Ryuuou no Oshigoto! - Volume 2 - Chapter 2.7

  CAKE

I trudge my way through the street at dusk on my own after saying goodbye to Ai and Akira.

I really should pick up something for my apprentice waiting at home …… But always bringing back the same kebabs would be suspicious. Heck, she’s already suspicious.

“… Could swing through Nanba.”

I usually go through Doubutsu-en Mae Station, but I decide to go in the opposite direction tonight. Nanba has got all kinds of things, and I can just go to Umeda if nothing looks all that good.

“But, yeah. What would make a grade schooler happy anyway?”

I haven’t got a clue, so I decided to consult with someone comparatively closer to a grade school girl, a girl in junior high.

I take out my smartphone.

Since there was a message waiting for me, I open it up to have a look. It’s from Sir Ayumu in Kanto, a picture with the heading: “Your thoughts on this garment?”

It looks like he took this picture of himself in a dressing room somewhere, posing for the camera. There’s a feathered robe around his shoulders. First a cape, now feathers ……

Personally, I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing that thing, but seeing someone else wear it is pretty funny. So, I typed an off-handed response: “Nice! Wear it to our next match (^_^)” and called it good. Then, I went into my phone history and tapped on Big Sis’s number.

“Yes?”

“Ah, hello? It’s me.”

“What?”

“You like sweets, right Big Sis?”

“… I don’t hate them.”

She sounds a bit cautious, but I press forward with another question.

“Are there any good sweet shops around?”

“Where are you?”

“Nanba. I’ll take the train to Umeda later.”

“Well …… let me think.”

She pauses for a moment, like she’s thinking back on something, before an avalanche of words comes through the speaker.

“There’s a place in Umeda, Shu Hatakeyama. Their ‘Fruit Overload☆Milk Crêpe’ is apparently making waves. The magaz …… the rumors say that the shop itself is perfect for a couple’s night out. Also, it’s pretty late but the Hilton should be serving their ‘Afternoon Tea Set.’ They’re pretty hard on the wallet but apparently their portions are big enough to have for dinner. If you’re around Dojima, Itodanidou’s roll cake is where it’s at. They have a few baked pastries that are good for a couple of days, but you can sit and look at the river and eat at the restaurant too. If you’re thinking around the association, there’s a place near the intersection in front of Shin Fukushima Station that serves cake with all you can drink coffee. It’s great because you can get on the train right away and they’re open until late. It’s not like I know so much because I want to go there and looked it up myself, it’s all these girly girls in my class that keep talking my ears off.”

“… But you know your stuff?”

“Hardly,” says Big Sis, as if she couldn’t be bothered to talk about cakes and pastries. “So? What’s this about? I just finished up preparing for my second match with the Women’s King for the day after tomorrow, so I could go for some sweets if you’re paying. I travel tomorrow so can’t do anything then, but I could keep you company right now–––.”

“Nah, today’s lesson went a little long, so thinking of buying something for Ai.”

“Drop dead, Kuzu!!”

The conversation ended with an angry beep. No need to get all boiled up. What could I possibly have said just now that would make her tell me to go to hell?

All right, the closest one to here would be …… Itodanidou’s roll cake?

I get directions from my phone and set off to pick up a surprise for my apprentice.

Buying two might be a good idea.

There’s a certain princess who might need a peace offering.