Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 29 - Chapter 3.1

Chapter 3: An Invitation to The Silver Star

1

It was now the twenty-second of the yellow month. After we wrapped up our business in the post town, we hurried back to the settlement at the forest’s edge, took care of the prep work for tomorrow, and then set out toward the castle town. Our destination was Varkas’s restaurant, The Silver Star, where we had been invited to dinner.

It had been a little while since we had headed into town in the evening. There was still over an hour left until sunset, though, so it hadn’t gotten dark yet. The sky had just taken on a faint purple tint, and the sunlight had weakened a fair bit. After passing through the post town, which was significantly less crowded at this time of day, we ran our totos a bit farther and reached the castle gates. In front of the massive drawbridge sat a carriage with the emblem of the house of Daleim on it. Two totos were hitched to its front.

“We have been waiting for you, dear guests from the forest’s edge. We shall take charge of your totos and wagons, so please board this carriage,” a middle-aged soldier with a calm-looking face said, politely guiding us.

Our group of ten from the forest’s edge silently went ahead and moved over to the provided carriage. As it was a vehicle that needed two totos to pull it, it was fortunately able to accommodate all of us.

Our group had ended up exactly as Yun Sudra had predicted. It included Vina, Reina, Rimee, Darmu, and Sheera Ruu from the Ruu clan, Shumiral and Myme (a member of a subordinate clan and a guest respectively), and then me, Ai Fa, and Toor Deen.

The only one of us who had never set foot in the castle town before was Vina Ruu, though this would also be Shumiral’s first time coming here as a person of the forest’s edge. After the guards confirmed the number of passengers inside and the carriage passed over the drawbridge, I noticed him tilted his head a bit.

“You were not, each handed, a pass?”

“Uh, no. The driver was given enough passes for all of us, so they always just check the number of passengers.”

“I see,” Shumiral said as he brought a hand to his nicely shaped chin. “So we are, ultimately only, being invited as guests, for this dinner. You are not, allowed to move freely, around the castle town?”

“Right. We’re always taken directly to wherever we’re going in a carriage, then taken back to the gate afterward.” It seemed that the conditional passes that were issued to us weren’t the way things were normally done. Still, it was even more unusual for people of our status to be invited to the castle town in the first place, so it wouldn’t make sense to complain about it. “With the pass you have, you can come and leave whenever you please, but you can’t stay the night, right?”

“Yes. You must show, your pass, at inns, so you cannot, deceive them. It would, be possible, to hide somewhere, in the shadows, to spend the night, but if you, are discovered, it would be considered, a serious crime.”

Kukuluel, in contrast, had the highest level of pass, which allowed him to lodge in the castle town. Cyclaeus had previously been the one in charge of issuing both of those kinds of passes, and it seemed the kind of treatment merchant caravans got changed depending on their size.

“Still, it’s amazing that you were given a pass in the first place! In the lands ruled by the counts, nobody ever gets one unless they’re a merchant who does a lot of business,” Myme chimed in with a smile.

The five from the Ruu clan had all sat on one side together, so we were across from them. Even though Rimee Ruu would normally always make sure to secure a spot beside Ai Fa, today she was hugging Darmu Ruu’s arm tightly instead. But after noticeably thinking about it a lot, she had told Ai Fa, “We’ve got to sit together on the way back!”

“The people of, the forest’s edge, do not interact, with anyone from, the castle town, aside from nobles, correct?” Shumiral spoke up again from where he was sitting on Ai Fa’s other side.

“That’s right. The only other people that we know are the servants and chefs we met through the nobles. The man who invited us today, Varkas, was originally the head chef at Cyclaeus’s manor.”

“I see. Fate can certainly, be strange.”

“You’ve gone to Cyclaeus’s manor for business meetings before, haven’t you, Shumiral? But you never got a chance to meet Varkas back then?”

“Correct. I spoke with, an older man, with Sym blood. He was the one, who ordered the herbs, we brought to Genos.”

“Oh, did his name happen to be Tatumai?”

“Yes. I do believe, that was his name.”

So Shumiral had been acquainted with that quiet old man who had such a strange feel about him for some time now, huh? Fate really could be strange.

“Are you okay, Vina? You’re the one who’s going to have to greet the nobles, so keep it together, all right?” I heard a voice whisper. When I looked over, I saw Reina Ruu leaning in close to Vina Ruu.

And as she nervously swayed back and forth a bit, the older girl turned toward her younger sister with a really distracted look on her face. “Yeah, I’m fine... So, what’s my role?”

“Like I said, you have to greet the nobles. Darmu is part of a branch house now, and you’re the oldest woman from the main house here, so you’ll be acting as the representative for all ten of us.”

“Oh, right... It will be fine. I can handle that much,” Vina Ruu replied, but she really did look on edge. Reina Ruu’s eyebrows drooped, and she looked like she was holding back a sigh.

According to what I had heard, Vina Ruu was still wary of Kukuluel. She hadn’t been able to rid herself of her concerns that he might think ill of Shumiral for abandoning Sym yet.

Well, she still hasn’t even met Kukuluel, and Shumiral cast aside Sym for her sake, so I guess it may be natural to worry.

Honestly, Vina Ruu really did bounce wildly between seeming tough and seeming weak. She was braver than pretty much any other woman I knew when things got rough, but at times like this, she’d be all out of sorts like a little kid. Apparently, Shumiral had also noticed their exchange, as he was now sending Vina Ruu a rather worried look.

When she noticed his gaze, Vina Ruu’s cheeks went red and she turned away. Though she had made the decision to face her and Shumiral’s feelings head-on, she couldn’t help but get all flustered sometimes.

“Thank you for waiting. We have arrived at The Silver Star, so please watch your step as you exit the carriage.”

The totos carriage soon came to a stop, and the door in the rear opened wide. The middle-aged soldier in the driver’s seat was the one who had called out to us.

Darmu Ruu stood up first, then glanced toward Ai Fa before exiting. That was probably a signal telling her that he was leaving her in charge of taking up the rear. My clan head made no moves to stand, so the other eight of us filed out first.

When we made it out, we were greeted by a large number of soldiers standing in a row. They were standing in such an orderly fashion that they seemed to almost form a path stretching from the carriage all the way to the entrance to the building. I felt like it was a pretty over-the-top way of welcoming us, but it didn’t take long to realize the reason they had done it. The building wasn’t surrounded by stone walls. It was part of a line of shops along a street. There were even residents of the castle town coming and going on the other side of the soldiers.

I see. This is a restaurant, so I guess it wouldn’t make sense for it to be surrounded by walls.

Since our visits to the castle town had only been to noble manors and the like so far, it was a rather novel experience.

“What are you doing? You’re falling behind,” Ai Fa urged, so I headed toward the building’s entrance as well. The stone building was three stories tall, but it looked rather narrow. It seemed like it wasn’t actually all that big. In terms of the amount of land it took up, it was probably no bigger than the wooden homes we saw around the post town. There were also other buildings on either side of it without any gaps between them, so that was apparently the normal size for structures in the area.

“We have been expecting your arrival. There are ten of you, correct? I shall guide you,” a voice called out as Ai Fa and I stepped into the entrance. It had come from an elegant old woman who was standing in the mostly empty room, wearing what looked to be an apron dress. “The other guests have already arrived, so please, come this way.”

With that, the old woman guided us down a passage. Though, really, the large door she was taking us toward was pretty much right there. The building wasn’t exactly big enough to have room for a whole entrance hall. As we advanced, the soldiers from out front filled the space we had just occupied. Since there would be nobles in attendance today, they must have been serving as bodyguards.

As I watched them filing into the room out of the corner of my eye, we took our seats, and found that the candlesticks were already lit, making it as bright as midday inside. It was a modest room, with very little to speak of in terms of decoration. There were just simple tapestries—primarily white—hanging from the brick walls, as well as a large double door opposite the entrance. That must have led to the kitchen. The only real furnishings were the huge rectangular tables and enough seating for twenty people.

There were ten chairs set up at each of the tables, one for each guest. A pair of pure white tablecloths were draped over the tables, and there were various utensils, small plates, and teapots laid out on them. The whole setup was neither overly extravagant nor plain, creating a practical yet refined atmosphere. It was possible this was just my own preconceptions, but it really did feel like a restaurant that fit Varkas perfectly.

“Why, hello there. We’ve been waiting for you. Would you mind also splitting into two groups and having a seat?” Polarth called out from the table to the right with a smile. The guests from the castle town had already arrived, and had divided themselves into groups of five at separate tables. “There’s no need to worry about social standing here. But Sir Shumiral of the Ririn clan, could you sit here at this table?”

Kukuluel was seated close to Polarth, with one seat between them. He must have wanted to sit next to Shumiral.

Vina Ruu walked gracefully over to Polarth and gave an elegant bow. “This is the first time that we have been properly introduced, is it not? I am Vina Ruu, the eldest daughter of the main Ruu house. You said that we should not be concerned about social standings, but I am acting as our representative for everyone here today. Would it be acceptable for me to take this seat?”

“My, how polite. I am Polarth, the second son of the house of Daleim. I owe your father Sir Donda Ruu a great deal,” the noble responded, standing and offering her a calm bow of his own. I was very close with both of them, so I was interested to see how they would interact. “I believe your younger sister, Lady Lala Ruu, attended the banquet after the swordsmanship tournament. It seems I have now finally met all of Sir Donda Ruu’s children.”

“Yes. I have heard quite a bit about you from our clan head Donda as well. It is said that, like Melfried, you are very just and proud.” Vina Ruu was standing there with such composure that it was hard to believe she had been so out of sorts only a short while ago. And when she had her wits about her, she was every bit as elegant as a noblewoman from the castle town. Polarth also seemed quite impressed as he smiled at her.

“I am honored to hear it. Please, have a seat with us. Ah, this is my wife, Merrim.”

“It’s my pleasure to meet you as well, Merrim.” Even though she couldn’t have been at all accustomed to sitting in chairs, Vina Ruu gracefully took a seat. Shumiral’s gaze wandered about like he was lost, so I whispered into his ear, “Would you like me to sit over there too? I’m interested in Kukuluel as well.”

“Thank you. I would, appreciate that.”

And so Ai Fa, Shumiral, and I all headed over to that table. Toor Deen tried to follow along as well, but a voice then called out from the opposite table, “My, are you going to sit over there as well, Toor Deen? But Odifia wished to speak with you.”

Eulifia and Odifia were both seated at the other table. With a troubled look Toor Deen glanced back and forth between the tables, until Myme eventually grabbed her hand, smiling at her.

“How about the two of us eat at that table? I’d like to stick with you, Toor Deen.”

Within our group, the two of them didn’t have anyone particularly close to their age except each other. On top of that, they both admired each other’s cooking skills.

“Then I’ll go with Ai Fa! See you later, Darmu!” Rimee Ruu called out.

The seating arrangements were now completely finalized. Vina Ruu, Shumiral, Rimee Ruu, Ai Fa, and I headed to the table on the right, while Reina Ruu, Darmu Ruu, Sheera Ruu, Toor Deen, and Myme went to the left.

The other group was a mix of nobles from Genos and easterners. And there was one unexpected face among them.

“It has, been a while, Asuta,” a voice called out diagonally across from me as I sat. It had come from none other than the star reader Arishuna, who was wearing a flowing Sym-style outfit and a bunch of accessories.

“It really has. So you were invited too, Arishuna?”

“Yes. Polarth invited me.”

She was also close to Polarth. When Kukuluel had visited my stall a good while back, Arishuna had been the one to guide him there. As they were both easterners in a foreign land, perhaps they shared a certain connection with one another.

Seated next to her was Torst, the man in charge of the house of Turan, making himself small. He was also someone I hadn’t seen since the rainy season.

That meant that I was familiar with everyone at the table, since the guests from the castle town were Polarth, Merrim, Kukuluel, Arishuna, and Torst. At the left table, I didn’t know anyone but Eulifia and Odifia. The two easterners sitting there must have been members of the Black Flight Feathers, and the westerner seated farthest away I thought was probably the guy in charge of foreign affairs in Genos.

It must have been either Polarth or Eulifia who had suggested splitting up the seats so the folks from the castle town, the easterners, and the people of the forest’s edge wouldn’t all end up sitting with their own groups. As someone who wanted to interact with all sorts of different people myself, I definitely appreciated that.

“It seems we still have some time left before the lower fifth hour arrives. Until then, why not have some tea and relax? There is no need to adhere to formalities today, so please, enjoy the skills of the foremost chef in Genos, Sir Varkas, to the fullest,” Polarth declared with a wide smile as the old lady from the entrance poured tea for our group, since we had only just arrived. It seemed to be the same sort of nafua tea that Jizeh served at her inn.

“So, you are Kukuluel? I’ve heard about you from my brothers,” Vina Ruu said in a relaxed tone.

“Yes,” Kukuluel replied with an expressionless nod. “I owe your brothers a great deal. And I am honored to finally meet you, Vina Ruu.”

If he brought up Shumiral’s desire to marry her now, Vina Ruu would probably lose her composure in an instant, but Kukuluel didn’t say anything further. Instead, he simply looked back and forth between Shumiral and Vina Ruu in silence. I wondered what he thought about the two of them.

“By the way, Sir Asuta, I hear that you have at last completed your preparations to sell giba meat in town?” Polarth inquired.

“Yes, that’s right,” I said.

“The merchants from Dabagg are expected to arrive either tomorrow or the day after, so I suppose that means you will be selling giba meat in two or three days. Could we pick up the portion meant for sale in the castle town shortly before the upper fourth hour?”

“Of course. Thank you so much for going through all the trouble.”

“Ah, no need to worry about that. After all, if we picked it up where people from the post town could see, it might lead to unnecessary suspicions. We already have purchasers lined up for all fifteen boxes in the castle town, so we shall be counting on you.”

Merrim, who had simply been politely smiling so far, now her gaze turned my way. “Unfortunately, we did not win the drawing this time around, but we shall be looking forward to the next opportunity.”

“Ah, okay. I’m really happy to hear that there are so many people interested in giba meat that you needed to hold a drawing.”

“Ah ha ha. It should be obvious that we would, given that you’re only offering a mere fifteen boxes. Even if you were to send us twice that amount, there still wouldn’t be any that went unsold, so I eagerly await the day when this business venture of yours truly hits its stride.”

I was definitely glad to hear that too. And since the house of Daleim didn’t win the drawing, the fairness of their system seemed like it would be readily apparent to all. They must have held a proper lottery, without allowing it to be influenced by things like social standing.

“I believe The Silver Star also participated in the drawing, but it seems they were not fortunate enough to get their hands on giba meat either. Sir Luidross of the house of Saturas had better luck, however, and I heard that he danced with joy when he learned of his success.”

“The house of Saturas makes regular purchases of smoked meat and sausages too, which I’m really grateful for.”

“Yes, I’m sure. Sir Luidross is quite the famed gourmet, after all. I believe he comes here to The Silver Star at least once a month.”

“This restaurant only serves twenty customers a day, does it not? That would seem to indicate a rather shocking lack of greed on the part of the owner, considering the sterling reputation this place has,” Merrim chimed in.

“That’s true,” Polarth agreed with a nod. “Still, I suppose it is precisely because he is unwilling to sell his skills cheaply that he was able to earn such a reputation. In fact, from what I am told, he has spent more days experimenting with new dishes than serving customers since he opened this restaurant.”

“He is almost like an artist devoting all his effort to a painting or a carving, is he not? This will be my first time trying Varkas’s cooking, so I am very much looking forward to it,” his wife said. The conversation between Polarth and Merrim felt so fitting for such a young and loving married couple.

It was then that we heard a knocking sound coming from the doors on the far side of the room, right before Varkas appeared through them.

“My apologies for the wait. It is now the lower fifth hour, and so we shall bring out the dishes.”

This was the first time I had seen the man in several months. His light-brown hair was a bit long, and he was rather tall for a westerner. His green eyes and pale skin seemed like the traits of a southerner, while his towering and slender figure was more like that of an easterner. As he stood there clad in his pure white chef’s attire, he really didn’t look any different from the last time I had seen him.

There was no expression to speak of on his long face, and it was impossible to judge his age by looking at him. He just looked to be lost in thought at the moment. However, that was totally normal for Varkas. But then, his eyes, which had been wandering around the room somewhat aimlessly, abruptly turned my way, as if he had suddenly remembered something.

“Ah, Sir Asuta. I heard that you fell ill at some point, and I was very much concerned, but you appear to have fully recovered.”

“Yeah. I’m sorry for worrying you. And I’m really happy to be here at your restaurant for the first time today, Varkas.”

“I myself am overjoyed at the opportunity to serve you food. I ask that you please give your honest impressions.” There was nothing strange about what he was saying, but his voice was completely devoid of emotion. It was like he was stiffly reciting a script. And yet, that was also perfectly normal for the man. “Well then, we shall bring in the food now. First up will be the appetizer.”

The meal was going to be presented to us in the formal style of the castle town, with each of the six dishes being presented one by one. It seemed like Varkas’s last statement had been a preplanned signal, as Shilly Rou soon entered the room, pushing a serving cart through the door.

And so, the welcome dinner for the Black Flight Feathers got off to a very relaxed start.