Tensei Shite Inaka de Slowlife wo Okuritai

Chapter 239: Lured By The Smell Of Miso

「……Al, wake up」

The next morning, I woke up after being shaken by someone.

Inside the house made of Earth magic, it’s always dark since there are no windows that can allow the sunlight from outside to shine inside efficiently.

Because of that, I don’t even know who is in front of me, but my intuition asserted that it was Eleonora-neesan.

That’s right. I didn’t lock the door since this is not the mansion.

「……what? It’s still dark」

「It’s only the inside of the house that is dark, it’s already bright outside」

In order to confirm what Eleonora-neesan said, I hollowed out a square-shaped hole on the wall using Earth magic.

Then, the morning sun illuminates the room, and I close my eyes to the dazzling light since I’ve been used to the room's darkness.

The fresh air softly came into the room, swaying my hair and Eleonora-neesan’s.

When my eyes finally got used to the light, I slowly turn my gaze outside.

The sun had just risen, and the dark sky was gradually brightening.

How long has it been since I saw the morning sun?

「Look, it’s morning, right? I’m hungry already so go and make breakfast. Row-san and Mina are waiting downstairs」

As I blankly stare at the morning sun outside, Eleonora-neesan said that to me and left the room.

「What about Eleonora-neesan?」

「Morning practice. I haven’t swung my sword for a while now」

No, ‘aren’t you going to help us make breakfast’ I meant to ask with that kind of meaning…

Oh well, whatever. Just me and Row-san alone can easily make breakfast. Let’s make a delicious meal for everyone since I was having the easiest lookout last night.

With that in mind, I quickly got dressed

When I head to the kitchen on the first floor, Row-san and Mina had already prepared the ingredients for the breakfast.

「「Good morning, Alfried-sama」」

「Good morning, Row-san. Mina still looks sleepy, aren’t you?」

Row-san did a perfectly normal preparation, but for some reason, Mina looks sleepy.

「I was awakened many times when I was sleeping soundly, it feels difficult to describe」

Yeah, when I was woken up from my sleep on the way, somehow I also feel like I was not sleeping at all. If possible, humans should have slept for a long time.

Mina became like this after having the second shift. So it might be pretty hard for Elna-kaasan and Sylvio-niisan - who has the third shifts.

「……huh? You said ‘many times’, isn’t that strange? I don’t think Mina will be woken up so many times since you take my turn on the lookout……」

「……it was the chair made by Alfried-sama. That thing is evil. You prepare such a comfortable chair to sleep」

Ooh, so it looks like Mina was done in by that evil chair.

So she fell asleep many times during her watch and probably got woken up by Nord-tousan.

「You will surely be wide awake if you eat a delicious breakfast. Let’s make breakfast now」

「Yes」

Mina replied with a somewhat low voice, maybe she’s still sleepy.

「Normally, the servants - me and Mina - are the ones who should prepare the breakfast, but is it really okay for Alfried-sama to help us?」

Uh, Row-san said that looking as if he was sorry to involve me when we were about to begin preparing breakfast.

As for the sleepy Mina, she also opened her eyes wide suddenly, looking surprised by what he said. I guess she’s saying something like 「What kind of unnecessary thing is this guy trying to say now!?」 in her mind, huh.

「It’s fine. It’s going to be faster and easier to have me who can use magic here」

「Thank you, that will help a lot」

Row-san lowered his head as thanks when I told him that.

And then, Mina lightly exhale as if she was relieved to hear that.

Though this place is also near a water source, it’s a little bit far from here. We chose this place with the condition that either Elna-kaasan or I will help in using magic. So I have to help them this time.

So Row-san immediately agrees with that suggestion, there is probably a great difference between having magic or not to help us after all.

「I wonder what should be the best menu for breakfast?」

「It’s best if we use vegetables since they are limited in terms of freshness, so how about vegetable soup?」

「If so then let’s make miso soup! I, I like to have that in the morning!」

「Then, we will use a lot of ingredients to make miso soup!」

So it’s decided to use Mina’s nice suggestion to have a miso soup for breakfast.

「Miso soup?」

Perhaps Row-san had never eaten it before, he has a curious look on his face.

Guess that’s because the miso that I brought back home from Kagura hadn’t spread to the village yet. It has gradually spread among Torr and Asmo’s family and also Celia-san’s restaurant as a convenient seasoning, but it hasn’t spread that far yet.

「It’s a delicious soup. I’m sure Row-san will also like it」

「Then I will look forward to it」

Just like that, the menu is decided to be miso soup and so we start to peacefully prepare the breakfast.

I create the necessary kitchen utensils and tableware using Earth magic.

Next, I put water into a jar so that it can be used by the two when it's needed.

After that is done, I create a fireball and make them float in the kitchen, then modified the kitchen so that I can make the pan float on top of the fireball.

Un, with this the preparation is pretty much done. Ah, just to be sure I’ll make the air vents larger.

「……I feel that just Alfried-sama alone is enough somehow」

「……there is the pre-preparation for the ingredients. Let’s do our best on that part」

Mina and Row-san each start preparing the ingredients with that kind of impression in their mind. And it’s been decided that I will make the dashi and cook the rice.

As expected, miso soup should go along with rice. If possible I also want tamagoyaki………nah, we didn’t bring any eggs since there’s a problem with the freshness of the ingredients.

Kuuh, I want to make one by taking an egg out from my subspace.

I unwillingly give up on the tamagoyaki and focus on cooking the rice.

There is no kamado (traditional stove) like in the mansion or My Home, but we have the portable rice cooker made by Logan. Thanks to that I only have to adjust the heat level after adding the rice.

The flavor may be slightly less palatable without a kamado, but we have the spice called ‘hunger’ and we even have crispy rice at the bottom. It wouldn’t be bad to have this kind of rice once in a while.

While I was adjusting the fireball and cooking the rice, Mina and Row-san are cutting the vegetables one by one and throwing them into the pot.

As we continue to work efficiently like that, we have mostly finished our work in around half an hour.

And after Mina dissolves the miso into the pot, the kitchen is immediately wrapped in the gentle smell of miso.

Then, Mina’s expression - which looks like she had been affected by drowsiness - brightens up as if it was purified.

「……haa, what a nice smell! We just have to cook the miso soup together!」

Mina raises her voice with a more cheerful voice than usual, maybe she already woke up after smelling the miso.

Un, this is a nice smell. The gentle yet fragrant smell of miso stimulated my empty stomach somewhat.

「We’re going to be able to proceed and have a meal with this. But, I want a little more dishes」

「As expected, we need meat right!」

Mina suggested while her eyes are shining brightly when I folded my arms and groaned about our meal.

「No, we used up our meat yesterday. We only have dried meat now」

When I resolutely discard her suggestion, Mina makes a face as though it’s the end of the world.

Actually, I can just bring the meat stored in the cold storage in the mansion, but it’s summer right now so I gave up on that idea since it can’t be properly refrigerated like back in my previous life.

It would be great if there is something like a suitable carriage for cold storage for food but we don’t have one.

But, in exchange for that, we have two versatile seasonings, miso and soy sauce.

It’s enough if we just add them while frying the leftover ingredients.

Struck with that idea, I add oil to the frying pan and fry the leftover ingredients.

After the vegetables have been cooked and become tender, I add some miso, mirin, soy sauce, and an appropriate amount of Kagura sake, stir them then fry them again.

Just doing that complete the fried leftover-ingredients dish seasoned with miso.

(Stir fry leftover vegetables with soy sauce and miso)

It’s a simple dish where you only add seasonings and fry the ingredients. This is so easy that even Eleonora-neesan can do it.

I taste the finished fried dish.

Un, the miso has perfectly soaked into the leftover ingredients and mushroom. It has a sufficient, satisfying taste.

Ahー, I want to immediately eat this with rice.

「Ahー! Alfried-sama that’s sneaky!」

As I was tasting the dish, Mina sharp-sighted-ly found out about it then points her finger at me *bishi* and shout.

「I got found out, huh. It’s okay if Mina and Row-san want to taste it. Tasting the dish is the privilege of the people making them after all」

「Then I will use my privilege!」

「…well then, I will also try a bit」

Mina immediately raises her fork and Row-san also took a fork while being reserved.

Then the two of them stick their forks into the fried dish that was seasoned with miso.

「Fuuaaah!? This is, this one will definitely go well with the rice!?」

「Miso and soy sauce have a very delicious taste, aren’t they」

It looks like Row-san - who tried soy sauce for the first time - also took a liking to it.

While I was relieved by Row-san’s response, I saw Mina heartily eating the miso-seasoned fried dish *pakupaku*. No matter how you look at it, that has already exceeded the scope of ‘tasting’.

「Hey Mina. Aren’t you eating too much?」

「I have to make sure that this can be properly served to everyone! This is also a maid’s duty!」

That’s truly fine courage for you to treat the things your master made like it contains poison. I see, a maid’s duty, huh?

I wonder if there is an octopus in Eric’s territory? Suppose there is an octopus in his territory, I’ll make an octopus-based dish and let Mina taste it. And if there are also sea urchins and sea cucumbers, it’s not a bad idea to let her taste them.

「……eh? Somehow, I feel a shiver down my spine」

「It’s just your imagination」

So, I hope you continue to fulfill your duty as a maid to your heart’s content hereafter.

As we were having such a conversation, the entrance door opened and Eleonora-neesan entered the living room.

Then Eleonora-neesan comes into the kitchen, as though she was drawn by the nice smell of the breakfast.

「There is a really nice smell. Are we going to have miso soup for breakfast?」

「That’s right」

She is sweating since she was practicing, but it’s really strange that she doesn’t smell of sweat at all.

「You are making stir-fry food here」

She muttered, and then I hit Eleonora-neesan’s arm as she reached out for the dish.

「Hey what are you doing? There’s a lot of them, it’s fine if I just take a little, right!」

「Eating the food before mealtime is the right of the people making the foodー. Those who didn’t help should just wait and sit on their seat, go sit」

Eleonora-neesan had a sullen look on her face when I drive her away with my hand *shoo shoo*.

The Eleonora-neesan return to the living room as if she gave up……but when I thought like that, she suddenly turn around with a speed that can’t be seen with the eyes even if I pay attention to her and reach out for the mushroom among the miso-seasoned fried dish and put it into her mouth.

「Aahh!?」

「Mm, good stuff!」

Eleonora-neesan unconsciously raised her voice after trying it.

Though I’m happy that you said it’s delicious, what about that line you shouldn't say as a girl?

「One, one more bite」

「The person who takes the food as they please is forbidden to get more」

As Eleonora-neesan and I are having such an exchange, I hear footsteps coming from the stairs.

Apparently, Nord-tousan, Elna-kaasan, and Sylvio-niisan have also woken up.

「It smells good」

「Are we having miso soup today?」

Such conversation can be heard along with the sounds of footsteps of people going down the stairs.

「Come on, it’s almost time for breakfast so go and sit down」

「I know」

Even when I told her that, Eleonora-neesan snatched the food again just like before.