Chapter 350: A day of relaxation for some, issues for others
[Alright, so we have another day until we take the boat ride to Roaring Tide so we have another day to…alright, what’s with the vibes?]
[Nepherage… do you remember the names of any our lord’s cousins?] Hurricroak asked with curiosity.
[You mean Zhen Hai and Zhen Yue?]
[Not…them…,] Frosttusk corrected.
[Right, I mean like…uhh…the pig kid, the peacock kid, the viper kid and the…rose kid?]
[Zhen Feng, Zhen Guo, Zhen Tai and did you mean the first or second child of Zhen Jin?,] Archanidame answered.
[Both?]
[Zhen Xing and Zhen Ri, but the latter one is off adventuring with the elder brother of Zhen Hai, Zhen Ryu, in other parts of the greater Alloy Confederation. They last sent a letter…about a day before y’all left for Pearl Tusk, wishing them well and that they would meet the rest of the family at Roaring Tide.]
[Wait, the hot-headed shark has an older brother?]
[He does.]
[Neat…when did you -]
[Familiarized myself with the family registry about three days into my employment,] Archanidame stated with pride.
[Huh… secretarial perks, I guess.]
[I think I’m more of a stewardess?]
[Oi, stop talking with the adventurering group and help me prep lunch for the kiddos. We just got gifted a whole Iron-Back Bull and I accidentally suggested making hamburger steaks with fries for lunch, and nobody knows what that is,] Lacerage interjected.
[And this is why we have an anachronism sheet!]
[Fuck yo sheet!,] Lacerage cursed.
[Huh…sounds like they’re having fun…,] Hurricroak noted.
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“I think this is the first time I’ve ever eaten squid,” Zhen Hai said between bites of a giant grilled squid on a stick he bought for three coppers, “and I think this is my new favorite thing.”
“Are you sure?,” Zhen Yue asked as she stared at the squids being sold raw and/or alive, “they don’t look too tasty to me… they’re kinda…creepy.”
“It’s all about prep, dear cousin.”
“Right…”
“Wait,” Zhen Feng noted, “don’t we normally rotate on helping the grown-ups on butchering duties? How are you okay with that much blood and viscera and not the squid?”
“Because I know the former has bones.”
“Ah.”
Due to the Zhen Clan being essentially stranded in Pearl Tusk for the day, the Patriarch deemed that the clansmen were free to do whatever they wanted while they were here…as long as they didn’t get in trouble.
As such, the elders and their respective spouses went to go and do their own thing, while the younger generation did their own thing.
The younger generation, led by Zhen Yue, decided to follow that decree and use that time to find some souvenirs or something tasty to get while in town, to varying degrees of success.
While they hadn’t found anything that they could conceivably bring with them to Roaring Tide and back, maybe they could it get on the return trip at least, they did find plenty of food stalls.
“Lighten up, Xiao Yue,” Zhen Hai said as he took a bite of the tentacles of his grilled squid, “it’s not everyday we get to go to a port town and get fresh fish directly from the sea. Why not be like Xiao Liu and Xiao Feng and enjoy it?”
“Errr…”
Zhen Yue turned to stare at her aforementioned cousins enjoying the food…she was mildly disgusted.
“Burp!”
But that’s because those two are until they were both essentially round in the gut.
She wasn’t sure why, but Zhen Liu got really excited when they had found a booth selling octopus stuffed inside of a savory bun and covered in sauce.
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=I think this is the first time I’ve seen our lord get excited over food before.=
[So… y’all think this takoyaki stand will still be open late at night?]
[Judging by their hours sign and the kegs of alcohol? Yes.]
[Fuck yeah.]
[Prefer…meat…]
[Wait, aren’t you a mammoth?]
[Only…partially…]
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“Xiao Liu…remind me to never listen to you when it comes to food again…,”
Zhen Feng said in a satiated tone.
“Why? Regret my taste in cuisine?,” Zhen Liu retorted with a touch of sarcasm.
“Nah…pretty sure listening to you when it comes to tasty food, will probably just get me fatter.”
“Hah!”
A gourmand.
That was the term Zhen Liu could use to describe his cousin, the Fifth Young Master, Zhen Feng.
Well, that and the word, “strongfat”.
“How many orders of these octobuns did you eat, Xiao Feng?,” Zhen Xing asked as he stared at the number of empty plates by his cousin’s side of the table.
“Uhhh….a lot.”
“Dude.”
Amongst his cousins, Zhen Feng was physically the largest and could very well have been physically the strongest had it not been for Zhen Hai. However, Zhen Feng never really applied himself in the same manner as his other cousins in regards to cultivation.
It was still fairly respectable for him to be a 3rd Ring Aether Acolyte at his age, but he was also more interested in trying new foods and strange ingredients than cultivating his formula. Granted, this also made him the most skilled chef amongst the seven of them. If the man was born with the right affinities, he could have become an alchemist of renown. But alas, he didn’t have the Ignati Aether to pursue hot alchemy, nor the Aquarii aether necessary to pursue cold alchemy. The man was pure Terraqi aether.
‘Hmmm. Maybe I should try and induct my cousins into my “emergency boot camp” plan. Maybe he will develop a new affinity,’ Zhen Liu thought to himself as he kept digesting the “takoyaki”. The dish was technically called “octobuns”, but it was essentially takoyaki and he was going to keep calling it so.
=Actually, milord, you may not need to do that. Your cousin still qualifies for a style of alchemy that fits his own hobbies and life style too,= Logos commented.
‘Oh?’
‘Bistro-wait you mean cooking alchemy is a legitimate thing?’
=Sort of. Bistro Alchemy is a rare form of alchemy these days, but back during the days of the Four Dynasties era, it was rather popular. One of the main draws of it was that anyone could use it regardless of aether affinity.=
‘Seriously? How the hell does something that absurdly convenient sounding fall out of favor?’
‘What?’
=Bistro Alchemy required the practitioner to be knowledgeable about the preparation of over hundreds if not thousands of different ingredients, a variety of specialized tools ranging from knives made from rare materials, spatulas that were engraved with all sorts of arrays, mallets designed to pulverize aether beast cores without destroying their innate benefits and pots strong enough to withstand the heat of dragon fire at minimum, as well as being able to do all of this while having the resulting dish not taste disgusting.=
=Regardless, the library does have a number of cook books and guides on how to perform Bistro Alchemy, if you want to try and pursue this path as well milord.=
‘Hmmm.’
It the nature of life that many creatures tend to pursue instant gratification over something that takes more time and effort to prepare.
Wolves went for the weakest members of a herd, rabbits ate readily available garden vegetables, some college students ate ramen packets raw instead of waiting three minutes for the hot water to do it’s thing.
Zhen Liu was just about to give his consent for the knowledge bundle, even settling on plans on retrieving them tonight before bed, when an unexpected event occurred.
‘Alright, let’s go with-‘
*SMASH!*
Namely his cousin, Zhen Tai, getting tossed through a nearby table. Not that such an action dampened his spirits all too much.
“Ptooe! Why don’t you fight your own battles you fucking mutt?!,” Zhen Tai growled as he spat out a mouthful of blood and got back onto his feet.
“Bite me, piss drinker!”
‘Wait…I know that voice.’
Zhen Liu lifted himself from his seat, keeping his left hand hidden, and turned towards the source, only to be greeted by a very familiar face accompanied by several unfamiliar faces. The fact that all of them happened to be wearing a similar looking uniform, indicated that these guys were members of a sect of some kind or a mercenary company.
“Well, well, if it isn’t even more of my old friends from the Zhen Clan. How have you guys been?”
“Nice to see you again, Donovan,” Zhen Liu replied with a touch of sarcasm, “love the color coordinated outfits, you joined a dance troupe?”
As soon as Zhen Liu’s sting left his mouth, the people by Donovan’s side looked as if he had offended their honors and their mothers as the same time.
“You dare insult the members of the Celestial Bronze Claw Pavilion?!,” one of the uniformed members shouted.
‘Alright, definitely a sect,’ Zhen Liu thought to himself as he took note of the reaction and the name being tossed out.
‘Wait…I think I remember reading that name before…’
