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Salt is essential for survival.

Of course, that’s a given for any creature.

The first livestock were domesticated by humans through salt, and humans would go to war for it, if necessary.

Food preserved in salt helped civilizations overcome basic population limits, laying the groundwork for their development.

Even beyond survival, salt directly relates to flavor.

Dishes without salt lack umami. The stimulation on the tongue is diminished. It means they are bland and tasteless. And humans are creatures that cannot tolerate boredom.

If one hasn’t encountered it from the start, it’s a different story.

Once someone knows the existence of seasoning, they will do anything to obtain it, even risking their lives.

By the way, Alicia has been holding a piece of steak in one hand while slurping up porridge (bread cooked in milk) since she started eating solids.

No matter if the Demon Lord’s army descended again to scorch the world, she would never dislike budae jjigae.

Right now, the budae jjigae that Alicia was devouring with sparkling eyes was filled with all sorts of sausages, salami, and the marinated meat of a Giant Dungeon Hamster (spam-flavored) boiled to perfection.

The umami within it seeped out from the oil. Naturally, the saltiness from the processed meats permeated the broth.

Salty, spicy, sour, with a hint of sweetness that burst forth with every bite of the rich umami from the processed meats, it stimulated her tongue.

The continuous stimulation replenished her fatigue with the strong sourness of cabbage, the sweetness of softly crushed onions, and the nutty flavor of succulent beans.

From the deep flavor of the cheese that lingered in the broth soaked with the tastes of various ingredients.

Alicia absolutely loved this.

“One more bowl!”

She naturally swept aside the worries she’d been holding onto until entering the tent.

“What a generous portion. Miss Catherine?”

“…Just let her eat.”

The budae jjigae, piled high in a visibly large pot, was a considerable amount even considering Alicia was a big eater. Karem obediently refilled Alicia’s bowl to the brim as his master wished.

“If you’re worried about me, I can just have a bit extra when preparing the contractor’s late-night snack later, so there’s no need.”

“I’ve never worried about you.”

“Oh, how ruthless of you.”

“Just serve quietly.”

Regardless of the small commotion from the side, Alicia paid no mind. She skillfully stacked each ingredient and devoured spoonfuls soaked in broth.

“How can there be such a luxurious stew that stimulates human desire…!”

More meat!

More sausages!

Alicia, quickly chewing the tender, chewy, and crunchy ingredients, was already marveling again, and this was only her second bowl.

The stew she was eating could be said to be the culmination of a meat lover’s greed.

Certainly, the meat stew served in Winterhome is packed with meat.

However, one cannot eat this much meat.

Eat your vegetables too, as demanded by Elizabeth’s stern command.

Of course, Alicia complied without complaints, as vegetables aren’t tasteless.

But sometimes, Alicia has such thoughts.

Imagining just scooping out heaps of meat from the gently simmered meat stew until her cheeks puff up like soft clouds.

An immoral act she couldn’t attempt with Poppins watching her when Elizabeth wasn’t around.

Asking Karem and Zigmeser was impossible because there were delicious alternates that took precedence.

And now Alicia, at the tender age of six.

Today, she finally fulfilled her desire to eat only the meat from the hearty stew.

Catherine subtly tilted her head toward Karem, who was watching with a worried expression.

“Are you worried about that?”

“Yes.”

Karem cut some of the spam-flavored cured meat from the bowl with his spoon. The rich umami from the adequately salt-extracted greasy meat mingled with the freshness of the cabbage kimchi.

“If you knew what this was, you’d be in for a shock.”

He whispered, ensuring Alicia wouldn’t hear. He’d given it to her because she wanted to eat, but revealing its true nature was not an option. What was Richard angry about again, anyway?

“Well, even if the fire spreads, it won’t reach you. After all, you were the one who gave it to her, weren’t you?”

“Is that so?”

“Hm.”

Catherine chewed on some salami and cabbage, glancing at Alicia, then swallowed.

“Maybe? I’m not sure.”

In the end, it seemed like they could be caught in the crossfire. My head began to ache from the uncertain future that might arrive within two days at the latest.

While Catherine savored the taste for a moment, Mary, who had completely finished her bowl, tapped her dish with her spoon.

“I feel a bit empty.”

“What do you mean empty? Is this hefty dish packed with meat?”

“That’s why it feels more so.”

She refilled her bowl and tasted it again, smacking her lips. She was about to snap her fingers but held back.

“Bread… oh wait, bread doesn’t suit this at all.”

“Good observation.”

Salty, sour, spicy, and greasy, her tongue instinctively craved carbohydrates to wash it all down.

Naturally, rice would go better than bread.

But what about rice when there’s none at hand?

Of course, alternatives do exist.

“How about we toss in some pasta and boil it?”

“Pasta? Like that spicy pasta stew from last time?”

“A bit chewier and thicker noodles.”

“I get what you mean.”

“First, let’s eat some of the ingredients.”

To put it bluntly, it was knife-cut noodles. As Mary nodded along, Catherine, who had been savoring her budae jjigae, suddenly raised her eyebrows at the crunching cabbage.

“By the way, how have you cooked this cabbage?”

“Is there something strange about it?”

“It doesn’t have the usual texture of boiled cabbage.”

Catherine beckoned Mary to try it separately, nodding in assurance afterward.

“Sauerkraut? No, it’s not that. It’s too mild to be pickled cabbage from the Eisenwald Dwarves; is it just pickles?”

“It’s cabbage kimchi.”

“Kimchi… really kimchi?”

Catherine, taken aback, furrowed her brow and slightly raised her voice.

“Karem. Have you put the variant of the pickles you previously showcased with the Fire Witch’s Finger into the stew?”

“Yep. It may have cooked while boiling, but it’s more palatable than expected, right?”

“How on earth did you make something that looked so off-putting taste so good? What kind of trickery is this?”

If they had eaten it without knowing from the start, it might have been different.

Once someone knows, it becomes unsettling.

The bright red powder, so vibrant it seemed ready to ignite at any moment, filled with the pungent aroma of garum was overwhelming, to say the least. It was extremely unsettling just to look at…

Wait.

“Since when have I been able to eat something so spicy?”

Thinking back, while she enjoyed flavorful dishes, she wasn’t very good with spicy food.

At most, just a sprinkle of pepper.

Anything beyond that was simply too spicy.

“After all, stimulation tends to become familiar over time.”

“True. Even potions lose their effect if overused. But what does that have to do with this?”

“In that aspect, the tongue resembles the human body most closely.”

“…Huh?”

Indeed, Karem truly was the Fire Witch Finger. He was the one who demoted that poisonous item to a seasoning. And the place where he lived in his previous life was said to be among the nations obsessed with spiciness.

“You know, as the spiciness gradually increased when seasoning with Fire Witch’s Finger, it makes sense, doesn’t it?”

And swiftly, while Mary was refilling Catherine’s fifth bowl, her murmurs sealed the deal.

“Were you just watching Karem’s tricks?”

“Unless he breaks something, I see no need to mention it.”

“Oh.”

That wasn’t entirely false.

She was the one who had employed Karem in particular.

She was the one who had given him complete authority over the cooking.

“Just because unfamiliar ingredients aren’t known to you, you can adapt to cooking them. Now, no one from Iceland doesn’t eat with Fire Witch’s Finger anymore.”

“…”

“Besides, having tasted it, isn’t it actually decent? If you had left out the cabbage kimchi, it would have been less exciting, right?”

“…”

If they had excluded the kimchi from the budae jjigae because they disliked it, the absence of that acidity to cut the greasiness would have been complete. Vinegar? Lemon? Such substitutes could never replicate the complex acidity of kimchi.

And Karem was about to continue speaking when he noticed Catherine silently munching away at her stew, her expression unchanging.

“…”

“Is this a punishment?”

“Yeah. One must acknowledge their mistakes.”

“Well, calling it a mistake seems a bit odd. You’re still holding your own plate just fine, aren’t you?”

“The fault lies in your servant tainting my master’s preferences based on yours.”

“…That makes it sound a bit strange.”

Without understanding the broader context, someone might easily misconstrue the words, leading Karem to silently clear his throat. Thankfully, Alicia seemed too focused on the budae jjigae to hear any of it.

“Cooking ban for a week.”

A cuttingly firm conclusion.

“Wait a moment.”

Karem reflexively stood up from his seat.

That was too severe in this dull world where there was nothing but work to enjoy.

“No matter how you slice it, isn’t that a bit too much? What fun is there in that? No—”

“And that’s the very reason it’s a punishment. From now on, Mary will be in charge of three meals a day and snacks.”

“Isn’t such a punishment more for Mary?”

“Oh? So you’d also want to increase the duration as an appeal due to your regrets?”

Another word could double the duration with a silent cold smile, making him feel he might genuinely be banned for two weeks.

Karem sat back down, swallowing his words with a full sense of defeat.

“Catherine. Has the lovey-dovey time ended?”

“This isn’t lovey-dovey.”

“Alicia just mentioned she wanted to put pasta into this stew Karem and Mary were talking about.”

Alicia had filled her bowl with a mountain of ingredients once again. Despite that, Mary picked up the pot filled with leftover budae jjigae with a ladle.

“Contractor. Karem’s punishment starts from tonight, doesn’t it?”

“Yep. It starts counting from this very moment.”

“I see.”

Mary’s expression remained as expressionless as ever. The joy felt in her voice was unmistakable in her eyes as they glared at Karem mockingly.

“That’s what they say.”

“Damn, I didn’t think this opportunity would be so enjoyable—”

“Ha. Then that makes it a tie.”

After seeking permission from Catherine and Mary, Mary turned to leave the tent but then spun back around to glance down at Karem once more.

“Hmph.”

“Just hurry and get out.”

Then, with an intentional shrug that anyone could catch, she flounced out of the tent.

“Who would have thought putting in kimchi would lead to this…!”

“What are you so upset about?”

“About the punishment that was just delivered to me—”

“Be quiet. Just serve until that guy brings back the pasta.”

Catherine’s bowl was still brimming with budae jjigae broth and ingredients. Karem suppressed his frustration and obediently picked up Catherine’s spoon.

“Karem. Alicia wants to know what the late-night snack you’ll be preparing is.”

Alicia focused intently, savoring the broth.

“Weren’t you listening to what just happened?”

“Eh… didn’t you say you’d bring back pasta?”

“One week from now.”

Alicia tilted her head at the solemn tone in his voice.

“There won’t be any enjoyable snack time for Karem.”

“…No way!”

Alicia reached out to slam the table but hesitated.

After finishing the broth in her bowl cleanly, she crashed it down.

“Alicia wants to eat the snacks Karem makes! Is he quitting being a cook? That cannot be allowed!”

Karem felt a bit touched.

He felt a sense of achievement having fed Alicia heartily all this time behind the scenes.

“There’s no need to worry.”

“Eh?”

“During this week, that annoying fellow’s responsibilities will be handled by Mary instead.”

So then, she could still enjoy the tasty snacks?

After a moment’s contemplation, Alicia dropped her shaky arms and resumed her grip on the tableware, letting out a disappointed sound.

Karem, exhausted from the rapid switch in her mood, lowered his arms. He had to lift them again as Catherine urged him on.

‘So what should I do now?’

He would have never imagined he would obtain leave in this manner. It was so pointless. What in the world could he do to pass the time in a world without the internet or video games?

With his cooking ban, cooking experiments were also off the table.

Is it really suggesting he should develop a new hobby from scratch now?

After feeding the final spoonful of broth to Catherine, Karem slowly ate the lukewarm budae jjigae in his bowl while contemplating when he turned his attention to the stirring outside the tent.

“Huh? Did you finish it already?”

“No, it feels like the weight of the steps is different.”

Catherine shook her head.

As she said, the person who peeked through the tent was not Mary.

“Atanitas’s house fairy says Karem is here. Oh, indeed. Here you are. Alicia is here too.”

“Hmph!”

“Ugh. May I come in?”

As Catherine nodded, Richard quickly approached, glancing at Alicia and taking a seat in the empty spot.

“I asked you to take care of that, so I wanted to see if the menu had been decided…”

“Uh… we were just eating the stew made with that earlier.”

“Stew? You were eating it?”

Richard’s eyes widened in surprise, as if he didn’t expect it to be made so quickly.

His gaze locked onto the dish Karem was eating, catching sight of the familiar omission of color but similar shape of the marinated meat.

“Then, what’s in that bowl is the marinated meat from the Giant Dungeon Hamster?”

“Ah.”

Karem and Catherine instinctively covered their eyes.

“Eh…”

Clatter.

Alicia dropped her spoon.

Her small hands were trembling.

In the back of her mind, reflecting on her troubles, she had failed to go visit the fluffy cloud-like cart this day. Could this meat be…?

Of course, the fluff cloud was not only fine but had also eaten a mountain of nuts and returned to slumber, but Alicia was still unaware of that fact.

Shock. As her wide, trembling eyes turned downward to her hands, the indignant gaze of an angered hamster flared in this direction.

If she messes up here, they might genuinely suffer the consequences.

There wasn’t the time to explain in detail.

Karem instinctively made excuses.

“That meat was given by His Grace the Viscount, asking me to transform it into a dish!”

Of course, it was also his fault for not thinking twice before recklessly boiling it into budae jjigae, but the shocked Alicia was not in the right frame of mind to consider that.

“Grandpa, I hate you!!!”

Alicia let out a wail! Richard, about to speak, froze in shock, completely taken aback.

Having inflicted two significant wounds upon Iceland’s mightiest warrior that she had never experienced before, the teary-eyed Alicia burst out of the tent.

The two attendants watched her leave and quietly sighed in relief.

A moment later, Mary arrived with the requested pasta that had the texture of knife-cut noodles, glancing swiftly at Richard, whose head was buried in the floor where Alicia had lain.

Swish swish swish—

Karem silently waved his hands towards Mary, signaling her to be careful.

“Where has the one who ordered the pasta gone?”

Naturally, Mary didn’t seem to care.

 

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