I Became a Food Developer in Another World - C57

Episode 57

“Senpai! The Fairy Whiskey sold in the Union has surpassed 50,000 bottles!”

“…Already?”

I was secretly surprised by Aria’s words.

The population of the Union is close to 200,000. Selling 50,000 bottles means that nearly half the people have tasted Fairy Whiskey.

A 750-ml bottle is enough for two people to enjoy together.

This happened just a month after its release.

“The high alcohol content worked well. People in the Union like strong drinks.”

“Aria, it’s because you made the whiskey well that the results are good.”

“Well, of course.”

With a look that seemed to say, “What else would you expect?” A proud smile appeared on Aria’s face.

I had only introduced whiskey to her, but she was the one who created fairy whiskey.

The whiskey made purely by Aria was captivating her hometown, the Union.

She had been anxious about whether it would sell well at launch, but now that the results were good, she seemed satisfied.

“What about me?”

Ayla chimed in, wanting praise for herself.

“You did well too, Ayla. Thanks to you, the quality of the whiskey is excellent.”

Ayla’s face broke into a bright smile.

Just one compliment made her ears perk up.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

She was truly an easy-to-understand and cute person.

By the way.

‘50,000 bottles—that’s quite a lot sold.’

I nodded in satisfaction.

Choosing a high-alcohol whiskey was the right decision, given the cold northern weather.

People preferred high-proof whiskey to warm themselves up.

This was no different for the wizards, so Fairy Whiskey was ranked first in sales in the Union.

This was just the count for the Union; if we counted the entire north, the sales would double.

Fairy Whiskey, which had only been released for a month, was already rivaling the dominance of wine.

‘Much faster than I expected.’

This wasn’t solely because the whiskey had high alcohol content and tasted good.

Due to the ‘special circumstances’ of the grape harvest failing, people began looking for alternatives, and Fairy Whiskey was chosen as that substitute.

Moreover, the fact that it used ‘holy water’ was actively promoted, sparking curiosity among many who wanted to try the whiskey.

A significant portion of the current whiskey sales was thus’speculative.’

The actual sales figures could only be confirmed after this speculation cleared.

Even taking that into account, it was still a satisfactory achievement.

The whiskey Aria created boasted high quality.

It was no wonder that not only the northerners but even the dwarves were getting intoxicated by Fairy Whiskey…

“When are we going to leave those people alone?”

“Hmm, I don’t know.”

“What do you mean, ‘I don’t know’? They’ve been like that for three days already.”

Aria frowned as she looked at the storage area piled with oak barrels.

There, dwarves who had come to ‘observe’ the whiskey were lying down next to a giant oak barrel, hanging mugs under the tap and pouring whiskey into them.

For reference, that tap hadn’t existed until the dwarves arrived.

“Ugh! It’s melting, melting. It disappears in my mouth.”

“Move aside if you’ve had enough! It’s my turn.”

“Gah… What are you talking about? I haven’t even had a drink yet.”

“Crazy dwarf, you’ve had six already, now!”

“Move the mug before I chop it off with my axe, will you?!”

The dwarfs surrounding the tap were flushed with excitement, each trying to push their mugs forward.

Empty oak barrels rolled around them.

Fairy Whiskey was, as its name suggested, a magical whiskey that melted away in the mouth.

And with the dwarves, it was disappearing like magic.

Aria muttered in disbelief at the sight.

“Are they really here to drink or to observe?”

Dwarves who had come under the pretense of visiting the holy water factory were emptying the barrels, so it was understandable that Aria was frustrated.

However, I just smiled wryly without saying much.

Dwarves were a race that could be beneficial in many ways if good relations were maintained.

‘Honestly, this is still a gain.’

Dwarves who came almost daily were enjoying unlimited whiskey under the guise of ‘factory tours,’ and there was no loss in that.

Right now, the dwarves were only selling the grains that were the raw materials for the whiskey at their base price.

The grains produced by the dwarves were known for their high quality, so it was almost like receiving them for free.

Moreover, all the supplies to the north were brought along the path of the ‘Vikings,’ so there were no distribution costs.

Of course, it had become a norm for them to ‘tour’ the holy water factory while enjoying unlimited whiskey.

They even referred to the whiskey that evaporated during aging as the ‘angel’s share.’

‘So instead of the angel’s share, the dwarves’ share has appeared.’

It was ironic, but that didn’t mean the dwarves were just drinking whiskey.

“How about changing the oak barrels? The taste is still good, but the color has lightened.”

“It might be fun to try using several barrels interchangeably.”

“Sweet is nice, but isn’t there a drink that hits hard at the end?”

The dwarfs expressed their thoughts as they drank the whiskey.

“A tasting session.”

Having enjoyed drinks for hundreds of years, each dwarf was a well-known drinker and an expert. Their opinions were invaluable information.

“Senpai, I need a pen.”

Now serious, Aria recorded every single opinion the dwarves offered on paper.

Though she was stubborn, her strength was that she listened to anyone if there was something to learn.

“Sit down and do it.”

“Thank you.”

As I brought her a chair while she stood with paper on the oak barrel, Aria sat down without taking her eyes off the paper.

Dwarves were indeed beings who were very helpful if you built a good relationship with them.

‘But I can’t keep relying on them.’

I couldn’t depend on the dwarves for ‘barely’ forever.

It wasn’t that there was no way to procure it on our own.

There were regions in the north where barley could be harvested.

The problem was that the recent emergence of white bears had disrupted barley harvesting.

Upon hearing this, I casually suggested giving the white bears ‘cola.’

Since white bears were communicative, I thought if we offered them cola and talked, it would surely lead to a conversation.

Just looking at Bolitour, he looked scary, but he was more gentlemanly than any human I had seen.

According to Bolitour, all white bears were gentle like him. They wouldn’t harm you as long as you didn’t provoke them.

There were no reports of white bears harming humans anywhere.

The northern people had simply given up on their barley fields, interpreting the bears’ curious wandering as a threat.

‘I wonder how that turned out.’

I suggested giving them cola about two weeks ago, so the results should be out by now.

*

“Hakoon, drink up!”

“…Grrr, thanks.”

“Haha! This friend has gotten used to the common language!”

In a tavern in the north, a massive white bear was crouched down drinking cola whiskey.

The patrons inside the tavern watched the scene with warm smiles.

The polar bear, drinking whiskey mixed with cola, let out a pleased rumble.

The tavern owner, wiping a glass, asked with a hearty smile.

“Is it really that good?”

“Grrr, the best.”

“Haha, there’s plenty, so drink as much as you want.”

“Hakoon! Bring my cola too!”

“This is whiskey!”

“…Grrr.”

The patrons in the tavern generously offered Hakoon whiskey and cola.

It was a rare sight to see a bear and humans enjoying drinks together.

Hakoon had come to the human village two weeks ago.

─…I want to drink this beverage.

Hakoon showed an empty whiskey bottle and asked the villagers for whiskey.

The villagers, seeing a polar bear for the first time, all ran away at the sight of Hakoon, but he didn’t give up.

While wandering the village, Hakoon visited the tavern, and the guests who were watching a cola advertisement welcomed him warmly.

─…A cola bear!

─No way, it’s the real deal!

Thus, Hakoon became a friend who enjoyed whiskey with the villagers.

In exchange for getting to drink cola whiskey, Hakoon helped the village by carrying firewood and moving heavy stones.

Just one glass of cola whiskey was worth the help of ten strong men, so no one disliked Hakoon.

Although Hakoon had settled well into the human village…

“You must come back, Hakoon!”

“I’ll be waiting!”

Where there are meetings, there are parties.

On the day that marked a month since Hakoon settled in the human village, he set out on his journey back to his hometown in the Arctic.

The villagers gifted him a huge box filled with whiskey cola, thanking him for everything.

“Grrr, thanks.”

Hakoon joyfully strapped the box to his back and returned to the Arctic.

“…… I’ll just stop by home and come back.”

Promising to return soon.

*

The incident occurred about two months after I had stayed in the Blue Tower.

In the early dawn.

Bang bang bang—!

“Emergency! It’s an emergency!”

“Everyone, come out!”

The loud ringing of bells and the urgent voices of the wizards could be heard, and the door swung open.

“Senpai! Something big has happened! Come out quickly!”

“What is it? What happened?”

“There’s no time to explain! Just get dressed and come out!”

I was puzzled as I got out of bed.

When I stepped into the lobby, the wizards of the Blue Tower were standing with tense faces, holding their staffs.

In front of them stood a short girl with a dragon horn, the Blue Mage Tower’s mistress, Mirtien, with a serious expression.

It seemed like they were preparing for battle.

‘What’s going on?’

The tense atmosphere chased away my sleep.

As everyone was on edge, Mirtien opened her heavy mouth.

But what she said was alarming.

“The enemies are targeting our Blue Tower and are coming to attack.”

Enemies are attacking the Empire’s Blue Tower?

Is that even possible?

The moment I questioned this, the faces of the wizards watching the window turned pale.

“…What!”

“They’re here!”

“It’s all over.”

I looked out the window, puzzled by the wizards’ gaze.

And I was left speechless.

Huge polar bears were charging toward the Blue Tower from beyond the horizon.

“What is that?”