Chapter 37
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 37
If you were wondering how on earth I knew how to butcher meat…
“I knew an older guy who worked in Majang-dong.”
Kkoorureu?
“We grabbed drinks a few times, and I ended up picking up the skill.”
In truth, he had never butchered a whole animal before. The man had always said that knives weren’t something you entrusted to just anyone. His instruction had been limited to showing Gio how to carve up large wholesale cuts, just in case he ever needed to do it at home.
In other words, Gio had never actually butchered an animal from scratch.
“But even if I’ve never done it myself, I know exactly how it’s done.”
Gio had always been a quick learner.
“Its body isn’t cold, so it must not have been dead for long. It feels like a warm stone.”
Kkooruk?
“I need to drain the blood. It becomes much harder to do once too much time passes.”
The blood from the wound on its forehead seemed to have soaked into the ground a while ago, yet the deer’s body remained remarkably soft and pliable, which unnerved Gio. It seemed this world had some sort of mechanism that prevented food from easily rotting or spoiling.
Yes, ‘food’.
“…I suppose a deer that’s already dead counts as food.”
Besides, he was the one attempting to butcher it.
Anyway, this will be much easier since rigor mortis hasn’t set in.
Dragging the house-sized deer, Gio hoisted it onto a Dorong-dorong Tree of a suitable height. Then, he made an incision in its neck to let the blood drain.
“Honey.”
Kkook?
“Dad has definitely evolved.”
Kkoorureu.
“I knew I’d evolved into a portrait artist, but I didn’t expect my physical strength to increase this much.”
Hoisting a deer larger than himself onto a tree had required barely any effort. It was hard to tell if the laws of physics were simply looser because this was a world inside a painting, or if Gio himself had actually grown stronger.
“Well, while the blood drains, shall we take out the organs?”
Kkoorureureureu.
“…Honey, don’t drink the blood. No, that’s disgusting.”
The sight of a tiny, fist-sized bird lapping up the streaming blood was pure horror.
“Dad’s scared.”
Kkoong.
“I’m not lying.”
The trust between father and son was at an all-time low.
“……”
But it was funny, so it didn’t matter.
I should get the organs out before they spoil.
According to the rules of the painted world, things didn’t seem to spoil easily, but he remembered how the Mangdung Fruit had hardened like ore after being left in the sun for too long. Since he couldn’t predict what might happen, it was best to do what he could while he could.
“The hide is thick.”
There was also a substantial layer of fat beneath it.
“The System said this deer came from the rainforest, but aren’t rainforests hot and humid? I don’t get why its fur is so thick and it has so much fat.”
Kkooroo.
“Stop drinking the blood, Honey. I told you, it’s creepy.”
Kkoong-kkoong-kkoong…
“I’m not letting you off just because you’re acting cute.”
He had no intention of sleeping next to a bird that reeked of blood.
Kkoong.
Honey grumbled with a few soft kkoongs, then suddenly spat something out with a clatter.
“……”
Kkoorureureureu.
“Gems…?”
They were the sparkling gems Honey loved so much. But seeing Honey, who had turned bright red from drinking the blood, spit out red gems and immediately return to his original color, it couldn’t be a coincidence.
“Did you just turn that blood into gems?”
Kkooruk.
“As expected of my son. You’re extraordinary.”
Gio decided not to overthink it.
“Can Dad use those to paint with later?”
Kkoorureureu!
“Since you gave me permission, I won’t nag you even if you drink more.”
Kkooruk!
“So you had a plan all along.”
Perhaps drinking the blood of hunted prey wasn’t so strange. To Gio, a human, it was a shocking sight that made him think, What the actual fuck? But Honey was still a bird. It was only natural for him to have animal instincts.
As long as he can turn back to normal, it really doesn’t matter.
Even though Honey was a child born from paint, suppressing his natural instincts wasn’t what a good parent would do. As long as drinking a bit of deer blood didn’t kill him, it was fine.
“I’m going to slice open the belly now, so watch out for any splashing organs.”
Kkooroo.
“Alright, let’s see…”
Gio focused his senses on his fingertips, feeling the deer’s belly.
“I heard it’s easier to slice it open starting from the anus.”
Starting the knife work from the anus sounded brutal, but that was just how the food chain worked.
“Hup.”
Although he had never sharpened the knife, it was incredibly sharp, and the belly split open with ease. As the abdomen of the upside-down deer opened, revealing the organs inside, Gio witnessed something bizarre.
“……?”
Why is there a gem here too?
It looked much bigger than the ones Honey had spat out. Judging by its position, it was right where the heart should be.
“…Isn’t this a bit ridiculous?”
A jewel heart. Common sense was being shattered.
“How did it even pump blood with something like this?”
Kkoorureureureuk.
“I’ll check if it’s safe and give it to you later, so get down.”
Honey, who was obsessed with anything shiny, threw a fit, but Gio shook his head. No matter how he looked at it, feeding him a beast’s raw organs felt far too weird.
“Let’s finish butchering.”
Gio sliced the rest of the belly open from the anus to the ribcage. It was his first time, but fortunately, he managed to avoid the disaster of puncturing the organs.
“I hope the blood drains properly.”
Kkook?
“If you don’t drain the blood in time, it seeps into the meat. That spoils the quality and makes it taste too gamey… So you have to drain it as soon as you catch the animal, if possible.”
He carefully pulled out the rest of the organs, making sure none of them ruptured.
“If one pops, it’s a total disaster.”
He would be looking at a literal hellscape of guts.
Skinning had to start from the hind legs, which were easiest to reach.
“There’s so much fat, I’m not sure if I can even use the hide.”
Kkooloolloo?
“To cure the hide and make something out of it, all this fat has to be scraped off. Still, the fur is quite fluffy. If I make a cloak, it’ll be useful even when I return to reality.”
Kkook.
“I can’t keep relying only on you.”
The day before his sightseeing trip, when Gio was worrying about not having winter clothes, Honey had helped him. Just holding the little bird kept his entire body warm, so he hadn’t needed any separate winter clothing. But he couldn’t do that every time.
“I should definitely prep the hide.”
In any case, getting a good amount of fat was a bonus.
“The meat smells pretty good. Even the fat has a savory aroma. We shouldn’t throw this away; we should render it and save it. If we use it for stir-fries later, the flavor will be incredible.”
“……”
“Eating raw fat won’t taste as good as you think, buddy.”
Gio felt a warm glow inside as he watched Honey stare longingly at the glistening fat. It was like looking in a mirror or at an old family photo. This was what family felt like. Honey was a big eater, just like him.
“Since you love eating so much, how about gaining a little weight?”
Kkoong.
“Suit yourself.”
The thick hide was sliced away. Following the grain of the deer’s muscles, Gio slowly peeled off its furry coat. Fortunately, despite the thick fur, the hide wasn’t very tough, making the task relatively easy.
“Starting from the hind legs… then the torso…”
He skinned the hind legs near the ankle, where the bone was close to the surface. Next came the torso, then the front legs. Finally, he severed the peeled hide along with the deer’s head, completing the process.
Surprisingly, because he had separated it without making any mistakes, the hide remained quite intact.
“Let’s separate the fat.”
Kkooruk.
“…Just a taste.”
Gio gave in to Honey’s pleading gaze. After getting his father’s permission and taking a bite, Honey immediately began to writhe in agony.
“I told you it wouldn’t taste good right now.”
Kkoo, kkoo… kkoorooloo…
“Trust your dad. I have an incredible knack for knowing when things will taste bad.”
Kkoorooloolooloo…
“Is it really bad enough to cry over?”
Honey whimpered tearfully, traumatized by how terrible the fat tasted despite its savory aroma. Gio stuffed the little bird, who was still reeling from the shock, into the hood of his cloak.
“Now, time to get down to the real butchering.”
With the organs, hide, and fat all separated, it was time to carve out the meat.
Just as the System described, the aroma is wonderful.
He had heard that wild game was tough and gamey, but this didn’t seem to be the case at all. Since Gio enjoyed cooking, he knew exactly what raw meat smelled like. Even a well-raised calf was bound to have a distinct, slightly bloody odor.
Yet, this deer didn’t emit any such unpleasant smell.
“…It almost smells a bit nutty.”
To be precise, it was an aroma closer to walnuts than peanuts.
“How strange.”
He’d never smelled anything like it from raw meat. It was startling, but not in a bizarre, mint-and-potato-chip sort of way. Rather, the scent was quite harmonious, offering a unique kind of pleasure.
“This really is another world.”
Kkooruk?
Even if the ingredients looked similar, there were subtle differences in aroma and taste compared to those on Earth.
“It’s a shame the heart is a gem. A freshly harvested heart is a great ingredient, so I was thinking of grilling it… but in this state, it’s a bit awkward to eat.”
Kkoorureureureuk.
“Right, maybe not for me, but you can probably eat it. Dad will cook it up for you.”
After all, it probably wouldn’t taste like much in its raw state anyway.
“…But there’s way more meat here than I thought…”
He carved out the loin, the tender meat buried deep along the inner back, and butchered the legs to strip away the tough cuts.
“Hmm.”
This part would probably need to be slow-braised. At least the upper leg meat seemed tender enough to eat.
After carving out the ribs, tenderloin, and everything else…
“Ta-da.”
“……”
“A mountain of meat has appeared.”
Kkoong.
“Is it a lot?”
Kkooroo.
“Thought so.”
The System hadn’t told him to dry it as processed meat for nothing. With this much, it would be best to salt or dry most of it for storage.
“It won’t spoil if I put it in the Ice Storage… but still, it’s better to make what I can.”
First, jerky and sausages came to mind.
“Should we do jerky first?”
Sausages would take much longer, after all.
“Let’s drain the blood first.”
Kkoorureuk?
“Hanging it upside down didn’t drain all the blood. It wasn’t up for very long, so to properly get rid of any gamey smell, we need to soak it in water.”
Gio soon emerged from the cabin carrying a large basin.
“Honey, load up the meat.”
Kkooruk!
With the delicious jewel heart held hostage, Honey proved to be an excellent worker.
The two of them piled the meat for the jerky into the large basin and poured plenty of water over it from the stream that flowed gently past the cabin. The streams winding through the forest were always incredibly useful.
“If I were making this on Earth, I would’ve added some cooking wine…”
Since he had no wine, and the meat barely had any gamey smell to begin with, it didn’t matter.
“I’ll make the marinade while the blood drains.”
Kkooruk?
“The crops in the vegetable garden are fully grown. We should put them to use at a time like this, right?”
After washing his blood-stained hands, Gio harvested a few crops from the Monster Garden and headed back to the cabin. Fortunately, the Monster Garden didn’t get angry at him for taking some of its produce.
“It definitely knows who its dad is. All that effort giving it sunlight and water paid off.”
Standing in the kitchen, Gio took several powders down from the shelf.
“And let’s use some syrup too.”
He pulled out the Mangdung Fruit syrup he had tucked away in a corner, some he had set aside before giving the rest to Yoo Seong-un.
“You have to add this kind of syrup to give it a sweet kick.”
Kkoorooloo…
“It might sound weird, but it’s surprisingly delicious.”
The combination of sweet and salty was a universal truth, a pairing that never failed.
Gio checked his ingredients.
“Fresh onions. Since there’s a lot of meat, maybe about ten… I’ve got garlic and ginger powder. I’ll add some sugar, too. And I think it’ll turn out well if I add a splash of Mangdung Fruit syrup…”
Making jerky wasn’t all that difficult.
He finely minced the cleaned onions into a paste, then mixed in the pungent powders to mask any lingering odor. Adding the syrup for sweetness and a touch of sugar to round out the sharp edges completed the marinade.
“I wonder if the blood has drained by now.”
By the time he transferred the marinade to a dish and washed the cutting board and knife, a good amount of time had passed. Looking up at the sky peeking through the leaves, which was already beginning to grow dark, Gio stepped out of the cabin. Honey, who glowed like soft moonlight, helped him navigate the darkness.
“Ah… this looks about done.”
Kkoorureureu?
“This is dirty. It’s just bloody water. I’ll give you something else later.”
Placing the wet meat onto a strainer, Gio headed back into the kitchen.
“I should finish this quickly and go to sleep.”
The rest was simple. He lightly shook the excess moisture off the meat, and once it felt dry enough, he thoroughly massaged the marinade into it. Leaving the meat to let the seasoning penetrate deep inside, Gio washed his hands.
“All done…”
“……”
“…Honey, why do you keep eyeing the organs?”
Even if Honey was his son, his taste in food was incomprehensible.
In the end, Honey and his water bird friends shared a delicious meal of the deer’s organs. The sight of bloody entrails floating on the surface of the Golden Waterbird Lake was somehow both mystical and grotesque.
“Ah, except for this.”
Kkoong.
“I’m going to make sausages with it.”