Chapter 3-24 : The Birth Of The Fish Appraiser
It’s time to go back to the market!
ーKuuuuuuuuuu~~ *stomach growl*
…But before that, we should eat lunch first.
「Kako ojou-sama, do you still need to borrow the inn’s kitchen? If not, I will tell the inn’s manager and have them prepare lunch for you instead.」(Thea)
「Hmm…」(Kako)
Hearing my stomach growling, Thea suggested. Howeverー
「No, I will still borrow the kitchen. Thea, can you prepare the space for me?」(Kako)
「Understood.」(Thea)
Thea nodded and left the room to tell the manager.
Now that only Nyat and I remain in this room, it’sー
「ーIt’s synthesis time again-nya!」(Nyat)
「…..」(Kako)
This cat stole my line… again…
I sighed and took out the remaining fish.
Now that I could use my appraisal ability on these fish, I identified them one by one and hoped some of them were still edible.
「This one is contaminated… Not this one… Not this one either… This one is inedible too…」(Kako)
「Ugh… Is there any that’s still safe to eat-nya…?」(Nyat)
Nyat was watching nervously next to me.
「Oh, this one is not contaminated… This one is edible as well…」(Kako)
「Nyanya~!」(Nyat)
He looked so happy when I found some fish that were not contaminated by the poison and immediately put them aside.
After appraising all the fish, I found that more than seventy percent of them were contaminated. We only had less than thirty percent of the fish we bought that were edible, but I think it’s more than enough to create the best fish out of them.
「Here goes nothing… Synthesis!」(Kako)
I synthesized all the edible fish and got a big fish almost one and a half meters long as the result.
《Highest Quality Seven Sea Salmon : The rarest variety of salmon in the freshest condition. This rare fish tastes incredibly good and has rich nutrients. It can be sold at a very high price and normally can only be eaten by rich people.》
「Ohhh!!」(Kako)
「Kako, how is it-nya?」(Nyat)
「Well, there you go. I present to you the best fish in this region. Uncontaminated, of course.」(Kako)
「NYAHOOOOOOOO~~!! Kako, you’re the best-nya!!」(Nyat)
He was so happy that she hugged the fish like a body pillow.
A big cat hugging a big fish. That looks kinda cute.
「It’s really edible, right-nya?」(Nyat)
「Yeah. Not only is it edible, but it also can be sold at a high price.」(Kako)
「ー!!」(Nyat)
Listening to what I had just said, Nyat hugged the fish tighter and jumped away from me.
「Don’t say you wanna sell it-nya!」(Nyat)
「O, of course, not…」(Kako)
Honestly, selling it is not a bad idea, but Nyat will be really mad for sure, so, yeah, let’s just eat this one.
Now, I wonder how I’m going to deal with the contaminated ones. Since they can’t be eaten, sold, or used as materials, perhaps I will just use them to practice my Synthesis Ability.
I will get the rarest variety of salmon called Seven Sea Salmon if I synthesize all these kinds of fish at once, but I wonder what I will get if I only synthesize part of them.
I think I’ll start with these two.
「Rainbow Trout and Slimy Codー Synthesis!」(Kako)
《Contaminated Bullet Sardine : The type of sardine that has the head as hard as rock. They attack their enemies in schools with headbutts. Normally, it’s delicious when stewed, but it’s contaminated with dangerous substances from the failed production of Lost Potion. Eating it will make you sick.》
Just as the name suggested, this fish looked like a sardine, but it had a rounded, hard head. You would hurt someone if you threw it at them.
「What a weird fish. I wonder if you have to remove its head first before you cook it. Next, Bullet Sardine and Slimy Codー Synthesis!」(Kako)
《Contaminated Tiger Anglerfish : A deep-sea fish that has sharp, long teeth and a mouth larger than its entire body. It blends in with the seabed with its mouth wide open, and when its prey comes directly above it, it will bite it to pieces with its tiger-like teeth that are capable of crushing even iron. It requires some skills to cook it, but it’s delicious in stew. However, it’s contaminated with dangerous substances from the failed production of Lost Potion. Eating it will make you sick.》
Uwahh… another weird and dangerous fish…
Are ordinary sea creatures in this world just as dangerous as monsters? Well, there are sharks in the Earth’s oceans, but it seems that this world’s oceans are far more dangerous than the Earth’s.
After that, I continued synthesizing the remaining contaminated fish and creating various kinds of fish. Most of them were weird and dangerous kinds.
I kept doing it until I used up all the contaminated fish, and the result I got was this.
《Extremely Contaminated Seven Sea Salmon : The rarest variety of salmon. Normally, this rare fish tastes incredibly good and has rich nutrients. However, it was contaminated with a deadly-level concentration of dangerous substances from the failed production of Lost Potion. The poison it contains is lethal. Don’t eat it or you will DIE!》
Uwahh… Even the description warned me firmly not to eat it.
Eating it equals death…
The first contaminated Seven Sea Salmon I created was not as deadly as this one because I might have included uncontaminated fish in the process when I synthesized it. However, I 100 percent used nothing but contaminated fish to create this one.
This might be the most deadly fish in this region’s entire ocean.
「Ugh, what do I do with it? I can’t just throw it away. It might pollute the environment.」(Kako)
「Why don’t you keep it for now-nya? You can use it later-nya.」(Nyat)
「Use it? For what?」(Kako)
「For showing the duke how serious the situation is-nya.」(Nyat)
「I see. That’s a good idea.」(Kako)
Despite the pollution, the people in this city still eat fish. Well, it’s not that I don’t understand. Fish is like the staple food in this area after all. Still, they need to be warned, and the person to warn them is none other than the duke himself.
Perhaps Duke Balvin thinks that the contamination is weak and the situation will return to normal once his son, Roberto, takes care of the pollution, but if we show him this fish, he will realize how dangerous the situation is and take it more seriously.
「Alright. I’ll keep it for now. But… I don’t want to touch it…」(Kako)
Touching is not equal to eating, but still, I don’t want to touch that deadly thing.
I put gloves on and used several layers of sheets to warp it just in case. I also sacrificed one of my precious magic bags just to store it.
Just as I stored the deadly contaminated fish, Thea entered the room.
「Kako ojou-sama, the kitchen is ready.」(Thea)
「Thank you, Thea. Let’s go.」(Kako)
「Let’s cook this amazing fish-nya~!」(Nyat)
「Hm? I didn’t know we had such a big fish.」(Thea)
Seeing Nyat hugging the big fish, Thea tilted her head.
This is bad…
「A-ahh, we bought it when you were not seeing-nya! Right, Kako?」(Nyat)
「Th, that’s right. More importantly, let’s hurry. The quicker we finish it, the better. I don’t want to bother the chefs.」(Kako)
「…Understood. This way.」(Thea)
Thea looked at us suspiciously for a second, but then she led us to the kitchen.
She’s sharp. Perhaps she had already noticed my ability a long time ago.
◆◆◆
「MMMMmmmmm~~~ It’s so DELICIOUS-nya~!! The best fish I’ve ever eaten. No doubt about it-nya!」(Nyat)
「I’m happy for you.」(Kako)
After taking a bit of the fish soup made of the best fish I had prepared, Nyat showed a blissful smile on his face.
I’m really glad that he likes it.
Not just him. Thea seemed to like it too.
「Kako ojou-sama, you really surprise me. Your cooking is wonderful!」(Thea)
「Right-nya~? Kako’s cooking is the best in the world-nya!」(Nyat)
Nyat put his paws on his waist and smiled smugly.
「Nyat-sama, I don’t know why you’re the one bragging, but you’re right. Her cooking techniques were excellent. She might have exceeded Lord Elvent’s chefs.」(Thea)
「You’re exaggerating. There’s no way I beat Father’s chefs.」(Kako)
It doesn’t feel bad to be praised, but she’s exaggerating.
I learned how to cook from my mom in my previous life, so my cooking techniques are on the same level as a typical Japanese housewife’s.
These dishes taste great not because I’m exceptionally good at cooking, but I think it’s because of the quality of the fish. It’s the best, rarest, freshest Seven Sea Salmon, after all.
While enjoying our lunch in our room, the two kept praising me and the food until we finished every last bite.
It is indeed the best fish I’ve ever eaten in this world.
◆◆◆
「Are you ready to go?」(Kako)
「Let’s go-nya!」(Nyat)
Now that we have filled our stomachs, it’s time to go to the market.
However, before we could leave our room, someone knocked on the door.
「Hm?」(Kako)
While I was looking at the door, wondering, Thea stood up and opened the door.
It was an inn staff member. She whispered to Thea.
「I see. Thank you for telling.」(Thea)
After that, she bowed and left.
「Kako ojou-sama, the negotiator is here.」(Thea)
「What? They’re here already?」(Kako)
「Yes. This is weird. I thought they would arrive tomorrow. They’re waiting for us at the lobby.」(Thea)
「Well, I guess we have to meet them then.」(Kako)
The negotiator arrived sooner than we expected. I’m glad that we haven’t gone to the market yet.
I took my last sip of tea and left our room with Nyat and Thea.
When I got to the lobby, I saw a familiar woman wearing standout shiny metal armor.
That’s right. She’s none other than my adoptive older sister.
「Eh? Maitena onee-sama?」(Kako)
Noticing my presence, she smiled at me and waved her hand.
「Kako!」(Maitena)
You can gain access to [Early Access] page and read up to ten chapters ahead by supporting me on [Patreon]