Chapter 16

"Whether I drink alcohol or not, it's my choice, Lorenz."

"I'll give you back those exact words, Mr. Holger."

In the tense atmosphere, Shinobu forgot to serve the otoshi, and Taisho, who was grilling the shishamo, made a mistake he would never usually make, burning it.

I have to pull myself together.

Eifa made up her mind and, carrying the otoshi that Taisho had prepared for Lorenz, stepped out from behind the counter.

"Welcome. Today's otoshi is edamame."

She tried to speak in a loud voice, but the two men were still glaring at each other, as if they hadn't heard her.

From Eifa's perspective, they looked like giants. Still, she couldn't back down. This time, she put strength into her abdomen and spoke even louder.

"Edamame otoshi!"

This time, the two men finally noticed her.

Lorenz took the plate and the wet towel, looking a bit embarrassed. His hands were large but gentle, just like Holger's.

"Look at this, Holger. Because of you, we got scolded by such a cute young lady."

"Shut up, Lorenz. The young lady's name is Eifa. Engrave it in your head, which is as empty as a glass."

The two started arguing again, and Eifa quickly retreated behind the counter. Taisho, who had been silent, handed her the shishamo he had burned earlier.

"Thanks, Eifa. Do you want to eat the shishamo?"

Nodding vigorously, Eifa took the still warm shishamo.

Taisho didn't want to worry Shinobu, but he hadn't eaten anything since morning.

Crouching behind the counter, Eifa took out the shishamo she had received.

Feeling sorry for the head, she started gnawing from the tail.

The burned skin had a slight bitterness, but the flesh inside was soft and fluffy, spreading the flavor of the shishamo in her mouth. Despite being seasoned only with salt, it was incredibly delicious.

"Delicious."

Then, the eggs.

The first sensation was the chewy texture, followed by a different flavor dancing on her tongue. Because she was so hungry, Eifa finished the two shishamo she had received in one go. She felt she could eat ten or twenty shishamo if she had them.

After finishing and feeling satisfied, Eifa noticed the unusual silence.

Looking up, she saw the customers at the counter peering inside.

Feeling suddenly embarrassed, Eifa lowered her head and quickly stood up, returning to washing dishes as if nothing had happened.

The counter seats had momentarily relaxed at the sight of Eifa eating shishamo but were heating up again.

"Look at this glass, Lorenz. Neither you nor your prideful eldest son can make a glass like this, can you?"

"If you say so, Holger, look at the knife Taisho uses to clean the squid. Neither you nor your father has ever forged a knife like that."

The topics of their argument seemed endless. The conversation expanded to the utensils, tools, and interior of the izakaya Nobu, and they were now discussing how much of each other's skills they could replicate.

Shinobu, completely thrown off by their strong arguments, hesitated even when taking orders for side dishes.

Moreover, when the dishes arrived,

"Holger's hokke is not as satisfying to an adult's palate as my ayu salt-grilled."

"Your croquettes are not as delicious as my thick-cut bacon."

They even started exchanging dishes and critiquing them.

Taisho decided to ignore them unless he had to intervene, focusing on preparing the excess squid he had mistakenly purchased.

However, Eifa gradually began to understand their rhythm.

"Eifa, thanks for the otoshi earlier."

Shinobu, who had taken refuge behind the counter, stuck out her tongue.

Eifa didn't mind the childish side of Shinobu, who was a bit older.

"It's fine. I want to learn how to serve customers someday too."

"That would be a big help. Then I might start learning more about cooking."

While drinking water, Shinobu's joke made her seem like an older sister.

Eifa had many younger siblings but no older sister. Her older brother had long since moved out, making Eifa the oldest among the children at home.

Her father's income was not good, so they couldn't afford firewood, and she had even tried to steal a faucet from Nobu. But now, she no longer thought about such things.

Her goal was to learn the job, work hard, and earn a salary to feed her younger siblings.

Because of this, Eifa understood certain things.

"Hey, Eifa. What if those customers really start fighting?"

Worried, Shinobu whispered. Eifa smiled gently.

"Don't worry, they're just having fun."

"Huh?"

It was the same as her younger siblings playfully fighting.

There is a distance in verbal sparring. Because they understood this distance, they could keep arguing like this. Otherwise, one of them would have already hit the other or left the seat.

In the end, the two craftsmen at the counter were just big boys.

Leaving Shinobu, who was deep in thought, Eifa took out the yakisoba she had been given as a meal. Today's yakisoba was special, topped with a fluffy omelet.

The best thing about working at Nobu was getting to eat delicious meals.

Because she could eat here, Eifa hardly ate anything at home, so her younger siblings could have more to eat.

Holding a spoon and fork, she faced the yakisoba.

Even before eating, the creamy, smooth taste of the egg and the rich flavor of the yakisoba sauce seemed to harmonize in her mouth.

Her throat made a gulping sound.

She had only eaten two shishamo since morning, and her stomach was completely empty. She touched the spoon to the perfectly cooked omelet.

At that moment, the faces of her younger siblings appeared before her eyes.

"Sorry, Shinobu."

"What's wrong, Eifa? You can eat the meal."

"Actually, I'm not very hungry today... Can I take this home?"

Her younger siblings lived a life far removed from such delicious food.

Once, the family had come to this restaurant together. She never thought she would end up working here. Thanks to this, she could eat the meals, but her younger siblings only had hard bread and soup.

She wanted to take this dish home for them.

Watching the two men at the counter argue, Eifa truly felt this way.

"Is it okay?" Eifa asked, but Shinobu interrupted with a smile.

"Eifa, you don't need to worry."

"What do you mean?"

"You want to take it home for your younger siblings, right?"

Eifa couldn't stop her cheeks from turning red.

She didn't expect being caught in a small lie to be so embarrassing.

Shinobu whispered something to Taisho, who nodded at Eifa.

"You can eat this yakisoba, Eifa. I'll make something else that tastes good even when it's cold for you to take home."

"Yes! Thank you!"

She bowed deeply to hide her embarrassment at her loud response. A warm feeling spread in her chest, grateful to be working at this restaurant.

Regaining her composure, she picked up her spoon and fork again.

The yakisoba, already delicious, was topped with an omelet. Two different dishes, but Eifa was confident this combination would be exquisite.

Just as her spoon was about to touch the omelet, a voice called from the counter.

"Sorry, Shinobu. Can I have the same thing as Eifa?"

"Hey, Holger, that's not fair... I want the same thing too."

There they were again.

This time, they seemed to be arguing about whether to order this omelet yakisoba. Eifa's hand tightened on the spoon.

"Make mine first. I ordered before Lorenz."

"What are you talking about, Holger? That doesn't matter."

Something snapped in Eifa's head.

"You two! Eat your food properly!"

Despite being younger than their children, Holger and Lorenz straightened their backs.

"Y-Yes!"

"O-Okay!"

They answered instinctively, then became awkward, like small children caught fighting by their mother.

Seeing their postures, Eifa huffed and finally started eating the meal of the day at the small izakaya Nobu.