Magical Tool Master Dahlia Never Compromises ~ Starting Today: Life as a Freelancer ~

Ivano couldn't help but speak the truth, and then he smiled bitterly.

Fortunato, who was standing opposite him, also laughed out loud.

"That's right. The nobility has countless rules regarding interpersonal relationships, speech, and behavior, which can be suffocating. But the Clothing Guild earns over 75% of its profits from the nobility. Compared to the profits, this little inconvenience is nothing."

“So high…”

"Yes, the profit margin is too different. If you want to expand the scale of the Chamber of Commerce, it is better to do business directly with the nobles."

Dealing with this man might be surprisingly good.

Just as Dalia learned about magical tools from Oswald, so too could he learn about nobility from this man. As long as he gained something, his feelings and emotions were secondary.

"After leaving this shop, do you want to go to the flower market? Of course, all expenses will be paid by me."

"Thank you for your invitation, but I have three beloved women waiting for me at home."

"This is the first time I've heard of this. You're truly blessed."

"Yeah, just having a wife and two daughters is enough to keep me busy."

This answer made Fortunato look a little puzzled. Perhaps, just as he was ignorant of the affairs of the nobility, this man was also ignorant of the family situation of the common people.

"Does Lord Fortu plan to marry a second wife?"

"My wife has been urging me to get married soon. She wants someone to share the housework and work with her... How about you, Ivano? If the Chamber of Commerce grows, having a second wife would probably be helpful."

"These three beloved women are enough for me. Having two wives would only make things more troublesome..."

"Yeah, it's troublesome enough just being alone..."

Fortunato also seems to be under the influence of the medicinal wine.

Both of them had complicated expressions. This might be the first time they were completely in agreement.

"Let's not talk business anymore. I'll order a bottle of pure wine. Tell me about your wife and daughter."

"I also want to hear about your wife."

The other party walked out of the box and asked the waiter for another bottle of wine.

He gave a mischievous smile as he returned to his seat.

"I ordered a bottle of wine that looks very similar to my wife's."

The waiter brought the red wine and put it on the table.

Seeing the golden wine label, Ivano couldn't help but chuckle.

The wine label reads, "I fell in love with the delicate lady at first sight, but after she became my wife, she became strong."

Salt soup pasta at the end of volume 4

"Wolver, you haven't eaten much today."

"Because I came here straight after training. I ate Red Bear anyway and drank some wine."

Dahlia asked this in the carriage, and Wolfe answered vaguely.

At today's dinner, they ate and talked, discussing whether white wine, black ale or Xinkoudong wine is the best match for Red Bear.

However, Wolff, who could usually easily finish two or three servings of meat and bread, did not add anything today.

"Was today's training hard?"

"It wasn't hard. I just happened to get hit in the chest by the shield. I'm fine now."

"Uh, are you being bullied again?"

"No, I was knocked away by Randolph's shield during training."

Do monster-slaying troops also need to practice battling humans?

Her doubts were written all over her face. Seeing this, Wolff continued to explain:

"Randolph was acting as a monster in training, and we had to dodge his charge. He was a massive physique, and a master at imitating monsters. He could perfectly replicate the swinging of a Big Wild Boar's tusks with his shield. I was about to counterattack, but his shield slammed me in the center, sending me flying."

"It should hurt, right...?"

"I couldn't breathe for a while. Luckily, I had the Sirius Bracelet, which lessened the impact, and I quickly escaped to a safe zone."

"What happens if I can't avoid it?"

"Randolph would have knocked them away. If there were others nearby, they would usually be caught before they hit the ground, and the priests would be on standby. No one was injured today."

Thinking of Randolph's massive frame, Dahlia understood. While she didn't know the size of the boar, she knew it must be quite difficult to dodge Randolph's full-throttle charge.

And you have to fight back, so this kind of training feels very harsh.

"I'm going to make something to eat when I get back to the Green Tower. Do you want to stay for dinner?"

"To be honest, I'm a little hungry. I'm sorry to keep coming to your house for dinner."

"No, I also borrowed your carriage and accepted the Bicorn materials you provided. So, it seems more like I'm extorting you."

"'Rip you off'... that word doesn't apply to you at all."

“…‘Give me as much money as you can’ doesn’t sound like something I’d say.”

This was Wolff's joke when he first took her back to the Green Tower.

The person who made the joke may have already forgotten about it.

"You seemed so angry at me at the time that you said, 'I wouldn't say that!'"

It seems he still remembers.

Wolfe suddenly put his hand to his chin and tilted his head slightly, which made Dahlia a little concerned.

"...Dalia, I've given it some serious thought. Your Green Tower Restaurant deserves a substantial investment. So, I wasn't wrong to say, 'Please let me spend as much money as I can on you.'"

"What on earth did you come to this conclusion..."

Wolff's unexpected joke was exactly the same as that day.

Returning to the Green Tower and climbing to the second floor, Dalia took off her coat and began to prepare.

She handed Wolff sparkling water and saltine crackers and told him to sit and wait.

He might have been hit in the chest and had internal injuries, but he just hadn't noticed. Although he repeatedly stressed that he was fine, Dalia still hoped he would get some rest.

Dalia went to the kitchen and took out the finest dried pasta from the food cabinet.

Adding baking soda to pasta can make it resemble ramen noodles from the past. While the texture and flavor may be different, it's a good substitute in this world.

While boiling water, she took out the chicken stock from the refrigerator, added some salt and started heating it.

After the noodles are cooked, place them in a deep plate, add hot broth, top with chilled shredded chicken and boiled eggs, and sprinkle with plenty of chopped green onions.

This "Shio-flavored spaghetti" is now ready, which can be roughly called salt ramen.

She guessed that after Wolfe had been out drinking, he would prefer savory food rather than sweets to end the day.

In her previous life, her colleague liked to eat ramen after drinking, while another female senior preferred sundaes. Dalia had eaten with them both and thought both were delicious.

But no matter what she ate, it would definitely show up on her weight the next day. In this life, she reflected a little and realized she only had half a bowl.

"This is spaghetti in salt soup. You can add some white pepper if you like."

She returned to the living room and placed the deep plate, chopsticks, fork, and large spoon on the table.

Wolfe was so excited looking at the deep dish in front of him that it was hard for Dahlia to pretend not to notice.

"...Just eat it the way you're used to."

"Thank you. I'll get started then."

Wolf glanced at Dalia who was sitting opposite him and picked up the chopsticks like her.

The salt-soup pasta was steaming with the aroma of chicken broth.

The noodles, cooked a bit longer with baking soda, have a texture quite similar to ramen. They flow smoothly down your throat without chewing. The chicken broth is light, but thanks to the generous addition of salt, it complements the noodles perfectly. The shredded chicken and hard-boiled egg on top also complement each other beautifully.

The shredded chicken and hard-boiled eggs she had originally prepared for weight loss turned out to be a great addition. Maybe she'll make some chicken barbecue pork later.

Perhaps it was because she was thinking about her past life and the memories of eating ramen with her father Carlo in this life that made her feel a little nostalgic.

After finishing the noodles, she scooped up the scattered egg yolk with a large spoon, then scooped some soup and ate it in one gulp.

Dahlia felt the egg yolk and broth melt together in her mouth. She looked across at the person opposite her and saw that Wolf had barely chewed. She couldn't tell if the food wasn't to his liking, or if this type of noodles didn't require much chewing. Watching him silently slurp the noodles, Dahlia was curious about his feelings.

“…So delicious…”

After finishing the noodles and toppings and drinking the soup to the bottom, Wolf finally spoke.

Satisfied and intoxicated golden eyes, the corners of the mouth raised, and the sweat on the forehead that has not yet been wiped away.

It seems that this salt soup pasta is also very much to his liking.

“Why isn’t spaghetti soup just spaghetti soup?”

"Please don't ask such philosophical questions out of the blue. I used commercial pasta and just added some baking soda when cooking it."

"Is this ordinary noodles? Not imported?"

"I bought a value pack for only seven copper coins. It's pretty ordinary."

"I don't understand...why does everything taste better here?"

Wolfer kept asking, almost to the point of finding fault. She'd only slightly altered the cooking method, and the reason she thought it tasted good was probably because it was new and unusual.

Seeing Wolfe lost in thought, Dalia suggested:

"Would you like to cook some more? We still have some broth."

"Thank you. If it's convenient, could you teach me how to cook it?"

"Of course you can, but do you cook pasta in the barracks?"

"Can't we cook it and eat it during the expedition?"

"It's a little difficult because it requires a lot of water."

"We have the Water Magic Stone and the Mage, so it should be fine."

Wolf's eyes were serious, but salt-based spaghetti didn't seem suitable for an expedition. The broth and noodles had to be prepared separately, which was time-consuming. Even with the technology of this world, making instant noodles would be difficult.

"It's better to make some other time-saving dishes... I'd better include a recipe when I deliver the expedition stove. It might not be called a recipe, but just recipes for barbecue sauce, grilled fish, cheese pot, etc., mainly dishes I've treated you to before."

"Thank you for your kindness, but I don't want to tell anyone else about these recipes..."

"Are you worried that you might take over the cooking job?"

Dahlia had completely missed this point. If there was someone in charge of cooking during the expedition, that person would have decided on the dishes.

Perhaps it would be better not to include a recipe, but to discuss it with Wolff and then provide suggestions to the person in charge of cooking. As she thought this, he shook his head.

"No, the soup we drink during the expedition only needs to be boiled, so there's no fixed person in charge. It's purely personal, I think it would make the 'Green Tower Limited Edition' less special..."

"It won't get any lower. Only dishes cooked and eaten at the Green Tower are Green Tower exclusive, right?"

"Is that so... Only dishes cooked and eaten here are called Green Tower exclusive..."

There was a subtle pause in Wolff's murmur.

Later, Wolf was inexplicably happy. Dalia taught him how to make salt soup pasta and cooked a second bowl of noodles.

Wolff finished his second bowl of spaghetti in salt soup, washed the dishes, and leaned back comfortably on the sofa.

He had just finished training, and Dalia wanted to ask him to rest and she would take a shower, but he refused with a smile.

Maybe it's because the Monster Suppression Force has a rule that you have to wash your own dishes.

"I really hope you can open a restaurant selling these dishes, preferably near the royal city."

Dahlia placed the sparkling water and lime on the low table and heard Wolff frowning and muttering to himself.

"Why are you saying that all of a sudden?"

"The food at the restaurant hasn't been very good lately. Because there are so many people and it takes so much time, they mostly serve food that can be kept at room temperature. I know it's a luxury, and I should be grateful for the food. But after eating delicious food here, I can't help but think so..."

"The weather is getting hotter, and some dishes can't be kept for long after they're cooked."

The royal city is so large, so many knights and soldiers must be dining in the restaurant. Preparing and storing the food must be a hassle. I wonder if there are any magical tools that could help.

"Isn't there a large magic furnace or a large refrigerator in the restaurant?"

"Within the range visible to the average person, there are dozens of furnaces slightly larger than ordinary magic furnaces. The entire warehouse is used for cooling things, more like a cold storage room. Although there is meat inside, the dishes are not specially chilled."