A Three-Star Meal
“It is a 3-Star Meal, it is.”
He could only doubt his own eyes.
The dish Carmilla had set before him was a thick, substantial loaf of bread with several daggers thrust into it.
It looked for all the world like the aftermath of a jester’s reckless knife-throwing act, blades stuck haphazardly into a target.
Yet for all that bloodthirsty appearance…
What those daggers actually skewered were honest, generous ingredients.
Perfectly grilled meat and vegetables.
And so, in complete defiance of the murderous visual, a fragrance that teased the nose drifted up instead.
An unfamiliar shape, and yet an aroma that stirred the appetite.
That bewitching mismatch held Adrian’s gaze fast.
“I believe an explanation is in order.”
A curious smile played at the corner of his mouth as he spoke—gone without a trace was the weary boredom he had worn only moments before.
“Though it looks like this, it is easiest to think of it as a kind of skewer dish, it is.”
The only real difference, she supposed, was that she had used daggers in place of ordinary skewers to give it a wilder flair.
Even she felt the attempt had been rather bold; she glanced instinctively at Adrian’s face—and in that instant she knew she had succeeded.
Right now, Adrian’s eyes were clearly alight with interest.
The very fact that he had asked for an explanation said as much. No one requests an explanation for something ordinary; her intention had already half hit its mark.
“Dip the meat and vegetables on the ‘skewer’ into the sauce I brought with it… or wrap them in the bread and eat them that way, it is.”
“Hmm. I see.”
Only then did he accept it. Boldly, he plucked up one of the daggers.
He took in the sight of the well-seared beef, the grilled green onion and onion that shared the blade with it…
and carefully decided to try a single bite.
“Well then… shall I have a taste?”
He tugged the thick piece of meat free with his front teeth; it slipped free with a soft pop.
The first chew brought a pleasant heat—somewhere between hot and warm.
At the same time, with every bite, juices bloomed that could only belong to a perfectly cooked medium-rare steak.
And the lingering note that followed was pure charcoal.
The distinctive fragrance of fat meeting open flame and rising as smoke—kept within modest bounds—worked as pure flavor.
“Delicious…!”
Having savored that single mouthful completely, Adrian could only marvel.
It was the same deep satisfaction one might feel after eating an entire steak.
The doneness, the aroma, the juices—everything.
What he had just eaten, size aside, already possessed every quality of a proper steak; it was excellent meat.
And so the contentment that an ordinary meal might have delivered only at the very end—
he had already received from that first bite alone.
Yet it was not over.
As if what he had just tasted were merely the opening note…
what remained on the “skewer” was something different still.
Next is the vegetable, then…
Meat and vegetables had been threaded alternately along the dagger.
So of course, after the meat, what met him was vegetable.
It was a shallot, blackened and blistered in places.
A small, purple-tinged cousin of the onion.
Its distinctive sweetness was its charm; sliced in half, the concentric rings of its cut face lay bare and honest.
This, too, is quite the delicacy…!
The sweetness unique to grilled alliums.
Joined to the charred fragrance and taste of the charcoal fire, it offered an entirely different pleasure.
While Adrian was still savoring that impression, Carmilla suddenly stepped closer.
“A moment—allow me to take them off so they are easier to eat, it is.”
Indeed, to eat any more he would have had to put more than half the dagger into his mouth.
He entrusted the blade to her—and could not help a small start of surprise.
Using a fork, she slid the meat and vegetables free of the dagger.
Once she had arranged them on a plate…
a new sight revealed itself.
The well-grilled beef, with the shallot resting atop it.
Like this, I can eat the meat and vegetable together…
He swallowed.
The sight alone raised expectation.
The two ingredients that had played separately until now were united on this plate.
He set the shallot properly upon the beef—
and when he put the whole bite into his mouth, his eyes flew wide.
Harmony.
When the deep savor of the meat was joined by the sweetness of the perfectly cooked shallot…
flavors that had been beautiful even apart now took each other by the hand and rose higher still.
It was nothing less than a sweet duet, a perfect two-part harmony.
“This is truly gastronomy…”
The praise slipped out before he could catch it.
Already Adrian was reaching for another dagger.
“This one… is pork?”
Where the last had been beef and shallot, this one held pork and onion threaded in alternation.
What taste would this bring?
Curiosity stirred; he bit into it without hesitation…
Ah. This, too, is fine dining.
The rich, savory juices that welled from the substantial pork…
and, unlike the shallot of a moment ago, the sweetness that seeped from the large, thick slices of grilled onion.
With that alone, Adrian could only be astonished.
It was the sort of taste that made one want to stand up at once, shake the chef’s hand, and offer compliments.
Yet the next words that reached him were those of someone who knew no satisfaction.
“Wrapped in the bread, it is a delicacy as well, it is.”
Carmilla, who had been watching his meal, cut a piece of the bread herself and held it out.
The same thick, substantial loaf that had held the daggers until now.
Adrian accepted it—and seemed to understand something.
He laid the dagger he still held across the bread, wrapped the bread around it, and pulled.
Leaving only the ingredients behind, the dagger slid free; he set it on the table and realized.
“This is already a sandwich, isn’t it…?”
She had said as much from the first explanation.
Wrap it in the bread and eat it.
And then there was the sauce he had not yet used.
With the spoon that had come with it, he ladled a generous amount over the bread…
and at last bit into the handmade sandwich he had created.
“Mmm……!”
Acidity.
The bright acidity of the sauce he had ignored until now was playing at a truly artistic point.
A base of minced onion and lemon juice, delivering a sour-and-spicy umami.
As if it were breathing new life into meat that might otherwise have grown heavy…
it was a taste that made him certain he could eat forever if this companion stayed with him.
And binding every flavor into one was the bread itself.
Just how many layers of taste are stacked in this…!
Having polished off the dish in his hands as though it had never existed, Adrian murmured blankly.
“Now I understand.”
Why Roxanna had been drawn to this restaurant.
The answer was simple.
Carmilla de Valin. This woman was an extraordinarily gifted cook.
The dish she had just served proved it.
An exotic visual.
He had certainly been impressed by that…
yet even as he marveled, a corner of his heart had still harbored doubt about the taste.
There were, after all, cases where so much care went into appearance that flavor was neglected.
And after the banality of the earlier salad, a faint distrust had lingered in him.
But after that first bite, he could only concede.
The place this dish occupied was unmistakably the realm of true gastronomy.
What left him speechless was that even higher flavors had been prepared afterward.
As if a single note rose into a duet, and the duet into a trio…
the intention that guided the ascent of taste, stage by stage, was superb.
And so Adrian could only be in awe.
When cooking reaches this height, he thought, it becomes a work of art.
It was a dish that drew a helpless laugh of pure admiration.
“Haha… it is truly art.”
Watching Adrian’s thoroughly satisfied expression, I felt a strange sense of relief.
I had called it shashlik, but in truth it was only a fusion dish that loosely borrowed the method.
Of course Adrian was never going to start quibbling about historical accuracy and declare that no such dish existed in Russia—yet what I had fretted over was how thoroughly improvised the idea had been.
Luca. Run to the blacksmith’s at once, it is!
Yep? All of a sudden?
Yes. I find myself in need of some dull daggers, it is.
No skewers, so replace them with daggers.
As far as I knew, Adrian was a man with a deep interest in swordsmanship; I had been certain he would respond even to such an absurd notion.
But once it was made, it actually had little to do with swordsmanship.
It simply looked so unusual that it drew the eye and held interest.
Whatever the intention, the result was good, so all was well.
“Honestly, I was doubtful at first.”
He spoke carefully, looking somewhat apologetic.
“I assumed you were just going to bring out another common steak, and I nearly felt disappointed… but that wasn’t it at all.”
I was right to change it, it is…
My prediction had hit the mark.
It was a professional smile, but I smiled nonetheless.
Moments when things go according to plan are always pleasant.
“Ah, now I can understand Roxanna.”
Come to think of it, he had claimed he came because he was interested in my cooking.
In reality he had come to arrest Roxanna, but well.
Now that genuine interest had taken root, it was no longer a lie.
“It was the kind of taste that makes one want to keep coming back, again and again.”
Along with Adrian’s heartfelt praise, a familiar message appeared before my eyes.
The 3-Star Meal you provided has relieved a portion of the target’s deficiency!
Target: Adrian Kraus is thoroughly satisfied with your cooking!
Through the effect of Monarch of Gastronomy (Lv.1), all of Adrian Kraus’s stats have increased by a small amount!
Experience acquired! (+80/40)
By creating a special dish that perfectly struck the target’s tastes, you have obtained a special reward!
Reward: ???
Reading the status window’s messages, I could only feel puzzled.
Adrian Kraus…
What on earth was Kraus supposed to be…?
Whether he knew my thoughts or not, Adrian murmured to himself.
“A taste that brings back the distant past, one might say.”