Though the room’s opulence flustered me slightly, being alone with Illness-san meant I didn't have to be so formal.
While I was lost in thought, a staff member offered a polite "Excuse me" and handed me a wine list. Wait... hadn't the wine brands already been listed on the menu? I wondered if there were additional wines to accompany the ones already paired with each course. Having almost no experience with multi-course meals at places like this, I wasn't entirely sure how it worked.
Sensing my confusion, the waiter provided a brief explanation.
"These are the wines currently available. If you'd like to adjust any of the pairings, please let us know."
"O-okay, I see."
"Shall I bring out the first course right away?"
"Yes, please."
I watched the waiter bow and exit. From what he said, I mused, a 'pairing' must be the combination of a specific wine with a specific dish. Since they’re 'changeable,' the restaurant must have a default selection that I can swap out using this list... right? Yeah, that has to be it.
"...Illness-san, do you want to change anything? I don't really have a preference, so I’m happy to go with whatever you'd like."
"Let’s see... I think the current selection is mostly fine, but... considering Kaito-sama's tastes... perhaps the wine for the fish dish..."
Since I was out of my depth regarding wine, I deferred to her. After a moment's consideration, Illness-san reached out and tapped a small Magic Tool on the table.
The door opened, and the waiter returned with a bow. Ah, so that’s how you call the staff, I realized. Good thing I didn't have to ask and embarrass myself.
"...Regarding the Fion Lefeur... which years do you have available?"
"We have the 7-year, 18-year, and 45-year available."
"Then... could you please change the pairing wine for the fish dish to the 18-year?"
"Certainly."
Illness-san was incredible. The way she selected the wine was so sophisticated and cool; I really admired her. I wished I could confidently specify a vintage like that.
Then again, I wasn't a huge wine drinker, so memorizing all those details seemed like a tall order.
While mulling that over, I asked Illness-san a question after the waiter left.
"Um, was that 'Fion Lefeur' just now? What kind of wine is it?"
"It’s a crisp white wine... very refreshing... This restaurant... seems to have a good selection of vintages..."
"To be honest, I don't really understand the whole 'vintage' thing... What’s it like?"
"Generally, what we call an 'old vintage'... refers to those aged fifteen years or more... It seems this shop... stocks a well-balanced variety..."
"I see... so, are the older ones usually more expensive and delicious?"
"You can't really say that across the board... It is true that... many wines mellow with age and develop more complex flavors... but every wine has a 'peak'... and once that is passed... the flavor can actually deteriorate... There are also wines suited for drinking at an early stage... so older is not necessarily better..."
"I see..."
It was as complicated as I’d feared. I at least understood the waiter's options: a 7-year-old young wine, an 18-year-old vintage, and a 45-year-old deep vintage.
"Oh? But didn't you once mention a 3,000-year-old Wine? Wait... wasn't that made using some special method?"
"Indeed... There is a technique that uses Special Status Preservation Magic... to let wine age without the flavor deteriorating. That’s how it was made. Because the magic must be tuned so precisely... to the daily temperature and humidity... it's a very rare vintage that almost never hits the market..."
"There really is a lot to it... I'd love to order as smoothly as you do, but it seems like a pretty high bar for me."
"You don't need to force yourself to learn it all... If you just find a few labels you like and ask for them when you’re out, you won't need to know all the complexities..."
"That makes sense. Maybe I can pull it off then."
"Giggle... I think you are always wonderful, Kaito-sama... but seeing you like that would be even better..."
I smiled back as she gave a gentle laugh. Since we drank together often, I thought it might be nice if we found a "house" wine that was just for the two of us.
Serious-senpai: "This is starting to feel wrong... This effortless, airy flirting is really grating on me..."
Machina: "So you're saying they should flirt more intensely?"
Serious-senpai: "That's not it at all!"