Chapter 78

The Failure Alchemist of the Royal Capital

Fluffy Steak #

Around the time the “White Powder Incident” was resolved, a large number of books arrived at the atelier. They were a “thank you” gift promised by Her Royal Highness, the Queen. There were many valuable and expensive books, including ones on alchemy, cooking recipes, ingredients, plants, herbs, minerals, and so on.

“I wonder if Miina is the one who can make use of the cooking recipes and ingredient books.”

Calling out, Miina, who was in the kitchen, came over.

“Wow, there are so many books! What happened?”

Miina’s eyes stopped on the cooking recipe and ingredient books as she glanced at the titles.

“A cooking recipe book! And it’s so thick!”

While saying that, Miina clasped her hands in front of her chest with sparkling eyes, clearly moved.

“These cooking recipe and ingredient books are for you as a thank-you gift for the items we presented to Her Royal Highness. I’m giving them to you, Miina.”

As I organized the books, I handed the thick two volumes to Miina.

“Miina-chan!”

At that moment, a male voice came from outside the shop.

“Oh, is that the usual adventurer’s voice… Excuse me for a moment!”

Miina ran to the front of the bread shop and after a while, she came back holding a splendid piece of meat from a beast called “Blood Cow,” which was a large piece of meat from a cow-shaped magical beast. Blood Cows were considered high-class and had a good balance of fat and lean meat, making them delicious compared to the ordinary meat obtained from older cows.

“Somehow, it was given as a souvenir… I wonder why?”

Miina tilted her head, puzzled.

…Well, they must have had their eyes on our poster girl!

“Shall we have the classic steak tonight?”

As expected, delicious beef is best enjoyed simply as a steak. So, I asked her that.

“Since we received these cooking recipe books, why don’t we think of something different?”

Saying that, Miina put the beef in the refrigerator.

“By the way, lately male customers have been asking for something more substantial to eat.”

While I was putting books away on the living room bookshelf, Miina sat at the table, sighed, and rested her cheek on her hand.

…She seems a bit troubled. Shall I help her?

“Should we develop something new at the bread shop?”

I smiled and made a suggestion, and Miina nodded happily.

“Is there anything that could be a reference?”

Saying that, she started flipping through the pages of the cooking recipe book we had just received.

“…Horse and beef tartare.”

“I don’t think raw meat goes well with bread.”

There was a picture of raw minced beef served on a plate with what seemed to be an egg-based sauce.

“Then let’s just grill it.”

“…Why go through the trouble of turning it into minced meat and then grilling it?”

My impulsive suggestion seemed to be rejected by Miina.

“No, no. You see, steak is tough for children. When I was younger, I used to envy my father and others enjoying steak so much.”

Then Miina understood and said, “I see.”

“If we turn it into minced meat once and firmly shape it, we can make a steak that even children won’t struggle to chew… Shall we try it?”

Miina sliced the piece of beef we received earlier and skillfully turned it into minced meat using two knives.

“We’ll need salt and pepper at the very least, right?”

Miina put the minced meat in a bowl, added salt and pepper, and kneaded it. The meat became sticky and started to form into a lump.

“Should we try cooking it now?”

We put some oil on a frying pan and placed the meat mixture on it.

“…Oh, it’s a shame that the juices are flowing out. What a waste.”

“Yes, you’re right.”

After cooking both sides thoroughly, we tasted the finished product. It melted in our mouths, but it was overwhelmingly meaty. And somehow, it was frustrating that the precious meat juices came out first.

“If we want it to taste good for children, we’d want a fluffy texture, right?”

“Since we’re at it, I wonder if we can trap the meat juices?”

Suddenly, I was faced with two challenges.

…I know, maybe I can try using my appraisal skill to make it work?

I picked up the remaining minced meat sauté and wandered around the area where the ingredients were.

And next to it, there was leftover bread from yesterday.

…There it is!

But, is it okay to use day-old bread?

…I’m starting to feel like it might work!

“If we add eggs, the meat will bind nicely, right? And… if we add sautéed onions, it will enhance the sweetness and make the children happy. And… about the dried bread, if we make it into crumbs and add it, it might absorb the oils.”

In fact, I haven’t told Miina about my appraisal ability yet, so if she asks why, it will be difficult. I decided to suggest something casually.

“…By dried, do you mean yesterday’s bread… well, as a way to make breadcrumbs, it’s not wrong, but are you going to put it in the meat instead of using it as breading for cutlets?”

Miina started working on improving the dish with a skeptical look.

First, she finely grated the bread.

“The onions need to be finely chopped, otherwise the meat might break, right?”

Saying that, she sautéed the finely chopped onions in a frying pan until they turned golden brown.

“Let it cool down before adding it.”

“The fat in the meat will melt otherwise.”

After that, she returned to making the meat mixture.

She kneaded the finely minced meat with salt and pepper until it became sticky.

Then, she added eggs, onions, and breadcrumbs and mixed them together.

“Just shaping it into balls won’t do, there were some extra gaps before, so should we try to remove the air?”

Saying that, Miina took a portion of the meat mixture in her hand and pounded it back and forth between her hands.

And then, she started frying it in a pan with oil, making a sizzling sound as the meat cooked and emitted a delicious aroma.

“The meat seems to have become plump and increased in size. Since we don’t want it undercooked, let’s flip it over and steam it with a lid.”

And around that time, it seemed that there were no more customers coming to the store, as Marcus appeared in the kitchen.

“Hey, why have you two been making such delicious smells all by yourselves?”

Marcus, a growing boy, sniffed the aroma of the cooking meat with delight.

“It smells delicious indeed.”

“I made three for tasting, so there’s plenty for Marcus too.”

Saying that, Miina opened the lid, revealing the appetizing smell of the cooked meat and the complete chunk of meat.

“It seems like the juices haven’t leaked out as much as before.”

Miina looked satisfied as she skewered one of the meatballs with a skewer and checked for transparent fat oozing out.

“Yeah, it doesn’t seem to be undercooked either! Let’s try it!”

At those words, Marcus took three plates and forks from the cupboard and placed them on the table.

Miina used tongs to place one cooked meatball on each plate.

““Itadakimasu!””

I cut the meat into bite-sized pieces with my fork held sideways. Then, the meat juices overflowed juicily.

…Oh, what a waste!

I hurriedly speared the fork and took a bite, and along with the deliciousness of the meat, the meat juices spread in my mouth with a juicy sensation. Moreover, the finely minced meat was so tender that it melted and crumbled on my tongue.

“Delicious!”

The three of us praised it highly.

“This is a menu we developed ourselves. Hmm, what should we name it?”

I savored the last bite, chewed it well as if reluctantly, and swallowed it.

“How about ‘Fluffy Steak’?”

Miina suggested.

“Yeah, that’s good! …Oh, wait?”

I noticed that the remaining meat juices on the plate after finishing the meal had solidified into a white mass. Though it was impolite, I took it with my finger and licked it, but it had a rough texture that didn’t taste very good. And I told the two of them about it.

“In that case, it seems better to use chicken-based ‘Crazy Chicken’ or pork-based ‘Mad Pig’ meat for the bread served for takeout at the shop.”

It seemed that further improvements were needed for takeout sales.

◆

“Miina-chan, hello.”

They were a pair of male and female adventurers. They were regular customers at this bakery, and they were the ones who brought us the meat the other day.

“We have a new bread today, would you like to try it?”

Miina asked with a smile.

“Then, new bread it is. I’ll have cold tea for my drink.”

“Same for me.”

“Just a moment, please.”

Miina bowed politely and went into the kitchen.

After a while, plates with drinks and the new bread were placed in front of them. The new bread was a slice of ‘Fluffy Bread’ with the freshly baked ‘Tender Steak’ and tomato slices that we developed the other day sandwiched in it.

“Is this… meat?”

“But it crumbles softly in the mouth.”

“It’s the ‘Fluffy Steak’ we made based on the blood cow we received the other day. When you mince the meat and mix it with various ingredients before cooking, it becomes such a tender steak. How does it taste?”

“It’s delicious!”

The two of them quickly finished eating it.

“…‘Kage,’ we have to take this new creation for the entire family, don’t we?”

“Yeah, don’t scold me, ‘Tori.’”

They secretly exchanged words.

“Miina-chan, I’d like to buy four of these as souvenirs.”

One of the adventurers placed an order with Miina.

“We also have ones made with different meat that taste good even when cold. Which one would you like, the current one or the other?”

“The current one!”

After a while, Miina brought the freshly made ones.

“Here you go. Please lightly warm them in the oven or something before eating.”

Miina received the payment and lightly wrapped the items because they were warm before handing them over.

“Well then, we’ll come again!”

They said so and left the shop, hiding in the shadows.

“…We’re going now. I’ll leave the rest of the patrol to you, ‘Kage.’”

“…Understood, ‘Tori.’”

At that moment, ‘Tori’ disappeared, teleporting instantly to the residential area of the royal family in the royal castle. Then, quickly covering his face with a mask.

“…Your Majesty.”

“Oh, ‘Tori’.”

“Your Majesty, I apologize for appearing suddenly. There’s a delicious new creation being sold at Daisy’s shop, so I wanted you to try it while it’s still warm. It’s called ‘Tender Steak,’ made by sandwiching minced meat between bread.”

“Oh, that sounds exciting! Call the family quickly!”

The king gave instructions to the attendant and called the family together to enjoy Daisy’s new creation.

Indeed, they were members of the skilled covert operatives who, at the command of the prime minister, swiftly investigated the situation in the neighboring country during the ‘White Powder Incident.’ The reason why that investigation was completed in a day was due to the special skill of ‘Tori.’ And at that time, Daisy admired ‘Kage’ and ‘Tori,’ but she had no idea that they were secretly protecting her, although not always, by disguising themselves as regular customers.

Nevertheless, it was a peaceful country. They were using the rare skill of ‘Teleportation’ more valuable than ‘Appraisal’ for the errand of delivering Daisy’s new creations…