Chapter 260: A Warm Meal
“There are drag marks over here too.”
A line emerges in the light of the lantern, leading in one direction. Retze checks around as we continue our pursuit.
Fortunately, the dragged marks aren’t from something large; they look like a line. It seems like someone is dragging a drawn sword along. At least it’s not a person being dragged, which is a relief.
I could let the Spirit guide us, but I’m keeping quiet for now. I’ll think about our next move after assessing the state of the first person. My objective has changed, but I’m currently enjoying the exploration like a regular adventurer.
The lantern Retze is carrying is one I made. Lanterns have started to appear among adventurers. It looks like it was crafted by blowing glass directly into a brass frame. The smell of oil and soot is terrible, but it’s still a lantern.
Just like with the bag, it’s a registered item from the Adventurer’s Guild, but it seems like shoddy copies are circulating quickly. It’s impressive how well they can make do with what they have. It’s expensive, but it’s popular in the Fortress City. Unlike Kanum, dark places like labyrinths and mine shafts are where the real money is.
Using light magic is typically reserved for combat, and I’ve been told to learn to act normally first. It’s not common to illuminate a wide area like I did in the mine, using glasses as a reference.
“The enemy won’t be sleeping, and we have a three to four-day gap. There’s no point in rushing,” Dinoss says as we progress through another fork in the path, heading toward where we’ll be sleeping.
It’s dark, so my sense of time can get a bit skewed, but I need to make sure to eat and sleep properly to function.
“I wonder what time it is now?”
“About seven o’clock.”
“Seems like it’s around seven.”
I got a response when I asked.
Dinoss and Retze seem to keep their meal and sleep times roughly the same, maintaining their internal clocks. I see, but I can wake up at five in the morning! That’s because I have morning walks with Rishu.
Unlike the two of them, if it’s raining, I’ll just start lounging around, and sometimes I even go back to sleep after the walk.
This time, I managed to sneak out early in the morning for a walk with Rishu.
“Finally, a proper meal…!”
I eagerly start preparing.
“The ground is damp around here, so the fire isn’t very strong,” Retze grumbles.
When the ground is wet in the forest, I usually stack some thicker logs and place firewood on top. But here, I can only use what I brought, so I can’t afford such luxury.
“Don’t worry, I brought a fire stand.”
I pull out two folded fire stands from my backpack, each about the size of A4 paper, and set them up. They’re simple ones that unfold into an H shape, but they have slotted iron plates as well.
“Lord Jean…”
“You…”
“Impressive, Lord of Dusk!”
As I quickly start the fire, I hear the exasperated voices of the Butler and Dinoss. It’s been a while since Chris called me the Lord of Dusk. Meanwhile, Retze seems more interested in the tools than exasperated, remaining silent.
I enjoy making a campfire, but I had heard beforehand that this wasn’t a place where I could do that.
“Meat, meat!”
Dean pulls out a chunk of meat.
“Is it okay to roast it? Can you cut it up?”
“Sure thing.”
Dean is straightforward when it comes to his desire for meat, so he doesn’t say anything else.
It’s quite a large chunk, and it doesn’t seem to be heavily salted, so it’s likely something we brought to share on the first day.
While Dean cuts the meat, I prepare the bread. It’s called biscotti, a crunchy thin bread that’s split in two, baked again, and dried out. It has a bit of honey mixed in, but it tastes like a less sweet rusk. It doesn’t taste good when it’s damp, so I warm it lightly.
I also brought flour, but baking takes time, so I have several types of preserved bread ready. There are also biscotti with nuts and dried fruits.
I prepare unsalted fermented butter, cassis jam, and cheese.
With a bit of garlic powder and pepper, I grill the meat on the hot iron plate. The size of the meat is thanks to Dean’s cutting skills. I’d like to add some soup, but we have limited water, so I hold back.
“Dry bread usually doesn’t taste great, but this is delicious.”
“You’re still a great cook even out here! This really needs some wine.”
“Indeed.”
Retze and Chris respond, and finally, Ash chimes in. Ash, are you sure about that amount of jam? I start to worry a little.
“This meat seems pretty good too, doesn’t it?”
“I prepared it with Chris’s help.”
Dean still uses somewhat polite language with Dinoss.
“I should have brought more alcohol.”
“Karn, I’m not sure about that…”
Karn is currently drinking, leaving the Butler perplexed.
Since he’s half not human, Karn doesn’t need to eat much, but it seems he loves wine. He did bring some dried meat, cheese, and nuts, but most of his load is alcohol.
Alcohol has a diuretic effect and uses up water to break it down, making dehydration easy. Here, where water isn’t readily available, Karn is the only one drinking heavily.
It seems Dean and the others mistakenly believe that Karn’s body has adapted to absorb nutrients from alcohol due to the Spirit, but he only needs to take in small Spirits, you know?
I have him carry charcoal that he doesn’t need, and he’s brought plenty of the cheese I requested, so I have no complaints. Well, after being in the desert without food or drink, it’s nice to finally enjoy a meal.
I slice the zucchini and grill it on the iron plate after the meat, letting it cook until it’s tender. I add olive oil. After grilling both sides, I place semi-dried tomatoes and cheese on top, covering the plate to steam it. A bit of salt and dried parsley for seasoning. Ideally, I’d like to use fresh tomatoes, but I didn’t bring any.
“When I first went out with Jean, I realized that even while holed up in the countryside, the way of adventuring has changed.”
Dinoss says, reminiscing.
“Not much has changed since my active days. It’s just Lord Jean who’s different.”
The Butler states with a smile.
“Convenience and deliciousness are what matter, right?”
I can’t believe I’m going on adventures while carrying this hemp sack!
“Is this fire stand really that powerful?” Dean asks.
…
“Wait a minute, why are you looking away?”
Retze asks with half-open eyes.
“I’m not going to discuss that.”
Making something like this requires a furnace, you know… When you use a furnace, the gods come to peek, right? I left the really dangerous stuff behind.