Burn to Fight, Fight to Burn
When he poured milk into the roux he had made by frying flour in butter, a rich, savory aroma rose at once.
“Wow, this butter and milk are from the Abel Principality, aren’t they? They smell seriously rich.”
“They’re from Tamer Territory. Made from Minocentaur milk. See that one over there splitting firewood? It came from him.”
For the sake of the paladins’ mental health, he decided not to mention that part.
“Now add the stock and simmer—”
“This is chicken stock, right?”
“No. Hogryphon stock. Not the boar part, the eagle part. Tastes a bit like chicken, only deeper.”
“Oh? May I taste it? Wow! That’s really good. How did you make this?”
“Boil the Hogryphon meat, bones and all, until it’s falling apart. Add suction clay to that rich broth, and the stock practically makes itself. Pretty simple recipe, right? Our territory’s cook made it.”
Cook Jerry, the chef of Tamer Territory, came to mind. When they set out for the capital, instead of a farewell gift, he had handed over this stock and the ingredients.
“Lower the heat now and let it simmer slowly. Then crush the mandragorani horn-leaf cookies and sprinkle them on top as a garnish.”
“Yes, sir.”
While Jesang finished the soup, Ho-yeong prepared the Poghog stew.
He filled a pot with military beer no one bothered to drink because it tasted awful, then added the Poghog meat cut into large cubes. On top of that, he scattered in the spent grain left over after the malt had been squeezed out.
“That should get rid of the meat’s gaminess, deepen the flavor, and make the flesh more tender. Spent grain and surplus beer are everywhere, so this is perfect.”
Volib’s notes contained all kinds of recipes for Poghog, but Ho-yeong had mixed together whatever ingredients were easiest to get on hand.
As he skimmed off the foam rising thickly in the pot, he felt his nerves settling for some reason.
“Now all that’s left is to sear the meat over high heat, add the vegetables and sauce, and let it boil. Let’s see how everyone’s enjoying the soup.”
The paladins were sitting half-ridiculous on stones and stumps because there weren’t enough chairs, but when it came time for the meal prayer, they offered it with reverence.
“O River God who watches over all from the lowest places and the widest reaches, we give thanks that even in this barren land we may still partake of humble food.”
“…I’m the one who brought the ingredients all the way out to this barren land, and I’m the one who cooked it, so why am I not getting any thanks? And on top of that, you call the food I worked so hard on ‘humble’ right to my face. Sorry it isn’t a feast. I should’ve just fed you those rock-hard biscuits instead.”
At his grumbling, they looked sheepish and hurried to praise the soup.
“Thank you as well, Count of the Border Region. It truly is a soup with a warm, comforting taste.”
“It’s excellent.”
Of course, it really was excellent.
“This is probably just begging for compliments, but since you’re eating it happily, I’m glad. Take your time.”
“Those stiff-necked paladins would never flatter someone or tell a lie. This is truly splendid, Tamer Gong. The wild, rugged flavor is impressive, yet it’s so well balanced.”
“It’s better than what our household chef makes. What kind of magic, no, what kind of secret did you use?”
Count Iorid and his sons were shoveling it in with abandon too.
“Haha... well, it’s not exactly a secret. Warm soup on a chilly plain makes anything taste better. And after all that hard work and sweating, a salty broth goes down easy.”
He didn’t bother mentioning that it was made from Minocentaur milk and Hogryphon broth.
“My lord, what you just said sounds exactly like something Priestess Rubia would say.”
“Really? Well, if that big sister were here, she’d definitely be talking just like me. And Meyril, I’m sorry to make a mage do this. Is it difficult?”
“Not at all. It’s really fun!”
Meyril was boiling fodder for the cattle, using the straw and bean pods left over after harvest.
“I’ll add the sugarcane we brought from Rainpa City too. It’s the stalk left after squeezing out the juice, but... we were able to buy a lot of it so cheaply! It should make everything sweeter.”
Even the sugarcane stalks were being used to top up the sweetness.
- Minoom! (It’s delicious!)
- Minoho! (It tastes great!)
The Minocentaurs, stuffed on warm fodder, were stretched out with blissful expressions.
“Watching them lounge around after eating like livestock, they really are just cows with legs. Right, get some rest! You worked hard out there.”
The conversion and digestion rates of the Minocentaurs have increased. New material has been added to Volib's Notes.
Volib, the founder of monster resource studies, had filled his notes with all manner of information on monsters. That was why Ho-yeong’s monster recipes and monster feed formulas had developed so much further.
“More on the Minocentaurs has been added. Let’s see... because they live deep in dungeons or on high plateaus, they don’t get enough sunlight. The more often they’re sunbathed, the healthier they become and the less savage they get. Meyril, I’m counting on you!”
Meyril concentrated sunlight through weather magic.
“Good work, Eollugi, and Minho. Rest in a sunny spot.”
Thanks to that, the Minocentaurs’ fatigue was completely restored.
“My lord... this is when I’m happiest, using magic like this.”
“For people, and for peace?”
“You remembered!”
Meyril was moved that the lord remembered a conversation they had once had in passing.
It had been not long after they repelled the goblin invasion.
* * *
“I’m really glad you’re here, Meyril.”
“I-I hardly helped at all in this battle. I only did what my lord told me to do... waaah.”
“What are you talking about? Do you have any idea how much you contributed? And I can’t just use someone as precious as you only for battle... no, that’s not the point. Of course your weather magic is useful in combat, but that isn’t your only value. These days, thanks to you controlling the weather so well, farming and work have become easier, and living conditions are much better too. Everyone in the territory is grateful. For your warm heart and your wonderful skill.”
“R-Really? I only did something so small, and yet everyone thinks that way about it...”
Meyril’s huge eyes filled with tears.
“The one who’s most grateful is me. Meyril, thank you for following me. I’m going to need your strength when we rebuild and develop this territory.”
I’m the one who should be thanking him, so why is the lord the one saying thank you?
『Meyril, it’s time for you to leave our party. Sorry, or rather, you should be sorry. You’re really useless.』
『What use is weather magic in a dungeon? Especially magic from a weather mage as unstable as you?』
『Huh? You’re scared of fighting? Tch. Why should we drag around a mage who can’t be used in battle, country girl from the south?』
This was the kind of thing she had always heard.
But the lord was saying only the exact opposite, and with such warmth. Of course she would be grateful.
“Th-thank you very much. But, my lord, there’s something I’d like to ask.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Then... may I stay in this territory for the time being?”
Still, Meyril had been worried in her heart. After showing only disappointing behavior in the battle against the goblins, what if he cast her out?
“No.”
“…Huh?!”
Their heart, which had already been hanging by a thread, was suddenly pierced by an icy chill. It was a sensation she had never felt before.
“Staying for the time being... would be a little difficult.”
Ho-yeong’s expression abruptly hardened.
“Difficult...?”
She was confused.
She thought she had gotten used to being driven away. So why did it hurt like this? She had decided not to cling to departures anymore, so why did her feet feel so heavy?
“…I understand.”
Ah. Now she understood. The leaving she had experienced until now and this leaving were different. Having to leave a place you didn’t want to leave... this was the first time.
Goodbye, prince who saved me by riding a mandragorani instead of a white horse.
“At least I’d like you to stay for a few years, no, a few decades! ‘For the time being’ is impossible. That means you’re leaving soon!”
“Huhhh?”
“Well, I did bring a precious guest to a shabby place, so I suppose this is only natural. Goodness, I haven’t properly treated you, Tower Meteo-mancer. I should’ve built you a grand mansion, not let you sleep in a ramshackle military tent... It’s because we don’t have the means, so bear with it just a little.”
Watching the lord spit out words in a frantic torrent, Meyril was dumbfounded.
Was he mocking me? No... it doesn’t look like that.
“Meyril, no, Lady Meyril... no, no, Lady Meyril! Please stay with us for a long time. If you want, I can even bring every member of your family here from Malia... well, no, that wouldn’t be good. This is a place where monsters pop out like crazy, so that’d be a bit much. Still, I’ll give you generous leave and pay, so could you please stay even for a few years?”
The tears Meyril shed that day were more numerous than all the rain she had ever summoned until then.
* * *
“It’s true that people on this continent tend to value only magic that’s useful in combat. Adventurers exploring dungeons and uncharted lands are especially bad about that.”
At Meyril’s words, Ho-yeong flinched a little. After possessing the game world, he had been no different from the people she described for quite some time.
“Hah, haha. Right. There are too many idiots who only know how to fight. Knights are one thing, but even mages keep learning offensive spells over and over. It’s like a whole continent of war maniacs.”
In truth, that was how nearly any player would think. The genre of Reign of Dice was not civilization-building or management, but defense. It was a game where victory came from defeating the enemy. A character’s popularity could be influenced by appearance, fun, lore, and a dozen other factors, but what ultimately determined pick rate was performance in battle.
Mages had a complicated tiering system because they came in so many forms, from damage dealers and utility specialists to supporters, healers, buffers, debuffers, and summoners, but in the end, what mattered was how useful they were in combat.
“They should be thinking about developing the economy and culture with the magic they worked so hard to learn. Tsk tsk. The Kain Kingdom’s prosperity is built on magical goods and magical relics, after all.”
“You speak as if you were from some other country, my lord.”
“No, I’m just saying we should look at things objectively. Ahem.”
“I agree with you, my lord. But with monsters swarming the Western Continent for the past twenty years or so, there’s no helping that side of it. I hate fighting... but I hate losing precious things even more. So I’ll gather my resolve and prepare to fight! To protect this brilliant civilization.”
Unlike before, Meyril now showed the will for a decisive battle.
Seeing the resolve in her large, round eyes, Ho-yeong was impressed.
“Well said. If you want to protect something, you have to be ready to fight. That’s a model of defense right there.”
“Of course, the best thing would be to protect everyone without fighting at all... huhuu. But after this battle with the trolls, I realized something, too. There are beings in this world who know nothing but fighting.”
The trolls’ madness was still vivid in her mind.
“Those elves who serve Cliad... how on earth did they come to harbor such horrible thoughts? What kind of beings are they?”
“Who knows... I don’t know their full story. But I do know exactly what kind of beings they are.”
As he fed the flames licking at the pot and made them roar higher, Ho-yeong answered,
“Beings who have no choice but to fight.”
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