Chapter 54

Although it seemed like he was threatening Kurt while observing his actions, from the very beginning, Kurt’s senses couldn’t be fooled.

From the moment the threat was made, all that could be felt from the movement of the muscles was the intent to stab.

If he had gotten scared and turned around, the merchant would have stabbed him in the back right then and there. Even now, without fear, the merchant was trying to find an opening to stab Kurt in the abdomen.

Of course, that opening was deliberately created by Kurt to quickly end the matter.

“Yahyahyahya! Die!”

The merchant, not hiding his murderous intent, tried to stab Kurt’s abdomen with a knife.

It seemed like the knife would pierce Kurt’s abdomen and he would collapse any moment now.

*Snap*

That is, if Kurt hadn’t lightly snapped the knife with just two fingers.

“…Huh? Wha, how……. A steel knife…….”

That was a response that didn’t fit into any of the scenarios the merchant had imagined.

If he dodged, he would follow and stab. If he raised his arm to block, he would slash the defending arm. If he counterattacked, he would dodge and stab again. If the opponent was skilled, he would take a child hostage.

But in none of those scenarios did the opponent snap the knife he thrust out with just two fingers.

Because of that, the merchant couldn’t react properly and could only mutter something stupid in a daze.

“Child abduction and attempted murder……. You’re really a scumbag.”

“…Ah, ah…….”

Only after hearing Kurt’s suppressed voice did the merchant raise his head to look at him.

Kurt’s face, now facing him, had pupils that were vertically slit, indicating he was very displeased.

‘They say when a Lizardman’s pupils slit vertically, they’re really angry…….’

That was the merchant’s last memory.

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“Hoo……. I thought the security in a big city would be pretty good.”

From what the kid said earlier, it seems like he was a merchant…….

If he’s a merchant, he can just leave the city after causing trouble.

But trying to abduct a child in broad daylight……

It feels like I’ve seen the dark side of human society, and it’s not a good feeling.

“Sniff……. Sniff…….”

Then, I heard the sound of the kid crying beside me.

Only then did I stop my thoughts, relax my pupils, and turn to look at the child.

“Kid. Are you okay?”

As I said that and untied the knots binding the child’s limbs, the child cried very sorrowfully.

“Waaaaah…! I was scared! And I’m sorry for thinking you were a monster that eats children!”

“Mo, monster…?”

Ah, this is troublesome.

Even in my past life, it wasn’t much different, but I really don’t know how to handle kids.

Especially if they’re crying.

It’s fortunate that this is a less crowded street, so no commotion occurred.

If there were a crying kid and a clueless Lizardman in the middle of the street, the guards would have been dispatched immediately.

After all this, the choice I made was to escape.

“Uh……. Don’t cry, kid.”

“Waaaaah.”

Of course, my clumsy comfort didn’t work.

The kid just kept crying sorrowfully.

Ah. What should I do?

If I leave him like this, he’ll probably cry endlessly.

Maybe it’s better to let him cry until he’s exhausted and collapses.

After all, there’s no danger now…….

Then, a somewhat desperate idea came to mind.

“If you stop crying, I’ll make you some delicious food.”

“Waaaah……. Sniff.”

Did it work?

“It’s really, really delicious food.”

“Sniff……. Dad said not to follow strangers.”

Even though you just tried to cling to a stranger and almost got caught, why are you being so defensive with me?

Then.

*Growl*

Maybe because he relaxed a bit while talking to me.

The kid’s stomach loudly growled, signaling hunger.

“…Uh.”

“Uh?”

“Is that delicious food better than fruit honey preserves?”

Ah. It worked.

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After calming the kid down, I handed the unconscious merchant over to the village guards and headed to the Adventurer Guild.

I really wanted to break a limb or two before handing him over, but with the kid crying so pitifully, I couldn’t show such a cruel sight.

It wouldn’t be good for the kid’s education.

Anyway, with charges like human trafficking, abduction, and attempted murder, that merchant would likely never see the light of day again, so there was no need to worry.

What’s important isn’t that worthless trash, but what dish to make for the kid.

The kid, named Jungwoo, found the Adventurer Guild fascinating and kept looking around in wonder.

“Wow. What’s that? And what’s that person doing over there?”

Even after such an ordeal, seeing something new immediately caught his interest. Maybe he’s mentally strong.

I asked Wendy, the receptionist at the Adventurer Guild, to look after the kid for a while in exchange for making lunch, and then headed to the kitchen.

I didn’t have much in mind for lunch, but for a dish kids would like, it had to be Hamburg.

Hamburg has a strong image as a dish boys like, but since the name sounds masculine, it should be fine, right?

Actually, girls like Hamburg too.

Is there anyone who dislikes Hamburg?

Once I decided on the menu, it was time to start cooking.

First, to make Hamburg, of course, you start with making the patty.

First, sauté the onions to go inside the patty.

You might wonder why sauté the onions separately when you’re going to cook the patty anyway, but if you put raw onions in the patty, the moisture will seep out during cooking, causing the patty to crumble. So, lightly sautéing the onions beforehand removes the moisture.

After dicing the onions into small pieces so they mix well with the Hamburg mixture, heat some oil in a pan and sauté the onions.

You don’t need to sauté them for too long.

Since they’ll be heated again during the patty cooking process, just sauté until the moisture is sufficiently removed and they’re slightly wilted.

Let the sautéed onions cool, and then prepare the main meat for the Hamburg patty.

For a classic Hamburg, you usually use a mix of beef and pork.

Using only beef gives a rich meaty flavor but lacks fat, making the patty dry and hard to shape. Using only pork makes it greasy and easy to shape, but lacks the meaty flavor compared to beef.

But the meat I’m using is from the Fruit Tree Antlered Reindeer.

I’ve been eating it steadily, so the quantity has decreased, but there’s still plenty left, so I’ll use it generously now.

Thanks to careful temperature and humidity control, even after a week, the meat hasn’t spoiled. In fact, it’s undergone dry-aging, enhancing its flavor. I place the Fruit Tree Antlered Reindeer meat on the cutting board.

I’m using the tenderloin from the Awakening Species and the foreleg meat from the regular species hunted by Mari and Karina.

The Awakening Species’ meat, with more muscle and stronger flavor, serves as the beef, while the regular species’ meat, with less muscle and more fat, serves as the pork.

Among these, I use the tenderloin from the Awakening Species, which has less fat, and the foreleg meat from the regular species, which has more fat and is tender, to maximize the contrast.

First, I slice off the dried outer layer formed during dry-aging with a kitchen knife.

This part, exposed to air and dehydrated, is inedible.

It’s a shame, but it has to be discarded.

After that, I finely chop the remaining edible parts of the reindeer meat.

Of course, in this world, there’s no convenient machine to grind meat, so this part is always done manually.

Chopping meat by hand requires a lot of stamina and attention to avoid unevenly chopped parts, but neither is a problem for me.

After carefully chopping the meat, I grate white bread into breadcrumbs.

With that, the basic preparations are complete.

I thoroughly mix the Awakening Species and regular species meat with the sautéed onions, breadcrumbs, Three-legged Fowl eggs, flour, and Gluttony Holstein cow’s milk.

Some add ketchup or pepper for flavor, but I’m going plain this time.

I haven’t found ketchup yet, and pepper might be too spicy for a child.

Once all ingredients are uniformly mixed, I divide the meat mixture into portions and shape them into patties.

I then toss the shaped patties back and forth like playing catch to remove any remaining air inside.

After that, I heat oil in the pan used for sautéing onions and cook the patties.

*Sizzle*

As the meat patties hit the pan, the sound and smell of cooking meat immediately fill the air.

While cooking the patties, I constantly adjust the heat.

It’s crucial not to let the heat get too high, or the outside will burn while the inside remains undercooked.

I flip the Hamburg patties until they’re perfectly cooked, then remove them.

With that, the main dish, Hamburg, is done.

Next is the sauce.

While cooking the Hamburg, the pan will have meat juices from the patties. I add a bit of water and flour to make a roux.

Then, I add salt and butter to enhance the savory flavor and let it thicken. Once it reaches the desired consistency, I remove the pan from the heat, and the gravy sauce is complete.

Just Hamburg and sauce would be too plain, so I also fry some potatoes and prepare a small salad for vegetable balance.

To top it off, I cut carrots into flower and star shapes and place them on the Hamburg.

Today’s lunch:

Children’s Fruit Tree Antlered Reindeer Hamburg Set

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