CH 5

I wake up a little late, perhaps because I drank too much yesterday.

I take out a bottle of carbonated water from the item box and gulp it down.

Then, I washed my face at the well in the garden outside and went straight to the dining room.

“Good morning, Ginjiro-san! Yesterday was fun, wasn’t it?”

Clara’s smiling face soothes me as she leads me to a table.

The adventurers who had been drinking together until late yesterday had apparently left early in the morning for an adventure.

They are very tough.

Ginjiro sits alone in the empty dining room.

He didn’t have much of an appetite, so he decided to just have some hot soup.

Then Barney, the owner of the Hungry Bear Inn and as big as a bear, comes out from the back with a bowl of soup.

“It’s soup for hangovers.”

I looked at the wooden cup placed in front of me and saw that it contained bright red tomato soup.

As I sipped it, I felt a sensation of thick tomatoes and ginger, which permeated my body.

When I thanked Bernie-san for his help yesterday, he said to Ginjiro that he had a good time and went back to the kitchen.

It seemed that Ginjiro was the last guest to stay at the inn, so Bernie began to cook up a meal for everyone.

“Sorry Ginjiro-san, but you are getting your breakfast with us over here.”

Clara says, and I apologize for getting up rather late.

“It’s okay, I had a good time last night…”

Clara is kind.

Lutz, the eldest son, told me that yesterday was the best Elvis night in a long time, with the highest-ever amount of ale and wine barrels.

He also praised Ginjiro’s tambourine trick and the maracas he performed later.

“Thank you for the special soup. It was very delicious. Can I offer you a cup of tea in return, and may I have some hot water?”

When I sobered up, I made a suggestion.

“Oh, a cup of tea sounds wonderful. But are you sure?”

I feel like having a cup myself, so let’s all have a cup together.

With that said, I take out a set of tea and a honey-pickled lemon from the item box.

Lemon tea made with honey-dipped lemons is highly nutritious and good for relieving fatigue.

It also helps to soothe the throat, which is why Ginjiro often drinks this special lemon tea when he drinks tea.

“Is that honey?”

Bernie suddenly stands up and gets excited.

“Yes, it is,… Shall I brew you a cup of tea with lots of honey?”

Then Bernie’s expression relaxed.

I was surprised for a moment, but when I saw Bernie’s big body leaning forward, I knew he liked honey.

“If you want, I can make you some sweets with honey?”

“Please.”

So I made honey toast with lots of honey, using hard bread from the cafeteria.

The Hungry Bear has a large oven, so I was able to make the honey toast in no time.

Ginjiro’s face loosened as Bernie ate the honey toast and the lemon tea with lots of honey with great gusto.

“There are still many more, so go ahead.”

As I put the additional portions on my plate, the honey toast disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The Hungry Bear name was no joke, and in the end, Ginjiro made more honey toast than once.

Seeing Bernie and his family enjoying the food he had prepared made me feel happy.

After giving Bernie a bottle of honey, Ginjiro returned to his room.

Since he has a tea party meeting in the afternoon, he checks the coffee shop equipment in the item box.

He puts together some dishes, cooking utensils, ingredients, dusters, etc.

There were only three cat food cans left, so I ordered some from online stores.

Imagining Ao, a stray cat, eating the tasty cat food, I naturally smiled.

I bought cakes and ingredients one after another at the Internet store.

“This should be enough”

The online store is convenient, so I also buy the items labeled as recommended for you.

After getting ready, I lazily lay in bed and heard the sound of a bell from outside.

I went down the stairs of the Hungry Bear Inn and went to the entrance where Sebastian, the butler, and Amelie, the maid, were waiting for me in front of the carriage.

“I’m sorry to keep you waiting.”

“There is no need to worry, Ginjiro-sama. Lady Sophia was looking forward to seeing you today, so please take care of her.”

Saying that, Sebastian and the maid Amelie bow deeply.

“U-um, you may break the polite words as I’m not that kind of person.”

Ginjiro told Sebastian, the butler, but he only laughed and did not reply.

As for Ginjiro, he is a fellow coffee lover, and he owes Sebastian a debt of gratitude for saving him in another world.

Moreover, he is a butler and his name is Sebastian.

Well, I guess I will slowly close the distance between us.

I got into the carriage, muttering this in my mind.

We arrived at the kitchen of the Mainz family and first asked Sebastian to brew a cup of this world’s tea.

The tea was not bad, as it is served at the Count’s house, but it was not deep, and I felt a little sour and unpleasant.

I also added a little sugar, but it gave the tea a strange taste.

The cookies were a little dry and not very sweet.

The maid, Amelie, seemed to enjoy them, but to be honest, they seemed to give me heartburn.

Next, Ginjiro borrows space in the preparation area to brew a pot of tea.

First, Earl Grey.

He took out the teacups that had been pre-heated with hot water, and asked the cooks and maids who had gathered in the kitchen to taste the tea.

After enjoying the aroma of the tea straight, they tried lemon tea and milk tea.

The milk, which was available in the kitchen, was very rich and sweet.

I once drank freshly squeezed milk at a dairy farm in Chiba Prefecture, and I think it was just as good as that.

“This milk tea is delicious.”

Oliver, the head chef, murmurs.

“This lemon tea is good, too.”

Cohen, the head maid, murmurs.

By the way, at this point, all the cookies that had been purchased at the online store were gone by the cooks and maids present here.

Next, they tried Darjeeling.

The taste of the tea was favorable, so this time I attacked not with the taste but with the talk.

“This one is called Darjeeling, and it is a popular black tea among women. It prevents blemishes and swelling, and also helps to release bad elements from the body. It’s also a good drink for beauty.”

Then I felt the maid’s eyes twinkle for a moment.

Since I ran out of cookies, I cut up a smaller piece of pound cake that I ordered from online store.

“It’s wonderful that it’s good for beauty.”

The sales talk seemed to hit home with Cohen-san, the head maid.

“This pound cake is delicious, too.”

Oliver, the head chef, was pleased as he put several small pieces of pound cake in his mouth.

Seeing everyone’s reaction, Ginjiro realized that he would be fine in another world.

Afterwards, Cohen-san, the head maid, asked me about beauty, but this was just sales talk and Ginjiro is not a beauty expert.

When asked for more details, I forcefully broke off the conversation, saying that we could talk about it another time.

I gave Oliver, the head chef, some other kinds of pound cakes and thanked him for letting me use his kitchen.

“You’ re a very interesting guy. Leave the washing to me.”

With these words, the chef himself washed the dishes and wiped them with a clean cloth.