CH 64

Chapter 64 : Tasting Party

ーーA scream was heard all of a sudden, but it soon stopped.

I looked around the people in the kitchen, but no one had their mouth opened.

Everyone then looked at Dad, but he immediately closed his mouth with both hands.

Hm? Was that Dad’s scream?

No… There’s no way… He rarely opened his mouth after all.

Maybe his lips are just itching.

Alright, let’s continue the talking.

「…Ahem! The monsters are called Tentacles, and they live in Lake Secard. These fillets have already been processed, so they can be eaten right away. However, since it’s monster meat, I don’t recommend you to eat it raw, though.」(Mark)

「H, Hee…. Tentacles, huh? I’ve never been to Secard Village so this is my first time seeing this kind of meat, but I’ve heard that the people there love to eat weird stuff. So how do you eat it?」(Celine)

It seems that everyone thought that we should just ignore the scream earlier and keep going.

And apparently, Celine has no repulsion toward Tentacles.

Mom, too. She is poking the Tentacles meat.

Looks like the both of them have no problem with it.

However, Dad’s face looked a little pale.

Could it be, he is…

「There are many ways to eat it, but for now, let’s try it with the simplest one.」(Mark)

I cut the Tentacles meat into several slices, put them on a frying pan, and stir fried them until they cooked.

After a while, a fragrant smell filled the kitchen.

「Ahh~ This smell is really stimulating my appetize! Nee, nee~ Can I eat it now?」(Celine)

「Hold on, I haven’t sprinkled salt yet.」(Mark)

After stopping Celine, I picked a small jar containing salt from the kitchen drawer, took a small amount of salt, stretched my arm high up, and sprinkled the salt on the meat.

「Mark… why are you sprinkling salt from such a high position…?」(Celine)

「I just feel like doing it. I think I’ll look like a professional chef if I do this.」(Mark)

「… I don’t know about that.」(Celine)

「Alright, it’s done!」(Mark)

I turned off the stove and moved the frying pan to the kitchen table.

Everyone then brought the fried Tentacles meat into their mouths with forks, and chewed them while saying “Hot! Hot!”.

「Mmm~~~~! It’s so good~~~!」(Celine)

While enjoying the delicious taste of the meat in her mouth, Celine put her hand on her cheek and smiled brightly.

「Ara~ This is so delicious!」(Mom)

Just like Celine, Mom also put her hand on her cheek.

Both of them then talked to each other about how delicious the meat was.

They are really on good terms.

Perhaps because they are almost the same age.

Nicola was chewing a full mouth of the meat without saying anything, but she made a happy face as if she was in paradise.

Dad was…

He still hadn’t picked up a slice yet.

He was frozen with his arm stretched toward the frying pan, and…. his face still looked a little pale.

Dad… What’s wrong with him?

But, as soon as he saw my worried face, he quickly took a slice and immediately put it into his mouth.

At that moment, Dad’s expression changed drastically as if a shock ran on his face.

He chewed the meat slowly, and then swallowed it.

After that, he looked at me and nodded with a slightly shy face.

Looks like Dad also approved the taste of the meat.

「By the way, Mark, how much did this cost? It’s very delicious, but I don’t think you could buy a delicious meat like this with your pocket money.」(Mom)

「Fufu~n. Don’t worry, Mom. It’s not expensive at all. You can buy one big Tentacle with just five silver coins!」(Mark)

「Haaa!?」(Celine)

The one who was surprised the most was Celine.

She opened her mouth wide.

「How can it be so cheap? Hunting monsters isn’t easy, and I think with its big size and delicious taste, it can be sold more expensively.」(Celine)

「The villagers love hunting Tentacles and sometimes they hunt too many. Moreover, because the monsters look disgusting for most people, it’s hard to sell their meat outside.」(Mark)

「I see. Well, if you’re an adventurer like me, you’ll get used to this kind of monster, but it will be a little tough for those who aren’t used to it.」(Celine)

「I happened to be fine with it, but some people may not be able to deal with how it looks.」(Mom)

「I think Tentacles look disgusting! But it’s good!」(Nicola)

Celine, Mom, and Nicola expressed their opinion about the Tentacles, but I feel like there’s a hidden intention behind their words.

I wonder what it is…

After that, we discussed how we will serve Tentacles meat to customers.

For the time being, it was decided that we won’t serve Tentacles unless customers request them.

Some people might avoid it the first time they see the meat, but once they get used to it, I think they will regularly request it.

And to avoid complaints, we decided to announce that it was monster meat on the cooking menu.

I don’t think there will be a problem even if we don’t tell the customer that it was monster meat, but we did it anyway just in case.

The price of Tentacles dishes was decided to be a little high.

I think it’s okay since it tastes good.

If it sells well, the price of the Tentacles in Secard Village will surely rise.

ーーーー

At dinner time, I asked Dad to make okonomiyaki, but with real squid this time!

Well, to be exact, it’s Tentacle, not squid, though.

It was very delicious! Just like okonomiyaki I ate in my previous life.

Celine ordered grilled Tentacles for her dinner.

She said that it goes well with ale.

When she ate it in the dining hall, many other customers asked her about what she ate.

She even allowed them to take a bite of her grilled Tentacles.

I hope there will be many customers who order Tentacle dishes in the future.

After dinner, I went to the backyard, poured my mana to the herbs I was growing, took a bath, and then went to sleep.

I fell asleep in an instant as soon as I closed my eyes.

I didn’t realize it but it seems like I was very tired.