Fwaaa…… seriously now.
They finally fell asleep……
Haaa…… I’m so tired……
I can only imagine how much everyone has struggled until now with that kind of thing.
And the way they all looked so utterly delighted by the trial and error made it impossible for anyone to do anything but watch over them helplessly, smitten as they were.
From now on, I absolutely must take strict control of m’lord!
Sleep deprivation is the root of all illness.
Now that he has become my m’lord, I will make sure he lives long enough to pass away peacefully of old age in the end!
And at that final moment, I will say to him:
『I will accompany you even to the underworld』
With those words I will strike straight at his heart, filling it with contentment so he can pass on gently and peacefully!
「Mou. Shion.」
「Oh my, Aina-san. Up again at this strange hour, I see.」
「Yes. It seems I slept quite deeply…… How is our liege doing?」
Quite…… huh.
Sleeping beside m’lord while he worked, then waking up and coming back to the inn to sleep again, I would have thought that was a pretty fragmented sleep, but as expected of an A-rank adventurer, I suppose.
For adventurers, no matter the environment or how short the time, the ability to sleep deeply and recover fully is an essential skill.
「M’lord went to rest just a little while ago. How are the two of them doing? Have they recovered?」
I wonder how those enviable two are faring.
The two who trained so hard they ended up unable to move…… kuu, how enviable!
I want m’lord to dye me in his colors soon too!
But eventually, I want to take the lead against him!
Right now, my experience points are overwhelmingly lacking!
In other words…… I have even less experience than Aina-san, don’t I……?
Hmm…… Aina-san gives the impression of someone who’s rather innocent when it comes to these matters, yet knowing she has more experience than me suddenly makes that voluptuous body of hers look so lewd and alluring.
「Sorte and Renge are apparently fine now. Both of them are awake too, probably because they slept during the day.」
「Oh, is that so. But judging from m’lord’s state earlier, I think tomorrow will be comb-making again.」
When I tried to hurry him off to sleep, he begged me to let him make at least one efficiency-boosting magic tool first.
That upturned pleading gaze is just unfair.
The way he sometimes acts a little childish hits me right in the lower abdomen.
Why does an older adult man look so cute?
It must be the bias of being in love…… so of course I ended up accepting his request helplessly……
But I prepared an hourglass and set the condition that it had to finish before the sand ran out!
Well, it was impressive how they managed to wrap up just before it finished.
……Still, if it was going to end that quickly, I really wish they had waited until tomorrow.
「I see……」
「Well, I’ll accompany you tomorrow too. For now, I’ve prepared a memo with recommended spots in Amatsukuni for women, so please enjoy yourselves with everyone.」
I’ve visited Amatsukuni so many times I’m practically sick of it.
M’lord doesn’t seem particularly interested, but I’ll pick out some places I think everyone else would enjoy.
Wendy-san and Sorte-san, for example, would probably love surprising m’lord with Amatsukuni-style clothing.
「That would be a big help. Sorte and Renge both said there are places they want to see……. And, um…… Shion, are you sure you don’t need to sleep? You were glued to our liege all day today.」
「I’m fine. I’ve trained myself for this. While m’lord was working, I even napped standing up in short bursts.」
This much is only natural for a shinobi.
I’ve trained to keep my performance steady even when sleep-deprived, so there’s no problem!
Well…… in reality it does drop a little, so someone like Shiro-san would probably see right through it……
Speaking of which, Shiro-san said she was going to play…… Surely she didn’t actually go to fox shrine maiden-sama’s place to play……?
No, no, that can’t be.
She did look awfully tired for some reason, but yes. Must have been my imagination!
Even Shiro-san wouldn’t challenge fox shrine maiden-sama…… right?
「I see……」
「Um, is something wrong?」
「No, it’s just…… if it’s all right with you, Shion……」
「What is it? Do you have a request?」
「Yes. Um…… If our liege is going back to the woodworking guild tomorrow, I was thinking of making him a bento……」
「A bento……? In that case, wouldn’t Wendy-san handle it?」
Cooking seems to be Wendy-san’s domain, after all.
If Mizera-chan were here, they probably would have made it together.
I can cook too, but unfortunately I can’t compare to Wendy-san.
I think it’s best to leave things to the right person for the job!
「Mhm…… Of course, Wendy would take the lead. But…… after seeing him today, I also wanted to do something to help our lord. I’m not particularly good at cooking, but I thought maybe there’s something simple I could make that he’d enjoy, so I wanted to ask you, since you know a lot about Amatsukuni cuisine…… What do you think?」
Ooooh…… I had thought Aina-san was the calm, mature type among m’lord’s harem, someone with plenty of composure, but what is this adorable creature?
Eh, just the thought of feeding m’lord her homemade cooking is enough to make her cheeks flush bright red and fidget like that?
She’s done so many far more embarrassing and lewd things already, yet this is what gets her? How pure and maidenly!
She probably saw m’lord so focused on making the comb and wanted to do something to help him, right? Ahh, how earnest and sweet!
This is…… If I were a man, I might just push her down right now.
Though since Aina-san is stronger, I’d probably get beaten to a pulp……
「Fufufu. Very well, very well. I will teach Aina-san an Amatsukuni dish that absolutely matches m’lord’s tastes, one that anyone can make and that overflows with love!」
「R-Really! Then please! Fufu. I’ll do my best!」
Kuaaa……!
Her face just lit up so brightly!
M’lord, how fortunate you are as a man!
You womanizer! How hateful!
So many men must resent you for this!
Don’t worry! I’ll protect you all!
「Mmm. Then allow me to teach you…… the ultimate Amatsukuni dish……」
「Yes. Please do!」
Fufu fufu.
Aina-san may not be skilled at cooking, but with enough practice, even she should be able to make this ultimate Amatsukuni dish.
And m’lord will definitely love it without question!
Fine, fine. I’ll sacrifice my sleep time and devote myself to helping Aina-san!
「The ultimate Amatsukuni dish…… is onigiri!」
「Onigiri…… If I recall, it’s rice shaped by hand to make it easy to eat……」
「Exactly! Onigiri is the strongest dish, and m’lord without a doubt loves it more than anything!」
Simple is best!
It never misses m’lord’s preferences, and even a complete beginner can master it with practice, that profound dish is precisely onigiri!
「Hmm……」
「Oh? You don’t look convinced?」
If I had to guess…… it’s probably exactly what I think.
「Um…… Forgive me for asking when I’m the one seeking instruction, but…… is simply shaping rice really considered cooking?」
「Haaaa…… Exactly as I suspected. So shallow. Far too shallow!」
「What did you say?」
「You must never underestimate onigiri. Well, it’ll be faster to just try making them. Let’s start right away…… and finish before morning!」
「Before morning…… You really are underestimating me.」
「Aina-san, please don’t underestimate onigiri either……」
Now then, let’s borrow the kitchen and start by cooking the rice.
This part really has to be me.
Aina-san is making a face like she wants to do it, but no, that won’t do.
If the rice turns out mushy, we can’t make proper onigiri!
While the rice cooks, we’ll prepare the fillings in the meantime.
Let’s see…… there’s dried fish and kombu.
Maybe some katsuobushi and umeboshi too?
Of course, nori is absolutely essential!
「Mou. Shion. It’s boiling over.」
「It’s fine, it’s fine. Don’t take off the lid, okay? Even if a baby cries, you must not take it off.」
「Is that so……」
Wendy-san will probably handle the side dishes, so Aina-san and I will focus all our energy on the onigiri.
Yes…… the rice is done.
But right now it’s still too hot, and there’s too much moisture, so let’s fluff it up to let the excess steam escape.
Wash our hands thoroughly, and…… preparations are complete.
「Mou…… Come to think of it, won’t they cool down if we make them now?」
「They’ll still taste good even when cold, but since this is practice, don’t worry about it. Of course! We’ll have to eat them ourselves later.」
We can’t waste rice, after all.
We’ll enjoy them properly later!
……If we end up making way too many to finish, we can always ask Shiro-san to help.
「I see. Let me try. I’ll make it easily.」
「Yes, yes. Go ahead and despair…… Wait, it’s still hot!? And water! You have to wet your hands first, then spread the salt across your palm!」
That’s absolutely no good!
If it sticks, it’ll burn like crazy!
「Mou. Is that so. But I’m resistant to heat, so it’s fine. The salt…… I’ll add it later. Yes…… If I recall, the ones our lord made before were triangular.」
「Were they……? Well…… barrel-shaped would be fine too, but triangular is ideal.」
M’lord’s onigiri…… Ah, yes, we had them back in Yutopola.
Those were delicious……
Not just salt-gripped, but special ones seasoned with m’lord’s own blend, fragrant and absolutely perfect!
「Fufu fufu. Just watch. Ho. Ho…… Mou? ……Shion.」
「Yes, yes?」
「It’s not becoming triangular……?」
「The shape of your fingers matters. Like this, use your fingers and palm properly to form the triangle. Then rotate it while gently shaping.」
「I see…… Fufu. So it really is simple.」
「So~ you think……」
From my perspective, it’s obvious at a glance that it’s a failure.
Look, the finished size is much smaller than what I expected from the amount of rice you took.
「How is it, Shion!」
「Yes. It’s no good.」
「Why not!?」
「Just look. The rice grains are crushed. When you eat it, it’ll feel mushy and leave an unpleasant aftertaste. Onigiri must bloom in your mouth after you take a bite!」
「Wh…… What……」
「Also, as I said earlier, it’s better to spread the salt across your wet palm before gripping. That way the flavor stays even, and every bite has just the right amount of saltiness.」
「Muu……」
It did turn into a neat triangle, I’ll give you that.
But a looser triangle is fine.
There’s no need for all three corners to be perfectly sharp, you know?
「Muu………… H-How about now? The rice isn’t crushed this time.」
「This one…… At first glance it looks good, but when you hold it……」
「Ah! It fell apart……」
「You were too nervous and gripped it too hard…… Please learn the perfect amount of pressure.」
「Muuu…… Next time for sure…… Mou, I focused too much on the grip strength and now it won’t form a proper triangle……」
Fufu fufu.
Looks like you’ve finally realized just how difficult it really is.
Exactly. Onigiri seems simple, but the deeper you pursue it, the more profound the dish becomes!
「Ara? I heard voices from the kitchen and came to see what’s going on. What are you two doing?」
「Oh, Wendy-san. Perfect timing. Sorry to ask right away, but could you make an onigiri for us?」
「Haa…… Onigiri? Sure, no problem.」
After a quick glance to confirm the ingredients are ready, Wendy-san wets her hands, spreads salt across her palm, and in an instant shapes a beautiful triangular onigiri. As expected of her.
She even makes one with filling in no time! Flawless!
「Is this okay?」
「Perfect! How about it, Aina-san! The rice holds its shape firmly without crumbling, an excellent onigiri!」
Taha! It looks so delicious! Shiny and glossy!
Just add a few slices of pickled daikon on the side and it’s already a feast!
「So Aina-san is planning to make onigiri for Master’s lunch tomorrow?」
「Yes, that’s the plan…… Is that all right?」
「Of course. I’m sure Master will be delighted. Then tomorrow I’ll prepare side dishes that go well with onigiri.」
Wendy-san said 「Good luck」 and left the cramped kitchen to return to the room so she wouldn’t get in the way.
What is that air of the legitimate wife……?
Is it true that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach after all?
Perhaps I should focus on improving my cooking skills rather than my martial arts.
「So…… how is it?」
「Indeed…… Mine is no good. Muu…… I thought I was better at cooking than Sorte or Renge……」
「No, no. Wendy-san has the advantage of experience, but yours was much better than I expected! The worst offenders are the arrangers, you know……」
「Arrangers?」
「Yes. People who ignore the basics and experiment with impossible combinations just because they think it’s innovative. The absolute worst are the ones who arrange everything and then don’t even taste it……」
Why don’t arrangers ever check whether the food they make for someone they love actually tastes good……?
It feels like one of those eternal mysteries of the world that will never be solved.
「Surely not that bad…… I believe the basics are important.」
「Yes, yes. I’m relieved to hear Aina-san doesn’t need to worry about that. By the way…… once you master the grip for onigiri, your repertoire expands tremendously. Salt is the classic, but you can add fillings, mix ingredients in before shaping, grill them, or even pour broth over them!」
「Amazing…… So it’s a dish full of possibilities.」
「Exactly. The ultimate Amatsukuni meal is, without question, onigiri. Do you understand now?」
「Yes. All right. I’ll change my mindset and take this seriously.」
「Let’s do our best! I’ll cheer you on until you get it right!」
Yes, yes.
When the student is eager to learn, teaching becomes truly rewarding.
At this rate, we should finish before morning.
That was how lightly I thought at the time.
……I never imagined Aina-san would turn out to be so perfectionistic.
Ugh…… A few crushed grains really wouldn’t matter……
It’s already a perfectly delicious onigiri……
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