308-Souvenir time




 
So what gift did you bring me this time?

 As I finished my cup of fruit juice and settled in, Thor asked me with an expectant look in his eyes.

 His gaze is focused on a large wooden box and bag, and he seems to be sincerely looking forward to what he's going to find.

 The same is true for Asmo next to me, who is staring at the two as if he were trying to see through them.

 Probably the most eye-catching part of this is the frozen fish. However, showing that first would make the other souvenirs look hazy, so let's start with the one that would be less expected.

"Okay, okay, so this is the first one.

 I take out a small wooden box from my bag and open it so that Thor and Asmo can see it.

 In it are beautiful shells and pieces of magic stones.

'What's this? Shells?

Yes. Sea shells from the ocean. Rainbow-colored and beautiful, right?

'Ha, it sure is sparkly. So this is the shell in the sea.

 Thor plucks up a shell and looks at it with interest.

 There are small shells in the village of Koliat too, but they are not edible. They are muddy and their small flesh is not edible.

 There are very few large shells like those in the ocean, so these large, clean shells are probably fresh.

 Honestly, I think this alone would be the best souvenir of a trip to the beach.

 As I was thinking about that, Asmo asked me.

"....Hey, Al. What's in it?

No.

 I knew you'd say that because of Asmo. How could you be so concerned about what's inside in front of such a beautiful shell?

 Don't you care about something a little more beautiful?

'What's that clear one over here?'

Oh, that's a piece of magic stone. That's what happens when the magical stone is chipped away by the sea.

'Heh, I see. This kind of thing sounds like something a woman would enjoy.

Well, you can hang it up in your room or give it to someone else.

 These beautiful things are appreciated by women. I don't think the two of us have any taste for looking at these things, so I think it's better to use it to do business with the women in the village or something.

Hmmm, well, I'll just display it. ─ Well, I'll just display it, it's a gift that was given to me.

You don't find that in the village of Coriat, where it's from the sea, and it's very precious.

 What a nice thing to say! If you say something like that, it makes me happy too, as I prepared a gift for you. I picked these up at random on the beach, though.

 It's a good idea to use the shards of processed magic stones that Quina prepared for us.

Now, the next step is the food you've been waiting for.

"Oh!

 It gets a little awkward, so I tell them to regain their composure and change the subject from shells and magic stone fragments to food.

 As they look at me expectantly, I take out two jars from my bag.

'Yes, open these. They're both different foods.

 I deliberately urge them not to open it, hoping for a reaction from them.

"I'll open this one, you go that way!

Okay!

 Then they opened the jars together with pure looks on their faces.

 At that moment, the fish's distinctive fishy smell and the harsh salt aroma coming out of the sealed jar.

''Ughhhh! What is this!

Ugh, the smell is strong!

 Thor and Asmo, who smelled the fish and dried small crabs up close, were surprised to see them leave the jar.

'Wait, this smell is too harsh. Hey, Asmo, open the window!

But then the cold air would escape!

 The smell of dried food is so strong that I want to ventilate it, but if I open the window, the cold air escapes and the hot air comes in.

 From Thor and Asmo's point of view, it would be nothing but hell for both of them.

'It was! Hey, Al. What the hell is this? Is it really food?!

Haha, it's fish and small crabs processed into preserves. The smell is harsh, but it's usually delicious. If it's air, I'll magically switch it out and make it cooler for you and you can try it.

 I say this with a laugh, and they approach the jar with trepidation.

 Thor is too freaked out by the smell to touch it, but Asmo's curiosity seems to have won out as he has a strong desire for food. He put his hand in the jar and grabbed a small crab.

 The small crab Asmo picked up the small crab was beyond reddish-brown, thanks to the sunshine and the salt and sauce that had been soaked into it. And the smell of crab drifted through the air in a thick, rich way.

'Oh, hey, are you going to eat it?'

 While Thor looked on with a worried expression, Asmo put it in his mouth in one go.

 Every time Asmo chewed, a small, eerie sound like cracking shells with a crispy gurgling sound could be heard.

''........Ah, delicious! It's more flavorful than anything you'd find in a river in the village of Koliat, and the more you bite into it, the more flavor you get out of it!

It's dried up. It's got a lot of flavor in it.

And the texture is delightful. Don't be scared, Thor, just try it.

I mean, who's scared shitless?

 Perhaps provoked by Asmo, who ate it with impunity, Thor also reached for the jar containing the small crab and threw it into his mouth.

'It sure is delicious! Aside from the smell and the picture you get when you look into the jar, the taste is excellent.

 Haha, I know a little bit about how I feel because I'm a little bit freaked out by the inside of a jar full of small crabs.

 And if you don't know it's a small crab and you look into the jar, you're likely to scream lightly.

'So, the other one is a fish of the sea?'

Yeah. There's dried horse mackerel and mackerel and all sorts of sea fish in there.

Aji? Mackerel?

 I name the two types of sea fish in the jar and Thor nods his head.

'They're the names of the fish of the sea,'

Huh, I don't know, but I'll take any fish from the sea.

 I'm sure there are a few other types in there, but I don't think I'd be able to tell Thor and Asmo that much detail, who don't know much about marine fish, about it.

 Anyway, they'd be pleased if it tasted different from the river fish.

 I guess I've learned to trust them about the taste with small crabs, and Thor and Asmo are not afraid to pick up the dried fish.

'Whoa! What the hell is going on here? How's that for a flat?

 Haha, dried fish are basically open, so the impact of seeing them all of a sudden is amazing.

It's not easy to eat them all, so you should cut them into little pieces and taste them.

Oh, oh, yeah.

 Of course there's a small one in there too, but the two of us took the larger one. It's good enough to eat a little shredded here.

 When Thor and Asmo pull on the edge of the dried fish, the flesh is removed so that it flakes off.

 The flesh has a brownish color because of the sunshine and salt. Just looking at it reminds me of the rich taste of fish.

 Thor and Asmo slowly take the stripped meat into their mouths.

Oh, this one's good too! So this is what fish in the sea tastes like!

It's a richer taste than your average grilled river fish.

 Thor and Asmo widen their eyes as they eat the dried fish and exclaim in admiration.

 Seeing the two of them eating so deliciously, it makes me want to eat a little too.

'........just give me a bite.

Oh, come on! You've got plenty of that in your own house!

'If I had it at home, I'd want it now! I won't give you one last handout!

Oh, for heaven's sake!

 When I threatened to do so, Thor looked reluctant and handed me the dried food. By the way, Asmo was trying to hold it even if he was dead.

 You can rest assured that I don't expect to get any food from Asmo.

 Thor's dried horse mackerel, right?

 I flake off the dried aji with my hand and bring it to my mouth.

 When I put it in my mouth, a rich, salty aroma of the sea penetrates, and when I bite into it, the concentrated flavor of the aji seeps out. The more you chew, the more you can feel the taste of the seawater and the horse mackerel.

The more you bite, the more you can feel the taste of the seawater and the flavor of the horse mackerel. The pure flavor of the fish is much better here than when it's usually grilled and eaten.

 Duh, the rest of it would be even better if I could swallow this spicy mouthful of cougar wine with a cougar sake. Because seafood dishes and kagura sake go together so well.

 d*mn, all the liquor and knick-knacks would be stored away in the spatial magic. I'm still a long way from being able to drink that with impunity for the evening.

'So, Al. What's that thing in the last box!

 As I'm eating my dried aji, Thor taps the crate as if he can't wait.

 Asmo touches the crate and smells it, muttering with a serious look on his face, "Cold stuff......." and so on.

''Alright. I'll open the last item of interest.

 Saying that, I open the lid of the crate.

 There was ice that I had blown in with my ice magic and. There was a lot of fish in the ice that I threw in there with my ice magic and a lot of fish that were being pickled in ice.

'Whoa! So this is what real fish in the sea looks like!

It's full of them!

 Thor and Asmo look in with a twinkle in their eyes.

 The small fish are frozen as is with ice magic, while the larger fish are treated with their heads and guts before being frozen. It was instantly frozen at a temperature that could be called negative and stored in sub-space, so it's perfectly fresh.

"Hey, that sounds like the dried fish I just gave you is a fake!

No, I know, but it's just something different and flat.

 Well, if you ask me which one looks more like a fish, it's obvious.

 While I'm smiling at Thor, Asmo asks me with a serious look on his face.

''.......How do you eat this?''

If you don't mind the bones, you can grill the fish with salt, but if you're a medium-sized fish, you can take the fish's guts out of the belly and grill it, or you can stuff the belly with vegetables and cook it in a soy sauce-based sauce
Or you can just hang out.

Okay. I see.

'What? I don't understand anything Al says, okay?

 While Asmo usually cooks, Thor, who doesn't cook at all, couldn't seem to get a clear picture of what to expect when he was explained to him.

''You'll have to ask your neighbor Asmo for details.

 I don't feel like cooking today. It's too much trouble to teach you here one by one.

 It would be quicker to ask Asmo, since he's your neighbor.

"Hey, teach me, Asmo.

"Get on your knees and teach me, you dimwitted bastard, how to cook, and I'll think of something to say to you, Master Asmo.

'f*ck off, you fat f*ck! Who would say that to you!

'Haha, you'll have a hard time getting fish without asking me how to cook it? I don't think Mr. Murat will be upset with why I didn't ask him properly.

"Gggggh, that's not fair, quoting my mom.

 Even though he knows a little bit of the basics with the river fish, the first time handling the ingredients is nerve-wracking. I'm sure Murat-san, who is in charge of cooking, would be upset if he hadn't heard the instructions properly.

''I'm sorry. I'm thirsty, so I'll just have a little water - oh, it's cool, but it's stinky! What is that smell?!

 As we were talking about this, Murat opened the window just as we were talking about it. I'm not sure if the smell of dried fish and fish can be detected in the air, but Murat backed away from me.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this as well.

I kind of got used to it and stopped caring about it.

Me too.

You're used to it. Hurry up, open the window and get some air! The smell is going to permeate your room!

 As we sat there, unconcerned, Mr. Murat entered the living room through the window and opened the interior window, putting a towel over his mouth.

'Mom, it's hot. If you want to ventilate the room, I'll do it just fine, just leave me alone.

It's too late!

 Tor complains about it, but Murat doesn't mind and opens the window without hesitation.

 The cold air drifting indoors escapes to the outside, and instead, hot air comes in from outside.

''What on earth is that smell at all?''

Al's got some dried fish for me.

'Yikes! Hey, what's that?

 When Thor plucks it out of the jar and shows it to him, Murat lets out a small scream.

 The body of a dried fish is puckered open, so at a glance it looks a little gross.

 We're used to seeing it, but for the first time, it might be a bit of a shock to Murat, who is used to seeing it for the first time.

 I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on in the world," he said, as he chased after Murat with a mischievous smile on his face.

"Hehe, this is the fish of the sea. Mom's never seen one before either, right? Look at that!

Hey, stop it! Keep it away from me! Because it's kind of creepy!

"Hahahahahaha, as long as we have this, we can't scare Mom!

 I know you want to do it, but in moderation.



 Afterwards, Thor was of course angry with Murat, and also with Emma's sister for leaving a bit of the smell of dried fish in the living room. However, the taste of the dried fish was very popular.