Chapter 50

I'm in my dorm room, saying good morning. Today is February 11th. I'm Herman. Today is the day of the Fertility Society's seminar. I'm looking forward to it. I also made two dishes: penne pasta and pancakes. ...I had some sugar, even though it's expensive. I made the penne pasta the same way as last time. The only thing that changed was my technique. The noodles are thinner now. Since I got my wand, I've been using magic to knead and stretch the dough, making it much easier. I've been thinking about how to make the noodles thinner, so I've been using magic for that. Thanks to that, I can make them thin and square, so the length is uniform, which is great. My knife skills have also improved. I'm an alchemist, not a chef, though.

I've also been using magic for the more troublesome parts of making pancakes. I can quickly separate the yolks from the whites with magic. It's so easy! Then I mix the whites with sugar using a magic mixer. Once it's creamy, I add water and the yolks. I mix it all together with the magic mixer until it turns yellow. Magic is so convenient. I use my wand before doing alchemy, but that's okay. Then I add the flour and mix it well. After that, I fry both sides in orc meat fat, and it's done.

Good quality oil is expensive. Nobles use it to make their hair shiny, so their long hair is always glossy. It's tough for them to keep it from getting tangled, so they have to brush it often. For some reason, short-haired nobles are looked down upon. Even if they fall to commoner status, it's still tough. Being a noble is really hard. That's why I fry orc meat and use the fat to cook pancakes. At the grocery store, oil is only found attached to meat. The only other place you can find it is in the cosmetics or household goods section, where it's melted and filtered through cloth. I think it's mostly orc fat, which is solid at room temperature. They probably mix in herbs and other things. It's sold like that. Men don't need it, but women do. It's expensive for women.

Spices are grown year-round, so I think herbs are probably the same. They use orc fat byproducts to make hair oil. Melanie's hair was shiny. Bruce and the other men didn't use it. ...One of the lizardfolk had a shiny bald head, but I think he shaves it. There are no razors, so he probably uses a knife. I don't have a mirror, so I can't do that, and I don't want to be bald anyway. I think women have mirrors. Can they make them with alchemy? It wasn't in the Alchemy Encyclopedia. Maybe blacksmiths make them. They're probably expensive.

Anyway, I'm at Building 5, Room 0304. Is it always here? Maybe not, since it might overlap with other seminars. I arrived 20 minutes early to wait. But there are already 8 people waiting, all the men. The rest are the women and the beastfolk. The other people might be late. ...Serena is always relaxed, so she's probably always on the edge. There are also three noblewomen who fell to commoner status. Their hair is shiny, so they're easy to spot. Melanie's hair is shiny too. There's a half-elf with very long hair, but it's not shiny, so she's probably a commoner. But I wonder why she has her hair folded and braided to reach the ground. The other commoners have medium or short hair.

The three beastfolk keep sniffing me, but I hope they're not identifying me by smell. ...Probably the smell of the penne pasta has stuck to me. ...While I'm thinking about that, everyone arrives just in time. Bruce says it's time to start and begins speaking.

"Alright, let's start this month's Fertility Society report meeting. First, about the last flour mill. After reporting to the General Affairs Department, we got the results. We received 50 large magic gold coins as a reward."

"Wow!"

"According to the Fertility Society's rules, half will go to Herman, and the other half will be used for Fertility Society activities. Any objections?"

"No objections."

"Then, Herman, this is yours. 25 large magic gold coins. Please take them."

"Yes, thank you."

"Alright, that's the end of the flour mill report. Is there anything else to report?"

"Then, I have a few reports. It's related to the flour mill. After using the flour mill to grind wheat, I thought about what else could be ground. Especially herbs and spices that were hard to use before. I've been giving samples to restaurants in the city to test. I think if someone with cooking talent uses them properly, they can make delicious dishes. Bruce mentioned that if used in the right amount, they can be delicious."

"Indeed, I remember saying that. In small amounts."

"Yes, that's why I ground them into powder. Powder makes it easier to use in small amounts. I thought it would be strange if a small amount didn't make something delicious. The key is to stop using large amounts. ...I got this idea from Herman. He thought that even if something is too spicy or painful, a small amount would be edible. The results were good. Especially with meat and fish. There were also reports that it goes well with alcohol. For now, that's it, but we might be able to promote herbs and spices that we've been producing in limited quantities along with the flour mill."

"Interesting. So you're thinking of expanding the use of the flour mill beyond wheat?"

"Yes, fruits, leaves, and seeds need to be crushed before grinding. So I made something to crush them. This is the report. It's designed to work with undead power, like the flour mill. I think it can be promoted. If connected to the flour mill's power source, it will be easy to use."

"...I see. So you just need to install this on top of the stone mill. Got it. Submit it as an improvement proposal."

"Yes, I'll submit it to the General Affairs Department. ...I also mentioned that I've been grinding other things. There was a seed from a fruit that was only bitter and not tasty. When I ground it into powder, it turned into oil."

"Huh?"

"I don't really understand it either, but after crushing and grinding it in the flour mill, it turned into oil. It's sticky, doesn't mix with water, and can be lit. So it must be oil. I brought a sample. It's not filtered, so there are shells floating in it, but I think it's oil."

The three former nobles, who are familiar with oil, are holding it. They're taking a little in their hands, stretching it, and smelling it. They seem to be getting excited, but I hope they're okay. Plant oil hasn't been found before. It makes sense that it could be extracted by crushing and pressing, even if it's not very efficient. If you can get a lot of seeds, it should be enough.

"Indeed, it's oil. Softer and smoother than orc oil."

"It has no strong smell, even without herbs, so it's easy to use."

"It's good that it's liquid at room temperature. Orc oil is more solid, so this would be easier to use for styling hair."

They all have different opinions, but it seems to feel good. They seem excited about the morning routine. They all have long, shiny hair, so it must be tough. The orc oil I saw at the store was like a cream, so it must be hard to apply. The problem is...

"Can this seed be mass-produced?"

"Yes, no problem. I've already made it grow year-round, and it produces a lot of fruit. ...The problem is that only the seeds turn into oil. The fruit itself seems to have no use."

"Right. Then let's start mass production. This will be a huge hit with noblewomen!"

"Elena is right. Noblewomen will do anything to get it. It's new, and it seems to be high quality."

"Melanie, let's keep it a secret for now. We need to ensure the supply. We need to increase the number of seeds for 2-3 years before revealing it. We can't meet the demand otherwise."

"...Right, Manuela. Kevin, think about mobilizing three villages. It will take 3 years to produce enough. It takes 2 months for the seeds to grow, and we need to increase the number, so we need 3 years."

"Will this be done in the royal territory?"

"No, we'll use villages in the Armand territory. We can't do it in the royal territory. The developer has the rights to the territory's profits."

"You're right. ...For now, we'll keep it exclusive to the Armand territory, and then expand to other territories in a few years. We shouldn't underestimate the movements of noblewomen. I swear not to leak this information, but we can't prevent theft. If we want to keep it exclusive, we need to keep it secret. ...If possible, I'd like to get some for the Fertility Society first."

"I can do that. We need to grow it secretly and experiment with the oil. I'll send samples for the experiments."

"The Fertility Society is only in the Armand territory, so there won't be any conflict."

"Don't say such dangerous things. ...I need to contact my brother urgently. I probably won't be able to attend the next one or two Fertility Society meetings. It will take 2 months to select the villages and do other things, but if everything goes well, I might be able to attend the one after that."

"In that case, the families that are currently offering rewards for orc hunting will probably stop. ...The rewards for orc hunting will also decrease, so we need to think of a good use for them."

"That's for other territories to decide. Are there any other noble families in the Fertility Society who were working on orc oil besides me? They will benefit from switching to seed oil."

"...No. Then we don't need to think of special care. Kevin, make sure to submit the flour mill improvement proposal before you go. It's troublesome if the source is revealed later. If you submit it, Herman won't complain if it's spread in the territory first, right?"

"Huh? Me? ...If various food cultures can spread, I don't mind how much it spreads."

"Alright, I'll spread it too. If we make one for the Alchemy Guild and three in the capital, the guild members will spread it."

"Shall we have some tea now? The conversation has come to a pause."

"Right, I'll leave it to you."

"Ah, I brought some tea snacks. Can I get you to try them?"

"...Herman made them? I thought you didn't have cooking talent?"

"They're simple enough to make even without talent. I'll bring them out now. ...I don't know if they'll taste good since I don't know what a tea party is like."

So, I brought out the penne pasta and pancakes. ...I wonder if penne pasta is suitable as a tea snack. I don't know what a noble tea party is like, so I'll leave it to the others to decide.

"Ah, that's the smell. I've been wondering what good smell Herman had on him."

"Ah, really? It smelled spicy and sweet. I thought it was some kind of fragrance."

"The thin one had a good smell. It's spicy, but not unpleasant."

The three beastfolk noticed, as I thought. The others didn't, but the three beastfolk clearly noticed. ...I put garlic in, but they said it smelled good, so it should be fine.

I put out 15 plates, including my own, and distributed them. Everyone seems to have a fork, so I don't need to distribute them. Well, how does it taste?

"Hmm. It's an unusual shape. I've never seen anything like this before. The flat one has a slightly sweet smell. Is this the kind of thing that comes out at women's tea parties?"

"...I'm tired of sugar candies. They're usually from my family. I've never seen this kind of food before. Most of them are just solid sugar for show."

"Right. In my family too. Sugar sculptures are common at tea parties, but... Is this bread?"

"Let's try a bite... It's good. Slightly sweet. This amount of sugar is just right. Tea party snacks are just solid sugar. Just sweet. ...Some people like them, but I'm fine with this level of sweetness."

"Right, it's smooth and good."

"The softness is better than bread. ...By the way, hasn't the bread in the cafeteria become softer recently?"

"Really? I hadn't noticed."

"Elena, it has. The bread has become softer recently."

"Oh, Deborah noticed too. Yes, I thought it was because the flour became easier to make."

Everyone is eating and talking, so it seems to be a success as a tea snack. The penne pasta seems to be popular with the men, and the pancakes with the women. They also noticed that the bread has become softer. It's good that it's spreading. While drinking tea and eating penne pasta, it's good that it turned out well. At first, I was stretching the dough with a storage jar without knowing about magic, but it's thanks to the wand.

"However, can someone without cooking talent make something like this? I can only make porridge when camping?"

"Well, if you can make it, that's good, right? It's delicious."

"I've never seen anything this thin before. How did you make it? I've never seen anything this thin."

"I used flour."

"Flour can make this... Should we popularize this too?"

"Why not? If we suddenly tell people to use flour, only those with cooking talent can use it properly. Making bread is the best way."

"I have the recipe written down, so if you want to popularize it, please take it. It's a copy, so feel free to take it."

"Alright, I'll take it. ...I'll prepare a few copies in the capital. The Alchemy Guild can help with that."

"Probably, but it shouldn't be a problem."

It's good that I wrote down the recipe. I even drew pictures to make it easier to understand. ...But it's better if people misunderstand and come up with various dishes. It's more fun that way. ...In about 3 years, orc oil will become cheaper, which is good for cooking. Frying might become popular. ...I might have to apologize to the adventurers who hunt orcs, but it won't go below 5 silver coins.

"However, just trying to grind Kevin's crops into powder caused so many things to happen. I'll try it too."

"I tried grinding it, but it wasn't worth reporting. ...I'll try spreading it in the city. Someone with cooking talent will use it."

"Bruce, if you give it, give the actual item too. Otherwise, it will be a one-time thing."

"...Right. I'll do that. The flour mill will eventually be in the capital, so supply won't be a problem."

"Right, even if herbs and spices are expensive, they won't be that expensive in powder form. ...It won't be like noble cuisine. Commoners don't care about appearances. I need to tell the places where I distributed the powder that a flour mill will eventually be built there."

If various people use the flour mill, they might start blending things on their own. Once they learn to blend, they might start making things like curry. This feels like it's going to be fun. While listening to everyone's discussions and finishing the penne pasta, I started eating the pancakes. I'll show the pasta recipe to the chef at the first cafeteria. I'll do that. It might add something to the soup.

Whether you found it interesting or not, I'd appreciate your feedback. If you could point out any issues in your review, it would help me improve my writing. ...Probably.