Hyouka:Volume 3 Chapter 3-2

3-2 Wild Fire

029 - ♥07

As my long hair was in the way, I had it tied in the back of my head.

I always wondered why The Cooking Club has a "The" as a part of its name.

That question was instantly answered by its president,

"Something unfortunate happened with the old Cooking Club, leading to its disbandment. So we re-registered under this new name instead."

They seem like they've been through a lot.

Being invited by Fukube-san, I am now participating in The Cooking Club's tournament "Wild Fire.". While it has a strange name for a tournament, upon participating, one would quickly understand why such a name was used. The Wild Fire tournament does not take place in the Home Economics Room, but outside in the track field.

The tables forming the makeshift kitchen counters were quite narrow, and use of water was to be limited. Cooking fire was provided by two-legged stoves on each counter...... It certainly looks strange in appearance, but on the other hand, it also meant any observer would instantly know what it was.

Besides, as this tournament involves teams of three people......

"Mayaka-san sure is late."

The deadline for accepting entries has finished, and there's only three minutes till 11.30, when the tournament would officially commence. Yet Fukube-san was surprisingly calm.

"Each team member has twenty minutes, so we'll just put Mayaka last. If she still doesn't come in 40 minutes, then guess that's too bad. We're only here to promote ourselves anyway, so it doesn't matter whether we win or not."

While he's quite right, I still continued to glance towards the field entrance.

A male student's voice spoke from behind us,

"Doesn't matter whether you win or not? That's hardly fun at all, Fukube!"

Could he be a friend of Fukube-san? I've not seen him before.

Though Fukube-san was usually energetic, but perhaps even he was getting exhausted from being so active during the tournament, he sounded quite indifferent when replying to his friend,

"Nah, we'll be giving our all."

Though his friend did not seem to mind a bit and smiled,

"At any rate, this rule of having three people in a team is great! Even if my cooking isn't up to speed, I'll still be well covered by the other two teammates. Still, no one person can win it alone, so you gotta plan ahead accordingly."

"Isn't that the same for all team tournaments?"

"Anyway, have you found yourself some good teammates? Just so you know, Team B has got Suhara, who's the son of the chef of Miraku from the Main Street."

"Ah, so I've heard."

"And I'm in that team."

Fukube-san gave an ambiguous smile,

"Wow, that's great. May the best team win then."

Just as I thought, something does feel strange. The Fukube-san that I knew would have been more sociable. Still, his friend remained in good spirits and returned to his team. I gently called out to Fukube-san,

"Fukube-san...... Are you feeling alright?"

The person who turned around was the usual Fukube-san,

"How am I feeling? I'm feeling superb! I feel like making some Fukube's Seafood Fried Rice today!"

Looks like I've been thinking too much into this. I smiled,

"I'll be looking forward to it...... But, I don't know if I'm getting this wrong, but we're only allowed to cook rice from scratch. If you're going to make fried rice, wouldn't you have to start last in order to properly prepare?"

Fukube-san doesn't seem to look lively. As expected, perhaps his exhaustion is beginning to show on his face.

An impressive crowd was gathered, about a hundred to two hundred, perhaps even more. To think we're going to cook dishes in front of this many people...... This feels a bit embarrassing.

"Um...... if Mayaka-san is to start last, who will start first then?"

"Hmm? Chitanda-san, I did say we're gonna make rice, so maybe you should start first."

"But it'll take more than an hour to prepare the rice, that would be too......"

I wasn't able to explain myself properly, but perhaps Fukube-san realized it from my gaze, he replied,

"Fine, I'll start first. Guess there goes Fukube's Seafood Fried Rice, I can make that anytime!"

Oh no, you don't really have to say it so clearly.

Besides the makeshift kitchen counters was a podium, where The Cooking Club's president walked on and began to explain the rules. With a loud voice, he began to introduce the participating teams,

"We have a total of five teams who've entered the tournament, but as we only have four counters, only the first four teams to apply get to compete for the Wild Fire Cup.

And now, the teams themselves. Entry No. 1: Team Ajiyoshi!"

It was a team with three third year male students. I took a glance at them and noticed two of them had quite long fingernails. Could it be that they rarely cook?

"Entry No. 2: Team Fata Morgana!"

It was the team Fukube-san's friend was in. One of them looked quite calm and reserved, perhaps he's the chef's son from Miraku.

"Entry No. 3: Team Astronomy Club!"

Huh? It seems there's another club who thinks just like Fukube-san did and participated. One of their members waved both her arms to greet the audience...... We've met her before, it was Sawakiguchi-san, who was dressed in her usual chignon hairstyle. Oh, she even threw a kiss to the audience. She seems like a tough opponent.

"Entry No. 4: Team Classics Club!"

Fukube-san pumped his right fist into the air. I was at a loss on what to do, but still, I decided to bow respectfully to the audience around us.

"The rules have been well explained in advance. Each team is to make three dishes. Ingredients are available in the basket in the centre of the field on a first-come-first-serve basis. We often get cases of participants only getting rice, so please plan what you need beforehand. If the ingredient basket has run out, you are allowed to procure ingredients within the confines of Kami High. We have the Gardening Club cooking sweet potatoes today, you know?"

Oh, I see. As the ingredients are first-come-first-served, it would be better for the first contestant to prepare the ingredients for his teammates as well. I'm glad that Fukube-san is starting first, as I would easily get overwhelmed by too many choices.

"And now, first participants, on your positions......"

"Well, I'll be going."

Fukube-san waved his arm and headed towards the tables making up the makeshift counter. The four counters were set up in a way that surrounds the ingredients in the centre.

The Cooking Club president raised his voice from the podium,

"Wild Fire: START!"

The ingredients Fukube-san procured were three cups of rice, one bag of dried sardines, a bit of frying oil, a bottle of sweet vinegar ginger, four blocks of tofu, half a radish, three spring onions, six potatoes, a bit of black sesame, 200g of sliced pork, one pack of sweet prawns, and a packet of potato starch. As for seasonings and spices like miso, soy sauce, wasabi, chili pepper, it seems like there is no limit on how much we can use them.

Fukube-san thought deeply for a bit before proceeding to boil a pot of water. Using the time the water takes to boil, he began to cut up the spring onions. Taking one of the three spring onions he's procured, he began to chop them up into many tiny bits, though not as fast as professionals would chop them. It hardly looked hazardous. He next took out the dried sardines. Ah, so he's preparing miso soup.

Observing from the podium, The Cooking Club president began commentating on behalf of the audience,

"Oh, looks like Team Classics Club sure are thorough! Slowly taking out the intestines of the sardines one by one! This is a very important step!"

After taking out the sardines' intestines, he began cutting up the radish into smaller pieces

Wait, Fu, Fukube-san! There's no problem with how you cut up the radish, but you've forgotten to peel its skin! But team members are not allowed to speak while their teammates are cooking. The radish! The radish! I tried to motion my body in order to let him know...... The radish!

After cutting up all the pieces, he finally seems to have noticed and took out a peeler. Oh dear! He's peeling off the skin off the small pieces he just cut one by one! But if you do that, they'll become too dry by the time you put it into the hot water!

After peeling off the radish skin, he placed the dried sardines aside...... Though as he's taken care of its innards, it shouldn't smell anymore. Fukube-san next turned his attention to the sliced pork. He walked to the centre to obtain some miso paste. Of the three types of miso: red, white and koji, he had chosen white. By now, even I knew what he was planning to make, and it was not plain miso soup. He now held a miso soup ladle on his left hand and a spoon on his right.

Twenty minutes has passed and on the stove of our kitchen counter was a pot of pork miso soup.

"Twenty minutes is up! Please swap places now."

Fukube-san ran back towards where we sat, and first thing he said was,

"Didn't go as well as I thought!"

"The peeling o the skin?"

Fukube-san shook his head,

"Yeah that as well, but if I'm to make pork miso soup, I shouldn't have spent so much time taking care of the sardine innards! That took up a lot of time......"

He was right, we cannot afford to waste that much time.

"I, I'm counting on you, Chitanda-san."

I nodded.

Please leave it to me.

030 - ♣10

And just when I was wondering how Chitanda-san's cooking would fare......

She's fast! Not just in her movement, but in how she manages to get the knack of things as well. Despite the narrow space around her, she moves as though she has many limbs. Even the commentator is astounded,

"What on earth is going on with Team Astronomy Club's second member Sawakiguchi? Just what is she making? ...... Whoa! Look at the superb way Team Classics Club's Chitanda is slicing the radish skin!"

Before time, the radish skin has been peeled into what seems like a long thin sheet of paper. She next placed the spring onion on the chopping board while preparing the sweet vinegar ginger. How does Chitanda-san manage to move so swiftly? When she's usually quite meek, I mean, gentle.

Using the thin radish pieces, she wrapped them around the spring onions and ginger before placing them on the dish. That's one dish complete. Damn, and it's only been two minutes since she started.

It was then that Chitanda-san suddenly stopped moving, for about ten seconds. Just when I thought what's going on, she began moving frantically again. "Ah yes, the rice." Phew, that's the Chitanda-san I knew.

Though she has only started to wash the rice, the way she washes them was incredibly vivid.

"Team Classics Club sure are taking their time to polish their rice...... They're generously using up every ounce of the six litres of water allocated to them! In order to bring out the best taste in their rice, the Classics Club are cutting no corners with their resources! Look properly, that's the way you wash your rice, by slowly draining the water with your hands!"

She was gentle yet fast. Upon deciding on the amount of water to be used, she brought it to boil and then turned her attention elsewhere.

"...... Team Ajiyoshi has finished their second dish of miso soup. Are they planning on making a variety of miso soup? Meanwhile, it seems Team Fata Morgana's teriyaki is going smoothly!"

Chitanda-san's movement became more and more vivid. She wrapped the tofu with a cloth and placed it on a bowl, then sprinkled salt and sugar on it while warming up the frying pan. No, she wasn't simply warming up the pan, she was frying the black sesame with oil. She then placed and spread the tofu evenly across the pan. The commentary went ballistic,

"Oh my, Team Classics Club is making giseyaki! I am so moved to tears by Team Classics Club's Chitanda!"

Sounds like a dish I've never heard of before......

Chitanda-san next began to peel the potato skin while occasionally turning to tend to the frying pan. After peeling the potato skin, she took out the tofu from the pan, which now gave an impressive colour, and placed it on the chopping board. Cutting up the tofu, she placed it on another dish. That's the second dish completed.

I could already smell the sweet aroma coming from the roasted sugar as well as the fried sesame. I was lost for words, indeed, I felt like eating that myself!

"...... A sweet scent is coming from the dish of Team Classics Club! How formidable, for them to impress just by scent alone!"

Meanwhile, a sweet smell of roasted soy sauce came from Tani-kun's team.

"Team Fata Morgana has also finished their teriyaki. The colour looks superb. One cannot think of these people of mere students, just who are they?!"

You're dealing with Lady Chitanda Eru, daughter of the Chitanda farming clan! Remember her name!

There was no time to wash the frying pan. As soon as she filled the pot with water and brought it to boil, without waiting she went straight for the sweet prawns right away, speedily removing their shells. She would then turn the fire down when the ricepot began to boil. And when the pot of hot water started boiling, she threw in the sweet potatoes. Taking some radish, she began making wasabi sauce. Yup, guess that's the way to prepare sweet prawns.

Meanwhile, she briefly cleaned the bowl that held the tofu a while ago and placed the starch in. Wonder what she's up to now? Feeling curious, I decided to look on.

Though the potatoes were now boiled, she didn't discard the soup right away. Using a pair of chopsticks and miso ladle, she skillfully scooped the contents out. After draining them of moisture, she placed them into the bowl holding the starch and began grinding them with a mortar. Was she good at making food that involves grinding stuff? Starch and boiled potatoes, just what was she making? Cooking sure is complicated. People who possess the most surprises are the most interesting after all. I'm very looking forward to this. Taking the white stuff that emerged from the bowl, she wrapped them with a cloth and began squeezing them into lumps. She then dumped the lumps back into the soup.

"It seems Team Astronomy Club is continuing with their Avant-Garde cooking, I pray for the health of our judges...... Whoa, Team Classics Club has just made imo-mochi! This Chitanda is extremely skillful! But, are they going to be okay?"

Imo-mochi, huh? I like that a lot. By the way, how much time do we have left? Looking at my watch, we still have two minutes. But wouldn't the commentator say something about the time if we're short on it?

Looking at the kitchen counter, I see a row of dishes being lined up, as well as a row of utensils, and the dishes now being prepared, and then the ingredients......

"AHH-~!"

I yelled. And instantly,

"Whoa there, Team Classics Club! No talking is allowed."

Damn, this is bad.

That's it, there's still time to let her know! This is really bad, Chitanda-san has made a grave error. But can it be resolved? I crossed my arms over my head to indicate to her that she's making a mistake.

Chitanda-san seems to have noticed my gesture, has she realized?

She gave a gentle smile and crossed her arms as well.

"......"

Looks like we're unable to communicate at all.

It's useless. Even if she were to realize, nothing could be done about it.

The imo-mochi began to boil inside the pot. Placing them on a small plate, she applied some soy-sauce over it. And right on cue,

"Forty minutes is up! Please change into your final member now!"

Said the announcement.

"How do you think I did?"

Despite moving so swiftly, Chitanda-san showed no signs of fatigue and smiled. As for me, I smiled back, knowing I could never do what she has accomplished,

"You were amazing, Chitanda-san. I never knew you could cook that well."

Chitanda-san said shyly,

"Is that so? I, really liked cooking."

"Yeah, I can see that. But......"

"But?"

Her expression became clouded,

"...... Did, something go wrong?"

The Cooking Club president commentated,

"Team Classics Club's final member has yet to appear! And to think they performed so superbly until now......"

"Chitanda-san, this is a three-person team."

"Of course. I'm worried for Mayaka-san."

"No, even if she had come."

I pointed towards the makeshift kitchen counter that Chitanda-san had just worked vigorously on.

On there was a pot of cooking rice, radish rolls filled with ginger and spring onions, giseyaki, imo-mochi, sweet prawn sashimi and pork miso soup.

Chitanda-san looked lively, as we were looking at her masterpieces. Yet...... she first looked right, and then looked left again. She then covered her mouth,

"...... OH!"

Even if it were a joke, it was hardly funny. The only ingredients remaining were a radish with its skin peeled, and a little bit of spring onion left behind. It was as good as trash.

Hahaha, sorry about that, Mayaka.