LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 119.1
Gentle On The Stomach, It’s A Grated Root Vegetable Porridge
“Huh? Sheila-san?”
“Oh, Yuuri-kun, hello!”
“Hello. Is the restaurant closed today?”
“Yeah, my dad’s out shopping for supplies, so we’re taking a day off.”
“I see.”
Sheila replied with a cheerful smile, and Yuuri responded with one of his own. In the living room, enjoying tea together, were Sheila and Tifaana. Since they were childhood friends, seeing them get along wasn’t unusual at all. If anything, the only surprising detail might be that, typically, Tifaana would visit Sheila at her workplace—the cozy diner, Komorebitei.
Meanwhile, Sheila’s father, Darius, who managed the diner, had gone out hunting for ingredients. …And there was nothing unusual about that either. As a former adventurer, Darius would go out himself to hunt for delicious ingredients—mostly meat. The rugged chef was as tough as ever today.
“Hey, Yuuri-kun, do you happen to know any good recipes?”
“Huh?”
Sheila turned to Yuuri, looking troubled. Naturally kindhearted, Yuuri, though puzzled, urged her to continue.
“You see, do you know of any meals suitable for eating after fasting?”
“…Wouldn’t something like rice porridge or bread porridge work?”
“…Well, my dad has this acquaintance who’s so focused on work they forget to eat.”
“Wow, that sounds just like Jake-san.”
“Yuuri, you’re not wrong, but please don’t say it so casually, okay?”
“Why not?”
“…Well, I mean, it’s true, so I guess it can’t be helped.”
Yuuri tilted his head as if to ask, Did I say something wrong? Tifaana let out a sigh. He wasn’t wrong, but she wondered if bluntly cutting to the heart of the matter was really the best approach. Still, since it was the truth, she couldn’t defend Jake either. Jake was perpetually the example of a bad adult to avoid becoming.
Sheila, watching their exchange with a faint smile, couldn’t deny it either. Knowing Jake all too well herself, she wasn’t able to step in to help. Jake was, well…Jake.
“So, the thing is, after basically fasting, they show up saying, ‘I’m done with work, feed me!’”
“…They sure have energy.”
“It’s not just energy. Since it’s after finishing a task, they’re oddly full of vigor and always want meat.”
“And?”
When Yuuri asked, Sheila looked into the distance. Perhaps Tifaana had already heard this story; she also gazed off as if recalling the sight of Jake collapsing here and there. No, maybe worse than Jake.
“Their stomach can’t handle it, so after scarfing it down, they end up bedridden.”
Some adults are just hopeless. After fasting, you’re supposed to eat something gentle on the stomach. Ideally, you’d start with thin rice gruel. But if you suddenly dive into heavy meat dishes, what do you expect? Of course, the shocked stomach would rebel. It might even be desperately screaming, Stop, I can’t take this anymore!
“That’s definitely a problem.”
“Right? So, do you know of any good dishes? Whether or not we serve it at the diner, I just need something to calm their stomach so they can handle our regular menu.”
“Komorebitei does lean toward hearty dishes, doesn’t it?”
“It’s a place adventurers frequent, so that’s unavoidable.”
Yuuri murmured, searching his memory, and Tifaana picked up where he left off. Since it was true, Sheila nodded repeatedly. Most of the guests at the adjoining inn, Higuretei, were also adventurers, and when the customers overwhelmingly wanted meat, the menu inevitably leaned that way.
However, such a menu wasn’t suitable for someone coming off a fast. If anyone could handle it, they’d have to have an extraordinarily sturdy stomach. Humans certainly didn’t fall into that category.
Seeing Sheila troubled, Yuuri spoke up, feeling like the timing was almost too perfect.
“How about you check out today’s lunch?”
“Huh?”
“It just so happens to be something easy on the stomach.”
Sheila stared blankly at Yuuri, who smiled mischievously. Tifaana, recalling something, also smiled. Together, they led the still-baffled Sheila to the kitchen. It was just about time to start preparing lunch.
Since they offered for her to eat with them, Sheila, who prided herself on her catastrophically bad cooking skills, happily accepted. …The cute waitress was notorious for creating mysterious substances whenever she tried to cook.
“But why that kind of menu?”
“Well, there are three people who just came off fasting.”
“What?”
Sheila reacted with confusion, and Yuuri casually continued. His relaxed tone and demeanor prevented the weight of his words from being too heavy, but the content itself was intense. Truly, Yuuri’s gentle charm was potent.
“For training, they spent three days living only on water. Oh, don’t worry, they still had salt to stay safe. They finished yesterday, so they started eating again this morning. Breakfast was plain rice gruel, so for lunch, I thought I’d make something with a bit more flavor.”
“Wow. That sounds tough.”
“Adventurers have it rough, don’t they?”
Yuuri’s casual smile prompted an equally casual response from Sheila. As she walked behind him, she suddenly turned to Tifaana with a stunned expression. While Tifaana smiled warmly, Sheila’s face remained frozen in disbelief.