“Alright! Let’s go!”
“Yeah!”
Before the two enthusiastic Young Ladies, Kalinka-san and I barely managed to suppress our sighs.
It’s been a while since our Young Lady and Lady Evelyn have been on an Adventurer’s gig. In the distance, the Sandfelds House’s guards could be seen.
There was some fuss before we left about my equipment since I’m now openly using my Magic Bag, but other than that, no problems.
I’m wearing a robe over my Knight Uniform, with my Nata, canteen, and healing potions at my waist.
“Cladfield, your equipment is quite simple, isn’t it?”
“It’s better to have less on hand. Though I do have potions for emergencies.”
When adventuring outside the city, you have to be prepared for anything. Especially since my charges are the two Young Ladies, I need to be ready to deal with any injuries quickly.
“Lucky you.”
“Kalinka-san is in full armor, after all.”
Her shield is also huge. She doesn’t seem to have much trouble moving around despite her appearance, but there’s still some inevitable awkwardness.
“This time, we’re exploring Shinfolla Forest to the south, right?”
“Yes! We decided together!”
“There seems to be a Running Wheat outbreak, we can make a fortune!”
“Sounds safe enough!”
“Though we can’t eat it right away.”
The two Young Ladies were genuinely disappointed by my words.
Running Wheat was rampant in Cybarossa Territory, and it seems the same is happening here.
Like most Monsters on this planet, the breeding methods of Monsters are mostly unconfirmed. Except for some Mounts, maybe.
Running Wheat is no exception. Outbreaks and anomalies occur periodically. The Red-Haired Great Bull wasn’t quite an outbreak, but there were still quite a few.
In the case of Running Wheat, it’s more prone to outbreaks because it’s often not finished off. When you harvest the wheat part, the body is left alone. Since it can be harvested again, humans don’t finish it off.
Of course, it dies when it’s preyed upon by other Monsters, though.
“There’s one already! Let’s go!”
“Let’s stop by the outpost first.”
“Oh, right. We were told to.”
“Lady Evelyn, please don’t rush.”
“Gunu-nu-nu-nu!”
It’s not something to make such a noise about.
Since there was a large amount of Running Wheat, and the location was clear, the Guild had set up an outpost.
To buy it up immediately. And probably to check the Adventurers coming and going.
The four of us showed our registration cards and entered the Forest. There were many Adventurers, as well as villagers from nearby villages, chasing after the Running Wheat.
“Running that fast, see, they bumped into something.”
“How dangerous.”
Some people were so focused on chasing that they charged straight into trees. It’s quite a chaotic situation.
Despite being wheat, it prefers the somewhat overgrown forests with trees. It’s said that it’s because they don’t want birds pecking at the wheat on their heads.
“Be careful not to cut too deep, okay? You’ll kill it.”
“Understood!”
“Leave it to me!”
“I can’t chase them with my equipment, so I’ll leave it to you.”
“…Which means, please don’t stray too far from Kalinka-san.”
“”Yes, ma’am!””
Good response. The two Young Ladies then diligently chased after the Running Wheat.
“There was no need to catch them, though.”
“Honestly, I had a terrible time.”
“”Ahahaha!””
The Running Wheat runs around the forest freely. The Young Ladies weren’t losing in terms of speed, so they chased, caught, cut off the wheat part of the head, and released them.
But at some point, they realized they could just cut off the head without catching them, and started collecting wheat by swinging their Sabers.
In contrast, Lady Evelyn chased, caught, and harvested with a sickle. Lady Evelyn is a mage, but since we’re in the forest and dealing with Running Wheat, fire magic is difficult to use, and lightning magic is also out of the question.
That makes her a normal noble lady.
Well, she’s still much more physically fit than other women her age since she’s an Adventurer, but that’s in terms of stamina, not skill. Especially with a sickle, which she’s not used to… is it a weapon? Well, a tool.
She was getting hit in the head by the Running Wheat’s main attack method, headbutts.
And she was getting angry.
Well, it doesn’t do fatal damage, but it hurts quite a bit.
“Potion, do you need one?”
“I don’t need it!”
Her face was red where she was hit, but she was still energetic.
In contrast, the Running Wheat that had their wheat harvested were trudging off into the depths of the forest. Where are they going?
“You’ve harvested quite a lot.”
“Yeah, I think we got about five Farmland’s worth?”
“Is that a lot?”
“Quite a lot.”
Half a year’s worth of work for a wheat farmer in this amount of time… but that doesn’t mean wheat farmers will go out of business. After all, Running Wheat’s wheat is from Monsters. Wheat farmers’ wheat is supplied stably, so it’s natural to focus on that.
“Well, shall we have lunch soon?”
“Sounds good. I’m getting hungry.”
“Yes!”
The two Young Ladies are not reserved.
This time, since it’s wheat, and it would be a waste not to use the Iron Plate we used before, we’re cooking with it.
“I asked Tonkakke to make various things, you know.”
I took out the barbecue set from the Spatial Storage, and also the table and chairs. Also a table for cooking. If I prepare it myself, the technology and materials from outside this planet will inevitably show, so I have Tonkakke make the things I use in places like this.
He looks like a weapons craftsman, but he also makes pots and nails, so he makes cooking utensils without any resistance. He’s a blacksmith, after all.
I put them out randomly, and Kalinka-san arranges them. And I use the summoning whistle to call Carlos-san… the Sandfelds House’s guard team. Since the Magic Bag is my property, I’m in charge of the meals.
Of course, they also have their own portable food, so I don’t intend to force them to eat. It’s for poison testing.
I light the charcoal and add firewood. It takes time to heat up this size of Iron Plate.
“What are we cooking?”
“This.”
This time, since it’s Running Wheat, I prepared flour-based dishes.
Okonomiyaki and Yakisoba, which can be easily made if you have enough heat. Well, even if I show them this, the Young Ladies won’t understand, so I show them the meat to make it easier to understand.
“Looks delicious!”
“It’s Red-Haired Great Bull we caught the other day. I personally thought pork would be better, but since we have it.”
“Sounds good!”
While I was talking to the happy Young Ladies, the Iron Plate was getting ready, so I put in the Okonomiyaki base. The vegetables are already in it. This thing, made by the Support Drone, tastes like a pro made it.
I also grill the meat next to it, and bake the Okonomiyaki.
I move it to the side, put the meat in the middle, and put an egg on top.
“Oh!”
“An egg?”
Lady Evelyn frowned a little, perhaps because she doesn’t eat eggs often. Well, normally you have to cook them thoroughly. But don’t worry, it’s sterilized.
“I’ll flip this over. There.”
I drop the Okonomiyaki onto the egg and meat with the spatula engraved with Tonkakke’s name. Yes. Success.
“Looks delicious.”
“Yeah, I can’t resist.”
While observing to some extent, I start on the second and third ones. It’s a technique that can only be done because the Iron Plate is large.
“The first one is ready.”
I put on the sauce and it’s done. Unfortunately, I don’t have mayonnaise because it would be difficult to explain. Instead, I put a lot of chopped green onions.
“Let’s eat, then.”
I cut it into quarters, and Carlos-san eats one.
“Hofu, hofu…”
“How is it? Old man.”
“Hafu, hafu…”
It’s freshly grilled and just taken off the Iron Plate, so it’s hot.
“This thing is falling apart. It’s not suitable for eating with a fork… the crispy texture followed by the chewy texture, the unique flavor of the sauce and the large amount of green onions that help it. Boy, give me more sauce.”
“Ah, here you go.”
I add the sauce as he says.
“Hmm, this rich flavor is irresistible. The taste of the sauce spreading in my mouth, the umami of the meat. I can’t resist, it’s delicious!”
This old man gave me a full food report.
“Old man! Can I eat it!?”
“Wait, there may be a slow-acting poison.”
“Young Lady, please.”
“Ah, okay. Thank you.”
“Gunu-nu-nu-nu!”
Since I made it, our Young Lady is free from poison testing. Please enjoy it while it’s hot.
While preparing for the Young Lady, I bake additional Okonomiyaki for the Young Lady who wants a refill.
The Sandfelds House guards were eating or not eating as they pleased. Seems like individual freedom is respected around here.
Yakisoba was also prepared. This one’s salt-flavored.
“いただきます wa” (Thank you for the food)
“Oishii desu yo” (It’s delicious)
“I could hear you!”
It seems Evelyn-sama has finally started her meal.
“Yakisoba, do you want a taste test for poison?”
“…I shall partake.”
“I want you to grill meat too!”
“That’s a good idea. Boy, order some steak.”
“Yes, yes. Please eat your vegetables too.”
Doesn’t it seem like this old man is eating the most? What a hearty eater.