Ginger PorkWhile covered in sweat, the young hunter Yuuto looked down from the treetops at a one-horned boar which collapsed with a thud. Taro, who was right under Yuuto, energetically growled and barked at the one-horned boar as if to make sure.
After that, the one-horned boar didn’t even twitch or move. Piercing the bottom of its neck was the arrow that Yuuto recently shot… and inside the wide, poisonous arrow was a fast-acting poison belonging to hunters from the mountainous province that caused a severe paralysis when it entered the bloodstream but it didn’t leave any trace of poison in the meat.
(Not yet, don’t be negligent… ‘A dying boar will kill the hunter before it dies.’)
Yuuto remembered the words of his master, a middle-aged man who was skilled enough to kill a bear with just a bow, and he stifled his urge to check whether it was dead or alive. The one-horned boar was a tough opponent. They were different from the rabbits, deer, wild bird, foxes, and weasels that n.o.bles hunted as a hobby. One-horned boars were prominent, wild beasts that had a thick, short ‘dangerous weapon’ growing from them, and they were freaks of natures that could repel a head-on spear blow from a samurai covered in heavy armor and take them down horse and all.
There were as many outstanding hunters and samurai that were send to the realm of the dead after having the tables turned on them by a one-horned boar as there were stars in the sky. Right now, the tree that Yuuto had taken his position in had just taken a single hit from the boar a little while ago and was a little cracked.
Being negligent was forbidden.
…And after waiting for a long time. Yuuto jumped down from the tree filled with determination. Holding his bow under his arm and pairing it up with an arrow from his quiver, he approached the one-horned boar carefully and slowly. And then he tried to confirm that it had completely pa.s.sed away and would never move again…
“I did it! I finally took it down! We did it! Taro! Now I’m fully-fledged as well!”
Yuuto let out a yell of joy. Now that he had taken down a ‘wild beast’ like a one-horned boar by himself for the first time, he would now be recognized as a fully-fledged hunter. Now he would be acknowledged as an existence that could survive in the mountains and forests where, never mind wild beasts, but dangerous monsters would appear unlike the villages and towns that were blessed with the mountain’s blessing, and he would be treated different from the half-baked hunters that would hunt rabbits or birds in the nearby forest so they could sell them.
Sometimes he would guide samurai through the middle of the forest by request of the lord, serve as an escort to a merchant who wanted to pa.s.s through the forest, take requests to exterminate wild beasts in exchange for money which was different from just selling game. He would increase the work he could do, and depending on his skill, he would be able to construct his own house in the middle of the city, take a bride, and live a reasonably luxurious life.
The one-horned boar that Yuuto took down this time was one of the easier wild beasts to defeat in terms of stamina and physical strength when compared to bears that couldn’t be killed unless you showered them with countless arrows, tigers which made fights into a matter of whether the hunter would become the hunted, large serpents that could sneak by quietly and strangle you to death or reflect half-heartedly shot arrows with their prided, hard husks, or to top it off, the great rhinoceros beetles that could strike out with their giant horns. One-horned boars were fast but they couldn’t climb trees, so all you had to do was rain arrows down from the treetops.
But it was easier said than done. It was better to have it run off before you could deal the final blow than having your hunting dog trampled to death in order to lure it over into an ambush, falling out of a tree and then being killed thanks to the boar charging and shaking the tree, or running out of arrows before you could take it down and not being able to do anything… and finally making light of its near-death state and moving in close to deal the final blow with a hatchet only for it to turn the tables on you.
It was a common thing in the hunting world for half-baked hunters who confused bravery and recklessness to lose their lives when trying to challenge and take down a one-horned boar.
“It’s pretty big… With this I could get 120, no 150 silver coins for sure.”
As he inspected the bite marks made by Taro on the one-horned boar’s right back leg, he thought about his livelihood. If he used the money he got from selling what he could take from this boar, he could probably buy a new, powerful bow that was enchanted with magic like the one his master used. A hunter’s line of work was that if he lost he would lose his life, but if he won, the profits would be huge.
It wasn’t unusual for a real hunter to get a few hundred silver coins from taking down one game, but for Yuuto who usually at best could get a few silver coins from selling small game, this was the first time he had game that went over a hundred silver coins. Yuuto’s heart was in high spirits.
Yuuto was still young, and he had just become a fully-fledged hunter just a moment ago. He was born a nearby peasant’s son, the fifth son at that, and to make sure he would not inherit the household, he became apprenticed to a hunter. And so, he followed his master around to memorize the forest at first in order to develop legs that were used to hiking, then he learned the skills to train a newly-born puppy how to become a hunting dog, and finally he was taught how to handle a bow and became an apprentice hunter.
Following him was the hunting dog Taro, a dog that he got that was born from the hunting dog his master kept and a hunting dog from another hunter, and it took two years of training since he was born for Taro to become a fully-fledged hunting dog. One novice boy and one novice dog, after hunting countless dozens of small animals, had decided to challenge a one-horned boar, and after spending a month to prepare… It was a fine victory.
“Taro. We’re eating well tonight.”
Yuuto said this as he pet the partner that was by his side. One-horned boar meat, when compared to pork, had a particular stench to it, but even so, the meat was delicious and had a deep flavor that came from being covered in plenty of fat. Since today was the day that he became a fully-fledged hunter, it was a time to eat some one-horned boar meat. Perhaps he used his beastly intuition to read Yuuto’s mind but Taro’s tail started to wag even stronger.
And so, Yuuto dressed his kill as soon as possible. He drained the one-horned boar’s blood even though it weighed five times his own weight. What he was planning to bring back was the meat, pelt, horn, and tusks. The innards would rot before he could bring them back, and the bones didn’t sell for much. It was unfortunate but he decided to throw them away.
“Alright, that should do it.”
Before long, he had finished draining the blood and skinning the pelt, and crammed the fresh meat, pelt, and the horn and tusks which cracked halfway into two separate large bags that he brought with him.
“Let’s go, Taro.”
He put the best, fatty cuts in a clean bag at his waist and raised his voice at Taro who was chewing a one-horned boar’s bone and wagging his tail. To that, Taro barked in response and followed with the bone in his mouth.
“Now then, I have bring it back before it gets dark.”
Even after draining the blood and getting rid of the bones to lighten the weight, there was still a large amount of meat on an adult one-horned boar. If he left it here for a long time, a beast would notice the smell of blood and come looking for it. In order to avoid that, Yuuto split the meat into two portions and lifted them on both his shoulders, and then he carried it to the nearby mountain hut that he made in order to avoid any beasts.
“So even with half it’s still heavy…”
While saying a light complaint, his stride was light and there was a smile on his face. He was transporting the big game he successfully managed to hunt for the first time since he was born. That gave Yuuto a large sense of satisfaction.
“Huu. It’s finally over.”
Carrying the meat and fur of the same beast to the unbreakable, st.u.r.dy door of the storehouse at the mountain hut, Yuuto let out a sigh as the sun was about to set. Even though he threw away the excess parts, the spoils of war from the one-horned boar still weighed more than Yuuto’s own weight. It wasn’t that far from the place where he took down the one-horned boar, but even still, that much distance was quite the amount of heavy labor.
“If I end up like this just carrying it to the mountain hut… I think I have no choice but to hire Sahae.”
It seemed difficult for one person to carry this big game down to the town at the foot of the mountain. Yuuto would tomorrow morning go to the foot of the mountain and employ an acquaintance carrier whose arms and legs were twice as thick as Yuuto’s and who would often take on work from his master.
(I can’t believe I’ve finally become a hunter that can hire people.)
At that, he felt happy.
“Well, anyway. Let’s have dinner.”
It was at the time that he raised his voice that it happened. With a jump in response to the presence of ‘something,’ Taro let out a single bark towards Yuuto.
“…What’s wrong? Is there something there, Taro?”
Seeing that state, Yuuto asked Taro that. Taro let out one more bark before running off.
“What is it? Did he find something?”
Yuuto followed Taro, and after running for a bit, Taro stopped in place and let out another bark. At that place there was a black door. The door with a picture of a cat on it clung to the cliff as though it were ‘growing’ out of it.
“…There wasn’t supposed to be a door in this place… No, I’m not mistaken. Yesterday, I was sure that there was nothing here.”
Yuuto remembered. Yesterday when he pa.s.sed by this place, there wasn’t a door. He was taught that being able to remember what was different in the forest was one of the conditions to be a good hunter, and Yuuto who tried to remember to the best of his abilities wouldn’t overlook such a big change. Not to mention a door that suddenly appeared.
“It can’t be, one of those magic doors…”
Magic. It was a word that had little to do with Yuuto who lived in a rural town, but even still, that town had a few number of onmyouji living it and the priests there would often use prayer magic of the G.o.d of Wind that they believed in on the hunters. It went like this: whenever something strange happens it usually the cause of some magical power.
“Since Taro led me here it’s probably something that’s not dangerous…”
He knew that Taro, who was perfectly trained as a hunting dog, wouldn’t bring him here by mistake. Yuuto made his resolve and put his hand on the golden handle of the black door… and opened it. It wasn’t locked. With the ringing of a bell sounding out, the door opened.
“Uwah!?”
After suddenly coming from the middle of the mountains where dusk was drawing near to a brightly lit place which made his eyes dazzled, Yuuto reflexively blocked the light with his hands.
“Welcome.”
A voice called out to Yuuto while he was like that. A middle-aged man’s voice. Yuuto stopped blocking the light and once again took in his situation. There was a mysterious place. A number of tables and chairs were lined up, and a number of people were sitting down and eating something and many of them were drinking alcohol. This sight was as if…
“Is this place… a tavern?”
“No, it’s a western… a restaurant. Although we do have some liquor.”
To Yuuto’s words, the owner replied, and after a pause, he once again welcomed this new customer.
“Once again, welcome. Is that dog there your companion?”
A boy that was still young who was around middle school or high school. By his feet was a well-behaved dog that was sitting down… Normally, bringing in pets into the ‘cathouse’ was not allowed, but if they were properly trained it was fine to bring them in.
“Eh, aah. This is my hunting dog, Taro. He’s properly trained.”
At the owner’s words, Yuuto gave a half-hearted reply while he thought to himself. Putting aside why it was inside of a mountain, this place seemed to be a restaurant. And from the store’s atmosphere, Yuuto felt that this place was different from the cheap tavern in the town where he lived at and was a high-cla.s.s establishment where n.o.ble samurai would go to.
(Well this sucks… I didn’t bring any money.)
He didn’t know the flavors of what the other customers around him were eating, but an unmistakably delicious smell drifted towards him. It stimulated Yuuto who had yet to have dinner and made him think that he had to eat here.
But, he had no money. After all, Yuuto who was novice hunter had a light wallet to being with, and in the first place, people who weren’t the same profession as him wouldn’t even pa.s.s by so bringing money deep into the mountains where there were only animal trails had no meaning whatsoever.
(If there was something other than money… Ah.)
Thinking if he had something, he noticed that. The thing that was hanging from his own waist.
“Mister owner, I would like to eat here but I didn’t bring any money with me. That’s why…”
He took it from his waist and handed it over to the owner.
“The best cut of meat from a one-horned boar. I’ll give you the rest so could you please made dish out of it?”
The best cut of meat from a one-horned boar. Normally it was something that would be salted and given to a merchant to bring to the capital where it would be placed on the table of a n.o.ble. For a peasant, it wasn’t something you could put in your mouth unless you were a hunter like Yuuto, and for this amount of meat with the most amount of fat on it, the price would be about five silver coins. For Yuuto, it was a pretty high price for one meal, but at any case, it was meat that would have ended up in Yuuto and Taro’s stomachs. If that was the case, leaving the cooking to a professional artisan would satisfy the meat as well.
“…Boar meat, is it?”
On one hand, the owner made a bitter face at Yuuto’s proposition. Dishes that used Ingredient that were from the Other World were not served at the Cathouse by principle. The meat, vegetables, and the things that he ordered from the shopping district were all ingredients that he himself thought were delicious. And also, the things that were made on the other side were things that he himself ate by principle.
It was a service that he usually didn’t do, but the young boy’s eyes were glittering. Eyes that the owner had lost over twenty years ago. A face that was pure, reckless, and young. The same face that the idiot high school students from the neighborhood would have.
“…Understood. I’ll take care of how to cook it, but is that okay?”
To betray that was something he couldn’t do.
“Of course! You have my regards!”
“Wan!”
With the owner’s consent, Yuuto and Taro energetically replied.
“Okay. Well then, wait for a bit alright. Please sit over here.”
As he said that, the owner pulled back into the kitchen for a moment and brought out a tightly wrung cloth and gla.s.s cups filled with water.
“Here you are. A towel and water. Well then, cooking is going to take some time so please wait for a moment.”
Saying that, the owner went back to the kitchen again and started to cook.
(If I’m going to using fresh meat, I’ll need to make it softer, oh right, boar meat has a bit of a stench to it…)
Having eaten it before, he thought about what would best suit boar meat which had a bit of a stench to it.
While waiting for it in the meantime, Yuuto looked around restlessly at his surroundings.
“Still, this is a strange restaurant…”
The guests at the restaurant were a bunch of strange people if you looked closely. A samurai and a onmyouji who were wearing beautiful kimonos as if they belonged to the capital, and a samurai that was wearing eastern-styled clothing that implied he was a veteran warrior. That much was still fine.
But countless people who had different facial features from people from the Eastern Continent were there. The quality of their clothes and the grooming of their hair were all scattered as if there wasn’t anything they had in common. For example, there were different races of ‘ellves’ and ‘dworfs.’ And to top it off, there were a number of races that Yuuto had never seen before.
(Looking at it again… this really is a strange restaurant.)
While Yuuto curiously looked on at them joyfully eating dishes he never seen before, the owner came back after a little while.
“Thank you for waiting.”
A plate filled food, a rice bowl filled with white rice, and a brown soup were placed in front of Yuuto.
The plated was filled with thinly sliced cabbage and the boar meat that Yuuto brought. The thinly sliced cabbage was dressed with brown tare sauce and mixed with the grilled meat.
“This is… grilled meat?”
Yuuto, who thought for sure a soup where the meat would be boiled until it became soft would be brought out, asked the owner this, and the owner answered with an unconcerned face.
“Yes. This is ginger pork… A stir-fry of pork and ginger.”
While answering, the owner set the table for the one other customer.
“Here, I took out the onions and ginger for you… It’s still hot so be careful.”
He placed it in front of the one other customer who was convinced that it was delicious just from the smell and who wagged his tail at the cuts of meat. It was a paper box used for takeout stuffed with grilled meat and covered in tare sauce. Normally, food with strong flavors weren’t good for dogs, but it should be fine as a treat every now and then.
“Well then, enjoy. If you want any another serving of food or soup, tell me and I’ll bring some out.”
After saying that, the owner went to a different customer… and was told to bring out seconds, and then the owner went to go ask if he wanted the usual combination of okonomiyaki.
“This is, this restaurant’s cooking…”
Yuuto picked up his chopsticks while the drifting smell of sweet tare sauce and the savory smell of meat made him swallow his saliva without thinking.
“…Taro, you can go ahead and eat.”
He looked at his side, and the moment he gave his permission, Taro who was staring at the food while drooling saliva on it savagely started to eat. The sound of gulping kept sounding out as his tail never stopped wagging. It was with a vigor that was more than when he usually got the sc.r.a.ps from some hunted game.
(So it’s that good…)
Looking at that, Yuuto unknowingly had his expectations raised while extending his chopsticks to the meat. He thrust his chopsticks in the plate that was filled with countless pieces of thinly cut meat.
(Uwah. This, It’s soft…)
He didn’t know what kinds of magical arts were used, but the meat that was supposed to be hard was soft enough that it was easily cut into many pieces using his chopsticks. Then he raised one bite-sized portion of meat that was mixed with plenty of tare sauce and vegetables. He swallowed his saliva at the meat that was glossy and reflected the light of the restaurant’s lights… Then put it into his mouth.
“…Delicious!”
Yuuto let that word fly out of his mouth without thinking. It was a dish that was more delicious than any dish that Yuuto had ever known. The tare sauce was sweet and salty with a faint particular spiciness. Just the tare sauce by itself was wonderfully delicious. Its flavor was so good that if you just put on top of food that would be enough to call it a feast.
That was paired with the one-horned boar’s meat which had plenty of fat on it. The meat was covered in some kind of fine, grainy flour, and that flour sucked up and mixed together with the tare sauce. When mixed together the juices from the meat and fat and also the texture of vegetables together when you ate it, it was extremely delicious.
There was nothing more delicious. That’s what he believed… but his conjectures would be turned upside-down again in a few seconds.
“Uooooh!?”
It was so delicious that he let out a roar. There was something more delicious than this ginger pork… and it was something was eaten along with the ginger pork, the rice. Rice white as snow without any other grains mixed in. Fresh, fluffily cooked rice came along with the ginger pork.
The deep flavor of ginger pork and the simple, soft flavor of rice, this combination brought from satisfaction and a sense of hunger at the same time. Eat the meat. Swallow down the rice. Eat the meat. Swallow down the rice. In the middle of that, he would have some cabbage, miso soup, and pickles while he repeated those actions.
Of course, soon the bowl that was filled with rice soon became empty in the blind of an eye.
“Sorry! Could I get seconds of rice! A large serving as soon as possible!”
While feeling a sense of impatience, Yuuto requested another serving of rice.
“Coming up.”
The owner had seen Yuuto eat rice with the vigor of a young man a while ago and had already coped with that. He prepared a rice bowl filled with rice just a moment ago and brought it out. To the owner, Taro let out a single bark as he pa.s.sed by… He wanted ‘seconds’ as well. That’s what it meant.
The dog and his owner were birds of a feather. While pleasantly thinking that, the owner prepared Taro’s portion of meat and rice. And so, the person and the dog’s meal continued until they felt they couldn’t continue eating anymore.
“Uh… c.r.a.p, I ate too much.”
Yuuto, who had in the end ordered three more servings of rice and one more serving of ginger pork, bitterly patted his stomach and headed to the exit. Taro also has the appearance that his stomach was heavy, and his stride was somewhat heavy.
“Taro, that was good, huh. Let’s come again.”
Although saying that, it seemed that Taro could only wag his tail back and forth in reply to his master’s words with the energy he had left.
He had heard of that restaurant’s secret. A secret restaurant where he could only come once every seven days. The price of the food was drastically cheaper than what Yuuto had imagined, but the flavor was authentic.
It seemed like his master who made this area his turf would sometimes visit and eat ginger pork with a vigor just like Yuuto did.
“I need to thank my master as well.”
Thinking about it, his master was the one who recommended hunting the one-horned boar here in the first place. His master surely wanted to share it with him. The road to the Other Worldly Dining Hall.
“Alright, Taro. Let’s go to sleep for today! Tomorrow we have to hire someone to carry the meat, so it’s gonna be a hard day’s work.”
Yuuto energetically raised his voice to his partner. To those words, Taro let out a single, firm bark in response.