Surviving on the Northern Front with Gukbap Chapter 109 : To Become 4th-rank (4)

To Beco 4th-rank (4)

Most winters in the North were awful, but there was one good thing.

'We didn't need a refrigerator.'

That's why we could eat the Ice Bear I caught on the way back from Grey Fortress for so long.

But it was April now.

It was just as cold as winter after sunset,

But during the day, it got ambiguously warm.

In other words, if I was unlucky, the at could spoil.

To make matters worse, this special variant was much larger than the Ice Bear I caught yesterday.

There was enough at left even after cooking bear stew for the entire squad.

Of course, there was a way to store it all without wasting any.

'Good thing I learned various things from Flaco.'

After Flaco opened up to , he taught lots of things.

Everything from how to butcher northern beasts and wild animals like Ice Bear,

To various preservation thods, like smoking and salting the at.

So, I told my squad,

"Stop what you're doing and work with the at first. Get over here, quick!"

"Yes!!"

I started by skinning the bear.

Then, the three mbers of the squad began carving out the at and moving it to the prep table,

And I noticed the utility knife in Ruth's hand.

'Ah, right. I took the Blood Iron kitchen knife for the hunt.'

Feeling a bit sorry for Ruth, I tossed the Blood Iron kitchen knife to Zaiya and said,

"Zaiya, give whatever you're holding to Ruth."

Zaiya, understanding, tossed the kitchen knife she was using to Ruth and took my knife instead, but—

"Boss, I'd like to try it too, just once."

Ricky said shyly.

Although Zaiya shot a sharp gaze at Ricky,

I was moved, wondering when that foul mouth had beco so obedient.

"Switch with her, Zaiya."

"... All right."

Ricky, now holding the Blood Iron kitchen knife, looked at it in awe, admiring the blade.

"Boss, this isn't ordinary! What's its na?"

At Ricky's question, I rembered the na of the Blood Iron kitchen knife, which I had forgotten.

"Black Vein."

Right, it did have a na, but I was too pragmatic to care about romance and had completely forgotten it.

I promised myself I'd start using its na more in the future, and I took out Nash from my chest pocket.

"Let's focus and get this done. If we finish well, I'll even make a special al."

I could tell from Ruth's reaction that she was thinking of demonic lizard beast at.

"A special al? Is it just for our squad?"

How could soone so slow with their hands be the fastest when it ca to this kind of thing?

Well, as long as they did their work, I didn't care.

"Work properly first. Anyone who slacks off won't get any."

The speed of our work picked up right away.

I couldn't lose to my subordinates, so I focused just as hard.

I was holding Nash, not a kitchen knife.

Buuuk, buuuk. Seok, Seok.

After cooking with a short sword for a few days, I had gotten a bit used to it, and I didn't fall behind the others' pace.

For reference, I'd tried a few experints with Nash while moving to our base.

Unfortunately, they all failed.

Since I'd used it several tis in cooking, I wondered if the kitchen knife feat for swordsmanship would apply, but it didn't.

Just in case, I tried wielding Nash in my left hand and Blood Iron's kitchen knife in my right, but that also failed.

Vice versa, too.

So I concluded,

'My previous deduction must have been correct.'

As I'd suspected, whether it counted as a kitchen knife would depend on the "creator's intention."

'Damn. Guess it's the Gerald ending after all.'

Unless I could get a rare tal like Blood Iron, I'd have to commission Gerald to make it.

It was disappointing and even a bit miserable, but that was for later.

Taking care of Schutmann ca first,

And before that—

'A al is more urgent.'

I cleared my mind and focused on the task,

And managed to debone the at sooner than expected.

A mountain of vivid crimson at piled up beautifully on the prep table.

'It seems like even more when you look at it like this.'

Ruth wiped the sweat off her forehead with satisfaction, but we weren't done yet.

"Salt this portion, start smoking that one. Clean and store all the bones as well."

I gave out orders, and Zaiya divided up the tasks and got the others moving right away.

Now it was ti for to—

'Make bear stew, seriously.'

I'd been cooking for days,

But this ti excitent filled again, driven by my cook's instinct.

Because—

'It's my first ti cooking with a special variant Ice Bear.'

Every chef is always excited by new ingredients.

Strictly speaking, it was still Ice Bear,

'But the grade is different, completely different!'

Even with regular beef, the grade changes a chef's motivation,

'If my hunch is correct, this will almost certainly be different!'

In Belkhazium, monsters were clearly categorized,

And the system judged at quality accordingly.

'Wild boar, in the beast category, was the lowest rank, and Ice Bear in the wild animal category was lower-interdiate rank.'

So the taste was noticeably different.

Wild boar had a strong gay odor.

You had to prepare it ticulously and use lots of garlic to counter the sll.

But lower-interdiate grade Ice Bear did not have that problem.

'Amazingly, it had almost zero gay odor.'

This confird another link with the ga for .

In the ga, eating at from strong monsters lowered your stress level even further.

'The leader—not leader, but the special variant's at reduced stress even more.'

On the other hand, eating monster at built up stress... Wait.

'If that's the case, did demonic lizard beast at rank higher than Ice Bear?'

Thinking back, I realized I'd overlooked that question, focused as I was on comparing monster at.

But my worries were soon eased.

'It didn't taste particularly great when eaten raw.'

Also, the demonic lizard beast was on the weaker side even among demonic beasts.

So its at shouldn't be of higher grade than special variant Ice Bear's.

... Hopefully.

'Anyway, Ian. Focus and start cooking.'

Today's broth would be bear stew made from at, not bones.

Rather than a milky white broth,

The point was to make a clear, transparent broth with deep flavor.

First, I soaked the at in salt water to draw out any blood.

Then I washed off the salt to keep it from getting too salty, and pressed it dry with a cloth.

It wasn't the standard way, but I didn't have the luxury of soaking it for hours.

This would do, efficiency-wise; ti to be satisfied.

After that, I boiled water vigorously in two large cauldrons.

Now we start parboiling.

This was mandatory for removing slls and impurities.

I rinsed the parboiled at from the left cauldron in cold water to remove the fat, and—chwaaak.

I swapped out the water in the cauldron.

Since it took ti to co to a boil, I moved to the right cauldron next.

Repeat and repeat.

'Damn, this is tough.'

I missed the modern mass-cooking pots at cafeterias.

You know the ones almost as tall as a person.

But you can't find those in the Middle Ages, so I just had to make do with elbow grease.

'Phew. Blanching done.'

It was satisfying once all the at was blanched and rinsed.

Now, it was ti to make the broth.

I put another cauldron on the fire, making three in total.

I split the at among the clean cauldrons,

Added water, scallion, garlic, ginger, onion, salt, and pepper.

Bubbling it vigorously over high heat made lots of foam.

I removed the scum with a ladle, one by one.

This was the vital step in making bear stew.

'For a clear yet deep taste!'

When the impurities started to decrease, I lowered the heat little by little.

I took away so of the fire from the hearth and gently added more water.

Now, by keeping it at a gentle simr, I could draw out rich flavor from the at into the broth.

Of course, all the while, I kept skimming off the scum without rest.

*

Two hours passed.

As is true for most broth-based Korean dishes,

Bear stew tastes better the longer it cooks.

I wanted to simr it longer.

But—

'I can't delay alti any longer.'

News had already spread through the unit that I'd caught a special variant Ice Bear.

Even the officers began coming in and out of the ss, asking questions.

― When's the food ready?

It annoyed , seeing guys who used to be satisfied with stone bread, but

I couldn't bla them after seeing their mouths water.

The savory sll of at broth must have spread everywhere.

I sent them away, telling them to wait just a bit longer, but—

Grrrrr.

I heard Zaiya's stomach growl and gave in.

Maybe it was just , but it felt like Zaiya's helt turned red.

"Can't hold it anymore?"

"... Sorry."

Hm. No choice.

Even if it didn't suit my standards, I couldn't keep the soldiers hungry any longer.

"Fine. Bring the bowls, ru—"

Before I could finish Ruth's na, he was already back with the bowls.

He'd run full speed, using up mana to get them—so fast.

Smirking, I put rice in the bowls and started ladling broth over them.

'Still awkward at this tolyeom process, though.'

I once went with my father to Naju, the ho of bear stew and soup rice.

I watched how they did tolyeom by eye and imitated it a few tis.

But then—

Grrrrr.

This ti it was Ricky's stomach.

From Ruth's mouth, a drop of saliva fell—thunk.

'Just hold out a bit longer, you guys.'

Soldiers, so little patience...

"I'm only doing this tolyeom for you lot. Everyone else, soldiers or officers, just gets the rice and broth separately. I'm making it tastier specially for you, so wipe your drool and wait."

"Yes!!!"

Laughing at their raucous response, I finished the tolyeom.

For the final touch, I sprinkled chopped scallion on top.

The nutty aroma of the broth was now enhanced by the scallion's refreshing scent.

"Thanks for waiting."

At last, four bowls of bear stew were set on the table.

"Eat well and let's get back to work."

The supply officers helped distribute als, but our squad would eat first since we were in charge.

A solid al was key to getting your work done.

"Thank you for the al!"

Ruth shouted and took a bite. Slurp.

"Mmmpf!!!"

Ruth's eyes went wide,

And Ricky and Zaiya reacted similarly.

Ricky said, excited,

"S-So good, platoon leader!"

I flicked the back of his head and replied,

"Call boss."

But he didn't respond, too busy aiming his spoon at the kkakdugi bowl.

For reference, this kimchi was another privilege enjoyed only by the cooking squad.

'I set it aside for myself, but oh well.'

I couldn't eat alone, so I shared with my squad.

But they liked kimchi even more than expected, so it was worrying.

'Might have to make more soon.'

anwhile, Zaiya put a piece of napa kimchi on his bowl and lifted a big spoonful.

Crunch!

The sound echoed inside his helt.

'He sure eats well with the helt on.'

I was worried it might be uncomfortable, but he said he was used to it.

"Boss! This is so good! Maybe it's the special variant, but it's way better than yesterday!"

Zaiya blurted out enthusiastically.

Ruth and Ricky just focused on eating, but Zaiya's loyalty really stood out.

"All right, just eat for now."

"Yes!!"

Only then did Zaiya forget about and focus on scarfing down the food.

Seeing them eat hungrily made feel hungry, too.

'Guess I should eat, too.'

I looked down at the clear broth of the bear stew.

The color was appealing.

But—

'If I'd cooked it three more hours, it would've been perfect.'

I'd gone to one of Naju's best local food places once in a while,

And the best ti to eat was between 1 and 2pm.

Go too early and the broth was weak; too late, and it was a little gay.

They started boiling it in the morning, so perhaps five hours of simring was just right.

'Hm. I'd better make sure there's enough left to simr more before distribution.'

Thinking this, I scooped up a spoonful and tasted it. Slurp.

"...!!"

What's this? That's delicious.

I'd only cooked it for two hours,

But it was deeper and richer than I'd hoped.

'How is this even possible?'

Until I took a bite, I thought the dieval folks here were exaggerating,

But after tasting it, I understood why.

'Is it really this delicious?'

This ti, I got a spoonful with rice, broth, and scallion. Gulp.

Umool. Umool. Umool.

'Wow. Damn.'

My eyes closed on their own.

Guess this was my best tolyeom yet.

The soup and rice didn't feel separate at all—they beca one.

Each grain of rice rged with the broth seamlessly.

The starch in the rice dissolved, making the soup dance with the grains.

'Yes. This is bear stew!'

Along with the ecstasy,

I felt a little sorry for the employees back at Happiness Gukbap.

I once made Ice Bear bear stew for them too,

But the tolyeom wasn't this good back then.

'Guess I've improved with practice.'

You really do get better with repetition.

With that thought, I tried the at by itself this ti.

Nyeom. Umool. Umool.

This ti, my eyes snapped open.

I saw the crowns of the three eating with their heads down.

'Ah. That's why.'

Even though it only simred for two hours, the broth tasted deeper than expected.

The fundantal difference, of course, was—

'The at!'

It was different.

Completely different from ordinary Ice Bear.

Just as I'd thought.

The lowest-level wild boar,

Lower-interdiate grade Ice Bear.

There was a clear difference between those two—

'Special variant at is yet another grade higher!'

My dopamine soared at my correct prediction.

Today just felt strange.

I happened to run into a special variant,

Managed to pick it up without much trouble, which is unlike ,

And all my guesses turned out bang on.

'Am I really Ian?'

As soon as I started thinking like this, I got anxious again.

Stupid Ian. Are you setting up another flag?

Damn, before bed tonight I'll have to swear: "I withdraw it!"

Anyway,

'Let's just eat now.'

I set aside rational thought and decided to follow my instincts.

I relished the best bear stew I'd ever made in my life.

Slurp. Jjeop. Umoolumool.

It was even better when I alternated with kkakdugi and kimchi.

Crunch!

The piping hot broth poured into my stomach,

The tasty at brought joy to my palate,

The salty and clean fat harmonized perfectly.

I felt like I could fly away with happiness.

I was elated. So overjoyed.

Where am I?

'Is this earth, or paradise?'

As I finished inhaling the bear stew,

A system voice burst in.

Ding.

〈 Strength, body temperature, and composure increase slightly. 〉

〈 By consuming the finished Korean dish "Stead Rice", you gain a bonus effect. 〉

〈 The increased strength will not decrease. (30 minutes) 〉

So far, this was as expected.

Even after tolyeom, the system judged it as "Stead Rice".

Now ca the important part:

〈 By consuming the finished Korean dish "Decent Bear Stew (Interdiate ingredient: Ice Bear—Special Variant)," you... 〉

As expected.

By becoming a special variant, the ingredient grade upgraded from lower-interdiate grade to interdiate.

'A sha the dish's grade is still just "decent".'

I didn't expect a higher rating since this was a mass-cooked al.

Anyway, what mattered most were the effects that followed.

...acquire bonus effects. 〉

〈 Your body temperature will not decrease. (2 hours 30 minutes) 〉

〈 Patience increases slightly. 〉

〈 The increased patience will not decrease. (2 hours 30 minutes) 〉

〈 //Exclusive effect// An unsharable effect is gained. 〉

〈 Patience increases a bit more, applied in small amounts. 〉

〈 Bone strength slightly increases. 〉

〈 The increased bone strength will not decrease. (3 hours 15 minutes) 〉

All of this was as I already knew,

But could that be it?

—No sooner did I wonder than the system voice continued.

〈 Perfect ingredient selection. 〉

〈 Bear Stew ↔ Ice Bear Special Variant 〉

A shiver ran down my spine.

"Perfect ingredient selection"...?

'There's sothing like this?!'

I had thought there was no end to my system's secrets,

But I'd been too busy lately to pay attention.

I never guessed there'd be such a hidden feature!

'So if you make bear stew with Ice Bear special variant, you get extra effects, huh?'

If you match them exactly?!

While I was about to wrap my head around this, the system voice floored .

〈 Additional effects granted. 〉

〈 General custor buff effectiveness increases by 10%. (48 hours) 〉

〈 The increased strength will not decrease. (36 hours) 〉

〈 The increased patience will not decrease. (15 hours) 〉

????

Ten percent buff effectiveness for general custors?

Huh? Strength... 36 hours? What?

... Excuse ?

"Bullshit."

I cursed without thinking.

That I only swore this much must've been thanks to the patience buff.

Of course, the three employees—no, squad mbers—all stopped eating and looked at .

"What's wrong, platoon leader?"

Ricky asked hesitantly,

But the title "platoon leader" irked less than the real issue.

"Did we smoke all the bear at? Even the salted pieces?"

Seeing my expression, Ricky flinched and replied,

"Yes. Just as you ordered."

No. I should've made it all into bear stew.

'Noooo!!!'

Never thought I'd hate the patience buff for keeping from screaming.