Cooking with a Dragon's Heat
Red bean + ice + fruit. “You incompetent fool! You idiot! You’re really stupid! I’m so disappointed!”
A makeshift kitchen set up in the watchtower. From inside came a sulky voice. A voice brimming with dissatisfaction was scolding me relentlessly.
‘Man, she’s noisy. She said she’d listen to me earlier…… Should I grab her horns again?’
I was currently facing Eros. Her face was full of petty resentment. She was even sticking her lips out a full three inches while glaring at me. Between those fierce eyes, her violet pupils had cooled to an icy chill. Those eyes had been threateningly fixed on me for a while now. But they weren’t scary at all. More like a kitten hissing, perhaps? It was annoying to indulge her, yet somehow endearing at the same time.
“…You monkey who only knows how to be vigorous! You incompetent fool who can’t even eat what’s given to you—! Bleh~!”
Was it because I kept showing no reaction? Her insults were growing harsher by the second. She even stuck out her tongue, openly provoking me. Where did that earlier offer to help go? This wasn’t even funny anymore. She clearly needed more discipline. When she collapsed and lost consciousness earlier, it wasn’t because she stopped. That aside……
“Um, Miss Eros…? It’s difficult for me if you keep muttering and moving around like that.”
“Tch—! What do I care?! I thought you’d ask for that kind of favor since you needed my hands, so I was expecting it……!”
Eros immediately averted her gaze and whipped her head away. She got sulky after misunderstanding on her own? For someone so small, she sure had a big mouth. I was dumbfounded by her behavior, but she was only pretending to be upset with words—while grumbling, she still listened to me obediently.
‘Well…… I did ask for something completely different from what she expected, so of course she’d be disappointed.’
That was because what I had asked Eros for right now was……
—Clink, clink…!
—Swish, swish!
—Bubble bubble bubble…!
Steam rose gently from the pot resting on Eros’s hands. I stood in front of it, stirring the contents with a wooden spatula. That was right. I was currently using Eros’s hot palms as an induction cooktop to boil the ingredients.
The body of Eros, the Love Dragon, was quite useful in many ways. Just like now, it allowed heating without firewood, using only her body temperature. This method meant no smoke from burning wood, and since it wasn’t direct heat, there was no worry of Sonya’s barrier collapsing.
“By the way, Miss Eros? You’re not from the Flame Clan, so how can your body emit such intense heat? I didn’t expect this to be possible…… That’s impressive. Honestly, I’m surprised.”
“Hmph, hmph…! Why should I tell you something like that? And using a dragon’s hands as a substitute for a brazier…… This is extremely rude, you know?! Do you understand?!”
She was still grumbling with her head turned away. Her reaction made it clear she found my question absurd. Still, I could tell her mood had improved compared to earlier. I had only mixed in a bit of obvious flattery, yet Eros’s heart was already wavering. If I pushed just a little more, her sulky feelings might crumble surprisingly easily.
Should I pour on a little more here?
“As expected, Miss Eros seems to have a very generous heart. To cooperate with me to this extent…… If it weren’t for you, young lady, we would’ve been in real trouble.”
“Tch! You think my mood would improve with such obvious sweet talk—?! I-if it weren’t you, Teacher, I wouldn’t have stayed still!”
“Of course. I’m always grateful for how you’ve treated my body from the start.”
“A-ah, well, it’s good that you know…… But treating me like a tool like this is seriously the worst—♡”
When I deliberately chose only pleasant words to say, Eros’s tone softened. It was an obvious, clichéd barrage of compliments, but true to her simple personality, she quickly cheered up and returned to her usual way of speaking.
—Sizzle, sizzle…!
Meanwhile, the contents inside the pot seemed almost fully cooked, having thickened to a quite viscous consistency.
—Steam rising…!
White vapor continued to rise from the pot Eros was holding. A subtle, sweet aroma filled the inside of the watchtower.
“By the way, Teacher? What have you been boiling since earlier? It’s a smell I’ve never encountered before! Something sweet……”
“Ah, you mean this?”
—Drip…!
I lifted the wooden spatula I had been stirring with and held it up in front of Eros. Thick, swollen dark-red liquid from the boiling water flowed down in chunky streams.
“…It’s called red bean.”
“Red bean?”
“Yes. It’s a red bean cultivated in the east.”
“Uweeek…?! Bean? I really hate it—!”
“It’s fine. This is an ingredient for Miss Sonya. And once it’s finished, you won’t taste any of that earthy bean flavor at all.”
“Liar~! I’m never eating it!”
“Well, I won’t force you. That aside, Miss Eros? Could you make it a little hotter now? I think we need to evaporate the moisture over high heat……”
“H-high heat~? Don’t be ridiculous—! Do you think I’m some kind of real cooking tool…?!”
Huh? Right now, anyone would say she was a cooking tool…… Wasn’t she?
“…And even if the roots of the Love Clan come from the Flame Clan, generating any more heat than this is impossible—!”
“Aah, so that’s how it is.”
No wonder her body ran so hot…… She was descended from the Flame Clan. Come to think of it, while her temperament differed from Raylin’s, her talkative and fiery side seemed somewhat similar. In any case, the other clans must have branched off from the primordial bloodline called the ancestors. Perhaps each clan even had something like a family tree.
“But how much longer is this going to take? My arms are starting to get sore……”
“Just hold on a little longer. We’re almost done.”
—Swish, swish, ssshh…!
While chatting with Eros, the moisture in the pot had almost completely evaporated before I knew it. What had been bubbling like red bean porridge was now quite reduced. I had asked for high heat in a hurry, but Eros’s heat was proving quite useful. As expected, we were already at the finishing stage. All that remained was to add sugar and a pinch of salt and mix. Ah, honey would be good in place of starch syrup, since we didn’t have any.
“Sniff sniff…! Wh-what’s that? It smells much sweeter than before?”
Eros, still holding the pot, muttered while catching the scent of the now-reduced red beans.
“See? I told you it wouldn’t be bad.”
“Hmph, I’m still never eating it! You think I’d fall for just a sweet smell……?”
After dumping in sugar and honey, of course the smell would be sweet. I’d have to secretly add some later and feed it to her. I guarantee she won’t notice a thing. Anyway, the main ingredient was now complete. The well-cooked red bean paste just needed to cool. The sub-zero temperature was perfect timing. It would cool down to an edible temperature in no time.
—Clatter, swish swish…!
I scooped the red bean paste into a bowl, then grabbed a knife from the kitchen. It was a large, square cleaver resembling a Chinese chef’s knife. There were other appropriately sized knives available, but this one made it easy to apply weight. In other words, it was perfect for cutting ingredients in one go.
“Oho, you’re using a knife again? There’s nothing I can help with~?”
“Hmm……”
Eros hovered around, trying to butt in. I thought she’d be happy that her task was done, but instead she was asking if there was more work to do. Contrary to her grumbling appearance, she must have wanted to help me deep down. Just like Sonya’s friend, she was similar in how her outside didn’t match her inside. Cute, though. If that was the case, she shouldn’t have shown her dislike from the start.
“…Then, Miss Eros? While I prepare the fruits, could you fill this bowl with plenty of snow for me?”
“Eh—? Snow? Do you need water or something?”
“No. I need the snow itself. Please bring it without melting, just as the snowflakes are.”
“Huuuh? What weird thing are you trying to make now…… Anyway, got it! I’ll be right back!”
“Yes, it’s cold outside, so be careful on your way.”
“Kuh?! W-well, it feels nice that you’re worried. It won’t take long, so don’t worry—!”
With those words, she dashed toward the entrance of the watchtower. Thanks to her favorability having reached the worship stage, she grumbled but still listened to me quite well. Anyway, shall we get started in earnest?
‘First, this……’
I began preparing the specialties of Valkyrie Island that I had gathered from the bushes earlier.
—Chop, thwack…!
First, when I brought the cleaver down on the dango fruit that resembled a mango, the shell split in half more easily than expected.
“Huh? What’s this? It was definitely really hard earlier.”
The outer shell, resembling a coconut, cracked open to reveal bright yellow flesh.
—Thwack thwack thwack…!
The knife work continued surprisingly easily. It was an oddly light sensation. But I didn’t pay it much mind. I simply diced the dango fruit and set it aside. Once cut into bite-sized pieces, it looked exactly like mango.
“The dango fruit is done at this level……”
Next came the drill apple. Come to think of it, this one had been quite hard too. Looking at its sharp, rough outer shell, I recalled Raylin peeling it with her hands.
‘Maybe this one too, like the dango fruit……?’
But now I held the cleaver that had sliced through even the hard dango fruit shell in one stroke.
—Chop, thwack…!!!
Half in doubt, I brought the cleaver down once more. But then……
—Roll roll roll……
The shell sliced away far too easily. It felt like cutting through tofu. The knife tip had even embedded itself into the wooden cutting board. It was strangely easy for the knife to cut—too easy. Maybe the blade was well-sharpened?
“…Heeh? As expected, you’re pretty good with a knife for an incompetent guy? I could tell from when you cooked earlier in the day.”
“Huh? Miss Eros? When did you get back?”
While I was startled and stopped at my own knife work, Eros’s voice suddenly interrupted. She had already returned with a bowl piled high with snow.
“I just got back~! It’s right in front, so scooping snow is all it takes—why would it take long?”
“Ah, right……”
“More importantly, Teacher? What’s your real identity? Be honest with me at least.”
“Pardon? My identity?”
“Don’t play dumb! I can see everything with my eyes~? Where did you learn swordsmanship? Right—?!”
Eros suddenly threw out a random question. She had said something similar earlier in the day. That I was good with daggers or something? And now suddenly swordsmanship? I was just holding a kitchen knife. Ah, I did attend kendo classes for a few months when I was young, but……
“I haven’t. It’s just ordinary ingredient preparation.”
“No—! Cutting a drill apple cleanly with such a dull blade…… That’s normally impossible, right?!”
“Pardon? The blade is dull?”
“Don’t tell me you used it without even checking the blade? Incompetent♡ Take a closer look~?!”
“Huh? Th-the blade, what’s this……?”