Who Is The Strongest Appraiser? Volume 1 Chapter 6-7

Chapter 6: I Can Mend Your Clothes

Translator: Skythewood

Editor: Hiiro

「Frau-nee～it’s done～」

When she heard Yuri’s silly voice, Frau who was resting in the living room quickly rushed to Yuri’s side. Her usual bravado was gone, and she seemed a little depressed and guilty.

However, Yuri didn’t notice the change in her, and gave her an item directly.

「Will this do?」

「... Thank you, you hide the st.i.tches very well, I can’t tell at all.」

「If this is good enough, then you can come to me any time.」

「I’m very sorry, I can’t do this myself...」

Frau took the vest she had worn for a long time from Yuri. She inspected the pocket on the vest that had a hole in it, and had been mended by Yuri.

Frau was an adventurer, so she did know how to mend clothes. However, this vest had been worn out with damage all over the place, and with Frau’s mediocre sewing skills, it was difficult for her to mend it. The obvious one was the pocket, and there were loose threads in several places too, but Yuri patched them all.

Yuri was great at sewing, and the effect of his level 50 sewing skills were great too. On top of that, his needle was now a magic item, and could easily penetrate any fabric easily.

「Your sewing skills are impressive.」

「Really? Because I like to sew.」

Yuri then said with a smile 「people are good at their hobbies.」 Frau didn’t understand and tilted her head, and Yuri said 「Because I practice my hobbies a lot.」 His silly smile put her at ease… Back in j.a.pan, his cla.s.smates would comment that his girlish hobby was disgusting, but they were welcomed and valued in this different world.

However, maybe he was only treated this way because this was the 《Scarlet Lynx》. Only those recognized by Ari could become a member of this Clan. Ari wouldn’t accept people with dubious characters, and even if their personality was a little twisted, Ari would correct it with his strict training regiment. Hence, the group that accepted Yuri were all easy to get along with.

And Yuri had seized the stomach of everyone, and whenever they set off on a far expedition, their only regret was that they couldn’t eat Yuri’s cookings. They were actually easy to figure out in that sense.

After Yuri mended Frau’s vest, he took out more clothes. These were the clothes he felt needed mending, and fished out from the laundry basket. Basically, everyone on the base was responsible for cleaning their own room and doing their own laundry. But it was hard to wash, dry and keep the laundry, so it was normal for them to wash and dry their clothes, and ask clanmates were on base to keep the clothes while they were out.

And so, Yuri separated the clothes that needed mending when he kept the laundry, and would mend them when he was free. Everyone felt apologetic when they learned that, but Yuri just said 「I was free anyway」, so they couldn’t turn him down. More importantly, when they took back the clothes and said 「It’s fine, I can do it myself!」, Yuri would look disappointed like a puppy. Even Ari would hesitate a little when he kept his laundry, and handed them back to Yuri.

… In any case, they all dotes on Yuri.

He deftly mended the loose threads on a s.h.i.+rt. The thread he used was a magic item, so it wouldn’t come loose after this. The s.h.i.+rt might get torn, but the thread would never come loose… The magic threads would never snap, so they couldn’t alter the s.h.i.+rt with normal scissors, so they would need Yuri’s scissors if they need to do so.

「I will feel bad if you mend them alone. I can mend loose threads too, so let me help you.」

「Huh? But Frau-nee, you have work too, right?」

「I’m house sitting today, so it’s fine… Or will I just get in your way?」

「Of course not, here’s some thread and needle.」

Yuri handed her a needle and some thread, and Frau took them carefully. These were taken out of Yuri’s sewing kit, so they were magic items, and instructors like Frau already knew that… And because she knew that, her head throbs a little as she thought: 「Don’t lend out your magic items so easily.」

However, it was useless for her to tell Yuri all that, and started mending the clothes together with Yuri. She didn’t have any sewing skills, but as a top notch adventurer, these menial ch.o.r.es were no problem for her.

However, her hands weren’t as nimble as Yuri, and Yuri mended three s.h.i.+rts in the time she took to mend one. Yuri was great at hiding the st.i.tches, so the mending looked nice. When he felt like it, he would sew in patterns after mending the clothes. He only did such embroidery on girl’s clothes, since the boys might not appreciate that. So he did put some thoughts into that… Although there were embroidery on his own sleeves.

Yuri was wearing the standard commoner attire that Ari bought for him. Aside from the G.o.d’s Blessing on his School Uniform, the design stood out a lot too. It would create havoc if someone happen to appraise it, so the School Uniform was kept safely in Yuri’s Student bag. After getting the clothes from Ari, he customized it with his own personal designs.

For example, he would sew some patterns along the b.u.t.ton holes, and add small embroidery to the less conspicuous places like the hems and sleeves. It wasn’t causing trouble for anyone, so no one stopped him.

「But Yuri, won’t you get tired of doing these menial ch.o.r.es?」

「What do you mean?」

After mending the loose threads for a while, Frau suddenly thought about something and asked Yuri. Yuri was enjoying himself as he hums and mended the clothes, and looked at Frau confusedly. The body language of this girlish boy was saying 「what do you mean by annoying?」 Sewing was a hobby he was into, and he enjoyed mending the clothes.

Household ch.o.r.es were usually cla.s.sified as menial ch.o.r.es, and housewives would work on them everyday. Cooking, cleaning, laundry and sewing were all miscellaneous jobs. It was a ha.s.sle for everyone, but it would be troubling if they were not done, so they pushed themselves to do them.

However, it was different for Yuri. These ch.o.r.es were his hobbies, things he liked to do, so it was like playing a game to him. Just like how normal people like reading or exercising, doing housework filled him with joy… From a different perspective, he had a talent for this.

「I like to do these things. Your clan let me lodge here, and let me do the things I like, so I’m really happy about this.」

「... Really?」

「Yes, I’m really happy.」

Frau smiled awkwardly at the gleeful Yuri. She said 「This kid is...」, but stopped before finis.h.i.+ng the sentence. Everyone has their own idea of what was「correct」 or 「normal」, and since Yuri was happy about this, she felt it was fine to keep things as they were.

「Oh right, will anyone be around for tea break?」

「The apprentices won’t be back, so it’s just me and Tiffana. Maybe Ari will be back.」

「Alright, got it.」

With that, he continued mending the clothes.

Tea break was a new activity in the 《Scarlet Lynx》 after Yuri joined the clan. It wasn’t a daily thing, and Yuri would host it when he was free, and treat everyone to tea and snacks at 3pm. Someone asked him 「is this tea break necessary」, he answered 「making snacks is my hobby.」 And his snacks taste great, so no one objected to it.

It wasn’t held every day, but those who attended the tea break would get to taste Yuri’s delicious desserts. Frau said with a smile: 「What will the dessert today be like?」, despite her oppressive demeanour, she was still a girl who likes sweet things.

Frau thought 「Too bad for Brooke who had to go out for work.」 Brooke was known as the 「Cool Swordsman」, and also a lover of sweet food. Compared to the strong spicy wine, he prefers sweet fruit wine. He knew the gap between his image and his preference seemed rather cute, so he would only drank fruit wine when he dines with his clanmates.

That was why Frau pitied Brooke who couldn’t taste Yuri’s dessert. During the few previous tea break session, Yuri had completely captivated Brooke’s stomach. He wasn’t that into the normal meal, but was top fan of Yuri’s desserts. Frau knew all that very well.

The afternoon pa.s.sed slowly in the base.

Yuri hummed in the kitchen, and it was almost 3pm. He was preparing the dessert for tea break.

Only two girls, Frau and Tiffana were in the base. Including Ari who just came back and Yuri, there were just four people having tea break. Since there were just four people, Yuri didn’t have to make too much dessert, and started making four portions. He would leave the leftovers to the hungry children who would return in the evening.

First, he used chopsticks to scramble the egg in a bowl, then added milk and sugar in. Granulated sugar would work better, but there wasn’t something that convenient here, so he had to settle on normal sugar.

After mixing it well, Yuri toss bite-sized bread crusts in. Some people will cut away the crust when they make sandwiches, and Yuri did the same. These had built up over time, and everyone was saying 「there’s nothing you can do with the bread crust.」 However, Yuri responded 「Don’t throw them away, I have other uses for them.」 With proper preparations, even the bread crusts could become a delicacy. His principle of not wasting food compelled others to not discard the bread crusts.

… Yuri might be a girlish boy, but his personality was closer to a grandma from the boondocks.

Yuri watched the bread absorbs the egg slowly, then heated up the frying pan and took out b.u.t.ter. Yuri was in charge of grocery shopping now, so he could use b.u.t.ter more freely now. He cut an adequate piece of b.u.t.ter and slid it into the pan. The b.u.t.ter melt in the pan with a sizzle and the fragrance spread in the kitchen.

He then used a chopstick and arrange the bread crusts on the frying pan, and an appetizing sizzling sound came from the pan… Yuri was making french toast with the leftover bread crusts.

Yuri considered making fried bread, but he wanted to eat the fluffier french toast. Since he was free to do as he wished, he prioritized his preference and went with french toast.

This could be made with normal bread too, and many people didn’t think using crust was better. But since it didn’t taste worse, Yuri decided it was fine. If he wanted to splurge, he could spread custard on top of the french toast and bake it in an oven to create a delicacy. But there wasn’t any custard, so he made a simple french toast.

Paying attention to the time, he flipped the crust over when one side was done, and scoop them into a plate when they were completely cooked. He decided to put everything in one big plate, and everyone could fill their plates with as much food as they like. The number of people wasn't a problem today, and they weren’t immature children who would fight over food.

It would be a problem if the four famished apprentices were present. They would fight if the portions weren’t equal, which actually happened before. Back then, he made simple cookies and put them all in a plate, which made them scramble over the food. Yuri felt there was no reason to get so worked up over cookies, but because of his Level 50 cooking skill, even the simple cookies taste like gourmet cooking… Only the subject himself wasn’t aware of it.

「Taste test～」

He pops a toast into his mouth. It was still hot, and he chewed carefully, letting the fragrance of the b.u.t.ter and seasoned eggs fill his mouth. It was delicious, and sweet enough so he didn’t have to add more sugar or honey. He thought to himself 「That’s great.」 Yuri had a thrifty nature, and would refrain from adding too much condiments. Sugar was still fine, but honey was too expensive.

For Yuri, the ingredients in this world taste great, and the flavor and freshness was much better than j.a.pan. A reason was that most people here used simple cooking methods like roasting or boiling.

There were a wide range of seasoning and ingredients, and all sorts of kitchen appliances that uses magic stones. It wasn’t as extensive as j.a.pan, but there were all sorts of convenient appliances such as rice cooker, refrigerator, was.h.i.+ng machine and even an oven. Frankly speaking, just having a stove that could adjust the heat and hot water was enough.

The people here didn’t place much effort on preparing their food, so their cooking skills were more primitive.

Monster meat grilled with salt taste great, and the milk and eggs were more delicious here too. They didn’t have to work hard to cook delicious food, so normal people didn’t know what cooking was about. Yuri felt that was a waste.

「However, the vegetables in olden j.a.pan have more nutrition too, so it’s similar in this way...?」

All sorts of vegetables were available in modern j.a.pan throughout the year, the result of cross breeding and greenhouse farming, but that also reduced the nutrition in the vegetables. Yuri thought that was why modern people had to consume more vegetables. A plate of salad in the past contains more nutrition than a plate of salad in modern times. Yuri thought carefreely 「There are downsides to convenience too.」

… He was thinking about the home he couldn’t return to, but he didn’t feel homesick at all. As expected of the carefree Yuri.

After filling the large plate with french toast, Yuri boiled some water to make some tea to complement the french toast. There were coffee beans, but he felt they were too bitter. Modern coffee was a mixture of various beans, but for the people here, only those who like the bitter taste would drink their coffee black, and they only did so for a caffeine boost.

The tea today had a hint of floral fragrance. There were plenty of tea leaves in the kitchen, and everyone was free to make tea. Yuri wanted to spend some time to appraise them all, and if possible to make a tea he likes… He worked at a friend’s cafe before, and thought it was interesting how they mixed coffee beans and tea.

After the tea and french toast were done, he cleaned one of the table, laid a table mat he made as a hobby, then laid out plates, forks and the big plate of french toast. The tea was in a big teapot, which Yuri dug out from the cabinet. He would usually brew tea with a hot water bottle, which worked fine for second grade roasted tea, but for black tea, Yuri prefers using a teapot.

「Hi, Yuri, I can smell the fragrance from outside.」

「Frau-nee.」

「What is today’s snack? I’m looking forward to it.」

「Tiffannee, you are here too, thank you for your hard work.」

Frau and Tiffana appeared suddenly. The two beauties didn’t have any work today, and were housesitting. Frau’s beauty stemmed from her righteousness, while Tiffana had a gentle and warm smile. Their appearances and characters had nothing in common, but they got along surprisingly well. If their free time aligns, they could be seen hanging out together.

Yuri urged them to take a seat, and they looked at the french toast on the table once they sat down. They could tell it was bread crust, and trust that Yuri wouldn’t serve them anything nasty.

After the two beauties were seated, Ari showed up. He wasn’t particularly fond of sweets, but he likes tea. Thanks to Yuri’s Level 50 cooking skills, Yuri’s tea taste better than anyone else.

「Ari-nii, thank you for your hard work too.」

「Yes… What’s this?」

「These are french toast I made with bread crust.」

「... Wench Toast?」

「It’s bread soaked in egg, sugar and milk, and then fried in b.u.t.ter.」

Yuri served three cups of tea to them. There were already small plates and forks on the table, so they helped themselves to the french toast. They thought the crust would be hard, but the fork sunk in easily, which made them open their eyes wide. As usual, Yuri wasn’t aware of their reaction.

Tiffana took a graceful bite, while Frau and Ari just popped the bite sized crust into their mouths. Their personality showed from the way they ate. They all showed different looks of surprise as they ate, and savoured the sweet taste in their mouth.

The sweetness of the sugar and the fragrance of the b.u.t.ter spread in their mouths, and the bread was fluffy after absorbing the milk and egg. They thought the crust would be hard, and was pleasantly surprised by this texture. Yuri smiled warmly as he watched them eat so happily.

「Yuri, this dish taste great.」

「Thank you, this should have been made with bread, but we had lots of leftover crust.」

「It’s impressive that you can make something so delicious with just the crust.」

「You flatter me～」

Yuri smiled bashfully from Frau and Tiffana’s compliments. He only thought of the leftover food he made according to a recipe to just be a snack. The crust would taste great if he fried and made them crispy, but he felt like eating french toast today.

「They will taste great if you sprinkle some sugar or honey on top after scooping them up from the pan.」

「That does sound appetizing, but this is good enough.」

「Yuri can make any ingredient turn tasty.」

Frau and Tiffana looked gently at Yuri whose cheeks were puffed like a small critter. Ari enjoyed his tea break with the ratio of 8 parts tea and 2 parts french toast. He glanced at the plate of french toast which was dwindling in number as the girls dug in.

Ari then suddenly turned to Yuri worriedly.

「Did you make some for the brats?」

「I already prepared the ingredients, and just need to be grilled. There are plenty of crust left, and besides, Yak will throw a fit if I didn’t leave anything for him.」

「Not just Yak, the four of them will riot if they don’t get to eat this.」

「That’s true.」

「Indeed.」

The four of them look at each other and smile, as they imagined the same scene; the four apprentices pestering Yuri and saying 「where’s our share?」

By the way, when the apprentice ate the french toast after returning to base, they all hugged Yuri in tears to show their grat.i.tude.

Today, Yuri was all smiles. No, he was always smiling, but he seemed exceptionally happy today. No one knew what made him so happy, since he would get happy over the most trivial thing.

He was holding a few pieces of cloth cover. The cover was sewn together from loose pieces of clothes, so there were st.i.tches everywhere. The clothes were all similar in size, so this was a patchwork cloth cover… There were twenty different patterns, but the design didn’t vary too much.

As he was organizing the cloth cover, he was doing something special, sunning the pillows of the entire clan. It was hard to sun the bedding, but if it was just the pillows, gathering all of them wouldn’t take up too much s.p.a.ce. After sunning all the pillows and made them all warm and fluffy, he piled them up on the table in the living room.

「It’s warm after sitting in the sun～」

Yuri stuffed the pillow into the casing with a smile, and the pillows were returned to the rooms by the apprentices. If the owner happens to be around, it would be returned in a casing on the spot.

The pillows on base were basically stuffed with straws, and was on the hard side. This was normal in this world, since straw pillows were inexpensive and practical… Yuri thought that if a pillow fight broke out, these pillows would become murder weapons.

When he sewed the pillow case, he would alter the design depending on gender. The girls would get warm colors or cute designs, while the boys would get cool colors. He chose something in the middle for himself, with the color for boys and patterns for girls. He made these as a hobby, and he was adept at making inconspicuous designs for himself.

「Uwah, how cute!」

Lelei grabbed her pillow and grinds her cheek on it happily. She was a mixed blood between a human and a cat beastman, and would show her emotions freely. If she had ears or a tail, it would be even more prominent. She expressed her feelings directly by changing her plain pillow case for the new cute one, and was genuinely happy.

The other clan members were overjoyed too. All their pillows were generic ones found on the base, so there was no way to tell which one belongs to who after sunning it. They were happy to get their own personal pillow case. It wasn’t complicated at all, just having your own possession was a good enough reason… And all the pillow cases having different designs was a plus.

At this moment, Yuri handed a pillow to a youth with the build of a frontline vanguard and an intimidating aura. However, his face and demeanor was like that of a big brother from next door.

「Oh, Licht-nii, here it is.」

「Woah～ Thanks.」

「I sewed in some cotton, so it’s soft.」

「「... Huh?」」

Licht took the blue and black pillow from Yuri, and thanked him sincerely. However, what Yuri just said filled everyone’s minds with questions.

Licht stroked the pillow, and it was fluffy. As the pillow was stuffed with straws, it should be rather hard. Poor peasants couldn’t afford pillows made from feathers or cotton, while straws could be found anywhere, so all the pillows on base were made with straws. However, Licht felt that his pillow was somewhat soft.

「...Yuri, my pillow seemed soft?」

「That’s right, you mentioned your pillow was too hard and you couldn’t sleep.」

「I did say that, but this is...」

「The grandma from the tailor shop gave me some loose cotton, so I sew it into the pillowcase. Licht-nii, your pillowcase have two layers.」

「Oh...」

He was at a loss for words, and kept stroking his pillow. Licht was 24, and the oldest trainee in the 《Scarlet Lynx》. He was just a regular adventurer, but he wanted to train his fundamentals properly, and came to Ari. His Job is a Swordsman c.u.m Spearman, a vanguard.

He looked like a reliable boss, but when he spoke, he felt like a gentle giant who would get hurt easily. He didn’t directly say that 「changing the pillow made him lose sleep」, but the stiff pillow made his insomnia worse, and his dark eye circles were becoming his defining traits. He was getting depressed over it too.

「Wait! Why is Licht-nii the only one who gets that!?」

「Huh?」

Lelei yelled 「This is unfair!」, which surprised Yuri. She pointed at the elated Licht and shouted again.

「Why is Licht-nii the only one who gets a special pillow! Unfair!」

「Because Licht-nii is the only one who said he couldn’t sleep because his pillow is too hard...」

「I’m sleeping well, but a soft one is better than a hard one! Unfair, unfair!」

Lelei grabbed Yuri’s shoulders and shook him as she yelled, while Yuri had a face that said 「There’s nothing I can do about it～」. When the group realized that Yuri’s HP was dropping, they quickly pulled Lelei off him and lectured her. Tiffana’s smiling face as she admonished Lelei was really scary.

Amongst the intructors, Tiffannee was the warmest and also the scariest person. She was always smiling and had a gentle nature, but she would become very scary if she got triggered. A gentle person who speaks elegantly would become the scariest person when angry, this was a fact that remained unchanged throughout the ages… To add on, the one recognized as the gentlest in the Clan was Jake, her lanky appearance matched his gentle personality, and he was only interested in his own things and kept to himself in his own room. But as a scholar, he was also a bookworm, anyone who treated his books roughly would get murdered by him.

「Lelei, I understand how you feel, and that you really want one too. But do you think it’s fine to push Yuri around?」

「... No.」

「Unlike you all, he isn’t trained, and you are shaking him with all your might… Can you take responsibility if he blacks out?」

「No, I didn’t use that much force...」

「You are a mixed blood between a human and a cat beastman, can you not compare yourself with a human who hasn’t been trained?」

「I’m sorry!」

Tiffana was smiling, but her smile gave everyone gooseb.u.mps. Everyone averted their eyes, afraid of getting implicated. The concept of 「saving one’s own hide」 probably exist here too. But for them, the idiom would probably be something like 「Don’t step on the tail of a slumbering dragon.」

「Anyway, tell me your feedback after you sleep with it.」

「Okay.」

「Yuri, I want a pillowcase with cotton too.」

「I don’t have cotton or cloth, so I can’t do anything about it.」

「... Meanie.」

After Yuri stuck out his tongue and refused with a smile, Glacier started making a fuss. He and the apprentices started feeling up Licht’s fluffy pillow, complaining 「it’s unfair that only Licht-nii gets one.」 Licht was a grown man and didn’t mind such trivial matters, but everyone probably felt a little like 「Mama dotes the elder brother more!」

There wasn’t any zippers in this world, so Yuri sewed a b.u.t.ton into the pillowcase. Brooke inspected Licht’s pillow that had turned fluffy because of some cotton and nodded with a groan. Frau beside him also raised the corner of her lips.

The adults were planning after hearing the exchange between Yuri and Glacier...

If I bought the materials for him and asked, would he make one for me.

They were right, Yuri would gladly help. He was a girlish boy who loved craftwork, and his greatest joy was making something that others want. They didn’t think that far, and just felt that with Yuri’s personality, he will help if they asked── the adult who reached this conclusion were all very calm.

The newbies and apprentices didn’t think that far because they were broke, and wasn’t confident of preparing the necessary materials. Yuri had the means of getting the materials because he had an income from the commission of mayonnaise, scrunchies and hair clips. In this world, it was possible to live off patent commissions. Yuri didn’t use his cheat in this different world, and opt to earn money in such a way instead.

「Licht-nii, let me stroke it again!」

「Alright.」

「Uwah, I’m so envious...! One day, one day I will buy a fluffy pillow!」

Lelei’s pa.s.sion seemed to be directed towards a strange place. After she declared that with her fist raised high, the four apprentices followed her lead too. Glacier didn’t join in, but he s.n.a.t.c.hed the pillow from Lelei and enjoyed its softness. Compared to the stiff straw pillow, the fluffy pillow would definitely feel great, a subject of great envy.

The only one who didn’t join in the fray were Ari and Jake. One of them didn’t use a pillow much, while the other prefer stiffer pillow. But they were still grateful for the pillowcase, and returned to their own rooms happily.

Some time later, Brooke, Frau and Tiffana bought the material with their own money, and asked Yuri to make a pillowcase for them.

Idle Chat 3: A Patient Should Eat Egg Congee

There was a sickly man in the 《Scarlet Lynx》, which made people wonder whether he was the avatar of illness himself, and why he wants to be an adventurer. However, he wasn’t born with a frail const.i.tution, or caught any disease. In short, he was just a weak man who hid himself at home.

「... Is he bedridden?」

「Yes, this always happens, so don’t worry. He will show up like nothing happened in a few days.」

「Oh...」

After hearing Ari’s explanation, Yuri nodded a little troublingly. When Yuri joined the clan, this person wasn’t ill yet, and just lack sleep, the typical symptoms of someone with an unhealthy lifestyle. Staying up late constantly would sap his strength, and of course he would fall sick.

Anyway, after the chaos of breakfast rush was over, Yuri cleaned up the kitchen, did the laundry, cleaned the doorway, and finally went to the patient. Everyone else was out today, leaving just the apprentices to housesit. Normally, one of the adults would housesit, but Ari had something on in the morning… but he would be back by noon.

「Jake-nii, are you feeling better?」

Yuri knocked on the door, but no one answered, so he knocked again. A weak voice said 「Door isn’t lock」, so Yuri slowly opened the door and peeked inside… The room was full of books, giving the impression that he just entered a library. Yuri finally understood why Jake’s room was at the end of the first floor. There were so many books that he wonders if they would crush the flooring.

Although the number of books were overwhelming, Jake kept them in a tidy fas.h.i.+on, which showed the personality of the room’s owner… Jake was probably only interested in reading, and was incredibly well read.

Only Jake’s face was not covered by his blanket. He might be a treasure hunter, but his Job was actually a scholar. He would do all sorts of research, and even publish thesis. Most scholars were energetic with above average intellect, but had a weak const.i.tution; or rather, they like to stay indoors which led to a lack of exercise. On top of that, they would stay up all night to read, resulting in them falling sick. A troublesome bunch who create their own problems.

Jake was a typical scholar too. Everyone said 「This always happens, he will resurrect in a few days」, because this had happened before. There was no need to make a fuss over this anymore.

「Oh… it’s Yuri… I’m fine, I just need to sleep...」

「It’s easy to fall sick if you stay up all night, we even told you to turn in.」

「... Sorry, I really want to know the ending of this book...」

「I guessed as much… Do you have any appet.i.te? I will get you some lemonade in a flask.」

「Thank you… I don’t have any appet.i.te...」

He didn’t finish his sentence and suddenly stopped moving, probably from exhaustion. Yuri was shocked, and quickly poured lemonade into the flask beside Jake’s bed. He made it with lemon slices and fennel, as he thought it would taste more refres.h.i.+ng. Water with some taste would stimulate an appet.i.te better than plain water.

The girlish boy might be dense, but he was considerate about others too. He tends to surprise his clanmates because his actions were based on the common sense of j.a.pan, and didn’t care if it would shock others too, living in a carefree manner.

After leaving Jake’s room, Yuri headed straight for the kitchen. Jake didn’t have an appet.i.te, but Yuri felt Jake should still eat something. It might just be lack of sleep and exhaustion, but not taking in nutrients would definitely have an adverse effect. Yuri started thinking about food that Jake  could eat even if he wasn’t feeling well and had no appet.i.te.

However, Yuri was just a highschool boy. He might have the skills of a girlish boy, and had above average grades in home economics, but he was not a professional chef or worked part time in a kitchen. He could only make home cooked meals, and copy the recipe he saw on TV or read online.

「... I think there are leftover rice from yesterday’s dinner...?」

Breakfast was usually bread, while lunch and dinner would alternate between rice or noodles, depending on who was cooking. Someone said he wanted to eat donburi last night, so they had rice. There were loose pieces of vegetables left, so they made kakiage donburi for dinner.

He checked the rice cooker, and found a small bowl of rice left. He nodded, filled a pot with water and added kelp inside. Kelp stock was too good, Yuri wanted some bonito too, but unfortunately, he couldn’t find any. He even considered making a trip to a harbour city for the sake of making stock, as expected of a girlish boy. 

Since Jake didn’t have any appet.i.te, Yuri couldn’t add too many ingredients. But that wouldn’t be nutritious, so Yuri settled on enoki mushroom. Enoki was suitable for making stock, didn’t have a strong taste, so Yuri went with that. Mushroom was great for making stock and the subtle taste made it easier for someone without an appet.i.te to eat. It was easy to digest if he cut it thinner, probably.

Before the stock started to boil, Yuri scooped out the kelp, then added salt, wine and soy sauce to season it lightly. He then added enoki and the leftover rice in, and heat it over a small fire, and the congee where 「simple taste good」 was completed.

He actually felt a patient should eat plum congee instead, but he couldn’t find any plum. Plum congee was less nutritious too, so he decided on a stock congee.

「This is?」

Yuri turned back when he heard the quiet voice, and Magu who was staring at the pot made Yuri jumped. Magu pointed at the pot and asked once more.

「This is?」

Yuri finally understood that Magu was asking 「What are you doing」, and his surprise turned into joy. Yuri explained with his usual smile.

「Jake-nii is bedridden right now, so I’m making congee with stock, since there’s some rice in the pot.」

「Stock.」

「Yes, cooking congee with stock taste great.」

「...... Taste great?」

「Yes, but this is for Jake-nii, so I can’t give it to you.」

「No means no.」

Magu stared at Yuri silently, but Yuri turned him down with a smile. Yuri was incredibly firm during times like this. Yuri was baffled by how vexed Magu looked. Congee taste great, but they were meant for patients, and it was hard to imagine a growing boy wanting to eat congee.

Magu only acted this way because he was drawn by the fresh taste of the stock. He had a keen sense of smell, and yearned for delicious food more than the others. Magu would add less salt when he cooked, but could bring out the taste of the stock and ingredients. He had a lot of potential as a chef.

After the rice turned soft from the weak fire and absorbed the stock, Yuri made the final preparations. He cracked an egg into a bowl, scrambled it quickly, then added it into the pot. After the egg was mixed into the pot, he covered the lid to cook the egg with the steam.

A while later, Yuri removed the cover when the egg was almost done, and the egg was well cooked. It had the fragrance of stock, and looked really delicious. Yuri smiled happily at the finished product, placed a coaster on a tray before putting the pot on top. He also prepared a ladle for the pot, a bowl, and a spoon.

He headed to Jake’s room with Magu following behind like a spirit haunting him. Yuri realized that his hands weren’t free to knock, so Magu quickly helped him with that. After hearing a soft acknowledgement, the two of them entered.

「...Yuri?」

Jake was surprised when he saw Yuri holding a tray, but Yuri wasn’t fazed. He placed the tray beside the flask, removed the lid, and the fragrance of the stock and soy sauce permeate the room. Jake’s stomach growled.

「... What is this?」

「It’s unhealthy to not eat anything. I think you can eat some congee, so I made some. You don’t have to finish it, I will eat the leftovers.」

Yuri scooped the egg congee into a bowl with a smile, and the mysterious steaming food made Jake stare with his eyes wide open… Congee did exist in this world, but not the congee Yuri made with stock. The closest thing would be stewed rice, but cheese would be added in, so it wasn’t suitable for patients.

「This is my a dish from my hometown, called stock congee. I used stock and soy sauce as the base, so it should have a light taste. The only ingredients are enoki and egg.」

Yuri said 「please help yourself」 and offered Jake a bowl of congee, which Jake accepted readily. After falling ill, Jake had been bedridden and had no appet.i.te, but that improved after drinking Yuri’s lemonade, but he still didn’t have an appet.i.te… But he felt hungry when he smelled that food, which was a surprise.

He scooped one spoonful, blew on it before sending it into his mouth. The fully cooked rice was really soft, and the egg filled with stock was a delicacy. The enoki had a unique texture, and brought out the flavor of the kelp stock and soy sauce. The delicious taste of this egg congee spread through his entire body. He ate slowly, but steadily.

「... Just leave the leftovers.」

Magu muttered softly, and Jake nodded. But he finished bowl after bowl without stopping. Magu’s mood soured as he watched this, to the extent of being crestfallen, but no one noticed… Magu wanted to eat Jake’s leftovers, but the congee was to Jake’s liking. When the pot was finally empty, Magu’s hope was crushed.

In the end, Jake finished the entire pot of congee, and he smiles with a sigh. Jake really enjoyed this meal, and he looked better after eating his full.

「Thank you, Yuri. It tastes delicious.」

「That’s great… please don’t push yourself in the future.」

「Yes, I will take note of that.」

The scene of them talking to each other with a smile was very warming… Magu gently tapped the pot with a spoon with a disappointed face. But the two whimsical boys didn’t notice him, poor Magu.

News of this incident spread after this and cause quite a stir. Everyone was talking about 「we can eat a special meal if we get sick!?」, but that was another story.

Chapter 7: The Old Dish is Well Received

「...Yuri, what’s that?」

Kamir asked Yuri in surprise. He was pointing at the thin layer of pink goo on the chopping block. Kamir had never seen that before, and looked like a sausage at a glance. However, this wasn’t meat, but seafood.

「Huh? You have never seen this before? This is cod roe, the egg of a fish called cod. This is made by mixing cod roe with salt.」

「Fish eggs are edible?」

「Yes, salmon roe tastes great too～」

「...Yuri’s hometown is strange.」

「Huh? But they are selling cod roe out there, so I thought people are eating them.」

「They are selling them but...」

Kamir poked the mysterious goo on the chopping board. And of course, he already washed his hands. It felt bouncy and rubbery. Yuri said this was food, but Kamir didn’t know how to eat it. He wasn’t sure it was really food, and would never buy it if he saw it in a market.

But since Yuri said it was edible, it must be. He had complete confidence in the food that Yuri cooked, since he had a track record to prove it.

Kamir mashed the cooked potatoes, a task he completed many times and were familiar with. Croquette and potato salads were popular, and Yuri’s mashed potatoes taste great, unlike the boiled potatoes they were used too. And Yuri would seasoned it with b.u.t.ter, milk and salt, then drained of water with a colander. A simple and delicious mashed potato that was tedious to make.

Yuri split the cod roe in half, then scooped them onto the mashed potato. The roe separated cleanly from the skin and drops onto the potato, turning it pink.

Kamir was confused about 「what that was」, but he didn’t interrupt Yuri. He was already used to it, and was certain he would make tasty food… All the apprentices had been captivated this way.

「Mix the cod roe and potato.」

「And the seasoning?」

「This will be fine, cod roe has already been salted, if that’s not enough, we can add some pepper?」

He then mixed it evenly with a spatula, with the same technique of making croquette. A pink hue could be seen in the mashed potato, and Kamir was still confused as he looked at the pink beads and mashed potato.

After mixing it well, Yuri used the spatula and scooped some up for taste testing. The mashed potato was mixed together with the prominent taste of the cod roe, creating a fine taste. It was good enough to be eaten like this, and if he mixes in some mayonnaise, it would captivate the stomachs of children. Cod roe mayonnaise was popular with children, but Yuri wouldn’t add them this time.

「Kamir, try some. I think it’s good enough, what about you?」

「...Hmm～ it’s great, the chewy texture is interesting.」

「Should I make the taste stronger?」

「I think it’s fine… Is it completed?」

「Not yet.」

Kamir had no idea what it tasted like, and said it was delicious after trying it. The chewy texture of the salted cod roe complements the potato well, creating a taste different from mashed potato and croquette. He felt the saltiness was just right.

Yuri took out the tray he used to make croquette, and kneaded some Taramo b.a.l.l.s as an example for Kamir. He rolled them in his palm and made them bite sized b.a.l.l.s, as big as a takoyaki.

「I have to knead all this?」

「Yes please.」

「Okay.」

Kamir nodded and helps making potato b.a.l.l.s. He knew that the cooking Yuri took the effort to make would taste great. The simple dishes Yuri made were good too, but those that took some effort were all delicious. This realistic child was willing to help since he knew that he could eat delicious food.

After kneading all the Taramo ball, Yuri added flour into the bowl and rolled the Taramo b.a.l.l.s over it. He didn’t slid the Taramo ball coated in flour into the hot oil. The process was boil, mash, knead and fry, anyone could make them if they knew the method.

「Yuri, what’s this dish?」

「Well… My family calls it 『Taramo ball』.」

「Hmm...」

Yuri answered honestly. The b.a.l.l.s made from cod roe and potatoes were 「Taramo ball」, a very literal name. The original was called 「Taramo spring roll」, and the evolved form took the name from there.

When Yuri first tried making the Taramo spring rolls sold in restaurants outside, there were too big and filling, so his family didn’t like them. He had to change it to mini spring rolls, and knead the excess potatoes into Taramo ball and fry them. In the end, his family thought Taramo ball taste better, so the Kugimiya house started eating Taramo ball instead.

Yuri placed the crispy Taramo b.a.l.l.s onto a strainer. He only fried a few b.a.l.l.s for taste testing, which was a routine now. They ate the piping hot Taramo ball, taking care not to burn their mouth.

The sweet potatoes, adequately salty cod roe, and the fragrance of frying combined perfectly together, making it an absolute delicacy. Kamir took one bite after another, not sure whether it was a dessert or a dish. After Kamir ate two, he stared at the Taramo ball that had not been fried yet. 

「Any more would be stealing, so no.」

「Ugh.」

「No.」

「... Alright… So why are you still frying them?」

Normally, Yuri would fry the food before dinner starts, but he was still kneading and frying Taramo b.a.l.l.s after the taste test session. Considering the number of people having dinner, Yuri was making too much, which wasn’t a problem either. There were many children in their growth spurts, and would happily finish off the food.

Yuri continued frying the Taramo b.a.l.l.s, and smiled at Kamir.

「Hmm? I want to share some with the shop owner.」

「Huh!?」

「He sold me the cod roe really cheap～ I’m heading out for a while, so please take care of the soup.」

「Huh!? Huhhh!?」

Yuri left the confused Kamir behind, or rather, he didn’t notice Kamir’s confusion, and swiftly stuffed the fried Taramo b.a.l.l.s into a basket, and put it into his Student bag. The time freeze function of the magic bag was incredible, so the food would remain freshly fried when he takes it out of the bag.

Yuri said goodbye, and left the kitchen with a smile. Kamir yelled 「my share would be lessened!」, but Yuri didn’t hear him. Kamir could only grieve quietly.

「Uncle.」

「Oh? You are here again, boy?」

「Yes, I’m visiting again.」

Yuri was talking to a man selling seafood at the corner of the market. He was a peddler who came all the way here from the harbour, and was closer to being the salesman for the fisherman. Yuri bought his cod roe from him.

The capital Drahern was far from the coast, so there wasn’t any custom of eating roe. The man knew that, but he felt people would be willing to buy high quality food, and bought it here for sale. However, shops that made use of roe had their own suppliers, so he couldn’t go down that route, while the commoners were not familiar with roe, which closed that avenue too. He was really dejected when Yuri pa.s.sed by his shop.

The fish fillet and dry food were top quality, and Yuri noticed the cod roe too, and gleefully asked the man about them. The man was relieved that Yuri didn’t find the roe repulsive, and gave Yuri a better discount than usual to clear stock… The sales of his fish fillet and dry food were good, but his stock of cod roe was barely touched, that was how cruel reality was.

「If you don’t mind, please try this.」

「... This is?」

「I made them with potatoes and the cod roe you sold me. This is called a Taramo ball, I bought them here to share with you.」

「Ara, you are too kind.」

「You sold them to me cheap, so this is a gift in return.」

Yuri was all smiles, really happy about the discount he got; the man thought cod roe could only be eaten with rice or as a snack with beer, so Yuri wanted to cheer him up. Cod roe tastes great with spaghetti too, but that wouldn’t be convenient to eat, so Yuri gave up on making them.

The man looked at the mysterious food, couldn’t bring himself to turn down Yuri who offered him the food out of good will, and took one. The Taramo ball was fresh and hot from the pot, and he was caught off guard by the heat and the taste. He definitely tasted cod roe, and never imagined it could be eaten this way.

「Is it to your liking?」

「Yes, it’s great. So… cod roe can be eaten this way.」

「Yes, everyone, please try some. I made this with the cod roe I bought over there.」

The shop owners nearby looked at them with intrigue, and Yuri distributed the Taramo b.a.l.l.s to them with a smile. They were shocked after eating it out of curiosity, and asked Yuri for the cooking method. Yuri didn’t plan to hide it, and described the recipe in simple steps.

And the result was...

Potato was a staple ingredient every family has, and the method was just boil, mash, mix, knead and fry. No complicated seasonings was needed, except the cod roe sold by the shopkeeper over there. The shop owners were all planning to get their wives to make this dish when they get home, and swamped the cod roe shop. 

There were some who wasn’t confident of describing the steps to their wives clearly, and hope to bring some Taramo ball home. As there was Taramo b.a.l.l.s leftover, Yuri accepted this readily, and the large amount of Taramo b.a.l.l.s in his basket were gone in no time.

At the same time, the man’s cod roe sold out too.

After that, there was a rumour that if you sell ingredients to Yuri for cheap, he would return the favor by making delicious food. But that would depend on how he was feeling… Which could be possible.