「And… thus it came to be… ooooh… The ‘Shattering Meat Ball Fist’ was born from years, no, decades, of relentless training, ahhh…! Where the hardened calluses of the palm, molded through endless strikes, swelled and softened, becoming like… aaah… paw pads… hence the name…」
At Kuduro-san’s request, I was giving him a massage around his lower back in the wagon.
Since I had the chance, I decided to ask him about that ‘Shattering Meat Ball Fist’ of his.
By the way, he had been quite surprised when we floated earlier, so I’d made sure to tell him to keep quiet about the space magic, no matter that Renge’s sister was a queen.
I’d always wondered why Kuduro-san, a beastkin, had paw pads while Sorte and Renge didn’t.
But when I heard the answer, I almost wished I hadn’t.
Training by punching rocks, ‘over and over’, until you can shatter them with your bare hands?
Apparently, by the time you can crush one in a single blow, you’ve developed actual paw pads, soft, yet dense with destructive power or something like that.
Still, when he let me touch them… they really ‘were’ paw pads.
A little rough, sure, but soft and springy, damn it, they felt good.
「…Yeah, no one wants to see an old man getting pleasure from master’s handsssu.」
「Hey, I didn’t want this either, okay…」
He’d asked me to heal him because there were more battles ahead.
And Renge, being Renge, had just said something idiotic like, ‘Just hit it and it’ll get better’.
「My apologies… nghhh… Still, you have my gratitude… oooof! Thank you, Princess!」
Kuduro-san groaned in pain and relief while thanking her.
Renge, however, just waved a hand lazily, clearly not taking it seriously.
「Yeah yeah, tell that to master, not messu. Geez, you really shouldn’t be overdoing it at your agessu.」
「Hohoh… A married couple of the same kind, are you? Lord master said the same, ooghAAHHHHH!」
I pressed a little harder since he decided to say something embarrassing.
Just once though.
I didn’t want to be responsible if his back actually gave out.
「By the way, earth dragons are considered monsters, huh.」
「Yup. Well, to be exact, they’re ‘Desert Lizardsssu’. When a large natural magic stone absorbs too much earth magic power, it turns into one of those things. But because of how they look, and how strong they are, people just call them earth dragonsssu.」
I had assumed they were a type of dragon, but it turned out they were actually lizards.
If we left the earth dragons alone, new ones would apparently form again from the magic stones, so right now Shiro, Aina, and Sorte were out harvesting those stones.
By the way, if you strip the meat first before taking the magic stone, the meat stays intact. Shiro was probably being very particular about which cuts to take.
「Alright, that should do it. How are you feeling?」
「Haaaa… the pain is gone, and my back feels much lighter now.」
「I’m just an amateur, so please don’t push yourself, okay?」
「No no, you’ve got quite the skill! What do you say? Would you like to work as a court masseur?」
「Ah, yeah, old man, I wouldn’t recommend thatssu… The higher-ups in the Kingdom and even some in the Empire already have their eyes on him. You’ll just end up getting him more unwanted attentionssu.」
By “some higher-ups”, did she mean Iris and Sicilia-sama?
I doubted they’d hold grudges over something that small though…
I mean….
「Working for the court sounds exhausting. No thanks…」
I could already picture the endless stress that would bring.
I was more than satisfied with my current life, one hundred and twenty percent satisfied, even.
I had zero interest in things like power or noble titles.
「Muu… If lord master was stationed here, I could finally volunteer as a combat instructor. It’s such a shame I can’t properly retrain those spineless soldiers myself.」
Apparently, Roukaku’s army wasn’t particularly strong.
From what Kuduro-san explained as he spread out the map, it seemed the western half of the kingdom was being handled by the military, while he personally managed everything from the capital toward the royal borders.
Trying to handle an entire army’s worth of duties by himself, he really was pushing it too far.
Once Kuduro-san’s back had recovered, we kept the map open for a meeting on our next course of action.
Although, the plan had already been decided, we just needed to explain it to him and ask for his cooperation.
「Alright, we’ll handle this areassu.」
「But Princess, your group’s territory is far larger than mine…」
「Yeah, but it’s scarier if your back gives out again, grampsssu.」
「True enough… There are some distant locations too, so we’ll cover these routes, and Kuduro-san, you’ll take care of these two.」
「Hmmm… It pains me to leave the country’s affairs to you like this, but…」
He said that, but the moment his back fully healed, he’d probably get fired up and overdo it again.
It was honestly better if he handled the smaller region; it saved us from unnecessary detours too.
We kept discussing the details, going back and forth for quite a while before finally reaching an agreement.
「Hmmm… Very well then. I’ll leave it in your hands.」
At last, though clearly reluctant, Kuduro-san finally agreed.
I was exhausted… what a stubborn old man.
「Ah, do make sure to stop by the castle, please. Naturally, there’ll be a proper reward! And also…」
「I know, I knowssu. We’ll collect the reward properly, Koren would nag me to death otherwise… But once we show our faces, we’re heading right back, okay?」
And so, our plan from here on was to split into two groups, one to subjugate the remaining earth dragons while picking up the rewards, and another to visit Renge’s younger sister.
After that, we’d return home via coordinate transfer (Point Gate).
「Lord, finished taking magic stones. Meat! Cook the meat!」
「Yeah, Wendy’s handling that right now… Seriously, you’re eating already?」
「Hmm. I’m hungry after fighting.」
「You mean the earth dragon meat? That stuff is…」
「Shiro, the meat’s done, but honestly, I’m not sure about this…」
Wendy came over carrying a plate piled with the cooked earth dragon meat.
She must’ve used the recipe she’d learned from the innkeeper lady, it smelled savory and delicious.
But the look on her face said otherwise.
「Lord, can I try it?」
「Sure, go ahead.」
Completely unfazed, Shiro reached for the plate, jabbed a piece with her fork, and took a big bite, one bite… another…
「Nnnnnnghh!? Nnnnnnnghhhhh!?」
She tugged at the meat with all her strength, but even tearing off a piece seemed to take real effort.
「Earth dragon meat is far too tough to eat as is. If you wish to eat it, it must be simmered for many hours before it becomes tender. Even then, it’s hardly worth the trouble…」
「I see…」
「Nnnghh!! …chew chew chew chew chew chew chew chew…」
Shiro finally managed to bite through, though her expression didn’t change, only her mouth moved at a ridiculous speed.
「I only grilled one piece for now, but… what should we do with the rest?」
「Hmm… maybe I’ll simmer it inside my magic space. That way, it can cook while we travel.」
It might not be worth the effort, but since we had plenty of meat, we might as well process it somehow.
「’Nod’… Nnnghh… it’s… meh. I’ll eat the rest since I started, but… meh.」
「Yeah, I’ll try some too. Gotta at least taste it myself…」
Since I couldn’t chew through it, I had Shiro cut off a piece with her sterilized knife.
…Yeah, this was rough.
It was like endlessly chewing on lean meat that refused to soften, or like biting through fat that never broke apart.
My jaw was starting to ache.
「Disappointing meat…」
The Black Moam we usually eat is way tastier than this stuff.
Shiro’s mood visibly dropped.
Well, I mean, the earth dragon was technically a monster.
And a lizard at that. So yeah… we were basically eating lizard meat.
「Indeed… Oh, look there, that’s one of Roukaku’s specialties, the subterranean sea worm! Normally it stays deep underground, swimming through the desert sands like a sea. It rarely surfaces, and its meat is both rare and highly prized for its exquisite flavor, 」
Following Kuduro-san’s finger, I spotted an enormous worm gliding gracefully across the sand, surfacing to breathe.
Ooooooh… that’s huge…
「Ah… sorry, but I can’t do bugs…」
「What… truly? Hmm, an unexpected weakness indeed.」
I guess insects are normal food in this world, and I’m the odd one out.
But still, why does Raukaku’s local delicacy have to be a bug!?
Just the thought of those caterpillars fills me up already!
Not that I’ve ever actually eaten one!
「Don’t worry, master! Proprietress-san never uses those in her cooking!」
「Thank you…」
Right, we just ate meat earlier.
I’m so glad that wasn’t worm meat… really, truly glad.
「Sorry, Shiro. I’m sure it’s tasty, but…」
「Hmm. It’s fine. If lord doesn’t like it, Shiro won’t eat it either. Earth dragon wasn’t good, but I’ll still hunt properly.」
「Speaking of which, the princess’s companions were strong, but Shiro-dono is formidable as well.」
「Hm? Shiro’s strong, yeah.」
「Hahaha. You certainly have the strength to say so. Hmm. If I recall, lord master-dono, you’re an alchemist, yes? How are you in combat…?」
「Totally hopeless. I’m training now, but only for self-defense really.」
「That’s quite unusual for a drifter. I see… that explains why you stayed back. Knowing your own limits and acting accordingly, that’s a fine quality in itself.」
「Yeah. If I caused trouble, I wouldn’t be able to keep my promise to you, Kuduro-san.」
I know my role, to stay out of the way and not do anything unnecessary.
That much, at least, I understand.
…Though when it really counts, I won’t hesitate.
「Hoho. I’m not worried at all. I’m certain you’ll keep your word to me.」
Kuduro-san smiled gently and gave me a quick wink.
Classic… or maybe not so classic.
Either way, men shouldn’t wink at other men, right…?
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