Day 14, Winchester Territory, Allegmaine Kingdom Village
"Charles, why are we turning towards the village up ahead?"
"Delivering a client's order. Coincidentally, they live in the village up ahead. So I figured I'd drop off their order as well."
"What did your client order?" Clarissa asked curiously.
"Sugar. I stored it in a large wooden crate near your belongings," Charles replied.
The crate Charles mentioned was very large. I was curious what someone would do with that much sugar.
"That's a lot of sugar they ordered. I'm curious what they'll use it for," I said.
"Who knows. Probably to resell it, since they're also a merchant in that village."
It didn't take long to reach the village from the main road. If you often watch anime or read fantasy comics, then that's exactly how this village looks. The village wasn't very big, maybe only the size of a soccer field. It seemed their staple food was wheat, judging from the number of farmers growing it in their fields. Besides that, some of them also seemed to work as sheep herders and cow milkers.
Our horse carriage stopped at a large house located on the west side of the village. I got out of the carriage, and so did Clarissa. "Creak..." my joints cracked as I stretched my body. Charles knocked on the door of the house. "Just a moment," said someone from inside. That person opened the door.
A middle-aged woman appeared before us. It seemed she was the client Charles mentioned.
"Took you long enough, Charles. The village is almost out of sugar. Good thing you came."
"Haha ... sorry. I had to escort my companions to Nothredam as well."
"Ah, I didn't even notice them. My name is Irine Yekaterin. I'm a merchant and supplier for this village. You all look like you're from Heden, right?"
"Yup, you're right ma'am. I'm Sawamura Akira, nice to meet you."
"Sawamura? Haha ... what a strange name for someone from Heden."
"Hehe ... yeah, something like that."
"And the young lady over there, are you his friend?"
"Yes. My name is Clarissa Evangely, nice to meet you."
Madam Irine looked at Clarissa's hair. "Judging from your hair color, are you an elf?"
"Yes, to be precise, a half-elf," Clarissa replied.
"It must be tough being a half-elf," said Madam Irine with concern.
"You're not wrong. That's why I decided to go to Nothredam. I heard they really appreciate racial differences."
"Yes, yes, you're right. Nothredam is the right place for you."
"By the way, Madam Irine, may we stay at your place for a day? If I'm not mistaken, this is the last village on the western side of the kingdom. So there's no other village for us to rest. I'm afraid of resting on the road."
"Of course, please do." Madam Irine allowed us to stay.
"But I ask for your help pulling weeds in my backyard. Lately, my back hurts when I bend down. That's why I can't clean up the weeds right now."
"Ahh don't worry. We'll clean up those weeds," Charles said casually.
"Thank you so much. In that case, please come in." Madam Irine welcomed us into her home.
Madam Irine's house was quite large. It had 2 floors; the upper floor probably had the bedrooms. If you often watch anime or read manga where the main character visits the village chief's house, that's how it looked.
"This house belonged to my late husband. He was once a noble from the capital who was transferred here. Sadly, he passed away after the civil war broke out."
"We've arrived." She showed us the backyard of her house.
There wasn't anything special about her backyard, except for a large fountain statue in the center. It was somewhat unkempt. Many weeds were growing everywhere, making the backyard look messy and dirty.
"In that case, I'll go back to cooking. Oh yes, I just remembered, none of you are followers of Oder, right? I happen to be cooking beef liver for dinner tonight."
"Nope. We're not followers of Oder," Charles said firmly.
"Alright," Madam Irine said as she left us.
"Yosh, time to work," I said.
I started pulling the weeds near the fountain. I began removing the vines climbing up the fountain. Then, I helped Clarissa pull weeds.
"By the way, why aren't followers of Oder allowed to eat beef liver?" I asked curiously.
"You don't know? Followers of the Oder sect are forbidden from eating animal innards. They believe innards are impure. So they only eat the meat and fat. They also don't eat insects, fish that live in the mud, crawling animals, and fanged animals," Clarissa replied.
"Sounds like a tough life."
"What can you do, that's their belief, and they believe in it," Charles chimed in.
While pulling weeds, a plant caught my attention. Clarissa was about to pull it out.
"Clarissa, wait a second."
"What's wrong?" Clarissa looked confused.
No doubt about it, I recognized this plant. But how could this plant exist in this world? Its oval, serrated leaves, upright thin growth, and soft texture on the leaves and stems—it had to be candyleaf.
"Clarissa..."
"What?"
"We're gonna be rich, Clarissa, we're gonna be rich!" I said while holding both of Clarissa's hands.
"W-what do you mean? Please explain before you get too excited like this!"
"This plant is called Stevia rebaudiana. Its leaves are ten times sweeter than sugar."
"So that's it." Clarissa picked a leaf and chewed it.
"Not sweet, even a bit bitter."
"Idiot, of course it tastes bitter. You have to process it first, either by drying or extracting it."
"What's going on here?" Charles joined in.
"Our hero just found a plant sweeter than sugar."
"Really?"
"You must be joking. It tastes bitter. I still believe honey is sweeter than sugar."
Tchh ... I started getting annoyed with Clarissa.
"How about a bet? If I can prove this leaf is sweeter than sugar, you must do whatever I tell you."
"A-Akira, isn't that a bit too much—"
"I accept your bet. If you need more leaves, take them from the pile of weeds I pulled," Clarissa said confidently, pointing at the weed pile.
"Just so you know, if you fail to prove it, admit you're just a skilled bluffer."
Tch ... looks like I need to get serious here. I must crush that overconfidence of hers. I started digging through the pile of weeds. After finding the uprooted stevia plants, I began separating the leaves from the stems. I ended up with two handfuls of stevia leaves from several uprooted plants. Now I needed to figure out how to dry the leaves. Sun-drying was out of the question. Not only was the weather cloudy, but the temperature here was also cold, like a highland climate. Using an oven seemed the most logical choice. But oven heat could be too strong, possibly burning the leaves. I had no choice but to accept being mocked by that damn vampire if I failed.
"Yosh, finally done," Charles said, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Hey Charles, can you take me to Madam Irine's kitchen? I want to dry these leaves."
"Still going through with the bet?" Charles smirked, showing his two front teeth.
"This is about a science maniac's pride. Of course I'm taking it seriously."
"Hah ... fine."
Charles took me to Madam Irine's kitchen. There, she was preparing dinner for all of us.
"Madam Irine," Charles greeted.
"Ah, are you done already? Thank you. Dinner will be ready soon."
"Madam Irine, may I borrow your oven? I want to dry these leaves," I asked.
"Sure. But aren't you afraid they'll burn?"
"Don't worry. I'll watch the fire so the oven doesn't get too hot. That way the leaves won't burn."
"Oh, I see. In that case, use the clay bowl over there."
"Thank you, Madam Irine."
I took the clay bowl she pointed to. Before placing the stevia leaves inside, I washed them to remove any dirt. I placed the bowl far from the firewood. I also reduced the firewood to lower the oven temperature. That way, I didn't have to worry about the stevia leaves burning. Now I just had to wait about 30 minutes. Damn, there's no accurate timer here, so I had to monitor it constantly. Maybe after I reach Nothredam, I'll have to build a clock. Relying on a sundial isn't very effective.
"What will you do with the beef liver, Madam Irine?" Charles asked, curious as she cooked.
"I'll cook it with onions. This dish is quite popular in the western region of the kingdom."
Oh, I think I know this dish. The liver is cut and soaked in milk for several minutes. Then it's coated in flour, seasoned with salt and spices, and fried in butter until cooked. Not to forget, thickly chopped onions are sautéed until fragrant and placed on top of the cooked liver. Just thinking about it makes me drool.
"What will the beef liver be eaten with?" I asked out of curiosity.
"With that bread, of course." Madam Irine pointed at the hard brown bread.
No ... that's completely unsuitable! It should be eaten with flatbread. That bread is too hard and dry in texture. I then approached Charles.
"Hey Charles, let's make bread! Don't worry, it's bread from my world," I whispered to him.
"Sounds interesting."
"Madam Irine, may we bake a different kind of bread? Well... some of us don't really like bread like that hahaha," Charles said.
"Of course, go ahead. Won't it be a hassle though?"
"Not at all! Not even a little!" This was all for a delicious dinner.
"The flour's over there. Do you need yeast? It's on the top shelf."
"Nope. We just need flour and water," I answered.
"Oi, who makes bread without yeast?" Charles whispered to me.
"Relax. This will work. We only need flour and water," I replied.
"Sounds like you're going to make something interesting. Whatever it is, good luck."
I started making the bread. The bread I meant was chapati, a flatbread without yeast from South Asia. Its ingredients were just flour and water. If I remember right, this is a staple food there—similar to rice in Southeast Asia.
The ingredients were whole wheat flour and water. Luckily, in medieval times like this, whole wheat flour was common. If you don't have whole wheat flour, regular flour works too. I planned to make 15 chapatis.
I took a large bowl used for mixing and kneading bread on the table.
"Charles, pour flour in here until it's half full," I asked.
Charles poured the flour. I then added salt and gradually added water until the dough mixed. Then I kneaded it until smooth. After that, I let the dough rest for 15 minutes. While waiting, I checked on the stevia leaves drying in the oven. Still not dry, so it needed more time. I used the slow-heat method so the leaves wouldn't burn.
After resting the dough, I kneaded it again with both hands. Occasionally, I added water if some parts were too dry.
"Madam Irine, do you have olive oil?"
"Ah, I do. There, the dark green bottle," she said, pointing to a bottle under the shelf.
"Charles, grab it for me. Also, get a bowl about this size."
Charles fetched the olive oil and a large bowl as requested. I poured a little olive oil and coated the bowl's interior. Then I moved the dough into it and let it rest for another 10 minutes.
I checked the stevia leaves again. Finally, they were perfectly dry. None were burnt. I took the bowl of stevia out of the oven.
"Wow, is it done?" Charles asked excitedly.
"Of course. Now I just need to grind it into powder."
I took a mortar and pestle and ground the stevia leaves. It didn't take long, and the powdered stevia was ready. Just mix it into tea, and that vampire's mouth would be shut.
The rested dough was then rolled into a log and divided into 15 equal pieces. I added some flour and shaped them into balls. Then I asked Charles to flatten them with a rolling pin. I continued until all were done. While waiting for Charles to finish flattening the dough, I lit the firewood on the stove.
"Akira, I finished flattening all the dough," Akira said, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Yosh. Leave the rest to me."
The stove was hot enough. I placed the flattened dough one by one. Not long after, the dough puffed up.
"Wow, amazing. The bread puffed up," Charles exclaimed in awe.
"Amazing, amazing."
"You guys are so excited," Madam Irine came over.
"Just as I thought, it's something interesting," she said, seeing the chapatis.
I set the cooked bread aside. "Try it." I asked them both to taste it.
"Hmm ... delicious! It's my first time eating bread this soft and flexible."
"Haha ... soft bread. The texture's not hard like most bread."
"So this is where you all were," Clarissa said after finishing the weeding.
"Clarissa, come here—try this bread. It's soft and not hard like the usual bread."
"Hah ... as if. Bread is supposed to be hard." Clarissa broke off a piece and ate it.
"Soft. How can bread be this soft?"
"See, see? What did I tell you? Akira is amazing."
---
"Enjoy your meal!" the three of them said at the dinner table.
"Hey Akira, don't take too long. The food will be gone," Charles said.
"Yeah, just a sec," I replied.
I had just made tea to serve to the three of them. I added one and a half small spoonfuls of stevia powder to each cup.
"The tea's ready." I brought the four cups of stevia-sweetened tea.
"I've mixed this tea with powder from that leaf. Try it, it'll taste sweet," I said.
The three of them drank the tea I made.
"Are you sure there's no added sugar?" Charles asked, a bit puzzled.
I sat at the dining table. "Of course," I answered.
"Amazing! It's really sweet. How is this possible?"
"So? It's sweet, right?" I looked at Clarissa with an evil grin.
She sipped the tea. "Unfortunately, I lost. I know exactly what tea with sugar tastes like. I'm sure this tea had no sugar. I admit defeat."
"Hahahahaha... serves you right! Now, what should I make her do? Something lewd? Ah no, no—we're in someone else's house. Well, whatever. What matters now is food."
"Itadakimasu!"
I took two spoonfuls of beef liver and placed them on top of the bread, then took a bite together. Whoa... so this is what heaven tastes like. The crispy, tender, and flavorful liver met the soft bread. It felt like I was flying through the clouds—it was that delicious. I could probably finish a whole bowl of this liver all by myself.
****
I couldn't sleep. I tried talking to Charles, but he had already fallen asleep—his shirt lifted, showing his belly, and his mouth hanging open. Looks like I needed some fresh air. I headed up to the attic and climbed onto the roof.
I sat back and relaxed while looking at the sparkling stars above. In Tokyo, it was impossible to see stars shining like this. Everything was invisible due to light pollution. It felt like I had finally found a moment of silence.
In the middle of that silence, my thoughts started racing. I wondered how my family was doing back in Tokyo. My little sister, Tomoe... who's making her breakfast now? I used to be the one who made her breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. Well, maybe now Dad and Mom are cooking for her—after all, she's the golden child of the family. I wondered how Grandma's grave was. Has anyone cleaned it and replaced the incense? I also wondered if anyone's looking for me. Did Tomoe try to find me after I disappeared? I don't know... everything's still a blur.
"What's wrong? Can't sleep?" That voice—it sounded like Clarissa.
"You startled me. Yeah, seems like it. What about you? Why aren't you asleep yet?"
"Even though I'm half-elf, I'm also half-vampire. That's why I often can't sleep at night."
"Ah, that explains why you keep napping during the day."
Clarissa sat to my right. "What were you thinking about?"
"Nothing much. Just watching the stars."
"I see."
We both fell silent. Only the sound of crickets and frogs filled the calm night air.
"The moon looks beautiful, doesn't it?" Clarissa said.
"Yeah, but the stars are just as beautiful," I replied.
Silence returned between us.
"About the bet... what do you want me to do?" Clarissa asked flatly.
"I don't know. In that case, just stay with me tonight—until I get bored."
I looked at Clarissa. She smiled sweetly. "Alright. I'll stay with you and watch the stars until you're bored."