Vol 3 Chapter 3.2 (1/2)

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Chapter 3.2

Volume 3 Chapter 3: I went to the cake shop  (part 2)

“Erm… this might be a strange thing to ask, but had Ami-san’s brother done something?”  [Cecilia]

“I guess you’d be curious about it after seeing how I reacted. Brother… his name is Andrei. He wasn’t like that in the past.”  [Ami]

Ami had a sullen look on her face as she explained. She seemed immersed in her memories, but, as a result, the atmosphere had become solemn. It was as if she had turned into a completely different person. Such a demeanour might be fine at the moment since Cecilia and I were the only ones here, but it would be a problem if she were to behave the same way in front of other customers.

“Erm, it seems that I’ve asked something that I shouldn’t have.”  [Cecilia]

Cecilia tried to put an end to the conversation as she seemed to have sensed the negative aura emanating from Ami-san as well. She appeared apologetic about it since she was the one who had brought up that topic.

“No, it’s fine. The reason brother was training his body was actually for my sake.”  [Ami]

“Eh?”  [Cecilia]

“Our parents were pastry chefs as well. They lost their lives in the war, but brother and I have been following in their footsteps since young.”  [Ami]

It seemed that we had entered into a serious conversation. I decided to put the thoughts about today’s date on hold and joined in.

“Even after our parents died, my brother and I have not abandoned their dreams. But, probably because of the war against the Demon Lord, the relations.h.i.+p between the people in the neighbourhood and us became strained, and my brother and I wound up bearing the brunt of it. They condemned us, as we still aspired to be pastry chefs even though we were in the middle of a war.”  [Ami]

“It must be a painful experience for you…”  [Cecilia]

Cecilia’s expression darkened. This conversation had probably led to bouts of thinking since she had partic.i.p.ated in the war. It sure did in my case. Ami-san was unlikely to be the only one affected by this. There may have been thousands of people who were in the same situation. It’s said that nothing good comes from war, and I wholeheartedly agree with that. Even when the war broke out outside, I didn’t do anything but hole up inside the Demon Lord’s castle.

“…It’s feels remorseful.”  [Youki]

I muttered under my breath. At that time, if I had done something about it instead of hiding myself in the room – turning into a chuuni – just to escape reality, would their fate have been different?

I became emotional myself as my mind drifted back to the past. I looked at the two of them in silence, as though I were looking at unnusual things.

“Youki-san, are you all right? There’s a look of remorse on your face for some reason.” [Cecilia]

“I’m okay. I just recalled something from the past. Sorry if I made you worry.” [Youki]

“No, as long as you’re okay, it’s fine. I might have read too much into the look on your face…” [Cecilia]

“No, that’s not true. I was the one who s.p.a.ced out. It seems like I’ve interrupted Ami-san’s story. Ami-san, could you go on with your story?” [Youki]

If this topic were to go on, I had a feeling it would raise doubt in Cecilia

’s mind, so I urged Ami-san to go on with her story.

“Ah, yes. Then I’ll continue… so then my brother told me, ‘Ami, you should continue perfecting your confectionery skills. I’ll train myself so I can protect you and this shop.’ That’s when he started training his body.” [Ami]

“He’s a loving brother, isn’t he?”  [Cecilia]

“For that muscle man to have such a moving past… I hadn’t expected it at all.”  [Youki]

Both Cecilia and I were astounded. However, a wry smile crossed Ami-san’s face for some reason when she looked at our reactions. It was such a nice touching story, so why did she give us that kind of look? Was there something else aside from what she had told us?

“Hahaha… at that time, I also thought that brother was such a reliable person.” [Ami]

“At that time… is it not the same now? Ami-san’s brother is working hard for the sake of Ami-san and this shop that your parents left to the two of you, isn’t it?”  [Cecilia]

“Yes. My brother’s physique has improved, and we received less condemnation when more and more heroes started emerging from each country. That’s why I thought that it was high time for my brother to stop training, and so I asked him to make confectionery with me, but he refused.” [Ami]

“I’m not sure how to respond to that. He seemed proud when he made new cakes for the customers to sample earlier, so it is odd that he would refuse to make confectionery.” [Youki]

Andrei-san, the macho pastry chef earlier, seemed to enjoy working at this cake shop. It didn’t look as though he was really apathetic about it at that time when he was giving out the cakes. Based on Ami-san’s story, he was originally training his body so he could protect his younger sister, who was aiming to be a pastry chef, and this shop, that their parents left to them, so something had probably happened. I waited for Ami-san to finish her story, feeling puzzled.

“‘To make confectionery, we need to have a strong body. I still have a long way to go.’ That’s what he said…”  [Ami]

“I-I see. It is indeed tough to make confectionery, isn’t it? If you make them in one go, you’ll need to have the stamina.”  [Cecilia]

It seemed that Cecilia had grasped what Andrei-san said, but I tilted my head in wonder. That statement might have made one think that you should just do muscle training while making confectionary.

“Making confectionery is certainly tough, but based on my memory, my brother’s physique is st.u.r.dier than both of our parents. That’s why I told him that he no longer needs to train himself like this anymore… but he refused to listen.”  [Ami]

Ami-san’s shoulders sagged. Cecilia appeared at a loss for words, too. Was it because muscle training became fun to him? Or could it be that his obsession with confectionery making had changed him?

“In the end, he even declared ‘I must acquire all the good ingredients myself.’ So he went to the guild to register himself as an adventurer, allowing him to personally collect the ingredients only available in the remote regions.” [Ami]

“Isn’t what he’s doing drifted further and further away from what a pastry chef usually does?”  [Youki]

He could similarly obtain those ingredients by submitting the request to the guild, and once the adventurers received this mission, they would get the items for him. So why did he have to go to those dangerous places personally to get the ingredients himself?

“By the way, what’s your brother’s guild rank?”  [Youki]

“If I’m not mistaken… a month ago, he received some information about a lush area where good quality blackberries grow. Before he left, he was informed by the guild that it was a ‘habitat with C-rank monsters’, so he should be at least a C-rank adventurer…”  [Ami]

“No… I doubt it.”  [Youki]

I folded my arms across my chest as I recalled what was written on the guild’s mission form: Normally, if there are a lot of similarly ranked demons in an area, there will be a higher-ranking demon boss leading the herd. That was the reason why it was a standard practice for adventurers to go to those places in a group. So, if Andrei-san was capable of venturing to that place by himself, that would mean that he was…

“A B-rank adventurer… He might be the same as me.”  [Youki]

A strange feeling welled up inside me somehow after I blurted those words out. That conclusion would mean the ability of that macho pastry chef and mine was the same. It didn’t seem probable that I would lose to him even if I were ‘attacked’, but… I supposed it wasn’t likely that he would even ‘attack’ me in the first place.

I decided to rid myself of this repulsive thought. Just thinking of it made me feel like puking. I’d like to leave only beautiful memories in my mind since it was my long-awaited date with Cecilia today.

“I can’t believe that brother’s really that strong. So that physique of his isn’t just a facade…”  [Ami]

“No, that physique of his should be the real deal.”  [Youki]

Judging from his solid muscles under the ap.r.o.n, I could tell that he had gone through a h.e.l.l lot of training.

“So brother has truly acquired his close to ideal physique then. It made me feel relieved somehow.”  [Ami]

She was probably worried about her brother until now. She patted her chest in relief. I guess that’s a given since he’s her only relative.

“That said, since he has that kind of physique, his job as the pastry chef should go considerably smooth, isn’t it? Seeing as he said one needs a strong body to make confectionery.”   [Youki]

“No. Brother still has far to go. That’s because it hasn’t been long since he last started making cakes.”  [Ami]

“Eh…?”  [Youki]

I had a feeling that I had just heard something startling. Cecilia appeared stupefied as well.

“It seems that he got too absorbed in training his body that he lost sight of his original objective… Actually, more than half of the confectionaries in this shop are made by me.”  [Ami]

“Then what does your brother usually do in the kitchen?”  [Cecilia]

“He’ll either create new samples for customers to try, just like today, or he prepares for the training for the next day.”  [Ami]

I didn’t want to make any negative comments about it, but wasn’t he going way off course in many ways? After training his body to a certain degree, shouldn’t he have gone back to being a full-time pastry chef? Where the heck did all the seriousness he portrayed in the beginning go?

“Ah!” [Youki]

“What happened?” [Cecilia]

The thought about Duke, who was in the middle of his date, suddenly sprang back in my mind after our conversation concluded. At the rate we were going, our date would end up in the usual fas.h.i.+on; we would conclude the day after having just a leisurely conversation. That ending had to be avoided at all costs. For that reason, I decided to get Duke’s aid in this, indirectly and without his consent.

“Cecilia, shouldn’t we make a move soon?”  [Youki]

“That’s true. Ami-san has to look after the shop, too.”  [Cecilia]

Cecilia seemed to agree with me as well, so we got up and paid our bill. However, just as we tried to leave the shop, Ami-san stopped us.

“Umm… Please come again.”  [Ami]

It was the standard parting phrase used by shopkeepers when customers leave. Upon hearing Ami-san’s cheerful voice, Cecilia and I responded to her that we would be coming back, before we left the shop.

“Well then, where shall we go? Youki-san, if you’ve made any other plans for us today, I’ll come along.” [Cecilia]

I wonder if she was testing me. She was saying it in such a cute manner. It was as though I could literally see a music note popping out at the end of her words. The cakes earlier had probably put her in a good mood. I mustn’t mess up this date, no matter what. How I escorted her today would decide the outcome of today’s date; if it would be a happy memory.

“Yeah, leave it to me.”  [Youki]

My real date began at this moment. That’s what I thought as I was walking alongside Cecilia. The moment we exited the cake shop, I strengthen my sense of smell to search for Duke and Irene-san, evading Cecilia’s question earlier. To be honest, dodging her question like this made me feel unpleasant, but nothing could be done since I really had not made any plans yet.

“I usually travel by carriage, so it doesn’t seem that bad to walk around the town like this once in a while.”  [Cecilia]

Cecilia’s cheerful words made me feel a pang in my heart. She was talking with me with a smile on her face, giving me the time to make my decision… Despite that, I had no plans at all. It made me feel really bad about it.

“Hahaha, is that so? I might not understand it since I usually travel by foot. Though, it does feel refres.h.i.+ng when I fly around at times…”  [Youki]

When I tried making a light joke to keep the conversation going, Cecilia knitted her eyebrows together, her face grew solemn as she grasped my arm.

“Youki-san, shall we have a little talk?”  [Cecilia]

“I-I was just kidding…”  [Youki]

My attempt to smoothen out the situation ended up bringing the opposite effect. Cecilia didn’t seem to like it when I changed to my demon form. I wouldn’t usually do something that rash as well… but it seemed that she would like me to live as a human as far as possible. She was probably worried about me precisely because she knew how conflicted I felt when I was still at the Demon Lord’s castle. Although, her kindness was what that had attracted me to her. That was the reason why I must absolutely make this date a success so I could raise Cecilia’s impression of me. I had to look for Duke and Irene-san so I could carry out my strategy.

Well, that said, my so-called strategy was actually pretty simple. I would steal Duke’s dating ideas – that’s all. It was the perfect strategy since there was no way someone like Duke, who could keep any situation in control, could go wrong. I had initially considered ‘b.u.mping into them coincidentally’ so we could go for the double date route, but I dismissed that idea. There was no doubt that Duke would be able to come up with various great locations for a double date as well, but that would instead lower Cecilia’s impression of me, seeing as I couldn’t come up with any ideas. Besides, Duke and Irene-san might have wanted to be alone, so I didn’t want to barge in on their date. I’d just like to see what kind of places Duke would bring Irene-san so I could select similar places to go. I call it the ‘Shadowing Dating Strategy’… It might be low of me to come up with that, in my opinion, but there’s no stopping me.

As I cracked jokes and chatted with Cecilia, we drew closer to Duke as I tailed him using my strengthened sense of smell. Just as Duke’s appearance came to my sight, I noticed him entering some kind of store. Lucky – was what I thought inside my heart as soon as I spotted him, so I checked out the name of the store which he had just entered.

What was written on the signboard was, ‘Mohijii Drugstore’.

“What the heck…?”  [Youki]

I was completely taken aback that I ended up blurting out what was on my mind.

“What’s wrong, Youki-san?”  [Cecilia]

“No, it’s nothing.”  [Youki]

I tried to gloss over it by feigning calmness, but my head was full of question marks. I hadn’t heard of anyone going to a drugstore for a date. It would probably be a good place if either of them was injured. However, I could see a smile on Irene-san’s face as she entered the store, so it didn’t look like she had suffered any injuries at all. Duke’s whole body was clad in armour so that possibility was out of the question. If so, then why? That very thought plagued me, but I couldn’t figure it out at all. Leaving that aside, this would also mean that my plan had failed. There was no way I could bring Cecilia to a drugstore…

“Ah! Youki-san, why don’t we take a look in this shop?”  [Cecilia]

While I was feeling deeply troubled by this, Cecilia graced me the salvation.

“Ah… eh, here?”  [Youki]

The store Cecilia suggested was not a luxurious boutique where n.o.bles would go, but a store that sells clothes that cater to common people, and second-hand clothing from the n.o.bles.

“Yes. Since I received an accessory from you the last time, I thought of giving you something back as well. So, if you’re fine with it, I thought of selecting the clothes for you.”  [Cecilia]

“Really!?”  [Youki]

Aside from the adventuring clothes I wore when I went on guild missions, I didn’t have many everyday clothes, so it would be of great help. I hadn’t worn majority of the clothes that I had chosen and bought for myself as well recently. If Cecilia were to select the clothes for me, there was no doubt she would be able to put together a great outfit even though she was working with the second-hand clothing.

“May I request for your help then?”  [Youki]

“Please leave it to me. I’ll definitely not disappoint you.”  [Cecilia]

“T-Thank you…”  [Youki]

Cecilia grasped both my hands… Wait, her face was too close! This situation was blissful, in a way, but was it just my imagination that there was an unusual enthusiasm bursting forth from her? I was thankful that she had decided to help select the clothing for me, but I wasn’t sure why her eyes looked so serious.

Cecilia, who had entered such a state, then slipped her hand around my arm, half dragging me into the store while my heart was experiencing the moment of half delight and half bewilderment.

“Youki-san seems to have a unique sense of style… so I’ll put together a standard outfit that suits you instead!”  [Cecilia]

“You know, isn’t that a roundabout way of saying that I have a bad fas.h.i.+on sense?…”  [Youki]

“No, I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just unique.”  [Cecilia]

There wasn’t any opportunity for me to come up with any comebacks when she made that comment with a smile! It was likely that Cecilia was just concerned of me. I did realize it myself that I didn’t have any fas.h.i.+on sense, though. If I were to choose my own clothing again, there would be a possibility that I would re-enact my dark past the second or third time again.

“Ahaha… Well, I’ll leave it to you then.”  [Youki]

Cecilia then began selecting the clothes, bringing over several outfits to me, and I tried on each of them. It seemed that she wasn’t just selecting those fas.h.i.+onable types of clothing, but she had also taken my preferences into consideration and had chosen outfits that were suited to my taste. While waiting for Cecilia, I also browsed through the store’s selections and picked up an outfit that looked ‘chuuni-ish’ which caught my attention.

“Hmm… I knew I shouldn’t be choosing something like this, but this still draws my attention. Is it because of my chuuni personality?”  [Youki]

“Here, how about this one? I think this looks good on you.”  [Cecilia]

While I was feeling dispirited about my incurable ‘illness’, Cecilia brought an outfit over to me.

“Thank you. I’ll try it on.”  [Youki]

In the end, after going through an exchange like this several times, I decided upon three outfits. Although I initially tried to pay for them myself, Cecilia wished to get them as gifts for me, so I gave in. By the way, I put on one of the outfits that was purchased right away and left the store, as in my opinion, the clothes Cecilia had chosen for me were more stylish than the one I was wearing.

“I’m happy to receive these clothes from Cecilia, but will you not be getting anything for yourself?”  [Youki]

Cecilia probably wouldn’t get her clothes from a second-hand clothing store, so I wouldn’t mind accompanying her to a boutique if she wished to get something for herself as well.

“It’s fine. The clothes I have now are adequate. My clothes are usually tailored by Sophia-san.”  [Cecilia]

“Ah, is that so?”  [Youki]

As expected of a young lady from a n.o.ble family. So Cecilia’s clothes were tailored by Sophia-san. That person sure is a jack-of-all-trades. I guess her t.i.tle as the head of maid wasn’t just for show.

“So, where shall we go next?”  [Cecilia]

“Next? Ah, the next place, right? Umm, I guess we’ll go there.”  [Youki]