Chapter 92

I finished the preparation for the ingredients.

The most important thing is the smoking. I’ll use some suitable broadleaf trees to smoke and make the fish slices fluffy. Ideally, cold smoking would be better, but since I can’t get ice without Nastasha’s help, and I’m also worried about parasites, I think warm smoking would be better.

I set up the handmade smoker using branches and leaves on top of the wood stove and slowly smoked the High Tail slices.

After various considerations, I decided to smoke a large amount. This is because...

“Quite a fatty fish. It had a unique flavor.”

“Maybe it had a lot of food? Hmm... there are many mysteries.”

I provided the fish slices, which I had filleted and prepared for Artemis, and they were quite well-received.

The flavor was characterized by its fattiness and rich aroma.

...The rich aroma was a bit new to me, but overall, the taste was similar to salmon.

Salmon, salmon. It’s salmon. From the color of the fillets, I had a feeling it would be “I hope it’s like this,” but I didn’t expect it to taste like salmon.

Maybe it’s because they have a similar life cycle of ascending rivers? It’s a mystery. Besides, the fish itself is more like a flying fish. Thinking about it is probably a waste of time.

So, since it’s salmon, I decided to smoke it.

...If I could get Nastasha’s help to freeze it solid, it would reduce the risk of parasites, but I don’t know the temperature of her magic or how long it can be maintained. Considering this, it would be difficult to serve it raw after freezing.

On the other hand, smoking can be done at a moderate heat, and the smoke will kill most things. Most importantly, I can’t process the large amount of leftover fillets raw. So, I decided to smoke them all.

“‘Penetrating Shot’!”

While smoking the fillets, cutting the onions and soaking them in water, preparing the yatsude kelp, and boiling the bones from the cut heads...

While I was doing all this, Lina was deeply engrossed in studying her newly acquired skill.

Attack skills consume much more magic than support skills.

It’s important to know how many times you can use them. It’s worth verifying even if it means collapsing from magic exhaustion.

“...Wow, it can reach that far even without a mountain...”

“Yes... From now on, Lina should probably prepare her own special arrows.”

“Really... Yeah, I guess so...”

Take it easy, Lina. If you rely too much on skills, you might develop bad habits.

“Alright, then.”

“Hey? Where are you going, Mongrel? Is the cooking done?”

“No, it’s already noon. I have to do something I was asked to do while it’s still light.”

Saying this, I showed Ulrika the flippers.

“...I was curious about what was sticking out of the bag... What is this?”

“They improve swimming... apparently. Momo from the ‘Young Sapling’s Staff’ lent them to me.”

“Hmm, will they really work...?”

“Probably. The theory seems sound. I’ll test them out. Of course, I can’t strip down in front of Artemis, so I’ll do it on the other side.”

Sheena and Nastasha are making waterfowl dishes.

Using a lot of herbs they gathered around the lake... I wonder what they’re making.

I’ve entrusted the smoking to them, but I can’t play in the water for hours. I should finish the requested test quickly.

“...Hey, Mongrel. Can I watch you swim?”

“Huh? Well, it’s just swimming...”

I was going to say it’s just a half-naked guy swimming, but I thought, why not?

“I’m a guy too, so it’s fine, right? I want to see what the flippers look like. I’ll help too.”

In this world, being topless isn’t that unusual, and Ulrika is a guy. It would be pointless for me to be embarrassed alone.

“Sure, but I’ll probably be diving a lot, so you might not understand what I’m saying.”

“No problem. Let’s go, then.”

So, Ulrika and I got into a boat and moved to a slightly distant shore where we wouldn’t be seen from the shore.

The natural shore where we moored the boat was a bit unstable, but it made it easy to get back into the boat.

“Alright, let’s swim... It’s been so long since I swam. How many years...?”

“Can you swim, Mongrel?”

“Yeah, a bit. I’m not very good, though. I can move as long as I don’t drown... How about you, Ulrika?”

“Me? I don’t know... I often float in springs...”

“If you can float, you can probably swim.”

“I guess so...”

First, I took off my top. It’s summer, so it’s easy to take off.

“Wow...”

“Sorry, it’s a bit cramped. I don’t want to dirty my clothes, so I’ll put them in the boat. I’ll dry off on the shore.”

“Yeah, no problem. You’re pretty fit, Mongrel.”

“Well, I move around in nature every day... I’m mostly lean muscle...”

Then I took off my pants, and that was it.

“...Are you going to swim with those on?”

“Yeah. They dry quickly. I pulled them out of the cabinet for this day.”

Compared to my previous life’s swimsuit, the performance is worlds apart.

Still, it’s easy to wash and the waist is tied with a string, so it should feel like swimming trunks.

Then I put on the flippers on both feet, and the preparation was complete.

...Damn, I wish I had a snorkel or goggles. I can’t get them now, though.

“Alright, Ulrika, I’ll leave the bag to you.”

“...Yeah, I’ll watch carefully.”

With that, the test of Momo’s flippers began.

“Huh!”

I tried to dive backward from the boat like I saw on TV, but I ended up hitting my back and entering the water.

I don’t know. I probably did it wrong. I don’t even understand why you’d enter the water in that position.

That’s right. To be honest, I’m a beginner at marine sports.

I can swim, but that’s about it. I’ve never used flippers before!

So, I can’t really compare the performance of Momo’s flippers to my previous knowledge...

“Ah... I wish they fit my toes better.”

They don’t fall off, but every time I move my feet in the water, I feel a strange sensation at my toes. It’s like wearing shoes that don’t fit. I don’t know if this is normal.

“Guh, guh, this... takes a bit of practice...”

In a standing position, it’s a bit tiring just to float.

Without the flippers, floating would be easy, but with them, I can’t kick as I usually do. I need to move differently even in a standing position.

“...Well, let’s try this.”

Imagine graceful flutter kicks.

If I move my feet slowly, flexing my toes, it feels easier. ...I think.

At least, I won’t drown just because I can’t do anything.

“I don’t need to use my hands, right...”

I can swim using only my legs... right?

Let’s try it.

“Hmm...”

It’s difficult. Slow flutter... flutter. Flex... flex...

...Are they flexing? Are they too stiff?

...No, no, it’s bad to blame the equipment right away. I need to figure it out first.

“Phew!”

I want underwater goggles. I can see a bit, but I should be able to see a good underwater view with them.

“Huh?”

When I wiped my face and looked back, the boat was farther away than I thought.

...Maybe I was moving forward unconsciously and didn’t notice how fast I was going?

Without using my hands, I’m swimming faster than I thought.

“...Let’s try one more time.”

In the end, I tried swimming a short distance three times and tested various things like diving and surfacing.

Thanks to this, I feel like I’ve mastered the use of the flippers to some extent. ...It would be nice if they were a bit softer and longer.

However, I was surprised by how useful they were. Flippers can be effective even at this quality.

...But if I go to the sea, I might find similar things...

Maybe fishermen have been using them traditionally...

“Hey, Ulrika, sorry to keep you waiting.”

“...Ah, Mongrel. Are you done already?”

“Yeah, I swam quite a bit. Ah, can I borrow that? I need to dry off.”

“Yeah, sure.”

In this world, towels... if you look for them, they might exist, but generally, they don’t. You just use a simple cloth like a handkerchief.

I usually handle this with a change of clothes. I use a slightly worn shirt to wipe off the wet parts of my body. I don’t think it’s that unusual in this world. There are countries where people wipe their mouths with their sleeves after eating...

“Ah, nostalgic. This slightly tired feeling after swimming.”

I swam without my enhancements to recreate the normal person’s sensation, so I’m experiencing a proper sense of fatigue for the first time in a while.

Swimming lessons... were tough. The next time there’s a lesson, I’ll be busy changing clothes...

...By the way, since Ulrika had the change of clothes, it smells a bit like Ulrika. Oh well.

“Alright. Let’s go back. We need to continue cooking.”

“...Sheena will make the main dish, but I’m looking forward to your cooking too, Mongrel.”

“Ah, just think of it as an appetizer. Like a salad or something.”

“Huh? It’s fish?”

“There are fish salads too, you know. But since it’s my first time with this ingredient, if it doesn’t taste good, you can leave it. I’ll probably eat it all, though.”

Fish dishes. When it comes to fish, it’s different from meat in that there’s a big cultural aspect.

I like eating raw fish, but I don’t think it’s a universally accepted way of eating. Of course, this includes Japanese condiments like soy sauce and miso.

I do wish to share this taste with someone, but I can’t force it. This is Halperia, after all. The cultural differences are probably even greater than on Earth.

...But if it’s salmon... if it’s salmon, I’m sure it will work out...!