Chapter 14: 『Padron Zalfedahl』★

After that, we added Tetoma to our party and returned to the fortress city of Zalfedahl. We had one or two run-ins with the soldiers along the way, but there’s no need to go into that. There’s no need for mob characters to get any screen time.

Anyway, we were safely granted an audience with Paramore Qua Zalfedahl, the lord of Zalfedahl, and Kizuna proceeded to give his passionate speech. Well, we can cut that entire thing too.

And after one thing led to another, the lord’s son, Padron Zalfedahl, joined our party, and now Kizuna and company are preparing to head to the nomads.

When you think about it, it’s only natural. As a fortress city, they were throwing away an opportunity to resolve the nomad problem that had plagued them for years. On top of that, preparations for war had already been steadily moving forward. Wars involve vested interests and all sorts of other complications. If they were to stop the war, would the merchants who had already been making contracts be satisfied? What about the people who had been paying higher taxes for some time? The soldiers hired outside the regular army? The weapons that had already been prepared? What about all the anger that had been directed toward the enemy? ...The list of problems could go on forever.

No matter how much Lord Paramore believed the story about the "World Eater," this wasn't something they could simply stop by saying, "All right, let's call it off." There was even a possibility that the lord himself could be assassinated by someone dissatisfied with the ceasefire.

So, what were they supposed to do? Simple. There had to be something worth the price of ending the war. The solution the lord came up with was for Kizuna and the nomads to establish friendly relations, allowing them to stand between the fortress city and the nomads and create a place for peaceful negotiations. There, after arranging various trade agreements and other matters, they would conclude a peace treaty.

The nomads, whose internal situation was already falling apart, weren't in a position to take a hard line, while the fortress city could gain the upper hand through things like reparations and future trade deals. With those results in hand, the merchants and townspeople would supposedly be satisfied as well. Honestly, politics is complicated and I don't understand it at all. Not one bit. At the very least, it became perfectly clear that NAISEI is something I could never do.

So, what am I doing right now?

I'm making curry.

You might be thinking, "What the hell are you doing? Hurry up and go to the nomads already." But this is something we need to do.

Everything had been happening at breakneck speed since we left the dungeon. We went straight to the fortress city, met with the lord, made our direct appeal, decided to depart for the nomads ...all of that happened within half a day. We hadn't even had a decent meal since leaving the dungeon. That's pretty damn exploitative, isn't it??

And so, I'm making the curry I promised them back in the dungeon.

I told the lord it was a necessary expense and collected some money from him, then bought a huge amount of ingredients in the fortress city. I even secured the lord's mansion's magnificent kitchen. Plenty of ingredients, perfect equipment, and a bunch of starving people who have never tasted my proper cooking before. ...Heh. What a magnificent situation. My cooking instincts are tingling.

The lord's son, our newest companion. Surely, he's been eating delicious food every day of his life. Kizuna and Rune are one thing, but I'll make this young master groan with delight too.

I'll make him regret ever saying, "It's nothing more than a commoner's meal." Fwahahahahahaha!

...As you can tell from that statement alone, Padron is currently quite the unpleasant fellow. You could say he looks down on commoners. He's trapped in the mindset of a typical noble young master. Having seriously trained himself in martial arts as a knight, he also seems to harbor an especially bitter view of those he considers "weak beings who can only be protected."

Still, that Padron, a walking bundle of aristocratic superiority, gradually grows throughout his journey with Kizuna (the player). In particular, at the nomads' settlement we're heading toward now, the daughter of their late great chieftain will join the party, and interacting with her seems to have a major impact on him. It's not a romantic thing or anything like that. Rather, as he learns what the people he had only ever regarded as enemies are actually like, he begins to realize how narrow his own perspective has been.

The story-joining members of WF ...the members who are generally portrayed as the protagonist's party in manga adaptations and the like ...are basically "young boys and girls who grow." One of the appeals is watching these young people, who each carry some degree of immaturity or vulnerability, grow as they confront the world's crisis and overcome countless hardships. Kizuna, Rune, Padron, the nomad girl, the elf girl, and finally the ninja. Those six were basically the main members.

Their roles were roughly Rune (close-range offense), Ninja (close-range offense), Padron (defense), Elf (magic), and Nomad (ranged offense). There are two main reasons why nobody has the "Healing" aptitude. One is that it's difficult to clearly distinguish "Magic" and "Healing" in terms of their roles in the story. The other is that, later on, a certain "human-rights healer" repeatedly joins the party temporarily. There's this semi-regular character who occasionally joins as a temporary member, only to disappear again almost immediately.

And that's how the protagonist's party ended up lacking a healer, allowing me to slide right into that opening. While I'm at it, I might as well establish myself as the reliable big-sister type who guides these inexperienced boys and girls.

...Oops, my thoughts wandered. I need to focus on cooking.

Hmm. Aside from the half-assed cooking I did in the dungeon, this is my first real culinary debut in the "WF" storyline. This is not the time to hold back.

A super-rare spice I obtained in a certain desert. Since I only have a limited amount, I normally keep it safely stored away and never use it, but today I'm breaking it out. Seriously, this stuff is incredible. Put it into anything and it elevates the flavor to an entirely higher level.

My cooking skills are amazing. Seriously amazing. I spent nearly ten years taking care of the household chores in place of my mother back on Earth. On top of that basic foundation, I have survival knowledge from "Chaos," as well as cooking techniques, recipes, and knowledge of ingredients from all the various worlds scattered throughout "Chaos" ...and the result of this unholy fusion is my cooking ability.

This is my personal theory, but cooking is the product of an incredibly long accumulation of knowledge. What humans have built up, passed down, developed, and refined across every era and every place is what we call cooking. Cooking is the history of humanity itself, a highly intelligent species.

Just as a French chef who incorporates Japanese culinary techniques can step into a new realm of cuisine, I have carved out a new frontier through my experiences on Earth and all the techniques I've gathered in "Chaos."

And so.

What they are about to challenge is the history of humanity. The pinnacle of cuisine!

Let's go, you hungry bastards――――are you hungry enough?

I am Padron Zalfedahl. I am the eldest son of the lord of the fortress city of Zalfedahl. One day, I will be the man who bears the responsibility of this city on his shoulders.

That is why I have devoted myself to every form of effort since I was a child. Not only my studies, but also my abilities as a soldier and warrior. I never had any time to simply go around playing, but I considered that an obvious responsibility for someone of noble birth, and I never resented it.

But if there was one thing I was dissatisfied with, it was the attitude of the people who were on the receiving end of our protection. Not everyone was like this. But it was also true that some people believed they were entitled to be protected.

They put in hardly any effort, convinced themselves they had worked hard, and envied me simply because I was born into a special family. Don't make me laugh. Have you trained even half as hard as I have? In this city, being a regular soldier who protects the city is a highly coveted profession. The pay is excellent, too. And anyone can become one if they have enough ability. If the people who envied me had put in even half the effort I had, they could easily have risen to the top as soldiers. I hated people like that.

But Father never acknowledged that attitude.

"That's not it, Padron. Your perspective is far too narrow. You must understand that there are as many worlds as there are people. Until you can understand that, I will not acknowledge you as my successor."

I didn't understand what he meant. It felt as though everything I had worked for up until then was being denied.

Even so, I struggled desperately to understand. I tried and tried, but I simply couldn't find the answer.

Then, at that time, Father announced that he intended to stop the war he had been preparing against the nomads ...those savages.

And Father, of all people, should have known better than anyone how much those people had troubled us!

And on top of that――

"Travel with them. It will certainly become an important experience for you. It may even bring you closer to the answer you've been struggling to find. By the time you complete this journey of salvation with them, you should have become a man worthy of becoming lord."

That was what Father said, referring to a bunch of commoners whose origins were completely unknown.

There was no way I could accept that. But I didn't want all the effort I had accumulated toward becoming lord to go to waste. So I decided to join this so-called journey of salvation.

If the world really was in danger, then it was true that I had to participate as someone who would protect the weak.

...And yet.

For some reason, we're currently having a leisurely meal without even setting out yet. Are these people idiots?

Apparently, a green-haired woman called "Tierra As" is going to cook...

It's nothing more than a shabby commoner's meal, after all.

This "curry rice" is a dish I've never even heard of, but it's probably some sort of rustic food from a remote backwater. I doubt it's anything special. Since I was young, I've eaten specialties from various regions in preparation for my future diplomatic duties. I can't imagine this satisfying my palate.

That said, this is probably also serving as something like a ceremony to unite the members who will be traveling together. In that case, perhaps there is some value in participating. It's fine. I'll just endure eating a somewhat unpleasant meal.

That was what I thought.

But as this "curry rice" neared completion, an appetizing aroma tickled my nose, and my stomach began to growl with increasing urgency.

The dish that was eventually brought to us was something I'd never seen before, but I could tell at a glance that an extraordinary amount of effort had gone into making it.

And then.

The moment I put it into my mouth―――the・world・changed・.

Mountains spread before me. Seas spread before me. Deserts spread before me. Forests spread before me. Rivers spread before me. Wastelands spread before me. Frozen lands spread before me. Grasslands spread before me. Unknown landscapes passed before my eyes. None of them had anything in common ...no, there was one thing. Humans lived and breathed within every one of those landscapes. In prosperous places, in harsh places, in the distant past, in the living present ...everywhere, there were scenes of someone preparing food for someone they cared about――!

I see. So that's what it means! This is the very history that humanity has accumulated! The embodiment of culinary culture! The very concept of one person caring about another!

Everything in this chaotic world has been condensed into this tiny plate!

"――It's delicious! It feels so, so nostalgic!"

"More."

"Rune, that was fast!?"

"It's too delicious. It's your fault."

Kizuna and Rune ...they don't understand. Of course they don't. Their palates aren't refined enough to comprehend the weight of the history contained within this dish, the value of the techniques that went into it. After eating this food, all they can say is that it feels "nostalgic"...

No, that's not it!?

It is true that this plate is packed with an immense amount of knowledge and skill.

But! But still!

What brings all of those things together into a single dish is the love that embraces everything ...a mother's love.

At its foundation is kindness. The simplicity of an ordinary home-cooked meal.

When it comes to home cooking, hardly anyone obsesses over making one particular dish. The essence of home cooking lies in creating meals with limited ingredients and limited time while ensuring that people don't get tired of eating them. In other words, it possesses the flexibility to scale down the culinary techniques of countless cultures and incorporate them within a range that can actually be put to practical use...!

Built upon that foundation of basic home cooking are layer upon layer of magnificent techniques, piled on without restraint. And the ability to envelop every single one of them without making anything feel out of place.

Nostalgic.

Of course it is. Nostalgia is nothing less than the very foundation of this dish.

I'll admit it. Right now, this plate is... delicious――!

★Introducing Fan Art I Received

Artwork by "Nodoguro"

【Display Illustration】

Tierra looks like she's either the cover of a novel or the character you get the instant you pull her from a gacha!

She's beautiful...!

★Afterword (※Long! You don't have to read this)

【Apology and Announcement】

I have received various comments regarding a certain detective and the reactions on the message board. They were the readers' honest impressions, and all of them were valid opinions. If I caused even the slightest discomfort, then as a writer, all I can do is reflect on my mistakes.

The entire situation was caused by the author's lack of familiarity with message boards, lack of imagination, and insufficient skill as a writer. I sincerely apologize.

I intend to review the relevant sections. I expect that I will make corrections based on that review, but updates will take priority. I will gradually make corrections alongside the regular updates.

So, I will not stop updating.

I will slowly work on the revisions while continuing to update the story.

If there are particular actions or words from a character in the story that you simply cannot accept, I recommend switching over to the Kakuyomu version. That version should have the revisions incorporated from the beginning.

Sorry for the long message.

I hope you will continue to enjoy this work, 『I Can't Return Unless I Become #1 in the Popularity Poll of a Social Game』.