Living up to her reputation as a restaurant owner, Kaori-san handled her cooking duties with practiced ease.
"You're really good at this, just as I expected."
"Well, I’ve been at this for quite a few years now. Oh, that’s right—you can definitely have high expectations for the cooking... but don't set the bar too high for the rice."
"Wait, is the rice not very good?"
When I asked, Kaori-san explained with a wry smile.
"No, it’s not that it tastes bad, exactly. It’s just... well, I’m sure you’ve noticed after being in this world for a while, Kaito-kun, but rice is a pretty minor staple here."
"Yeah, I definitely don't see it often. It is produced in every country to some degree, though, right?"
"Right. But because production is so low, it's pricey. Plus, selective breeding hasn't really progressed much, has it? For us Japanese, the flavor just feels a bit... off. I do my best to source the highest quality I can find, but it still has that 'imported rice' feel to it."
I nodded. It was just as she said; rice wasn't a common sight here. Most people lived on bread. Among my circle of acquaintances, Noin-san was probably the only one who ate rice as a primary staple—and she was originally Japanese.
When it came to Kuro's Family, Kuro herself didn't have a strong preference between bread or rice; she ate both equally. Raz-san also enjoyed rice and seemed to eat it frequently, but even for her, it was a fifty-fifty split with bread.
Acht and Eva, on the other hand, had mentioned that they rarely touched it. To them, if a meal didn't feature bread, it just felt wrong.
However—and this was a significant distinction—I had never once felt the rice in this world tasted subpar. I had never felt it tasted like "foreign rice."
In fact, I found it far more delicious than the rice I’d eaten back home while living by myself. This discrepancy was likely due to the sheer skill of the producer I knew.
"Um, Kaori-san?"
"Yes?"
"Would you mind trying a bit of this? It’s just a salted rice ball, but..."
"An onigiri? ...Wow, the grains are so glossy and well-shaped."
When I handed her the salted rice ball I had retrieved from my Magic Box, Kaori-san took a bite with a puzzled expression. A moment later, her face shifted to one of pure shock.
"Wh-Whaaat?! What on earth is this? It’s delicious! It’s on a completely different level from mine! What is this? Is it from Niigata? Is it Niigata-grown?! Is this that Koshihikari stuff?!"
"No, I don't think it's Koshihikari... but it is rice grown by someone I know."
The rice I offered her was grown by Raz-san. Since Aoi-chan and Hina-chan naturally missed eating rice, I made sure to get a regular supply from Raz-san. Her rice was so high-quality that even Noin-san—who was notoriously picky about Japanese cuisine—gave it her seal of approval.
Well, I didn't bring it out just to brag about the quality.
"Anyway, it's just as you said, Kaori-san. Rice is a niche product here. The person I know has a massive surplus and asked me to let them know if I found anyone who wanted it."
Raz-san genuinely seemed to enjoy the process of rice cultivation and had established a substantial paddy, but since so few members of Kuro's Family ate it, her consumption rates didn't come close to matching her harvest. She was genuinely troubled by it.
Every time I went to pick some up, she would ask if I didn't want even more. But even with Aoi-chan, Hina-chan, and me together, we could only eat so much. Recently, my mother and father had started eating it too, so our consumption had increased, but it was still just a drop in the bucket.
Consequently, her stockpile grew larger every year. Raz-san was starting to sadly consider reducing the size of her rice fields.
"So, if you're interested, would you like me to introduce you next time?"
"Wait, really?! If I could stock this rice, it would be a dream come true! Even if the wholesale price is higher than what I'm paying now, for quality like this, I'd pay it in a heartbeat!"
"It'll depend on the negotiations, but since the other side is struggling with the surplus, I imagine they'll give you a fairly reasonable deal. I'll bring them along next time."
"Thank you so much! I bet Shige-san would be thrilled to eat this, too."
"Shige-san?" I repeated. It was a name I didn't recognize, but it definitely sounded Japanese.
"Oh, Shige-san is a man named Shigenobu Okura. He was a former Hero-role participant, just like me, and now he works as a farmer in the Hydra Kingdom. We met by chance. He's nearly ninety, but he's still incredibly energetic. He stops by my shop about once a year."
"Wow, so there are other immigrants from Japan living here. I’d love to meet him if I ever have the opportunity."
"Yeah. I'm sure Shige-san would want to meet you too... Personally, I'd like to meet those three high schoolers you mentioned."
Conversation flowed naturally once the topic turned to our fellow countrymen. We spent a good while happily chatting about the various Japanese people we knew.
Serious-senpai: "I see, so that's how the connection with the other immigrant is made... Wait, doesn't the other one have no contact with the rest?"
???: "That's right. But she seems to have a connection with Kuro-san, so they might end up meeting through that channel."
Serious-senpai: "Ah, that makes sense."