I read the email from the guild three times over on the smartphone placed on the workbench of the shed kitchen.
“Please immediately cease your unlicensed exploration activities.”
The tone was polite, but that was the gist of it.
My explorer license is still suspended.
Whether it was a false accusation or not, according to the guild’s records, I am a “former explorer who has received disciplinary action.” Therefore, I cannot enter official dungeons. I cannot accept requests. I cannot deliver materials either.
I know that.
That is why I am not conquering dungeons.
“Mikoto. Do I look like I am exploring?”
“Meow.”
Sitting on the edge of the workbench, the white cat swayed its tail and meowed.
Which is it?
In front of Mikoto, a small bone cracker of the fang-boar roasted yesterday is placed. Crunching on it, he narrowed his eyes with satisfaction.
“What I am doing is pest control in the fields and cooking.”
“Meow-ah.”
This time, he meowed quite clearly.
Let us go with that.
I fixed my streaming smartphone to a tripod and pressed the broadcast start button as usual.
“Hello. Today, because I was scolded by the guild, I am only going to cook.”
The moment I said that, the comment section started scrolling.
“Inauspicious right from the opening lol” “You got scolded” “Is that what they call unlicensed exploration activities?” “Yesterday’s fang-boar was completely a monster material after all” “But isn’t that pest control that appeared on private land?” “Isn’t there any nihi knowledgeable about explorer law?” “I came to see food, but legal consultations have started lol”
“I am not entering official dungeons. I am just driving away magical beasts that appeared in the village fields and cooking what is edible.”
“Driving away (defeating)” “Just cooking (S-rank dexterity)” “A guy the guild cannot push around too hard” “Does rural pest control require a license?” “Depends on the region” “What about magical beasts?” “I don’t know, if it looks delicious it is legal” “That is different”
The discussion in the comment section strayed further and further off course.
I gave a wry smile and wiped the cutting board with a damp cloth.
“Well, today is really just planned for cooking. With wild vegetables I found on my field inspection yesterday and onions given to me by the village mayor.”
“Yuma-kun!”
From outside the shed, an out-of-breath voice broke in.
When I turned around, Takuya, one of the village’s young men, was standing at the doorway with his hands on the frame. Sweat beaded his forehead, and his complexion was poor.
“Sorry, are you streaming?”
“It is fine. What happened?”
“It appeared again. In the southern field, a fang-boar. It smashed through the fence and is digging up potatoes.”
The comment section accelerated all at once.
“Event triggered” “A fang-boar!?” “A magical beast version of a boar” “Unlicensed exploration activity starting now?” “If it is a field, it is pest control” “Are you watching, guild?” “I thought you were only cooking”
I looked at my smartphone.
The warning email from the guild was still left in the notification column.
The southern field is where Harue-san, an old woman of the village, tends with a sore lower back. She had been rejoicing that the potatoes planted in spring had finally begun to grow plump.
There was no reason to leave it alone.
“I had planned to only cook, but it seems the ingredients have come to the field.”
“The way you phrase it” “Ingredients have arrived lol” “It is pest control” “This is pest control” “Private land! Private land!” “Guild, make this safe for him”
I picked up the smartphone along with the tripod.
“I will film the field. Please do not get close to dangerous areas.”
“Who are you talking to?”
“The people watching.”
“The people watching.”
Takuya had a puzzled look, but he immediately started running. I tried to pick up Mikoto, but the white cat fluttered down to the floor and began walking ahead of me.
It seems he is coming along.
“Mikoto, it is dangerous.”
“Meow.”
His expression seemed to say that the other party was the one in danger.
The path heading to the southern field is about a five-minute walk from the shed. It is terraced fields carved into a mountain slope, and the scent of earth is rich. From afar, the sound of trees snapping could be heard.
The fence is broken.
Beyond it, a black mass was digging up the earth.
A fang-boar.
It is two sizes larger than an ordinary boar, with an outer shell like rock around its shoulders. Two tusks extending from its snout are white and sharp. Every time it kicked up soil with its snout, the potato leaves were ruthlessly scattered.
At the edge of the field, the villagers had gathered.
“Yuma-kun, sorry about this.” “Don’t get close. It will charge right at you.” “My lower back has felt heavy since yesterday, so my legs won’t move even to chase it away.”
Many people have poor complexions.
Miasma fatigue.
Around here, strange miasma sometimes flows from the forest behind the shrine. For weak people, their bodies become heavy like lead. In the other world, I saw similar symptoms many times.
I secured my smartphone to a wooden stake beside the field and checked the angle of view.
“I will film from afar. The sound might be loud.”
“It’s here” “So big” “Not even the size of a boar” “The field is done for” “Doing this alone?” “Isn’t this the time to stop talking about licenses?” “Village people, please evacuate”
I stepped into the field.
The fang-boar raised its head.
Dark reddish-black eyes caught me.
The next moment, it kicked the ground.
The massive body rushed straight toward us. Shattering the remnants of the fence, stirring up dirt, and holding its tusks low for a charge. If taken head-on, even a light truck would overturn.
I stepped forward by just one step.
I extended my right hand and grabbed the base of the tusks.
“There.”
Flowing the impact sideways, I bit into the soil with the soles of my feet. The fang-boar’s body tilted unsteadily. Without killing its momentum, I twisted its neck right then and there.
The ground resonated.
The fang-boar fell on its back onto the grassy area outside the field, thrashed its legs twice, and stopped moving.
It became quiet.
I brushed the dirt off my hands.
“It is dangerous, so please do not try this at home.”
The comment section exploded a beat too late.
“Huh?” “What did he just do?” “Did he throw it lightly???” “Aren’t fang-boars party-level even at C-class?” “That is not the movement of an unlicensed person” “Slow-motion playback team, please” “The person himself has the vibe of being out for a stroll” “Not the there lol” “Guild-san, are you watching?” “It is pest control”
The villagers were also dumbfounded, but the first one to snap out of it was Harue-san, the owner of the field.
“The potatoes… at least half remain.”
Is that your concern?
“I am glad. I will fix the fence later.”
“Yuma-kun, you really saved us.”
“No. I will take the edible parts.”
The fang-boar is large. Processing all of it today is impossible, but the loin and shoulder meat can be used immediately. I quickly finished the bleeding and dismantling process, and decided to carry only the portion I would use back to the shed.
Even during that time, the comment section wavered between the law and the stomach.
“Is it okay to stream this?” “The theory that it is safe because it is not a dungeon” “But what about cooking and selling magical beast materials?” “What if you just treat the villagers?” “I don’t know, I am hungry” “The topic has shifted to ginger pork” “Miso or ginger grilled fang-boar is definitely delicious”
Returning to the shed kitchen, I first cut the meat relatively thick.
The fang-boar meat has a deeper red color than ordinary boar. The fat is white and firm, and when you put a knife to it, there is a moist resistance. The odor is slight, but the wild flavor is strong. If you combine ginger with this, rice will definitely go down easy.
Into a large bowl, put plenty of grated ginger.
Soy sauce, sake, mirin.
Just a little bit of sugar.
Slice the village onions thinly and massage them together with the meat. The refreshing spiciness of the ginger and the aroma of soy sauce rose up immediately.
“Fang-boar meat becomes tough if you cook it too long, so I will sear the surface first and coat it with the sauce afterward.”
“Suddenly a cooking show” “The same person who was throwing magical beasts earlier?” “The color of the meat is crazy” “The fat is clean” “Extra ginger is a lifesaver” “Did you cook white rice?” “I cooked it”
Of course I cooked it.
Inside the rice cooker, the rice given by the village was steaming with a glossy finish. Sweet steam leaked from the gap in the lid. Ginger pork without this is like a bird with one wing.
Put the iron frying pan on the heat.
Draw a thin layer of oil, and when it is heated up, line up the meat.
A sizzling sound bursts.
The surface of the red meat seared all at once, and the fat melted into clarity. When adding the onions, a sweet aroma mixes. The wild flavor of the meat, the spiciness of the ginger, the savory char of the soy sauce. The air in the shed instantly changed into a scent that makes stomachs rumble.
“Meow-ah.”
Mikoto meowed lowly.
“It is still hot.”
“Meow.”
“Since it is seasoned, I will grill a separate batch for Mikoto.”
“Meow.”
He seemed to understand. He aligned his front paws and entered standby mode.
When about eighty percent of the meat was cooked, I poured in the marinade all at once. Bubbles rose inside the frying pan, and the soy sauce and mirin turned into a glaze coating the meat. Finally, a little extra ginger. The aroma rises again.
On a white plate, pile shredded cabbage into a mountain.
Beside it, place the glazed ginger pork of the fang-boar in an overlapping fashion. The onions have turned amber and are gooey among the meat. The sauce left in the frying pan was drizzled thinly from above.
Steam.
Ginger.
Charred soy sauce.
Freshly cooked white rice.
No explanation was needed.
“Food porn” “This is a crime” “Unlicensed cooking activity” “Show the rice” “Did you see the sauce falling onto the cabbage?” “I saw it. I just died” “Hurry up with Mikoto-sama’s share too” “Stomachs are stronger than guild warnings”
For Mikoto, I grilled unseasoned thinly sliced meat in a separate small pot. When I cooled it slightly and served it on a small plate, Mikoto sniffed it gracefully and then took it down in one bite.
His tail stood straight up.
He approves, it seems.
“Yuma-kun, can I come in?”
“Please go ahead.”
Led by Harue-san, the villagers hesitantly entered the shed. I dished out the ginger pork and rice onto small plates and handed them out one by one.
“It is not a huge amount, but please try a bite.”
“It is a huge amount, this is.”
Takuya lifted a piece of meat with his chopsticks. The glossy sauce dripped onto the white rice.
One bite.
At that moment, his eyes went wide.
“Delicious.”
With that as the signal, everyone started eating.
“The ginger really works.” “The meat is so tender. Is fang-boar this delicious?” “The rice soaked in the sauce is also.” “Even the cabbage is a feast.”
Harue-san chewed slowly, then let out a breath.
“Oh, my body feels light.”
The old man next to him rotated his shoulder.
“Really. The heaviness in my back since this morning has lifted.”
“My numbness in the legs is fading too.” “Isn’t miasma fatigue clearing up?” “Even yesterday, going out to the field was exhausting.”
The comment section reacts too.
“Miasma fatigue recovery?” “Did fang-boar have that kind of effect?” “The theory that miasma is regulated by cooking” “Cooking buffs lol” “Isn’t the rural monster diner closer to a medical clinic?” “The license talk gets complicated again lol” “Still, it is good that the villagers look energetic”
I tilted my head.
In the other world, eating meat containing miasma and recovering physical condition was not rare. However, if you make a mistake in preprocessing, you ruin your body instead. It is necessary to remove the turbid miasma remaining in the muscles and blood, and regulate it with the heat level.
Here, it might not be widely known.
“When you are tired, rather than eating meat with strong miasma as it is, it is easier if you regulate the flow with ginger or aromatic vegetables. That is probably why.”
“Is that something you wrap up with ‘probably’?” “Casually dropping professional knowledge” “Guild, research things like this” “Only cooking (with recovery effects)” “I want to eat ginger pork” “I can eat three bowls of rice”
The villagers ate even the sauce left at the bottom of their plates by wiping it up with rice. Their complexions are brighter than before. Their backs are straightened too.
Seeing faces like this makes the depths of my chest feel a little warm.
When I was banished, I thought nobody needed my cooking at all.
But here, if I protect the fields, I am thanked. If I grill meat, they tell me it is delicious. The cat demands plates with an arrogant attitude.
That is enough.
I have no time to think about revenge.
“Yuma-kun.”
The village mayor was standing at the entrance of the shed, holding an empty plate.
He is usually a gentle-faced person, but today deep wrinkles are gathered between his eyebrows.
“What is wrong?”
“After eating the meal, my body felt at ease. Because of that, I want to consult with you while it is still now.”
The village mayor looked toward the mountain.
Further beyond the southern field. The direction where there is an abandoned mine where they used to dig ores long ago.
“Since last night, there has be a strange voice from deep inside the abandoned mine.”
The air in the shed grew slightly colder.
“A voice, you say?”
“Yes. It sounds like a human voice, and it also sounds like a beast’s growl. I have told the young folks not to approach. But I feel like miasma is leaking from there.”
Mikoto froze completely on top of the workbench.
Golden eyes turned toward the mountain.
“Abandoned mine” “That is definitely something dungeonized” “Unlicensed exploration activities are approaching” “No, because he was just consulted” “Mikoto-sama reacted” “Is it related to the rift at the shrine?” “Can this be solved with just cooking?”
I looked at the sauce left in the frying pan.
The aroma of charred soy sauce and ginger is still faintly lingering.
“I am currently suspended from my explorer license though.”
The village mayor nodded with a serious face.
“I know. That is why, first of all, won’t you come and check up to the entrance of the abandoned mine? As a cook.”
“As a cook?”
“If something comes out, I want you to check whether it is edible again.”
The comment section jumped all at once.
“The mayor is strong” “As a cook lol” “An unlicensed person only cooks” “Up to the entrance is just a stroll” “Wanting him to check if it’s edible is lol” “But the voice is scary” “Next time, abandoned mine gourmet edition?”
Mikoto meowed shortly.
“Meow.”
It seemed to mean: go.
I sighed and closed the lid of the rice cooker.
“Understood. Only up to the entrance. Today, I already sharpened my kitchen knife after all.”
The village mayor looked relieved.
Beside him, Mikoto was swaying his tail with a weirdly satisfied look.
I turned back to the streaming screen.
“So, since I am an unlicensed person, I will only cook. Next time, it will just be checking if there are any ingredients at the entrance of the abandoned mine.”
“Trying to escape with phrasing” “Are you watching, guild? It is only cooking” “The possibility that ingredients are meowing” “Stop it, that’s scary” “Watching next time too” “Cooking rice and waiting”
A voice heard from deep inside the abandoned mine.
The presence of that rift felt behind the shrine.
Mikoto’s eyes are staring fixedly at the mountain.
It seems country life is going to be a little busier than expected.