Who Wants to be a Hero? I Just Want to Farm in Peace with my Knight

Chapter 12: Seasonings

Entering the shop Sora was hit by the enticing and powerful scent of spices and herbs. With a deep satisfied breath he walked in.

"What do you need? An older man asked from the side. His voice deep and harsh on the ears. "Good afternoon, we were sent here by Ol...Cough* lady Merryn. She said you have the best spices and herbs in Capital City." Keyne said as he stepped forward to hand over the letter of introduction.

The man didn't bother to even look at it. Nor did he turn them away. Leaning back he simply watched as Sora and Keyne walked around the room.

The room was filled with open jars of spices similar to the spice markets he often saw in pictures. He had always wanted to go to one, but in the end the furthest he ever travelled was Sapporo on a school trip in high school.

Sora stared at the spices but didn't know where to start. He couldn't ask for anything by name because he didn't know the names and he could trust his eyes because he'd noticed many foods were different colours from their Earth counterparts. The best thing to do would be to smell and taste each one individually and figure out which worked best. But that also wasn't the most accurate option because many spices change flavour when cooked. Perplexed by what to do next he simply paced the room.

"Shopkeeper, may I ask if it's okay to get a little more information about each spice and herb?" Keyne asked hoping to help Sora who seemed to be a little overwhelmed.

"This isn't some museum, grab what you need and get out." The man grumbled.

In the end, Keyne's attempt to help backfired instead. But that didn't affect Sora as he finally made a decision. "Sir, do you sell your spices by weight or volume?" He asked as he gestured towards the vast amount of spices and herbs.

The man raised an eyebrow seemingly impressed by his question. "It depends by the product, but generally I prefer to sell my wares by weight." The man said with a more agreeable tone than he had with Keyne.

"I see, do you also sell pestles and mortars here for grinding? And what is the minimum amount I can buy of each spice?" Sora continued.

"We sell everything needed to effectively use and store the spices. As for the minimum... it's up for debate." The man continued as he stood up and walked over to Sora.

"Forgive me. I'm not from this area, I know my spices however these aren't what I'm familiar with. I'd like to take a little of each home and try frying, grinding, steeping, and more with them first before deciding what I wish to purchase and at what amount." Sora explained.

The old man listened patiently. "What's your name boy?" The man asked apparently taking a liking to Sora.

"Call me Sora. Yourself?"

"I'm Haider. I've been traveling the world since I was a young boy learning everything there is to know about spices and herbs. If you really want to learn more about them ask me anything and I'll teach you." The old man said.

Sora couldn't be happier for the offer. With the man's permission he began asking him about each one. Smelling, and even tasting some with the man's permission he spent the whole afternoon going through the spices.

Eventually he managed to narrow it down to 25 different spices and herbs. That were the most similar to what he would have used, with a few that that were highly recommended by the shopkeeper Haider.

He had the essentials such as basil, pepper, salt, bay leaves, oregano, and something similar to cayenne powder but with a little more kick. Then he had the less frequently used but still useful rosemary, coriander, turmeric, yellow mustard, paprika, and thyme. These were all the spices he could identify or were a close match to those found on Earth. He didn't care much for sweets but he also found vanilla beans, nutmeg, cacao, and cinnamon. The others were unique to this world and he was excited to try and experiment with them.