Chapter 200 - After That

"Come to play to Bailey again."

"Allen-kun, see you again~"

"Elena-chan, see you again~"

Three days after seeing Rebecca-san off, it was the time to send the three Risner family members off.

""Take care.""

"Yeah, I am going now."

""Come back quickly.""

"Got it. You two also be good children and wait."

""Yea!""

After that, probably feeling lonely because the people they get along with decreased, they started inquiring "Will you return properly?" and "Will you be early today?" from Matthias-san when he was about to leave to work. Matthias-san accompanied the children with a smile on his face, but they ask him this time and time again every single day, so I feel sorry to him.

"My, oh my, what's the matter, you two?"

""Ojiisama~ working~?""

Moreover, when Matthias-san is working in his home office, the two peek inside and interrupt his work…

"I'm sorry about this, Matthias-san."

"I am not busy or anything, I don't mind. Come here."

""Yea!""

Allen and Elena rushed towards Matthias-san with whole-faced smiles when called over by Matthias-san.

"What were you doing today?"

""Cooking!""

When Matthias-san asked about their day, the children happily answered.

"Cooking? Did you make something delicious, I wonder?"

""Yeah!""

"Ojiisama~"

"Eat lots~"

"Oh my, then the food you two cooked will be at the dinner? I am looking forward to it."

We tried making Okonomiyaki-like food today. The sauce is of a tomato base with soy sauce and garlic mixed in, so it's similar to our favorite sauce while also not similar, so I'm quite not sure whether you can call it Okonomiyaki. Well, it turned out quite tasty.

We had it for lunch, but Allen and Elena wanted to let Matthias-san try it too, so we made it again in the afternoon. This might be my selfish image, but I can't imagine Okonomiyaki being a dinner-time food… well, it's just imagination, so there shouldn't be a problem, so we added the dish to the dinner menu.

"Takumi-kun, are the children secluding themselves in the house, after all?"

Matthias-san's expression completely changed and he looked at me with a serious expression.

Indeed. Allen and Elena spend five days in the mansion before Rebecca-san left. It was to spend time with her, but even after she left, they didn't want to leave the mansion.

"They are… I'm sorry."

"Nono, I am not blaming you. Velio and Wald also preferred staying indoors when they were about this age, so there's no problem with that. It's just that these children can't usually stay still and have to walk over here and over there, so I was just a tad worried."

I see, the children of nobility don't leave for strolls often.

But, while that may be true for the children of nobility, Allen and Elena spend a lot of time outside.

"Well, I consider it only a temporary behavior. I am thinking of going downtown tomorrow, so if they dislike that idea then… I will get a little more serious about it."

"That's fine. So, where are you going tomorrow?"

"Yes, I was contacted that the prototype for White Wheat cooking magic tool has been completed, so I am going to check it out."

"Oh! The White Wheat cooking magic tool had been completed! That is excellent news!"

◇ ◇ ◇

The next day, when I informed Allen and Elena that I am going to the magic tool store, the two tagged along as if nothing happened. As I thought, secluding themselves in the mansion was only temporary.

"Grandpa, hello. Thank you for contacting me."

""Hello~""

"Ohh, you came."

""Came~""

When we entered the store, Grandpa welcomed us with a smile on his face and immediately prepared the magic tools I ordered.

"First, check this."

He took out the ice-shaving machine first.

The top part of the magic tool was covered with a lid in which you inserted the ice, the middle part contained the blade, while the container was tightly set on the bottom part.

"You fix the blade in place, take the lid off and place the ice inside, cover it again and wait for the ice to get crushed. I did set the angle of the blade, so it cuts the ice as thin as possible, but I have not confirmed whether it works myself."

"Then, let's get it to work right away."

I immediately prepared ice and booted up the device.

Then, soft ice started piling up in the set container.

"Ohh~ amazing. It's just as I imagined!"

""Snow~?""

"Yeah. It's similar to snow."

Lovely shaved ice that surprised even me came out of the device.

I thought that the ice might end up a bit gritty, so I was really impressed.

"I am glad you like it, but… what are you going to do with that ice? You spoke of eating it, but it's originally ice, wouldn't it be just cold?"

"Actually, it's supposed to be eaten in summer——on hot days, but since we have the opportunity, why not give it a try?"

I have jam and syrups from fruits I boiled down, so it would be faster than explaining.

""Will eat~""

Allen and Elena were pressing me "Quickly, quickly" so I immediately shaved ice for several people and covered it with plenty of syrup.

"Yes, here you go. Try eating it while mixing."

"Lemme see, I will give it a taste~"

"Allen and Elena too, your heads are going to hurt if you eat too much at once, so eat slowly, okay?"

""Yess~""

When I handed the three the shaved ice, they tried it immediately.

"Ohh, I see, this is definitely tasty! It would be perfect on a hot day!"

""Nn~~~""

Grandpa and naturally Allen and Elena let out impressed voices.

"This time, I poured syrup on it, but I think it will taste nice when frozen with fruit water and then shaved too."

"My goodness, I helped you make something more incredible than I thought. You… no, Takumi, would you mind if I told Stefan about this magic tool?"

"Stefan-san? Err… you mean to sell this magic tool?"

"No, not the magic tool, but this shaved ice thingy. It wouldn't be possible for common families to secure ice in summer, but it wouldn't be a problem for Stefan. I would also like to eat this during the summer."

It appears that Grandpa became quite fond of shaved ice.

And so, he apparently wants to let Stefan-san sell it during the summer, so he gets to eat it.

"I don't mind, but… would Stefan-san get on bo——"

"He will! That fellow will get on board without a doubt!"

"..."

I believe that Stefan-san will definitely jump at every opportunity that involves profit, but it's not like Stefan-san is here, so it's not absolute. Therefore, when I tried asking "Will he get on board?" Grandpa replied without any hesitation before I finished.

"Erm… then, I planned on showing up at his place after this, so I will talk about it to him. It's just that we plan on leaving the Capital soon, so I would have to leave the planning to you two."

"Umu. Leave it to us. Ah, but let Stefan try this shaved ice thingy. It would be faster if he tries the product."

Grandpa seems in high spirits, so I am sure that a shaved ice store is going to open this year's summer in the Capital.