Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 26 - Chapter 5.2

2

“Okay, now let’s bring out the desserts! Will you help me out, Tara?”

“On it!” Tara replied, rising to her feet. Toor Deen and Yun Sudra also silently got up out of their seats. Those four had worked together on the night’s final course.

“So, you were just helping out today?” Ai Fa whispered into my ear. That was often how my clan head spoke to me when we were at a table surrounded by many people.

“Yeah. We could only serve a limited number of dishes, so I figured I shouldn’t insist on taking the lead from the others. Still, they were all dishes I could easily have made myself. I’m surprised you could tell.”

“Of course I could tell. I eat your cooking every day,” Ai Fa replied before biting into a minced meat cutlet. The dish had some similarities to her beloved hamburger steak, and was also fried in the giba lard that was so popular at the forest’s edge, so it was only natural that she would be fond of it. “But you needn’t worry. It isn’t as if I’m displeased because we aren’t having your cooking tonight,” she added, perhaps because I was still staring at her. But really, I was just enjoying sitting beside her in a chair once more after so long. So long that it felt like I was experiencing it for the first time again. However, I refrained from commenting so as to save myself a kick in the leg.

In the meantime, the girls returned from the kitchen holding a large tray. Atop it sat enough traip pudding cake and chatchi mochi with traip syrup for everyone.

The pudding cakes in clay containers and the chatchi mochi that were on a single large plate were all dished out, and the empty plates were removed so that they wouldn’t get in the way. As they often worked in the outdoor restaurant, Yun Sudra and Rimee Ruu were thoroughly accustomed to waiting tables.

“Oho, so you’ve made sweets as well? I haven’t had any since the banquet at the Ruu settlement,” Dora said.

“Does this use traip?” Tara’s second brother asked. “It has such a beautiful color!”

“They look delicious. I’ve been looking forward to this most of all,” the wife of Tara’s eldest brother added.

Dora’s family were all reacting to the desserts, men and women, young and old alike. As they hadn’t participated in the Ruu banquet, Granny Mishil and the old folks had no experience with sweets, so they peered suspiciously into the pudding cake containers.

“I told you to take it easy on the fruit wine. Tara, take that back into the kitchen and fetch some chatchi tea for your father,” Dora’s wife ordered.

“Got it!”

“Hey, I only just started drinking. And this looks so good!”

As soon as the four waitresses returned to their seats, everyone picked up their spoons. And then, voices full of surprise and joy filled the room.

“Ah, this is even tastier than what I had before! I never would have dreamed that you could make something like this with traip.”

“The ones from the big plate are great too. I thought I was completely full, but I feel like I could still eat a thousand of them.”

“Here, Granny Jiba. This is the pudding cake Toor Deen made. It’s even more delicious than our dessert.”

“Ah, you’re right. The sweet you and Rimee made was delicious too, Reina, but this is truly spectacular.”

Even among the guests from the forest’s edge, half of them hadn’t tasted Toor Deen’s sweet before. The men—Darmu Ruu, Ryada Ruu, and Cheem Sudra—had been rather untalkative so far, but now all of them had their eyes wide open in surprise.

“Well? Isn’t it delicious, Darmu?” Rimee Ruu called out from her seat some distance away.

“Yeah,” Darmu Ruu replied with a nod. “It’s actually shocking. I’d love to see what sort of face our old man would make if he tried it.”

“That’s for sure! Toor Deen got first place in a tasting competition with this pudding cake, after all!” Rimee Ruu almost sounded like she was bragging about her own accomplishment there.

When he heard that, Dora tilted his head and asked, “A tasting competition?”

“Yeah! The nobles in the castle town do it as a, um, what was it again...?”

“A bit of amusement. They compare dishes and assign points based on what they find most enjoyable. It’s a sort of game for the nobles.”

Dora’s eyes widened. “S-So this is the exact same sweet that those nobles ate?”

“Yeah, that’s right. The chatchi mochi’s been served in the castle town multiple times as well, just with different flavorings.”

“Well, I suppose that makes sense. The nobles have been eating the food you all make for some time now, after all. Still, it’s a strange feeling to realize it now.”

Then Dora’s wife chimed in. “That’s for sure. I’ve never even seen a noble up close, but here we are, eating the same food they do. It feels odd.”

“It’s pretty late to be realizing that. But this is proof of how amazing the people of the forest’s edge actually are, isn’t it?” the older brother remarked with a generous smile. “And those dishes were made using the vegetables we produce, right, Asuta?”

“Yeah, of course. In fact, we made sure to bring our own traip last time. Their flavor can differ a lot, like with tarapa, so we didn’t want any issues on that front.”

“Well, considering that there are nobles who actually come to your stalls to buy your cooking, I guess that isn’t really a surprise.”

Dora and his wife nodded along with smiles as they continued to snack on pudding cake and chatchi mochi.

Now that they mention it, that is a bit unusual, having folks from the castle town and the Daleim lands eat the exact same dishes only five days apart. And in both instances, the food had brought happy smiles to almost everyone’s faces. Despite how different their lifestyles were, they were the same in how they all enjoyed eating delicious food.

I wondered how Toor Deen was reacting to all of this and turned to look for her. It didn’t take long for me to find her, and right away I noticed that she was tearing up a bit, her half-eaten pudding cake in front of her. She must have felt something similar to what I had, only far stronger. The pudding cake she’d made had brought joy to her comrades from the forest’s edge, friends from town, and nobles from the castle town, all alike. That was the greatest happiness one could experience as a chef.

Once the big plate of chatchi mochi was also cleared away, dinner finally came to a close. After some more enjoyable chatter as we digested, Reina Ruu called out, “Well, I suppose it’s about time for us to return to the settlement. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful evening with us.”

“Oh no, we should be the ones thanking you. Still, is it really okay for you to leave right now? The rain seems to be letting up, but it’s pitch black out.”

“Yes. The moonlight should be plenty, and even if it is cloudy, we do have torches.”

Over half of our group from the forest’s edge hurriedly set about preparing to leave. Only Ai Fa, Rimee Ruu, Granny Jiba, Ludo Ruu, Darmu Ruu, and I would be staying.

“Please take care, Darmu Ruu,” Sheera Ruu quietly said as she grabbed her rain gear from the wall.

Darmu Ruu questioningly furrowed his brow and turned her way.

“The Daleim lands aren’t that dangerous, and even if bandits happened to sneak in, they would be no match for hunters of the forest’s edge.”

“Yes, of course, I know that. But still, please take care.”

With that, Darmu Ruu’s brow unfurrowed and he nodded, replying, “Sure. You take care too. You shouldn’t be in any danger since you’ll have Ryada Ruu and Bartha with you, but don’t let your guard down until you make it back to the settlement.”

“Right. Thank you,” Sheera Ruu replied with a happy smile.

After watching that exchange play out, Tara’s mother whispered into my ear, “Looks like things are going well over there. Guess she didn’t need us to say anything after all.”

Apparently, Sheera and Darmu Ruu just gave off that sort of impression, even to those who didn’t have any prior knowledge of how things were between them. At any rate, I made sure that the pair from the forest’s edge wouldn’t notice as I replied, “Right.”

After that, the members of the Ruu clan got into Jidura’s wagon (driven by Ryada Ruu), while Toor Deen and Yun Sudra hopped into Fafa’s wagon with Cheem Sudra in the driver’s seat. Only a few moments later, they were on their way back to the forest’s edge. And as for the rest of us, we were guided up to the bedrooms on the second floor.

“You don’t need us to wake you up tomorrow, do you?”

“No. We’ll probably all wake up when the sun rises.”

“Well then, goodnight to you. And Tara, don’t go causing them any trouble, okay?”

“I won’t!” Tara energetically replied, holding Rimee Ruu’s hand in her own. Seeing that, her mother headed back downstairs, and Tara turned toward Ludo Ruu. “Hey, you’re sleeping in a different room today, right, Ludo Ruu?”

“Hmm? Yeah, that’s right. You’ll have Ai Fa in your bedroom, after all. I’m not allowed to sleep in the same room as another house’s women.”

“Aww, that’s a shame. I wanted to talk lots more with you too.”

“Oh? Shouldn’t having Rimee there be plenty for you?”

“No way! Sure, I’m really happy to have Rimee Ruu here, but I don’t get to see you very much, Ludo Ruu!”

Now that I thought about it, I had heard Tara say that she thought Ludo Ruu was cool before. Still, coming from a nine-year-old girl, that was totally harmless.

At any rate, Ludo Ruu simply shrugged, looking a bit sleepy. “Well, I’m pretty much ready to call it a day here. Take care of Granny Jiba and Rimee, okay, Ai Fa? Of course, we’ll be in the room right next door anyway.”

“Right. And you take care of Asuta.”

“Between me and Darmu, he’ll be totally fine no matter what happens. Let’s get to sleep,” Ludo Ruu said with a big yawn, reaching for the door to the bedroom. But then, he seemed to remember something and turned back toward me. “Oh, but you’re not going to bed right away, are you, Asuta?”

“Huh? No, I am.”

“Really? Isn’t the Fa clan custom to chat with each other before sleeping?”

This wasn’t the first time I had been in a similar situation with Ludo Ruu, which was how he knew about that. Still, I was pretty sure I had left the bedroom without giving a reason for doing so last time, but it seemed he had figured out what I was doing all on his own.

“It’s not like we have any sort of set custom about that. But now that you mention it, there is something I forgot about that I have to discuss with Ai Fa.”

“Hmm,” Ludo Ruu hummed, raising a single eyebrow and looking like he wanted to say something more. However, he seemed to sense his brother’s gaze being directed at him from behind, so he silently headed into the bedroom instead.

“Well then, goodnight!”

“Goodnight, Asuta!”

“I will see you tomorrow, Asuta and Darmu,” Rimee Ruu, Tara, and Granny Jiba said before heading into the neighboring bedroom as well. There in the dark halfway, Ai Fa calmly stared at me.

“What do you wish to discuss?”

“Well, it’s not like I have any specific business to take care of or anything. I just don’t feel like I can relax if I don’t talk to you before going to sleep.”

“I see,” Ai Fa replied, leaning up against the wall. There was moonlight streaming in through the windows, but it was rather weak, perhaps due to clouds getting the way. At this distance, I couldn’t really make out the expression on Ai Fa’s face.

“Um, do you mind if I come a little closer?”

“Why do you feel the need to always ask about such things?”

“I mean, didn’t we decide to exercise self-restraint when it comes to touching each other?”

Ai Fa seemed to sigh in the darkness. “Getting close and touching are two totally different things, aren’t they? I see no reason to make such a fuss about it.”

Having gotten permission, I went ahead and moved a bit closer to my clan head. I found it a little hard to feel at ease, standing there in the dark all alone with Ai Fa in someone else’s house. Actually, it felt kind of fun in a way, like we were a pair of naughty kids, sneaking around and having clandestine meetings away from prying eyes.

However, Ai Fa was just looking back at me with her usual measured gaze. We hadn’t had time to take it easy and simply talk since this morning. And as that thought crossed my mind, my chest started to feel hot.

“Dinner was really fun today.”

“Indeed.”

“Working in the castle town is fun too, and more than exciting enough for me, but I enjoy visiting Dora’s house just as much, for totally different reasons.”

“Indeed.”

“The rainy season will be over in another ten days or so. A lot has happened in the last two months, huh?”

“It is not as if the rainy season is on a set schedule that makes it come to an abrupt end at exactly two months. You shouldn’t turn your mind away from it until it’s actually over.”

“I wasn’t turning my mind away. But tomorrow’s a day off, so I’ve gotta unwind at least a little... But I guess it’s not like you have tomorrow off too, though. Sorry for just letting my thoughts spill out like that.”

“There’s no need to apologize. I tend to be less careful with my words before going to sleep as well. Perhaps more than usual tonight, since I’ll be sleeping beside Granny Jiba and Rimee Ruu,” Ai Fa said with a faint smile. That alone was enough to warm my heart. “Sleeping in someone else’s house does make me feel a little on edge, but I am happy to have the opportunity to chat with them for a while...and thanks to you, I’ve managed to deepen my bonds with them even further.”

“You mean by inviting them to your birthday? I’m really glad to hear you say that.”

“Asuta, you...” Ai Fa started to say before suddenly holding her tongue. I waited for her to continue, but she didn’t say anything further.

“What is it? You don’t have to hold back. Please, just say it.”

“No, I’ll drop it. It’s nothing we need to discuss now, when the rainy season hasn’t even ended.”

“It has something to do with the season? I don’t mind if you want to talk about something that’ll be happening in the future.”

“When the time comes, I’ll say it then. There’s no reason to rush into it now.”

I didn’t really get it, but since Ai Fa’s voice had remained calm, it probably wasn’t anything seriously troublesome, so I didn’t feel the need to push her to tell me about whatever it was.

“By the way, Granny Jiba’s birthday is next month, right? Do you think we’ll be summoned to the Ruu house for it?”

“That’s up to Donda Ruu to decide. If I can give her a celebratory flower, though, that’ll be enough to make me happy.”

“Yeah. Well, I’ll be satisfied if they at least summon us to their next festival of the hunt. Actually, the Ruu clan should be holding one fairly soon, right?”

“Indeed. It should occur during the vermilion month at the latest.”

Festivals of the hunt and break periods came roughly three times a year, and by the time we entered the vermilion month, it would be four whole months since their last break.

“That’s a surprise. Actually, has it already been four months since the sun god’s revival festival? It feels like time has been passing faster and faster lately.”

“No doubt that’s because of how fulfilling those months have been for you.” Ai Fa moved away from the wall and took a single step toward me. Considering I had already moved closer myself, that meant there weren’t even thirty centimeters separating the two of us now. “Compared to the two years before I met you, I feel like time is flowing at least twice as fast now. Actually, even that might not cover it.”

“I see. Well, if you’ve been enjoying your time with me that much, then I’m glad.”

“As if I could feel any other way about it,” Ai Fa replied, looking into my eyes. And then she broke out in a smile. “It has been incredibly fulfilling, and quite hectic too. I am certain that my parents would never have guessed that I would someday enter the castle town, or be invited to dinner in the Daleim lands.”

“Ah ha ha, that’s for sure.”

“And I think I find that part gratifying as well. All of this change in my life has come about thanks to meeting you, Asuta.” I was getting a great sense of calm and composure from my clan head. No matter how much Ludo Ruu might tease me for it, I really did need to take some time to talk to her like this at least once per day. “The two years between losing my father Gil and meeting you felt incredibly long. I intended to lead a life that I could be proud of as a hunter...but even so, each day felt as if I were crawling through mud. I was deeply unhappy back then. That is painfully clear to me now.”

“Yeah.”

“I have gained you as a clan member, and reforged my bonds with Rimee Ruu, Granny Jiba, and Saris Ran Fou. On top of that, I have even made a few new friends, such as Ludo and Shin Ruu. All of you are the reason I can say I am happy now.”

“I think that everyone has the right to be happy like that.”

“I see. In that case, I feel as if I have been especially blessed,” Ai Fa said with a smile that reminded me of a kitten having its neck scratched.

After smiling like that for a while, she pointed at the door beside her. “Well then, I believe it’s about time for us to get some rest. Granny Jiba and Rimee Ruu may well have fallen asleep while we’ve been out here talking.”

“Right. I hope you get to chat with them for at least a little while before you all go to sleep,” I said, though I felt more than a little reluctant to part. But I already got to spend time alone with Ai Fa every night, so I refrained from trying to monopolize her now. I knew that having an opportunity to talk with her would make Granny Jiba and Rimee Ruu just as happy as I currently was.

“Well then, goodnight. See you tomorrow, Ai Fa.”

“Indeed.”

After smiling at me one last time, Ai Fa disappeared beyond the door.

With the memory of that charming expression filling my chest with joy, I reached for the door to the bedroom where Ludo and Darmu Ruu were waiting.