Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyusoukyoku (LN) - Volume 15 - Chapter 5

Mochi Party

Satou here. With all the modern technology these days, I feel like you don’t see mochi made with a mallet and mortar outside of neighborhood and school events. It’s a lot of work to make it by hand, but I think it tastes that much better after all the effort.

“Wow, Arisa, your cheeks stretch just like mochi.”

How could such small cheeks stretch so far?

“Owwie, I faid I’m fowwy…”

I was currently reprimanding Arisa for using Inferno, a highly potent attack spell with a wide range of effects, in a small space. She had come to visit on the last day of our labyrinth expedition with Zena and the others.

Fortunately, the quick-thinking Mia created a wind pseudo-spirit, Garuda, to stop the heat from spreading, but if she hadn’t, then everyone could’ve easily suffered second-degree burns.

“What’s mochi, sir?”

“Stretchyyy?”

Tama and Pochi came over, their keen ears twitching with interest.

“Well, you see, mochi is…”

As I explained mochi to the pair, Lulu came over to gently intervene.

“Um, master, I think that might be enough punishment for Arisa…”

Looking down, I saw Arisa’s teary-eyed, stretchy-cheeked face still pinched in my hands.

Sorry, I kind of forgot.

We couldn’t exactly make mochi in the labyrinth, so we decided to do it when we got back aboveground.

However, since the sticky rice for it had to be soaked overnight, I started making preparations while Zena and the others were resting.

I soaked the fillings for the mochi, like azuki beans and black soybeans, overnight as well. Besides making different kinds of bean paste, I also wanted to make daifuku, so I made sure to use extra beans.

Still, I couldn’t believe how thoughtless the mages in this world were. Why was there magic to accelerate the ripening and curing of foods, but not for shortening the amount of time it takes to soak sticky rice and beans?

It would probably be some kind of water spell; I decided to experiment a bit in between preparations.

Mia would probably be annoyed, since she hated memorizing new spells, but as long as I explained that it was for making delicious rice cakes, I was sure she would agree to learn it.

While I was prepping and developing the new spell, I also used the Multitool spell to make some mallets and mortars.

Since I didn’t want to disrupt Zena and the others while they slept, I used Return to do all this in the labyrinth vacation house.

There was still plenty of time, so I kept preparing all the ingredients I could think of.

Oh, while I’m at it, maybe I should try making some weirder flavors, too?

In addition to the usual flavors for traditional Japanese sweets, I decided to make cheese and strawberry fillings, among others.

You could never tell what fillings everyone would like.

“All right, shall we get started?”

The morning after we returned from the labyrinth, we began a mochi-making rally in the courtyard of the mansion.

I wanted to invite Zena and friends, too, but since they seemed completely exhausted, I figured I could bring them some freshly made mochi once they woke up.

Karina had been fast asleep, but Tama and Pochi dragged her to breakfast anyway, and she joined the mochi-making as well.

“Flaaat…”

“Squish-squish, sir!”

As soon as I started making the mochi, Tama and Pochi wanted to try it, too. They were already swinging away with their mallets.

Nana was in charge of standing next to the mortar and flipping the mochi.

“Me too! I wanna flip ’em, too!”

“Sure, just put these on and trade places with Nana.”

I handed some thin gloves to an excited-looking Arisa and Mia.

“Hmm? Why the gloves?”

“If Pochi or Tama hit you with the mallet by mistake, they could shatter your wrists. These gloves are made of the same material as Lulu’s labyrinth equipment, meaning if something hits them, they’ll harden to absorb the impact.”

Even with their power-limiting magic tools, Pochi and Tama had some serious strength behind their mochi mallets.

I could’ve given the girls defense enchantments, but since I didn’t know how many mallet strikes they could withstand, I decided on the unlimited defense of the gloves.

Of course, any serious injuries could be cured in an instant with Healing Magic or potions, but the girls would still be hurt in the meantime, and nobody wants to eat pink mochi that’s been stained with blood.

“All righty, here we go! Make sure you hold back, okay?”

“Aye-aye, sir…”

“Of course, sir! Pochi’s a pro at holding back, sir!”

“Here goes.”

As Arisa and Mia gingerly flipped the mochi, Lulu and I started rolling the finished dough into balls, filling them with the ingredients I’d prepared beforehand.

Next to the first mochi-pounding crew, Liza, Nana, and Lady Karina started using the spare mallets and mortars to make mochi as well.

At first, Lady Karina wanted to swing the mallet, but she missed the mortar entirely several times and was promptly relegated to flipping duty.

With Raka’s protection, she didn’t have to worry about getting hurt.

The young maids from the mansion and Lady Karina’s attendants helped shape the mochi as well.

“Owie, hot! How do you and the young master handle this, Lady Lulu?”

Sure, it was hot, but not compared to forging molten metal fresh from the fire.

“Hee-hee, just dip your hands in cold water first.”

“Weh, my hands are all sticky…”

“Spread this flower over your hands before you touch it, and it won’t stick.”

I watched warmly as Lulu guided the little maids while we worked.

At first, I was going to have Arisa use some fire-resistance magic on them if it was too much, but they seemed to be all right.

“Pochiii!”

“Tamaaa!”

I heard shrieking and turned to find that Pochi had tried to incorporate some strange action into her mochi-making and failed miserably.

From the look of things, the mochi that was stuck to her mallet got wrapped around her body, and now she was covered in it.

Pochi was so panicked that she even forgot to say “sir.”

“Owie, owie, hot mochiiii!”

“Arisa!”

Nearby, Arisa had ended up with some stretched mochi on her head and was writhing on the ground. In her alarm, she had forgotten to use heat-resistance magic on herself.

Before I could do anything, Lulu went over to deal with it, murmuring, “Now, now. There, there” like a beleaguered housewife.

A potion healed the light burns, and Lulu’s Everyday Magic cleaned up the mess, but Pochi and Arisa got a firm scolding from Liza—Pochi for messing around while handling food, and Arisa for egging her on.

“Whew, that was rough.”

“I’m sorry, sir.”

“Don’t worry, Pochi, it was my fault, too. Come on, cheer up so we can enjoy some mochi!”

Pochi seemed dejected about her blunder, but Arisa comforted her.

Meanwhile, I separated the huge amount of mochi we’d made into plain, sweet, savory, and colored varieties.

“Did we make a bit too much?”

“No such thing! We can always share it with the kids at the orphanage and the explorers’ school. Oh, and those underground folks, as thanks for the brooch.”

“Good idea.”

Arisa pointed at the soul shell garland on her chest.

Given to me by the “Bone Lord” Mukuro, who lived in the Lower Stratum of the labyrinth, this artifact was meant to preserve a reincarnation’s soul vessel to prevent them from turning into a demon lord by using their Unique Skills too much.

He and my other new friends in the Lower Stratum were fellow reincarnations from Japan, so they would no doubt be excited to eat mochi again.

“Anyway, let’s eat before they get cold! It’s not often you get to eat freshly made mochi.”

With that declaration from Arisa, the mochi party began.

“Mmm! Fresh mochi really is the best.”

“Stretchyyy?”

“M-Mr. Mochi is so strong, sir. Is stuck to da top of my mouf, sir.”

Tama stretched her mochi with all her might, while Pochi struggled to pull hers off the roof of her mouth.

“It’s a mite difficult to eat, but absolutely delicious!”

“Yummy.”

Karina and some of the younger kids were enjoying the fresh plain mochi.

“Oh yeah! We should grill some of this mochi!”

Arisa waved her mochi around dramatically.

“Liza’s off getting the tools for that right now,” I assured her.

“Master, there are no chick-shaped mochi, I report.”

“Maybe not, but this mochi here has a cute filling inside.”

Lulu handed Nana one of the filled mochi she had just finished making.

Nana gazed at it for a moment, then took a big bite.

“The yellow star shapes inside are cute and delicious, I report.”

Evidently pleased, she started popping them into her mouth one after another.

Noticing this, the younger kids started reaching for the filled mochi, too.

“This one’s got sweet bean paste, sir!”

“The powdered mochi’s tasty, toooo?”

“Mmm, honey mochi. Yummy.”

“Aah, we can’t fill up too much before the grilled mochi—wait, honey?!”

Arisa took a big bite from the mochi, her eyes widening.

Honey oozed from the mochi after the first bite. When you ate them together, the mochi and honey mixed surprisingly well, I thought. It was a little too sweet, though, so one was more than enough for me.

“This one’s got pork belly, sir!”

“Teriyaki chickennn?”

“Mmm, custard.”

“The cheese flavor is delicious as well!”

Overall, everyone seemed to be enjoying the mochi.

Hmm? Arisa was slumped on the ground in an orz-like pose.

“What’s the matter? Do you have heartburn or something?”

“Y-you’re corrupting traditional Japanese culture…”

Oh, don’t be silly.

Cuisine is supposed to evolve over time, you know.

“Well, since you’re so concerned with preserving traditions, you’ll like this part.”

I pointed at the grill-like magic tool and the wire mesh that Liza had brought over.

Making a miraculous recovery, Arisa immediately started lining up mochi to grill on the wire mesh.

“It’s not really puffing up, is it?”

“Probably since it’s so fresh.”

I experimented a bit to see if we could get it to puff up like premade mochi by drying out the surface with magic, putting little cuts in the surface, and other hacks.

“The mochi’s alive, sir!”

“Oh dear, how terribly creepy.”

“Puffyyy?”

“Slime?”

The little kids and Miss Karina couldn’t take their eyes off the puffing-up mochi on the wire mesh. I’m glad I worked so hard on that.

Though Liza was keeping a straight face, she was watching the mochi closely as well.

It’s probably about done now, right?

I handed Arisa a dish with some sweetened soy sauce.

“Mmmph. This is totally the best way to eat mochi!”

But Arisa and I seemed to be the only ones who appreciated the traditional grilled mochi with sweet soy sauce or wrapped in seaweed. Everyone else seemed more interested in the weird new flavors I made mostly as a joke.

“Cheese topping filled with meat saaauce?”

“Professor Hamburg was hiding in this mochi, sir!”

“Caramel.”

I enjoyed some kinako mochi covered in sweet soy flour as I watched everyone have fun.

“This teriyaki mayo flavor is spectacular. When one chews it, the flavor of the teriyaki transfers to the mochi, as if one is eating an unusual kind of meat…”

It was especially entertaining to watch Liza give a lengthy report on the cuisine while Pochi and Tama nodded along wisely.

Oh, I know.

Since Nana wanted me to make yellow chick-shaped mochi next time, I decided to try making kusa mochi and sunda mochi, too, with mugwort leaves and green soybeans.

Some sakura mochi and leaf-wrapped kashiwa mochi might be nice for spring, too.

“I finished the red bean soup.”

Lulu came from the kitchen with a pot full of red bean soup, followed by an entourage of maids carrying bowls and spoons.

“Aah, the one-two punch of salty-sweet mochi and red bean soup is dangerous! If we had some bitter tea to go with it all, you could pull off an endless combo! That much happiness is downright scary!”

“Mochi’s scaryyy?”

“Red bean soup’s scary, too, sir!”

As the younger kids joked around like manga characters and smacked their lips, I gave some fresh mochi to Lulu and the maids.

While enjoying the red bean soup, I insisted that Miss Miteruna try some, despite her reluctance, and watched the littlest maids’ eyes widen as they ate the sweet mochi Lulu gave them.

“Aah, that was delish…” Arisa looked as round and soft as mochi as she patted her belly in satisfaction. “Let’s make some for New Year’s, and some osechi, too!”

“I don’t know the recipe for those dishes.”

I could probably make something that at least looked similar to osechi, the traditional foods cooked for New Year’s in Japan, but I had never made it myself, so I didn’t think I’d be able to recreate the taste.

I was always great at taste-testing, though, when my mother and grandmother made the food.

“Master, I will be back, I bravely declare.”

“I’ll heeelp?”

“Pochi will deliver happiness, sir.”

After the party, Nana, Tama, and Pochi set off to the orphanage to bring them some big baskets of mochi. By now, they were probably covered in mochi and children.

Miss Miteruna and the maids left to bring some to the explorers’ school.

I took one basket to deliver to Zena and her squad at the barracks.

By some unexpected chance, many of my friends and acquaintances in Labyrinth City heard about the mochi party, so I ended up needing to deliver some to them, too.

When the little maids and the teachers at the orphanage learned the price of sticky rice in Labyrinth City, they turned pale and nearly fainted dead away…

It was supercheap to buy in the old capital, okay? I had no idea.