Mid Boss Chapter 50: Gourmet Town of Canal

　The town of Canal, also known as the Gourmet’s Town.

　Fertile land and a pleasant climate.

　In addition, the land is surrounded by majestic mountains, and even if you unravel the historical documents, there is extremely little damage from natural disasters.

　Because of this, food is plentiful, and the monsters that inhabit the area are relatively gentle in temperament… In short, the town is as peaceful as a painting.

　Naturally, human beings are reaping the benefits of the land as if they were people loved by god.

“–Wow! Here and there are all food stalls!”

　The main street of the Town of Canal, commonly known as “Full Belly Street”.

　Kyuu-chan, dressed as a martial artist, said with shiny eyes.

　Alraune – also known as Magician Al – said, “Don’t do that because people will think you’re a redneck!” However, even she is blatantly fidgeting, and she says this with her own mouth.

　Obviously, she is also excited about her first town.

“Wow, I was expecting it to be quiet in the countryside, but it’s quite a lively town.” (Sergeant)

　From my backpack, Sergeant looked into my face and this. I answered

“This is a stopover point for peddlers from the south on their way to the Kingdom of Granzar—there is no end to the merchants who settle down because of the place’s coziness.”

“Hmm, that’s why everyone has a strong spirit for commerce.” (Sergeant)

　Sergeant said in a tone with some implications, so I glanced around.

　The merchants immediately recognized me as a “customer” and raised their voices in a lively manner.

　The many signs lining their business space were, to put it bluntly, an overload of information.

　Still, I managed to look at one of them.

“Excellent! Grilled Dragon’s Tail”

　Of course, there’s no way a real dragon is going to be on the table, so they must be using the tail of an Alvina Gecko. (large gecko).

　…Their business spirit is strong.

“—The young master there! Are you interested in some miraculous cooking!?” (Merchant)

　As I looked around, a merchant-like man with a particularly strong commercial spirit called out to me.

“Miracle food?”

　I repeated, to which the man replied,

“Tofu!” (Merchant)

　Then, I asked.

“To… fu? Do you know that Al?”

“I’ve never heard of it. Where is it from?” (Alraune)

“I don’t even know, is it delicious?”

“Is it good? And it’s sold for 50 years now!” (Merchant)

　The man slaps his knee and starts talking, even though I have not heard of it.

“–I’m sure you’ve heard of it. The town has once experienced a black cloud on the horizon…! It’s a swarm of voracious locusts caused by the abnormal weather! They devoured the town’s food, leaving not a grain of wheat in their wake! Just when we thought it was over, a mysterious boy appears in the town of Canal!” (Merchant)

　The man then slams his knees twice more.

　It’s as if he was becoming more passionate about his story.

“Is he a saint or a messenger of God? The boy never took a penny, but went around serving food to the hungry people, which helped them survive the famine! It was pure white in appearance, as soft to the touch as a slice of cloud, yet powerful in flavor! That’s it!” (Merchant)

　At the “it” part, the man slaps his knee extra hard and holds it out.

“–Tofu!” (Merchant)

“Well, this is…”

　The three of us peered at the tofu on the plate that the man presented.

　There is a paste that has been stretched out flat… and it is white.

　It’s not pure white, but it’s certainly the whitest dish I’ve ever seen.

“Miracle food! What does it taste like?” (Kyuuketsu)

“Kyuu-chan, do you really believe that? It’s a hoax, for sure!” (Alraune)

“Well, whether the legend is true or not, it’s a specialty with a story. This is also part of the pleasure of traveling, shopkeeper, how much is this?”

“Three silver coins.” (Merchant)

“—That much!?” (Sergeant)

　This is the voice of Sergeant in my backpack, by the way.

　Alraune elbowed my backpack.

“Hmm? That was some strange voice…” (Merchant)

“Oh, no, sorry, that was me, well, the price was too good to be true, so my voice just flipped.”

　I clear my throat hopefully my follow-up seems perfect.

“No, no, no, it’s like this everywhere I go.”

“…You’re totally trying to rip me off because they think I’m a hick.” (Alraune)

“Do you do Narugoa-san? Will you do it?” (Kyuuketsu)

“I don’t know what we should be doing… Wait a minute, we’re tourists, we should enjoy this experience too.”

　I took out three silver coins from my pocket and offered them to the grinning man.

“Good choice!” (Merchant)

　As if he had been waiting for me, he snatched the silver coins and pushed the tofu at me with gusto. Carefully serving three spoons.

“I really paid for it…”

　Alraune took a spoonful, her mouth agape.

“Wow! This miracle food! It’s so soft!” (Alraune)

　Then Kyuu-chan.

“The more I look at it, the more I wonder what it’s made of.” (Kyuuketsu)

　Finally, I scooped a spoonful of the tofu.

“For the time being, thank you for the meal.”

　All three of us have a quick bite.

　And

“Bufuuuu!?!?”

　The very next moment, Alraune and Kyuu-chan spewed out the tofu as soon as they took a bite.

　Though I didn’t spit it out, my eyebrows wrinkled considerably.

　…Hmmm.

“It’s a little too lightly seasoned.”

“It’s not that kind of problem, this tastelessness! I’m not sure what to make of this.　Did they make us eat garbage…?” (Alraune)

“Pffft! Pffft! Fishy! It tastes unhealthy!” (Kyuuketsu)

　Alraune and Kyuu-chan spit out the tofu in their mouth and screamed.

　Looking at such a situation, the man nodded.

“Hmm, so it was impossible with the fat of Nerco-pork?” (Merchant)

“… Did you trick us?”

“ Hmm? I told you the folklore about tofu, but I never said that this was that tofu. This is just a tofu-esque dish based on the folklore. The recipe is a trade secret, but you can find it at…” (Merchant)

“I see, I’ve literally been fed a bowl of this.”

　While saying that, I took another bite of tofu.

　If you don’t finish it, it’s wasteful.

“Waaa, wash it down, wash it down…” (Kyuuketsu)

　Behind me, Kyuu-chan sipped from her own canteen and gulped.

　The man seemed to be intrigued as Kyuu-chan drank from it, looking very pleased.

“Lady, what’s that thing? It doesn’t look like water.” (Merchant)

“Hmm? This is a miracle drink.” (Kyuuketsu)

“A miracle drink?” (Merchant)

　Hmm, the man snorts.

“Are you trying to get back at me? I’m sorry, but it’s hard to fool people here…” (Merchant)

“Oh, you’re not interested? That’s a shame, it’s my special Rock Moss juice.” (Kyuuketsu)

“Rock moss… juice…?” (Merchant)

　The man looks at her with both eyes wide open.

　The man’s eyes widened. Kyuu-chan dripped the contents of the water bottle slightly into his palm.

　It’s a thick, dark green liquid.

“It’s a unique mixture of carefully selected rock moss and dozens of medicinal herbs. Drinking one canteen of this drink a day will eliminate waste from your body, improve your metabolism, improve your skin quality, give you anti-aging benefits, and eliminate body odor…” (Kyuuketsu)

“Really…?” (Merchant)

“Of course, it’s 100 percent natural, so you can apply it directly to your skin for great results… After a month, you’ll be a different person.” (Kyuuketsu)

“… But is it expensive?” (Merchant)

“We use rare rock moss, so even five silver coins is just barely enough to cover the cost, but as a sign of our closeness, we’re offering the first bottle for only three silver coins…” (Kyuuketsu)

　The rest of the story goes without saying.

　We succeeded in getting the three silver coins back, and as a side note, the guy disappeared from the market for about three days.

“All this good stuff is making me hungry! Let’s look for a store!”

　 Kyuu-chan smiles with a big smile and shakes the three silver coins in her hands.

　…Maybe she is the best seller here.