It was purely by chance that Jean-François Mont de la Vigny, who had come from the Eastern Kingdom, ducked under the noren of the tavern Nobu.
For Jean, any tavern frequented by the average resident of the city would have sufficed, and in that sense, Nobu fit the bill.
Although he was dressed for travel, Jean was not a monk.
To be more precise, he was a monk, but he was also on a secret mission from the Eastern Kingdom.
He was a “Collector of Tales.”
This group, also known as the “Storytellers,” was tasked with collecting and compiling strange and unusual stories from across the continent to entertain the royalty of the Eastern Kingdom.
But this job also had another side to it.
That is, espionage. They collected political and anecdotal information from various regions, receiving generous support from the Eastern Kingdom, to be used as materials for the king’s policy-making and scheming.
Jean-François Mont de la Vigny, thirty-five years old this year, was a skilled Collector who had mainly investigated the United Kingdom region as the right-hand man of the Chief Storyteller.
The reason he had been dispatched to this ancient city this time was because this region potentially held great significance for the Eastern Kingdom.
“Welcome!”
“…Welcome,” a gruff voice followed.
Opening the unusual glass sliding door, Jean was greeted by a pleasant greeting and a clean atmosphere.
As a back-alley tavern, it deserved at least a passing grade.
Jean, who often visited taverns to gather rumors as part of his job, felt that this was a place where he could relax for the first time in a while.
Perhaps because it was still early, there were few customers in the tavern.
Wanting to hear stories from the owner, Jean chose a counter seat.
The meticulously cleaned counter had beautiful wood grain, showing the high standards of this tavern.
“This is the otoshi for you.”
In the Eastern Kingdom, there’s also an amuse-bouche served before the appetizer. This must be something similar. Inside the dish were three large beans, shimmering emerald green.
“What are these?”
“These are broad beans, boiled with salt. Please enjoy them as they are. And, what would you like to drink?”
“I’m just a traveling monk. I’d be grateful for some cooled water.”
“Understood.”
A monk-like man drinking in the corner of the counter seemed a little embarrassed and tried to hide his sake cup, but Jean didn’t mind.
He was a traveler, so he didn’t care about the impressions of the local monks.
“Ah, and I’ll have a salad.”
Ordering a salad was Jean’s method of investigation in taverns.
Raw vegetables don’t keep well and aren’t suitable for long-distance transportation. Therefore, by eating a salad, one could gauge the strength of the city.
“What kind of salad would you prefer?”
“Does this tavern have many kinds of salads?”
Jean couldn’t help but ask, surprised by the waitress’s response.
Normally, a tavern only has one type of salad.
Unless the city has a very abundant supply of vegetables, it’s impossible to make multiple kinds of salads. Moreover, unless you’re royalty, the number of vegetables you can obtain is limited.
In Jean’s view, although the ancient city was said to be an important point in the northern part of the Empire, it was just an old city. He was genuinely interested in what kind of salad this tavern would serve.
“Yes, our Taisho here is currently obsessed with making salads.”
“I see. Then, I’d like to try various salads. I don’t need any other dishes, just bring me salads.”
“Then, shall we make each salad a smaller portion so you can enjoy a variety?”
“I would be very grateful if you could do that.”
Even if they have multiple types of salads, it couldn’t be that many. Considering she made such an offer, it might just be for show.
In any case, Jean was now desperately craving vegetables.
The things he could eat during his travels inevitably had to be preserved. Jean, a seasoned traveler, knew very well that his body craved fresh vegetables.
Drinking the cooled water that had been brought to him, he looked around the tavern.
It seemed that this place was built in a foreign style. The atmosphere was different from any tavern within the Empire that he had visited on his journey from the Eastern Kingdom.
A place like this was perfect for gauging the true strength of the city. That was the conclusion Jean had drawn from his past experiences.
“Sorry for the wait! Here is the soft-boiled egg Caesar salad!”
The first dish seemed to be a salad mainly consisting of lettuce, topped with a runny soft-boiled egg. It was a type of salad that he had never seen even in the Eastern Kingdom, which was advanced in cuisine.
“Caesar salad, huh? I’ve never seen this before.”
“Please mix the egg on top well before eating.”
Using the fork and spoon he was handed, he thoroughly mixed the small salad bowl and served it onto a small plate.
He hadn’t noticed when it was brought out, but it contained finely chopped and fried bacon, grated cheese, and fried bread croutons, making it a very lively salad.
“Shinobu-san. Has there been a salad like this before?”
The old monk at the counter asked the waitress.
“Remember the Schnitzel incident from before? Since then, Taisho said he wanted to practice dishes outside of his specialty.”
“Hmm, that’s a good thing.”
“That’s not a good thing. He meticulously practices the recipes in order from the beginning, so the repertoire of salads just keeps increasing.”
“I see. Isn’t this a good opportunity? This customer seems to be very fond of salads.”
Saying so, the monk gave Jean a slight nod, his expression suggesting he wanted to say something.
Jean searched his memory to see if he had met him somewhere before, but he couldn’t recall anything. He returned the nod and turned back to his salad bowl.
Crunch.
Crunch, crunch.
The crisp lettuce, intertwined with the runny soft-boiled egg, transformed the flavor into something rich and deep.
The crispy bacon, with its moderate saltiness, not only tightened the taste but also created a pleasant accent to the texture, along with the crispy fried bread croutons.
“This is wonderful.”
The combination of ingredients used isn’t unusual. It might seem a little extravagant for something served at a tavern, but it’s something that could be found in a large city.
However, the combination, considering taste and texture, is truly wonderful. It is a salad of technique that maximizes the characteristics of the ingredients.
Frankly speaking, Jean hadn’t expected to find such a salad in a tavern. This Caesar salad wouldn’t be out of place at a royal banquet in the Eastern Kingdom.
But it was just that kind of salad.
It was elaborate, but conversely, that’s all it was. In terms of analyzing the city through salad, it wasn’t a particularly significant dish.
Whether it was the result of the ancient city’s history accumulated over many years, or the wisdom of this foreign-style tavern, he didn’t know. However, in either case, it wasn’t a salad that would threaten the Eastern Kingdom.
“Did you enjoy it?”
“It’s a wonderful salad. I’m impressed.”
“I’m glad to hear that. It’s very popular in my hometown.”
“I see. So, what is the next salad?”
“Yes, next is the Daikon Salad!”
The next dish was a salad consisting of thinly sliced white vegetables, topped with a pinkish, runny sauce.
This was also a dish that Jean had never seen before. Hesitantly putting it in his mouth, he was surprised by the unexpected crunch of the white vegetables.
If it were just that, it would simply be a watery salad with a nice texture, but the moderate saltiness and smoothness of the sauce made the flavor of this salad many times deeper.
“What is this vegetable?”
“It’s daikon, thinly sliced.”
Saying so, the waitress brought out a root vegetable that looked like a giant radish. Something similar exists in the United Kingdom, called white carrots, but those are much thicker.
Jean knew that no matter how much you grow a white carrot, it won’t grow as big as a child’s leg like the daikon.
“It’s a vegetable with an interesting texture. And, I’d like to ask one more thing. What is the sauce on top? I’ve never seen such a vibrant pink sauce.”
“That’s tarako. It’s the roe of the codfish. Squeeze it out and mix it into the sauce, and it becomes this color.”
“Cod, roe?”
While he was interested in the daikon vegetable, the more concerning thing was the fish roe.
Cod was a common fish often eaten in coastal nations, including the United Kingdom across the sea. Jean had eaten its roe more than once.
The problem was that the ancient city was inland.
This city, which was a strategic point in the north of the Empire, was certainly connected to the sea by waterways using the river and canals that flowed north.
However, Jean couldn’t readily believe that seafood brought from there would easily reach the mouths of the common people.
He had read all the materials on the ancient city’s waterways before visiting.
The daikon salad using this tarako completely overturned the situation he had expected.
He could only assume that the Empire or the ancient city’s council was intentionally hiding the amount of waterborne commerce.
“This salad is also wonderful.”
“You liked it? Next is this salad.”
Jean, feeling newly cautious, turned his attention to the next dish, but what he saw there was far from what he had expected.