Maidenly Blush, Sweet Water

"Oh, you're back," Lenna greeted him warmly. "Dad told me your name. Mr. Farron, correct? Is there something wrong with the room?"

"No no, it's great. But can I get something to eat?" Senna politely asked. He was curious about what this world's cuisine would be like.

"Gladly. Are you hungry? If you are, I can just warm up the soup we have left instead of cooking again from scratch."

"That'd do. Please."

"Sure! It will only take a little bit, so take a seat at one of the tables!" Lenna retreated into the kitchen as she said that.

Looking around the hall, Senna immediately noticed the corner a relatively empty table occupied only by two people. It seemed they noticed his gaze too, as they then gestured with their hands for him to approach them.

"Hello there. Probing out empty tables? Here, here. Feel free," offered one of the men, tapping the wooden chair next to him.

He was a middle-aged-looking man with reddish hair. His face was gentle and adorned with a thick mustache and beard. The clothing he wore—while not outright tattered—seemed to have been exposed heavily to the elements, to put it politely.

"Yes, feel free. You must be new in town, yes? First time I have seen one like you." The other man, in contrast, was an old man with greying hair. Not to sound offensive to the first guy, but the elder's garment was far more presentable than his.

He wore a soft brown robe over a spotless white vest, with a silver monocle hung by the front pocket sewn onto its fabric. The intelligent look he had going for him made for that stereotypical appearance of a wizened scholar, or maybe even an elderly professor.

"Thou may excuse mine disturbance, gentlemen," Senna spoke. "'Tis are fair evening, forsooth, I hath come to partake in thy feast for the sake of mine hunger."

He tried to make himself less like a modern man and more what he imagined a medieval person would sound like.

The two men stared at him weirdly, confounded by the bizarre way he spoke. "Holy, you must've come from beyond the ocean. Never heard anyone talk like you before," said the elder.

"Agreed. What direction did you arrive from? I also never heard that dialect," the red hair added.

"Uh… Never mind that." He immediately gave up on his archaic endeavor. It was too much effort and he only did that to fit the setting, anyway. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Sure thing. In truth, I was intrigued by you the moment you entered the first time before."

"I as well. Young man, you got some interesting garments you adorned yourself with," the elder stated as he observed Senna's attire in detail.

"Yap. It doesn't look like anything the people in this region often wear. Master knows a lot of neighboring countries' cultures as well, and even he had no idea outfits like yours existed."

The curiosity in their eyes was apparent as they scrutinized the unmistakably modern jacket and jeans Senna was currently wearing.

"…I get that. It's from my homeland, a place so far away from here you won't be able to visit in your lifetime."

Though he worded it vaguely, Senna spoke the truth. For him, it was his second life. His previous one was already over, unreachable no more.

"Ohh? Marvelous. If that is true, then I want to go there even more."

"Indeed, Al. For you, it must be a dream come true," responded the old man to the other statement. "We haven't introduced ourselves, correct? My name is Chrom, and this hobo-looking man is called Alan."

"Hobo—"

"Mind you, it's just his appearance. Don't worry, he's got an actual respectable profession in his hands."

The old man, called Chrom, introduced both of them to him. There was a bit of a problem with the way he presented his buddy but Senna paid it no mind.

"You want to go there? But I told you it's so far…"

"Hey hey listen, though I look like this, as Master said I got a real job I'm working on. You see, I'm a cartographer." Alan shook his head with acquiescence. "My clothes are like this because I spent so much time in the wild. It's too expensive to buy new ones every few weeks, you know?"

"You mean, you're creating maps?" Senna inquired.

"Yap. There are still a lot of geographical inaccuracies in today's maps, and several regions on the continent were still completely unknown too. Not to mention what lies beyond the ocean!" Alan put his arms on the table and leaned forward in excitement. "I want to be the first person to unravel those unknowns. You get what I mean?"

Even with only those assertions, Senna instantly understood the kind of person Alan was. A man with an adventurous spirit, dreaming of scenery no humans had ever seen before.

"That so? I get the appeal." Senna nodded in agreement. In the previous world, there was often a saying, 'Too late to explore the world; too early to explore the universe.'

But in this new life, it was different. According to what they said, people's knowledge of the whole world was still largely incomplete. There were more than enough chances to discover completely untouched territories and become the first man to ever set foot in those places.

Senna thought back to his ability. In theory, it could summon any vehicle he imagined, with restrictions based on his mana. Because he had decided to grow his strength, someday those restrictions would gradually be lifted.

Would Alan's dream be possible using his powers?

As he contemplated the feasibility, a wooden plate filled with food suddenly appeared in front of him. "Sorry for the wait, Mr. Farron! I had to prepare some new ingredients because the one in the pot ran out."

Lenna finally delivered the meal he had requested. On the plate was a bowl of soup with some vegetables, a loaf of bread, and slices of meat.

Senna didn't know if these were made with the same ingredients as the food on Earth, but going by the display alone, they seemed normal enough.

"Ah, Lenna. Good timing. About my tab…" Alan began to speak to the waitress.

Hearing him, the blue-haired girl sunny face suddenly turned cold. "You'll be paying it later right, Sir Alan? Tonight."

"Oh, don't be like that lass. Your beautiful countenance is ruined by that scowl you're sporting," Alan tried to smooth the subject with flirting. Senna wondered just where he had that idea from, as the way he looked currently couldn't be any less flattering to the ladies.

"Al, you're putting off paying your tab again?" Chrom looked at him while shaking his head in disbelief.

"I-It's not my fault, Master! The department hadn't paid me a penny for this month! And the last too!"

"Then maybe you should find a more stable job instead, Sir Alan? Please don't try to flatter me just so you could pile up more tabs," suggested Lenna with a put-off expression.

"I don't think it's flattery though."

"Huh?"

A crimson flush was starting to form on the girl's cheeks.

"…Ah." Senna didn't mean to say that out loud. It was meant to be hidden, a silent opinion to be kept deep in his heart, and definitely not announced to the person in question.

"Mr. Farron?" Looking at her newly arrived customer, Lenna voiced her confusion.

*HMMM?*

The whole dining hall abruptly became silent as a heavy pressure descended upon Senna.

"O-Oh, this looks tasty. Thank you Lenna, and sorry for the trouble." Sweating, he forcefully changed the conversation to the food in front of him.

"…Of course. I'll take the liberty of taking your meal's costs from the room's payment, is that alright?"

"Sure. Then I'll be enjoying this~"

Picking up his spoon, Senna dipped it into the vegetable soup. The first sip didn't have any weird taste or sensation that he would question. Rather, it was delicious. A perfect amount of saltiness mixed scrumptiously with the leafy vegetables.

The loaf he took a bite of also wasn't bad. Not to say it was the best loaf he ever tasted or anything, but it was pretty good.

As for the meat slices… they tasted like bacon. Nothing more, nothing less.

All in all, it was a pretty fulfilling dinner for the first day of his second life.