Chapter 61

Kain has memories of his past life.

In his past life, Kain was a man in his late 20s living in Japan on a planet called Earth. He loved games and made a living by streaming game play videos.

Although he was already a fully grown adult, in his past life, Kain had a strong aversion to hoya (a type of sea squirt). The texture, appearance, and smell of the sea were all repulsive to him, and he would frown just at the sight of hoya on a menu at an izakaya (Japanese pub).

He had even been told by an older woman at work that it was not appropriate for an adult to have such likes and dislikes, but he would counter that it was fine because he didn't dislike green and yellow vegetables.

Fortunately, in the world he was reborn into, he had not yet encountered hoya.

This might be because the capital is far from the sea, or perhaps hoya simply does not exist in this world, which is the setting of a dating simulation game.

Hoya is a food that seems out of place in a dating simulation game.

However, in his current life, Kain found that he could not tolerate carrots, a type of green and yellow vegetable.

In his past life, he had no aversion to carrots. In fact, he loved glazed carrots served with meat dishes, which were sweet and rich, enhanced with sugar and butter, and even more delicious when mixed with meat juices and demi-glace sauce, thinking of them as food from the gods.

Yet, when the taste hit Kain's tongue, he could not accept it.

He could no longer tolerate the sweetness of a vegetable.

He resigned himself to the idea that this was due to some incompatibility in his body or the influence of his genes.

Considering that Kain, who in his past life had struggled with rote memorization, could now grow through effort in studies and exercise as a "target to be conquered" in this world, he had to accept that he was a completely different person, despite having memories of his past life.

It was very disappointing that he could no longer find the taste of that divine food delicious.

Kain had another challenge in his current life: Dianah also disliked carrots.

To teach her that it was not good to have likes and dislikes, he had to set an example by eating carrots himself. Dianah also disliked large beans, but he could sometimes eat them for her, saying, "You have to eat them next time" and "Don't tell Mother."

By eating for her, he would be thanked with "I love big brother!" and thus he would alternate between encouraging her to eat and eating for her.

However, he could not do this with carrots. He could only encourage Dianah to eat them herself, as he could barely manage to eat his own share.

"Would you be able to enjoy eating carrots if someone praised you for eating them, Kain-sama?"

"Dianah, the carrots and beans aren't suddenly becoming delicious, are they?"

In front of him were orange-colored cookies and a pound cake, apparently made by the cook to help him overcome his aversion to carrots. His mother, Elise, had brought them in a moment ago. Kain thought it was unnecessary and felt annoyed.

During meals, he had managed to eat carrots without showing it on his face, but the cook had found out about his aversion.

It happened during his confinement when he was eating in his room. There was a period when he had no appetite and left food on his plate, but he had tried to leave it evenly. Unconsciously, he left more carrots.

If he had left half of the side dish, it would have been fine, but only the carrots in the side dish were left. It was unconscious.

"I'll praise you if you can eat it, okay?"

Ilvareno stood beside him with a smirk, watching him.

Kain clicked his tongue and glared at Ilvareno, then picked up a cookie.

Despite his aversion to the sweetness of carrots, the cook had processed them into a sweet cookie. Kain thought, "Do you not understand the feelings of those who have nothing?" and struggled to bring the cookie to his mouth.

Knock, knock! Bang!

The door to Kain's private room opened with a knock.

"I'll read a book to you, big brother!"

"Dianah-sama, please wait for a response after knocking before entering."

"Yes!"

As usual, Dianah entered the room after the exchange, carrying a large picture book. When she saw the cookie in Kain's fingers, her eyes sparkled.

"Ah! Big brother, that's unfair! I want to eat too!"

Dianah ran to the low table and, before Kain or Ilvareno could say anything, grabbed a cookie and stuffed it into her mouth.

"Dianah-sama, that..."

"Dianah, are you okay?"

Dianah, who was chewing a large carrot cookie, puffed out her cheeks and swallowed with a "Gulp," then smiled.

"It's delicious! What color is this orange? Orange? Flower?"

As she said this, Dianah grabbed another cookie and stuffed it into her mouth.

Kain and Ilvareno, who had been watching her silently, looked at each other.

"Is it okay?"

When Ilvareno asked, Kain nodded, and Ilvareno took a cookie and put it in his mouth.

He chewed with a furrowed brow for a while, then swallowed and tilted his head.

"Kain-sama, you can probably eat it."

"Ugh..."

Kain, who also disliked carrots, saw Dianah eating with a smile and heard Ilvareno's assurance that he could eat it.

It would be embarrassing not to eat it in this situation. He threw the cookie he had been holding into his mouth.

When he chewed, a faint sweetness of honey spread in his mouth, and the aroma of wheat crumbled and disappeared down his throat.

There was no hint of the grassy smell.

"The taste of carrots is not there..."

"Perhaps the cook made an effort to include carrots but not make them noticeable to help with the aversion?"

"Isn't that... pointless?"

Both Kain and Dianah dislike carrots but always finish them. Dianah eats them with a frown, and Kain eats them while hiding his expression.

Isn't this a method to make children who refuse to eat certain foods eat them?

"If the taste of carrots is not there, it won't help overcome the aversion."

"Should we praise you?"

"I don't need it."

Unlike Kain, who knew the taste of carrots was not there but still hesitated, Dianah continued to eat the cookies one after another.

"Il-kun! I want tea!"

"Dianah-sama, I'll make tea, so please sit properly and eat."

"Yes!"

Kain stood up once, picked up Dianah, and sat back down on the sofa.

Ilvareno walked towards the tea cabinet.

When the cookies were halfway gone, Dianah reached for the pound cake.

"Dianah, that's big, so let's share it. If you eat it whole, it will stick out of your mouth."

Kain took the pound cake before Dianah and split it in half, giving one piece to her.

Kain, who had not tasted the carrots in the cookies, was off guard. He ate the half-sized piece in one bite.

The pound cake, which contains more moisture and is easier to mix with other ingredients than cookies, contained a much larger amount of grated carrots.

When Ilvareno, who had turned to pour water into the teapot, saw the two of them writhing on the sofa, he was taken aback.

I'm sorry. The beginning of the month is incredibly busy, and I don't seem to have time to advance the main story.

This is a side story, but I hope you enjoy it.