Chapter 172

Oh. The taste of this meat is certainly…

As I savored the gratin, I focused on the peculiar sensation of the monster meat in my mouth.

If the flavor I had felt in the gratin until now was due to the unique cooking method of gratin, the taste of the meat was a unique and distinct flavor that could only be felt from the Steel Armored Bison.

No, “unique” doesn’t quite cover it.

This is a special taste.

Thinking so, I slowly savored the finely minced meat in my mouth.

First of all, it’s incredibly tender.

While the ingredients cooked in gratin do tend to become soft, this was an unusually soft texture.

In fact, knowing that the meat in gratin becomes soft and crumbly, I had used a relatively tough cut of beef.

Yet, the meat of the Steel Armored Bison in the gratin was incredibly tender.

However, that tenderness didn’t feel like it was crumbling away meaninglessly.

It was soft and crumbled without any resistance, but it wasn’t so weak that it couldn’t maintain its form.

Rather, if you rolled it on your tongue before crushing it with your teeth, it felt quite springy.

That wasn’t the only special thing.

The sweetness from the meat.

Of course, fresh and high-quality meat can have a luxurious sweetness, but…

This was a different, truly sweet flavor.

Why is that?

I don’t recall using sugar in the cooking.

It’s tender but not weak, and instead of any off-flavors, there’s a subtle sweetness…

Along with that, the impressive aroma that comes with the subtle sweetness mixed with the beef’s flavor.

This aroma is too distinct to come from beef, but it wasn’t off-putting; rather, it had a unique charm.

But it’s not a completely new taste; it’s a familiar one, though I can’t quite place it.

This is…

Crab?

Yes. This is the unique taste you get when eating crustacean dishes like crab or lobster.

Although mixed with the flavor of ordinary beef, making up only about 10% of the overall taste, I could still feel it.

But how does the taste of crustaceans come from beef…

Could it be that the shell of the Steel Armored Bison not only hardens the monster’s exterior but also mutates the internal flesh to resemble the taste of crustaceans?

The taste of crustaceans mixed with the meat of a vertebrate like a cow…

Moreover, this meat, with its mix of crustacean and beef flavors, is different from simply mixing beef and crustacean meat to make a patty.

The two flavors aren’t separate; it’s as if they were one from the beginning…

No, they are one.

In any case, the taste of this meat has a natural and pleasant resonance that can’t be achieved by simply mixing two ingredients.

It’s a taste I’m experiencing for the first time, but it’s really good.

Having lived in this world for over 20 years, I still don’t know much about its ingredients.

And even excluding the subtle seafood-like quality of the meat itself, this meat is of exceptionally high quality.

With a shell thick enough to withstand most aura attacks, the inner flesh is much softer compared to other monsters of the same level… no, even compared to ordinary beef.

The meat of typical monsters is tough due to their high activity levels and strong vitality, making the texture a key factor in processing, but that’s not felt in the meat used in this gratin.

The Steel Armored Bison is encased in a shell as hard as steel, so its activity level is several times lower than other wild animals.

Who could inflict a proper wound on a creature that even aura can’t harm?

Thus, the Steel Armored Bison doesn’t run away from predators; instead, it barely flinches even when attacked.

Its tender flesh is partly due to its low activity level.

Moreover, choosing gratin for the evening menu was a good choice.

Gratin is originally made with shrimp, so it paired well with this monster meat.

After all, gratin itself is a dish where, aside from cheese and sauce, the ingredients inside are almost unlimited, so most ingredients would fit well.

Thinking so, I savored the gratin’s flavor again, and the aroma of the Steel Armored Bison infused in the béchamel sauce seemed to deepen and enrich the sauce’s flavor.

Feeling the gratin’s taste, I continued to empty the dish.

It was my first time hunting this ingredient, so I didn’t have high expectations, but it turned out to be a jackpot.

I should thank Mari for bringing this request to me.

“It’s really delicious! Despite being baked in an oven, it has the taste of a boiled dish! And who knew the meat of the Steel Armored Bison could be this tasty!”

“On the contrary, the baked flavor is still alive under the cheese! This calls for a drink! Wendy! A beer here!”

Karina and Serena, who respectively love boiled and baked dishes the most, were also satisfied with the food, moving their forks without pause…

Mari, too, seemed pleased with the gratin, eating with a contented expression.

Then, as if noticing my gaze, Mari looked up at me and spoke.

“Ahem. Mr. Kurt. How is it? Wasn’t it a good idea for me to bring this request?”

“…You always have something to say.”

I was about to thank Mari and give her a compliment, but seeing her like this, I felt a bit mischievous.

“Huh? Wasn’t that the moment to thank me?”

“Enough. Just finish your meal.”

“Yes! One more bowl, please!”

Tonight, the Adventurer Guild’s dinner was peaceful.

.

.

.

And the next day arrived.

“Then, I’ll be off~.”

“It would be nice if Mr. Kurt came along…”

“Hey, hey! If Kurt comes, it won’t be a workout! And the reason we’re taking on this request is…”

“Ah, right! Mr. Kurt must be tired from cooking yesterday, so it’s better for him to rest.”

Hah, you’re so transparent.

“Alright. Take care. Don’t overdo it.”

With that, Mari, Karina, and Serena, full of energy, went out excitedly to take on a request, even though they had complained of fatigue just the day before after returning from the haunted mansion.

Or maybe they went out under the pretext of a request to diet.

They were so energetic, even though they just returned from the haunted mansion the day before.

Of course, I didn’t need to diet, and with the ingredients I liked obtained recently, I had no worries about ingredients for a while, nor did I have much desire for money, so I stayed at the Adventurer Guild.

With time to spare, maybe I should preserve some of the Steel Armored Bison meat?

Beef jerky with a subtle crab-like flavor sounds quite good…

After making the preserved food, if there’s time, I should visit the inn where Kirsh and Lakia are staying.

Nothing urgent is happening now, and they said they’d come find me when the time is near, but it’s still important to check if there are any changes in the prophecy.

By the way, about the danger…

I’m not the only one, but Kirsh is the second strongest in the Lizardman Village after me.

Honestly, someone of Kirsh’s level could handle a bounty hunter from the Werewolf Village alone.

If even Kirsh can’t handle it and needs my help, what kind of danger is it…

With me around, I can stop it, but what exactly is the danger…

Ah. Speaking of which, I’ve been quite curious about the recently discovered ruins of the Ancient Empire.

If I had known, I would have joined the three of them on their diet outing to see the ruins.

There’s a certain charm in exploring ruins right after their discovery.

It’s like a fantasy game dungeon, making my heart race.

Of course, with many people around and the ruins being recently excavated, there’s no telling what threats might lurk, but most threats can be handled with me around.

Then, maybe I’ll set aside a day to go sightseeing.

…Speaking of the Ancient Empire, the hut I found when I first left the Lizardman Village is also on my mind.

It’s been a long time since then.

Of course, it’s not a grand ruin, just a wooden hut, so it’s not as ancient as the Ancient Empire.

Maybe I should sell the miscellaneous items I found there to an antique shop.

I don’t really need the money, but with the increasing need for spices and cooking tools, I’m running out of space.

With time to spare, I was idly thinking about various things when a woman approached me.

A beautiful woman with a fierce, sharp appearance and dark skin, with long ears that stood out.

“…Arisa?”

It was the lone Dark Elf, Arisa.

With a timid demeanor and tone that didn’t match her appearance, she cautiously asked me.

“Um, um… Are Marisia, Karina, and Serena not at the guild?”

“Ah. They thought you were on a personal request and wouldn’t be back at the Adventurer Guild for a while, so they went out on a separate request.”

“I, I see… That’s a problem…”

“Why? What’s the matter? I can pass it on to them when they return.”

“No… It’s not that. Actually, we need a powerful adventurer who can be a force right now…”

Huh?

“Um… Sorry, but could you introduce me to any strong adventurers you know? It’s a matter of life and death…”

Hmm?