Flameveros, the Northern Chili
The work to recreate the Topliya from Frau's memories continued. First, using the new clue I'd obtained, I searched for red spicy spices suitable for the Northern Continent.
Since hardly any customers came to the restaurant anyway, I closed up shop for a bit and headed to the nearest city to ask merchants who handled Northern Continent ingredients.
"...I'm looking for a spice with these characteristics. Do you know of any?"
"A red spice with a deep, lingering spiciness..."
The merchant, who had all sorts of ingredients piled high in large baskets, pondered my question deeply before speaking up.
"It wouldn't be native to the Northern Continent. It's too cold up there for crops to grow properly."
"So, at least it's not originally from there."
Just as the merchant said. The Northern Continent was too frigid from the start for any real farming. The two specialty herbs used in Topliya were among the rare few that could survive in such extreme conditions. That's why they were hardly used on the main continent where the Royal Capital Elgraf was located.
This was getting tricky. This world did have ordinary chili peppers. The kind that turned red under the sun, the ones I knew well from my past life. The problem was there were countless varieties depending on the region.
I'd inferred that Topliya used chilies instead of tomatoes for that red color, but pinpointing which region's which breed? No clue.
"You seem really into Northern Continent cuisine, huh? Last time you bought up a ton of elmont and talis leaves too."
Elmont and talis leaves. The Northern spices I'd used for the first Topliya. They'd turned out not to be part of the memory version after all, but... I'd bought them from this same merchant who dealt in Northern Continent ingredients last time.
"You remember me. Actually..."
I gave him a rough rundown of how I was trying to recreate a dish from the Northern Continent. A traditional recipe heavily modified, but one that seemed to include a red spicy spice.
The merchant listened intently, then spoke as if something had clicked.
"So, it was made and eaten in the Northern Continent, right?"
"That's right."
"As you know, there aren't many traders heading to the Northern Continent. The sea freezes over—too dangerous. So if they were making spicy food up there, there's probably only one type they could've used."
"Why so sure?"
"Aigoo, you gotta have sharp ears in this business. I know exactly where goods flow."
An unexpected windfall. If only one variety of chili from all the regional breeds made it to the Northern Continent, that had to be the one for Frau's memory Topliya.
Come to think of it, something similar happened in my past life as a chef. I was hunting for high-quality scallop adductor muscles for the restaurant, but everywhere either charged too much or the quality fell short. The breakthrough came from our long-time seafood distributor who supplied our sea bream. We'd built a rapport over years of dealing, so he hooked me up with another supplier who had great stuff at a bargain price.
It hit home again: building good relationships with ingredient merchants is key to cooking.
"No chance they used chilies from elsewhere, even for home cooking up North?"
I double-checked for any edge cases. The merchant shook his head firmly.
"Nah, you said home-style, right? That means something they'd make often. No way they'd use hard-to-get chilies from other regions. Gotta be the ones shipped North."
"And that chili's name is...?"
"Flamveros."
Finally, the merchant revealed the name of the one red chili traded to the Northern Continent.
"But use it carefully. It's pretty fierce."
"Flamveros... Got any for sale?"
"You came to the right place today!"
His face lit up at my question. He rummaged behind his sales baskets, untied a sack that hadn't been opened yet, and pulled out a ladle brimming with bright red chilies that looked like bell peppers.
"How much you need?"
I bought two full ladles of Flamveros from him on the spot.
The second tasting test for Frau's memory Topliya. This time, I'd used the Flamveros chili bought based on the merchant's tip to get that red hue.
Frau, who'd arrived via messenger bird, sat at the counter waiting for her food. The kitchen reeked with spicy aroma from all the hot chilies.
"Kek! Kekhek! It's spi-cyyyy! The smell is so spi-cyeeee!"
"How's that? Ring any bells?"
Ignoring Aris hacking away in the dining area, I asked Frau.
She looked mildly surprised as she replied.
"...Yeah. Similar. The day Topliya was served, the whole tower smelled like this."
Great—we were one step closer. Just a bit more, and...
Maybe today Frau would taste that memory flavor.
"You must've really liked your master, huh?"
The Topliya still needed time to finish simmering. I tossed her a conversation starter to pass the wait.
"Nah, opposite. Hated her most in the world."
But her response caught me off guard.
Hated the master who made her Topliya...?
"Then why chase this Topliya?"
"Dunno... Why, indeed..."
Frau let out a small sigh and closed her eyes. After a few seconds of silence, she opened them and spoke.
"My master—the Ice Witch—was a monster. No normal person gets a moniker like that."
"Ice Witch..."
"From the moment I could barely walk, she hounded me nonstop. I was just a weak kid; couldn't take the daily scoldings. Cried more days than not. Every day, I dreamed of running away."
A strange chill began seeping into the restaurant. Was it her emotions stirring as she spoke of her master? The cold mana leaking from Frau felt stronger.
"Why so much scolding?"
"...She tried teaching me magic when I could barely read."
"Your mage skills—you learned them from the Ice Witch?"
"...Yeah, eventually I studied magic desperately. Vowed to surpass her someday and escape that tower."
Frau’s eyes sharpened. Her tales of abuse under her master seemed all too real.
"But get this. Before I could even get stronger, she up and died from mana sickness. Freed me to roam the continent like this."
She gave a wry smile.
"In those hellish tower days, locked up and chewed out daily, Topliya was my one solace. When she served it, she eased up—strangely. Though the next day, she'd grab me like a rat again."
"Topliya's almost ready."
I turned off the heat under the bubbling pot.
Honestly, hard to grasp Frau's feelings right now. But my job was to serve her that memory Topliya. How close was this second version?
I carefully ladled the finished stew into a bowl and set it before her.
"Same drill. Taste it, tell me what differs from the memory."
Frau nodded and picked up her spoon. Unlike last time, she looked tense.
Intense Northern spices swapped out, replaced by spicy Flamveros chilies. No tomatoes in the vivid red broth. The spicy scent hit even me in the kitchen.
"Here goes..."
Frau scooped up meat and stew, popped it in her mouth, and chewed slowly.
"..."
Aris and I watched. How close this time?
After a long savor, Frau spoke.
"Amazing... Really... Almost like Master's Topliya. Flavor, aroma... Just..."
"Just?"
"Master's made my heart settle after eating. Spicy, stimulating, sweaty—yet strangely calming. This one? Nothing like that."
I nearly snapped, Isn't that asking too much? but swallowed it.
Swapping tomatoes and other spices for Flamveros was spot-on. But...
"Maybe the setting? Mood affects taste."
"No. I know that much. Not mood swings."
"Then?"
"It truly soothed. In every way. Hard to explain."
Whining or sincere? I pondered her words seriously.
Flavor and aroma near-perfect matches, but the after-feel differed. Not environment or mood...
Tricky. She'd admitted this version nailed taste and smell. What more if something was still missing? No idea.
Part of me wondered if she was just stubborn. But watching her eat bit by bit, staring earnestly? She meant it.
What? What was missing?
I'd always mulled over even absurd complaints from customers back in the day. Same habit now.
As I wrestled with it—
"...!"
Something flashed in my mind.