kscans

Chapter 276 - An Otherworldly Lunch

"Well, since we have the chance, I'd like to try a meal from your original world, Senpai."

I said it, being a little mischievous. Since this is my dream, only things I know should be able to appear.

Come to think of it, these clothes feel similar to the ones Ricardo was talking about with Vina.

"Alright. But I was a poor student, so don't get your hopes up. Hmmm, and even if I say food from here, you'd probably find straight washoku a bit much, Mia. I'm sure things like natto would be impossible for you..."

Senpai groaned with a 'hmmm'. Unfamiliar words popped up here and there, but I could tell he was trying to choose something with me in mind.

"The best place I know is... Right, that place should work. I'm pretty sure they serve lunch until five in the evening."

Led by Senpai, I stepped outside. I walked along a black road behind him, amazed by the scenery I had never seen before.

Senpai stopped in front of a house that looked more familiar than the overly rectangular buildings, which are apparently called 'buildings', that surrounded us. It had red bricks and white plaster walls, and a garden with a flowerbed. However, the glass-enclosed terrace? that jutted out into that garden was a little beyond my imagination. We entered the shop. It was bright, and the air temperature was kept low. It had been muggy outside, so it felt very comfortable.

...It's okay. I have heard stories about horseless carriages, and about places that are cool even in summer. Calming my confused heart, I took the seat I was guided to. This part, at least, was the same.

The menu had pictures so beautiful I had never seen anything like them, they looked just like the real thing. Below the pictures were symbols, the same numbers as the clock? in Senpai's room. They must be the prices.

"How do you read this?"

"Ah, right, you can't read it, Mia. Um, this place specializes in kaisen Italian..."

"...I don't understand what you're saying."

"That's because it hasn't come into the Kingdom since trade with the east was cut off. Basically, it means they're good at dishes using things like fish and shellfish. In that case, to get a taste of everything, how about this lunch course?"

Senpai took a separate sheet made of cardstock from the menu and turned it toward me.

It appeared to be a three-course meal. The largest, main dish was a meal similar to the one Senpai made for Maytyl. On top of it were some unfamiliar white cylindrical and red spherical ingredients. The plates on the left and right were likely the appetizer and dessert. They looked very beautiful and refined, though I couldn't imagine what they tasted like.

Ricardo opened the wallet he took from his pocket, counted the papers inside, and sighed.

I didn't quite understand the concept of price, but the fact that this had one less digit than the other menu items with more dishes probably meant something.

Maybe it was my fault that the Senpai in my dream was so stingy.

"Alright, I'll leave it to you."

When I nodded, Ricardo called over the waitress from before. "Two lunch specials, please," she said, writing on her notepad, then held out a small slip of paper she had in her hand.

"This is a special service for couples. You may each choose one of three desserts."

Senpai's face became troubled. I silently accepted the dessert menu.

My heart started to beat a little faster. Come to think of it, I had no memory of ever eating at a fashionable restaurant like this with Senpai, and especially not just the two of us. Not even in a dream.

...

"Here is your appetizer."

The waitress placed a rectangular plate in front of each of us.

The rectangular plate was pure white porcelain. On top of it, glossy orange slices were arranged beautifully. Underneath the slices of fish, a green fruit was laid out in round cuts. A white powder was sprinkled over the top.

Even seeing it in person, it was a completely unfamiliar dish. But a familiar scent reached my nose.

Drawn by the aroma, I took a knife and fork from the wooden box placed at the edge of the table.

I stared at Senpai. Apparently, the way to use them was the same.

"Um, let me explain. This is a fish called salmon that's been marinated. What's underneath it is a fruit called avocado."

"Is that cheese sprinkled on top? And this scent."

"Ah, that's yuzu... Yairu Fruit, back in your world. The sauce's flavor is based on a washoku style, which is this country's form of cuisine."

Following Senpai's lead, I pierced the red fish along with the green fruit on my fork and brought it to my mouth.

It had a thick, sticky texture. The taste was a little distinct, completely different from river fish. But the powdered cheese and some other unique saltiness wrapped it up nicely. The fruit underneath was not sweet at all, yet it had a richness. It felt like it was balanced with the fish on top.

It was undeniably delicious...

But I was bewildered by its deliciousness. The cheese was cheese, and when I put the Yairu Fruit in my mouth, a familiar fragrance spread. Had Senpai ever told me about red fish? And this fruit...

And most of all, what was this salty flavor that formed the base of the taste, something I had never experienced before?

"Cold pasta with scallops."

The main dish arrived. It was a noodle dish with white, circular ingredients on top. "That's the meat of a shellfish from the sea," Senpai explained. Even the plate was chilled.

I pierced it with my fork, twirled the pasta, and ate. It tasted of high-quality flour.

"The thin strips on top are seaweed, a plant that grows in the sea, chopped up. The red grains are the eggs of that salmon from before."

"It's delicious."

The scallops, the star of the dish, were soft and sweet. The little red grains burst when I bit into them, releasing a unique flavor. What created it all was...

"What is this salty taste? It was in the appetizer, too."

"You have a sharp palate, Mia. It's the taste of shoyu. Um, it's a seasoning made from fermented soybeans. It's really nostalgic. It tastes just like the real thing."

Senpai was eating with an even more enraptured expression than I was. "If I just had this, I could make anything taste like washoku..." he murmured.

It was a taste that grew on you once you got used to it. We ate our pasta in silence.

I looked at my empty plate and patted my stomach. I felt like my hunger had been satisfied. I shouldn't have actually eaten anything... no, it felt exactly as if I had.

Is this really a dream...

"It looks like we can choose from these three desserts. What do you want to do?"

At last, the couple's special. It seemed to be Senpai's first time too. Back in our world he was so... But this world's Senpai, I could have him all to myself... wait, it's my dream, so of course I can have him to myself.

"...Ah, doesn't this look like what Fulsy-senpai is making?"

I pointed to a black and white dessert. It looked similar to the sweet that Fulsy-senpai was trying to make with chocolate and Rilka's soft cheese.

"Oh, that's tiramisu. It's actually a bit different, but it's a classic Italian dessert. Should we go with this?"

Tiramisu. Come to think of it, Senpai had said that word after eating Fulsy's new cheese and chocolate cake.

"I feel bad for Fulsy-senpai, but this is more delicious. It feels like there's something different about it... Oh, but I think children would prefer Fulsy-senpai's version."

A layer of white and black, spooned onto a white plate. A rich powder sprinkled on top. It must be cacaolus. But the subtle bitterness soaked into the base tightened the rich combination of cheese and cacaolus. It was rich, yet elegant...

"Fulsy-senpai is a monster for coming up with that on her own. The 'something's missing' that Senpai mentioned was this bitterness. But there's no coffee in our world. Hmmm."

As Senpai started to slip into work mode, I drank the black tea that came with the dessert, feeling a little exasperated. It wasn't bad, but it might be inferior compared to the finest tea in the Kingdom.

Now that my stomach was settled, I was calmer than before. Is this really a dream? So many things I don't know are appearing. If this is a dream, it would make more sense to call it Senpai's dream.

But before Senpai said anything, I noticed the flavor of the shoyu and the bitterness of the tiramisu. The shoyu especially was a taste I had never experienced at all.

A chilling sensation ran down my spine. ...What if this isn't a dream? What if, just what if. What if, just as Senpai came from another world to ours, I came with Senpai to his world?

Senpai had said he'd moved between his original world and our world many times. Our ancestors came from this world about one to two thousand years ago. The monsters moved over from here much, much earlier. Senpai was the most recent case. That was the hypothesis.

Yes, this world. This world that seems so real it has to exist. If that's so, then the idea of us coming here from our world, while absurd, isn't impossible...

And what if it's just the two of us who came here...

As I thought that, I squeezed my thigh tightly under the table. I did it without thinking. There was a normal sensation of pain. But it felt a little faint...

What am I thinking? How much have I left behind in that world...

But in this world, there's no Alfina, no Maytyl...

"What should we do next?"

Senpai spoke just as I shivered at my own imagination.

"Huh? Ah, um. I don't know, so, I'll leave it to you."

It was all I could say in reply.

"Hmm, well, we can only go to places I know anyway... Right, I remember an event a teacher told me about... Let's try going there."

Senpai pointed through the glass wall. There was a particularly tall building. It was absurdly high. I couldn't even guess how it was built.

Why hadn't I noticed it until now?

It must be because this is a dream...