Chapter 91: Ramen Shop
In the commercial district near Shuchiin Academy.
Inside a ramen shop—
"Yokosho my Ramen Shop, what would you like to order?"
The owner, with a kind-looking face, glanced at the two customers who had just walked in.
'These two seemed to be visiting for the first time, so maybe it's okay to 'charge' them a bit less.' He thinking.
Fujiwara Chika glanced at the menu board hanging on the wall, then said, "I'd like a bowl of shouyu tonkotsu ramen, a bit lighter, and the noodles a bit firmer, please."
( ๑‾̀◡‾́)✧
After saying that, she and Sakurai Saki sat down at the seats across from the owner.
Chika swung her little legs, gently swaying in the air.
"Saki-kun~ what do you want to eat~?"
"Tonkotsu ramen, as for the noodle firmness... make it a bit softer." Sakurai Saki wasn't too picky.
"This place, Chika, is it your first time here?"
He asked as he glanced around — there wasn't a single other person in the shop. This place was pretty hidden, and 'regular people' probably couldn't even enter.
As for the shop owner, if you ignored the pig-head mask on his face, he actually looked rather kind.
"Umu umu, but this shop owner is really interesting!" Chika-chan cheerfully nodded.
It was her first time having dinner outside with Sakurai Saki, so at this moment Chika was extremely excited.
Chika: (๑>⩊<๑)♡
"It really is kind of interesting." Sakurai Saki smiled in agreement.
This pig-head ramen shop even had chashu and tonkotsu on the menu — it was both bizarre and funny!
At that moment, the shop owner was tossing noodles into the pot and spoke without turning around: "Dear customers, our shop isn't cheap, you know."
It was then that Fujiwara Chika noticed — the menu didn't list prices in Japanese yen, but in some strange things instead.
"Hearts? Stomachs, livers, spleens...?"
Chika clapped her hands together, her face beaming as she looked toward Sakurai Saki: "Saki-kun! This ramen shop is awesome! I'm so glad we came here today!"
"Could it be like that kind of development in manga? Where after eating, you have to pay with a part of your body?"
The owner chuckled a few times and said: "The little lady guessed—"
Before he could finish, he turned to glance at Sakurai Saki.
(⊙ _ ⊙ )!!!
In the next moment, it was as if he saw something utterly terrifying.
Cold sweat rolled down his forehead, and the menacing expression under the pig-head mask instantly turned into a gentle smile.
"Aiya~ this little lady sure knows how to joke~ Young people these days really do enjoy strange stories!"
"This is just a normal ramen shop, okay~"
Sakurai Saki urged, "Is it done yet?"
"Almost done! Just a moment more, Young Master-sama!" The pig-head owner hurriedly grabbed a towel to wipe his sweat.
"Haiz, the ventilation system in here is really bad, gets hot really easily…"
Fujiwara Chika said worriedly: "Mister owner, your mask is about to fall off."
"It's fine, it's fine! Just a decoration~" The owner trembled as he continued cooking the ramen.
Usually just doing small business, why did things have to go so wrong today!?
...
A few minutes later, two bowls of ramen were placed in front of them.
Fujiwara Chika and Sakurai Saki put their hands together in front of their chests at the same time:
"Itadakimasu~!" ×2
There weren't any special rules for how to eat ramen. Sakurai Saki was the type to mix all the ingredients together, trying to evenly divide each bite so that even at the end, there'd still be toppings left to eat with.
After a few bites, Sakurai Saki glanced at Fujiwara Chika next to him — he noticed Chika was the type who liked to make a "mini ramen" in each spoonful.
She would take a little of each topping and put it into the spoon, each spoonful arranged neatly and cutely like a tiny ramen bowl.
A really adorable way of eating.
Sakurai: ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )❤︎
Chika gently blew on it a few times, then brought the noodles to her mouth.
Immediately after, a happy expression appeared on her face.
"So good~!" Chika blurted out.
ʕっ˘ڡ˘ςʔ
"A place with food this delicious and yet no customers, what a pity…"
She felt sorry on behalf of the shop. Chika-chan had visited many ramen shops before — some tasted terrible but were in prime locations, while others were delicious yet overlooked.
Maybe this place was ignored just because of its poor location?
'How come I've been to this area so many times but never noticed it before?' Chika wondered in her heart.
"Maybe because it's too 'expensive'," Sakurai Saki replied.
Having to pay with a set of internal organs just for one visit — who could afford to eat here?
The pig-head owner quickly shook his head like a drum rattle: "Our shop doesn't charge! We don't take any payment at all!"
"The owner's running a charity?" Sakurai Saki asked with a smile.
"..." The owner picked up a towel and started wiping his sweat again.
(ó﹏ò｡)
"Haiz, it's really hot. This weather…"
"You two just enjoy your meal, this one's on the house. I'm going out to get some air." After saying that, the owner stepped back from the kitchen, then quietly ran out the back door.
"He must really be hot,"
( ╹ -╹)?
Chika said while putting another mini ramen spoonful into her mouth.
"Maybe it's because I'm a bit too 'hot'."
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
"Ahaha~ Saki-kun, you're so funny."
ꉂ (≧ヮ≦)
Chika-chan laughed at his joke.
Saki-kun isn't the sun, how could he be hot~
...
Behind the ramen shop's back door.
The pig-head owner, now without his mask, revealed underneath… a real pig's head.
"That was dangerous… Tokyo really is a terrifying city."
In a few more days, he'd probably have to return to the countryside.
...But, there likely wouldn't be another chance to come back.
...
A few minutes later.
Fujiwara Chika noticed the owner still hadn't returned.
"Are we really not supposed to pay?" Chika didn't like receiving things without putting in any effort.
Besides, the shop was already doing poorly — if he kept doing charity, it would go bankrupt sooner or later.
"This is the owner's kindness. We shouldn't refuse it. Maybe he owns some rental skyscrapers elsewhere, so now he's just here doing charity work, trying out a simple life." Sakurai Saki explained.
Fujiwara Chika recalled Saki's earlier question — at the time, the owner hadn't denied it.
'Looks like he really did come to do charity… what a good person,' Chika-chan thought as she hugged her bowl and slowly savored the bone broth.
Most of the toppings in the bowl were already gone.
At first, she had wanted to add garlic, but being a girl, eating garlic would leave a smell in her mouth — not exactly ideal.
If it were a normal day, when Sakurai Saki wasn't around, Chika would've added a bit of garlic and just chewed a few pieces of gum afterward. But today, she held back.
Sakurai Saki finished his ramen and stood up.
"I'll go thank the owner."
"I'll come too!"
"No need, the owner doesn't seem good at dealing with girls. Didn't you notice? He kept sweating every time he looked at you."
——THAT'S A LIE!
As for why the owner was sweating, everyone surely already knows — no need to say more!
"Oh… okay then."
...
Sakurai Saki stepped into the kitchen in the back and glanced over the ingredients — all of them were ordinary.
He took a few more steps.
[Freezer Room]
The sign immediately caught his attention.
This was also a place used for preserving food; many restaurants bought large amounts of frozen meat.
The freezer wasn't locked.
He pushed the door open and stepped in.
"Beef, pork, and then..." Sakurai Saki showed no surprise or emotion.
Things already expected wouldn't catch him off guard.
"Clunk clunk~"
Footsteps echoed from behind.
Sakurai Saki turned around and saw the shop owner approaching with a knife.
"You saw, didn't you?" the figure asked.
Sakurai Saki didn't answer the obvious question. Instead, he asked in return: "If monstrous beings don't eat human flesh, will they die?"
"We won't die. But they tried to kill me, so I killed them back."
Sakurai Saki glanced at the corpse in traditional clothing lying in the fridge, belly pierced clean through, and calmly said: "They tried to kill you, so you killed them. Then now, as a human, if I want to kill you… will you hold a grudge?"
"..."
It didn't dare to answer.
...
Ten minutes later, Sakurai Saki and Fujiwara Chika stepped out of the ramen shop.
"That was so good!" Chika-chan said happily.
(っ˘ڡ˘ς)
"Let's come back again next time!"
Sakurai Saki smiled and replied, "The owner said he's going back to his hometown to open a shop. He said the cost of living here is too high, and doing charity's made him lose too much — he won't last much longer."
"So we're the last customers here?" Fujiwara Chika asked curiously.
"Umu." Sakurai Saki nodded.
Then he looked up at the sky.
It was six o'clock, and still not dark yet.
Thin white contrails left by planes streaked the sky, tinged a pale orange under the setting sun.
"Headed to the station now?"
"Sorry, my family has a curfew."
Fujiwara Chika honestly wanted to spend more time with Sakurai Saki.
As for Sakurai Saki — in truth, he didn't want to walk Chika home.
Because now, he was sure: The entry in that journal had been wrong.
If he were to walk Fujiwara Chika home, it would only place her in danger.
After so many unexpected situations, Sakurai Saki was in a foul mood. Earlier, he had even unlocked his offensive powers.
When he saw those corpses, beyond the anger, he came to a realization — monstrous beings and humans cannot coexist.
Ordinary people rarely encounter monsters, but that doesn't mean they never will.
Monstrous beings don't need to eat humans to survive, but that doesn't mean they don't enjoy harming them.
After watching Fujiwara Chika swipe her card and head into the station, Sakurai Saki turned to buy his own ticket — he rarely took the train, so he didn't have a commuter pass.
"Was the ramen good?" Sakurai Saki asked as he purchased the ticket.
Half of his portion earlier had been eaten by Shiro, and even the broth had lost most of its flavor.
"It was delicious~ That pig-head oji-san's ramen was really amazing~"
The white-haired ghost girl leaned close to Sakurai Saki's face: "So this is the ticket machine? It looks weird!"
It was her first time seeing one.
Ghosts couldn't use transportation — they could only drift around.
Yakumo Shiro, back when her love letter hadn't been taken by Sakurai Saki, hadn't even been able to leave the school grounds.
As the two were chatting—
Outside the station, a black cat paced back and forth. Its face wore disturbingly human-like expressions. It was the same cat Sakurai Saki had used to test his powers the day before — and had been hit by a car.
Suddenly, two hands dropped from above and scooped it up——
"Ka ka, fancy meeting you here… fate sure is funny, huh~" A blonde woman gently picked it up.
A crisp white sailor uniform brimming with youthful energy, golden twin braids, and frameless round glasses — the very image of elegant intellect.
So unlike the formal outfit from yesterday, she now looked perfectly in tune with the city vibe.
"Hiss grrr!" Bake-neko growled threateningly.
"So that boy is your enemy?" Kiss-Shot recalled Sakurai Saki's aura and gave a look like she had just found a new toy.
"[Bake-neko] can disguise itself as a human — planning to harm that girl, then approach the boy? That's quite a sloppy plan."
To kill Fujiwara Chika, impersonate her, and then find a chance to take revenge on Sakurai Saki — that was the Bake-neko's simple plan.
"Ka ka~ How amusing~" Kiss-Shot hugged the Bake-neko and walked away from the train station.
'Too bad I can't meet that boy right now,' Kiss-Shot thought with some regret.
But oh well — not much she could do, seeing as she was currently being hounded by those damn rats.
Vampire hunters… just as annoying as sewer rats.
————
Back home, it was still early.
Along the way, no clueless monstrous being had shown up to offer itself, so Sakurai Saki's return journey had been completely peaceful.
Since there was still quite a bit of time left, after finishing his homework and doing a bit more studying, Sakurai Saki began preparing to make wagashi. He had promised Fujiwara Chika last time, after all.
His old home in Kyoto used to run a wagashi shop — something that had been mentioned before.
Although Sakurai was still a novice teacher, his current mother was an exceptionally skilled wagashi master — at the very least, she was much better than him had taught the five sisters as well. Sakurai Saki had spent a whole year learning, and had already mastered seventy to eighty percent of the craft.
Sakurai Saki didn't like sweets — or rather, he genuinely disliked them. Unfortunately, his mother wanted him to eat more. Back when he still lived in Kyoto, every time she invented a new item, she would force Sakurai Saki to be the first to try it.
"...What should I make?" Sakurai Saki took the ingredients out from the kitchen.
Last time, when he made a birthday gift for Chika, he had bought plenty of cornstarch and glutinous rice flour.
"Let's make daifuku."
As for the sugar — he would just use the same amount as last time.
"I wanna eat hamburger steak~"
(╥ᆺ╥;)
Yakumo Shiro muttered beside him.
Sakurai Saki ignored her.
He had already promised hamburger steak yesterday to make it up to her for standing her up. Yet last night, she still pulled her nonsense, and as a result, Sakurai Saki had to wash an extra pair of pants this morning.
'Clearly I'm the one who suffered — why do I have to compensate her?' Sakurai Saki felt it was absurd.
Girls really were strange creatures.
They always had a way to claim the upper hand — and they had the most powerful weapon of all: [their bodies].
When boys faced the allure of a beautiful girl's body, they basically couldn't resist.
When a piece of meat is brought to your mouth, who would toss it away? And it wasn't even rotten meat — it was fresh, untouched…
Well, Sakurai Saki had already tossed it aside once last night.
"I'll make yours later." Sakurai Saki's kitchen couldn't handle two dishes at once.
After mixing the flour, he added milk.
Then he steamed it.
Small private kitchens really were a pain when it came to cooking.
"Awesome! I want two pieces!"
◝(ᵔᗜᵔ)◜
The white-haired ghost girl cheerfully ran into the living room, zipping back and forth between there and the kitchen.
"Only one." Sakurai Saki reminded her.
There wasn't that much meat in the house.
He'd probably have to go to the supermarket tomorrow. Usually, Sakurai Saki bought three days' worth of food on the weekends — once he ran out, he'd restock. Rinse and repeat.
He made his own bento. If he had time, he'd make it at night or in the morning. If not, he'd just eat at the cafeteria — depending on how bad the side effects of his powers were.
"Then I'll secretly eat the second piece tonight!" Yakumo Shiro giggled, covering her mouth.
"..."
Could she actually leave the house on her own?
Was this girl really a ghost or not? Sakurai Saki was beginning to doubt Yakumo Shiro's entire species.
And as for what the "second piece of meat" referred to — please don't ask too many questions.
"Be careful or I'll throw your real corpse out!" Sakurai Saki threatened.
<(ꐦㅍ _ㅍ)>
One shameful incident was enough.
The pants he had to wash this morning were still hanging out on the balcony like a flag of disgrace!
Yakumo Shiro wore the triumphant face of a victor.
(≖⩊≖)
——About ten minutes later——
"Sakurai-kun, what dessert are you making?"
(✯ ◡ ✯)
"Daifuku."
"Can I have some?"
(•̀ᴗ•́ )و
"…Sure. The filling is bell pepper and carrot. Want some?"
Upon hearing that, Yakumo Shiro shook her head violently. "Nope nope nope!"
(っ- ‸ - ς)
Those were the two vegetables she hated the most!
"You really are an elementary schooler~" Sakurai Saki sneered.
"Guu~"
૮₍ ˃ ⤙ ˂ ₎ა
Yakumo Shiro puffed up her cheeks and pouted. She clung to Sakurai Saki's back.
"I'm not an elementary schooler!"
From behind came a soft sensation.
Sakurai Saki kept a straight face as he took out the steamed dough and poked it a couple of times with a wooden spoon. The dough jiggled elastically.
Yakumo Shiro, of course, wasn't an elementary schooler — Her cup were about five times that of Shinomiya Kaguya's. —Of course, that was just Sakurai Saki's speculative estimate.
( • )( • )ԅ(‾⌣‾ԅ)