I Was a Sword When I Reincarnated (LN) - Volume 1 - Chapter SS

Bonus Story:

My First Supper with Fran

It was some time after dinner when Fran resumed carving up monster carcasses. I told her to leave it until tomorrow, but she seemed to be getting the hang of it and was enjoying herself. I thought she was a bit crazy for enjoying what was effectively an autopsy, but maybe it was a hobby among the children of a world inhabited with dangerous monsters.

Just take it easy.

“I will.”

I took a monster carcass from my Pocket Dimension for Fran to work on. She was getting used to using our Shared Skills. She got rid of the smell with Cleansing Magic, while washing her carving knife clean with the occasional water spell.

I should carve up a monster carcass of my own too. As fine of a monster carver as Fran was, some carcasses were impossible for her to take apart. It was all a matter of tools. Take, for example, the Tyrant Saber-Tooth I had laid in front of me: Its ten-meter-long body notwithstanding, its fur and hide were tough and difficult to penetrate. It took all of Fran’s might to get the tip of her small carving knife an inch through it. That was when I knew I had to step in.

Boy was it huge, though. I kept carving and carving, and it felt like there was no end in sight. But I kept at it because Fran needed to eat, and we could use the Saber-Tooth’s meat. Back on Earth, the meat of a carnivore would have a stink that turned you off from it. The rules worked a little differently here, where maxing out my Cooking skill had enabled me to judge whether a product was fit for eating. As it turned out, monster meat could be used to make delicacies that were quite delicious.

The Tyrant Saber-Tooth was one of those monsters suitable for cooking. I’d have to get rid of the tough parts, but, even then, the giant cat yielded a large amount of edible meat.

Disassembly also gave me the ability to judge the value of harvested materials. It made me marvel at just how powerful Skills were in this world. Just equip some and you were an instant prodigy. Disassembly told me the Saber-Tooth’s fur and bones could be used to make equipment. The fangs and mane were especially valuable.

I took my time carving around those areas to minimize the damage. Raising Fran was going to take money, and this was the golden ticket. I needed to be extra careful with it.

I was getting used to making fine movements with my blade, something I didn’t need to do back in the plains. I was surprised that I could neatly separate hide from flesh to within a millimeter. It took close to an hour, but I was finally done. I looked over to Fran, who was still working on her carcass. She was hard at work, sweat trickling down her forehead.

Fran, you can leave it until tomorrow if you’re tired.

“Just a little more.”

All right.

If she wanted to do it, well, I wasn’t one to stop her. I still needed to make her supper. We took a variety of cooking utensils from the slaver, like a pot, a pan, a chopping board, and a bowl, among other things. I laid them all out while trying to think of what I could cook with them.

As for seasoning, we had salt, pepper, and mock-miso at hand. Mock-miso was the digestive fluids of something that looked like a pitcher plant. It was safe to use as seasoning so long as you cooked it. It tasted like a cross between miso and shoyu, only less salty. What a fantastic world I live in. I could also use the flour we took from the cart and some wild herbs we had picked along the way.

We also had some Crush Boar and Rock Bison meat leftover from yesterday. Could we make something with them? Fran had an immense appetite for such a tiny frame, so I doubted they’d be enough. Should I cut them into chunks anyway?

No, I should use the Saber-Tooth meat I carved just now. I’d mix the pork-like Crush Boar, the beef-like Rock Bison, and the juicy Saber-Tooth steak to make a delicious burger.

I proceeded to mince the three meats and added salt and pepper to the mix. Next, I threw in some diced, chive-like plant into the mix. I then kneaded the mixture with Telekinesis until it all combined and formed into a patty. Meat by itself was good; triple meat must’ve been three times better.

I wrapped the patties in Rock Bison caul fat and heated my frying pan on a makeshift stove made from Earth Magic and Fire Magic. Was it too big? Not that Fran would mind; she would drool at the sight of it. I used Crush Boar lard as cooking oil. I turned up the heat to get the pan going then turned it down to stop it from burning.

That looks good.

I set the giant patty on a plate and proceeded to make the sauce. I added mock-miso, strawberries, and crushed grapes to the cooking juices to make a slightly tangy gravy.

This was delicious by itself, but I wanted to make it lighter since it was supper. I took the remaining flour and made a thin crepe out of it. I topped it off with some herbs and my Tortilla Hamburger (kind of) was complete.

Fra—

“I’m here!”

Well, someone was enthusiastic. Fran was already behind me before I could say, “Order up!”

She stared at the Tortilla Hamburger in awe.

Wash your ha—

“Done!”

She put her hands up as if to show me. She’d been waiting for this.

Supper is served.

“Thank you for the meal.”

Fran took huge bites out of the burger, and it didn’t take long before she devoured it all. She had a big, healthy appetite. I was glad I cooked it for her, but it seemed I underestimated her appetite.

She looked at me expectantly. “Seconds?”

Uhhh, hang on…

I didn’t think she’d need seconds. Oh well.

I made a steak from the Tyrant Saber-Tooth this time. Seeing her enjoy her meal was so delightful that I felt I was getting seconds too. When we’d first met, she’d been so quiet because of her life as a slave, but now she was opening up and selfish enough to ask for seconds again. She was regaining her will to do things on her own again. She could ask for seconds now, and I was sure it was the same as when she said she wanted to keep carving earlier. It made me so happy I could just zip around camp.

Didn’t think I’d see the day I’d consider selfishness a virtue.

I had the honor of being the recipient of Fran’s budding trust. I swore I would never betray her.