When I stepped into the kitchen, half-prepped ingredients were piled high on the central counter. That said, it was only enough for a dozen or so people. Splitting up the work would make short work of it.
For now, I took on the time-consuming tasks like peeling, leaving the key cooking steps to Parfure-san.
Home cooking in Temcha was fundamentally centered around stews.
While a wide variety of preserved foods had also developed here, the region's signature dish was Firekeeper Stew—which was, in essence, a hearty stew of beans and root vegetables.
Having grown up with my grandfather constantly badgering me to eat tons of beans, I had made it quite a few times myself.
"Walker-kun, you're quite handy in the kitchen. That's a huge help."
"Thank you."
Parfure-san really did take after Philie-san. Their appearances were different, but their mannerisms and way of speaking were remarkably similar. You could definitely tell they had grown up in the same environment.
"How is Philie doing at school, I wonder?"
"She's always surrounded by friends and is quite popular."
In a nutshell, that was the simplest way to put it.
In terms of name recognition among the first-years, she was arguably at the very top.
...Wait, now that I thought about it, I had no memory of her ever walking around with anyone other than girls from the Imperial Archmage Faculty.
"Friends... I see. That's wonderful. She has a habit of keeping her distance from others, so please keep being good friends with her."
"Is that so?"
"This is the first time she's ever brought friends home. I'm sure she places a great deal of trust in you and Amae-chan."
Since that didn't entirely click with me, did it mean I didn't truly understand Philie-san?
Well, I was only here in an official capacity for the job, so she practically meant Amae-san anyway.
"She was originally a child who stuck to the former director like glue."
"Director Magnolia, you mean?"
"Yes. When I first arrived, they were truly like mother and daughter. In fact, Philie used to call the director 'Mother' back then."
Used to call her? That was a loaded phrase.
"She stopped calling her that?"
"After the director opened the orphanage, Philie voluntarily stopped. She said it would be unfair if she were the only one getting special treatment."
I kind of understood, yet kind of didn't.
She had a point, of course, but the director must have had mixed feelings about it back then, too.
"She's a bit introverted, but please be good to her. She's a very kindhearted, wonderful girl."
"I know."
I knew that all too well.
I didn't know the exact size of her circle of friends, but there were surely countless people who felt indebted to Philie-san. From everything I had seen of her, that was just the kind of person she was.
"Seeing that she has friends like you and Amae-chan puts my mind at ease."
"Philie-san gets along with everyone. Lately, she's often eating meals with someone named Meltzelia. Do you know the name?"
"S-She's having meals with the Sword Saint's daughter?! As expected of the Imperial Archmage Faculty..."
It certainly wasn't an ordinary social circle, but did Parfure-san not realize that Philie-san herself was also on that extraordinary side of things? To her, Philie-san was probably just a little sister.
While mulling over these thoughts, I finished chopping the ingredients.
All that was left was to simmer them.
Glancing over, I saw that Parfure-san still looked busy preparing to bake bread.
...There was even a baking kiln.
The kitchen setup was surprisingly authentic.
"I'm finished with this, so should I fill the pot with water?"
"Huh? Already? I-In that case, would you mind handling that as well?"
Things had seemed pretty hectic before we arrived, so I figured I would just take care of whatever tasks I could manage.
◇
In less than an hour, dinner was ready.
Naturally, incorporating magic sped things up considerably.
Firekeeper Stew, salad, dark bread, and fresh fruit.
Resting on the large platter in the center was hearth-roasted venison.
Apparently, Parfure-san had hunted the deer herself this morning.
Amaaazing.
"Thanks to you, Walker-kun, dinner wasn't delayed at all. Thank you."
"No, don't mention it..."
Being thanked so directly by Parfure-san, I gave an awkward nod. She was an older woman of a completely different sort than the professors or my aunt, so it made me somewhat nervous.
"Today's soup tastes a little different from Parfure-sensei's."
"That's right, Layla. Today's stew was made by Walker-kun."
"Awesome! Thank you, Big Brother!"
"You're so good at cooking!"
Since it had been left to me halfway through, I had made it using the Walker family recipe, but it seemed to have suited the children's palates just fine. Still, for kids their age, these orphans had remarkably neat table manners. Young as they were, their discipline was impeccable.
"...Bren-kun, you can seriously cook, huh."
"Pretty much."
"Not bad."
"Heh-heh-heh."
"Gross."
At any rate, since I was serving food to others, I had paid close attention to the seasoning. The ingredients hadn't turned to mush from overboiling, and the presentation looked decent. If I had to be picky, I would have liked to simmer it a bit longer, but for something whipped up on short notice, the quality turned out remarkably well.
"It really is... The seasoning is a bit different from my sister's, but it's delicious."
It was a hit with Philie-san as well.
I hadn't liked it much at first, but I was glad I had done housework ever since I was little.
"You're good at cooking too, Walker-kun. That's amazing. I've always been terrible at this kind of thing..."
Philie-san's cooking was catastrophic; according to Parfure-san, it was bad enough to warrant a permanent ban from the kitchen.
How unexpected.
I thought she was practically invincible, but it turned out she couldn't do literally everything.
Then again, no such person existed anywhere.
◇
After dinner, we finished bathing, and after playing with the children for a bit, it was suddenly bedtime.
Starting tomorrow, Philie-san's family registry investigation would finally begin in earnest.
Given that Philie-san was always nagging me to get enough sleep, I should probably turn in early tonight. Without any forging equipment around, there wasn't much I could do anyway.
We had been provided with one of the private guest rooms.
It seemed some parents could only visit on rare occasions due to complicated circumstances, so guest rooms were kept permanently prepared for that purpose. While by no means spacious, it was a clean space far better maintained than an ordinary inn.
"What kind of work does the guild you work for actually do, Bren-kun?"
Around eleven at night.
While brushing our teeth side by side, Amae-san casually asked that.
"Odd jobs."
"Hmm. Still, I didn't expect you to work a part-time job. You're always making magic swords, so it's kind of surprising."
"I don't have money. The aunt taking care of me right now is covering my tuition, so it's to offset that, in a way..."
"I see."
The fact that Amae-san didn't pry any further was a relief for me personally.
"When was that opera performance you wanted to see again, Amae-san?"
"The day after tomorrow."
"What was the name again?"
"The Stardust Troupe... Ah, right, you wouldn't know them. It's probably one of the most famous forms of entertainment in this country."
The Stardust Troupe.
Led by the diva Luluriale, it was apparently a grand magical opera troupe featuring a mixed cast of men and women performing songs, theater, and dance, all brought to life with illusion magic.
In other words, Amae-san was a troupe groupie.
"I've loved them since I was a kid, so I try to go even for regional tours. You should come along next time, Bren-kun. They're coming to the Royal Capital for a performance in the summer. Ah, but I wonder if we can still get tickets now. I only managed to snag mine by pure luck this time."
Amae-san looked sleepy and gave a passive impression at first glance, but she was actually quite proactive about things like this. Thinking back, she had been the first one to speak to me, too.
Unlike me, whose only friends were in the Imperial Archmage Faculty, she seemed to have acquaintances across the entire school, making her far more sociable than she looked.
However, even someone as dense as me could tell that wasn't the only reason she had come all the way to Temcha.
"But that's not the only reason you came out here, is it?"
"Yeah."
Amae-san admitted it readily.
"I'm a gloom, so I didn't really have many friends until I came to Magias."
"You're not a gloom."
"I hit it off with Filie-chan, and if she's having a hard time, I want to help her out."
From what she said, she must have known about the situation for quite a while.
Since it was a fairly delicate topic, they had to be extraordinarily close.
"Anyway, what about you, Bren-kun?"
"Well, to be honest, same here."
"Then we're on the same page."
In other words, we were comrades sharing the common goal of helping Philie-san without any thought of personal gain. It was nice that we could confirm that amidst our casual chat.
"I can tag along until tomorrow, so let's give it our all."
"Yeah. I'll do some mind-forging and head to bed early tonight too."
"What?"
"I said I'll do some mind-forging and turn in early."
"Sorry, I don't follow."
"Did your hometown not have that, Amae-san? Mind-forging."
"Of course not."
"Then I'll teach you next time."
"You don't need to teach me such a gross concept."
Suddenly, footsteps echoed down the hallway.
Turning around, I saw Philie-san standing there in her nightwear.
"Amae-chan. It's about time for bed."
"Ah, Filie-chan. Yeah, you're right."
Saying that to Amae-san, Philie-san offered a gentle smile in my direction as well.
"I'll be counting on you tomorrow too, Walker-kun."
"Yeah, I'll do a bit of mind-forging before heading to sleep."
"Honestly, Walker-kun. You can't stay up too late, alright?"
"I know. I'm really going to sleep early tonight, so don't worry."
With that, I left the washroom to do my mind-forging.
Might as well finish tomorrow's preparations while I was at it.
"Amae-chan. What's mind-forging?"
"Ah, so you don't know either, Filie-chan..."
"It's a phrase I've never heard once in my entire life..."
Glancing back at Amae-san and Philie-san whispering behind me, I headed into the living room.
Taking my drafting tools out of my travel bag, I spread them across the dining table. First, I would pull my concepts together.
"Big Brother, what are you doing?"
As I worked, one of the children approached with a puzzled look on his face. I thought everyone had been put to bed, but it seemed there was still a child awake.
"Mind-forging."
"Mine-forjin?"
"Care to watch for a bit, kiddo?"
"Yeah!"
◇
In later years, the master magic sword smith Alphonse Blitz, who revolutionized smelting technology and shook the entire world, looked back on that time and said:
"That was where it all began. At that moment, I was intensely moved by that person's mind-forging, and I resolved to walk the path of a mind-forging magic sword artisan."
Q. Did you know of the Magic Sword King back then?
"With all due respect, I did not. I was only six years old, after all. Honestly, I didn't know much about magic, either. I knew nothing aside from mind-forging."
Q. Did you start studying magic from that point on?
"Mind-forging came first. Dragon vein control started gradually after I turned ten. My sister told me there was no need to rush. By the way, are you interested in mind-forging?"
Not at all.
"If you insist that much, I suppose I have no choice. Allow me to teach you about mind-forging."
No, really, I'm good.
"People tend to think of mind-forging as something difficult, but actually, anyone can do it easily at home."
Please, no.
"To begin with, mind-forging is—"
This concludes our interview with the world-renowned master craftsman, Alphonse-san.
End
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