"Um…"
Looking at the brown-haired Uma Musume in front of her—with only a small tuft of white hair—Tokai Natural's expression wasn't great. "Could you let go?"
The one gripping Tokai Natural's hands was none other than Gold Ship, the one who'd shown up at Tracen Academy's open day before.
Ever since that day, after she'd declared she'd come again...
Gold Ship had kept appearing in the shop once or twice a week.
She brought in a decent amount of spending, but…
Looking at Gold Ship holding one of her hands, Tokai Natural felt seriously troubled.
She was the head chef. Even if there weren't many customers right now, she still had prep to do.
"Okay!"
Gold Ship released her hand.
Seeing her let go so decisively, Tokai Natural didn't even know how to react.
And in the corner, Mochizuki watched the scene with an expression that said she was already used to it.
As for Teio…
"Auntie Natural, she…"
Teio thought for a few seconds, then continued, "Unexpectedly… um. She's… kind of magnetic."
Watching Teio take minutes just to pick that phrasing, Mochizuki simply returned her gaze to Natural. "Later on, you won't be sighing like that."
"E-ehhh?"
"Because there'll be a lot of people. You'll get used to it."
Saying that, Mochizuki turned her eyes back to the homework in front of her.
Before the semester started, she'd already submitted a request to skip grades.
Jumping straight from second grade to fifth.
Staring at her homework, Mochizuki sighed, then shifted her gaze a little.
Japanese schoolwork wasn't that heavy—of course, that was under normal study conditions. If you were going to grind, then after school you'd have cram school, the so-called juku, the whole tutoring-class thing.
And Mochizuki, right now, could only teach herself.
Because her mom's education… or rather, the education of Uma Musume who graduated from Tracen Academy was a little…
Watered down…
Saying it like that might sound exaggerated, but the truth really was that.
After all, Tracen Academy had tracks from middle school all the way to college, and because of racing, most Uma Musume—compared to working adults—could only be said to have reached the bare minimum level needed to get hired.
Though not everyone who graduated Tracen was like that. Uma Musume who graduated from the support departments were strong academically, and their specialized knowledge was impressive.
So Yayoi Mochizuki couldn't count on her mom or her aunties to tutor her.
And juku fees were too expensive.
So in the end, Mochizuki could only work hard on her own, slowly.
Seeing Mochizuki had no intention of continuing the conversation,
Teio could only turn her head away and look back at everything in the little shop.
Maybe because school still hadn't started yet, there weren't many people in the restaurant.
So Teio didn't have much work to do.
And just as Teio was starting to get bored—the bell on the shop door rang. Teio, who'd already been working here for a while, immediately knew a customer had come in.
"Welco—"
Mochizuki reacted faster than Teio.
But the greeting she hadn't finished veered the moment she saw who it was. "Auntie Ardan, long time no see."
"Mm. So you're here too, Mochizuki."
After casually responding to Mochizuki, Mejiro Ardan looked at Tokai Natural.
"Is this about work?"
Looking at Ardan, Tokai Natural asked that.
"Mm, it's work. But this time it's heavier." As she spoke, Mejiro Ardan sat down in front of Tokai Natural. "Yayoi-san, have you heard of live cooking?"
Hearing the term, Tokai Natural froze for a second, then nodded. "You need live cooking this time?"
"Mm. It was Ramonu-nee's suggestion. She said doing it that way would make people feel better." Mejiro Ardan looked at Tokai Natural. "If you think you can't manage it, Yayoi-san, you can refuse."
The advice Ardan gave was fair.
Hearing it, Tokai Natural looked at Ardan, then turned her head toward Mochizuki and Teio.
After a beat of silence, Tokai Natural nodded to Ardan. "Mm. Then I'll arrive there early that day."
Tokai Natural's answer finally let the urgent worry in Ardan's chest settle a little.
She sat down in the seat beside Gold Ship, then spoke again. "I really don't know why Ramonu-nee would make a request like that."
As she said that, Ardan looked at Tokai Natural. "Could I have a dessert?"
"Mm. Sure, no problem."
Tokai Natural didn't explain Ardan's question. She simply turned around and started making dessert.
Dessert was necessary for any Western-style restaurant, but unfortunately, Tokai Natural didn't have that much space here, so what she could do was limited to the most basic things.
Thinking that, Tokai Natural turned her head slightly toward Gold Ship. "Gold Ship, do you want one too?"
"I want one!"
No hesitation at all.
Hearing that, Tokai Natural's face showed a subtle, complicated expression before she started preparing the sweets.
Before long, two desserts were set down in front of them. "Mont Blanc. I tweaked it on the fly from a set menu idea—so the taste probably won't be that great."
As she said that, Tokai Natural turned to Mejiro Ardan. "Try it."
Hearing that, Mejiro Ardan froze for a second before speaking. "Is this preparation for later?"
"Yes and no. The difficulty isn't that high, but the steps are a hassle, so it's not really suitable. Later I'll probably think about improving it."
As she said that, Tokai Natural turned toward Ardan, then continued, "The one inviting me this time is Miss Mejiro Ramonu?"
"Mm. It's Ramonu-nee. I don't know why, but after she went to Okinawa once and came back, she decided she wanted to invite you."
As she spoke, Mejiro Ardan cut off a bite of Mont Blanc with her spoon, then continued, "But it shouldn't be a bad thing, right?"
"Yayoi-san."
A voice came, and Tokai Natural turned to look.
It was Gold Ship.
Hearing Gold Ship speak, Tokai Natural tilted her head. "What is it? You want mo—"
"Don't go."
The line was so simple it made Tokai Natural even more confused.
Because she didn't know why Gold Ship was warning her like this.
But the moment she thought about Mochizuki and Teio both needing money, Tokai Natural still gave a refusal.
"Auntie has to earn money~"
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T/N: LISTEN TO GOLDSHIPP!!!!! SHE HAS POWERS!!!!!!