novelEmmerich's Newlywed Diary, with Cabbage and Bacon Soup
| ← Ch.098 | Ch.100 → |
Author:
Requested Chapter. Emmerich's point of view.
A long time after living in the countryside, Ritz-kun contacted me that the buzz was dying down, so I thought to return Aina-chan to the village.
Of course, I will be moving with her.
I was preparing to leave for village, but then a problem occurred.
It was about the goat we were raising.
The goat can't be taken by boat, and it won't be able to survive the winter cold, so it was returned to uncle.
Uncle was planning on eating the goat at the farewell feast, but I felt sad for it so I asked him to not do that.
That goat kicked me many times, but I was seeing it every day so I became fond of it.
It was healthy and the body was well built so it would be delicious, or so uncle said, but seeing me teary-eyed he gave up on eating it.
Rather, that's a milking goat, so it won't be that delicious!? I though.
Not that I know a lot about the meat of livestock.
Aina-chan, aren't you glad, when I said that, she replied, "About what?"
I told her that the goat we were raising will be kept alive, but she said, "Livestock are for eating." Apparently, in her village, they raise livestock from spring to autumn when there's no snow, and then eat the livestock in winter.
Since she was diligently taking care of it every day, I had definitely thought that she liked it.
Indeed, they are a hunting people, I concluded in admiration.
Well, anyhow, I asked him to continue raise the goat for milking.
For the goods in the house, we solved it by either giving away or throwing away most of things.
I did not worry about costs of living.
There's the house that Ritz-kun promised for us, and Aina-chan said that she would be making the traditional clothing. Sieglinde will be teaching me how to hunt. It was a thankful story.
We packed our luggage in one bag for each of us.
There were many gifts.
The night before we left, I sat down next to her who was sitting on the rug.
It was something I bought some time ago when I went on a business trip.
"A-Aina-chan."
"What?"
Maybe because she was in the middle of sewing, the tone of her voice was prickly.
I kept speaking without backing down.
"This, erm, if you don't mind."
She stared at the square box with a puzzled face.
"What is it? Chocolate again?"
"No, there wasn't any chocolate, this time"
Every time I went out to the city for work, I didn't know what to get her so I always chose the easy option of chocolate.
She always received them gladly, so I kept gifting her chocolate, so I thought that she would gladly receive them again.
In retrospect, I should have bought other gifts as well.
Even if she was happy the first, I shouldn't have kept bringing the same gift every time like an idiot.
Well, that's fine now.
Aina-chan received the gift with a wary look.
To be this suspicious of me, I'm not being trusted.
However, Aina-chan's frown was also great so I did not care.
I want to forever stare at how she unravels the ribbon cautiously.
When she opened the box, her eyes opened wide. My gift was a brooch.
Some time ago, I heard from Ritz-kun, "The best present for the villagers are silver brooches, " so I decided on that as a gift.
To be honest, I wanted to give her a marriage ring, but over there they don't have the tradition of giving rings and it would get in the way of work, so I decided against that. There's also the reason that I didn't have enough money for that.
Aina-chan looked at me in surprise.
Maybe because she was surprised, her cheek slowly dyed red. It was lovely.
"This is for me?"
When I nodded in confirmation, she softly held the brooch in her hand.
"P-Pretty."
It seems like she likes it.
I bought a brooch in the shape of a cat from a jeweler. The curled tail was similar to Rossa.
Aina-chan showed the cat that was next to her the brooch with a glint in her eyes.
"Hey, look, Rossa, it's like you! It's very cute!"
That smile, I wished that was not meant for Rossa, but for me.
No, that's asking for too much.
Her liking the present is reward enough.
When I was about to stand up, Aina-chan tugged at my sleeve.
I ended up looking at her in surprise.
Unexpected words came out of her mouth.
"Th-Thank you."
"!"
While holding Rossa in one hand, Aina-chan thanked me with a shy expression and her eyes upturned.
Really, she's too cute, too cute, et cetera.
Like so, our last night before moving passed in this way.
◇◇◇
Aina-chan and I returned to Ritz-kun's village. Ah, along with the cat Rossa.
When we arrived at the port, her mother was waiting for us.
The mother and daughter hugged each other, rejoicing at their reunion.
"David-san, thank you so much!"
I felt sorry because she was thanking me.
I had put her through hardships because I did not earn a lot.
In the countryside, she served mushrooms from the forest and fish from the rivers to me.
Every day was fun, and her cooking was all delicious. For making me happy, I should be the one thanking you, I said as I bowed deeply.
The thanking battle between her mother and me continued until Rossa sneezed in the cage.
We reunited with the lord and the lady in front of the village fort.
Even though I say that, I did see them over there, but it had been a while since I saw them in traditional clothes so it felt as though I had not met them for a long time.
"Emmerich, you did well to come here! Aina-chan, welcome back!"
It was exciting to be welcomed in. I'm sure Aina-chan thought the same.
Seeing the two in good health, I felt relieved.
As for Sieglinde, maybe because she had given birth to a child, her expression had softened greatly.
For reference, their son is being taken care of my Ritz's mother at their house.
I'm looking forward to meeting his mother who is rumoured to be exactly like Ritz-kun.
I parted from the two of them and headed to Aina-chan's place.
I was worried about the scary grandfather, but Aina-chan reassured me that it was alright.
I soon understood the meaning of those words.
Aina-chan's grandfather was completely dispirited.
The moment he saw his granddaughter, he started shedding large drops of tears.
Grandfather said that he reflected on the actions.
Afterwards, our marriage was coolly accepted.
◇◇◇
Morning.
I woke from Rossa kneading my belly.
When I opened my eyes thinly, it was still dark outside.
When I asked to have more sleep, the kneading got stronger.
"Uu, sorry Rossa-san, a little more......"
"It's not Rossa!"
"!"
I jolted up in surprise.
I thought that it was definitely Rossa treading on my belly asking for food, but it was not the cat but Ainya-chan, I mean Aina-chan.
What do you want me to do? When I asked that, she asked me to go outside and dig out vegetables from the snow.
"I'm busy baking."
"U-Understood."
She said that the vegetable was for breakfast, so I hurried.
If the vegetables planted in the garden are left after the first snow piles up, they get buried in the snow.
It's a natural refrigerator of sorts.
Furthermore, these 'snow vegetables' are sweet and delicious.
According to Ritz-kun, the substances in the water of the vegetables change into a sweet substance to not freeze under the snow. Indeed, a son of a scholar. He knows everything.
I went outside and slowly dug the snow out from the area near the vegetables with a scoop.
If a twig is found, it means that a vegetable is nearby. I changed the tool to a short one dug cautiously to not harm the vegetable.
There's no telling where it might be. It was like hunting for treasure.
Today I dug out cabbages.
When I returned home, the aromatic smell of baking bread had filled the room. I immediately felt happy.
The cabbage I handed over was quickly cooked.
Aina-chan brewed hot coffee. While drinking that, I watched her cook.
The whole cabbage is put in a large pot and then boiled in hot water for a while.
She then cut out thick pieces of bacon from the wild boar that was hung up.
The cabbage was then taken out of the hot water and then slits were made in a cross shape. In between the leaves, bacon was filled in. To make sure the form does not crumble, the cabbage was tightened with a string. After that, it was put in a stock that was prepared beforehand.
After the cabbage is boiled enough, it's done by seasoning it lightly with spices and salt.
The cabbage is taken out again, and then split into four parts.
A quarter of the cabbage was placed in my bowl. One quarter was also placed in Aina-chan's bowl. Afterwards, a clear amber-coloured soup was poured in the bowl.
The rest of the cabbage and the bacon was put back into the pot. It seems like she will be taking them to her family later.
Freshly baked bread and soft cabbage soup.
It was a feast from the morning.
I prayed to the Spirit and then started eating.
When the rye bread was split into two, white steam rose from it.
I couldn't wait until I split into a bite-size and bit into the bread. The outside was crispy and the inside was soft. I could feel the luxurious texture limited only to fresh bread.
As for the fist-sized cabbage, I sliced it with a knife.
Even without having to put in much strength, the knife went through easily. The knife encountered a piece of bacon in the middle, so I sliced quickly.
First, I used a spoon to have only the cabbage.
The cabbage was soft and unbelievably sweet. The bacon had a proper chewing texture and a savoury flavour. When I had them both at the same time, an indescribable flavour pleased the tongue.
When I came to, I noticed that Aina-chan had not yet touched her meal.
I ate on my own.
Even as I panicked, I gave her my impression to smooth it over.
"Aina-chan, it's very delicious."
"Ah, I see." I thought that would have been the cold reply, but Aina-chan smiled slightly and murmured, "I'm glad."
—— Uwa, Aina-chan's super cute (the rest is omitted)
Like so, our newlywed life continued.
Every day made me think that I was in paradise.
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