The next morning. I woke up as usual, so after a morning yoga, I cast Clear magic on myself and left the room. Although the building was big, it wasn’t as big as ours, so I immediately arrived at a kitchen-like place.

There, I saw the figure of Okusan who was preparing the breakfast.
… As I thought. She was frozen in front of the ingredients. I wonder if the town mayor said something to her…

「Umm…」

When I called out to her, Okusan who noticed me suddenly rushed over to me and prostrated while apologizing.

「L, last evening… I’m truly sorry about it! I served a poor meal…!」
「Umm, please raise your head… you couldn’t tell the taste, right?」
「… Yes. Hence, I don’t know what to make this time…」

Okusan looked at the ingredients dejectedly. How helpless she is.

「Erm… cooking is my hobby. May I help you?」

I cheerfully offered to help.

「T, that can’t be!? To have a guest… moreover, Duke-sama’s young lady to help me!」

She couldn’t conceal the surprise and bewilderment at my proposal.

「Let’s have fun and make it together, okay? You won’t be able to make something delicious while feeling diffcult」
「Uu… uwaaaan…!」

Awawa…! Okusan squatted down and burst into tears. She must have been holding back a lot…
I squatted as well and hugged Okusan while patting her head, there, there.
She started crying even louder, but she should let it all out here.

「U… uu… I, I, I’m doing my best… but… I was told I’m useless…!」
「Yes」
「The… previous Okusama… sniff, was Mother-in-law’s… favorite… so… I’m being… compared…!」
「… I see. It must be hard」
「Uwaaaan!」

After a while, she calmed down and stopped sobbing.

「… I, I’m truly… sorry. Showing such unbecoming… behavior to Ojousama…」
「Don’t worry about it. Okusama has been doing your best to endure, right? You are admirable」
「Ojousama…!」

Ahh, she started crying again… what a worrisome person.
Well, I will have to tell Otousama to have a talk with the town mayor.

「Now then, shall we make the breakfast together?」
「B, but I… can’t tell the flavor…」
「For now, I will show you how to make it, so you please properly memorize the quant.i.ties. You should be able to create the same flavor if you make it the same way after all」
「Y, yes…」

Like this, what I made for breakfast together with Okusan was a fluffy omelet, salad with French dressing and soup from salt-pickled Orc meat and brown bread.
In the middle, she said things like「Eh, you are putting in only that much of salt?」but I told her「Now, now, don’t worry about it」, to try making it like that.

Even if she can’t understand the taste of the omelet, I wanted her to enjoy the texture. She seemed to be able to feel a little bit of acidity, so I made a plenty of crunchy salad with French dressing.
So that the soup wouldn’t be overly salty, I used the salt from the salt-pickled Orc meat, cooked it together with vegetables and herbs so she can enjoy a pleasant fragrance. Everyone then can add salt and pepper to their liking.

「… Is this really all right? Won’t I be scolded for making it too bland…」
「It’s fine. If you get scolded for making it too bland, you just have to retort with: There’s salt and there’s pepper, use as much as you like!」
「Y, yes…」
「Ah but, please be careful not to make yours too strong and focus on the texture, Okusama. Try eating while ascertaining the taste and texture from now on, okay?」
「Yes…」

The breakfast we had was full of smiles.

「It has been a while since we had this happy atmosphere at the dining table… Husband always ate with a frown… but it’s only given, isn’t it? With those meals…」

Okusan laughed at herself.

「How was this time’s cooking?」
「Eh? … Well, the taste… I can’t tell for sure after all, but… it’s soft, juicy and the fragrance too… I had fun eating」
「Is that so? I’m glad you could enjoy it too」
「… Thank you very much. I have forgotten that meals are meant to be enjoyed for a long time. I think I would like to have as much fun as while cooking from now on」

Okusan smiled brightly.
Umu. I’m glad, I’m glad.

After the breakfast, I had Otousama talk with the town mayor and in the meanwhile, I wrote a simple recipe for Okusan.
Whether it was because she was the second wife, Okusan was quite young.
She looked older because her skin got rough from bad eating habits.
When I told her: “Your skin will surely get rejuvenated if you eat balanced meals, you know?” she rejoiced.

「I will sincerely protect this recipe and cook it!」

Yeah, I think it will change somewhat because preferences of each family, but stay faithful to it for now, okay? Please avoid arranging it for now, yes?

And thus, we left for the Capital.

… I digress, but the town mayor couple received my recipe「Something this valuable for our sake…!」with deep emotion and said something about pa.s.sing the recipe from generation to generation or something…