Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Tempura of Wild Vegetables and Homecoming

When we returned from the forest, the surroundings were already growing dim. We had spent time battling the bear.

"We're home!"

"Welcome back! You're late, you know."

As I called out, my mother hurriedly welcomed us.

It seemed like everyone had been quite worried, and they had relieved expressions on their faces.

"What happened?"

"Well, we were attacked by a bear when we were about to leave."

"A bear!? Are you okay? Any injuries?"

"Yeah, luckily I managed to defeat it, so I'm fine."

When I mentioned being attacked by a bear, everyone had a shocked expression on their faces, but they sighed in relief when they heard there were no injuries.

But then came a barrage of questions about how I managed to defeat a bear.

As I stumbled through my answers, my grandfather came to my rescue.

"It seems Leon has a talent for swordsmanship. He skillfully defeated it with a knife."

When my grandfather said that, everyone praised and commended me without further inquiry. Phew, thank you, grandfather.

"Well, as long as you're not injured, that's good. More importantly, you've collected quite a lot, haven't you?"

While looking at the basket, my mother said so.

"Yeah, there were plenty of wild vegetables and raspberries."

"I collected a lot too!"

"That's amazing. Well then, let's make a meal with wild vegetables tomorrow."

"Yeah!"

And so, the dinner of the next day came.

Since we would be heading home tomorrow morning, we decided to gather and have dinner together tonight.

It was a meal made with yesterday's wild vegetables.

My mother and the others finished their afternoon work early to prepare the feast. I decided to join in cooking as well.

There was something I really wanted to make with the wild vegetables. That's right, wild vegetable tempura!

In this world, there aren't many fried dishes, and even if there are, they're usually just lightly fried. Moreover, among commoners, fried food is rarely seen because it would be a waste of oil.

Since it was a feast this time, they would probably allow us to use more oil!

"Mom, can I help with the cooking too? I have a recipe with yesterday's wild vegetables."

"Really? Well, Leon's recipes are always delicious, so it's fine."

"Thank you!"

"What do you need?"

I believe tempura is made by dipping vegetables in a mixture of eggs, flour, and water, then frying them. Probably...

"I need eggs, flour, water, and oil!"

"That's all? I think we have those."

Saying that, my mother received those ingredients from my grandmother.

"First, you mix the eggs, flour, and water."

"Again? Leon's recipe always makes the eggs and flour gooey. I always think it should be made into bread without making them gooey for first-timers."

While saying that, my mother prepared the ingredients.

I first cracked an egg and whisked it, then added a little flour and mixed it in. I added water and mixed it again. It feels a bit watery...

I added a bit more flour and mixed again.

It's quite thick. I think this should be right...

I started feeling a little uneasy, but I decided to approach everything as a challenge.

"Mom, could you put a generous amount of oil in the frying pan?"

"How much is a generous amount?"

"Actually, I'd like about half the small pot filled with oil, but that's probably impossible, right?"

"You can't waste oil like that!"

"Yeah, I know. So, could you fill the frying pan to about the depth of the tip of my little finger? Would that be okay?"

My mother pondered with a difficult expression for a while but reluctantly agreed.

"Well, it's a special treat today, so it's fine."

"Thank you, Mom!"

"I'll make sure to thank Grandma and Aunt later too."

"Okay!"

With that, I poured oil into the frying pan and heated it up, then I put the wild vegetables I had soaked in the liquid earlier into the frying pan.

There's actually less oil than in regular tempura, so it's more like pan-frying, but well, it can't be helped.

I fried plenty of wild vegetables one after another.

Alright, this is the last one.

"It's done! It's finished!"

As I said that and looked around, I realized that my mother had been joined by Grandma, Granny, and Aunt without me noticing.

"It's an unusual dish," they said, and "I wonder if it's really delicious." They were saying whatever they pleased. My mother defended me, saying, "Leon's cooking is delicious."

Thank you, Mom...

And so, dinner was ready. It was a very luxurious table with wild vegetable tempura, steak, stir-fried wild vegetables, soup, and bread.

"Let's eat!"

We all put our hands together and started eating.

First, I tried the wild vegetable tempura. It should be good as it's already seasoned with salt.

Crunch... It's delicious!! It's tempura. I feel like I'm eating Japanese cuisine for the first time since coming to this world!

As I was impressed by the deliciousness and savoring the wild vegetable tempura, everyone was sneakily glancing at me with interest.

Marie was the first one to eat.

"Mmm! This is incredibly delicious!"

Marie said with a big smile, and everyone started eating together. "It's delicious!" "This is amazing!" I heard many voices saying that, and it made me happy.

Japanese food is definitely delicious.

I savored all the other dishes as well and finished dinner feeling extremely satisfied.

And then, the next morning.

We were about to go back to our home.

"We'll come again!"

"Leon, you better come again. Let's make butter next time."

"I want to go to the mountains with you again."

"When you come next time, teach us more recipes."

Everyone expressed their thoughts and bid us farewell. Everyone had a smiling and kind face.

I'm glad to have these people as my family...

I kept waving my hand until they were far away.

"Leon, Marie, did you have fun?"

"Yeah! We had so much fun. I want to come again."

"Me too! I definitely want to come again!"

"I'm glad to hear that. Let's come again."

"Next time, we might extend our stay a bit longer."

It was truly enjoyable, and I want to come again. They are a family I want to cherish, even as I enter the world of nobility.

On the way back, fueled by the joyful memories, I didn't feel tired like when we arrived. We managed to reach home without much exhaustion.

However, when we arrived in town, it was already dusk. We discussed having a simple dinner and going to bed early while walking home together.

Finally, our house came into view. And when I felt relieved, I noticed someone in front of our door. Someone standing in front of our house. Who could it be?

"Mom, Dad, is there someone in front of our house?"

"Yeah, you're right. I wonder who it is?"

As we approached a little faster, the person noticed us and turned towards us.

"Anne-san!"

There, standing before us, was Anne-san, the maid of the Townsend Duke's family.

"What's the matter?"

"I have a message from the master to Leon-sama."

"Did you wait for several days or something...?"

As I asked with fear and guilt, wondering if that was the case...

"No, I came at noon today, but it seemed you were out, so I was told to wait until sunset. So, it's been about half a day."

Still, that's quite a long time!

"Um, I'm really sorry for keeping you waiting. Please come inside."

"No, I have to return to the Duke's family now. I'll give you this letter and take my leave."

"I'm really sorry. Thank you very much."

From now on, I vowed to myself to leave some kind of message whenever I would be away for a long time.

"Well then, I'll take my leave now."

"Yes, thank you very much."

Anne-san left after just delivering the letter.

"Leon, who was that person just now?"

"She's a maid from the Duke's family. She brought me a letter."

"To have made the Duke's family wait..."

Father and Mother were pale and flustered. I hurriedly reassured them.

"No, I think it'll be okay, so don't worry!"

I don't think the Townsend Duke's family will get angry over something like this. But I feel apologetic, so I'll be more careful from now on.

"Is that so? Well, that's good..."

"Yeah, let's go inside, we're tired, right?"

"Yes, I feel rather exhausted."

And so, we finally reached home. I felt a rush of fatigue at the very end.

I need to read the letter quickly. With that thought in mind, I entered the house.