Chapter 197

“T-This can’t be… What are you talking about?”

“Is there something wrong with this dish? This level of cooking is outstanding, even compared to what I had back home…”

The sudden remark from Liche left the two of them flustered.

Their bewildered expressions seemed to question why anyone would criticize such a splendid chicken steak.

But Liche’s intention was already crystal clear.

“No, the steak I had back then was different. Something fundamental… Ah! I’m sorry. I shouldn’t bring this up during a meal.”

Liche, who rarely showed frustration, muttered with a rare hint of annoyance. She soon realized her words had soured the mood and apologized with a guilty expression.

However, the two didn’t seem bothered at all. They shook their heads and cheered her on.

“It’s okay! This is just your first attempt! With more practice, you’ll catch up in no time! No one is born a master chef!”

“Y-Yeah! It’s not like your opponent is some monster using ancient imperial cooking techniques. You can definitely win!”

“Everyone…!”

Liche seemed moved by their encouragement, her eyes welling up with tears. And so, her earnest efforts to surpass Kurt’s cooking truly began.

—

The next day.

*Munch munch*

“Haah… It’s even tastier than yesterday! The sauce tweak really paid off!”

“Using a fruity, refreshing sauce instead of an oily one to complement the rich flavor of the cockatrice steak was a brilliant decision!”

Arisa and Yuri exclaimed in admiration as they enjoyed Liche’s improved chicken steak.

They smiled, thinking that with food this good, Liche could surely surpass the adventurer she so desperately wanted to beat.

But soon, they noticed Liche’s still-gloomy expression and realized something was still amiss. Their smiles slowly faded.

“Don’t tell me…”

“Even with this dish, it’s not enough…?”

“…Yes. I’m sorry. Changing the sauce alone isn’t enough to match the dish I had back then. I need to change something more fundamental… like the texture of the meat itself…”

—

Another day later.

*Munch munch*

“…!! How about this? It tastes even better than yesterday’s and the day before’s!”

“The meat is even more tender than yesterday! This has to be it…!”

The chicken steak, now softer and juicier, clearly showed improvement compared to the previous day.

But Liche, feeling the pressure, quietly bit her lip, realizing she still couldn’t reach the level of Kurt’s dish.

—

Day after day.

Liche continued making cockatrice steak but couldn’t come close to Kurt’s cooking.

It was only natural.

Kurt’s method involved sous-vide cooking, scientifically controlling the temperature to prevent protein denaturation, ensuring the meat reached its optimal tenderness. Combined with vacuum sealing, a technique far beyond the medieval-Renaissance hybrid world they lived in, it was impossible for Liche to replicate.

Even if she tried incorporating magic like Kurt, the very idea of such a method was beyond the world’s current knowledge.

Liche had even exhausted the most preferred breast meat for chicken steak, leaving her more confused than ever about how to improve.

‘Am I really… unable to surpass Kurt…? No, not just surpass, but even reach a similar level…?’

She felt her spirit slowly breaking.

Despite her cooking skills improving dramatically over the past few days, the gap between her and Kurt only seemed to grow wider.

Now, even the cockatrice breast meat, the best cut for steak, was gone.

“No cockatrice breast means I can’t keep making chicken steak… If I couldn’t catch up using cockatrice meat, there’s no way I can using ordinary chicken.”

At this point, Liche felt herself leaning toward giving up.

If this continued, she would never escape the shadow of Kurt’s cooking.

But even knowing this, she couldn’t stop her spirit from crumbling.

‘What should I do…?’

To make matters worse, her physical health, which had stabilized recently, began to decline again due to her mental strain, and her anemia started acting up.

It was a series of misfortunes.

“Come to think of it, the two of them didn’t come to eat my cooking today… Have they grown tired of it too…? Maybe… I should have just stayed in the mansion…”

Liche, unaware her thoughts were spiraling into darkness, sat in the adventurer guild’s chair, muttering weakly.

Then, another wave of dizziness hit her.

Just as her body was about to collapse onto the table, someone caught her.

“…What’s this?”

“L-Lady Clarice! Are you okay!?”

“Ah… Arisa…?”

“You’ve been pushing yourself too hard these past few days. You should rest…”

Seeing Arisa’s concern, Liche, still dazed from the anemia, asked her a question.

“Did you leave because you got tired of me…?”

“What are you talking about!?”

“But you didn’t show up for the meal today…”

“T-That’s because I felt bad always eating your food, so Yuri and I were trying to find something to help you…”

“Yuri too…?”

Finally, Liche weakly turned her head and saw Yuri standing beside Arisa, looking at her with worried eyes.

“Yes. That’s right. Today, Arisa and I were at the academy library, reading about ways to make meat more tender and juicy. That’s why we were late.”

The kindness of the two, seeping into Liche’s crumbling heart, brought tears to her eyes.

“Everyone…”

“Ohohoho! It’s too early to be moved! We found a way to make meat even more tender!”

“R-Really!?”

A method to make meat tender.

If she could master that, replicating Kurt’s dish wouldn’t be a problem.

Realizing this, Liche’s spirits lifted, and she eagerly asked them.

“Yes! According to what I read today, exposing meat to relatively low temperatures for a long time can prevent it from becoming tough! That method is…”

“…What is it?”

“It’s called smoking!”

But the problem was, while Yuri had a good palate, she was a complete novice when it came to cooking.

“…Smoking would dry out all the moisture in the meat, making it impossible to keep it juicy.”

Thus, Yuri’s solution was too basic, something Liche already knew.

“T-Then what about cooking the meat in water? That way, the meat wouldn’t lose its moisture…”

“…We already call that method ‘boiling.'”

“…No way!”

So, while their intentions were good, their advice didn’t seem to help Liche much.

“…Hehe.”

But.

Even if the knowledge they brought wasn’t particularly useful.

“Thank you both so much.”

Their heartfelt efforts weren’t in vain.

Thanks to their sincerity, Liche found the strength to challenge Kurt’s wall once more.

“Thanks to you two, I’ve regained my strength. By the way, have you two eaten yet?”

“Ah, not yet…”

“Me neither…”

At Liche’s question, the two stiffened slightly.

While Liche’s cooking was delicious, eating the same dish every day would naturally grow tiresome.

Having eaten cockatrice chicken steak for days, they were starting to feel sick of it but endured for Liche’s sake.

Perhaps sensing this now that her mind was clearer, Liche smiled her usual calm smile and spoke to them.

“Then wait a moment. Today, I’ll treat you to something other than chicken steak.”

“…Thank you!”

“Starting tomorrow, we’ll give it our all again!”

At Liche’s words, the two inwardly sighed in relief and smiled, while Liche looked at them warmly.

“Ah, then I should take measures to prevent the cockatrice meat from spoiling. Preserving its freshness is crucial if I want to try again tomorrow. Until now, keeping it in a cool, shaded place was enough, but with so much left, that won’t suffice…”

As she pondered how to preserve the cockatrice meat, an idea flashed in her mind.

The concept of cooking meat at low temperatures for a long time to make it tender.

Arisa’s idea of wrapping the meat in water to minimize moisture loss.

And a certain method useful for long-term meat preservation.

‘If I combine all of those… maybe…!’