TN: Truth to be told, I don’t really like this chapter. The way the food here is described is too clinical to me.
Napolitan
"Chirinchirin", while Jonathan was pa.s.sing through the door, his eyes caught it.
[Then, botchan. Afterwards…]
[Aa. I entrust this to you.]
He was quick to get permission from his tentative boss Sirius and went to the back table without being guided by Aletta.
[A, welcome. I"ll bring your water immediately.]
[Aa. Also, I would like to order immediately… I want pizza with mixed seafood.]
As soon as he sat down, the waitress immediately came. He then smiled wryly as he stared at the back area.
(Well, well. He"s as enthusiastic as ever.)
Jonathan said that that table was "a special seat for chefs".
From that table"s position, he could glimpse a little bit of the kitchen and ask about the preparation of otherworld food.
Jonathan, as Sirius" servant, noticed it after he went to the restaurant several times, so he always sat on that special seat even if he was with Sirius.
…When there"s a daughter of a merchant bringing a swordsman acquaintance or elves that occasionally visit otherworld dining hall, that table was usually occupied, so it was not only Jonathan that noticed that fact.
[Well…]
He stared at Jonathan"s enthusiasm for his work and sat down on an empty seat.
[Aa. Excuse me, I would like to order.]
After taking Jonathan"s order, the waitress came to take his.
[Yes, what would you like to order?]
[Aa, I would like Napolitan with sausage. I would also like café au lait after the meal.]
For the time being, he would leave Jonathan to his "study" and ordered Napolitan.
In the otherworld, smoked meat was called bacon and meat stuffed intestine was called sausage.
After eating various dishes in this restaurant, this was Sirius" favourite food.
[Yes. Please wait a moment.]
He silently nodded to the demon waitress who had unusual neat appearance and glanced around.
(…When I look closely, there are customers that came from unknown places.)
Sirius was born at the capital city of the most prosperous country in the Eastern Continent.
Also, he was born in a household of merchants that dealt even with the royal family, so he was accustomed to seeing people of different origins.
That"s why he felt that there"s some credibility to the recent rumour that was spreading in the capital.
South of the continents where humans lived… there"s an unknown continent beyond Dragon G.o.d Ocean, where there"s a different culture of people, even non-human races, worshiping the six pillars as their G.o.ddesses.
An adventurer "discovered" its existence and entrusted another adventurer with his notebook that summarized its views.
It was one of the dubious rumours that Sirius heard.
Originally, it was a kind of a joke as there"s no credibility.
Since the first time human beings built civilization, no one knew what"s "beyond Dragon G.o.d Ocean" where dangerous sea monsters lived.
Until a while ago, Sirius did not believe it.
Yes, until he came to this restaurant.
This was the otherworld dining hall… a place where customers came from all corners of Sirius" world.
If he looked at the customers, he could see it.
Sirius was familiar with various people dressed up in Eastern Continent clothes, but there were people that were dressed in less familiar clothes of Western Continent.
Although there"s no detail in the first place about it, he knew about different races like lizardmen, ogres and fairies.
Though there was a human or a dwarf mixed with them, some customers wore clothes that Sirius had never seen before.
Those people had brown skin like people of the Sand Country, but they wore boldly dressed and had no sands clinging to their hands and feet.
In addition, there were customers like lamias and beastmen who were usually feared as human attacking monsters wearing well-maintained, good quality clothes.
The fact made Sirius think that there"s credibility to the rumour.
(When I think about it, the question is whether the adventurers in question are customers of this restaurant…)
And thinking so, it explained why the adventurers who had accomplished such a huge discovery in history gave explanations that fit a dubious rumour.
Sirius did not know all the customers that visited this restaurant.
If the "adventurer that went beyond Dragon G.o.d Ocean" was a "customer" of this restaurant…
[Thank you for waiting. Here"s your Napolitan.]
While thinking such thing, his food came.
[Aa, thanks.]
As his order arrived, Sirius switched his feelings.
The Alphade trading company was a company that dealt with food.
Therefore, he must seriously face his food.
It was the teaching of his grandfather Thomas that founded the company.
That"s why Sirius eyed the superfluous things of the Napolitan.
It was served on a brilliant white plate.
Bright green vegetables were mixed with the pasta that was dyed reddish orange by the Marmette sauce.
Thinly cut Oranie gave a hint of crispiness along with otherworld mushroom.
Sirius thought that Napolitan with its vivid colours was one of the most spectacular dishes of the otherworld dining hall with the exception of its confectionaries.
(Well, let"s eat.)
The smell of b.u.t.ter and ketchup hit his stomach making it growl and Sirius picked up a fork.
The first bite.
While thinking so, he brought the pasta to his mouth.
(…Un. The taste changes if it"s "sautéed".)
The aroma spreading in his mouth was not just boiled pasta.
The soft acidity of the ketchup absorbed by the integrated pasta and the taste of b.u.t.ter evenly accompanying it, it was a feast.
The secret flavor that was not found in the pasta dish that he usually ate was due to the cooking method.
According to Jonathan who observed the owner, he put b.u.t.ter on a shallow pan and sautéed the boiled pasta and its ingredients using said pan.
It was different from the common way of boiling and grilling. This way of sautéing was more common at the Ocean Country of the Western Continent.
As a result, Napolitan"s fragrance was not found in boiled pasta poured with sauce.
(Un. The ingredients are delicious, but they don"t break the balance.)
Sirius was convinced while eating the ingredients mixed in the pasta.
Like the pasta, the ingredients fried in b.u.t.ter and seasoned with ketchup were delicious.
The sliced green vegetable was crunchy and faintly bitter, the Oranie was sweet and the mushroom provided its own umami to the sauce.
Compared with bacon that was fatty and packed with flavor, sausage contained a lot of meat juice.
They were definitely delicious, but the amount was small.
It was a balance of ingredients to accompany the plenty pasta.
But that was the correct answer.
Sirius thought that Napolitan was a dish to enjoy the flavor of pasta.
It would be inappropriate if there were too many toppings.
(After all, they are there to compliment the pasta.)
If he discerned it better, there"s another role for the toppings.
The ingredients gave its own flavor to the dish when eaten with the pasta.
There"s a difference in taste, showing another facet of the pasta.
The pasta and the toppings were cooked together.
That was Sirius" evaluation of Napolitan.
(Well, let"s change the flavor now…)
After eating half of the pasta, he reached for the things brought by the waitress along with his order.
The waitress brought a small tube.
He opened the lid and flipped it upside down. Yellowish white powder fell on top of his pasta.
If there"s too much, the harmony would be broken, so he was careful.
After the pale yellow snow covered the top of his reddish orange pasta, he closed the lid and picked up his fork again.
He scooped the portion with cheese and ate it.
The finely ground cheese changed the flavor of Napolitan.
The cheese flavor softened the acidity of the sauce and at the same time contributed its unique flavor.
(Ok, this is the last.)
He reached for the small bottle containing red sauce on the table.
He deliberately poured the red sauce… Tabasco to Napolitan and took another bite.
The flavor attacking Sirius was an intense spicy flavour.
Although the taste was not in the Napolitan earlier, it stimulated his stomach and he continued to eat.
The Tabasco sauce, Jonathan said that it"s apparently made from Togaran, was delicious.
It had a tremendous spicy flavor. If it"s just a small amount, it gave food a wonderful accent. But too much would make it too spicy.
(Alright, the seasoning is perfect!)
However, it"s delicious this time.
Sirius was very satisfied with the spiciness that fit his preference.
He was the son of the chief of Alpahde trading company which was one of the biggest businesses in the Kingdom and had a relation with the aristocrats.
Eventually, he would inherit the business. That"s why he"s ama.s.sing information to further expand the company.
However, only at this time, he was just a young man enjoying his Napolitan.
When he noticed it, there was only red residue on the plate.
[Fuu…]
Sirius rubbed his swollen belly, poured sugar into his café au lait and took a sip.
The sweetness of milk and sugar along with the bitter taste of slightly sour coffee combined to wash away the taste of Napolitan.
[…Ok.]
After eating one serving of Napolitan, Sirius regained his usual ambitious face again.
This time of relaxation only occurred once in 7 days.
After paying for his food, Sirius went back to the Kingdom with sure steps.