The two of us are standing in front of a what look like a house with a small sign reads 'Ken' in front of it. If Chris-san didn't tell me this was a restaurant, I wouldn't be able to know it was one because from the outside it looks like ordinary house instead of a restaurant.
"This place doesn't looks like a restaurant.."
"Yes, it's because the owner of this place doesn't want this place to get too noticeable because she doesn't want strange people to come here. I used to come here all the time back when I was staying in Pedrell."
Chris-san opens the door and gesture for me to come inside first.
Is this.. 'Ladies first' kinda thing? I mean, I'm not a lady but oh well..
Chris-san is really something..
When we come inside, a beautiful elfen woman with beautiful pink hair greets us," Oh kiddo, you finally come!"
"Please stop calling me 'kiddo'.. I'm already 30 years old you know.." Chris-san replies.
I guess by 'kiddo' she meant Chris-san? At first I thought she was referring to me but it turns out she was referring to Chris-san. What a surprise.
"No matter how old you are, you're always a brat. Anyway, the cute boy beside you is the infamous otherworlder, right? Welcome to 'Ken'! I'm the owner of this place, Eva."
Hoo..
I heard elves have long lifespan, so I guess she must be a lot older than she looks.
"Good afternoon. My name is Ren. I heard from Chris-san that he often frequents this place. I'm looking forward to the meal."
"Hoo~ Chris said something like that? ~ By the way this is the first time Chris ever bring someone here. I take it he's someone special to you?~"
"Fufufu~ I don't know~ Anyway, are you not going to take us to our seat? We are your customer you know."
Even though both of them are smiling, somehow I can feel the cold tension between them. Scary..
"You two go sit over here." Eva-san escort the two of us to the nearest table. Chris-san immediately take a seat beside me. "Ren-chan, do you have anything you don't like? In here, we don't have a menu. I just whip up whatever is there in the kitchen. It's a bother to have fixed menu anyway."
"Ah, yes. I don't have anything I particularly hate. That means this shop has different food everyday? Sounds fun, I'm looking forward to it!" I reply with a smile on my face.
Nodding, Eva-san goes back to the kitchen, leaving me and Chris-san behind.
Looking around the shop, I see there's only 4 table in here. A really small shop indeed.
So this is like the mystery restaurant back in earth. How fun! I hope I can get a rice dish!~
I wonder what kind of food she will make for me?~
"Fufufuf, Ren-chan do you like this place? You keep on smiling cutely ever since we got inside~" Chris-san asks me, he has both of his elbows on the table and he rests his chin on top of his joined hands.
"Ah yes, the ambience here is really relaxing and I can't help but to wonder what kind of food I will get."
"I used to come to this shop everyday back when I just started to become an adventurer. There's also Eva-san's husband back then but he's already passed away. I'm indebted to him . He really helped me a lot."
"Ah then, this must be an important place for Chris-san. Thank you for bringing me here."
Chris-san smiles turns kinda bittersweet as he reminiscence his past. I wonder why he would bring me to this restaurant? This restaurant seems to be really important to Chris-san.
"Fufufu, I was thinking 'Where should I take Ren-chan to eat?~' and then this place pops up in my head. Eva-san is also really talkative so I hope Ren-chan will also likes her~"
"I think it's a bit too say that. I already taken a liking to this place, both Eva-san and the shop really calms my heart."
I wonder why I feel really comfortable here. The ambience is just so relaxing, like floating on top of calm water.
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When I was busy talking with Chris-san, Eva-san finally came with our food.
"Thank you for waiting! This is our lunch set special !~ I have high confidence in this set, I'm sure Ren-kun will like it !~"
"Oooh, a set meal! I can't wait to dig in!~ Eh, wait.. Is this mackerel with miso sauce?!"
I take a closer look at the tray that Eva-san put in front of me.
There's grilled mackerel miso sauce, pickled pork, cold tofu, spinach with sesame dressing, pok choy salad and to top it all a steaming white rice!
This is just like what set meal back in Japan would look like !
"Are you surprised? In this restaurant, they serve worldwide cuisine, even from the other world!~", Chris-san said with a tinge of amusement in his voice.
"Yes, my husband is also an otherworlder. He said he was a chef back in his previous world. He taught me how to cook a lots of meal that I've never heard before. Ah, so nostalgic~"
Eva-san and Chris-san seems so happy to see my reaction. Yes, I am utterly surprised. I don't even know what to say. I never thought I would get to eat a japanese meal cooked by Alsar people!
"Right, since there's no customer yet I'm going to sit with you guys~" Eva-san says a she pulls a chair to sit on.
"Y-yes. Then, itadakimasu!"
"Hoo, itadakimasu.. It's been a long time since I last heard it…"
Chris-san tilts his head in confusion and asks, "What is 'itadakimasu'?"
Eva-san sips the broth while starting to explain it to Chris-san,"Well that is.."
I remember I also explains the same thing to Malik-san the first time he heard it. Ah japanese food..How nostalgic..
I've been cooking mostly japanese meal but eating the meal cooked by other people truly give a different kind of feeling.
"Eva-san, this is really delicious! Really authentic!"
"I'm glad that you like it! Come on, Chris you should also eat!"
"Right, then 'itadakimasu'!"
After Eva-san explains the meaning behind 'itadakimasu', Chris-san also said it when he started to dig in.
Ah, really everything is so delicious! The miso sauce goes well with the fish, the vegetable is so fresh and crisp!
Although, as expected from Alsar people.. The amount is too much for me.
Eva-san, seems like she noticed my expression and says,"Oh I forgot! The set meal must be too much for Ren-kun, right? Just eat until you full, no need to push yourself. You can let Chris-san eat the leftover, he would be more than happy to do it, right?~"
"That's right~ I will finish everything for Ren-chan. Afterall, even by looking I can see it's impossible for Ren-chan to finish it off."
"Y-yes, it's really delicious but the amount is.. Well impossible for me. I will be counting on you,
Chris-san."
"Yup, just leave it to me~"
S-so embarrassing!
The two of them completely see me thorough!
Even if they said I don't have to force myself, at least..Half! I'm going to finish at least half of it!
"So, Eva-san's husband is an otherworlder too?"
"Yup, he died because of sickness a few years ago. His name is Kenya Tanyaka."
"I see! So the shop is named after him?"
"Yes, we all called him 'Ken', hence the name of the shop~"
His name must be Tanaka Kenya.
As expected, Alsar people really butchered the japanese name.
Tanaka Kenya-san huh..
I want to see him once..Too bad he's gone now..
Ah that's right. The vegetable shop owner said that he had met an otherworlder before, right?
Was he referring to Ken-san then?
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The three of us keep talking as we eat until I finally give up," I'm sorry but I'm already full.."
"Ooh, that's alright! In fact, you eat more than I expected. Ken also eat very little, just like you."
I wonder how old was Ken-san?
Since he died due to sickness, does that means he was an old man?
If he's already old then the amount of food he can eat must be fewer than me.
Ah, making assumptions is not good! Bad Ren!
"Ren-chan, give me your tray. I will eat the rest of it~"
"Ah, yes. Thank you so much."
I move my tray closer to Chris-san who is smiling brightly. I know he doesn't have any ill intentions toward me but his smile is just too…bright.
"You know Ren-kun, I've lived for a long time since I'm an elf. Oh, I'm 87 years old if you're curious. Anyway, I've met plenty of otherworlder too, not only you and Ken but everyone that I've met.. All of them are really gentle and beautiful, including you of course. I'm really happy that Chris brought you here. I can feast my eyes on such beautiful human like you~"
"87 YEARS OLD?! I really can't tell! You look really young and beautiful! I also glad I can meet with Eva-san, I'm really happy that I can eat delicious japanese food in a restaurant like this."
But, really.. 87?! Amazing!
Chris-san chuckles, "Elf is really amazing, right Ren-chan? If I'm not wrong, Ken-san was 80 when he died. When I first saw the two of them, it was like seeing a granddaughter and grandfather together."
"Well I can't blame you afterall we're from two different race. I think I still have about 100 yeras left. As long as I'm alive, Ken will also live inside of me so it's alright!~"
80 years is not a bad number, not bad at all.
Ken-san must've life a long and fulfilling life.
I guess the average lifespan for Elf is about 200 years then?
"I'm sure Ken-san will be happy to have someone thinking of him so dearly like that. I hope one day I too, will be able to find someone dear to me like that."
"Hahaha! What a good kid you are Ren-kun! Yes, me and Ken.. We were-no. We are really happy. Even now, I never regret meeting him one bit."
It's amazing that Eva-san is willing to dedicate the rest of her long life to Ken-san.
Although..If I'm being honest, I'm sure Ken-san didn't mind if Eva-san were to find someone new. At least, that's what I will think of if I were Ken-san.
But! Right now Eva-san's mind is still filled with Ken-san so it's better if I don't say it out loud.
"I'm glad that Ren-chan and Eva-san becomes such good friend like this but, don't leave me behind, I will get lonely~"
As I was talking with Eva-san, Chris-san already finished my leftover food. So fast!
"Yes, the food is delicious and Eva-san is also nice to talk to. I will be coming here again after I finish with my subjugation quest!" I say to Eva-san happily.
"Of course! I will be waiting for you~" Eva-san replies.
Since the two of us already finished eating, we need to pay for our food but as I get up and reach for my wallet, Chris-san already gave his money to Eva-san.
"Umm, Chris-san please let me pay my share too!" I say hurriedly.
"Hmm?~ Since I'm the one that invited you here, please let me pay for it~" Chris-san says with his trademark wink.
Looks like Chris-san doesn't have any intention to let me pay, I will just leave it be for now then.
"Well then, see you later Eva-san~"
"Bye-bye Ren-kun~"
We bow our head in greeting to Eva-san.
Chris-san interlink our hand together as we reach for the door. Seems like the I will spend the rest of my day holding hands with Chris-san like this.
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"Thank you for the treat Chris-san. Next time, let me treat you, okay?"
"Ah that's not good. Since I'm an A-rank and Ren-chan is still F-rank. I don't want Ren-chan to pay. It will hurt my pride as your senior, you know. I will let you pay if you can reach to A-rank too, Ren-chan~"
Well.. The fee for A-rank quest and F-rank quest cannot be compared..
I know that it might seem weird if someone from A-rank got treated by someone from the lowest rank. Logically speaking it's not wrong but… it has strange feeling to it and I don't want Chris-san to have bad rumor because of me.
"Fine, I will let you treat me then. I will work extra hard so I can raise my rank and return the favor soon!" I pump my fist in high spirit.
"Fufuffu, I will be waiting then~ Right, shall we go shopping now?~" Chris-san chuckles.
Just you wait Chris-san!
One day I will definitely return the favor!
"Yes, let's go!"
And so, Chris-san and I go to the market hand in hand, with a happy tummy and smiling face together.
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Character Introduction!
Name : Eva
Age : 87
Height : 192cm
Hair color : pink
Eyes color : red
The owner of 'Ken'. Has the appearance of 20 years old girl despite her age. She lost her husband 8 years ago due to sickness.