Chapter 324 - Swampland Town Pasta (1/2)

Swampland Town Pasta

Arkaroid was not that large, yet somehow we were having trouble deciding on a place to eat. Whenever we looked through the windows of any restaurants, we saw that people were mostly eating noodles. Maybe that’s what this place was known for.

“We are quite close to Usk, after all. And there are many merchants who go to the capital. Since they would have no lack of ingredients, it is no surprise that they can make such things. Besides, there is a lot of water here. Have you noticed the wells?”

Daniela rattled on. Right… Yes, it did make sense. I didn’t know much about noodles, but there had been a great variety of it in the trading city.

“The fish here must be great as well. But perhaps not so much during this season.”

“Hmm… Fish. That would have been quite nice.”

“The beauty of eating is how you enjoy what happens to be in season.”

“Beauty of eating?”

Usually, whatever happened to be in front of her was what she ate without much consideration. However, she glared at me before I could reply. I gulped. In any case, there would be no fish today.

Still, there were a lot of places to choose form. Of course, most of them seemed to serve noodles. But there was no doubt a great variety of styles.

So, perhaps the first thing to consider was if we wanted them in soup or not.

“There is one place that intrigues me. We should go there.”

“I don’t really care. You can choose.”

“Alright. It is this way.”

Daniela nodded happily as she took the lead.

She glided gracefully through the throngs, and I had trouble keeping up. It almost felt like some kind of training. Every time she would move, someone would pop up out of nowhere and I’d frantically have to dodge them. And every time that happened, we’d separate and I would have to catch up. Hmm. Challenging.

“Daniela. Could you slow down?”

“Mm? …Ah, sorry. My hunger makes me want to rush.”

“Let’s go together.”

“Aye.”

I came up beside her and held her hand. She was stronger and tougher than me. Daniela was a true veteran Adventurer. But her hand was thin and soft. I guess she really was just a lady.

The place that Daniela wanted to go to was one of the first places we had passed by. And it also offered noodles. Well, it was pasta.

“Welcome!”

We kicked off the snow from our shoes and took our capes off before opening the door and stepping inside. An elderly man with a white beard greeted us cheerfully.

“Excuse me, do you have seats for two?”

“Sit anywhere you like!”

We nodded and looked around. It was practically full. But on the other hand, many of the plates on the tables were empty, and a lot of the customers were just enjoying their after-meal conversations.

I found a table in the far back that was unoccupied and had two seats.

“Daniela.”

“Hm? Ah, I see. Thank goodness.”

I elbowed here as she had also been looking around. She was visibly relieved, as this had been her idea. All over some food… I couldn’t help but chuckle.

We made our way passed the other tables and arrived at our seats. Perhaps it was because we had been walking for so long, I suddenly felt very tired when I sank into my chair. I also felt famished.

There was a menu on top of the table with a bunch of names for the dishes. I suppose this was what was in season. There actually were some fish items, but I was in full pasta mode by this time.

“So…”

We both looked at the menu together. Hmm. There was a lot on there, but most of the ingredients were unfamiliar to me. Of course, there were a few that I did recognize, and those looked like a safe bet.

“Alright, I’ve decided.”

“Hmm… Which did you choose, Asagi?”

“This.”

I pointed at the tomato pasta. Safety first.

“Not bad…”

“Which are you considering?”

“It must be either the ‘Winter Vegetables and Pepper Pasta’ and the ‘Alexia Mushroom and Olive Pasta.’”

Well…those did sound pretty good. I’ve never had Alexia mushrooms before.

“Do they grow in the mountains then?”

“Aye. They are hard as rocks. And so you must crush them with hammers and boil them until they soften. They are delicious.”

“Interesting…”

A rock-like mushroom that grows in rocky mountains. They would probably be difficult to find. Perhaps they were a rare delicacy then.

“Indeed, they are quite rare. …Alight, I will choose it. Since we are here.”

“Good. It’s settled. Waiter!”