Market Alley (1)
"This kid went and caused another disaster, and in the span of a moment no less?"
I was currently staring down a life-threatening situation at the hands of Bran, a man built like a bear.
The problem? The meringue cookies I had made.
It seemed sugar wasn't fully widespread in this world. It wasn't rare enough to be exclusive to the nobility, but it was still a fairly expensive seasoning. Back in my original world, it was the kind of ingredient that just rolled around the bottom of every kitchen drawer.
But oblivious to all that, I had gone ahead and made a dessert loaded with sugar, exactly as my old habits dictated.
"You'll pay for this with your life, won't you?"
"P-please, spare my life, at least!"
As Bran glared at me like he was ready to kill, cold sweat ran down my spine. Just as I was picturing myself being quietly buried in the back yard of the restaurant, the angel Ciel stepped between us.
"Uncle! He's one of us now, so please don't keep bringing up the past. Besides, he came from a faraway country — he might not have known. It's partly my fault for not explaining."
Ciel really was kind on the inside, not just pretty on the outside.
"That's right! I really didn't know!"
"...Tch."
At the pathetic sight of me shouting from behind my Ciel-shaped shield, Bran backed off for the time being. He blew out a heavy breath, stared at the empty plate on the table for a long moment, and then asked me,
"...Anyway. Hey. Were you actually a chef? I thought you were just some guy who was decent at stir-frying vegetables."
"I told you I was... and a famous one at that..."
I answered with a voice that was half indignation, half pride. Bran studied me with a serious look in his eyes.
"I figured chefs were all a bunch of haughty types. Didn't think there'd be one like you."
He seemed to mull it over for a moment, then spoke as if he'd made up his mind.
"It's a bit soon, but how about you take over our kitchen officially? You'll still have to do the odd jobs, of course."
I did it. I was finally going to work in a kitchen properly. My heart pounded with anticipation.
"Yes, sir! Leave it to me, and I'll give it everything I have!"
Bran snorted, a faint smile tugging at his mouth.
"I don't get what's so appealing about working in the kitchen of a dead restaurant like this, but from tomorrow morning, the prep's on you."
"Just watch me!"
"That's wonderful, Mr. Hans! I'm counting on you going forward!"
Ciel congratulated me with genuine delight, as if it were her own achievement.
Now, things are really getting started!
The next morning arrived, and I was full of confidence. There were still no customers, though. Not that I could show off my cooking skills without anyone to cook for.
"Ooh! These morning glory things are delicious too!"
Ah, right. Except for one, that is. The customer who'd raised all that ruckus yesterday was now sitting at a table as if nothing had happened, cheerfully polishing off her plate.
"...You came back faster than I expected."
"What... A customer shows up at your restaurant and you're complaining?!"
"No, not at all. Enjoy your meal."
Rhea was busy devouring the morning glory I'd made. She threw that huge fit yesterday and then left — where was her pride? Not that I'm one to talk.
"Anyway, it's pretty quiet today too..."
Ciel let out a small sigh. There was an unmistakable bitterness woven into her voice.
Just as she said, the shop was deserted — flies could have held a festival in here. Honestly, a quick look around was enough to see this place's problems went far beyond one or two.
But if I wanted to actually do something, I was severely short on information. As things stood, I couldn't promise success no matter what idea I put forward.
There was no guarantee that simply cooking dishes from my old world would land with people here, either.
"Ciel, isn't it about time to buy ingredients? The morning rush is winding down — want to go shopping together?"
"Hm? Oh, I suppose it is... Then let's! I can introduce you around while we're at it."
When I feel stuck, moving my own two feet is my style.
It was time to get moving.
"So, Rhea, why exactly are you tagging along?"
"Why! Can't I come too? Besides, I'm heading to the Guild anyway!"
Rhea said, looking a little sheepish.
"Well... I don't mind, but... come to think of it, what do you actually do, Rhea? I think you mentioned yesterday about bringing back eggs from the Labyrinth..."
At that, Rhea planted her hands on her hips, thrust out her chest, and introduced herself in a thoroughly confident pose.
"Me? You're in Labyrinth City Palrein and you don't know who I am? Rhea, the youngest B-Rank Adventurer?"
"Ah~ is that so? Pardon me for not recognizing someone so impressive."
"...You do actually get what that means, right?"
My lukewarm reaction left Rhea pouting. Ciel laughed and chimed in to explain.
"Rhea is the most promising young adventurer in this city. And she's been close with me since we were little."
"That's right! Ciel and I are basically sworn sisters. Back in the day, the two of us used to dream of becoming amazing adventurers together..."
"You wanted to be an adventurer too, Ciel?"
The surprising fact made me blurt out a question before I could stop myself. I found it hard to picture the delicate, gentle Ciel roaming the Labyrinth with a sword in hand.
Ciel answered with a slightly bittersweet expression.
"...That's all ancient history now."
She clearly didn't want to talk about it, so I changed the subject. There seemed to be a story there, but now didn't feel like the time to dig.
"So, is there a particular reason adventurers go into the Labyrinth in the first place?"
Rhea gave me an expression of sheer disbelief — the kind that says, why on earth are you asking something so obvious?
"Huh? What else — money and glory! The resources that come out of the Labyrinth and the monster loot all sell for a fortune. And the famous S-Ranks are apparently living on par with the nobility."
"Oh~ so the resources are that abundant?"
"Are you seriously asking? Every single month, the Labyrinth Reset regenerates all the resources."
So the Labyrinth was an inexhaustible spring that endlessly replenished its own resources. That went a long way toward explaining why the ingredients and spices here had seemed so plentiful.
Then how, with all this money floating around and a decent location to boot, is the shop this empty...?
For a business to struggle under these conditions was genuinely astonishing.
The streets I'd seen on the entire walk over were brimming with energy, and the clothes on the people passing by weren't shabby in the least. It was enough to drive a man mad.
"We're here — the Guild."
Lost in thought, I'd walked all the way to the Adventurers' Guild without noticing.
Stepping inside, I found the place far busier than on my previous visit — armored adventurers, people who looked like merchants, and even a crowd clustering around the bulletin board, murmuring among themselves.
"So this is where you buy ingredients?"
"You can buy some here, but it's an auction house reserved for ultra-high-end ingredients only... We do most of our shopping in the market alley out back."
"And if you ever need something special, you can post a request on the board there yourself, for a small fee."
Ciel pointed at the request board as she spoke. It was densely plastered with papers of every color.
This world was more systematically organized than I'd given it credit for. Intrigued by its distribution network, I looked around, taking it all in.
"Heeey~ Rhea! The Labyrinth's not even open today — what brings you by? Come for a drink?"
I turned toward the voice and saw a big, muscular bald fellow waving at us.
His face was flushed red — whether he'd been drinking since broad daylight or not — and his gait had a slight wobble to it.
"Oh, Uncle Karl, it's been a while. Just came to look over the request board."
"Diligent, aren't we~ real diligent~ You could just rest on your days off, you know. Say, who're these folks with you?"
The bald man looked me and Ciel up and down. Seizing my chance, I greeted him in a bright voice.
"Hello there! Hans, head chef of the Silver Moon Restaurant! Do come by and have a meal with us sometime~"
The smile drained off the bald man's face the moment he heard our restaurant's name.
"Say what? Ain't that the place that flopped 'cause the food was so bad? They're still in business?"
He said that — right in front of someone who worked there. For an instant, I felt Ciel's shoulders, standing beside me, tremble almost imperceptibly.
But the bald man didn't stop there, obliviously plowing straight ahead.
"The old lady who used to run the place made a mean stew. Though word is, the Golden Lion was the real originator of that recipe?"
"That's absolutely absurd! Of course my mother was the original!"
Ciel shouted, furious — the exact opposite of her usual quiet, gentle self.
Her raised voice rang through the entire Guild, and every head turned our way.
"I... I heard that story too~ But hey, whatever you say. No need to get worked up. I'll be off~"
And with that classic believe-what-you-want exit, the bald man scurried away. He'd probably realized he'd put his foot in his mouth too.
"I'm sorry, Ciel. He probably just doesn't know any better."
"No, it's fine... Rhea, you don't need to apologize... I'm sorry for making a scene."
So this is what they meant by malicious rumors. It seemed the Golden Lion Restaurant was out there insisting they were the originators of Ciel's family stew.
Then again, tracing the origin of a dish is a genuinely thorny business. It's like how every restaurant in Chuncheon claims to be the birthplace of dakgalbi.
"Anyway, I'm off, Ciel. Get home safe."
"See you later, Rhea!"
After Ciel and Rhea exchanged their goodbyes, Ciel turned to me.
"I'm sorry about that, Mr. Hans. Let's hurry and do our shopping — we still have to prep for today's service."
And with that, we headed for the market alley.