This Time I'll Give You 'That'
This Time I'll Give You 'That'
I am a mindless idiot who lost control to the heat.
Veronia knelt on the floor, both arms raised, a placard hanging around her neck.
A bright red leash was fastened to her collar.
"Put this on her."
It was a restraint Camilla had produced for the pup who had dared to try and pounce on her.
A collar meant to suppress raging feral instinct, or so I'd been told.
I only know my way around cooking-related items, so I couldn't give you the exact specs, but the panting had definitely dialed back a notch since she'd been put in it.
"This is unjust! That wasn't my will!"
Veronia, with tissue stuffed up her nose, shouted in a congested whine. It wasn't going to reach anyone.
"Quiet, you."
I flicked her on the forehead.
Thwack!
"Ack!"
Veronia squeezed her eyes shut at the crisp sound.
"That hurts!"
"It was supposed to."
So she finally did cause trouble.
Doenjang as an aphrodisiac for beastkin. Who knew.
So back then, she wasn't drunk and jumping me — she was in heat?
'Was that what happened with the others too?'
I let out a sigh.
"An elf, then the Wolf Clan's finest warrior... I've had every type of customer roll through here. Well, people flocking to a good restaurant is nothing new. But to capture the palates of two races with such wildly different tastes — you really are the chef I had my eye on."
Camilla smoothed out her rumpled clothes and looked down at the leashed Veronia.
"Still, I never knew there was a beastkin tribe that went into heat over soybean paste. Fascinating."
"I'd never heard of them going into heat either."
"You mentioned something similar happened last time."
"I assumed it was just a hangover."
She nodded while studying Veronia.
"Well, plenty of human women turn into animals when they're drunk, so I suppose it's not that different."
Her gaze shifted to me.
"You should be careful too, Lucas. You never know when some woman might try to throw herself at you. You've got the height, the build, the face... it's not bad either, I suppose. You cook like a dream, your swordsmanship is exceptional... Hm, now that I think about it, you're the whole package, aren't you?"
She'd been idly tapping a spoon, and now she lifted it with a smile, tapping the table lightly with it as she spoke, as if chiding me.
"So watch yourself. If some strange woman drags you off and you can't cook for me anymore, that would be a problem."
"Thank you for your concern."
"Hmph. I'm not concerned about you. I'm concerned about my palate."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
She didn't bother to deny it.
"Anyway, I'm sending this heat-addled mutt back to Lilyan by force."
"You're not going to punish her?"
"Do you want me to?"
"No. She wasn't acting of her own volition."
"I agree. If we're assigning blame, part of it's my fault for being ignorant about beastkin. If I'd known, I'd have steered her to a different dish."
She clicked her tongue in regret and rose from her seat.
"Either way, Veronia's a superstar who's contracted to fight in the Lilyan arena through next winter. So there won't be any punishment."
"No! I refuse to go back to Lilyan! I have to learn the hunting method!"
Veronia, still leashed with both arms raised, shouted in protest.
"Hunting method? What's that?"
"She means the Tuu hunting method. She said she wanted to learn it from me."
"Tuu... What was the tuu she caught like?"
"We threw it out. It was inedible."
"Being a good fighter doesn't mean you'll be a good hunter, I suppose."
Camilla's eyes turned to me.
"I'm curious about that myself, actually. That method you used to hunt the tuu. You're not willing to share? If it actually works, it'd be an enormous success."
"I can tell you. Whether you can do it is another matter."
"Why?"
"The method is simple. Pulling it off is harder than it sounds."
Andrea's and Veronia's ears both twitched.
I watched their ears swivel toward me for a beat.
No harm in sharing it now.
I'd originally held it back as bait to keep Andrea from running wild on the customers.
That was why I'd told her she had to work ten months first before I'd explain.
"I'll tell you now. Andrea, come here too."
Andrea pattered over.
Finally! was written all over her face in enormous letters.
Andrea, Veronia, and Camilla all fixed their attention on me.
I raised my fist and tapped gently at the crown of my head before their expectant stares.
"The tuu's weak point is here. If you can strike the crown before the tuu properly engages, you can drop it in an instant. You can also smack the crown of one that's charging straight at you head-first."
"......You can actually do that?"
Andrea and Veronia both looked at me as if I'd said something absurd.
"Boss, there are very few people in the world who could target that spot precisely and kill in one strike."
"Huh? Andrea, you just need to aim for the head with your arrow and hit it, right?"
"Their senses are incredibly sharp. It'd never connect."
"That's why you make it charge at you."
"...Stand your ground against a charging tuu and aim precisely for the crown?"
"Correct."
Silence settled over the room.
A lot of thinking started happening.
I understood.
The method is a lot simpler than people expect.
Of course, landing the hit precisely isn't easy.
"That's impossible..."
I heard Andrea mutter under her breath.
"I-I'll take it under advisement."
Veronia stumbled over her words.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that. At least for the mages and knights under my command, it's out of the question."
Camilla waved it off, having lost all interest.
Why was everyone reacting like that?
It's easier than they think.
Sure, if you've never tried it, it seems like that — but once you've gotten the knack, it's not hard.
I struggled at first too.
"Well, I'll come find you this evening."
"How long are you staying this time?"
"About three days, I think. As I said, there's a lot to look into. Various business dealings to handle."
"Then, I'll make you the thing I told you about before."
"The thing you mentioned before... Wait, you mean that?"
"Yes. That."
At the word that, Camilla's face lit up in an instant.
"But are you sure it's okay? They say the smell is incredibly strong. I heard it's worse than doenjang-jjigae."
"It'll be fine. Everyone's long since gotten used to the smell of doenjang-jjigae."
"Ahem. If the smell affects your sales, let me know. I can send customers your way anytime."
"Fewer customers just means more free time. Sounds good to me."
Lately, with customers coming in from nearby villages on top of the regulars, the crowd had gotten overwhelming.
So much so that I was seriously considering hiring another employee.
If it gets worse than this, it'll be a real headache.
"Since Lucas recommended it so strongly, I'll look forward to it."
"You won't be disappointed."
"Ahem. I really should be off now. I have a dinner to look forward to, after all."
Through the window, I could see Viscount Britten charging over, red-faced and out of breath.
He'd probably heard the news late and was rushing over.
"If this one's delicious, I'll leave a thorough review. Make sure you prepare it properly."
Having said her piece, Camilla tugged on the leash connected to Veronia's choker.
"You, follow me. Now."
"Aaaagh! Lucas! Save me! I don't want to go! Aaaaagh!"
Sorry, Veronia.
There's nothing I can do for you right now. Be happy there.
You should've behaved yourself.
If she weren't a beastkin, I might have hired her. Would've asked Camilla to forgive her.
But a woman who sheds fur everywhere and goes into heat the moment she smells soybean paste was out of the question as an employee.
A hunter, maybe.
"Practice and bring me a tuu next time."
"Aaaaagh!"
Andrea watched Veronia recede into the distance.
"Still, watching her get dragged off like that doesn't sit well."
"Try saying that without the smirk."
"Hehe. You caught that?"
"So, think you can do it?"
"Aiming for the tuu's crown?"
"Yeah."
"I'll give it a try on my day off. No idea how it'll go."
Andrea changed the subject.
"By the way, what was that 'that' you mentioned earlier? That red-haired woman lit up the moment she heard it."
"Ah, that?"
Where to start.
"It's another version of doenjang-jjigae."
"Another version?"
"The smell's a bit stronger. Deeper, richer savory flavor."
Andrea's complexion paled a shade.
Her already white skin went a little whiter.
"......I'm not really a fan of doenjang-jjigae."
"You have no idea how good it is."
The dish I'd told Camilla about was Cheonggukjang.
Similar to doenjang-jjigae, it's a stew made from fermented soybeans.
The fermentation method differs, so the depth of flavor shifts slightly, but thanks to the fermented beans, the aroma and savory richness are far deeper than standard doenjang-jjigae. A uniquely Korean staple.
The smell is so pungent that among foreigners it's even more divisive than doenjang-jjigae. But for those whose tastes align with it, there's nothing more sublime.
It's widely agreed that it's far better with barley rice than with white rice.
You get a nuttier, toastier flavor that way.
'Scoop up the bubbling cheonggukjang solids and tofu together with a piece of cabbage, lay it all over a bed of rice, and mix it up...'
There is no rice-thief more magnificent.
Even if a whole squad of rice-police gathered around the table, one serving of cheonggukjang would turn every one of them into accomplices. The ultimate rice bandit.
'Since I'm making it anyway, I might as well eat some myself.'
I'd only made it once back when I worked at the knight order.
The complaints about the smell had been ferocious.
"Word has reached me of a foul odor emanating from the kitchens. Are you having difficulty managing food stores? If so, I can dispatch additional personnel..."
Bad enough that Commander Luke himself brought it up.
That was when I confirmed: doenjang-jjigae passed muster. Cheonggukjang did not.
So the cheonggukjang I'd kept sealed away all this time.
Finally.
A chance to make it had arrived.
I could already imagine the smell tickling my nose.
Should I make barley rice separately and offer barley bibimbap as a special too?
I already had a wild-vegetable bibimbap on the menu using white rice, so it wouldn't be hard.
I was in the middle of planning the menu when it hit me.
"But... if Veronia catches that smell, won't it be a disaster?"
Right. Veronia.
A Wolf Clan beastkin who loses her mind the moment she smells soybean paste.
"I'll just have to keep her away."
If she gets a whiff of that, she'll probably...
She might actually pounce on some innocent bystander next time.
I did not want a flasher-beastkin situation in my restaurant.
***
"I don't want to go! I'm going to work here! I haven't learned the full hunting method yet!"
Camilla watched Veronia, the beastkin, throw a tantrum and dig in her heels.
Camilla had already forgiven Veronia once for daring to try and pounce on her.
Part of it was the good mood from eating delicious food. But she also knew exactly what Veronia represented.
Right now, half of the draw at the Lilyan arena came down to this woman alone.
How much revenue did Lilyan's ticket sales bring in?
If Veronia had done this to any other woman, Camilla would have punished her on the spot.
It would have stained the name of the Golden Wagon that employed her.
But doing it to Camilla herself was different.
It hadn't harmed the merchant group's reputation, and there was no victim.
Did trying to pounce on her even count as harm? Not in the slightest.
No one could crack her pride, no matter how sharp their claws.
Of course. 'The fact that it happened right in front of Lucas was infuriating, though.'
Showing such an unsightly scene in front of the talent she had her eye on did make her angry, but that too was just personal emotion.
A leader sometimes needed to set personal feelings aside.
So she would endure.
Acting magnanimous might just charm Lucas.
He had run away from a cold-hearted princess who cared only for herself, after all.
If she just kept coaxing him and looking after him like this, he'd eventually come to her.
'I won't force it until you come to me willingly, Lucas.'
But I won't wait forever.
Smiling, she spoke to Veronia.
"You want to work there that badly? Then do as I say."
"What?"
"I have no intention of sending you to that restaurant right now. But if you prove your worth to me, I might reconsider."
"Anything! I'll do anything!"
Camilla's smile deepened.
"Let's head inside first. I'll tell you after the meeting."