3 idiot chapter 125

 Episode 125. Ocean and Sky Delicacies

Am I dreaming?

That was the first thought that came to mind when I saw the scene before me.

Just another normal job. Just another ordinary forest.

This time, I was tagging along with "Hearty Eater" to observe their hunting methods.

And the result? Absolutely overwhelming.

They moved freely through the forest—not fighting, but hunting.

It was like they existed solely for that one purpose. Ridiculous.

Just as Daryl had told me, they were absurd in every sense of the word.

And it was because I understood that all too well, I suggested we make camp early to let our nerves rest.

---

"W-What the hell is…?"

With a thud, something suddenly appeared before me—it could only be described as a dragon.

Its body was still half-buried in something like an egg, but it had unmistakably appeared right in front of me.

There's no way we could beat something that enormous.

And I’ve never heard of a dragon showing up in this forest.

Actually, dragons are the kind of creatures that show up in fairy tales.

They don’t exist in the real world.

My knees started trembling, my teeth chattering uncontrollably.

We’re going to die here. That was the only conclusion I could come to.

It was then—

"Excuse me, I apologize for the disturbance. We’ll be starting the disassembly of this now. It may be rather large, but rest assured, it’s already dead."

A beastkin girl bowed her head politely.

And all I could respond with was a dumbfounded, "Huh?"

In the end, we barely made any progress on butchering.

…………………….

…………………….

"Hey, isn’t dragon blood supposed to be super valuable or something!?"

That one comment sealed our fate.

Even the blood-draining process was handled with utmost care, which took a ton of effort.

Though, due to the sheer size of the thing, it still splashed all over the place.

Still, better that than letting the meat spoil because we worked too slowly.

Eventually, with help from Izley and the other "forest experts," we dragged the dragon out of its cocoon and continued carving away.

And the result?

Exhaustion.

Plus, since we couldn’t leave raw meat out in the open for too long, we had to stop midway.

Yeah, we’ll just leave the rest to the Guild or something.

And get them to freeze the meat we’ve already cut.

So—

"Greed doesn’t pay, seriously. In the end, we only managed to fully butcher one leg! And this is how much meat we got!"

"""Uwooooooh!!"""

Before us stood a massive pile of meat from just the dragon’s front leg.

An absolute mountain of it.

Originally, I’d planned to butcher it with everyone at the orphanage and dig in together.

Getting sent off to such a far-off place really ruined that.

This thing’s so damn huge it’s hogging all the space in the magic bag.

Since the beautiful branch manager said she’d send a letter for us, I’ll include a quick apology.

"Sorry, we started eating without you."

And I’ll at least share my impressions.

"I’ve heard stories, but you really do eat it… Magic beast meat…"

Izley gave me a tired, baffled look.

"You heard all this from Daryl, right? Wanna try some?"

"I’ll take some."

"Knew it—wait, what’d you just say?"

"Daryl ate it, didn’t he? Then I will too. I can’t let that guy beat me."

...Okay, then.

I don’t even know anymore. I’m exhausted, so I’ll just cook.

Eat if you want, I don’t care.

With that, we laid out our cooking tools and began preparing dinner.

"Izley, sorry, but can you lend me a few people again?"

"Yeah, sure. What kind of people do you need?"

"You’re just… lending them out that easily, huh…?"

And so, our dinner prep began.

---

"Holy crap this is delicious!! But... this meat doesn’t work for upper-class gourmet… the taste is clearly different."

"Amazing, Kita-kun! This whale sashimi is amazing! Like, the umami just explodes! But the megalodon—yeah, that one’s no good!"

"That means nothing to me! And don’t eat all of it! I mean it!"

While I was busy grilling meat and watching over the deep-fryer, those two were already munching on the first dish to be ready: whale sashimi.

Goddammit! I wanna eat too!

Just as I was thinking that—

[Good work. Here, have a bite. It’d be too sad if Kitayama didn’t get to eat after working so hard.]

The dragon girl held out a piece of whale sashimi to me.

Literally saying “Say ahh” as she offered it.

Um. Is this okay?

As I was wondering that—

"Kitayama-san! This is really good! It’d be a waste not to eat it!"

Even the Saintess herself didn’t seem to mind.

Well then… alright.

Time to dig in.

I took the bite and—

"NUAAAAHH! SO DAMN GOOD!!"

What is this!? What part of the whale is this!?

It had a bit of crunch to it, paired perfectly with soy sauce and wasabi.

Might even go well with ginger.

Could be amazing with shiso too? (edible leaf wrapping)

So many ideas filled my head—the flavor had endless potential.

It’s amazing. Freaking amazing.

And next up:

Whale Tatsuta-age. (marinade then crispy coating, fried food)

I remember hearing somewhere that it’s commonly eaten in certain regions.

I wasn’t sure which part of the meat was used, so I just deep-fried a thick chunk…

“Kuahaha! I’m gonna eat this fresh-fried one myself! Taste-testing is a cook’s privilege! Itadakimaaaasu!”

“Ah! Kou-chan, that’s cheating!”

“I want some too! I’m eating too!”

As I bit into the freshly fried tatsuta-age, the piping hot oil burst in my mouth, and for a second I thought I was gonna burn myself—but then…

“Ooooooh…”

It was unbelievably springy and juicy.

Maybe it’s the difference between fish and poultry tatsuta-age, but it wasn’t greasy at all.

The umami of the whale spread across my mouth, and immediately I found myself craving a drink.

And somehow, even though it’s deep-fried, the oil doesn’t really linger in your mouth.

It might not be exactly “light,” but it’s definitely lighter than fried chicken.

Anyway—it's good. Damn good.

“Master.”

Minami, looking a little pouty, sat next to me with her mouth open wide.

As someone who loves karaage, she was clearly itching to try it.

Okay, okay, I’ll give you some. Just don’t get mad, alright?

“It’s hot, so be careful, okay?”

“‘Kay.”

While saying that, I brought the piece of tatsuta-age closer to her mouth and went, “Chomp!” like I was giving instructions. True to form, Minami bit right into the whale tatsuta-age.

And then… her ears and tail perked up.

“It’s delicious! How do I put this... The umami is different from chicken, but the aftertaste is much cleaner!”

“Glad you like it. Want another bite?”

“Yes!”

Minami, clearly loving it, gobbled up the remaining piece on my chopsticks in one bite.

Watching her eat so happily warmed my heart.

That’s when the pot started gently bubbling.

“Oh, looks like it’s time. Let’s try this shark now.”

Nishida sat down next to me and casually lifted the lid off the pot.

FWOOOSH—an incredible aroma filled the air.

And from the other side of the rising white steam emerged…

“I’ve never really eaten shark before, so I tried simmering it. Soy sauce, mirin, sake, ginger, the usual mix. Let’s give it a try.”

As he said that, he dished out a portion of the shark meat onto a small plate.

Even the appearance was violent—every time you touched it with chopsticks, it flaked apart softly.

And the smell was amazing.

But me? I was kinda tied up.

“Nuaaagh! Ya’ll eat that all without me!?”

I was still busy grilling thick dragon steaks and watching over the whale tatsuta-age in the fryer.

“I know, I know. Want me to feed you?”

Nishida laughed while jokingly teasing me, but then someone suddenly snatched the plate from him.

And then—

“Aaahn~. Here you go, Master.”

“O-Oh?”

Minami, with an incredibly serious expression, was offering me the shark simmered dish.

Did she just outmaneuver the fastest eater among us, Nishida!?

Seriously!?

“Ha ha ha, Kou-chan. Not content with the Saintess, now you’re getting fed by Minami-chan too? We’ll settle this behind the gym later, yeah?”

“Haha, Kita-kun, I’ll see you on the roof.”

As both of them smiled terrifying smiles at me, I took a bite of the shark dish Minami offered.

“Mmgh!?”

Honestly, I’d been wary of trying various parts of the shark because of all the rumors.

Like, “It reeks of ammonia,” or “the aftertaste is awful.”

But this? What is this?

“This is amazing! Guys, this shark is seriously good!”

Fishy smell? Sure, it’s a sea creature, of course there’s a little.

But the umami was way stronger than that.

The more you chewed, the deeper the flavor sank in—a firm, distinct taste.

No weird stench, no odd aftertaste.

Just flavor-packed, tender shark meat that spreads gently through your mouth.

Makes you wanna bite into a big piece and wash it down with sake.

It just... fits. That’s the only way to describe it.

In short, it’s friggin’ delicious.

“Nuaaagh! Punishment comes later! We’re eating now, Azuma!”

“You’re right, Nishi-kun! We have to eat too! If we don’t, Minami-chan’s gonna feed all of it to Kita-kun!”

And so, the war for the feast began.

…That was the plan, anyway.

“Hearty Eater... what about our share...?”

“Sorry, I forgot. Alright, everyone, pile it all onto plates for now—we’ve gotta let our guests have some too.”

Warily drooling, Izley and the rest of the “Forest” group were peering over at us.

It’s fine, we’ve got plenty of food.

Let’s all eat together.

With that thought in mind, I flipped over the steak in front of me.

“I’m telling you, it’s seriously delicious—shark and whale. And look, this one’s ready too. The real deal, a ‘Dragon Steak.’ Consider it a trial sample.”

I started placing the thick slabs of meat lined up on the griddle in front of them.

The thick cuts of meat were grilled to a shockingly juicy finish.

The monster beef had been amazing too, but this was different—just from the look of it.

The surface was grilled to a slight crisp, and when I cut into it with a knife, meat juices came pouring out, revealing a beautifully red interior.

At that moment, the meat juices dripping onto the griddle let off steam, and the scent of dragon meat spread all around.

Rich, and yet distinctly different from beef or pork.

It wasn’t greasy, but it hit the appetite in full force.

It was the kind of concentrated aroma that made you swallow your spit without even realizing it.

And the smell of garlic slices and black pepper grilled together with it mixed into that aroma… honestly, just the smell alone made me want rice.

[From the feel of the cut, it’s a bit firmer than beef... maybe? Well, it’s still plenty tender. But damn, just the smell alone is dangerous. This is definitely good.]

As Kana had said, there was almost no unnecessary fat or flab.

And yet—

“I thought the same when I chopped it up, but the fat distribution is amazing. It’s not like it’s fatty—it’s like it’s perfectly marbled.”

“Just from the look of it, it seemed like you could eat it as meat sashimi... and now we’ve turned that into a giant steak…”

Nishida and Azuma both stared intensely at the dragon steak I’d sliced up.

Then I poured the soy-based garlic sauce over the top with a loud sizzle!

Ahh… that’s it.

This is bad.

This scent is dangerous—it’s the kind that ruins people.

[Kitayama, is it done? It’s done, right? Can I eat it?]

“Yeah, uh, you go ahead and eat first.”

[Yesss! Nozomi, let’s go for the tastiest-looking piece!]

“Ahh—uh, sure, I guess?”

As the Saintess-sama awkwardly picked up a slice of dragon meat with her chopsticks, we all pressed our hands together in unison.

"""Itadakimasu!"""

“Hyah!?”

[Nozomi! Hurry! They’re gonna eat all of it!]

With shouts like that, we all lunged for the dragon meat at once.

There was no more waiting.

The smell alone was violent.

We had to know what it tasted like.

“You bastard! That’s my meat!”

“You’ve been hogging all the gluttonous stuff! This one’s mine!”

“Leader! Over here too! Let us have some!”

“Hold on! I can’t stop!”

“Hearty Eater! Please! Let’s cut up more, okay!? We need more, seriously!”

Amid all the shouting, we scrambled to grab the meat from each other.

It was hopeless. There was no stopping this.

From the corner of my eye, I spotted the Saintess-sama, trembling as she held her plate and chopsticks.

“Th-they’re all gone...”

[I only had one slice... I want more…]

While she looked uncharacteristically dejected, Minami had already secured her share and was off in a corner, happily munching away.

She’s really gotten tough, hasn’t she?

“I’m making round two now—but everyone’s helping, got it!? Cooking and cleanup! And we’ve got more dismantling tomorrow too!”

"""Uoooooooh!"""

And with that, we began cooking again.

Even just the dragon meat was a feast, and on top of that, we had whale and shark.

Seriously, I’m beyond satisfied.

“Fuhahaha! It’s so good! I’m cooking more rice toooo!”

[Kitayama! Seconds! I demand seconds! It’s my body, and I only got one slice!]

The horned one, demanding more of her own meat, stuffed her cheeks full of rice with a very disgruntled look.

Dragon meat really does go well with rice…

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