Chapter 98: Trying Raw Fish

“This place is truly amazing!”

Io exclaimed, her voice trembling with excitement, eyes sparkling like a child who had just stumbled into a treasure trove.

“Salmon, horse mackerel, saury, turban shells! And even abalone and sea urchin—everything’s all-you-can-eat! And it’s all so fresh… I can’t believe it all came from a garden! It’s unbelievably delicious! Thank you so much, Geo!”

“Ah… yes…”

Her sheer enthusiasm made me take a small step back.

It seemed Io-san preferred seafood over meat. The moment she realized I could grow fish as well, her eyes lit up like twin lanterns, and she begged me—almost pleadingly—to cultivate them.

“Oh… this salmon… the fatty richness melts in my mouth…”

“R-really… is it okay to eat it raw like that…?”

Io-san was eating the fish I had just prepared straight from the garden, without cooking a single piece. In my household, only Milk and Pippi had the audacity to eat raw fish. Well, those two would even eat raw meat.

“Don’t worry. Fresh fish is actually best eaten raw. It’s called sashimi,” she explained.

“Sashimi?”

My eyes widened in surprise when I said that.

“…You mean you’ve never had sashimi before?”

“Ah… no.”

I had hardly ever eaten fish myself. Arcel was far from the sea, and fish there was mostly dried or salted. Even then, it was expensive, something only the wealthy could afford.

“Hehe… in that case, I’ll teach you gently… the true taste of fish,” she said with a smile that seemed to carry a hint of playful mischief.

“Please,” I replied, though I couldn’t shake the feeling there was something teasing in her tone.

Setting aside my doubts, I decided to try a piece of the raw fish Io-san had prepared. First up: the salmon.

Its glossy pink flesh gleamed under the sunlight. I picked up a bite-sized piece and nervously placed it in my mouth.

“!? I-it’s… delicious…”

“See! I told you!”

So this is sashimi… Its flavor was delicate, different from meat, spreading softly across my tongue. I could almost eat endlessly—it was that good.

“Try the yellowtail next.”

“T-this is… amazing too…!”

The yellowtail was thick and firm. Each bite burst with a satisfying pop and a flood of savory richness that made my taste buds dance.

“Hmm, I see you’ve begun to understand the beauty of sashimi. But… to be honest, there’s an even better way to enjoy it,” she said, her eyes glinting.

“A better way?”

“Yes. With soy sauce and wasabi.”

“Soy sauce and wasabi…?”

She looked slightly disappointed that I didn’t know.

“Soy sauce is a fermented seasoning made from soybeans. Its subtle saltiness enhances the flavor of sashimi. Wasabi, on the other hand, is a wild plant with a sharp kick that adds a perfect accent. Back in my hometown, we always had both… though, to be honest, this fish is so fresh it’s already amazing on its own. There’s no hint of fishiness at all…”

Still, she said that with soy sauce and wasabi, the sashimi’s flavor would reach another level.

“We have them, you know? Both soy sauce and wasabi.”

“Really!?”

“Y-yes.”

I remembered seeing both on the list of cultivatable crops. Though I’d never grown them before—they were completely unfamiliar to me.

So, we made them right away.

“So, this is soy sauce…?”

The liquid was dark, almost black. Just looking at it made me hesitate slightly. The smell was unusual, but not unpleasant.

“Smells like soy sauce… hmm, let’s see,” Io said, dipping her pinky in and tasting it cautiously. Her eyes widened.

“Yup! Delicious! This is definitely soy sauce! I can’t believe it’s this easy to make! It might even be better than what we had back home!”

She clearly liked it.

“And this here is the wasabi.”

Large, deep-green leaves were attached to a thick, knobby root. I had assumed we’d use the leaves and almost threw away the root, but Io hurriedly stopped me.

“No, no. You use this part.”

“Eh? The root…?”

“Of course, you can eat the leaves too, but for sashimi, it’s the root that matters.”

The root looked even more intimidating than the soy sauce. Its rough, grotesque green surface made me hesitate.

“Wow! What a magnificent wasabi! I’ve rarely seen one this impressive. Wasabi is very delicate… heh,” she said, stroking it with affection.

For some reason, my chest and stomach tingled slightly at her touch.

Then, without explanation, she found a rough stone and began rubbing the wasabi root against it, grating it carefully.

“So this is how you eat it,” I murmured.

“Yes. Grating it releases its unique sharpness.”

Once grated, she placed a tiny bit on the sashimi, dipped it into the soy sauce, and popped it into her mouth.

“~~~! Th-this…! This is it! Sashimi has to be eaten with wasabi and soy sauce! Geo, you must try it!”

“O-okay…”

I imitated her, taking a bite.

“I-it’s… amazing!? The flavor is even richer than when I ate it plain—ahh!?”

Suddenly, a sharp burn shot up the back of my nose.

“That’s the wasabi’s spiciness.”

“T-this…?”

“At first it stings a little, but once you get used to it, it’s addictive… hehehe.”

Watching me with teary eyes and my hand pressed to my nose, Io-san laughed in a strangely enticing way.

“I-I see…”

After drinking some tea to calm down, Io-san suddenly made a suggestion.

“Hey, why don’t you stay over tonight? I want to teach you even more… hehe.”

“N-no, thanks… I should probably head back. I need to cook for my sister.”