Chapter 221 : Tea Time

 

A few days have passed since I made Pamella cry after a long conversation through the Resonance Stone. I felt sorry back then but when I talked to Pamella again the next day and apologized, she got angry at me for some reason. She told me not to apologize.

I really don’t understand ladies’ feelings…

She asked me how to get better at water magic, so I taught her to the best of my knowledge, but then she bombarded me with questions.

I don’t know what happened but I could tell that she was very motivated to get better at magic for some reason.

Don’t tell me… She wanted revenge on me for making her cry…? That’s why she wants to get better at magic so that she can attack me when I return to Fatia…?

It makes me a little scared to go home… But… No, I don’t think a shy girl like Pamella will do that…

She won’t, right…?

Anyway, today, as usual, Celine, Nicola, and I went to the Portal Crystal after lunch. After that, we went to the bathhouse, and then I went home, leaving Celine and Nicola behind at the bathhouse.

When I reached my home and opened the outer wall with earth magic, I saw Ester playing with the bouldering wall in my front yard.

As usual, she climbed up and down the wall quickly like a kunoichi*.

*female ninja

I met her when I took Nicola to work at her house this morning but she didn’t tell me that she would come to play, so I was a bit surprised.

As soon as she noticed my presence, Ester jumped off the wall and ran toward me.

「Maark~! I’ve been waiting for you! I came to play!」(Ester)

She’s so cheerful as always.

I have something to do after taking a short break but maybe she will join me. Besides, Nicola said that she would take a nap at Celine’s house after taking a bath at the bathhouse, so I’m all alone.

「Yo, Ester. Tori-sensei asked me to make a playground for the children, so I’m going to do it later. Wanna join me?」(Mark)

「Of course!」(Ester)

I knew she would answer immediately. She likes to see someone using magic after all.

「Alright. We’re going after taking a short break. Let’s get inside my house and have some tea.」(Mark)

The amount of mana I used to help Celine refine her crystal branch was not that much. Even so, I needed to keep supplying mana to her body for about thirty minutes while paying attention to the mana flowing to the branch, so I was tired mentally a little.

「Un!」(Ester)

As soon as she replied to me, she grabbed my hand tightly, and then we walked toward my container house while holding hands.

Our distance is close but I feel like I’ve already gotten used to it. Besides, I kinda like the scent of flowers that is drifting from her hair when I’m close to her.

I stood in front of the entrance and touched the board installed on the door with my hand.

The board then emitted a faint light, and the door opened as soon as a clattering sound was heard.

This board is a magic tool that is used to lock a door. I got it from Tori-san for free.

First, you need to register your mana by injecting it into the board, and then you can lock it and unlock it anytime by doing the same thing.

By the way, Nicola and Celine have registered their mana, so they can get inside, but Ester hasn’t.

I don’t think you need to lock your door in a rural village like this but I came from a town and I once lived in a big city in Japan, so I would feel insecure if I didn’t lock my door.

Well, according to Tori-san, this board can be destroyed with brute force, so there’s no point in using it though…

We took our shoes and socks off and entered the house.

As soon as she took off her knee socks, Ester walked to the carpet and sat down.

「Ahh~ Your carpet is fluffy and it feels good~」(Ester)

I was planning on having tea on the table, but the plan changed since Ester is sitting on the carpet.

I sat down in front of Ester and made a chabudai* between us using earth magic.

*Japanese short-legged table.

「Let’s have tea here.」(Mark)

「Sitting on the floor like this? Hee~ It’s interesting!」(Ester)

In Japan, people do this all the time, but it seems that no one drinks tea while sitting on the floor like this in this world.

I was thinking of moving to the table if Ester didn’t feel comfortable but she seemed to enjoy it.

I took two cups of tea and a teapot from my Item Box and put them on the table.

Now it’s time to serve the tea, but since I got this tea from someone in this village, I think Ester has already gotten used to drinking this tea.

I want to serve her something that she doesn’t seem to have ever drunk or eaten before.

Hmm…

Oh, right! I still have the baby castella I bought at a stall in Fatia when the feudal lord came to visit. I bought a lot back then but I didn’t have time to eat it.

It’s been in my Item Box for a long time but it should be good since time stops in my Item Box.

I took out a plate from my Item Box, took out the paper bag containing baby castella, and then put the content on the plate.

It’s still slightly warm and I can still smell the sweet scent of honey drifting from it.

「Whoaa~! What is this?」(Ester)

Ester curiously stared at the baby castella on the plate.

Bingo! It seems that she has never seen sweets like this in this village.

「It’s baked sweets called baby castella. I bought it at a stall in Fatia. It’s sweet and tastes good.」(Mark)

「Hee~ Can I eat it?」(Ester)

「Of course. I took it out for you.」(Mark)

As soon as I answered her, Ester gently took a piece of baby castella and put it in her mouth.

「Mmm~! It’s melting and filling my mouth with sweetness! I think this is the first time I’ve ever eaten sweets this good!」(Ester)

Ester put her both hands on her cheeks and smiled with a soft expression.

I’m glad she likes it.

Her happiness is a blessing for me as the host.

I didn’t want to ruin her happiness, so I decided to keep quiet about the fact that I bought it a few months ago…

 

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