“Do the fishermen here catch these otakus too? I didn’t see them from the nets earlier.” [Ryouma]
“Huh? You don’t catch okuta from the lake. You get them from the forest.” [Kai]
“Ah, the forest, I see… The forest!?” [Ryouma]
“What are you being so surprised for? Okutas are usually from the forest, right?” [Kei]
“On top of trees, in the hollow of trees, inside the mud. The place changes depending on the variant, but they’re all found on land.” [Shin]
“You were handling it so matter-of-factly, so I thought for sure you knew about it.” [Sein]
“Are there okutas that live in the water in your hometown, Ryouma?” [Peiron]
“The octopuses I know are creatures that live in water.” [Ryouma]
So it turns out, unlike octopuses, okutas are creatures that live on land.
As expected, although they look similar, they’re different creatures… Oops. It’s almost ready.
I skewered the octopus and made sure that it was completely boiled, then I took them out of the pot. Next, I’ll cut these into chunks, and then use soup stock and starch wheat made from lots of eggs and wheat and stealthily refined with alchemy to make the dough. After that everything will be ready.
I activate the iron plate magic tool and poured dough into the warm depressions of the pan. The only ingredient I’m putting in is the octopus. The dough is soft so I use chopsticks to flip it over. I could tell through the chopsticks that they’re now very fluffy.
When everything was done, I served the dish with soup made from stock soup seasoned with fish sauce and spices, and then boiled and left to simmer.
“Sorry to keep you waiting! One akashiyaki!” [Ryouma]
I didn’t have any sauce in hand, so I made an akashiyaki that’s meant to be eaten with the soup instead.
I actually wanted to make the dashi (soup stock) and the sauce using the ingredients from here, but I wonder how it would’ve turned out.
“Oh. It’s soft and shaped just like a slime too.” [Sein]
Sein went straight to eating. He soaked one ball into his soup and threw it into his mouth.
“Ah! …! Ohh! It’s delicious! It was a little hot for a moment, though!” [Sein]
“That’s because you threw it into your mouth so suddenly… But it sure is delicious.” [Shin]
The next one who tried the food was Shin-san. He also thought it was delicious.
“…It melts when I put into my mouth, and the taste spreads. The okuta filling also has good texture.” [Peiron]
“Don’t worry, Ryouma. He likes it.” [Kai]
“Such a simple taste. Just the right dish when hungry.” [Kei]
I was a little worried since Peiron-san’s expression hadn’t changed much, but it would appear that he likes it too. At least, according to Kai-san. Kei-san seems to like it too. They emptied their plates quickly.
I’ll have one too… Yep. The umami of fish sauce, and the taste of eggs and dashi. Both the taste and texture are light, and now my body and heart are gradually being warmed. The perfect dish for a cold day…
“Hoi-san, are you here!? Little Kai! Little Kei!!” [???]
“NGU!?” [Ryouma]
While I was feeling warm and fluffy and was starting to relax, the bloodcurdling voice of a person suddenly cried out.
The person appeared to be in a panic as she even slammed on the door while calling out.
Kai-san and Kei-san looked at each other, and then went out. It turned out to be the grandma from earlier.
“Little Kai! Little Kei!! Did you, that child, here…” [Grandma]
“Please relax, grandma. You’re clearly out of breath.” [Kai]
“That’s right. We can’t understand what you’re trying to say at all.” [Kei]
“Did you see Niki?” [Grandma]
“Not since that time.” [Kai]
“Yes. We didn’t see him on the way back. He didn’t drop by here either… Did something happen?” [Kei]
In response to Kei-san’s question, the grandma took a deep breath, and then wrung out a few words.
‘He’s gone.’
—She said.
Tl Note: A little short, so the next release will be slightly longer.
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