“You mean that we could flavor the sausage casing rather than knead the herbs into the meat?” Gerulf asked.
“Yeah! Then people who like a strong herbal flavor could eat it as is while those who prefer only the sausage could just peel off the casing,” I said.
“That could certainly work. What a good idea!” Gerulf’s eyes went round as if he had seen the light.
Albert looked as impressed as the innkeeper, who had remained behind to listen to our conversation. Seasoning the casing of ham and sausages wasn’t really a thing in this world yet, so everyone looked awed—and to be fair, to them it was a completely brand-new idea.
“I’d like to try making this immediately, but there’s one more thing I’d like to ask,” said Gerulf. “I hope that’s all right.”
“What would that be?”
At my urging, Gerulf began to explain. He wanted to ask more about herbs. In fact, this was what he had been hoping to pick our brains about back at his shop. He wanted to know what kind of herbs were used in the capital’s dishes. While many people had heard stuff about how herbs and local specialties were all the rage, few knew the specifics of what herbs were actually used in those dishes.
“All kinds,” I said. “But mainly basil, dill, marjoram, oregano, rosemary…”
“Whoa, hold on a second! You can use that many?!” Gerulf interrupted, though I personally didn’t think that I had listed a ton.
He protested that he wouldn’t be able to remember them all, so I focused on telling him which ones went best with meats. There were a whole bunch even when I kept it to just those, so I wound up writing them down for him.
“Do I have any of the herbs you mentioned among these?” Gerulf started unpacking his bag, taking out the things he had purchased that morning. I’d thought the only things he had in there were vegetables and fruits, but he also had herbs and cheeses. He must have just bought whatever caught his eye, because there were some herbs that you couldn’t use for culinary endeavors.
“This is rosemary, and this is basil. And the ones I put aside shouldn’t be used for cooking.”
“So some herbs aren’t edible? Thanks. Guess I’ll go buy the ones I’m missin’.”
I found myself giving him some other tips as well. “If you do, it’d be best to find ones that have been dried. They’re easier to store.”
“Oh! That so? Then I’ll be sure to do that.”
“I also recommend trying to mix the ones I’ve grouped in the notes. You’ll get more intricate flavors.”
Gerulf stopped and stared at me. “You sure know a lot about herbs, Miss.”
Oops. It looked like I had said too much. When I thought about it, ordinary people weren’t exactly well informed about herbs. It was only natural that he’d get suspicious.
Just as I was about to try to explain myself, Albert stepped in to answer, “She’s addicted to herbal dishes.”
Huh? Why? I looked at him in surprise to find him wearing an expression unlike any I’d ever seen on him. Oh, I knew that look. My etiquette instructor had showed me how to wear it. It was the enigmatic smile you were supposed to put on when you didn’t want your conversation partner to realize what you were actually thinking.
“Really?” said Gerulf.
“I’m afraid so. It’s so bad that whenever we’re on an expedition and rest somewhere new, she runs around trying every herbal dish she can find.”
Albert glanced at me, so I rushed to back him up. “Y-yup. That’s right.”
Just how badly had I given myself away? Was Albert afraid that Gerulf might figure out I was the Saint? To be fair, Albert had told the shopkeeper that I was an associate from the royal capital, so maybe he was just trying to keep the story straight. If that was case, it would have been pretty problematic if I had blurted out that I worked for the Research Institute of Medicinal Flora.
Thanks for helping me maintain my cover!
“I’m so happy that I got to eat these new herb-seasoned foods,” I said. “Your dried sausages were all absolutely delicious regardless of whether they had herbs.”
“My thanks. Oh, I know, since you were kind enough to help me out and all, I’ll send you the first test batch of new sausages I develop. I’d love to hear what you think of them.”
“Th-thank you! I’ll be sure to let you know.”
What an unexpected stroke of luck! I hadn’t foreseen him making that offer. Maybe he would even send me dried sausages with herbs sprinkled on the casing. I was really curious to see how they turned out, so I was very pleased when he offered to have them delivered to me.
Making dried sausages was an involved process, so it would take some time before they were ready. We would be staying in Hawke’s Domain for a bit longer, but we would likely be on our way to the royal capital by the time they were ready. Thus we told him to ship the sausages to Albert’s residence there. I was already looking forward to their arrival.
After chatting for a bit longer about other good sausage ingredients, we said our farewells to Gerulf.
I was grinning from ear to ear on our way home as I dreamed about the sausages in our future. Albert suggested we try them together when they arrived. He was also curious to see how they came out.
Discussing our opinions on the new sausages sounded like a ton of fun to me. So, of course, I gave him a delighted yes.
✦ ✦ ✦
A few months after we returned to the royal capital from Hawke’s Domain, we received a letter from Gerulf along with even more dried sausages than we had anticipated. I thought it strange that they had been delivered directly to the institute and not to Albert’s home, but it made sense after I read the letter.
Gerulf had discovered my true identity as the Saint. He had learned the truth when he went to sell his dried sausages at Lord Hawke’s estate. Lord Hawke had summoned him to inquire about his new sausage varieties. Gerulf had been surprised that Lord Hawke knew about them, and that was when the lord learned, to his horror, that the Saint herself had inspired Gerulf.
Lord Hawke had ordered Gerulf to tell no one that I had helped him, so Gerulf had written this letter to thank me.
Oh yeah, I remember that when we returned to the manor, Lord Hawke asked me what I thought of the city and I mentioned the sausages. Albert had been so careful not to let anyone know my identity, and I managed to sabotage all that effort. Sorry, Albert…
I lapsed into self-reproach and apologized to Albert the next time I saw him, but he apologized to me in turn. Albert had received a letter from his father notifying him about the affair. He wanted to express his condolences for his own contribution to the incident.
At the time, Albert had feared Gerulf would sell his new sausages with my face attached to them, which was why he had taken pains to separate me from my identity. He was trying to prevent me from becoming a poster girl without my knowledge.
However, while one could say that I had helped, all I had done was give Gerulf ideas. Gerulf was the one who’d actually made the sausages. If he had associated them with me, I would have felt like I was stealing his work, which would have been awful. As such, I was thankful that Albert had been so considerate.
It seemed that Lord Hawke had picked up on his son’s consideration as well. The proof lay in that he had instructed Gerulf to keep my involvement a secret.
When the dried sausages did go on sale, no one mentioned the Saint’s involvement. Ultimately, those dried sausages sprinkled with herbs were incredibly delicious. Just as we hoped, people were able to adjust the flavor to their liking, and they were so popular that even people far from Hawke’s Domain ordered them.
In the end, Hawke’s Domain gained another local specialty.