"My father's having a banquet at home?"
"Yeah. I heard my father talking to my mother about it when I left home this morning. He won't be coming back for dinner.
Your father invited a lot of people, including Boa's father. It seems like they're discussing something. "
"If that's the case …" It was indeed not a good idea to go home now. When his father saw him coming home, he insisted that he stand in the dining room to serve them. This was not because there were no servants to serve them at the banquet. His father wanted him to gain some knowledge and listen to the conversations between the guests. At the same time, he wanted to familiarize himself with them. According to him, this was networking.
"What are you spacing out for? Put your bag down.
Oh, I still have to go home to get some beef and lamb and condiments.
You said you'd show us what a real barbecue is tonight, "said Eriksson.
"Did I?"
"Of course. During the third period, I told Boa that your family's having a banquet and decided not to go home for dinner. I asked you and you agreed.
Wero said that he wouldn't be going home to sleep for the night and would be staying here.
You said that Wero's barbecue wasn't good and that you'd show him what a real barbecue is tonight … No way, did you forget? "
"Ugh …" Claude scratched his head sheepishly.
To be honest, he didn't even know how he passed the afternoon. His mind was completely focused on the magic recipe book in his bag. He had completely forgotten what he had said to his friends in class. How could he remember what he had agreed to?
But now that he had the recipe book in hand, there was no need to rush home to check it out.
His father was having a banquet at home anyway and he wouldn't be able to get some peace when he got home. Instead, he'd be sent to serve the drunkards in the dining hall.
His father even said that he wanted to broaden his horizons and get in touch with the upper class of the town. That was all nonsense.
A banquet for the upper class should be like the ones he saw on television in his previous life. There were plenty of beauties and the guests were well-dressed and well-mannered. The music and fine wine complemented each other.
Instead of a group of rough men eating and drinking around the dining table, competing to see who could speak louder and drink more alcohol. In the end, they would either crawl under the table or sleep soundly. Occasionally, there would be a few who couldn't hold their alcohol and vomit everywhere. The stench was so bad that they had to clean it up themselves …
Forget it, I'm not going back. He decided that he'd have to go back a little later. At the very least, he had to wait until the end of the banquet and the guests had left. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to go home in peace.
"Sorry, I really forgot about it."
Claude admitted his mistake and threw his bag on the bed. "Alright, I'll show you what I can do tonight. I'll show you what a real barbecue looks like.
By the way, Aike, when you go home to get the meat, see if there are any chicken wings. If there are, bring some over. That thing is really delicious when it's barbecued. "
"Chicken wings?
Aren't all chickens roasted whole?
Why only wings? "Eriksson grumbled as he returned home.
"Claude, what's wrong with you this afternoon? Why do you look so unsettled?"
Borkal, who was lying on the bed, asked, "Is it because you owe money for buying that cookbook?"
Claude pondered for a moment and nodded. "I don't know why either. I wanted to buy that cookbook when I was in the shop, but I regretted it when I thought about it in the afternoon. After all, a thale and three riyases is a huge sum of money for me. Not to mention, I promised to pay it back in three days. Just thinking about it makes me feel unsettled."
Borkal smiled. "Perhaps the cookbook is to your liking and you had to buy it no matter what.
I had a similar experience in the past. My father took me out shopping and I saw a wooden swordfish and insisted on buying it. Seeing that I liked it, the shopkeeper offered me a high price and wouldn't sell it for a lower price no matter what.
My father got angry and dragged me away.
But when I got home, I couldn't eat or sleep. All I could think about was that swordfish. In the end, my mother had no choice but to secretly get a servant to buy it for me at a high price. Only then was I satisfied.
But after a week or so, I lost interest in the swordfish and threw it in the storeroom to collect dust.
My father warned me that it's a big taboo for me to behave like that in the business world. A qualified merchant has to control their desires and not let others know what they like. Otherwise, it'll be easy for others to take advantage of the situation and cause losses.
So, I went to find the swordfish and put it on the table to remind myself not to forget this lesson. "
"Thank you, Boa. I think I understand now. I'll remember this lesson in the future."
Claude was glad that Borkal's words perfectly explained why he had to buy the cookbook.
Borkal sat up on the bed and said seriously, "Claude, you don't have to worry about the debt. A thale and three riyases is indeed a heavy burden for you.
Sorry, I'm not doubting your ability, but I know that you won't be able to pay it back in a short period of time. I don't want you to do something irrational and get scolded by your father for it.
It won't be good if it affects our plan to go to Egret. "
He waved his hand to stop Claude from saying anything and continued, "I've already done some calculations. We've bought most of the resources we need. The next few things we need to spend on are these.
First, the rental for Old Sunny's single-sail fishing boat. It's three riyases and two sunars. That's the biggest expense.
"Second, food. Since we're going to be staying in Egret for two days and two nights, we'll need to buy two riyases. We're going to buy some good food.
"Actually, we can save some on that.
Let's bring some from our houses and make do with it.
"Wero and Eyke both brought flintlocks and I have a stone crossbow at home. I believe that with these weapons, we won't run out of things on Egret. We might even be able to fill our stomachs with hunting.
"Third, medicine. That's something we have to prepare as well. We're going to spend three riyases on antidotes, blood replenishing potions, and healing potions.
"But now that I think about it, we can save that money. If everything goes well on our trip to Egret, we won't need to use those potions. I can steal a few from the store at home and Eyke can steal a few from the medicine chest on his boat. We'll return them when we return.
The last item on the list was four bottles of gran wine. Each bottle cost five Sunas, and we were prepared to buy four bottles, which would cost two riyases. Now that I thought about it, there was no need to spend so much money. After all, we were adventuring in Egret, and bringing wine would not only increase our burden, it might even affect our hunting.
Wero said that those animals have a keen sense of smell and can smell alcohol from far away.
"So, I think it's best that we don't bring any wine. We've talked about hunting some good prey and selling their fur for a good price.
"Now that I think about it, the only thing we really need to spend is Old Sunny's rental fee. We can save on everything else.
I think I'll be able to get some money from home and Eyke can get some from his mother.
There are still three days until Friday and we can still go to Egret as planned. So, you don't have to worry about that debt. We're good friends and we won't force you to pay us back. "
Claude was truly grateful to his three good friends. Truth be told, even though he got the recipe book, he didn't really care about the thale and three riyases. But that money was for his friends' adventure in Egret, after all. It wasn't going to be easy for him to repay the money he borrowed to buy the recipe book in three days.
If he couldn't pay them back and the plan to go to Egret was ruined, he would feel rather guilty. Boa, Eyke, and Wero had been planning the trip for more than ten days. They hoped that it would be as Wero had said and that they would have a good adventure on Egret. They might even get something good out of it.
Claude had been prepared to ask his father for the money if he had no other choice. Even though he would be reprimanded for doing so, he believed that his father would still give him the money since he said that the recipe book was a birthday gift for his mother.
But if he did that, he wouldn't be able to keep the recipe book with him. His father would keep it and only show it off when guests came.
That would only add a lot of trouble to his research on the recipe book.
The best solution was to keep the recipe book's existence a secret from his family or wait for him to finish researching it before taking it out. But the problem was that he wouldn't be able to gather enough money in three days.
Even though he was a transmigrator, he hadn't found any good opportunities to strike it rich in the past half a year because he was only a 16-year-old middle school student.
"Thank you, Boa." He couldn't help but give Borkal a hug. "You've really helped me a lot.
I thought I'd have to beg my father for the money in three days, but I wouldn't be able to avoid a scolding or even a punishment.
As for my brother, you know him well. If he finds out about this, he'll definitely kick up a fuss at home.
I don't want to cause a scene at home just because I gave my mother a birthday present. I've been having a headache about it this afternoon. "
Letting go of Borkal, Claude said sincerely, "I sincerely thank you for your kindness. But don't worry, I'll definitely return the money to you as soon as possible.
If we gain anything good from this trip to White Heron, then I will repay you guys with what I've gained. "
Borkal smiled. "We're good friends and best buddies. Didn't you say that buddies should share blessings and misfortunes?"
… …
After eating and drinking their fill, the four youths either sat or lay down on the wooden bridge. The sound of the lake lapping against the shore rang in their ears and the starry night sky above their heads.
"Claude, your roasting skills are truly superb. I never knew chicken wings could be so delicious. You should know that nobody ever ate the chicken wings I used to roast in my house," said Eriksson as he picked at his teeth with a small wooden stick in satisfaction.
Claude didn't reply and merely looked at the starry sky with melancholy.
He had learned his barbecue skills from his old boss in his previous life. He said that he had gone to America to buy mines for two years and learned how to make Brazilian barbecue. Later on, he used his Brazilian barbecue skills to pick up girls.
"You only ate two of the four chicken wings. I didn't get a single one," said Welikro, feeling rather hurt.
Eriksson smiled like a fox. "Who told you to snatch the drumsticks first because there's more meat? There are only two chickens at home this time. I'll get them to prepare more next time."
"Eyke, what do you want to be when you grow up?" asked Claude all of a sudden.
"I've grown up?" Eriksson thought for a moment before replying, "I want to be a captain, just like my father.
But my family's Red Sea Shark is too small. I hope to drive a very, very large ocean-going ship to sail on the sea. "
"What about you?
Boa … "
"Me? I'll take over my father's footsteps when I grow up and become a successful merchant."
Borkal paused for a moment. "But I hope to open my own business throughout the kingdom and not just in the three southwestern prefectures."
"What about Wero?"
"My father said that I'll go hunting with him for a year after I graduate from middle school and join the army when I'm eighteen to earn myself citizenship."
"By the way, Claude, you haven't told me what you want to be when you grow up."