Promises And Potato Chips

The magic of snacks was formidable.

The temptation of junk food was incredible, and even knowing it had a cheap flavor, it possessed an addictive quality that made people eat it anyway.

There was simply no human alive who could win against that temptation.

None at all!

This is Shuri, reporting to you from the dark prison.

The dark burden that Mr. Garn carried. What on earth was it?

To be honest, since he had been taking care of me this far, I wanted to help him out somehow, but…

I was well aware that there were topics a person you had only recently met could pry into, and topics you shouldn’t step into.

Therefore, for now, I had no choice but to get closer to him.

And hopefully, it would be wonderful if I could hear about how Gungrave-san and the others were doing.

“Hey, didn’t you say you’d make something delicious?”

With those words, Mr. Garn came over to me carrying oil and potatoes.

Did this man have any intention of working?

“Can you make something with these?”

The ingredients were certainly all there, but…

“I can make something, yes.”

“Then go ahead and do it.”

“But what happened? Why are you suddenly so eager?”

Indeed, asking me to cook again just the day after yesterday made him a mysterious man.

Just to be clear, I was a prisoner, you know? Though I hadn’t committed a single crime.

“Listen. Ever since I started eating your food, I’ve been able to cut down on alcohol. Especially those clams with the reek of booze. Even when I try to copy it, I can’t make it right, but after eating that, I can’t be satisfied with regular alcohol. As a result, I’ve been able to hold back on drinking. In short, your food is perfect for getting my physical condition back in shape. Besides, it’s something to look forward to. I’m excited to see what kind of unusual dish you’ll make next.”

Ah, when someone looked forward to my cooking like this, it was the ultimate reward for a cook.

“What’s with that happy look?”

“Well, I’m happy to hear you say that. I’ll make a dish… no, a snack that lives up to your expectations.”

“A snack?”

“This time, it’s a light bite like something you could eat at a food stall. It can be made with salt, oil, and potatoes.”

Now, let’s make it.

The alluring junk food: potato chips!

The recipe was simple.

First, slice the potatoes as thinly as possible.

If they were too thick, it was no good. Irregularities were also out. Ideally, the heat from the oil should pass through evenly.

It would be easy to slice them quickly with a large slicer, but a prison lacked such convenient tools. Wait, since Mr. Garn was bringing ingredients, was this really no different from usual? Or rather, this was another world…

Now, once the oil was heated, throw in the thinly sliced potatoes.

Once they were fried…

“Excuse me, do you have a wire rack or something similar?”

“A wire rack?”

“No, a tool to drain the oil…”

“Thinking something like this might happen, I prepared one.”

What Mr. Garn pulled out was a wire grid used for grilling fish.

“Why do you have something like this?”

“Well, I thought for sure it was a dish where you grill potatoes to make them taste good.”

“Well, it’s just right.”

Lifting the fried potato chips onto the wire grid, I drained the oil.

It was at times like this that one realized the convenience of paper towels.

“It’s done. All that’s left is to sprinkle salt over them and we’re finished.”

“Huh? Is that it?”

“Please try eating one.”

Picking up one chip rather reluctantly, Mr. Garn brought it to his mouth.

“…Oh, this is quite good.”

“Right?”

“Woah, it’s delicious.”

Saying so, his hand didn’t stop moving.

“…Hey.”

“What is it?”

“My hand won’t stop reaching for these. It’s just salty and crispy. It should be just that, so why won’t my hand stop?!”

Hehehe, this was the true magic of junk food!

“It’s delicious, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, when you savor it properly, the potato’s flavor and the saltiness are just right. Plus, even after you chew and swallow, the flavor lingers. And even while the flavor lingers, you want to eat more. Then you crave that remaining flavor even more and eat again. What kind of food is this?! It’s probably delicious because it’s fresh, but this is incredible!”

I thought so.

“These are delicious even when cold, you know.”

“Huh?”

“So, you could sell freshly made ones at a food stall, or make a large batch and sell them bagged. There are various ways.”

“Seriously?”

“Also, dusting them with cheese or scattering seaweed over them gives a rich variety of options.”

Mr. Garn froze in shock, but this was completely normal in Japan.

Like Pizza Potato chips and such. Those were really delicious.

“To think you know a business method to become a millionaire with just a single potato…”

“You’re exaggerating!”

How could anyone become a millionaire from just this!

“Well, let’s eat for now.”

“Right. Still, these really don’t stop.”

“Indeed.”

The two of us crunched away. Snacking and crunching.

After that, we ate until the potatoes were gone.

By the way, since I couldn’t afford to create a second Rir-san (an addict), I made him keep it in moderation.