Early in the morning, I was woken up by Char.
“Good morning, Father. Today is bird’s nest soup day!”
Char can’t help but want to taste the swift’s nest that we collected yesterday.
But Lynn is not going to cook until lunchtime. What more, it’s still dark outside.
“It’s too early. The bird nest soup will be served lunch time, right?”
“But I can’t wait!”
Goodness. I was also completely awakened by Char’s excitement.
“Well, I guess there’s no other way then. Let’s start by doing some farm work as usual. After that, how about we have breakfast and then go deeper into the island?”
“Are we exploring?”
Char’s eyes sparkle with curiosity. There are so many things going on that I haven’t completely traversed the north side of the island yet. I had been thinking about going there for a long time because I might discover something new.
“Let’s go through the side of the cave and go a little farther from there.”
“Let’s do that! Work and explore in the morning, and swift’s nest at noon!”
We then got up and went out to tend the vegetable garden in front of the cottage.
Just as I was about to finish everything and go exploring, Mio-san arrived.
“Good morning. Are you guys going somewhere?”
“Yes, I was thinking of going to the north side of the island.”
“Oh…… can I come along?”
“I don’t mind. But there’s no decent road there yet.”
“It’s okay, I’m used to it.”
“Are you used to it?”
“Ah…… uhm, I used to be an adventurer, albeit a little.”
I didn’t know Mio-san had such a past. But if she was once an adventurer, rough road wouldn’t be a problem for her then. Besides, if she stays at the inn all the time, Mio-san will really get bored.
A small exploration may comfort the traumatized Mio-san.
“Alright, let’s go together.”
So, me, Char and Mio-san decided to go out together.
We passed in front of the hot springs, passed by the cave, and came to the north side. From here on, it is an unexplored land that has never been entered.
“Char, are there any signs of dangerous creatures ahead?”
Char listens intently while sniffing the wind.
“There are only animals around. Probably…… a raccoon……”
Then there’s nothing to be scared of.
“Okay, let’s move on.”
“Yes. Hn……?”
Char, who had been smelling the wind, suddenly stopped. The easterly wind that had been blowing earlier had changed to a northerly wind.
Is it a sign of a monster?
“Father, does it smell refreshing?”
“A fresh smelling monster?”
“No, not that. This…… it smells a little like orange.”
That means there’s a citrus tree growing somewhere.
“Char, can you pinpoint the location of the smell?”
“Of course!”
Char led the way and began to walk slowly towards the backwoods. In the depths of the forest, we found a lemon tree. The tree is about 4 meters tall and much taller than us.
There was a lot of fruit on its branches.
“Father, there is a delicious smelling fruit, can we eat it?”
“Well, technically you can eat it. But lemons are very sour if you eat them as they are.”
“Oh….It is sour……”
Char shrugs her small shoulders.
“But we can use it in a lot of different dishes, and of course, we can use it as an ingredient in sweets. With this, we can make honey lemon drink and lemon cakes.”
“Wow! I want to eat lemon cake!”
“Got it. Then let’s harvest a few.”
Char and I picked up lemons and stuffed it in our pockets. If we deliver new ingredients, Lynn will surely be happy.
“But it’s really strange, right? I mean…… that there are lemons at this time of the year.”
Mio-san’s eyes blinked in surprise.
“This island is special.”
“It’s a truly mysterious island……”
I think so too.
“Father, it’s bad!”
Suddenly, Char exclaimed.
“W-what’s wrong?”
“Look! Isn’t the sun so high up?”
She wants to say that it’s time for lunch. I’m sure Lynn is already cooking and will be waiting for us to taste the bird nest soup.
“Alright, we’ve got a harvest of lemons, so let’s leave it here for today’s exploration.”
“Cedie-san, may I have a lemon as a souvenir?”
“You don’t have to take only one, take as many as you want.”
Come to think of it, lemons help prevent scurvy in sailors. I’ve read about it in books about the Age of Discovery. I’ll ask Emma next time if there’s a demand for lemons.
We turned back the way we came and headed straight to the Auberge. When we arrived at the auberge, everything was already prepared at the table.
Lynn happily greets us.
“Swift’s nest soup is ready.”
“Thank you. How did it taste?”
“The swift’s nest itself didn’t have a taste or aroma, so I added it to the seafood soup. It is an ingredient you can enjoy for its texture and benefits.”
Lynn added the swift’s nest into a soup made with dried scallops, vegetables, and seafood.
“It smells good. Let’s try it right away!”
“Oh, that’s right. Mio-san can join us too.”
I also invited Mio-san, who helped me pick lemons.
“Eh? But swift’s nests are rare, aren’t they? I don’t think I can have it.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Come sit.”
She came to overcome the pain of having her engagement broken off. I want Mio-san to enjoy life as much as possible. I pulled her to the table a little forcibly and decided to drink soup with her.
“Itadakimasu.”
Just by putting a spoonful of soup in my mouth, a strong umami flavor spread in my tongue.
As expected of Lynn’s dish. The rich soup lingers, and I can’t stop putting the spoon into my mouth.
The texture of the swift’s nest was so good. Just when I thought it was chewy, it disappeared into a gooey mess.
“It’s so delicious, Lynn!”
“I’m surprised!”
“This is the first time I’ve ever had such delicious soup.….”
Lynn looked at me with a serious gaze.
“It’s too early to be surprised. That’s not the secret of this soup…”
“Eh?”
“Fufu, as you’d expect from a Gandalcian soup. Upa, bring me a mirror!”
“Sure!”
Upa came from the back with a large mirror in his hand.
“What’s wrong, Upa? Why are you bringing something like that to the table?”
“Just take a look.”
Upa places the mirror in front of us.
What I see in the mirror is the faces of me, Char and Mio-san.
There was nothing particularly special about it.…
Lynn turned the mirror slightly towards Mio-san.
“Cedie and Char are kids, so it doesn’t do much, but Mio, don’t you notice anything?”
Mio ran her hand through her hair, startled.
“My hair…… it feels smoother. Eh??? My skin is smoother too!!”
“That’s right!”
It was Upa who chimed in.
“I just tasted this soup, and for some reason, the tingling sensation of my old wound disappeared, and the wound itself seems to be less noticeable.”
Now that I look at it more, it seems that the scar on his face has indeed become slightly smaller …….
“Has the pain gone away?”
“Yes, but not completely though. But all in all, it’s such an amazing soup.”
“Eat!”
I made him sit down on my chair and offered him my plate.
Who cares if it’s half-eaten.
“O-oi, Cedie……?”
“Upa eat all the rest of the soup.”
“No, but….…”
“We might not be able to make the same thing twice. So Upa should eat it!”
If it would help heal Upa’s old wounds, I’d offer him any bowl of soup he wanted.
“Thanks, Cedie.”
Upa gulped down the soup with tears of gratitude in his eyes.
Lynn looks at him with satisfaction and then she said,
“It’s true that there may have been a series of miracles this time, but I’m sure I can make the same dish again.”
“Really?”
“Of course. I’m a professional chef, which means there’s no such thing as a dish that I can only make once. As long as I have the ingredients, I can make it.”
“Then, can you make Paul-oniisan and the others experience this excitement too?”
“I can guarantee you that. But I don’t think it’s going to be possible every time.”
Swift’s nests are precious, so I myself can’t afford to consume them in large quantities.
Let’s just say that this is a special dish that is rarely served in the auberge. I need to ask Paul-oniisan not to talk about it anywhere else.
“Then, does this mean that the first dish of the course is decided?”
“Yes, this will leave everyone satisfied. The first dish will be Swift’s nest Miracle Soup.”
Lynn and I nodded vigorously to each other.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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