Freshwater Fish (2)

“So, is this the place with the secret of the fish?”

“That’s right!”

“But this isn’t a river?”

Mountains in front, mountains behind. All mountains. There’s not even a stream, let alone a river. Having fish here is like saying cows live in the sea.

There’s a trickle of water flowing between the rocks, but calling this a stream would be like calling the water from a PET bottle a stream.

The place the sweetfish old man led me to wasn’t the side with Greek Mountain. It was completely opposite. If Greek Mountain is south of Greek City, this place is completely north.

If I had to describe it, it’s like a nearby hill.

“Do you know how many years I’ve spent raising these guys?”

“Well, how long has it been?”

“Thirty years!”

“That long?”

Sweetfish usually migrate. They live in the sea when young and swim upstream in spring. These fish seemed to have very different characteristics from the sweetfish I know.

Thirty years is a long time. This means he’s a master who has lived selling only fish for longer than I’ve been summoned to this world.

“I’ve only recently been able to raise these guys! But I still have to eat, so I’ve been farming and raising them for 30 years!”

“That long? Your perseverance is amazing.”

“Perseverance, well, it’s delicious, right? People just look for uka or uba meat, but they don’t know about freshwater fish like these. I wanted to let them know. It felt wasteful to eat them alone.”

“That’s cool, mister.”

“Even so, it’s a failed life.”

The old man scratched the back of his head sheepishly. But it’s true that it’s cool. Wanting others to recognize what you’re passionate about is a common feeling.

But investing 30 years for that isn’t easy. Efforts to popularize freshwater fish among people – it’s thanks to people like him that food culture gradually changes over time.

“But no matter how much I tell them it’s delicious, they don’t even try it. That’s what’s so unfortunate…”

“Don’t worry too much about that. There will be a good way.”

“I guess I’ll just eat them all by myself then.”

The sweetfish old man urged me along with a sullen face.

After walking for a while, a huge rock appeared. A huge rock situated where the strata had been eroded. And above it, there seemed to be the entrance to a cave.

It’s at a very high place, so you can’t enter without climbing the rock.

Surely he’s not talking about that cave, right?

Since we stopped right at that spot, I looked at the old man. But the place he pointed to wasn’t above the rock, but below it.

Looking closely, there was a crack below the rock.

The crack was just big enough for one person to squeeze through.

“Are we going in there?”

“Yes.”

The sweetfish old man twisted his small body and slipped inside. Not knowing what was what, I followed him. As soon as I entered the narrow crack, a steep slope of sheer rock unfolded before me.

And what appeared was a huge lake hidden beneath the rock.

It’s not a dead lake. Several streams coming down from the mountain top flow down and gather here.

The lake water was almost untouched by light, yet it gave off a mysterious glow even in the darkness.

There was a small gap in the ceiling above the lake, and sunlight streaming in from there illuminated the center of the lake, making it feel like paradise.

As I stared blankly at the lake, the old man patted my back.

Then he led me by the hand.

“Come and see, these guys live in this water. I tried catching a few from elsewhere to breed and raise them, but they either couldn’t concentrate in one place and died or scattered. But releasing and raising them here, they don’t leave.”

It’s central inland. Fish with migratory habits originally living here is impossible. There’s no river connecting to the sea.

That means these aren’t migratory fish; they’re fish that originally live here.

There wasn’t a suitable place to gather and raise them, but he discovered this place after 30 years?

“I’ve climbed countless mountains and searched for valleys, and I really found this place by chance. Haha. If I breed and raise fish here, the water can flow out below, but the fish can’t escape. Plus, natural first-quality water flows down, so there’s no better place to raise fish.”

“That’s certainly true.”

“These guys only live in good water, so it was worth spending decades searching for such good water. But, that satisfaction… it seems like it’ll just be for me. No one else finds them delicious… or even tries to taste them…”

Many fish were splashing in the lake. If the sweetfish old man manages the fish population regularly, there should be no problem selling them steadily in the market.

Since it’s bothersome to go to the sea to get fish, the diet relies mainly on meat. If such good fish come in steadily, the menu becomes richer.

It’s needless to say that eating fish along with meat every day is better for your body.

“Would you like to come to the restaurant tonight?”

“The restaurant?”

“Yes.”

I nodded and smiled.

The old man called this fish Heripe, but I decided to just call it sweetfish. Its long, slender, silver form looks so much like a sweetfish that it’s more familiar to call it that.

First, I started preparing the sweetfish I received in bulk. Today, I’ll showcase sweetfish dishes at the restaurant, instill confidence that it works, and then help sell them in the market.

The old man is right. This needs to be distributed properly in the market and eaten by many people.

Grilled fish is obvious, but today there’s also a different dish from yesterday. It’s sweetfish rice.

This too is a delicacy that anyone would envy if there are fresh sweetfish.

First, I cut open the well-prepared sweetfish. Insert the knife from the top, cut it open, and remove the red intestines. The red intestines, that is, the blood-filled parts, are removed, but the rest of the intestines are also a delicacy. There’s no need to remove other intestines.

After preparing the sweetfish, place it on the rice and cook it.

Sweetfish is a fish that can be eaten from head to bone, and this one too has soft bones that melt in your mouth, so there’s no problem eating it.

While preparing other dishes, the rice is almost done.

The smell is fantastic.

A dish that even stimulates the chef’s appetite. Recently, I’ve been eating too many stimulating foods, so this mild dish is very appetizing.

Stimulating food, mild food, stimulating food – this cycle greatly helps maintain appetite and taste.

Is it similar to the sweet and salty cycle? No, it’s a bit different from that.

Amid the good aroma stimulating my sense of smell, I started preparing the whole sweetfish placed on the rice. After removing the large bones from the steamed sweetfish, I shredded it.

Then, I put it back in the rice and mix it thoroughly – this is sweetfish rice.

The small bones disappear as you eat, and the sweetfish skin and flesh come alive in your mouth.

You can eat it with just soy sauce or with other side dishes.

Tonight’s restaurant menu is sweetfish rice set.

Demilly runs a general store in Greek City. She was on her way back from the capital with her employee after a week’s journey to procure goods. But she really didn’t like her employee, Honta.

It started from the first day.

She, the boss, came out first and waited, but he showed up an hour late.

He was very diligent when working in the store, so at first, she thought there might have been a problem.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

But Honta kept repeating this throughout the journey. He even broke items at the capital’s supplier.

And if he had at least tried to make up for his mistakes by having dinner together or touring the capital at night, she might have let it slide. But instead, he was sightseeing alone.

‘They say you should travel with someone to get to know them.’

Demilly started to wonder if she should continue employing Honta. It was a series of disappointments to that extent. After all, this was an extension of work. They weren’t on vacation. This was an extension of paid work, and yet he was so willful.

This thought became certain when she saw his behavior, known as dolre, or snoring and falling asleep alone inside a carriage.

‘He’s even drooling in his sleep.’

Demilly frowned, crossed her arms, and glared at Honta.

After the unpleasant journey finally ended and they reached Greek City, as they were about to part ways after leaving the purchased goods at the store, Honta grabbed Demilly’s arm.

“Boss!”

“What?”

‘What does he want to say this time?’

Demilly answered with that thought. Her previous assessment of him as a good guy was completely shattered during this trip. If he hadn’t shown anything while working, she would have fired him right away.

“I messed up at the supplier, and I want to make it up to you with a meal. I didn’t know any restaurants in the capital, but I know some in Greek City!”

“A meal?”

Demilly thought,

‘Why a meal now?’

And her expression showed it, so Honta quickly continued.

“Please. I have something to say as well.”

“Something to say?”

‘Does he have some sense after all? I’ve been giving him hints the whole way. Well, I guess I should at least hear him out about the future.’

Demilly thought so and nodded.

“Alright then, lead the way.”

“Yes, yes!”

But she quickly regretted it.

‘Why is the restaurant on a hill I have to climb, especially when I’m already dead tired?’

This made her wonder if he was doing this on purpose to mess with her.

Demilly’s face grew darker and darker.

“Welcome.”

But Honta walked into the restaurant without hesitation. Demilly looked around the restaurant. It was modest.

At the bar table, an older man was glancing at the diners from the back.

Honta guided her to the left bar table, not the one where the older man was sitting.

Demilly thought he might be a regular. Honta placed an order with El.

“What’s today’s special, El?”

“Today, we have a special menu. Let’s call it a mild set meal.”

“A mild set meal?”

Honta looked at Demilly at those words.

“Boss, all the food here is delicious, but I especially like the changing daily specials. How about a mild dish?”

“Sounds good.”

‘Recently, my digestion hasn’t been great, so I’ve been avoiding spicy food.’

And soon the food arrived.

“The rice is special, made with a fish base. There’s grilled fish, and the side dish is bulgogi made from stir-fried uka meat. And the soup is…”

The owner, called El, started explaining the dishes. They were all new to her, but the aroma was very good.

“Boss, try it.”

Honta suggested with an innocent face.

Caught off guard, Demilly brought the rice to her mouth.

“This… This is delicious?”

Those used to spicy flavors wouldn’t know, but the mild yet chewy flesh and skin combined with the rice created an exquisite taste.

‘This guy knows of such a restaurant? How did I not know about this place while living in Greek City?’

Demilly looked around anew.