Interlude 13
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Girls are so unfair.
Have you ever thought that? I have.
In fact, just a few days ago, I found myself muttering, 「Ah, that’s so unfair.」
I want to tell that story here.
It all started a few days ago when I went out shopping.
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The remote region where Sena and I live, leading to Hermit Mountain, has quite a grand name.
It’s called Boldaf.
Boldaf is considered an extremely important town within the Arcana Kingdom.
Although it’s far from the central area, it’s strategically located along the border with the neighboring country. It also handles the extermination of ferocious monsters descending from Hermit Mountain, so the kingdom doesn’t take its existence lightly.
To add to that, the monsters coming down from the mountain are all rare species. Once defeated, their materials and magic stones are brought into the town, greatly enriching it.
That’s not all. Being on the border means it’s also a gateway for diplomacy.
Because the town is economically prosperous, many merchants visit from foreign countries.
It’s said that if you’re looking for something rare from the southern regions, you can find it here.
I’ve often heard stories of bigwigs from the capital going out of their way to send messengers to this remote area to obtain such items. Wealthy nobles and merchant collectors even come here directly.
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On that day, I was strolling through the market like your typical nouveau riche, in search of rare goods.
However, I wasn’t looking for weapons, armor or crafts made from unusual materials or by master artisans. I was simply seeking out rare food ingredients.
So the things I saw that day were, for me, wonderful treasures that I rarely come across.
The first was dried goods. Something I had been searching for all this time.
This remote region is far from the sea, so seafood is scarce and meals tend to revolve solely around meat. I sometimes felt like something was missing.
Even dried, seafood is seafood. You can even make broth from it. Thank goodness.
The other was fermented foods. Not fermented seafood, but soy-based fermented foods like soy sauce and miso.
These are versatile seasonings that anyone living in modern day Japan would be familiar with. Having them versus not having them makes a huge difference in cooking options.
Both were extremely expensive because magic bags were used for preservation and transportation.
I didn’t know this since I just casually threw everything into my bag, but according to the market shopkeepers, magic bags are incredibly rare in the first place.
Moreover, ones with an internal capacity like mine are apparently national treasure level.
When I asked what the normal size was then, I was told with a straight face that possessing a magic bag of any size alone counts as a fortune.
Still, the prices they were quoting seemed outrageous, making me think, 「Are you trying to rip me off?」 But I obediently paid the money as requested.
As a mere high school student summoned to another world, it’s nearly impossible to negotiate or haggle with these seasoned adults (excuses).
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The town itself was buzzing with excitement over conquering the Blade Dungeon, and everywhere you went it was lively.
The taverns and eateries were almost always full, and the food stalls were fairly crowded as well.
Since it was lunchtime and everywhere was busy, I thought I would look around the market a bit more and then make the rounds at the stalls. I was making plans in my head for what to do next.
That’s when I overheard the grumbling of a young male shopkeeper behind me.
「Ahh, I came all the way here but nothing’s selling at all! The people of Arcana have no eye for quality! This sucks! Dad’s gonna chew me out!」
I’m not sure why he was speaking in Kansai dialect, but let’s chalk it up to the peculiarities of otherworld translation.
In any case, the box in the hands of that guy speaking Kansai dialect caught my eye.
When I saw those black granules, I thought, no way…
「Shopkeep, what is that?」
「Oh! Yo, mister, you interested in this?」
「Yeah.」
「This here is──ya know.」
According to the Kansai-speaking shopkeeper, it can be used as medicine, as a sweetener, and since he brought it from super far away, you definitely can’t get it around here. That didn’t seem like a lie.
In fact, despite visiting markets all over the Arcana Kingdom, this was the first time I had found it.
「Alright, I’ll buy it!」
「Say yer gonna buy it, but ya got the money, bro?」
「How much?」
「Well then, how ’bout 20 gold coins for this box o’ beans?」
I could see right through the Kansai merchant’s thinking – 「You’re gonna say it’s too expensive anyway, right?」
「Oh? Is that all? If it were me, I’d pay 50 coins and buy an extra box on top of that.」
The moment the color of the Kansai guy’s eyes changed.
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I bought various other interesting things from the Kansai dialect shopkeeper, but I’ll save that story for another day.
Feeling pleased about my good purchases, I was looking for an inn when I happened to run into Milan.
For some reason she desperately grabbed my clothes and tried to drag me along, insisting 「If you’re looking for a place to stay, come crash at my place!」
Unable to refuse, I ended up staying the night at her house.
I offered to cook as thanks for letting me stay, but Marlo kept saying 「It’s to show our gratitude…」 She gracefully served up a homemade meal.
After dinner, I had an eventful night, discussing the current Hero party with Milan, playing adventurer with Fio (I was the boss, Milan the sword saint, Fio the saint, and Marlo got roped into being a mage by the kids).
The next morning I woke up just as the sun was starting to rise.
I had to make breakfast for Sena, so I quietly left Milan’s place, leaving a note, some breakfast bread, souvenirs, and extra potions.
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「Ichiro, good morning.」
Being used to the path I had taken many times, it didn’t take me long to get home.
How does she always sense when I’m coming home?
Sena was waiting in front of the house.
Sena came over with a pitter-patter as usual, and leaned against me, resting her weight on me.
「Morning. I’ll make breakfast real quick so help me get ready.」
My day truly begins once I see Sena’s face.
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When I asked 「Huh?」,
Sena put her hand to her forehead for a bit and replied, 「She said she had something to do and left the house.」
Based on Sena’s prediction that 「I think she’ll be right back」, I prepare breakfast for her too just in case.
「Ichiro.」
「What?」
「This,」
Sena put down the miso soup bowl.
「It’s so warm, with such a gentle flavor.」
Letting out a sigh,
Sena said, 「Ichiro, thank you always.」
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I was going to tell her, you know, that I used dashi stock, and secretly prepared it at Milan’s house since yesterday, heheh, it’s good right, heheheh… but all of that flew out of my head.
Stammering, I remembered the box I bought from the Kansai dialect shopkeeper and said, 「Oh yeah!」
「Sena, here’s a little sweet for after the meal. Hehe,」 I said, rubbing my nose and presenting it to her with more pride than ever before.
「This is─── wait, what is this?」
Dejected by Sena’s coy reaction,
「What, you don’t know? In the world I came from, this is called chocolate. It’s such a popular sweet that girls all over the world engage in battle royales for it.」
「I know, this is chocolate.」
「Hey, don’t pretend to── well, whatever. Lady Sena, please enjoy it at your leisure.」
Sena picked up a piece and put it in her mouth,
「───～～～!!!」 Her eyes sparkled and she looked enraptured.
Seeing Sena lick her chocolate-covered fingers like a cat, I thought 「What a kitten」 but didn’t say it out loud. 「How was it?」 I asked.
「Delicious. Incredible. Chocolate is amazing.」
It seemed the deliciousness had wiped out what little vocabulary Sena had.
As I shrugged my shoulders, thinking 「good grief」,
Sena murmured, 「But───」
「Hm?」
「I like your miso soup more than chocolate, Ichiro.」
So, she continued,
「Ichiro, I want to drink your miso soup every day.」
I thought my heart would stop.
Does she understand what she’s saying?
There’s no way I could ask that. But,
「You mean…」
As I somehow tried to ask, Sena tilted her head and said, 「What?」
Just that is enough to render a man unable to ask anything.
Are these impish antics on purpose or not?
Only God and Lady Sena know the answer.
Girls really are unfair creatures, I grumbled to myself.
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