Chapter 4 (2/2)

“It’s fine Let’s see, the soup was…out the others properly

“…I see Then that’s fine”

After saying all that, she had no choice but to back down Faldania quietly took her seat once again

(I wonder, what exactly is he going to be bringing out? I don’t think a huh A soup etables? But he said soup wasn’t possible…)

If he tried to trick her in a weird way, she made her decision hit him with her complaints

And then, after a little while

“Thank you for waiting”

That dish was left right in front of Faldania

“What’s this?”

As she saw it, she returned her gaze to the owner’s face and raised her voice It was a baron’s fruit cut into eight pieces, then fried in vegetable oil, and finally sprinkled with salt Brilliant orange Caryute boiled so that it would be sweet A boiled and dried, deep-green leafy vegetables These dishes she was able to understand

But finally, as on the black, piping hot iron plate was the , it was a dish Faldania never seen before

“Your tofu steak The seasoning is ponzu mixed with daikon…finished with soup stock made from kelp I believe that you will be able to eat it, Miss A young woman just like yourself, Miss, often orders this dish so I soood, so I brought out rice instead Well, for tofu steak, I believe that rice suits it better Well, please enjoy”

The owner said this in reply to Faldania’s o take another customer’s order

(…Well, it does seem like there no scent of any animals)

Without thinking, she brought the plate close to her nose and sniffed it, and judged it fro aro s fruit frorance of the white thing that was fried with fresh vegetable oil There was no trace of the beastly s with It seemed like this ‘tofu steak’ was truly the dish that Faldania had order, a dish with no s

(But, the problem is the taste)

Having lost her o, Faldania, who took care of the chores at hoood at cooking, and she had confidence in her cooking skills It was a dish made to please her Even if it was a dish made to accompany her unreasonable demand, if it tasted bad, there was no point

“Well then…”

Whether it was because she was nervous or because of the smell, Faldania sed her saliva and picked up her knife and fork She was curious about the side dishes as well, but first she took her knife to theatop of the plate

It felt like it was so soft that it had no resistance when she cut into it

(…I don’t really knohat this is The owner said it was called ‘tofu’ though)

She stabbed her fork into one of the four rilled until was lightly seared, and its color before it was cooked was unknown At the very least, it didn’t have an unfavorable s, she should eat it… as supposed to happen

With grated, snohite vegetables and a brown sauce covering it, Faldania started to hesitate froe about

(Anyway… all I can do is just try it out)

Even if it was terrible, she had to eat at least one bite since it washer determination, Faldania put it into her mouth

(What is this!?)

Fresh astonishment because to spread out in Faldania’s heart The surface which had a savory flavor frorilled by oil and the flavor of soft insides that were still waran to crumble and melt inside of her mouth What spread in her redient called tofu This flavor that Faldania tasted for the first time filled her mouth

(…When I was little, I feel like I tasted this before, but as it?)

It had the saic flavor An elf like Faldania ht not know but it was the flavor close to the flavor of dairy products that came from animals

To the elves, redient Even if they ate it, its raw-stinking sive them the chance to enjoy it Because of that, there is only one thing that the elves of the forest can taste the flavor of dairy from

(That’s right… This is mother’s flavor)

Faldania called upon her old, old memories and realized this For elves, it was a flavor that was limited to the extremely short number of years as an infant that they receive from their mothers

(This is… an a level of perfection)

After being absent piece of tofu over her tongue Then she calmly analyzed it and was surprised What held this simple flavor was the tofu She realized that the flavor of the tofu was brought up by the sauce covering it

(Ponzu… is what he called it It’s a little sour and salty… I wonder what this was made from)

While investigating the flavor of the tofu steak in her an to think upon the ponzu sauce that was used to season it It was ether the juices of a fruit that had no sweetness but instead had a strong sourness with an unknown brown sauce The brown sauce had a faint flavor si saltiness to it would be delicious even by itself

The assertive sourness and the strong saltiness coht these two flavors into a harmony was yet another unknown flavor Faldania had seen it fifty years ago It had the s raised these those two flavors to an even greater height

(To think a human could have such skill…)

As to what held the scent of the ocean, she didn’t know But as to what kind of thing it was, she soht about it by her mother who had traveled the human world It was a mushrooh she didn’t knohen the mushroom was dried and put into a soup, it would taste better than if it was put in raw

It wasthis unknown ingredient, it increased its flavor, and this sauce packed with flavor wasthis unknown flavor with the two strong flavors fro was far above Faldania’s

(If it was just that, it would’ve been delicious enough…)

What joined with it as as the strong, savory-setable, which had a salty but with a faint bitter taste, ether they made a delicious, complicated combination of flavors and s herbs, after taking a bite, the scent of the herbs remained in her nose and refreshed her

This complicated sauce combined with, if she had to say, the siave a feeling of satisfaction when it was eaten

(…So like this was made by a human!)

Faldania was shocked Humans were a short-lived race where many would be born and would soon die out They did not have a nificent culture like the noble elves did

Is what she thought But Faldania was a s that surpassed the dishes today’s elves could make, an unsurpassable dish She chewed her frustration and together with her tofu steak

The rice that accompanied the tofu steak had a sweetness every time she bit into it, and it contrasted with the seasoned tofu steak,it a deliciousthe deliciousness of the side dishes which included fried Baron’s fruit with a crunchy outside, boiled sweet Caryute, and perfectly salted green leafy vegetables which made her even more frustrated

(I won’t allowed us to lose like this!)

Faldania, while indulging in flavors she never had before in her life, had a fire lit in her heart Right at that moment, an elf’s usual habit leaked out of her As expected, Faldnia’s lofty pride made her find her purpose at that moment

The next day

“Uo, Faldania?”

Faldania’s father, who fro as Faldania even though his age reached around 300 years, asked this uneasily

He knew because 150 years ago he hio on a journey though the hu erous It wasn’t once or twice that he hierous situation if it weren’t for an old friend, who is now devoting hiical arts in the elven capital, and his wife, an elf froic and archery

According to so aside about the ainst the huth It’s been around seventy years since the humans defeated the evil God that the demon’s worshi+ped and the demons lost the war Because such a short period of tied the world, he wanted to say it wasn’t peaceful enough for a young elf to journey across the world by herself

Because his precious, precious daughter as barely just a child wanted to leave the Sienna Forest that he hi extremely uneasy

“Of course! …I’ll be fine I’m already an adult”

But Faldania’s resolve wouldn’t be weakened by her worried father’s persuasions With her pride as an elf wounded, she couldn’t live comfortably in the forest

She had to go on a journey It was in order to make a dish that was even tastier than the ones at the Other World Dining Hall Rather than recklessness born from youth, Faldania had a firm belief

“Like hell you’re an adult! You’re still too young Faldania!”

Faldania’s father who lost his wife thirty years ago due to illness raised his voice in objection Even if her body was finished growing, her mind was still too inexperienced From her father’s point of view, Faldania was child he had to protect for another hundred years

“Mou! I’ll be fine! So stop worrying! I’ll definitely be able todelicious for you to eat, papa!”

Faldania who reached the limits of her patience said this as she left the house as if she were flying away

“Ah, wait! At least take this letter…”

Shaking off her father’s words, she casted then her body and dashed out like the wind And just like that, what she saw as she left the Sienna Forest wasn’t the trees of the forest but a wide prairie

“That’s right! I’ to make delicious food! More delicious than the hu!”

And so Faldania ran off In order to get back the pride she lost On a journey to bring forth wondrous food

After that, a wondrous elven style of cooking using beans was born that used no h praise by races all over The person who created it was a legendary chef as only 130 years when she set out during her younger days