Sun Jiao definitely needed to practice when it came to basic writing and reading - it was unfortunate that I couldn't help him in that matter though.

Could I try to teach him English?

Instantly, I dismissed the thought. For one, that would take several months at least just to get the basic sounds and alphabet down. Time that I simply did not have. Secondly, given the way the translation magic worked in this world… I didn't even know how you went about learning a second language.

It was definitely possible - because I knew that Zeke and Drake could read and write in both the human and lizardmen script used in Chipker. It was a skill quite useful to have as that meant you could more easily read, and were actually able to write grimoires of two languages. In a country like Chipker where there were two widely used writing systems, it was no surprise as to why their father had insisted that they learn both writing systems while growing up.

But, how exactly had they learned a different language? I mean, if magic translated everything, wouldn't everything sound the same regardless of what language was being used? So then how would you know which letters corresponded to different sounds and the like when you were starting out? Was there a way to turn the translation magic 'off?'

I really should've asked Drake about this - the only thing was that at the time I wasn't really interested in this kind of thing because I couldn't see how it applied to me.

"Alright, I think we're good then," I said.

"I don't really feel that different," Sun Jiao said.

"It isn't enough to just learn a spell or skill," I said. "You also have to know how to use it." I remembered that the first time I had cast [Grand Fireball]; I had been off-target by a slight margin. In much the same way [Poissonnier] was not powerful enough to make anything that you threw into a pot, so long as it was fish, tasty. It did have its limits. Perhaps there was a Rank Two skill called [Master Poissonnier] or [Greater Poissonnier], and Rank Three skills above even those that might let you do something like that. If I used a cookbook as the manual for a grimoire, I could maybe make something like that.

But even I wouldn't be interested in trying to make grimoires like that, so I could see why I hadn't heard of such a thing existing higher than Rank One. I doubted anyone else would either - given how little value was given to something like [Fish Haul], which compared to [Poissonnier], at least sort of did something marginally useful for most Liberomancers.

"[Poissonnier] doesn't make it so that you naturally know how to cook," I told him. "It might guide you, and what you'll make will be far better than it would be otherwise, but you still need to know some of the basics."

"The basics?"

"Yes," I said. "Now, I assume that you'll be able to cook well enough if you want to serve humans, that's fine; you don't need me to teach you much in that regard and I think you'll be able to figure it out by experimenting on your own well enough. Rather, you need to learn how lizardmen palates differ from humans. For one, the majority of lizardmen are lactose intolerant, so do not use milk, cream, cheese, or other dairy products. Secondly, they have a much lower tolerance for spicy food than humans. I once served a lizardman who could not handle even a pinch of pepper - and his eyes started watering and nose started running like he was having hay fever after a single bite when he tried some. Third, they prefer far more salt in their food, I would say that you should add about thirty to fifty percent more salt than you otherwise would for a human. Fourth, do not add too much oil to whatever you make either - they tend to not like it, though conversely, add much more oil if you're serving humans because they prefer a good amount. Fifth, though lizardmen prefer their fish as fresh as possible, they also like fish that has been preserved for a few days in vinegar, I've found that they often compliment its taste. Sixth, a good portion of them seem to hate kale for whatever reason, so if you're making a stew don't add it to that. Seventh, they don't like shrimp in general. Eighth, female lizardmen will almost always want a glass of tea with their meals, so keep a small supply with you ready. Ninth, with lizardmen it is almost always better to under-cook rather than overcook if you're not sure as their guts can tolerate it far better than humans. There are a few more subtleties and nuances in addition to this, but I think those simple rules are a good place to start. Did you get all of that?"

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

"Um… could you please repeat number one… and rule number four… and… uh… maybe all of them again…?"

"If you thought you couldn't remember it why didn't you just write it all dow- oh right, okay, look, let's just practice cooking, okay? You'll learn those nuances with time naturally anyway," I said. Maybe I had overloaded him with information. I had picked up most of those tips and tricks while working over time, so it might've been better to get him started for now. I didn't intend to extend my stay in the capital by a single day because of this person, but I think I had enough time to get a few things going. "Let's make a simple stew today, those are rather popular and easy to make, and if your fish isn't fresh or you were unable to sell it and it might go rotten soon, you can add it to a stew and it will mask the fact that it isn't fresh. And why not try some grilled fish as well - they are easy to do together. "

"Okay," Sun Jiao said.

"You know [Create Flame] which is already a bit of help in cooking since you don't need anything to light up a stove," I said. "Now, grab those onions and start dicing them up-"

While he was doing this, I was working on reading the newer grimoires that I'd gotten from the king. Periodically, I would look up to help him out with something or redirect him.

He seemed to know the very basics, but had trouble with the finer aspects, which was understandable. Then again, that was why he needed instruction in the first place.

"Alright, how is it?" Sun Jiao said, wiping his brow after he had finished the stew, setting up the table for us, and then taking a seat.

"Hmm… first, do you happen to know - do lizardmen lay eggs or give birth like we do?" I asked him. I thought that he might know, and it had felt too awkward to ask an actual lizardman.

He sputtered. "Teacher! Who starts a conversation like that - I had just sat down!?"

"Relax," I said, fighting to keep my poker face on. "I was just curious is all, and I thought that you might know. You've said far more embarrassing things before this."

"Not before eating!"

"Whatever, do you happen to know the answer or not?"

"I uh… actually don't," he said.

Oh well, it was worth a shot. I first took a whiff of what he had made. "Okay, it smells good, and that's the first thing people notice. It's important to have a good aroma surrounding where you sell food to stimulate people's appetites." I remembered how bakeries would always smell back on Earth - like your mouth would begin to water just while walking by.

Granted, fish did smell, well, fishy to people and not everyone liked that, but it seemed to smell far nicer to lizardmen, and though Sun Jiao had said that he didn't really feel that great about going down that route, if he wanted to be successful, it was without a doubt his best bet. He might insist on making things only for humans, but he would likely see how much more profitable it was to sell to lizardmen when he spent a few days working.

"Hmm," I said, taking a bite. "Alright, this is slightly burnt… what happened?"

"I uh, might've gotten a bit distracted and forgot to take it off the stove in time, but I didn't think it was noticeable-"

"It really isn't," I said. "But if you're going to cook things commercially, these are some things that are going to hurt your reputation. I can see where you overcooked it very easily, and your customers will be able to as well. It would've been better to have scraped off the small burnt bits before serving them."

"How would that change the taste?"

"It might not, but presentation is crucial. No one will want to dig in if the food looks bad beforehand. Now, let me see your stew." I took a sip. "Not bad, not bad at all, but it needs a bit more salt, even if you were selling this to humans, and a bunch more if you were selling to lizardmen."

Sun Jiao tentatively took a bite of his cooking. "It… ah, it doesn't taste exactly like yours…"

"You can't expect to reach my level overnight," I told him. "As with anything, consistent practice and improving is the key. Still, this is more than passable - we'll try again tomorrow. In the meantime, where are you staying?"

"Eh? I thought I could crash with you?"

I chuckled. "That's a nice joke - but no way that's happening."

I might have been stupid to have let him drag me along this far, but I wasn't that stupid.

I did not trust Sun Jiao nearly well enough to have him continue staying with me during all hours.

Even if he wasn't the kind of person to try to slit my throat in the middle of the night - there were other things that I had to be careful didn't end up 'missing' while he was around. The grimoires were a bit too hard to sell, but there were other things - like my translating device, for example that he might have an interest in.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.