[13] Candlelit Confusion in a Victorian Parlor

"Right this way," he said, guiding us through a spacious lobby adorned with potted plants, then along a hallway lined with doors.

After a short walk, he opened one door and beckoned us inside. The room contained two women, and a chandelier hung from the ceiling, its numerous candles casting a warm glow. To my eyes, accustomed to bright electric lights, the flickering candlelight seemed dim, yet it created a charming atmosphere.

As one of the women welcomed us with a "Please, sit here," she pulled out chairs for us. The children, despite their confusion, took their seats just like me. Lisa, however, settled into her chair with a calm demeanor, clearly at ease in this kind of environment, having guided us here with confidence.

"Lisa, since this isn't your first time here, could you order some dishes and drinks for us? Don't worry about the cost."

No matter how expensive it might be, it couldn't possibly be more than a hundred gold coins.

"Leave it to me," Lisa replied as she opened the menu on the table to start placing our order. A woman in the room was taking notes on our requests.

While Lisa ordered, I could hear the children whispering as they looked around the room.

"It feels like a dream."

"Are we really having a meal in a place like this?"

"As expected of our master."

Once Lisa finished ordering, the woman left the room.

Drinks arrived shortly afterward. The children received juice in glasses, while Lisa and I were served white wine poured from a bottle in a wine cooler, expertly handled by the attendant. The cooler was filled with ice, and the wine was perfectly chilled, as were the children's juices. Perhaps some kind of magic had provided the ice, but I assumed it came at a price.

Since the drinks arrived first, we didn't say "Itadakimasu" yet.

"Itadakimasu comes after the food arrives. You can start sipping your drinks," I told the kids. They all relaxed and began to enjoy their juices.

"Crisp and delicious!"

"The taste is truly satisfying!"

"As expected, Master."

I'm not sure how any of this relates to me, but if it's good, then I'm glad. As always, Iona sips her juice silently.

After finishing about half of our drinks, the food arrived. First up was a green salad and consomme soup.

"Well then, let's say 'itadakimasu'!"

"'Itadakimasu!'"

"Lisa, you have to say 'itadakimasu' before meals," Eva, with her black bobbed hair, quietly reminded Lisa.

Lisa joined in, a bit late, "Itadakimasu!"

"Alright, let's dig in."

From then on, dishes were served in sequence. Whenever my glass of wine was about a fifth full, a woman from the staff would check if I wanted a refill, and I would nod pleasantly.

The meal continued smoothly, concluding with tea and cake.

"Master, it was delicious, but I'm already full."

Considering she ate as much as an adult, it was no wonder she felt full.

"I completely agree, the taste was exceptional."

"That was so good! As expected, Master!"

While I'm not sure how this restaurant's quality relates to me, I can say that the meals I've had in this world until now pale in comparison to what I just experienced. I can see myself coming here often in the future.

The payment came to a total of eight gold coins, as the remainder was rounded down. It seemed there were no tips involved. With one gold coin per person, plus the cost of drinks and the room, it added up. I recalled that one gold coin was worth a thousand copper coins. At first, I thought one copper coin might be around 100 yen, but after some recalibration, I figured it was more like 50 yen. Therefore, one gold coin was valued at about 50,000 yen. This meant that the total bill came to 400,000 yen, quite a hefty sum. However, given that I had a substantial amount of gold in this world, I could afford this level of luxury.

The children, full from their meal, went straight to sleep without even taking a bath. Only Lisa wanted to bathe, so I stored the water from the tub in my item box, purified it in my alchemy workshop, and then heated it before filling the tub again. I also prepared warm water in a kettle for washing.

Lisa was overjoyed, saying it had been years since she had soaked in warm water.

The next day, I gave Lisa a decent amount of money and sent her out to purchase ingredients and other necessities for the kitchen. Meanwhile, I made some potions for wholesale and sent the children out for deliveries. When they returned from their tasks, I jumped back to Japan and withdrew around 100,000 yen from the bank.

After that, I went to the supermarket and bought shampoo, laundry soap, body wash, a toothbrush set for Lisa, and some towels. My bank balance was finite, and I needed to sort out my yen situation soon!

After gathering those materials, I suddenly realized that since soap is fundamentally made from oil and alkali, I could likely create at least solid laundry soap in my alchemy workshop. In fact, as long as I place the items I want to duplicate in the replication box, I could easily replicate anything I lack, even if it consumes my stamina. However, the materials I might be short on would only be trace amounts, so I didn't expect the effort to drain my energy significantly.

Oil consists mainly of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. While creating large quantities might deplete my carbon and hydrogen, I could easily generate them with just Sky energy. As for hydrogen, I have water on hand.

When it comes to alkali, sodium is essential. I could theoretically produce sodium in the workshop without worrying about my own fatigue, but table salt isn't expensive, so I bought about ten kilograms of it.

After finishing my task, I used Transfer to get back to the estate, where I found Lisa returning from her shopping trip. She mentioned that she wasn't done yet and needed to put away her things before going out again. I instructed the children, who were cleaning the estate, to help Lisa with her shopping, and they eagerly brought out a cart to follow her.

As for me, I had gathered the basic materials for soap and, out of curiosity, decided to try crafting some myself. While the process of creating soap was straightforward, I went through several attempts to achieve the right shape and hardness for solid soap. Ultimately, I succeeded in making a satisfactory batch of laundry soap.

Satisfied with my earlier work, I decided to place a store-bought soap into the duplication box and replicate it in the alchemy workshop. Judging by the lack of fatigue, it seemed the ingredients weren't anything particularly special.

I compared the copy to the original, and, of course, there was no way to tell them apart. Since the Recipe was memorized in the workshop, I could now create soap whenever I wanted.

On a whim, I also copied some shampoo and body wash. Even though the containers were plastic, I didn't feel any drain on my energy during the process.

I left the finished shampoo and body wash in the bathroom, already unable to discern which was the original and which was the copy. As I was organizing everything, I remembered that I hadn't given Lisa a healing potion yet, so I made a mental note to do that later.

---

Meanwhile, three high school girls were engaged in their training. Officially, classroom instruction had ended, and they were now practicing weapon skills in the courtyard of the temple in the morning, followed by magic training in the afternoon.

Since being summoned to this world, Mikazuki Hana had struggled with her glasses, but she recently discovered that her vision was clearer without them. Surprisingly, her eyesight seemed to be improving day by day, and she felt an unexpected joy about it.

Heroine Emily Yamada, with a swordsmanship skill level of 3, easily surpassed the average temple guards after just a few swings of her training wooden sword, while Ranger Kazuha Tahara, at level 2, wasn't far behind. After a mere 30 minutes of serious practice, they began to chat, ignoring their martial arts instructor entirely.

Only the wise Hana Sanzenin lacked such combat skills and, being fundamentally serious, diligently engaged in her training. She was equipped with a mace as her weapon. While a sword might have been more conventional, the maintenance of a real sword seemed burdensome, and the mace required only a light wipe for upkeep, which made it a practical choice. Though it was labeled as a training wooden mace, its sturdy build made it notably heavy for her. Typically, one would wield a shield in the left hand and swing a mace with the right, but Hana was practicing both hands on the mace, struggling to complete even 20 reps in succession, indicating her long journey ahead.

After a lunch break, the afternoon session shifted to magic training. This portion did not involve specific spells; instead, they mimicked the magical displays presented by the temple's priests. They quickly learned to conjure fire from their fingertips and create water, each successful attempt sending Emily and Kazuha into exuberant fits of joy. Though Hana did not openly express her delight, she too shared in their unspoken excitement.

At magic level 1, the primary attacks are arrow-type spells, and explosive ball-type spells cannot be cast. It isn't until level 2 that caster can finally use ball-type magic. At level 3, electric and cloud-type spells become available. The existence of magic level 4, known for its great mages, has been confirmed, but the specific spells it allows remain unknown.

Despite being capable of using electric and cloud-type spells at magic level 4, Michinoin Hana couldn't demonstrate them since none of the temple officials, including her instructor, could cast anything beyond haste. Consequently, she was limited to only using the speed-boosting spell, haste. As for healing magic, there were no practitioners in the temple to demonstrate its use—only explanations that it existed. Alternatives like heal potions, cure disease potions, and stamina potions were available for treating injuries, illnesses, or fatigue.

In a few days, the three of them will leave Valen city under the protection of temple soldiers for practical training on a hunting expedition in the temple's private grounds. Upon returning from shopping, Lisa handed the children a toothbrush and toothpaste, instructing them to learn how to use it. She then proceeded to explain the pump-style shampoo and body soap to them.

Lisa made a simple sandwich for lunch with ham, vegetables, and bread, which she served with tea. The bread was quite hard for a sandwich, and there was no mayonnaise, leaving just the salty taste of the ham, but it was still pretty good. At least the children were satisfied with it. I need to buy some mayonnaise later.

As for the vegetables, it would be fine to store them in the cupboard beside the kitchen, but I have some concerns about the meat. Of course, the best practice is to cook it right after buying, so it shouldn't spoil, but I can't shake the unease. On top of that, there's no refrigerator, and no electricity either. I feel a bit like I'm in a rural village I don't want to be in, but I want to gradually improve my living conditions.

If I limit my thoughts to alternatives for a refrigerator, I could make ice endlessly in the alchemy workshop and cool things down similarly to dry ice. I could probably even produce liquid nitrogen. Wait... does that mean I could create an absolute zero environment? If I could, I wouldn't know how to use it.

I wish I had a generator, but with my meager budget when I return to Japan, I likely won't be able to buy a decent one. I definitely need some resources.