What are you smiling about, Bartolo?

"Nah, I thought the kid was going to be here soon, huh?

　I had come to the kitchen to make a new pastry, my promise to Mother Erna.

　I hated Bartolo, who was grinning and poking me in the cheek.

　I could bite this finger.

You'll have to make a new pastry with this, won't you?　What are you making?　I'm not a pastry expert, you know?

　As I scoot up, Bartolo says as he clanks the magic stove.

''No, I'm not an expert either, you know?''

You always say that, but you're always cooking. I have to take my hat off to you for your new cooking.　I can't believe you can still make new pastries... you have a talent for making pastries. I'd better tell Elna to have the boy make the sweets from now on.

　This guy!　You want me to bake!　And I didn't know they would even use Mom Erna's name to check her out!　Not going to happen.

　I don't want to have to knead the dough with a dead eye.

Even Bartolo is making fruit and sugar jam and cookies in bulk these days.　I've heard that they've been mixing things up and changing the sweetness of it all lately.　Mom would have loved it.　Oh no, I can't do that.

　We keep our smiles pasted on each other. We push each other into the labor of baking.

　I make whatever I want, whenever I want. This time, though, it was an unavoidable situation that led to this.

　A dry smile echoes through the kitchen. But we weren't smiling at all at each other's eyes.

　You're a cook, right?

　I thought you were in charge of the pastries, kid.

　That's what the thought was riding on our gaze.

　Then we stared at each other and let out a sigh.

　Anyway, let's make some sweets now. It's a good idea to think of it as a companion piece to the food I want to eat, since I can fry things up thanks to the magic stove.

In that case, let's start with some very simple sweets.

What?

Fried bread.

Fried bread?

　Yes, fried bread. It's the same thing that was often served at school lunches when I was a child.

　I didn't like bread so much, but I was happy to eat fried bread.

"We fry the bread in oil, then sprinkle sugar on it. You fry it in oil, then you sprinkle some sugar on it.

'Ah, cooking with oil. ...Is that all you've got?

　Bartolo said, "Is that really what they want? He asks with a look.

'Don't worry. It's not only easy to make, it's delicious.'

　And it's pretty high in calories. It was even eaten after the war to boost the nutritional status of children.

It's also... it's quite fattening.

　If you continue to feed them to Mother Erna and the maids, who tell you that you won't get fat no matter how much you eat, you will get fat, of course. Then they would naturally avoid eating sweets.

　Then we won't be forced to work at making sweets anymore.

I see. That's my boy.

　Bartolo's face twists into a grin as he understands the meaning of what I said. Bartolo's smile is like a ravenous beast that has found its prey.

''You have a bad look on your face,''

"Heh, heh, boy, you're the one.

　We laugh at each other, smiling differently than we did earlier. Our eyes were laughing at each other, but I thought there was a muddy color mixed in their eyes.

'And besides, there's something else I want to make this time, besides sweets.

'Oh!　That's going to be fun!

　Bartolo's eyes light up when he hears that he's going to make a new dish other than sweets. There is no murky color there like the one just now.

　As expected of a chef.

　Today's menu is going to be sweets that can be made by frying, such as fried bread and surter andagi.

　Well, it's something similar, but with toppings, you can enjoy a variety of flavors, so you'll be happy with it.

　Well, I'd also make rusks and fried bread crusts as my personal snack. We had sandwiches for breakfast, so there should be some leftover bread.

　By the way, I don't give this one away.

　There are other pancakes and crepes that could be made, but this time I thought it would be better to show off the sweets that use the magic stove, so I decided to make these.

　It's better to have as many cards in hand as possible.

　Recently, Meena asked me, "Those round rings on these slippers are sweets, right? And I'm so picky. For goodness sake, I shouldn't have made pop slippers with a candy gala in them.

　I think I'll have Bartolo make lunch as usual for lunch, and then I'll make tempura and fries for dinner.

　All I'm going to do today is fry or bake things in oil.

　If I'd had some soy sauce or special sauce, I wouldn't have hesitated to make ten-don....

　It's about time my Japanese soul craved soy sauce.

　I haven't seen Tory lately, but I wonder how he's doing. We'd like to stock up on rice, as the amount of rice we have isn't too shabby.

　So we were preparing to make some fried snacks first.

We have leftover bread from breakfast, can we use it?

　While I was preparing the oil, Bartolo held out a basket of bread.

'Thank you,' said Bartolo. You can use it for other snacks. But you can't use it for frying bread, so make it from scratch.

What kind of bread do you want it to look like?

It's like an oval shaped cobbler.

　At Bartolo's question, I moved my hand to form a cobbler as I explained in words.

'Yeah, okay. Then I'll make some lunch while I make the bread.

　Bartolo puts the flour out into a bowl and begins to make the bread.

　As for me, I immediately press the switch on the magic stove.

　At that moment, the stove automatically sucks up my magic power and flames are lit.

　Since I tried it when I bought it in the capital, it's not so surprising, but it's very easy to use, just like a gas stove.

　Before, I had to start by lighting the wood, but now, as you can see, it takes just a second. The time is shortened and the burden is removed. It even regulates the temperature, which is very convenient. I can even fry food.

　It may be safer than the modern gas stove because there's no risk of the gas going off.

It's true, the fire comes on quickly.

Totally.

　Bartolo doesn't look at me because he's making bread seeds, but I can tell from his voice that he's in a good mood.

　And it's Bartolo, the cook, who received this benefit first.

　I'm a little glad that he bought me a magic stove half out of his own desire and half out of a desire for Bartolo.

　While somewhat loosening my cheeks, I proceed to prepare my own.

　Since I'm going to leave the fried bread until Bartolo's bread is ready, I put the pan on the other stove and add a dollop of oil to it.

　I go ahead and make my snack bread crust rusk style.

　I wait for the oil to warm up while I cut the bread crusts into just the right length.

　When it's just warm enough, I cut the crusts into pieces and throw them into the pan.

　While poking the crusts with the chopsticks, cook the crusts. Crackle and sizzle as you cook the crusts.

　The crusts soak up the oil and gradually turn a golden brown and harden.

　When the crusts are completely golden brown, place them on a plate lined with a thin cloth to absorb the oil.

　What had been a pliant ear of bread was now a stick that smelled of freshly baked wheat.

　They seemed to make a crunching sound when chewed.

'I use sugar, Bartolo,'

　I ask Bartolo a few words and get what looks like a raw reply of "Oh", so I take the jar of sugar.

　It's important to sprinkle a lot of sugar on it when it's hot.

　The same goes for the fried bread.

　Remove the cloth and sprinkle sugar on the bread to finish it off.

　The crusts of the fox-colored bread turn white as if they were covered with snow.

　While poking the bread with chopsticks, sugar is poured evenly over the crusts.

　I immediately pick up one of the bread crust sticks and put it in my mouth.

　It makes a crispy, light sound and pops in my mouth with a crunch.

　The sweetness of the sugar and the sweetness of the bread is unbearable.

　Most importantly, the texture is addictive.

　I took a crunching bite like a squirrel, and before I knew it, I was bringing another one to my mouth.

　No, I can't stop eating it.

　Most importantly, the fact that it's in stick form is a bad thing. Because it's easy to eat, I can't help but reach for it right away.

　It would be wonderful to stab such a thing in a stylish cup.

　Yes, I'll do that when I store it with spatial magic.

'Hey, what's one person having fun? Give it to me.

　With that, Bartolo plucks one of the bread ear sticks from behind and puts it in his mouth.

''Ahh, I like the simple sweetness. ........I remember my grandmother making a dish like this for me in the past.......''

　Bartolo makes a pollyanna sound and squints. Maybe he's reminiscing about the cooking of his hometown.

　In my past life, I was in charge of cooking for my grandma... no, my grandma was in charge of cooking. Because Grandma was not a good cook.

　The worst part was that the blood was passed on to her sisters, her grandchildren. I wonder if that was a bloodline that was akin to a curse.

　I was also looking at a bowl in the kitchen when I noticed a bowl in the kitchen with a kind of distant look in my eyes.

　When I looked into it, I saw a bread seed curled up and placed in the bowl.

　It must be undergoing a primary fermentation. It's going to stay that way for forty to fifty minutes to puff up the bread. There's also a second fermentation, so it's going to take a lot longer.

　When I think about it, Bartolo is great at preparing the bread at night and baking it up in the morning.

　Well, I've been getting it bartered from time to time, and I've been cooking more rice.

　I mean, isn't this the biggest reason why my rice has been decreasing?

　What was meant to be eaten by one person will soon be gone if a family of five is eating it together!

　I'd put my sister Elinora and some meat on top of it and gobble it up.

　It's really bad. Bartolo, I want my respect back.

　Bartolo was eating the crunchy bread ear sticks while I gave him a jittery look.

　But he didn't look like a squirrel; he looked like a wild child gnawing on sugar cane.

'This one's good. It's unstoppable. That's enough to satisfy Erna and others, isn't it?

But this isn't a pastry that makes use of a magic stove, either.

I guess so. And I'm sure you'll be glad you bought it, anyway, if it's the only one you can make with this guy.

　Bartolo taps the stove as he nods his head in agreement. He seems to like the stove quite a bit.

'Is there anything else I'm missing?　You make more than just candy, right?

That's right. 'Tempura ingredients. You've got onions and carrots and all that veggie stuff, right?

Yeah, they're mostly vegetarian.　But you don't have many mushrooms.

All right, I'll have my brother Silvio pick it up.

　Brother Silvio is very good at picking wild vegetables and mushrooms.

　He's probably still reading and studying today.

　I haven't seen you out and about since I came back from King's Landing,'' he said.

'You are not at liberty to mistreat your brother,' he said. "You are not the only one who tries to push your brother around.

'Of course you are. You're my brother.

I'm not interested in you.

　You see, Brother Silvio is so sweet. There's no way he could refuse his lovely brother's request.

　By the way, there is no authority for a brother to give orders to his sister.

　He would beat you to a pulp the day you said to Elinora's sister that you're not busy and go pick wild vegetables.

　She's just as moody as a cat. It's only a matter of time before he'll be able to get down on you and say, "Al, you're so cheeky, you're giving me orders.

　Whether or not he'll come on board even if I give him a glimpse of food is an unknown quantity.

Also, do you have any larger shrimp or something?

No, we don't have any big ol' shrimp.

　Bartolo tells me to shrug my head.

　I asked him about it, but it was still not there.

　There is no sea near the village of Coriat, so it can't be helped. Though in rare cases, the Trierra Chamber of Commerce does bring it to us. They don't come that conveniently.

　Speaking of tempura, they bring prawns.

"Why not river prawns?　If it was a river prawn, I would have had it removed from the mud.

　The river prawns are long-handled prawns that live in the river in the village of Koliat.

　Of course, they are not big enough for tempura.

It is not big enough for tempura, of course. The river prawns are delicious.

　I also love eating whole fried river prawns.

　I could move to the capital to buy them, but if I put them out, people would wonder where I got them. Yes, I'll buy it next time for when I'm eating by myself.