Surviving on the Northern Front with Gukbap

Chapter 23 : Salt

Salt

I opened my eyes to the sound of birds chirping.

I don't know how long I slept, but my whole body still ached.

I couldn't move a finger.

So I closed my eyes again.

'Ha. Annoying.'

I recalled how the shop had been wrecked last night in that group brawl with Captain Hook's gang.

Chairs and tables had been smashed,

fist-sized stones jammed into the walls and pillars,

and on the floor...

'Even footprints I made myself. Ugh.'

Maybe this was the real charm of running an inn in a medieval fantasy world,

but my stomach hurt thinking of all the money I'd need for repairs.

'Maybe I should just do a full remodel at this point.'

The problem was the lump sum I'd need for such remodeling.

Just in case, I searched those bastards' corpses, but came up with only 3 copper coins.

'Spoils: a spear and a sickle. That's it.'

And who knows how much I'd even get for those at a blacksmith's.

While I worried about this, a knocking came at the door.

"Boss? Are you awake?"

Right. I'd hired a clerk now.

As the boss, I couldn't let the employee see me being lazy.

I got out of bed at once and opened the door.

"Hmm. Did you sleep well, Naba?"

"Yes, boss."

The look in his eyes was much softer than yesterday.

From Naba's perspective, I was someone who had saved his life twice,

and I'd proven myself strong by defeating numerous adventurers.

"I thought you'd be tired from yesterday and didn't want to wake you..."

He trailed off, glancing towards the inn's hall.

At the entrance, that silver-haired, sly-eyed brat was waving at me in a greasy manner.

"Hehe. Life must be good, eh? Sleeping in at this hour."

His mocking tone was as irritating as ever,

but compared to what Derek's gang had done, he suddenly seemed not so bad.

Looking at him again, I felt like he almost looked saintly, so I said,

"Sorry, customer. We won't be open for business until the repairs are done."

"You idiot. People will think you're ripping out the whole kitchen. Hehe."

Jeros said, sitting at one of the few surviving tables.

And the wreckage around him...

"Naba, did you clean all that up?"

What used to be furniture, now neatly stacked as firewood in a corner.

"Yes. I thought it might help."

Hmm. First impression—clerk number one gets a pass.

"Good job."

I patted Naba on the head and headed into the kitchen, calling out,

"All I can make right now is fondue bread and potato stew."

"Haha. What are you talking about? Just bring out that porridge you served yesterday."

"... You said it was mediocre."

"There's no pumpkin soup, is there? So I have to eat that instead."

"If you want something hot, I can make potato stew too?"

"Wanna die? Just bring me the porridge."

Always asking for the most point-consuming food for free—really.

He only knows the tasty stuff.

"It works faster, even if the time is short. Hehe."

Ah, so it's not just the taste.

Though a bit miffed, it gave me a better idea.

"Jeros. Want to try it with rice instead of porridge?"

"Rice?"

"It's steamed grain. If you care about the effect, rice actually lasts longer than porridge."

Jeros grinned and replied,

"Bring it on then."

I gave a thumbs-up and went to make pot-cooked rice.

But that alone would be bland,

so I broke up some coarse salt and sprinkled it evenly on the rice, then shaped it into a ball.

'It'd be tastier with sesame oil, but I need to save points.'

Voila, ultra-simple rice balls.

As I was about to serve them to Jeros, a thought crossed my mind.

'No way the effect is different from a bowl of plain rice, right?'

With my cooking, plain rice gave a strength buff.

Would a rice ball have a different effect?

'No, surely not. No way.'

A useless worry perhaps,

and I wasn't eating it anyway, so I gave it to Jeros.

"Oh, it's round."

Jeros stared at the rice ball for about 30 seconds, hesitated again, and finally

brought it to his mouth.

Nibble.

As he bit in, his sly eyes widened.

The first reaction I'd seen like this since he tried the fondue bread.

Munch munch.

Jeros devoured the rice ball in a hurry and said,

"You. Ever since that porridge before, I've been dying to know. How do you make this salty taste?"

"It's a shop secret, so I can't say."

"Don't kid around."

Suddenly, Jeros got serious.

"The rice, the garlic—you get all these ingredients that you can't find in this village. Hehe. And there's no way rice could have this kind of artificial saltiness!"

"..."

"Don't tell me, can you even get salt? Hehe."

He almost seemed bloodshot.

But what was this madness?

I hesitated briefly, but figuring it was too hard to hide, I nodded slightly.

"Hehe."

Jeros's lips curled up to his ears.

"Bwahaha! Hahahaha!"

He laughed maniacally, like a lunatic.

What the hell is up with this guy?

"Where is it? The salt, I mean?"

Jeros suddenly stood.

Without a word, I led him to the kitchen.

A bag of coarse salt in a transparent modern plastic bag.

About two-thirds left—so, roughly 100g.

Jeros's eyes grew huge at the sight.

Who knew he could make his eyes that wide?

Murmuring, Jeros picked up the salt pouch.

"With this quality, this quantity... at least 10 shillings. Hehe."

I thought I misheard.

'Coarse salt, 100g, for 10 shillings?!'

That was impossibly expensive.

No wonder money-grubber Jeros had laughed like a lunatic.

Come to think of it, spices were ridiculous luxuries in medieval times—

so salt, of course, would cost a fortune.

'Wait. How does that compare to the money I make from sugar...?'

In the [Shop Window], a kilo of white sugar costs 2 points.

Sales per kilo average 20 copper coins.

'That's 10 copper coins sales per point.'

Coarse salt, at 5 points for 150g, 15 shillings—

that's 3 shillings per point?

And that's pure profit, not just gross sales.

Unbelievable.

Just when I needed money!

"If I sell salt, I can cover all the repairs and remodeling!"

All the stress about repairs instantly vanished.

Ah, exhilarating.

* * *

A short while later,

Jeros and Ian sat across from each other, having calmed down.

"......"

"......"

A strange silence hung between them.

But Jeros could hear the gears turning in Ian's brain.

'Always so cunning, this punk.'

Of course, Jeros's own mind was just as busy.

Originally, Jeros had planned on giving Ian the money for repairs.

'The 40 shillings I wrung out of the one-armed bastard would cover everything.'

The money Jeros made from the Fairy's Leg wasn't small.

So he had planned to invest in the shop.

But that was no longer necessary,

since Ian's ability wasn't just infusing buff effects into food—

he could also generate ingredients from his own world.

The smell of money practically stabbed Jeros in the nose.

'He really is a goose that lays golden eggs.'

Suppressing a smile that wanted to escape, Jeros was about to speak,

but Ian beat him to it.

"My ability has limits. To use it, I have to run the inn and sell food. I can't just sell salt."

Ian's gaze was calm now,

a stark contrast to his reaction to the price of coarse salt.

"Hehehe."

Jeros smiled.

That was why he liked Ian.

An outsider, but skilled at handling himself and quick with calculations.

'And gutsy, to boot.'

With a smirk, Jeros said,

"What, you think I'll tell you to close the inn and just sell salt?"

"Yes."

"Sharp, aren't you? Hehe."

Suppressing his regret, Jeros said,

"Fine. Because of your skill's limits, the inn is a must—that it?"

"Exactly. So we can only sell enough salt for the shop's repairs, and the rest has to be used as ingredients."

"Can't we do both? Sell salt, run the inn, I mean. Hehe."

"Not yet."

"Not yet?"

"Yes. Not yet. I still don't understand most of my ability."

"Hm. I see."

Jeros was doubtful, but decided to trust him for now.

After all, in this cursed world, there's no such thing as free strength,

so Ian's gift definitely came with restrictions.

But at the same time, that meant—

"If you figure it out and improve, one day you could close the inn and just sell salt, huh? Hehe."

"......"

Ian's silence was a tacit sign of displeasure.

"Just kidding! Look at you get cocky, now that you actually have something."

Jeros crossed his legs, stroking his chin in thought.

Which option would earn him more?

How should he fatten up this golden goose?

And should he—or shouldn't he—give Ian the repair money wrung from one-armed Derek?

"Hehe. Alright."

With his mind made up, Jeros said,

"For now, do whatever you like. Sell salt, use it for cooking, whatever—it's your skill, your call. I won't interfere."

The golden goose wasn't fattened up enough yet.

Still just a chick.

Now was the time to nurture it.

And besides, 80% of the net profit from the shop was still his anyway.

Therefore,

Jeros tossed three silver shillings to Ian.

"Take it."

Ian was stunned at these unbelievable things flying at him from Jeros.

"?!"

That guy, suddenly giving three silver coins?

—but before he could react, Jeros smiled leisurely and said,

"What's so surprising? Use it for the shop's repairs. Hehe."

Forty shillings extorted from one-armed Derek.

Jeros had decided to keep the remaining 37 all to himself,

but Ian had no way of knowing this, and could only gape dumbly.

"What, speechless now? Hehe. Are you touched?"

Ian's head spun.

'He's just going to let it go? And even give me three shillings?'

The joy at hearing the price of salt faded quickly—now Ian just felt anxious at the unknowable wall that was money-grubber Jeros.

And yet, Jeros stepped back more easily than expected.

He even coughed up three shillings—"big" money.

It automatically made Ian feel suspicious.

"Something good happen to you?"

"Who can say? Hehe."

His eyebrow seemed to twitch a little—

'Never mind. No need to dig.'

Some things are best left be,

no reason to make trouble.

"Thank you, Jeros."

As Ian bowed in thanks, Jeros waved it off.

"That's enough. If you're grateful, pay me back with more money!"

How much more would it take to satisfy this guy?

Ian grinned and said,

"Speaking of which,"

"?"

"I'll be heading to Grey Fortress for a bit."

Because if you're going to spend money right, a trip to the city is only natural.