Special Chapter 5:
Egg Porridge
Aletta slowly opened her eyes to the sound of pouring rain. Huh? Where am I?
Her body and head were burning hot, and she felt powerless, unable to grasp her current situation. She was soaked in sweat.
Hrm. Suddenly, Aletta remembered something important. Today’s the Day of Satur!
She tried to leap up out of bed but couldn’t due to the heavy blanket on top of her. Aletta realized that she’d been asleep on a slightly dusty, but soft, futon.
What am I gonna do?
Thinking further, Aletta realized that things hadn’t been going well since that morning.
Moving around had been a bit of a struggle, and she’d had a strange chill despite her body being warm. It didn’t help that it had been raining since morning. Even with her rain jacket on, it was still cold.
Aletta couldn’t remember anything after the sound of the Restaurant to Another World’s bells had filled the air, so she must’ve passed out.
The thought, Am I gonna be fired? arose in her hot head.
It wasn’t rare for someone to lose their job after getting sick and becoming incapable of working, however hard they’d worked beforehand. It wouldn’t be long before Aletta ran through her savings, got kicked out of Sarah’s home, and ultimately found herself out on the street. She’d remain ill, and just like before, she’d shiver from the intense cold…and finally die somewhere.
The awful scenario Aletta’s feverish head came up with felt perfectly realistic to her. Even though she’d worked so hard up until now, it was all over. She couldn’t help nearly coming to tears over her horrible new reality.
That was when a voice unexpectedly rang out in Aletta’s mind. I’ve brought water.
Aletta slowly turned. An elf girl with beautiful black hair stood in front of her, seeming unsurprised. As usual, she made no sound and appeared to have simply sprouted out of the ground.
I’ve…brought water, the elf girl—Aletta’s coworker, Kuro—repeated once more, her doll-like expression empty.
“Er, um, I…”
Kuro didn’t blink as Aletta returned her gaze, wide-eyed with surprise. The black-haired waitress put down a tray on the table next to Aletta’s pillow. On it were a single cup of water and a pitcher.
Would you like some? Kuro stared at the demon girl.
“U-um…yes, please.”
Surprised by Kuro’s actions, Aletta finally relaxed enough to slowly sit up. Since she was being careful, she had no problems, unlike before.
Here you go. Kuro held the cup of water out to the young demon.
“Th-thank you very much,” Aletta said, taking the cup and drinking from it.
Ah…it’s delicious.
The water was neither hot nor cold, but room temperature. It soaked into her dehydrated body, which had sweated out all its fluids.
After Aletta downed the water, Kuro unhesitatingly took the cup and filled it right back up again before offering it to the demon girl once more.
Here you are.
Once Aletta drank this second cup, she let out a sigh. Upon seeing Aletta’s thirst quenched, Kuro turned her back, as if she’d accomplished her mission.
I have to get back to work. Master said he would bring you food later. Rest until then, she said, turning around slightly to look at Aletta.
Then she left via the door, like some sort of shadow.
Once Kuro was gone, Aletta was finally able to pay some attention to the room around her.
Actually, where am I?
Sitting up was still a bit too much for her, so she lay back down again and slowly looked around the room. She noticed some cardboard boxes—the very same type the food storage room held—but also a bunch of strange things she’d never seen before.
Through the transparent window glass, she saw that it was raining in the town made of gray stones. That must’ve been the outside world beyond the restaurant, a place Aletta rarely had the opportunity to lay eyes upon.
There was a series of skillful drawings on the dark wall on the other side of the room. All the illustrations were of people. A brown drawing of a young man and woman; a family picture of what seemed to be that same couple, now married and with a child; an image of a boy dressed in a brand-new-looking black suit, standing in front of a building. Even a portrait of a young couple dressed in white, likely at their wedding ceremony.
One particular image showed an older man and a younger man standing shoulder to shoulder, wearing the Restaurant to Another World’s chef uniforms. The latter had no beard, and was much younger than he looked now, but was undoubtedly the master.
Is this his grandfather’s room, then? Aletta wondered.
She’d heard that the master had a grandfather who’d taught him everything there was to know about cooking, and that he’d been the master of the restaurant up until ten years ago.
With that in mind, Aletta turned her attention to the family picture. This must be the master’s family.
The woman looked much like the older woman, the master’s grandmother, who’d dropped by the restaurant not too long ago. If that was the case, the child was likely the master’s father.
As Aletta puzzled through the master’s family history, she heard the door open. The master stepped into the room, holding a tray with a little pot on it.
“Yo, feeling okay? I finally finished dealing with the customers and got some free time.” He looked at Aletta’s face and sighed in relief before smiling. “Excellent. You look much better, compared to when you collapsed. I’m glad you don’t seem to have the flu.”
“Um, I…I’m so sorry.” All Aletta could do was squeeze out her words of regret. She swallowed the rest of them.
“No worries. Everyone catches a cold now and then. It’s more important that you take the time to rest. Your job as a patient is to eat, sleep, and get better. Got it?”
It was unclear whether the master could read how Aletta felt, but he nonetheless continued to smile at the young woman, placing the tray down on the table.
“You ought to get something in your stomach before taking medicine, so I made you some porridge. Think you can eat a little?” The master removed the pot lid.
A warm aroma filled the air, making Aletta’s stomach growl. Her face was already red from her fever, but she lit up even more.
“Great…you still have your appetite!”
The master grinned and placed the lid to the side, using a spoon to stir the pot’s contents slightly. He poured some porridge into the bowl he’d brought with him.
The yellow-and-white fluid was full of some kind of small green things. For the master, porridge itself was a nostalgic dish, something he often ate when he was sick.
“Here.” He handed Aletta the bowl just as she managed to sit upright. “Can you feed yourself?”
“Y-yes. Here I go…” She gulped, scooped up some porridge, and brought it to her mouth.
It was hot, but not so hot as to burn her tongue. It slid down her throat without needing her to chew, coming to a rest in her stomach.
“Fwaaah…” Aletta could only sigh in response to its taste.
The porridge was different from most of the dishes the Restaurant to Another World served. It had a thin flavor; a slight saltiness went along with the taste of the broth. Still, that was the perfect level of flavor for someone sick, like Aletta.
“How is it?”
Aletta couldn’t help smiling at the worried master. She went after another spoonful of porridge. “It’s very good.”
“Good, good. Take your time, all right? I’ve got plenty more. Once you’re done, take your medicine, sleep, and freshen up—you’ll be good as new.”
“All right. Thank you so much, Master.”
In response to the master’s words and the warm meal he’d served her, Aletta felt her heart grow many times lighter. She was no longer worried.
Seeing Aletta relieved relaxed the master as well. The demon girl was going to be okay.
The pair passed the time together, listening to the pitter-patter of rainfall outside.