Chapter 583: Seizing the Moment
Here I am, Jean, with my sword skills improving even though I have no plans to use them. I think being prepared is important. Yeah.
If only it would cool down quickly, I could use fire for blacksmithing or glassmaking…! Well, I do use it for cooking, but having Van next to me while I cook makes me a bit uneasy.
So, right now, I’m in the middle of cooking. The main dishes are being prepared by the Earth Folk and Haulon, but I’m making some snacks. I baked a pound cake, but I’m currently working on something more extravagant for the banquet.
Honestly, I just want to do something with the mangoes. I prepared a baked cheese tart base the size of my palm and squeezed on some yogurt cream—let’s see, I’ll top it with a flower shape. It’s just a matter of arranging the mango slices in a crescent shape.
I’m also preparing a peach tart. I added a bit of Earl Grey tea leaves to the almond cream. It’ll look delightful, but I’m sure no one will mind if they’re a bit tipsy.
A tart with mango, orange, and the pale pink of peach flowers. I wonder if I should add another color? Orange overlaps too much. Strawberries are out since I’m using them elsewhere. Maybe I’ll go with apples; if I use the skin too, the flesh will turn a lovely shade of red.
I’m also making regular and curry-flavored meat pies, as well as bacon and potato pies. And with the leftover fruits, I’ll whip up a large batch of lassi to be fully prepared.
…Even if I mix in some Spirit Gold, I think the Earth Folk would accept it, right? No, it might be better to take it as is without cooking. I should prepare a basket full.
Ah! If I say, “This is an offering for Wanwan and Asas!”… Perfect, a basket it is! Or maybe a nice large plate would be better? One with legs that raises it up?
So, I’ve come to the Pasture after a long time. This is the town where I ordered my enamel bathtub and porcelain. It’s too late to have anything custom made, so I’ll have to choose from what’s available.
And I see, this piece that looks like a trophy cup is called a fruit compote? There are ones with elephants and swan shapes too. Even peacocks.
In a world where grape-patterned cutting scissors exist, it’s no surprise they have dishes specifically for serving whole fruits.
However, this is a high-end pottery shop—or rather, a workshop. They mostly start making things after receiving requests, so there aren’t many items in stock, and the shapes don’t match up. Most of the sets are for dinner courses, meant for the wealthy or nobility.
I wonder if Naruadeid has a better selection. No, this place is at the forefront, and they must be shipping their goods to Naruadeid. It would take time, but both Pasture and Naruadeid could have matching sets eventually.
But it’s fine if they don’t match perfectly. If I ask the Spirits to add the same decorations with Spirit Gold or something, they’ll look like a matching set. Probably.
Oh.
“Excuse me, could you show me this deep dish set?”
“Yes, of course. Isn’t it smooth and beautifully white?”
I check the size with the shopkeeper and decide on this one.
If I’m going to embellish it with Spirit Gold, I might as well make the legs out of Spirit Gold too, right? This way, I can create many of the same shape.
For Wanwan and Asas, for Es, for Shahira and Baylis, and if Neneto comes, I should prepare double.
I feel like the Earth Folk would prefer baskets. They create incredibly delicate works of art, yet they favor simple things. Their treasure vaults are overflowing with jewelry, yet they wear modest attire. But the materials they use are rare and of high quality.
What a strange people they are.
Though it didn’t go perfectly, I returned home with the fruit serving dishes. I took out the gold and silver I had stored in the wooden box in my workshop and set them on the table.
Since the serving will also be in gold, will the white, gold, and silver look too lonely? I have some leftover Magic Stones, so I’ll pick out some pretty ones to add. I rummaged through [Storage] and selected the stones—large ones with gem quality.
The temple will likely be dimly lit, with torches and bonfires flickering, so I want the stones to look beautiful in that light.
“Excuse me, could you use these Magic Stones and gold and silver to create a raised foot and two handles for this, along with some decorations inspired by the flow of a river? Sand patterns would be fine too.”
I envisioned a shape like the trophy cup while making my unreasonable request to the Spirits.
Oh. The pattern on the legs completely turned into something from a temple. Of course, the sand patterns formed naturally in the desert are beautiful because they stretch as far as the eye can see, but in this small space, it looks a bit off.
Wait, please! No more coins! It might be a sand pattern, but that’s a tourist spot in Kagawa…! I take that back, flowers, please! Flowers!
—After a lot of trial and error with the Spirits, we finally created something nice. I definitely can’t show it to the artisan group of the Earth Folk!
Alright, now all that’s left is to balance the Golden Fruit series on top. It’s hard to find other uses for them, so let’s pile them on as much as we can.