Surviving on the Northern Front with Gukbap

Chapter 35 : Homeward (3)

Homeward (3)

Iron is scarce in this world.

That is why metal armor is expensive.

So, I was also wearing a relatively cheap gambeson.

And yet, plate armor in a world like this.

Moreover, the fact that someone managed to approach us without Plerine noticing meant—

'A high-ranker. And on par with Jeros or a captain at that.'

Even for them, such a feat wouldn't be easy.

That was the way of 'crappy game' Belkhazium.

A game that threw any sense of level design out the window.

Out of nowhere, monsters that completely mismatched your level would pop up.

Now, seeing how closely this mirrored reality, it makes sense.

'In reality, enemies don't show up in a neat, shonen-manga style, one after another at my level.'

Still, fortunately,

There was no sign of hostility on the face visible between the open visor.

"May I join you for a meal?"

A polite tone and an awkward smile.

At this, I first calmed Plerine.

"Sit down, Plerine."

"Boss, that person is strong."

"I know. But that doesn't mean you need to frown at them right off the bat."

Now that I was paying attention, the bowl Plerine had been holding was lying on the ground.

She must have been quite startled.

"Let's just sit first."

"......."

Plerine stood frozen for a few seconds before slowly taking a seat.

Her face was still fixed on the middle-aged man.

Growl—

Once again, the middle-aged man's stomach rumbled awkwardly,

So I spoke first.

"Judging by your appearance, you don't seem short on food, do you?"

He was a man carrying a sizable backpack.

He couldn't possibly be without food.

"I do have some jerky, but after eating nothing but the same thing for a week, I'm sick of it."

—His face looked incredibly sad for a brief instant,

And his gaze was fixed on the pot before me.

"While I was hungry, the delicious smell drew me here. I'm sorry if I startled you."

Even as I spoke formally, the middle-aged man continued to respond politely.

Judging from the atmosphere, he didn't seem to have any ill intentions toward us.

Purely my own instincts speaking, but still—

"I'm a cook. If you're willing to pay, I'll give you a bowl."

"If it's money, I have enough."

His face grew rather desperate.

"......."

A man, hungry and desperate for food.

After some thought, I handed over the bowl and spoon of radish soup I held.

"Take it."

"Thank you."

Receiving the steaming bowl, he smiled warmly.

"Boss."

"Yes?"

"I want more too."

At some point, Plerine had picked up the bowl she dropped and was now holding it out to me.

It was a good thing I'd made enough.

*

The middle-aged man took his seat on my left and savored the soup.

"This is fantastic! To have such soup in this cold weather—what luck!"

The blind woman sat on my right, sipping from her bowl.

She was still watching the middle-aged man,

But her tension had noticeably eased.

That's commendable.

Especially since she's keeping her promise not to use magic rashly.

Anyway,

Although everyone wasn't fully relaxed,

A fight wasn't about to break out, so I decided to put off other concerns until after eating.

'Finally, food!'

This was the third Korean dish after rice porridge and oxtail soup.

I wondered how it would turn out,

And, what sort of "complete Korean dish" bonus effect I'd get this time as I took a bite.

Slurp.

Delicious.

Far better than what I had at the Grey Fortress inn a few days ago.

Yes.

It was delicious, but—

'Still missing that last 2%.'

It lacked the nutty aroma from pre-frying ingredients in sesame oil,

And the depth of flavor from anchovy broth.

'I'll need to try radish soup again next time.'

Resolving to make a deluxe version once I had more points, I spooned mouthful after mouthful.

'The meat is incredible, though.'

Fresh bear meat was even chewier than beef,

And there was no gamey flavor at all.

'What else could I make with this to taste even better?'

Pondering this, I cleaned the bowl, and then the system's voice echoed in my mind.

〈 Your sense of smell increases slightly. 〉

〈 By consuming the completed Korean dish "Unrefined Meat Radish Soup (Mid-low-rank ingredient: Ice Bear)," you gain a bonus effect. 〉

〈 Body temperature does not decrease. (1 hour 30 minutes) 〉

〈 Heightened sense of smell remains. (2 hours) 〉

〈 Enhanced flexibility remains. (30 minutes) 〉

I felt a sting to my pride.

"Unrefined" meat radish soup, really?

It felt as though the system was judging my cooking as lacking.

Yet at the same time, it was curious that the ingredient quality had changed.

Last time, the boar tail Flaco had brought was "low-rank",

But this time, it was "mid-low-rank".

It did taste better than before.

If mid-low-rank tastes this good, how amazing will higher grades be?

'This is seriously exciting.'

Just as I resolved to use garlic and sesame oil next time,

The system chimed in again.

〈 //Specialist Exclusive// You gain a non-shareable effect. 〉

〈 Your sense increases slightly. 〉

〈 Enhanced sense remains. (1 hour 30 minutes) 〉

The "sense" stat that hunter Flaco possesses had increased.

And just like the spider guy from a certain hero movie, all the hairs on my body stood on end.

I suddenly became acutely aware of the middle-aged man's danger.

'This isn't easy.'

Now I understood why Plerine was so startled,

And the saying about "a puppy unaware of a tiger's terror" made sense.

To think I had such a dangerous man sitting beside me.

"Thank you for the meal. Will this be enough for payment?"

The middle-aged man had just finished his bowl and held out a shilling to me.

Though I hesitated for a moment, I accepted it silently,

And instantly, as if the system now considered him a customer, a voice rang out.

〈 Customer—Schutmann Whitefang recognizes your food 〉

〈 You gain 1 "recognition". 〉

I almost flinched at hearing the man's surname,

But forced myself to act natural.

He may even have noticed that slight hesitation.

'His equipment already looked exceptional, but... so he's a White Fang.'

The knight order White Fang, symbol of the Kaischen Duchy.

I discreetly examined the middle-aged man's plate armor.

'I don't see the White Fang emblem.'

Was he on a solo secret mission?

Since he was traveling alone, he likely wasn't a full knight.

Probably a junior knight, a squire.

At that point in my reasoning,

The "sense" stat I had gained from the radish soup began to soar.

'I let in someone I shouldn't have.'

The more I thought about it, the more oppressive it felt.

"There's no need to be so on guard."

The middle-aged man's voice broke my train of thought.

Apparently, I'd let my feelings show.

"If you keep this meeting a secret, there'll be no trouble."

Though the hot soup had warmed my body,

My heart instantly turned cold.

His tone was polite, but with a subtle, sharp edge.

Gulp.

The old man from the stonemason guild swallowed nervously.

I quickly signaled Plerine to stay quiet and replied,

"A secret, is it? That's no difficult task. All of us here will do so. We've never seen you."

When dealing with someone open to diplomacy, it's best to negotiate before resorting to violence.

"Thank you. I very much enjoyed the meal."

The middle-aged man, Schutmann Whitefang, handed me his empty bowl.

"If I have the chance, I'd love to eat your food again."

With that, Schutmann stood up leisurely and vanished without a trace.

〈 The customer is satisfied with the service 〉

〈 You gain 1 "satisfaction". 〉

*

The war over the spirit stone quarry between Granfen and Heroni was a small-scale regional conflict.

In skirmishes like this, it was rare to see 4th-rank warriors.

Only during a full-scale war between nations would you expect to see mages or junior knights and above, 5th-rank and higher.

But now a squire had shown up in a petty skirmish.

Highly unusual.

'Something feels off about all this.'

Maybe this was thanks to the sense stat boost from the bear meat radish soup.

My frontal lobe was spinning and my instincts were on high alert.

'Did they call in a squire because the spirit stone quarry had been attacked by a mage?'

Plausible.

But then, why did that squire ask me to keep our meeting secret?

Here's my reasoning.

'The identity of the mage who attacked the spirit stone quarry still hasn't been revealed.'

Granfen probably has only circumstantial evidence, not solid proof.

Heroni is likely denying any involvement.

In other words, there's no justification for Granfen to employ a squire.

And if word got out that a White Fang squire was in Granfen?

Heroni would not stand idly by.

'That would mean an all-out war would break out.'

That's why he asked me to keep his identity secret.

But why!

'If your identity is so critical, why are you bumming a meal off me?'

I appreciated the shop window points and the money,

But overall, I was left with nothing but a lingering sense of unease.

Perhaps because of this chilling experience,

No one said a word as we traveled onward.

Only the sound of footsteps crunching on snow and the groaning of the wooden cart filled the silence.

Swoosh. Swoosh.

Creak. Creak.

'Plerine has quieted down, too.'

Was she shocked that she let someone get close?

She, too, had been silent all the way, walking in quiet contemplation.

'Well, after all, that squire could have suddenly turned on us at any moment.'

Everyone moved along in silence.

Sensing this was my chance, I checked the new tab on the system: [Bestiary].

'Bestiary.'

Ding. With a sound, the system window appeared in front of my eyes.

[Bestiary]

-------(Bestiary List)-------

〈Ice Bear〉

My [Bestiary] was starkly empty compared to the other tabs.

I had only succeeded in hunting one creature so far—the Ice Bear.

I immediately tapped 〈Ice Bear〉.

〈Ice Bear〉

└ Species: Beast

└ Hunts: 1/100

└ Drop Items: [Ice Bear Claw], [Ice Bear Hide], [White Bear Gallbladder]

└ Characteristics: The largest existing bear on the continent of Belkhazium and the third largest among beast species. Its temperament is extremely sensitive, and if approached, it will attack indiscriminately and lives without forming packs......

I stopped reading the "characteristics" section because I'd always hated backstory and lore in games.

Instead, something else caught my attention and made my heart pound.

'Hunt count?'

Next to it was the number 1/100.

The 1 on the left was how many I had hunted so far,

The 100 on the right, presumably the goal.

'If I hunt a hundred Ice Bears, will I get something as a reward?'

Wow, this is like an ant-lion trap.

The more you know, the more there is to do,

And curiosity alone is enough to drive you crazy with this system window.

I felt an impatient urge to rush off to the Ice Bear habitat and fill out that number......

'......but returning to Granfen comes first. I need to assess the situation and handle the remodeling.'

I could always go hunting once preparations were in place.

With those rambling thoughts, I arrived at a familiar cave,

The very place where I'd met the bard and the impet.

We spent another night camping there,

And the next day, by daylight, made it back to Granfen.