Chapter 410 - Chapter 362: When in Trouble, Turn to Shou
Sunday
Sunday.
As usual, after seeing Miki off to Nao's place, I was at Mion's house making lunch, but today's order was pizza.
Yesterday was pizza day on the island, after all.
"It's simple, so you'll get the hang of it quickly too. Then again, it's just cutting and arranging toppings before baking, so how about it, Tsubaki-san?"
"No, thank you. I have important duties to attend to."
She was still holding her video camera...
"Hmm?"
"Ah, yeah. Well then, shall we begin?"
I took the opportunity while she was giving me a ride to stop by the supermarket near the station and buy various ingredients.
Making the pizza dough from scratch would be too much trouble, so I'm using store-bought frozen pizza dough.
"Let's start with the classic Margherita, then."
First up is the tomato sauce, but that's a hassle too, so I'm using the store-bought kind.
Next,
"Cheese?"
"Yeah. About half of it."
Aiming for a half-and-half balance between the red of the tomato sauce and the white of the mozzarella cheese.
I'll place basil leaves on top for an Italian touch. But I won't bake it just yet.
I'm using the small-sized pizza dough to increase the variety.
"How about a tuna mayo corn next?"
"Mm."
Apparently, the proper name for this is Bambino. It's supposed to be a kids' pizza, but it's perfectly delicious even for adults.
Prosciutto, arugula, and mozzarella for Parma. Cheese, bacon, and egg for Bismarck. Lots of mushrooms for Boscaiola.
"Know your stuff?"
"My grandma was really into making pizza for a while, I heard."
She even had my grandpa build a proper stone oven and everything.
It was incredibly delicious, though...
"Dessert?"
"Ah, right. Dessert will be this one."
Apple and cream cheese pizza. After baking, I'll drizzle it with honey and sprinkle cinnamon powder to finish. Hmm, I could have added some ice cream too.
"I'll make plenty of each and freeze them, so you can bake and try them yourself later."
"Mm."
...
..
.
"This apple pizza is really delicious!"
I'm so glad Shizuku-san liked it too.
Since she was here, I had Tsubaki-san run to the convenience store to buy some vanilla ice cream while the pizzas were baking.
And even Tsubaki-san was captivated by the apple pizza...
I feel like she should be able to make this much on her own, though.
"By the way, has there been any word about Mion's work?"
Oh, I'm sorry. You don't need to rush.
As for Mion, she seemed to be savoring the apple pizza little by little.
"Please take a look at this."
She placed an aerial display terminal on the edge of the dining table, and what was projected was... is this a rough draft for the next update PV?
"This is the storyboard that was sent over. For you, Lady Mion, you will be reciting from the scene at the top of page 3 as the Jade Goddess, and you will be singing in the final scene."
So that's how it is, just like I heard,
"You'll be okay?"
"Mm."
Mion nodded firmly.
"In that case, I'll reply that everything looks fine here. The recording will be the Sunday after the tests. Will it be alright if we do it in the virtual studio provided by the other party?"
"Huh?"
"I'm fine with it."
And just like that, the date and time were set.
With a virtual studio, there's no need to travel, but on a Sunday, Mion could just log in from her house? Well, it's probably better if I'm with her to ease her nervousness.
"The testing period starts soon, right?"
"Hmm, it starts this coming Thursday, and the tests themselves are next Wednesday through Friday."
So, the live show before the tests will be next Wednesday.
With the live shows on Saturday, Wednesday, and Saturday, there will be three days off, but the following Monday is a holiday, and Tuesday is the closing ceremony... it's all over in the blink of an eye.
"Come to think of it... Shou-kun, have you thought about your future? Science track or liberal arts track?"
"Huh... um, sorry. I'm not quite sure yet..."
"Oh, right. Of course, I'm sorry."
Shizuku-san says with a smile, but I probably should start thinking about it soon.
My family is more hands-off, or rather, completely hands-off, I guess.
＊＊＊
After hearing from Tsubaki-san about the channel's finances, I logged into IRO in Mion's room.
"Well then, I need to prepare for the night."
Are we going to True-kun's place?
"Yeah. I want to check out what's beyond that ceiling we came out of earlier."
I fed Lupi and the others, and had a quick bite myself too.
The fairies, Sweee and the others, like dried Grapeful, while Raz likes Lycos fruits.
"We're running low on sugar, so I was planning to go to the port via the mountain path route, but what will you all do?"
In response to my question, Sweee and the fairies were consulting among themselves.
It seems Raz wants to come along too. He seems to really like the hood on my mantle.
"~~~?"
"Yeah, I'll go to the Selkie village too. Remember that cave exit behind the Camlus field? I'm planning to go through there."
"~~♪"
"Then let's all go together."
When it comes to crossing the sea, it would be better for them to come later via the Divine Tree, but if we can go through that cave, it means the fairies can come along too.
"There might be other tree fruits at the location where the sugar roots are."
"That's true. Sweee and the others don't seem to know many hard fruits."
Even with chestnuts, you have to deal with the burrs, then there's the hard shell, and then the bitter skin... normally, you wouldn't even think about eating it...
"Shou-kun, aren't you going to write a letter to the Dragon-san before you go?"
"Ah, that's right. The exchange meeting seemed to go well, and they're protecting the Cait Sith too."
As for the Cait Sith, it wasn't me who asked for it, though I did suggest it to Seth.
"Wait a moment. I'll go send a letter and then we'll head out right away."
"Waf!"
When I returned to the mountain cabin,
"A..."
A crystal that receives messages was glowing.
It wasn't glowing when I logged in, so it must have come while I was making and eating lunch.
"Is this a thank you for yesterday?"
"Ah, that's right. The White Dragon Princess came, didn't she."
The commotion with the Cait Sith afterward had more impact, though.
"Just a letter, thank goodness... or maybe I'm a little disappointed..."
"I wish I could have received another instrument..."
A flute would be difficult enough as it is, so I'd rather they didn't bother.
Oh, but if I can get Mion to come to the island, I can have her play. Maybe I should properly repair the piano in the mansion...
"Lord Shou
Thank you very much for the Princess's unexpected visit yesterday and for treating her to so many sweets.
I'm sorry to always be asking for favors, but there is one more thing I'd like to ask, or rather, to request your assistance with.
As you may already know, a clan of Cait Sith has wandered into the Necropolis.
Some of them are complaining of mana irregularities, and would it be possible to bring them to the island for recovery?
I apologize for the trouble, but I would appreciate your prompt reply."
Huh?