The girl looked at the steaming flower tea in her hand. Her own reflection rippled in the purple-red water—a face that looked both lancholic and strangely relieved.
"Making an already bad life better, huh... Heh... an interesting way of putting it..."
She lifted the cup to her lips, the steam warming her face. She closed her eyes, savoring the fragrance.
"Hm? Wait... this isn't ordinary rose..."
Lost in her thoughts about duty, sacrifice, and mory wipes, she accidentally drank a rose petal that had rehydrated and floated to the surface.
When the girl realized, her natural reaction was to spit it out—a reflex born of years of strict etiquette. But as soon as she ca back to her senses, she discovered that this rose, surprisingly, didn't taste like the bitter, papery dried flowers she was used to.
She tentatively bit into it.
Crunch.
It didn't have the dry, shriveled texture of rose tea she rembered. Although this was also air-dried, its texture surprisingly had a hint of crispness, like a freshly pickled vegetable.
The unique sweetness of the rose, having absorbed the sweet and sour notes of the blueberries in the tea, blood in her mouth. But there was sothing else—a savory undertone that grounded the sweetness.
"Tea leaves?" she whispered.
The girl found herself sowhat addicted. She chewed slowly, finding that the taste of this rose could actually make her feel like she was eating a sophisticated snack. It was a delightful contrast to her heavy heart.
"Hm? It seems you really like this tea. The taste isn't bad, is it?"
Just as the girl was savoring the petal, she saw Ren approach. He held a tray with a classic blue-and-white porcelain bowl, the kind specifically designed for Chazuke, with a matching lid.
When the girl saw Ren, she didn't rush to look at the covered dish. Instead, she asked Ren in confusion, her curiosity piqued, "Shopkeeper, may I ask why this rose tastes so... complex? It's unlike any infusion I've had at the Church."
"So magical, right?" Ren teased gently as he set the tray down.
"Yes! It defies the nature of dried flowers."
It was clear the girl was very interested in the culinary arts.
Ren smiled and explained, "Ah, this. It's made by drying the roses until they're mostly air-dried, then fumigating them with high-quality green tea leaves every day, drying them along with the tea leaves in a slow process. This way, the petals absorb the tea's aroma without losing their own essence."
The girl nodded, her red eyes sparkling with analytical interest. "But how do you control the degree of drying? If you fumigate them, they regain moisture. It must be hard to prevent rot or over-drying."
Ren nodded approvingly. "It seems like you're a lady who knows how to cook. You're right, it is tricky. But the thod is also very simple: just salt them lightly before the final drying. This way, you can control the moisture inside the roses through osmosis. The amount is completely self-controlled."
The girl nodded in sudden understanding, then chuckled softly. "A very interesting thod. Using salt to preserve the texture while infusing flavor... clever. This must be the Snapper Chazuke, right~"
Ren nodded, then reached for the lid of the bowl. "Allow ."
He lifted the lid.
Whoosh.
Imdiately, a cloud of steam rose, carrying a rich green tea aroma and the faint, unmistakable fresh fragrance of the sea.
The girl completely cald down. The scent was like a balm to her frayed nerves. She looked at the steaming Chazuke in front of her, paused, then nodded respectfully. "This taste... Shopkeeper, you are indeed not an ordinary Restaurant owner. The broth slls incredibly pure."
"Please enjoy. Oh... by the way. Let add this for you~"
Saying that, Ren turned back to the kitchen for a split second, then returned. Under the girl's puzzled gaze, he placed a single, slightly reddish, wrinkled object on top of the pile of ingredients.
"Uboshi?" she asked.
"A special one. Now it's complete. Please enjoy."
With that, he turned and returned to his seat behind the counter, picking up his cold tea and his book, blending into the background like a shadow.
The girl glanced at Ren, appreciating the privacy he offered. Then she lowered her head to look at the steaming Chazuke. She waved her hand to disperse the steam to get a better look.
When she saw the true appearance, she was stunned.
The rice was like white jade—each grain plump, distinct, and lustrous. Several slices of pan-fried sea bream (Tai) were arranged artistically on the side. The fish skin was golden and crispy, while the at looked tender. Scattered roasted sesa seeds added a nutty contrast.
Shredded nori seaweed, thin strips of red ginger, and a few vibrant radish sprouts adorned the dish, making it rich and colorful.
At the bottom lay the broth—a clear, slightly green liquid made from a reduction of snapper bones and premium sencha tea. And crowning it all was the dried plum Ren had just added.
"Hm~ A perfect composition... Never mind, let's eat first... Itadakimasu!"
The girl clasped her hands together. She was clearly very particular about etiquette, her movents precise and graceful.
She picked up her ceramic spoon and scooped a small amount of the broth first.
Her lips curved slightly as she slowly brought it to her mouth.
Sip.
As the broth washed over her tongue, the girl felt her entire being loosen. The tension in her shoulders dropped. She felt as if she was standing in a quiet tea garden overlooking the sea.
The fresh, grassy flavor of the tea and the rich, savory umami of the snapper broth perfectly complented each other. They didn't rge into a muddy flavor; rather, they supported and enhanced each other, distinct yet unified.
"Hoo... I'm not surprised anymore... This is mastery."
She picked up her spoon again and scooped a spoonful of rice and fish.
The rice was perfectly cooked—firm enough to hold its shape in the broth, but soft enough to absorb the flavors. The snapper at flaked apart effortlessly.
She took a bite.
Mmm.
The textures danced—the crunch of the skin, the softness of the rice, the snap of the radish sprouts. The sourness of the plum cut through the richness of the fish oils, cleansing the palate for the next bite.
The girl couldn't stop eating. Looking at the rice in front of her, she felt that this dish was simply too perfect. At this mont, the girl—Kanzaki Kaori, the Saint of the Amakusa Church—truly felt like an explorer discovering a treasure.
When she finished the last drop of broth in the bowl, tilting it slightly to get every bit, she sighed with a satisfied smile.
"A very delicious dish. Shopkeeper, your cooking is excellent! It rivals the best chefs in Kyoto."
Ren just smiled from his seat, not looking up from his book. "I'd rather not boast about that. It's just alright. I can only say it just happens to suit the custor's taste~."
Kanzaki shook her head and said seriously, "You are too modest, Manager. I believe I have a deep understanding of making this broth and pickled plums—I cook for myself often—but compared to you, I am far behind. The fact that you dare to say you can make any dish you want as long as you have the ingredients proves that you are confident. Your culinary skills are truly exceptional."
Ren smiled and put his book down. "Then thank you for the complints~. Are you feeling a bit better now?"
"Hm?" Kanzaki blinked.
"When you ca in, you were clearly anxious to leave, gripping that sword like a lifeline. But after realizing you could go back, you checked the ti and decided to eat. You must have sothing urgent, and it's likely sothing that makes you very sad. People usually eat comfort food like Chazuke when they seek solace."
Kanzaki fell silent. The warmth of the al faded slightly, replaced by the cold reality of her mission.
After a long period of internal struggle, seeing Ren's calm and knowing gaze, she decided to speak. Perhaps a stranger in Another World was the best confidant.
"Manager," she said in a deep voice, "since you have guests from Another World here, you must know about the existence of magic, right?"
"Of course. A mage left not long before you. He was complaining about petricite chains."
Kanzaki nodded. "I once had a friend. A best friend. She is a nun from our church, nad Index. Because she possesses a 'Perfect mory' ability, the Church used her to store 103,000 forbidden grimoires that were too dangerous to exist physically."
Ren listened, his expression neutral.
"Because the grimoires are toxic to the mind and occupy almost all of her mory capacity," Kanzaki continued, her voice trembling slightly, "her usable mory space for her own life is very small. According to the calculations, she has to have her mory wiped once a year to prevent her brain from overloading and killing her. And I... I am the one who has to ensure it happens. Tonight is the deadline."
Ren was startled. He frowned slightly. Then he smiled, a strange, knowing smile.
"Doesn't that make her stronger? Carrying that much knowledge? That's a good thing~"
Kanzaki shook her head violently, tears pricking her eyes. "No! It's a curse! A person's mory is limited! 15% is the limit! The grimoires take up 85%! If we don't wipe her mories, she will die! I have to erase her mories of ... of our friendship... to save her life!"
Ren asked, confused, "Is there a difference between grimoires and ordinary textbooks? Does magic occupy mory physically like a tumor?"
"If it's text, there's no difference," Kanzaki admitted. "But the volu... wait... What are you trying to say?"
Ren looked at her with pity. "Then that's absolutely impossible~. Not to ntion that the human brain isn't fully developed, even an ordinary person's mory has a very long shelf life. Even if one forgets, theoretically, a person's lifeti mory capacity for books alone could hold at least the entire collection of multiple national libraries without issue."
He leaned forward.
"And this doesn't even account for mories outside of books. The human brain isn't a hard drive with a fixed 100GB limit. It's impossible for a person to truly 'run out of space' from reading books. The brain is plastic. It adapts. Using the brain more develops it to rember more things."
Ren's voice was calm but piercing.
"Miss... I think you've been lied to. Or at least, the premise of your tragedy is scientifically... and magically... absurd."
Kanzaki's pupils constricted. She stood up, her chair scraping loudly against the floor. She looked at Ren in disbelief, her hands trembling.
"Do you... do you know what you're saying?! Are you saying... all this pain... all these years of erasing her mories... was for nothing?!"
[Akarin Note:
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