135-Grilled rice ball




 
 This time we're ready to go, and we start walking down the main street of the city of Kagura.

 The main street of Kagura is unbelievably long and wide. And since many shops are lined up along the road, the avenue is overflowing with quite a few people.

 There were countless kagura people dressed in kagura outfits, brightly coloring the view.

'They all wear kagura clothes, so their vision is very vivid.

''That's right. You all wear beautiful kagura outfits, so I never get bored just walking around.

When I look at it, I like that one, and I like that one, too.

 Ilya and Aleusha nodded in a good mood at my words.

''Oh, those white and pink kagura outfits and such look good on Illya!

'As expected, that's a bit too cute. Aleusha is the one who looks good in that white Kagura outfit with blue flowers on it!

Isn't that a little too classy? Does it look good on me?

'I'm sure she'll make her dark blue hair and white kagura outfit look good!

 That's a woman. It's so fast, I'm left behind, being a man.

Hey, it's Malt.

Yes, Mr. Irvine.

Aren't the Kaguras showing a little too much skin?

Yeah. After all, everyone wears a kimono. It's a very good idea to have a good idea of the silhouette of your buttocks. You can see the eroticism peeking out from the manner and clothes of the woman's gentleman.

 Well, this is what men's conversations are all about.

 I'm not averse to those conversations, but I'm only seven years old, after all. You have to choose what to talk about.

 Since we are sightseeing in Kagura, let's enjoy the atmosphere of Kagura more without making strange conversation.

 We move away from Ilya and Aleusha, who are having a glamorous conversation, and move closer to the rumba.

 The main street is lined with various wooden buildings, lined with unfamiliar foodstuffs and other goods.

 Shopkeepers call out to people walking down the main street, and a woman loudly brags about her prized wares.

 Shoppers take advantage of their voices and haggling over prices. There are also men shouting for wagons to open up the street and other busy people's voices, which makes it feel like a festival.

 It's comfortable to feel like you're part of that atmosphere just by walking in these places.

'....Hey, Al. I smell an absurdly good smell of soy sauce.

 As I was thinking about this while looking at the view of Kagura, Rumba sniffed my nose and said, "Sniff," and I started to think about that.

 I also focused my attention on my nose, and the faint, fragrant smell of burning soy sauce tickled my nostrils.

 Could this be.........!

 One dish comes to mind in my mind's eye.

'Rumba! Let's go!

Oh!

 Just as I was waiting for those words, the Roomba lifted me up and started to shoulder me.

 My vision rapidly increases and I go from looking up to looking down at the people walking down the main street.

 The Roomba is much taller than the average person, so I could see each person walking in front of me down to their whiskers.

 It was exhilarating to see the view, which had always been blocked by the shadows of people, clear all at once.

 I can now look out over the main street of Kagura and find the food I'm looking for while searching for the smell.

'There it is! Rumba! There!

Okay! Let's go, boys!

 As I pointed to the stall I wanted, Roomba called out to Irvine and the others and started to proceed.

'Oh? What's going on with you all of a sudden?

I don't know.

What's the good news?

Oh, there's a terrible smell coming from the direction of Mr. Roomba's path! Let's go!

 The members of the Silver Wind were coming in from behind at a fast pace, although they were late.

 It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to find a way to get a good deal more than you're used to.

 Well, if you look at my figure, which is head and shoulders above the rest, you won't lose sight of me.

 Thinking that, I turn my gaze forward.

''Oh! ........whoa?

 A strong-faced, backstreet master rumba would walk down the street and people would give him the easy way out, but then they'd see me on my head and tilt their heads back.

 I thought he was a very scary person, and then it was like I couldn't tell if he was a scary person or a kind person because he was carrying a small child on his shoulders.

 At any rate, it is convenient that the road is opened on its own, so Zunn and we start going.

 And finally, we arrived at the stall we were aiming for.

"............

 The uncle looks up at the rumba and his expression hardens.

 There was a large net in his hand, and a number of onigiri were lying on it.

 Yes, they were grilled onigiri.

 All you have to do is to dip the rice balls in soy sauce, soup stock and mirin and bake them.

 The smell of burning soy sauce was spewed out of the onigiri as if it were a culprit.

 The sound of grilled rice balls covered in sauce could be heard on the net, and the fragrant smell tickled the nostrils of both me and the Roomba.

'....smells good.'

...Oh, this looks good.

 Me and Roomba muttered with our eyes at the too fragrant aroma.

'Oh? Oh, you mean father and son? Would you like a grilled rice ball?

 My uncle's expression softens a bit as he realizes I'm above his head as I say the words. It's not like we're father and son, but that's okay, since it's too much trouble to explain.

''Then give me four!''

I'll have two.

Well, just give me five!

'Oh! Every time!

 As Rumba ordered, the uncle shouted with authority.

 Then he thrust the brush into the jar of sauce and, with an expert hand, spread it on the grilled onigiri. The sauce drips from the net and makes a sizzling sound as the onigiri are fried to a crisp.

 Then, when the sauce was getting burned, the uncle collected the burnt rice balls with tongs and wrapped them in bamboo shoot skin.

 Oh, it seems that bamboo shoots grow in Kagura. This is good information.

 As I recall, bamboo shoots' bark is strong and supple and is said to have natural antibacterial properties. Not to mention the bamboo shoots, I'll have to buy some later for my simple lunchbox.

 I'll add them to my list of souvenirs with a note and pen I've shoved in my pocket.

 I have too many things to buy after we leave the village of Koliat. If I don't put them on paper like this, I'll forget about them.

"Hey, maido.

Oh, thank you!

 While I was making notes, Roomba seemed to have paid the bill for me. Since I had paid two pieces of silver, five grilled rice balls were worth two copper coins. It was two hundred yen in total. Yes, it was reasonably cheap.

Here, Al.

Yes, thank you.

 I thanked him for paying the bill and received a grilled onigiri wrapped underneath.

 The grilled onigiri wrapped in bamboo shoot skin was very hot thanks to being freshly made.

 When I untied it so that it wouldn't fall off, I found two grilled onigiri that had been well-baked and soaked in the sauce.

 As I sniffed the brown-colored onigiri, I could smell the fragrant, sweet and spicy smell of soy sauce and a faint scent of dashi (Japanese soup stock).

 I let the hot grilled onigiri cool down a bit with my whooshing breath and then slowly bit into it.

 The crispy texture of the rice entered my mouth.

Wheeze!

 It was still a little hot, so I cracked my mouth open and rolled the rice on my tongue.

 Then I let it cool a bit in my mouth and slowly taste it.

 As I chewed, I spat out the sweet and spicy taste of the soy sauce that had seeped into the rice and the mild taste of the broth. The more you chewed, the more flavorful the rice seemed to be, even inside the rice.

 And I couldn't resist the sweet taste of the rice's natural flavor afterwards.

 Mmmm, delicious!

 I bit into my grilled rice ball without a second thought, even though I knew it was still hot.

 I rolled the rice in my mouth, gasping for breath at the unexpected heat. It's a stupid move, but even that is the best part of being a grilled onigiri.

''The occasional onigiri is good, but a grilled onigiri is even better! I could eat more white rice with this!

No, they're both rice.

 I've never heard of eating white rice with grilled rice balls or anything like that.

 The Roomba smiled happily when I interrupted him.

 The Roomba didn't feel so hot, and he was devouring the grilled onigiri in his hands. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it happen.

I've caught up with you!

Clogs are pretty hard to run in. I got two guys stepping in them on the way over.

 As I was comparing the size of my hand and the size of my grilled rice balls, Irvine and Malt came through the waves of people.

'Finally, we're catching up,'

'Ah! Mr. Rumba and Master Alfried are eating something!

 Ilya and Aleusha came in late, too.

 It's because the Roomba went on zumba zumba zumba while the human wall was breaking on its own. It seems that before I knew it, a good distance had been opened up with Irvine and the others.

''Is that a rice ball?''

Didn't you eat onigiri at the inn?

 Maybe it's because Aleusha pointed to my grilled rice balls, but it seems that Ilya and Malt were also curious.

You're not a tourist by your hair color, are you, ladies? How about Kagura's famous grilled onigiri? You should try it if you want.

 Thanks to the fact that Ilya, Aleusha and Malt have flamboyant hair colors that Kagura people don't have, the man at the stall gave Ilya and Malt a piece of grilled rice ball wrapped in a skin.

 Probably he wants you to divide it in half and try it.

 The fact that he said only half is good for business. If you do that, you'll definitely fall short........

''What the hell is this? Yum!

Hey, Malt! Let me have some!

 As expected, Irvine and Malt were eating each other.

 The way Malt tried to put it in his mouth to keep it from being handed to Irvine, and Irvine prevented him from doing so, is a scene reminiscent of the villagers in the village of Coriat.

 Don't drop it?

"This is so good!

It's crispy on the outside and the sweet and spicy soy sauce-based sauce soaks into it!

 Even Aleusha and Ilya, who are eating half of the food in a well-behaved manner, huff and puff and flatten their grilled onigiri with surprise.

''This isn't enough! Let's get in line and buy it!

Yes!

 Seeing Aleusha and Ilya standing in line, the man at the stall smiles at me.

 Well, I'm sure this will happen if I just give them half of it.

''For now, I'll just buy about ten more. Do you want to eat too, Al?

No, it's good enough for me.

 Well, I didn't expect Roomba to be satisfied with three grilled rice balls.