CH 4.40

Journey and Whim

Translated by Mlzkzr

Edited by Mlzkzr

“Now, Acer-san, eat a lot. You are our lifesaver!”

At night, I was invited to the home of Azirte, one of the farmers I had saved during the day, where I was treated to a meal prepared by his wife.

The menu is very generous, and the first thing that catches my eyes is the platter of spare ribs from the Greed boar with a generous amount of apple sauce.

Apples not only tenderize the meat, but also suppress its odor.

Above all, of course, it makes it taste good.

The other dishes include an apple pie, a Greed boar ground beef meat pie, and a rather surprising apple soup.

Furthermore, with a sweet cider, yes, it really was a luxurious feast.

The reason I was invited to Azirte’s house was that I turned down the reward for defeating a Greed boar that the farmers tried to offer me.

Because I’m not an adventurer, and I didn’t kill the Greed boar for money.

If someone is about to be killed by a monster in front of me and I can do something about it, I will help them, regardless of whether they are rich or poor.

Ah, I might abandon them if they are obviously not some people I should be helping, or if they are likely to be detrimental to me or my surroundings.

Of course, I don’t deny the notion that adventurers get rewards for helping people, and I think it’s actually a good thing.

I simply wanted to say that I am not an adventurer now and that I didn’t hunt the Greed boar for money.

I am not a professional monster exterminator; I am just a hunter who happened to pass by and killed his prey.

However, the farmers, especially Azirte, who seemed to be the organizer of the group, did not feel comfortable with this and invited me to their house, at least for the duration of my stay in the town of Ardeno.

It was neither a mountain inn nor a potluck, but Azirte’s hospitality was warm and the food was wonderful.

The greed boar spare ribs had a very strong umami flavor, but thanks to the apple sauce, I didn’t feel the heaviness.

No, well, there are some quirks, but it was more in the range of my preference.

The apples have a similar flavor to the Apua fruit, and were considered one of the favorite fruits of elves.

But when it is cooked in this manner, it shows a completely different charm, even though it is indeed an apple.

I stuff my stomach with the food with gusto, not to the point of being crude, but with enthusiasm.

Since I’ve been traveling, I’ve had so many more opportunities to eat delicious food, so I’m really happy.

“Hahaha, I’m glad to hear that my wife’s cooking suits your palate. Since I didn’t know what the elves liked.”

His wife also laughed at Azirte’s bright words.

That said, I eat most things, so I’m probably not going to be of any help in figuring out the tastes of picky elves and high elves for them.

However, many elves will be delighted with this kind of apple dish.

Judging from the lavish entertainment, the size of the house, and the interior design, Azirte seems to be reasonably wealthy.

Apparently, fruit farming is very profitable.

This means that the town of Ardeno, whose main industry is fruit cultivation, or the Kingdom of Ardeno itself, is rich.

Of course, that is a bit of a stretch for a country of its size.

The next day, I thank Azirte and leave his house and the town of Ardeno.

I’ve been repeatedly stopped by people who want me to stay here longer, but…… this may sound strange, but it’s smarter to leave while they are still stopping me.

A life in which one is so dependent on others for food, clothing, and shelter is something that one does not experience so many times, and I know firsthand that too much dependence would become a habit.

Besides, more than anything else, I want to process the skin of the Greed boar I carry on my back.

According to Azirte, between this Ardeno and Focca, the next city of the Zia Republic, there is a village named Parnor, where I would be heading next.

The village belongs to the Republic of Zia, not the Kingdom of Ardeno.

It was said that Parnor is located on the shores of a river that flows out of Lake Ziar, from which the Republic of Ziar takes its name.

And in the village of Parnor, cloth dyeing, and tanning hides are carried out using the abundant water of the river.

I had heard somewhere that one of the processes of tanning hides is to expose them to the flow of a river, or river soaking.

Perhaps, it was at the time I was working as a blacksmith in the Kingdom of Ludria.

I have actually handled leather materials that have been tanned many times.

For example, it can be wrapped around the grip of a sword, attached to a shield, stretched on the inside of metal armor, or sewn into leather armor.

Therefore, once the tanning process is complete, I can consider the use of the skin of the Greed boar when I have time.

It is the skin of a large, hard monster, so it could be used in any number of ways.

From the town of Ardeno to the village of Parnor, it takes a day on foot.

From the village of Parnor to the town of Focca, it is still a day’s walk as well.

I made a request to tan Greed boar skin in the village of Parnor, where I stayed only one night, and headed for Focca.

I was actually interested in the process of tanning hides, but in a big town, they would just be skeptical, but in a small village, they would be sensitive to the leakage of techniques that were passed down from generation to generation.

I can’t bother the villagers of Parnor because I’m going to entrust them with the skin of a big prey I caught.

And if I really do want to learn it, I can just become an apprentice at a leather workshop in a larger town.

After more than ten years of living in human society, one can learn to care for others to that extent.

Well, after that, yes, it was time.

Careful tanning of a hide can take several months at most.

As expected, even for me to have such a long time…… I can wait for it if I’m not in the middle of my journey, but I couldn’t wait a bit now, so I had no choice but to give priority to heading to Odine, the country of magic.

I have no choice but to decide where to stay in Odine and come back to this village of Parnor after spending a few months there, or ask a merchant or hire an adventurer to pick up the leather.

So, although I am a little sad to leave it behind, I will leave the skins of the Greed Boar in the village of Parnor and continue my journey, looking forward to seeing it again in its leather form.