Chapter 71
The workshop staff, along with the Eneresis mages, all clenched their fists in fury.
How much had they been worked to the bone just to produce that aluminum!!
“So all that hardship was just for something to eat…?”
“Grrk, grrrk, staaand, staaaaand!!”
They had gone through all that just so he could make them some roasted food?!
Of course, Akion couldn’t tell them the foil’s true purpose.
Information about the Outer God clearly couldn’t be made public.
So, he would demonstrate another use for aluminum foil….
“Wait a moment. I’ll prepare a killer dinner for you today. I’ve got the drinks ready, too, so just wait.”
“What?!”
“In that case, I’ll gladly wait! Hehehe!”
He intended to show them how it could be used for cooking.
In particular, he planned to present a dish somewhere between roasting and steaming with aluminum foil. He had even stocked up on fresh ingredients for it.
Of course, using this precious aluminum felt a little wasteful,
but he wasn’t heading to the capital right away… and they had produced plenty of extra, so it was fine.
“Oh dear, that precious meat…!”
“Young Master, are you really planning to burn such valuable meat?!”
Anyway, Akion wrapped the tough meat in foil and placed it directly beside the charcoal or wood fire….
“It’ll burn if you put it directly on the fire, so think of it as an indirect heat source.”
He placed it beside the fire, where there were no flames, and cooked it indirectly.
“Putting it directly on the fire is enough for fish papillote.”
“Oh, Young Master. This is….”
The head chef of the estate’s kitchen had heard about it and come out, intrigued by Akion’s cooking method.
“Metal naturally retains heat well, and the moisture and heat from the ingredients will be trapped inside and unable to escape. That should cook the food more evenly! Above all, none of the juices will escape, so both the flavor and aroma will…!”
“As expected of our head chef, you have a sharp eye.”
He had immediately grasped the principle behind Akion’s cooking method, too.
Akion decided that if any foil remained after this, he would give it to the head chef,
then spread a large sheet of foil across the table.
“Put the thoroughly washed fish in the center, yes. Slice the vegetables thinly and place them around it. Add the herbs and butter, too. Sprinkle the lemon on later! Don’t forget to add the white wine!”
“Now we gather it up and roll it like this, right?”
Then he rolled it up, leaving room for air to be trapped inside, placed it over the fire, and let it boil fiercely for about twenty minutes.
Then, before the foil-wrapped meat was finished, they could enjoy….
“Freshwater fish papillote, complete.”
“Whaaaaa….”
The papillote was complete.
“How does this fish not smell fishy at all?!”
“Whoa… it looks incredibly delicious.”
Even though they had made enough for everyone to eat their fill,
the papillote, generously packed with ingredients and cooked inside foil’s heat prison, emitted an utterly violent aroma.
“Th-thank you, Lord God, for granting us sustenance… uuuugh…!”
“Lord God, bless us and bless this food which we are about to eat by Your grace, we pray. Amen! Eeeeh—.”
“Hot, hot!”
“Say your prayer properly before you eat.”
Everyone hurried through even the prayer, then stuffed their mouths with white fish and vegetables using forks and spoons,
“Mmmmmmmmm…!!!”
“Ooooooh! Ooooooooooh!! Ooooooooooooooooooh!!!”
“It’s good?”
- Nod nod nod!!
Everyone seated at the outdoor table answered Akion’s question with extreme nodding, then began shoveling food into their mouths again.
“It’s delicious! Deliciousdeliciousdelicious…!!”
“How was this cooked so deliciously without a muddy or fishy taste, despite being white-fleshed fish?! Ah, Young Master, perhaps you should have become a chef— Steward? Isn’t that my fish?”
“My apologies, Chef!!!”
The papillote was so tender and melted in their mouths that they had to steal food from one another.
The workshop staff, the servants, the chef, the steward, and….
“If you hadn’t called me, I might have disowned you. Heh heh!”
“You were going to eat this without me? How stingy.”
“Huff, ho, it’s hot, but it’s truly delicious…!”
“Go on and eat already.”
Count Delford, Big Brother Juan, and even the countess were there, too.
Everyone, regardless of age, gender, status, or station, was enjoying themselves.
“I never knew the Young Master could cook this well…!”
“Akion, this is seriously delicious!! Even if you get disowned later, come work as our chef! Got it?!”
“Hmm, it’s comparable to the cooking in the imperial palace… Akion, could you make this for us occasionally?”
“I only followed a recipe I happened to have memorized… If you have something similar to foil, I can make it for you easily.”
Everyone happily shoveled down food and raised their glasses, and seeing the lively atmosphere… made Akion glad he had made it.
Of course, its true purpose was to block the Outer God’s brainwaves. Anyway.
- Clunk!
Before they knew it, an entire hour had passed.
“Hm? Akion, why are you opening that charcoal brazier again?”
“You know, the thing I put in earlier.”
Everyone questioned Akion when he suddenly opened the brazier,
and Akion took out a large lump of thoroughly blackened charcoal from inside.
“Ah! That’s meat!”
“That’s right. The meat Young Master wrapped tightly in that foil and put inside!”
It was foil-wrapped meat.
“That… isn’t it all burned to a crisp?”
“Oh dear, that’s not how you’re supposed to roast meat! My precious meat!!”
Everyone saw the foil, charred on the outside, and assumed the dish was ruined,
“Y-Young Master. May I join you?”
“Hm? Yes. Well, it’s hot, so wear gloves.”
Only the head chef, who had intuitively grasped the foil’s effectiveness, stood beside Akion, brimming with anticipation.
And when they peeled away the completely burned foil….
- Sizzle~!
“Gasp!”
The meat, piping hot and brimming with juices, proudly revealed itself.
No matter what dish he made, he had never been able to make it this rich and succulent!
Amidst his conflicting confusion and joy, the chef watched Akion press down firmly on the meat.
And then,
- Crumble.
“Gasp.”
“Oh no! What a waste!”
That firm meat… simply collapsed completely.
Some people lamented that he had just destroyed the meat,
but the head chef was certain it would be unbelievably delicious.
After all, its principle was similar to brisket from Akion’s previous life.
“Try it.”
Akion placed it on a freshly baked baguette and handed it to the head chef first.
The only thing sprinkled on top was a little lemon juice to cut through the richness.
And yet, its fatty appearance and aroma….
- Gulp….
Made it impossible for the head chef to resist.
- Crunch! Munch munch….
He took a big bite, and the juices and aroma filling his mouth made him feel as though his eyes were spinning.
And then…
“Ah, aaah…!”
Struck by countless revelations and a violently delicious flavor, he shed tears,
- Sparkle!!!
“What the hell.”
“Whoa?!!”
His rank had increased. He was a mage, after all.
Akion cursed first, wondering what the hell was happening again.
Still, seeing the chef so happy put him in a good mood, too.
“His rank suddenly went up?!”
“Th-this food… does eating it alone grant enlightenment?!”
Naturally, the mages present began clamoring for a serving. They had realized it was delicious enough to raise the chef’s rank.
Of course, Akion was feeling generous today.
He set out plenty of meat and bread.
- Crunch! Munch munch…!
Everyone took a bite, and then….
“Wooooooooooooooooooaaaaaah….”
“It’s sooo delicioooous….”
“Waaaaaah!!!”
“Why are you crying?”
Everyone began to cry because it was simply too delicious.
Fortunately, no one’s rank increased again.
“……This is among the most delicious things I’ve ever tasted in my life.”
“Delishus! Delishus! Delishus! Delishus!!!”
“Goldie, you’ll choke. Eat slowly. But Akion, didn’t you put in those incredibly tough cuts of meat? How did you make them like this?”
As Aisherel asked, everyone remembered that the cuts Akion had put inside were all tough portions.
Of course, foil-wrapped meat followed a principle not all that different from brisket.
Akion explained while reminiscing about his past.
“The hot foil acts like a sort of oven, trapping all the heat and juices inside. Then the fat in the meat turns into something like jelly, you see?”
“Uh, hmm? Fat? I understand the oven part, but….”
“I understand jelly… but what is fat?”
“Ah.”
Unfortunately, this was a medieval world.
Proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and so on… things that had been common knowledge in his previous life were not well understood here.
“You know the grease that comes out when you cook meat? Just think of it as that being trapped inside the meat and soaking into it.”
“Aha!”
“It tastes even better now that we know the proper principle behind it, Young Master!!”
Thus, under the easy and speedy instruction of Teacher Akion,
everyone inhaled and inhaled meat, fish, and alcohol.
“Oh, merciful Eneresis, conqueror of the west~!”
“Glory be to great Eneresis~!”
They linked arms and sang a ridiculous Eneresis anthem, with the drunks completely mangling both the melody and rhythm.
Seeing people of every status mingling together like that made Akion wonder what kind of madhouse this was,
“How peaceful.”
“Indeed.”
The Tower Master had seen seas of blood for two thousand years,
and Aisherel had carved apart monsters invading the northern wall. If even they called this peaceful, then it couldn’t be the worst situation in the world.
They didn’t know that the foil had been made to defend their minds from the Outer God,
but Akion stubbornly kept the secret, hoping to preserve an environment where the people he loved could remain happy.
- Jingle!
‘Lord God?’
[Could you offer me some of that as tribute later…?]
‘…….’
If there was a problem, it was that the god who had ordered military supplies (?) to preserve that peace was making himself look so petty.
* * *
Before the new year arrived, Akion rode a first-class carriage to the capital.
A wagon piled high with aluminum foil.
With Goldie, the Tower Master, and….
“Ah, it’s been so long since I’ve been to the academy.”
Aisherel, who had been assigned (?) as Akion’s escort, came with them.
“Ah, this brings back memories. I used to skip the professors’ lectures, get caught having fun with my classmates, and receive punishment drills.”
“Sister Aisherel was totally a party girl. Fawks Fawks.”
“Mm-hmm. A Fawks Fawks indeed.”
“We trained separately by gender back then, so I never even dated anyone. What do you mean, Fawks, you perverts!!”
After being subjected to insinuations at every turn, Aisherel launched a counterattack.
But it was useless against Goldie and the Tower Master, who had become addicted to making insinuations.
“She says she’s never dated anyone. So she’s saying she’s a pure virgin now, right? Fawks Fawk— Eeeek!! I’ll stop! Don’t pinch Goldie’s cheeks oooooh!!”
“Where are you going, Tower Master!!”
“I have an appointment with the chairman! I’ll be going on ahead!”
But rude people were bound to have their skulls split.
Goldie had her cheeks pinched, while the Tower Master fled far away to escape the furious Aisherel.
“Huff, huff, huff… Akion, you believe me, right? I’m not that kind of woman. Right?”
“Of course I do. You’re such a pure and wonderful woman, Sis.”
Even Akion knew to read the room in situations like this.
If he teased her any further, he would surely become A/K/I/O/N.
“You know how much I rely on you, Sis Aisherel, right?”
“And yet you abandon me?”
But he hadn’t expected her to come at him with that tactic.
While Akion stood there dumbfounded, Goldie, who had been rubbing her pinched cheek, couldn’t hold back any longer and….
“What a tiresome woman… Ah, aaaaaaaah!! Goldie was wroooong! Wroooong!!”
She struck her with a fact and became Gol/di.
In other words, both her cheeks had been stretched until her face looked as though it would split, leaving her cheeks puffed out.
“Hmph. Anyway, if you abandon me again this time, I’ll sulk. Got it?”
“Specifically, how are you going to sulk?”
“Hmm. I heard about it last time. Sir Clad supposedly threw you into the sky?”
A merciless declaration to launch Akion by someone possessing terrifying strength.
“If you leave me all alone again… I might get so lonely that I’ll hug you and jump off a cliff.”
“And then…?”
“Of course I can land safely! But I’ll throw you straight up first.”
Akion nodded frantically and realized something.
A Master’s possessiveness was extremely frightening!!
“A battered husband…?”
“Quiet.”
“Hehe, I’m joking. Your frightened look is kind of cute, you know?”
“Please refrain from making violent jokes.”
*
Usually, whenever Akion came to the capital, people from all over would seek him out.
It was because they wanted to make various contacts, thanks to how impressive Akion and Eneresis were.
But this time, Akion entered the capital—and the academy—very quietly.
Because….
“A revelation has come.”
Today was the day of the mission to rescue or repel Akion’s eldest sister, Astera Eneresis, who had made contact with the Outer God.
They had to keep the matter secret for security reasons, and, more importantly,
“One of the Saint’s sisters has been captured by the Outer God… and we are to rescue her with our own hands.”
The Saintess and twenty veteran holy knights were waiting in a secluded spot in the academy dormitory.
“So, Saint Akion, there must be something the Lord God told you to prepare….”
“This is it.”
Since they needed to minimize the number of people contaminated by the psychic waves, they had decided to proceed with only the veterans.
Akion was the only member of Eneresis capable of resisting them, so he would accompany the Saintess under her direct protection.
“Ah, is this what will protect us from the Outer God…!”
“It’s aluminum foil.”
While wearing a tinfoil hat.
Akion wondered if this could possibly be right.
He wondered whether he and his companions had really gone through all this for pseudoscience.
“Ooooooh, is this the divine relic the Lord God commanded Saint Akion to create…!”
“It’s not a divine relic. It’s just a thin metal film.”
“Is this how it’s done?”
“Just do it roughly like this.”
But what else could he do?
If the Lord God said it worked, it was hard not to believe him, and they had no other solution at the moment.
So everyone wrapped aluminum foil around their heads to fit them, and then….
“How do I look?”
The Saintess had made a rather presentable tinfoil hat.
“With this, we’ll be perfectly safe from the wicked demon god’s brainwave attacks!”
“Ah, of course. Yes, yes.”
When and how had she attached a cross to the tip of the hat?
Was her cheerful pride in having decorated it so well innocent, or was it madness…?
Akion started to choose his words, then gave up and let out a deep sigh.
“Let’s go already.”
- Click.
I just want to finish this quickly,
Akion thought as he opened the door while wearing the tinfoil hat, and the moment he stepped out,
- Squirm, squirm, writhe!
- Squirmble, squirmble.
The dormitory hallway was covered in writhing black slime.
The horrible stench came free of charge.
“Saint, why did you suddenly stop— Ah.”
The Saintess followed him out, saw the same thing Akion had, and said,
“I suppose we’ll have to do our very best to keep our hats from coming off.”
“I brought strings, just in case. Everyone, make sure to tie yours tightly…!”
Everyone, including the knights,
realized once again just how serious this situation was.