kscans

Chapter 247 - Upland Rice Spree (Part 2)

Fortunately, the price of upland rice was low, so Yuri succeeded in buying up all of it without depleting his funds... in exchange for the exasperated faces of his companions.

"...Yuri-kun, my boy, I don’t mean to pry... but what do you intend to use that pasture grass for?"

To Old Man Audel and Dona, who knew that Yuri’s village didn’t keep livestock, Yuri’s actions, and his obsession, were nothing short of incomprehensible. However, Yuri’s answer to that was,

"Huh? I’m going to eat it, of course."

...an answer that was surprising, yet secretly feared.

"...Is it edible?"

Old Man Audel asked with a somewhat fearful tone. Eating livestock feed, if it hadn’t been Yuri who said it, he would have laughed it off. But this boy before him, Yuri, was the prodigy who had brilliantly cooked the so-called poisonous Papas potatoes. It wouldn’t be strange if he knew a way or two to eat pasture grass.

"Ah... but this one might be an acquired taste."

"Hmm?"

Yuri had been in ecstasy all by himself, but upon calm reflection, this country, or rather, this continent, was a land of wheat, a flour-based food culture, a land of bread. Whether the grain-based food culture of cooked rice would be accepted was unknown... or rather, it was highly doubtful. It seemed very likely that the chewy, sticky texture would be shunned... or rather, it seemed it had actually been rejected.

Old Man Audel, hearing Yuri’s words, was at first struck by surprise, but he quickly changed his mind. In short, it was a matter of Yuri’s preference. Just because he liked different foods from them, they had no right to criticize him, let alone restrict him. Hadn't this child, Yuri, contributed more than enough to them? If so, who could blame Yuri for choosing crops based on his own preferences here? ...His granddaughter next to him had a complicated expression on her face... he would have to have a good talk with her later.

There was one more person bewildered by Yuri’s statement, Eto himself. Of all things, he was sparkling with excitement about eating livestock feed. "Is this guy okay?" was Eto’s true feeling. But Adon and Mand had strictly ordered him not to interfere with Yuri’s shopping, and more than anything, Yuri was the one who had given him the menko and the spinning top. Both of them were foreign toys he didn’t know. If so, it wouldn’t be strange if he knew a novel way or two to eat pasture grass. Although he couldn’t suppress a somewhat complicated feeling, he decided to just stay quiet and watch.

Dona, Katra, and Dalia, the women of the group, maintained a silent, observational stance, but Yuri himself... was actually feeling a little guilty. After all, despite having promised Baron Darren to pioneer new crops, and despite Old Man Audel probably expecting it, the first thing he had bought up was upland rice, something whose acceptance in this country was uncertain. He felt guilty for pursuing his hobby while neglecting the mission he had been assigned, a guilt that seemed off-point to an outside observer, but... after all, it had been five years since Yuri had been reincarnated here. It was the first time he had seen rice in five years. How could he care about the intentions of others? Ah, he couldn’t help but tremble at the depth of his own karma... but still, it was rice! This was his non-negotiable identity as a former Japanese person! It was fate! It was a mission! He would devise delicious cooking methods and spread the culture of rice to this country, this world! This thought was by no means self-justification or an excuse! ...and so on, he was heating up in a somewhat distorted way.

Although their feelings were all different, it wasn’t enough to sway Yuri’s policy of buying up the upland rice... and as a result, Yuri once again put on a display of magnificent, lavish buying that day.