Chapter 86
Chapter 86: That time when we were having a factory tour-like experience
TL: kizen
PR: Filip/Gecko
It’s the following day after I used the power of alcohol to breathe fire. I finished eating breakfast and I was told by Suzuran to go to the distillery upstream from the poultry’s pond. It was about the dwarf that I brought with me yesterday.
I heard that he was talking with father and they arranged some sort of meeting so he’ll probably come.
「Sup」
「Hey. Have you seen a dwarf here?」
「Dwarf? I haven’t. Why?」
After he said that, I explained the whole situation to him.
「I see. That’s why you came here」
「Yep」
「This isn’t related but did you get the ability to breathe fire after becoming a Demon Lord?」
「There’s no way I did. Why?」
It’s probably because of what I did yesterday but I’ll just ask first.
「Well, the guys at work have been saying that they saw you breathe fire when they went to the bar last night. That’s why I asked」
「Ahー, the headmaster was spouting things about there having a new way of drinking if the dwarf spread word about our village’s liquor so……」
「What are you hesitating for? Go on」
As he said that, Wurst placed his arm around my shoulder.
「You know that liquor can catch fire right?」
「Of course. We take measures to avoid that after all」
「Well, you can drink the liquor while it’s still on fire. It’s called a flaming shot」
「Won’t you burn your stomach if you do that?」
Wurst suddenly changed to a more serious tone.
Because of that, I looked around for a bottle with liquor inside that was just lying around the place. Once I found one, I lit the contents.
「You extinguish a fire by cooling it, removing the source of fuel, or removing the air」
I covered the opening of the bottle then showed it to him after the fire was put out.
「Since fire uses air to keep burning, you can put it out by just covering it like this」
「It’s true. Even though there’s still some left, it’s not on fire anymore. Why doesn’t it burn up instantly though?」
「That might be because, even though there’s a lot of fuel for the fire, the only place that it can burn is on the outside. It would need more area for the fire to do its work」
As I said that, I put a bit of the liquor in my mouth then sprayed it all out.
「The liquor turned into this fine mist so it burns more vigorously. The same thing happens to flour you know?」
As I said that, I held liquor in my mouth once again but this time I sprayed it in a way that it would pass through a 【Fire】 from my fingertip.
「See?」
「I’ve always thought this but even though you’re smart, you’re still an idiot, huh?」
「Well, yeah. I’m not gonna deny that. Listen up. A man will always be a child no matter how old he becomes. Once one becomes an adult, they either continue to deceive themselves or embrace that fact. Doing this at the bar was just me doing the latter」
「Can you not say such nonsense with a serious look? You’re definitely an idiot」
「By the way, if you’re cooking and it catches fire, immediately cover it with the lid. If it’s the oil that’s burning, you can add more oil to it to cool it down so don’t panic when that happens」
After that conversation, Van-san arrived.
「Ohー! So this is the secret to making strong liquor!」
It’s not a secret though. Neither the distillery nor the method……
「Good morning, Van-san」
「Ohー. The method of drinking yesterday was interesting. I can even boast about it in my hometown you know?」
「You’ll have to bring back liquor with you when you go back then」
「Of course!」
Van-san laughed loudly as he said that.
「Anyway, Van-san. This here is Wurst. He’s an experienced worker who has been working in this facility since it was established」
「Hey. Nice to meet ya」
「Well then, please go ahead and explain it to him」
「You’re leaving it to me!? Why don’t you do it?」
「I came up with this facility but you’re the one who’s working here so you have more credibility 」
「You say that but you just think it’s troublesome right?」
I just averted my gaze as he said that.
「Oi, don’t look away」
After that exchange, Wurst reluctantly began explaining. Since he’s been to various villages and towns to train people, he’s already accustomed to explaining things. He can even answer all of the questions asked without needing help.
「It’s like you’re separating the alcohol and water using a still」
「I seeー. Is liquor just a mixture of alcohol and water?」
「That’s right. That’s why, you heat it up and only collect the alcohol. You know how there’s some kind of smoke that comes out when you heat water right? That’s what you collect. Well then, do you want to see it in action?」
「Yeah!」
Wurst went on and said lines that you’d expect to hear from a tour guide. He’s like the manager giving guests a tour.
I wish we could do something that’s a bit larger in scale here like fermentation but our distillery is still too small. Once we start producing beer, I’m going to pour it all into the still. It’s a little inefficient but that doesn’t matter.
The tour resumed after that. Wurst added some barley beer into the still then started it up. After a while, he scooped up the undiluted liquor that had already been cooled into a cup then gave it to Van-san.
「This is what it looks like before they are put into barrels. I think you should already know about it if you went to the bar but this is one can have fruit seeped into it」
「Gahー. This is pretty strong」
He put a little of it into his mouth to taste then immediately spat it out into a cup. It seems like this one is too strong even for dwarves. The headmaster just drinks it like water though.
「Well, that’s how it goes」
That was the end of Wurst’s explanation.
「Van-san. You will need to make this still so please make sure to inspect it properly. You’ll have to make one for your hometown as well as the island」
「No problem! Don’t underestimate our abilities. We can easily make one by looking at a simple drawing of it. It’ll be done in no time as long as we have the materials for it」
How reliable. Well, I don’t have the money to buy materials right now though. That’s why we’re selling coffee. I’m thinking of harvesting the cacao sooner or later so that we can also sell chocolate and stuff. I wonder if that plan will be realized by next year.
「Well then. I’ll leave Van-san to you, Wurst. I’ll go ask the chief if there are any vacant houses left」
「Alright」
He might complain but his true nature comes out in the end. They’ll probably be alright.
I tried searching for the chief next but, as usual, he was the one who approached me from behind. Because of the segregation I suggested last time, they were able to easily find out that there were still some vacant houses. I asked for one that was closest to the bar and told them why I wanted one in the first place.
After confirming the location of the house, I went back to the distillery where I found that the headmaster has now joined the two. The classes are still going on, right?
「Ha ha ha. It’s simple once you know the process right?」
「I didn’t know that liquor turns into steam faster than water」
I told you about it before you know~?
「How was the newly distilled liquor?」
「It was amazing. It made me feel dizzy after all. It’s the first time I had to drink water after drinking liquor you know?」
A chaser huh? I usually also order one myself. Wait, why aren’t you drunk yet? The headmaster is the headmaster but I guess that’s to be expected of a dwarf. I’m also pretty resistant though.
「At this rate, we might be able to build even bigger things once I go back home」
「Hoー, maybe I should find out where that place is and bring everyone to have some fun」
「Please don’t. If the dragonkin joins in, there won’t be enough liquor to go around. We’re going to be drinking too after all!」
「Gyahahahaha!」「Ho ho ho ho」
At this rate, they’re going to form an alliance based on liquor. If one side gets attacked, the other would send out a large number of reinforcements. It’s just a bunch of liquor lovers helping their fellow liquor lovers out. I dub it the drunkard’s alliance.
「In that case, I will send a few from my hometown so that you guys can build a large-scale still」
「Alright. Anyway, I was told that you can pour anything that’s been turned to liquor into this and an even stronger one will come out. Is that right? I don’t know what kind of liquor is made in the dragonkin village but it’s not the same as the one made here, right?」
「At first it was just wheat but since we have poor soil, we’ve recently been trying out potatoes, apples, and grapes. I even want to try using buckwheat. It’s also necessary to be particular about the wood used to make the barrels. We tried five types of wood just to produce one type of liquor you know? I’m looking forward to the results five cycles of seasons from now」
So apart from aquavit and shochu, they’re even making calvados? The dragonkin are incredibly passionate about their liquor, aren’t they? I wonder if it’s because of their long lifespan? He said before that they’re going to keep one in their vault to age for a century but it looks like more liquor will be added to that place.
「Ahー, sorry for interrupting mid-conversation but it’s about Van-san’s accommodationー」
「Oh, let’s just deal with that once the workday is over. We’re still going to drink this all dry after all」
「That’s the spirit. Let’s spread this liquor all over the world. Then I’ll go around the world to try them all out!」
The headmaster proclaimed loudly with his hands stretched out. Does he think he’s still young? How long does he intend to keep enjoying liquor? I guess he plans to do it until his last breath. Well, it can’t be helped, I guess I’ll play with the children.
「Ah, papa. Welcome back」
「I’m back」
「Um, does fire come out of papa’s mouth?」
Miel’s eyes glistened as he asked me that. It doesn’t take long for weird rumors to spread huh?
「No, I just set that strong liquor Lily had the other day on fire」
「But, the uncle who passed by while we were playing said that it was a huge fire you know?」
「While you were playing?」
「Un. While we were playing, he was suddenly like, “Your father was breathing fire.”」
I sighed as I put my hand in front of my eyes and shook my head. I’m sure that rumor will reach Schinken and Speck as well. This isn’t good. I should let Wurst explain it to them.
「Show me, show me~」
Was I like this when I was four years old? Maybe I was but I guess not in this world.
Since there was no helping it, I took out the liquor from the cupboard then quickly showed it to him outside.
「Papa’s amazing」
「Don’t try to imitate me, okay?」
After I said that, I saw Lily running towards us.
「Father, was that the magic to breathe fire!?」
Yep, I should have known that Lily would also see that. I had to repeat my explanation then I was asked to show it again.
「Father’s so cool!」
「Ha ha haー. Don’t copy what I just did though because it’s dangerous. You might burn the inside of your mouth after all」1
「Un!」「Yes」
A few years later, I was told by Miel that Lily tried to do it in the bar and was scolded really hard by Latte.
After that, they pestered me into training with them. I can win if it’s one-on-one but I’ll have to use magic when facing both of them at the same time or I’ll lose. Rather, I had to use magic. It would have been impossible otherwise.
Miel knocked me off balance with his magic while Lily tripped me to get me to fall down. Then, Lily swung her spear stick downward as Miel shot out a large fireball at my face while avoiding interfering with his sister’s attack.
In reaction to that, I produced a stone wall to block the strike as I countered the fireball with my own water ball. I forcefully rolled myself towards the opposite direction, then stood up to surrender as I endured the pain on my left from being tripped.
「Alright, I give up. I’m no match for you twoー」
It seems like Lily’s attacks have become heavier. Miel’s gotten better at using his magic as well. What’s more, they’re perfectly in sync. It made me wonder if being siblings really do give them an amazing advantage.
After they heard that, the two of them celebrated.
「We beat father~」「We won~」
Well, I’m their father so I didn’t let out any bloodlust while we were fighting. I wonder how they’ll react when they’re faced with that pressure though.
I might have to let them experience it in preparation for the future. At that time, will I be able to attack the children with the intent to kill?
Well, I’ll just think about it at that time.
「Mother, we did it」「Mama, we did it」
「「We beat dad/father」」2
The children hugged Suzuran after they said that so she patted their heads.
As she did that, she glanced at me and examined me from head to toe. She was probably checking if I was injured.
「I’ve already prepared the bath. The three of you go in. You made your father use magic, didn’t you? How admirable」
She stroked their heads even more after she said that.
「 Your father wasn’t fighting seriously yet so make sure to work hard until he does okay?」
「「’kay~」」
My wife, what kind of parenting is that?
「Caam. You can slowly stop holding back as they get stronger but make sure they won’t get hurt」
「No, don’t ask for the unreasonable. I can probably gradually stop holding back but there’s no way they won’t get hurt!」
Suzuran looked surprised when I said that but she didn’t dwell on it and just went back inside the house. As for me, I began to prepare a change of clothes for me and the children.
After our bath, I went to pick up Van-san to show him his accommodation.
「Alright! I know where it is now. Time to go back to the bar」
He hastily went back without even looking inside the house.
I really don’t get how a dwarf’s mind works.
During dinner, the children excitedly reported the results of our training to Latte.
「We won against father you know?」
「He even used magic」
「Ohー, that’s great~. Since you can beat a Demon Lord, will you guys be Demon Lords in the future~?」
「I want to be an adventurer」
「I want to support onee-chan」
「I see, I see. That’s a nice dream~. Being an adventurer is great, isn’t it~? Go and make a name for yourselves as a pair of sibling adventurers and make the village rich okay~?」
She ruffled their hair as she said that.
「However, papa belongs to me and mama Suzuran so don’t make him cry or we’ll get angry, okay?」
She smiled mischievously while wagging her finger.
I thought what she did was pretty cute, to be honest.
「Be careful or you’ll get punched in the stomach by mama Suzuran~」
What the heck are you saying to the children? Even if she was angry, she wouldn’t show it on her face or actions so that was a surprise. The only time she did hit someone was to hide her embarrassment.
That statement is even more dangerous considering that she always has those knuckle dusters that I gave to her in her pocket. I could see its shape from her pocket after all. My wife is way too scary. 3
When it was time to go to sleep, the children immediately slipped into my bed while saying that it was their turn today. Was there an established order I’m not aware of?
The next day, my arm was swollen and all red because of Lily’s horn. I’m really considering getting a cushion for her horns at this point. Not just for me but also for the sake of her future husband.
When that person comes and asks for my daughter, I’ll say.
「You need to be careful of her horns. It’s going to really hurt when she hugs your arm and rubs her face against it in the middle of the night you know? That’s all I have to say since it really, and I mean REALLY, hurts!」
Alright, that’s perfect.
After I muttered that to myself, I looked around and felt relieved that there was nobody there to hear it.