Chapter 84

Perimeni is a dish that wraps minced meat or chopped vegetables in a dough made from wheat flour.

I had always heard that it was a specialty of Hugo’s mother, who was Laurence’s first wife.

Hans’ mother, who was often ill, apparently wasn’t very good at kneading the dough, so he doesn’t have many memories of eating it. However, Hans does remember eating the authentic version during his travels to the west.

"Did you come up with something?"

Perhaps she had drunk a bit too much, Leonitine asked with a droopy-eyed gaze. Leaning casually against the counter, she watched the ice in her glass slowly melt, changing the color of the amber liquid. She must really love her drinks.

"I’ll try making a prototype right now."

"Right now? I don’t mind... but Hans, are you okay with it?"

"I really want to try this idea right away."

As Hugo started roughly mincing the pork, he stood up.

"Well, I have work tomorrow, so I’ll head home. Hans, the porridge was delicious."

"Yeah, take care, big brother."

Without looking at Hugo, Hans said this and started chopping the vegetables. He really wanted to try a few things, but for now, he would use the vegetables available in the kitchen. Cabbage, cabbage, scallions, and perhaps some spices to mask any odors.

While chopping and mixing, he kneaded the wheat flour in boiling water he had prepared earlier.

It was a lot of fun. Although it was quite different from the perimeni in his memory, Hans had a strong intuition that this would be a delicious dish.

Before he knew it, Leonitine had fallen asleep at the counter. Draping a bath towel over the former mercenary’s shoulders, Hans focused on completing his task.

He could do this. The confidence bubbling up inside him made him completely forget about his fatigue.

By the time he realized it, the night had already started to turn to dawn.

The next day.

At the izakaya Nobu the next day, the Triaezuna was breaking sales records.

"Another Triaezuna here! And two more for Hans!"

"Another Triaezuna here! Three more for Hans!"

"Coming right up! Please wait a moment!"

The pan sizzled with the sound of Hans-style perimeni being cooked.

The menu item Hans had come up with was adopted with only minor adjustments that day.

Shinobu and Taisho muttered, "It’s like gyoza," "It’s gyoza," but perhaps there was a similar dish in their world.

The perimeni, heavily seasoned with garlic, was officially called "Hans-style perimeni," but it was often referred to as "Hans’ thing" or simply "Hans."

It seemed to pair well with Triaezuna, and its novelty made it very popular.

"You did a great job, Hans."

"No, Taisho, it’s all thanks to my brother. If I hadn’t gotten that hint from him, I would have been struggling in the kitchen all night."

"That intuition you got from your brother, but you’re the one who completed it, Hans. So you should have more confidence."

"...Yes!"

The steamed perimeni had a crispy, flaky texture from the dissolved katakuriko. It was fun to break it apart with chopsticks, and even customers who usually didn’t use chopsticks were trying them out today.

"Eifa, another Sasarika here!"

"I’ll have some Sasarika too. And another of Hans’ thing!"

Many customers who didn’t drink alcohol ordered perimeni with Sasarika rice. Perimeni with vinegar and soy sauce indeed went well with Sasarika rice. Some customers even took it home to reheat, and Shinobu decided to give them small portions of the sauce. Shinobu had been in the kitchen all this time, stretching the dough.

While wrapping the filling made by Taisho in the dough, Hans couldn’t help but smile.

His creation was being served in the restaurant, and people were enjoying it.

This was it. This was what Hans wanted to do.

For now, he was just helping Taisho, but one day he would create and serve his own dishes to make customers happy.

The goal was still far away, but it wasn’t unreachable.

"You did great, Hans. It’s a big hit."

"Thank you, Leonitine."

Leonitine, who was handling the customers alone, was sweating. It had been this busy since the last market day.

"Shouldn’t you let your brother try it too?"

"Yeah, I want to invite him and Dad."

Ever since Hans decided to become a guard, Hugo and Laurence’s relationship had been strained.

Hans didn’t understand why. From his perspective, Hugo was the perfect candidate for a glassmaker, but perhaps Dad didn’t think so. He hoped any misunderstandings would be resolved soon.

"Anyway, we should celebrate tonight."

"No, I want to save the celebration for a bit later. There’s something I need to do."

"Something you need to do?"

"Yeah, I’m going to improve the perimeni starting tonight."

The current version served in the restaurant was sufficient for pairing with Triaezuna, but there was still room for improvement to make it more appealing to a wider audience.

"Improvement, huh."

"Leonitine, you haven’t tried the perimeni, right?"

"Well, I’m busy with customer service."

The generous amount of garlic added by Taisho was perfect for Triaezuna, but it wasn’t well-received by female customers. If Leonitine, Shinobu, and Eifa couldn’t eat it, it couldn’t be the right choice for the izakaya Nobu.

"You’re either a hard worker or a stubborn one. You have the makings of someone who will succeed in any field."

"I’m just focused on cooking for now."

A customer called out, and Leonitine responded. As she turned around, her long hair brushed against Hans’ nose.

Would Leonitine have a drink tonight?

He was looking forward to working on the perimeni research before her.