Chapter 6: Orc Barbecue

Author: Kurohitsuji
Raw: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n2086fk/7/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

When I get back to the coach, everyone is worried sick.
They fuss over whether I’m hurt; the old woman scolds me for being reckless.
The girl comes clinging, crying.

…I’m really sorry.
I’ll make food again today by way of apology.

“I was surprised, though. Miss, were you an adventurer?”
“No, I’m not. Just a town girl.”
“…Well, there are things one doesn’t want to talk about. I won’t pry.”

The father looks at me with very kind eyes.
That’s not it. It isn’t that I don’t want to talk. I can’t talk, because I don’t understand it myself.

“…Ah, right. Could we stop by the river? I want to butcher the orcs, so if someone could help, please.”

As for how to butcher, I had the butcher show me once.
I remember the steps, and I brought a knife, so that should do.
It’s good meat. If we don’t bleed it properly and break it down, it’ll go bad.

“Ah, then shall I produce water with magic?”
“Wow, that would help a lot. By the way, is there anyone else who can butcher?”
“Ou. I’m an adventurer, more or less. I’ve broken down orcs before.”

The adventurer raises his hand.
Oh, as expected of a veteran.

“Then let’s knock it out. Seven of them will take a fair bit of time, though.”
“We’ve secured food for the road. That’s nothing.
Oi, you lot, help carry as thanks. You didn’t have to dump your goods. That’s a light price, isn’t it?”

He tosses it to the merchants with a bright smile.
Both of them are looking this way with faces full of relief.

“Ah, if that’s all, I’ll help. Miss, thank you, truly.”
“Without this it would have been bad. Let me thank you as well.”
“Uh… you’re welcome.
Ah, driver, please wait a bit before we leave.”
“I heard. It helps us too; I’ll lend a hand.”
“Then shall we all go. I don’t like leaving the coach, either.
Is that all right with you, ma’am?”
“Of course I don’t mind. Thank you for thinking of us.”
“Nnh. Then let’s go.”

The driver leads the horses, and we all walk to where the orc pack was.
Looking again, it’s quite a scene.

“Ah… ma’am, could you wait in the coach with her?”
“Let’s do that. Come, this way.”
“Okay.”

It isn’t a sight I want a small child to see, so I have the two of them wait inside.

Now then. Let’s work.

It takes several hours to butcher the orcs. After a thorough wash, the father ices some of it with magic.
We load as much as will fit in the coach’s empty space, and the rest we tow on ice tied to a rope.
The parts we can’t eat, we dug a hole for and buried.
If other monsters or carnivores came it would be scary, and I want the smell of blood gone as much as possible.

We somehow reach the next coaching inn before sundown.
It’s been kept cleaner than yesterday’s place, so I might get out of cleaning today.
Unexpected things happened; I’m tired, and pretty hungry.
Let’s get ready quick.
There’s a huge iron plate, there’s fresh meat, and I brought dried fruit.
This calls for that, right.

 

◆ Ouka’s Easy Cooking ◆

One. Poke lots of holes in the orc meat with a fork.
Two. Soak the orc meat in a sauce made from dried fruit and onions.
Three. Once the sauce has soaked in well, grill it.
Four. Ouka’s ultimate barbecue is complete.
Five. No, wait, I’m plating it now, please, I’m begging you. Line up properly.

Of the three orcs’ worth of meat I prepped, they ate through half.
Well, I ate too much myself.
The savor of fatty orc meat and the sweet fruit-based sauce are too good together.
I used to make this at the church about once a year, but good food is good food wherever you go.
In other words, delicious is justice. Yep.

The other half of the cooked orc meat is soaking in a spicy sauce mixed with chili.
It keeps, and it’s delicious twice, so I’ll smoke it later.
I don’t have a smoker, so I’ll have to improvise, but you mustn’t stint on effort if you want to eat something good.
I’ll make it as soon as I’ve sat a bit more.

…Now then. No one around.

“Ring. Explain.”
“—Confirm: an explanation regarding combat action, is that acceptable?”
“That’s acceptable. What was that?
It felt like… remembering something I already knew.”
“—Affirmative: combat records installed in Master.”
“…Meaning?”
“—Paraphrase: when using the magic-gun devices, you can execute optimal combat action.”
“So I understand how to fight with those handguns?”
“—Affirmative.”
“Hoh? So that’s how I knew the guns’ names too.”

Hnn. I don’t know.
Is it all right to file this as convenient magic.
I’ve never heard of magic like that.
And the lack of wrongness is what’s scary, conversely.

“Hey, is there anything bad about that ‘install’?”
“—Unknown: there is no information in my database.”
“Then never mind. I’ll trust you.”
“—Query: I do not understand the reason to trust me.”
“Haan? Because I don’t have a reason to doubt you.”

Doubting for no reason is a pain too.
And I don’t think this one is a bad sort.
It helped in the fight just now, too.
Besides, if I’m being tricked, I’m the only one who suffers.
Then it’s obviously better to believe.
…Well, it is a ring that talks in a pretty hard-to-follow way.

“—Query: that is an inappropriate reason.”
“There is no reason. You just live with that.”
“—Understood: registering.”
“Nn. That’s fine.”

Anyway, once we reach the capital tomorrow something should become clear, and I can think then.
I’m too full for my head to work.

Ah, wait, first I have to assign beds again tonight.
Everyone seems to be waiting.
And after that I have to make the spicy smoked orc.

After smoking the orc meat and wiping down with a cloth I’d soaked and wrung out, we go into the inn and finally feel human.
The adventurer will keep watch without sleeping, same as yesterday, so I give him dried sweet potato as thanks.
He looks a little happy, so I feel like I came out ahead.

Wrapped in a blanket in the corner, I think of it suddenly.
The fate in the letter—is that Ring?
Or is it the two-colored handguns?
Ah, it could be both.
Either way, I don’t think it’s something you send to an ordinary town girl like me.
The how-to-use comes as a set, too. What are they thinking, seriously.

When I’m using Sakura-Drive, I’m probably stronger than an ordinary adventurer.
The speed I leap and run at is intense, and I slipped orc attacks and smashed a head in one shot.
Slipping attacks from a creature bigger than you is pretty not-ordinary.

But I understand it now.
I only diverted the flow of force coming at me.
Stand like this, do this, and you can shoot the enemy.
Leap like this, turn like this, and you can drop the enemy.
And a mere fifteen-year-old town girl understood that, and did it.

Is this fate. If so, it’s a bit of a problem.
I don’t want to cause Sister Naria trouble.
This time too, I made the people in the coach worry.
It’s like—I’m glad they worried, but I feel sorry.

I don’t need to know how to fight.
I just go to the Adventurer’s Guild, hear the story, and go back to my usual days.
So everyone can live in peace.
That’s enough. Peace is best.

Ah, geez. My head’s a mess.
Hmm. I feel like I’ve been thinking too many hard things lately.
…I’ll sleep. It’d be bad to wake the little miss sleeping next to me.