In the few months that the orphanage had undergone renovations, Ristia had Maria and the other children take cooking lessons. And out of all of them, Maria had naturally adapted the quickest, seeing as how she originally had helped put food on the table for the orphanage. She gradually absorbed Ristia’s recipes like a sponge. Ristia had asked that question just to be sure everything was alright, but it seemed that was a needless worry.
“Just know that if you do need anything, you can feel free to ask,” Ristia said with a smile. And as she watched Maria cooking, she heard a voice call her from the floor.
“—Manager Ristia, you have a customer~!”
“Coming~” Answering Ayane’s call, Ristia speed-walked to the floor. She headed toward the designated area to find Nanami, Eindebelle, and Rick all sitting in a booth together.
“Oh, Belle, Nanami, Rick. All of you made it.”
“Naw naw, yer doin’ it all wrong, ain’cha?”
“...Huh?” Ristia was taken aback by the immediate critique.
“I was told this here establishment calls their customers ‘Big Bro’ and ‘Big Sis.’ So you gotta call me ‘Big Sis Belle.’”
“Big Sis Belle?”
“That’s right! I’m yer Big Sis, my lil’ Ristia!” Eindebelle declared, suddenly jumping at her. Ristia avoided her advances with practically no effort. “Wait a sec, why’re ya avoidin’ me?!”
“No touching the maids allowed~”
“Nice rule, but I’m yer friend, Ristia!”
“That doesn’t help you, either. If I started making exceptions, then it would put the other kids in an awkward place.” Basically, if any guy were to see Eindebelle hugging Ristia and get the idea in his head to start hugging the maids, then it would mean big trouble—a fact that Eindebelle most likely understood.
“Alright. If that’s how it’s gotta be, them’s the breaks,” she said, conceding. “Oh, but in that case, all I gotta do is do it when we’re not in the cafe?” Basically, she was demanding that she be allowed to hug Ristia outside of the establishment. Ristia let out a tiny sigh.
“Geez... Well, since you insist. Big Sis Belle, you’ll be my special exception. ‘Kay?” she said, putting her index finger to her lips and smiling mischievously. Eindebelle saw that and started wriggling.
“Ohmigod, I feel like somethin’ in me is awakenin’!”
Ristia left Eindebelle to monologue and turned her eyes toward Rick.
“Um, should I be calling you ‘Big Bro’ as well, Rick?”
“Huh? Oh, no, I’ll pass...”
“Teehee, don’t go bein’ a stick in the mud; just go ahead and let her call you how you want.”
“Sh-Shut up, Mom. I’m fine with just ‘Rick,’ thank you. So yeah, Ms. Ristia, I’m fine the way you’ve been addressing me this whole time.”
“Okie dokie, Rick,” she said, referring to him the same as always, but in a more friendly tone. Coupled with a flash of Ristia’s pure smile, Rick’s face was aflush in no time.
“Okay, everyone, are you ready to or—Hey, Nanami, what’s the matter?” Ristia cut herself off and tilted her head in confusion upon noticing Nanami sitting with a sulky look on her face.
“Lady Ristia, today, I am one of your customers.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that, but why... Huh? Correct me if I’m wrong, but do you want me to call you ‘Big Sis’?”
“...Is that not allowed?”
“Well, it’s not not allowed, but...”
Nanami’s fawning look was putting Ristia in a bind. Of course, Ristia’s fondness of Nanami meant that she didn’t mind if they conducted themselves like siblings, but Ristia was working toward being her older sister, not the other way around. Does she really find me that unreliable? Ristia wondered with a flop of her shoulders, but she quickly shifted gears, thinking, Well, if Nanami is the one asking, then I suppose I could.
“I get it. In that case... Big Sis Nanami.”
“Oh my goodness... Thank you so much, Lady Ristia!”
And yet, the way she talks to me remains the same... Ristia remarked to herself with a bitter smirk, also adding, But, if Nanami is enjoying herself, then I’ll deal with it.
“By the way, Ristia, what’s yer house specials?”
“Mm~ Yeah, let’s see... I think that the lunch set is yummy, but... I personally recommend the shortcake.”
“...Shortcake?” The three of them looked at her like she had three heads.
Maria and the other children were clueless when she told them, too, but she had thought at the time that it was a result of their upbringing in the orphanage, but now that she saw that Eindebelle’s party didn’t know either, it was a different story. It would seem that the humans of this era weren’t too familiar with types of confectionery. Ristia confirmed that much when the cake she’d made as an example was a super-popular treat among the children. Given that, she confidently pulled a shortcake out from her Item Box and showed them.
“This is a shortcake. It’s sweet and yummy. Go ahead and try it for yourselves.” She cut it into three pieces, which she placed onto plates with forks, and set them down before everyone’s eyes.
“Well, I’ll be... So this is shortcake, huh?” Eindebelle poked at the whipped cream with her fork in curiosity. The three showed some slight hesitation, but they eventually found the courage to take a bite... upon which, their eyes shot open all at once.
“What the heck? I mean, this is super sweet and yummy!”
“My, goodness, Lady Ristia. This is delectable!”
“I’ve never eaten anything like this either!”
The eyes of all three of them lit up in their own ways. Before long, Nanami said, “I want to eat more of this,” but Eindebelle called out and stopped her.
“Ristia, Ain’t there a whole heap of sugar in here?”
“Let me recall, hmm... it has enough for ten slices, so I’d say one piece has about... fifteen grams?” The cake was baked with a light amount of sweetness, taking into consideration that nobody seemed to be used to flavors like that... but Eindebelle cast her eyes at Ristia in shock.
“Th-There’s that much in here? Don’cha think that’s a really darn high amount?”
To humans of this era, sugar wasn’t exactly a luxury item for aristocrats and nobility, but it didn’t change the fact that it was quite the high-quality commodity, so it wasn’t unreasonable for her to be so surprised upon hearing that one slice contained fifteen grams. However...
“Umm... well, it’s only this much,” Ristia said, adorably lifting a finger.
“Erm... that mean a bronze piece? Don’cha mean a silver piece?”
“Nope, just an iron piece.”
“Wha?!”
Eindebelle, along with Nanami and Rick sitting beside her... as well as all of the other customers within earshot, all made the same reaction. Ristia’s suggestion was about as expensive as the price of lunch, but it was unbelievably cheap, considering that sweets were essentially luxury items.
“Mind if I ask why you’re chargin’ that cheap?” Eindebelle asked aloud, looking at her with a look that screamed, You’re not doin’ anything logic-defyin’ again, are ya?
“It’s because we grow our own ingredients in fields in the back,” Ristia said very straightforwardly.
“...You grow ‘em?”
“Uh-huh, homegrown~”
While it was true that, in the back fields, she was growing some selectively-bred sugar beets that could grow even in relatively warmer areas... they wouldn’t make sugar right after being grown, and they wouldn’t provide nearly the amount she needed. She was only using that as a front to use the massive stock of sugar she had stowed away in her Item Box. She planned to make it a properly self-sufficient piece of farmland, but that just wasn’t possible at this point. The customers that had heard her explanation naturally shared the same thought once they caught on—that this cafeteria was not at all normal. At any rate, the customers were able to partake in a rare dessert that would normally be off-limits to them at a price that didn’t break the bank in the least. With none of them wanting to let this amazing opportunity pass them by, they all started putting in shortcake orders at once. And so, word quickly spread, and the orphanage cafeteria started to gain popularity in the blink of an eye.