Chapter 82

I've waited for you. This time, I have a bit more. Or rather, it's become a lot more.

"Alright! Al! Let's practice swordsmanship!"

"No way."

Tall, who received the Goblin Sword, said this with a heavy breath.

Why do I have to practice swordsmanship again the next day after being made to practice with Elinora-nee-san yesterday?

I've come back to the village of Coirat after a long journey from the capital. I think it would be nice if they showed a bit of consideration for that.

Still, I felt a bit regretful that the reality of returning to the mansion only hit me after being hit with Elinora-nee-san's wooden sword yesterday.

"It's fine, just a little! Just a little, okay? Come on, I've gotten stronger too, you know?"

"No way. Besides, it's dangerous, don't point that sword at me!"

I slowly back away from Tall, who points the Goblin Sword at me.

"What are you two fussing about?"

The one who called out to us was Asmo, who lives next door to Tall.

Judging from the mud on his shoes and the sweat on his skin, he must have been working in the fields just now.

"I'm trying to get Al to practice swordsmanship, but he won't do it."

Tall, who still sounds dissatisfied, holds the Goblin Sword on his shoulder.

He must have been really happy to get the sword, and he's eager to show it off to Asmo.

"Sword? Ah, it's not the usual wooden sword. A souvenir from the capital?"

"That's right! Look, it's a real sword!"

Tall shows off the sword happily, as if glad that Asmo asked.

In response, Asmo says,

"Hmm, that's great. But Al, what about my souvenir?"

"Hey! Show more interest in what I'm saying!"

"I have it, I have it. It's the capital's specialty, Dragon Muffins."

He doesn't seem interested at all. I don't feel like practicing swordsmanship with Tall either, so I go along with it.

"Yay! Sweets from the capital!"

Asmo's expression changes from a seemingly uninterested face to a smile.

Even though the Triella Trading Company comes regularly, sugar is quite expensive for the villagers.

Selia, who runs a restaurant, might be able to afford it, but most people would only buy a small amount as a seasoning.

Selia can't even make sweets, so sweets are a precious thing for the villagers.

By the way, the Dragon Muffins I brought for Asmo are properly packed in a box. Since they don't spoil in the subspace, they can always be eaten fresh.

I think the space magic that can produce freshly baked food anywhere is the best. Just by storing street food, you can always have a warm meal.

I have nearly thirty skewers of Wushi meat, which are so delicious.

Sometimes I really want to eat junk food like that.

"Dragon Muffins are the popular sweets that appeared in the story of the Dragon Slayer, right?"

Hearing the words "Dragon Muffins," Tall's eyes light up. It seems the idea of sword practice has flown out of his head. He's more interested in food than in swords.

Why are you so eager to eat them when they're for Asmo?

"Hey, come to my house. I'll bring out my mother's secret tea leaves."

Tall runs in front of us and leads us to his house.

It seems he's trying to get his hands on the Dragon Muffins by entertaining us at his house and offering his mother's secret tea leaves.

If I can get even half, it would be a good deal, but I don't know what will happen to you later.

"No, these are my souvenirs."

"Hey, are you going to eat Dragon Muffins with water? That's a sacrilege to sweets. Good food should be eaten with good drinks. Asmo, you understand, right?"

"Ugh... tea leaves... what kind of leaves are they?"

Tall's words sway Asmo's heart.

If it's a sweet that you can't usually eat, it's natural to want to eat it with a suitable drink to make it even more delicious.

"…I forgot the name, but it's the same as the leaves at Al's mansion."

"Royal Feed."

"That's right, that's it!"

Ah, I remember. Elna-mama gave them to Tall's mother, saying, "Thank you for always taking care of me."

"Is it the one that comes out like water at Al's mansion...?"

Well, he is a noble, after all. Elna-mama likes tea too.

I don't invite them often because they only eat my food and sweets when I do. I want to relax at the mansion.

"Hmm, if that's the case, I'll eat one-sixth of it—"

"One! "

Tall objects to Asmo's one-sixth statement.

In the village of Coirat, there's nothing more unreliable than one bite.

After all, at Selia's restaurant,

"There's no choice. One bite, one bite."

"Hehehe, I understand."

"Ah! You ate it all! You bastard!"

"What? You said one bite!"

"You bastard! Give me my money back!"

This happens almost every day.

As a countermeasure, if you cut them into smaller sizes, they go for the bigger ones in one bite.

Those who can hold them in their hands even put the other person's fingers in their mouths.

You never know what they'll do.

And in the end, they end up fighting and hitting each other with their fists.

But to suddenly demand one whole is a tough move by Tall.

He probably doesn't think he'll get the whole thing, but he's using a technique that merchants often use to gradually lower the demand line to make the other person more likely to agree.

He's still bad at reading and math, but when did he learn such a technique?

"One whole is out of the question. One quarter."

"Royal Feed? If you're using high-quality tea leaves, that's not enough. Half."

"Hmm... Well, if it's Royal Feed, I guess that's understandable. Can I have just one cup?"

"I'm not that stingy."

"How much sugar can I use?"

While the two of them are still negotiating the amount, I use space magic in the shade of a stump and take out the box of Dragon Muffins.

There are four in the box, including the portions for Asmo and Sheela, his father and mother, so it should be fine to share them normally.

"Alright, that's fine. Three cups of tea and four teaspoons of sugar! The spoons don't count, okay?"

"…Tch."

"Tch, you. …By the way, Al, where are the Dragon Muffins?"

"Ah, they're in this white box."

I pretend to have placed the white box next to the stump and hold it up.

A gentle breeze carries the sweet scent of butter, and Tall and Asmo swallow hard.

Even I, who have already eaten a few, feel my mouth watering.

"Let's eat quickly!"

"Come on, you two."

Asmo pushes my back, and Tall, holding the sword in one hand, opens the door to his house.

They're always so quick to move when it comes to this.

Still, Tall entering the house with a sword in one hand looks like a pervert. If he came in like that in the middle of the night, his family would be shocked.

Tall puts the sword at the edge of the entrance and goes inside.

I should have prepared a scabbard for him.

When we sit down in the living room, Tall starts rummaging in the kitchen.

He must be preparing the tea.

Asmo, on the other hand, takes out knives, plates, and forks and starts setting the table, as if he knows the place well.

Sure enough, he knows where the knives and plates are in the kitchen.

Well, after decades of friendship, it's only natural.

Of course, no plates or forks are placed in front of me.

No, I'm fine because I brought the souvenirs and have already eaten a few.

You don't have to look at me like that, as if you're not going to eat.

"Hey? I'm sure my mother put them in the back of the three-tiered pan."

Tall sticks his head into the lower shelf of the kitchen and says this.

Tall's mother must be desperate. Is there really someone who would steal them to the point of hiding them like that?

"Ah, that's right! Ouch!"

Ah, he hit his head. I can tell just by the sound.

"I think she said she moved it because she was afraid her sister would find it. I'm sure she put it in the pot."

After searching for a while, Tall comes back with a cylindrical box.

I'm sure the tea leaves are in there.

Tall hands it to Asmo and starts preparing the teapot and cups.

Asmo, who received the tea leaves, smells them himself and then passes them to me.

"Is this the real thing?"

What a suspicious guy.

"Yeah, it's the same Royal Feed as at my mansion."

"Then it's fine. Thank you."

"Hey, it is the real thing."

Tall, who has been watching us, pouts and brings the sugar.

"Al, can you light the fire with magic?"

"Sure, I'll make the tea. In exchange, I'll have one cup."

Elinora-nee-san makes me do all the work for some reason.

If I brought bad tea, I'd be killed. That's why I asked Mel to teach me how to make good tea.

It's not as good as Mel's, but it's decent. After all, Mel is the talent Elna-mama brought from the capital.

Mel is a rough person, but her tea is delicate.

I put water in the kettle with water magic and float it with psychokinesis. Then I create a fireball with fire magic to raise the temperature.

"I saw you do this a little during the snowball fight. You're still as skillful as ever."

"You use magic so casually."

Tall and Asmo, who have nothing to do, are propping their cheeks up and watching me.

"Well, if it's a simple magic like this, I can do it at the same time."

It's just a matter of focusing on both the kettle and the fire.

Well, it might take a lot of concentration at first. If you're not careful, the temperature of the fire might rise to an incredible level.

"Hmm, to us, who can't do much, it just looks amazing."

"Are you going to a magic school?"

"No, I'm not."

Even if they offered to open one in the village of Coirat, I wouldn't go.

"If you can use magic like that, you could probably make a lot of money."

"I have Reversi and Shogi, so I don't really need it."

"You're not greedy, huh?"

"No, I do have desires. I want to spend the rest of my life in peace like this."

"You say you have desires, but it's different."

My current ambition is to get soy sauce.

If I had that, I could make a wider variety of dishes.

It seems to be in a country where rice is grown, but it's quite far. Maybe I should go there myself.

While I'm thinking about this, the water in the kettle starts to boil and bubbles come out.

"Hey, the water's ready. Tall, bring the teacups."

"Huh? Okay."

Tall brings the teacups and I pour the hot water into the cups and the teapot to warm them up.

"There are no tea leaves yet?"

"I'm just warming them up."

"This is a trick to make it taste better. I remember my mother doing it."

Tall nods in understanding and goes back to the table.

"Hey, Asmo, don't waste the sugar!"

"It's fine. I'm hungry."

While the two of them start arguing, I pour the water out of the teapot and put the tea leaves in for the number of people.

Then I pour the boiling water from the kettle into the teapot.

The trick is to pour it in quickly. Then, I immediately put the lid on and let it steep.

I flip over a nearby hourglass to measure the time.

It's a small one like the one we have at home, so it's probably one minute.

Royal Feed is best steeped for two minutes and forty seconds, so I flip the hourglass over again when the sand is all gone.

I count the remaining forty seconds while discarding the water in the cups.

When I feel it's been forty seconds, I quickly pour the tea into the cups, making sure the strength is the same and pouring until the last drop.

"Hey, the tea's ready."

"Finally. That took a while."

"I want to eat quickly."

The two of them put the muffins on plates and take forks and knives in their hands.

What are they trying to act so refined for? They could just eat with their hands.

Well, they're probably trying to enjoy the high-class atmosphere, so I won't say anything.

Asmo, who asked for sugar, doesn't seem to be using it while there are muffins.

"Alright, let's eat!"

Before Tall can say that, Asmo has already put a Dragon Muffin in his mouth.

"Here you go."

"Wow, it's Royal something. It smells good."

You should at least remember the name. It's a shame for your mother, who hid it so carefully.

Tall enjoys the aroma and takes a light sip.

"It smells better and tastes better than the tea my mother makes!"

I'm not sure if he can really tell the difference, but I'm glad he's satisfied.

"The muffins are delicious..."

Asmo, who has eaten the muffin, relaxes with a happy expression.

They're fluffy and sweet, but the tangy fruit inside makes them even more delicious.

"I want to eat one too... I can understand why women are so particular about sweets."

"It goes well with the tea."

The two of them savor the muffins and tea. I could have given them more muffins, but I thought it would be more delicious to share them.

"Hey, Al! Tell us about the capital! You saw a play, right?"

"Sure."

The three of us drink tea and chat, spending a pleasant time together.

It's as if Tall and Asmo have become nobles too.

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"Tall! How long are you going to slack off? I told you to come to the field after you finished splitting the firewood, didn't