a.s.sistant to s.h.i.+n?
Having lost to the pressure from Otousama and Okaasama, an additional Orc needed to be dismantled on top of the one s.h.i.+n planned to use for a recap, so he was about to cry when I urged him to dismantle another one.
Sorry, s.h.i.+n.
As for the sausages, we decided to keep the recipe secret, so we can"t afford to show the method to many people…
It would be tough for s.h.i.+n alone and he had to work in a barrier to not show the process. I intended to help him, so I made my way to the kitchen.

"Lord, you don"t have to help."
"We will do it, why don"t you rest in your room?"

Even though I prepared myself to help out with the dismantling, I got stopped by Kurogane and Mas.h.i.+ro.

"Eh, but I want to learn how to dismantle…"
"Thinking that you may feel sick again, I simply can"t let you go. I would like you to leave this matter to us for the peace of our minds."
"We get worried when you are not feeling well, Cristea."

If you speak up this much, it will make anything I say sound unreasonable.
Ugh, aren"t Kurogane and Mas.h.i.+ro spoiling me way too much?
The Sacred Beasts seem to protect their contractor with all of their might after the contract has been made so that the pleasant magical power of the contractor doesn"t get affected, but I don"t think spoiling someone this much is healthy… of course, I am happy that they are worried about me, though.

"Additionally, they will be having a new a.s.sistant this time, so there will be more than enough hands."
"Eh? a.s.sistant!?"

The recipe is supposed to be secret, so increasing manpower is a little…

"Cristesama! I will be a great a.s.sistant so you don"t have anything to worry about!"
"He, Head Chef!?"
"This recipe uses the internal organs you have spoken of before, right? A dish of internal organs that left Sire and Madam fascinated… I just can"t keep sitting still!"
"……"

His speech is crisp as always, but why do I feel that there"s drool coming out of his mouth?

"Didn"t Otousama tell me to keep this recipe secret, though?"
"Yes, that"s correct. However, I believe that I should have the right to share the secret as your informant and understand everything there is! Therefore! I beg of you kindly…!"

Head Chef, you have appeared to be showing off since a while ago, but the drool… wipe it first…

"… The only person besides me who knows the recipe is s.h.i.+n. Are you able to promise me that you will heed s.h.i.+n"s instructions by putting your status as the head chef aside?"
"The pioneers of new recipes are my teachers regardless of their or my status."

I could see s.h.i.+n mouthing "Refuse him." with a displeased expression behind the Head Chef, who was replying with seriousness written all over his face. I understand your feelings.
But, it would be better to have more hands…

"If you say that much, I will allow it. However, you absolutely must keep the recipe secret, alright?"

When I said so after letting out a sigh, Head Chef"s face lit up with a smile.

"Of course! Now then, Teacher s.h.i.+n, please give me your guidance!"
"Ueh!? Please stop calling me Teacher! Do you know how to dismantle, Head Chef?"
"No, this will be first. Fufu… working on the ingredients from scratch is a matter of importance in this lesson we call life!"
"Seriously…? I beg of you, don"t fall flat, okay?"
"Ha ha ha, I am a chef, you know? There"s no way I can fall flat in front of the ingredients, right?"

The difference between s.h.i.+n"s unimpressed expression and Head Chef who was itching for knowledge regarding the new recipe was amazing.
Haah… you don"t fall flat before the ingredients, huh. As expected of the Head Chef, he just climbs over the obstacles. Me, in comparison…

"I will leave the rest to you guys then."

There doesn"t seem to be anything I could do even if I stayed here, so I decided to return to my room.

"Yeah…"
"Please leave it to us!"
"Umu. Take it easy in your room, Lord. I"m going to erect a barrier here, but make sure to call if something happens."
"Cristea, see you later."

One one hand, I felt dejected that I couldn"t learn to dismantle again, on the other hand, I was slightly relieved that I didn"t have to witness the splatter one more time.

"Cristesama? Weren"t you going to observe the dismantling?"

Miria who was surprised that I returned to my room this quickly, promptly poured tea in a cup for me.

"They had enough hands over there, so Kurogane and others sent me back."

I replied while having tea.
Haah… how warm.
It may be the beginning of spring, but it"s still cold outside. Although I don"t care much about the outside temperature with a barrier established around me…
Letting Miria leave to do her work, I decided to enjoy a cup of tea all by myself.

(You get involved with the commoner"s cla.s.s too much despite being a young n.o.ble lady. Why don"t you try acting like a proper young n.o.ble lady for once?)

Kaguya, who was curled up by the window spoke while jumping on the sofa and on my lap and curling herself up again.

"You say that, but I can"t make new recipes unless I actually make them myself… above all, I have fun making them."
(Geez, you are a strange la.s.s. Even though not wanting to work is normal.)

I was previously a commoner, so it can"t be helped. I don"t want to work busily, but not having anything to do is bad.

(Oh well. Opportunities like this are rare, so I will keep you company.)
"Fufu, thank you. Let"s see, how about I give you the full course of brus.h.i.+ng and ma.s.sage after a long time?"

I pulled out Kaguya"s brush from my Inventory.

It has been only a little while after I started brus.h.i.+ng Kaguya that I got a report of Head Chef falling flat. Head Chef…