of a tree, I sat down on a stump there.

“Oops, before bringing out my tools and ingredients, I need to confirm the safety in this area first.”

I unconsciously let down my guard, but I must not forget that there are dangerous monsters in this forest.

I need to properly make sure there are no dangers nearby.

“Magic Stone, Detection!”

Using magic stones as the keyword, I used Detection.

Within the radius of 50 meters, I received no responses from any monsters.

If that’s the case, this area should be safe for now.

After confirming that it’s a safe area, I dished out the ingredients I collected today, my magic stove, and some pots.

I placed the stove down on a level surface and inserted a magic stone.

On a wooden box I also took out, I put down my chopping board. I then used my kitchen knife to cut carrots, daikon, and great burdock I bought from the inn.

Finishing that up, I lit the magic stove and put some oil into the pot.

Waiting for the pot to heat up, I cut Red, Purple, and Black Mushrooms that I have into bite-sized chunks.

I also washed some Douna plants and Mai Mai Grass until they’re clean, peeled off the tough parts, and left them soaking in a basin of water.

With this, I have finished the preparation of these ingredients for them to be delicious, according to what Appraisal-sensei told me.

Afterwards, I put some ingredients inside the pot and fried them until they’re evenly cooked, and poured the mushroom soup stock I received from Anna-san inside.

I can save time by cooking like this. I only need to bring easy-to-use bottled flavourings to season it. My Magic Bag is truly convenient.

After that, I threw in chunks of Red, Purple, and Black Mushrooms.

Bringing the soup up into a boil, I added Mai Mai Grass and Douna plants after shaking off all the excess water.

Gazing at the materials I collected dancing around wildly in the pot, I added some salt.

If I had some miso or soy sauce, this pot would taste wonderful. Unfortunately, I don’t have any.

I don’t know if they don’t exist in this world or are simply not available in Ferumi Village, but for now, I will look forward to the simple taste of this soup made purely from stock.

Since I used fresh ingredients, it may turn out tasting better than using unneeded flavourings even.

Nevermind tasting, let’s take a spoon and have some right away.

“Delicious..!”

Sweetness oozing out from the vegetables and the unique flavour of wild plants were mixed in harmony inside the mushroom stock. It’s not mind-blowing, but it is a gentle taste.

This wild plant soup is considered a success.

I want to dig in right away, but I want some side dishes. Specifically, I want meat.

Putting the pot aside on the wooden box, I bring a skillet, a thick slice of bacon, and an egg out from my Magic Bag.

You should know what I plan to do with this. I will make fried bacon and egg.

Since it is crucial, I’ll say it again. I’m not using a frying pan, but a skillet.

If you ask for a realistic reason, then it is because a skillet conducts heat slower than a frying pan. Therefore, it is suitable for cooking meals that require delicate heat control.

Personally speaking, I think it looks cooler to use a skillet when cooking outdoors.

Compared to a frying pan, a skillet takes longer to be heated up, it’s heavy, plus it requires more careful use of seasoning. There are lots of demerits. However, I won’t worry about that since I am satisfied with using it.

Setting the skillet over the stove, I poured in a swish of oil.

I then placed the slice of bacon down; its thickness is around 2 cm. It sizzled loudly atop the skillet.

The bacon then gradually released an enticing smell that floated around in the air.

“Yup, smelling great.”

I fried the massive slice of bacon carefully on the skillet. It will definitely taste awesome.

However, it’s quite inconvenient to have only one magic stove because I can’t cook another dish at the same time. As a result, the completed vegetable soup is left alone on the wooden box.

Well, being able to cook a meal, without even carrying any baggage, inside a forest like this could be considered luxurious already, but to aim even higher and higher is what makes us humans, I guess.

“If I have some surplus cash, it might be a good idea to buy another magic stove.”

I don’t know if Podan-san has one more in stock or not. I also don’t know if he will sell it cheaply again too. Since he said these normally cost more than 10 gold coins, I still can’t afford another one yet.

However, if I continue to collect materials like today, I will be able to afford it for sure.

Pondering such things, I flipped over the bacon. Its skin was nice and crispy.

After the other side was properly fried, I added some salt and pepper. Then, I cracked the egg in the available space on the skillet.

The white of the egg took no time at all to become cooked, and I got myself a wonderful sunny-side-up fried egg.

Making sure the bacon was fully cooked and the egg still runny, I turned off the stove.

“Alright, let’s finally dig in!”

After sampling the vegetable soup and now I have to smell the enticing aroma of the bacon, the hunger from my empty stomach has now overcome its limits.

I left the skillet where it is, and ladled my bowl full with vegetable soup.

“Itadakimasu.”

Feeling grateful for the freshly harvested ingredients, I drank down one spoonful of soup.

Both the carrot and daikon were properly stewed and were very mellow.

Furthermore, this single mouthful held the sweetness of the soup stock and other wild plants within. I can feel the different textures of the ingredients with just one bite, and it was more delicious each time I chewed. Its gentle taste makes me feel relaxed.

“Also, these mushrooms are delicious.”

The cap of the Red Mushrooms had a firm texture.

The stalks of Purple Mushrooms were crisp and had a great smell. Very much a high-class ingredient.

If I cook this in a Japanese-style soup [1] or steam it with sake [2], I would probably be able to bring out its unique taste more.

The boiled Black Mushrooms were also soft and springy to eat.

It tastes similar to wood ear mushrooms, but with more flavour.

Devouring the combination of vegetables and wild plants, my stomach calmed down somewhat. Next, I shifted my target to my crispy bacon and fried egg.

Poking the half-cooked yolk, I slather the runny egg that spilled out over the bacon.

Suddenly we’re at the climax, such a luxurious style of eating.

Cutting it into pieces? I’m not gonna do that fine-dining stuff. I stabbed my fork into the thick slice of bacon and ate it.

Inside my mouth, a raging storm of juice from the meat burst forth. Maybe since it was thoroughly grilled on the skillet, the savouriness of the bacon was condensed into its juices.

What mellowed out the strong, meaty taste was the half-cooked egg.

The bacon alone was plenty delicious, but eating it with the yolk adds some more extravagance to the taste.

“……How can eating outdoors be this delicious, I wonder?”

Feeling satisfied over the tastiness of my food, I let a sigh escape my lips.

I felt the warm sunlight filtering through the trees, and heard the leaves rustling as they were blown by the wind.

In the sky, birds were flying and chirping merrily. Once I inhaled deeply, the combined smell of plants and dirt penetrated deep into my lungs.

Cooking and dining while being enveloped by Mother Nature. How wonderful.

“……Once I finish eating my lunch, let’s continue to work hard.”

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Translator’s Notes

1. Osuimono (お吸い物) is a type of clear soup in Japan.
2. Sakamushi (酒蒸し) is a method of cooking, usually with seafood. You season the food with sake and steam it. Sake is a staple Japanese liquor made by brewing rice.

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