Gumihou: This chapter is… well, hmm… a filler page. Gumi got rid of the extra padding. It’s already a rather uneventful chapter without having it be extra draggy and boring.
Also, I think Eguchi Ren-san forgot that 3/5 of his main characters used to consume raw regularly while the other 1/5 could survive on rocks. Therefore, ‘guts are eww’ and ‘intestines are edible?’ dialogues are just… too weird.
Adjust as per Note 1
Once we got home, I served my familiars some explosively delicious Steak Bowl loaded with thick grilled steaks. I planned to visit Lamberts after lunch, so ended up serving them something fairly fast and filling.
“Master’s meat dishes are very delicious. Even so, I expect there are plenty more recipes I haven’t tried yet,” said Grandpa Gon as he licked his lips.
“Umu, of course,” Fer actually sounded civil for once.
“”Sui likes the Dungeon Meaty~~””
“”Indeed,”” [1] said Dora-chan in a slightly condescending tone. “”Meat from the Meat Dungeon is all good. However, the Master has a knack for making internal organs beyond delicious.””
“That’s right, I [1] used to think of internal organs as just more meat, but softer and easier to eat,” said Fer sagely. “However, after eating organ meats prepared by Master, I now understand that they could be served as delicacies too.”
“[1] Hmm, organ meats spoil easily, it makes sense to eat that part first,” said Grandpa Gon. “However, I never thought of organ meat as particularly tasty. Although certain bits could be juicy or chewy.”
“”It’s yummy~~”” said Sui dreamily. [2a]
“Is it now…?” Grandpa Gon looked cautiously expectant, but mostly sceptical. [2a]
Instead of answering, Sui, Fer and Dora-chan sighed a little dreamily. Grandpa Gon looked at them, non-plussed. Then, he turned to me, “Master, is it possible to have this dish for dinner?”
“Huh? What dish?” I asked. “If it’s internal organs there’s Tripe Stew, Stir-fried Liver, Barbecued Intestine-”
“”That one! That one!!””
“”Yes~~ meat~~ grilled meat~~””
“Umumumu,”
“Ah, well, if you all want it so much,” I said, a little flattered. “It’s going to be smoky, so I’ll have to cook it outside. Make sure you put up a barrier that prevents mosquitoes and other insects from coming in.”
“I shall be happy to put up the barrier, Master,” said Grandpa Gon, “please allow me the responsibility.”
“Sure, I shall depend on you.”
We arrived at Lambert’s to find it as busy as usual.
Female customers of all ages were flocking around the soap and shampoo section managed by Marie-san. Woah, seeing all those frantic female customers kind of reminds me of my sister, and Kishar-sama.
I was just wondering how to get Marie-san’s attention when she noticed me and called out, “Mukouda-sama, welcome. Is there anything you need?”
“Ah, well, there is something I’d like to consult with Marie-san…”
[3]
“Oh, in that case, do please come over here,” Marie-san cheerfully ushered me into Lambert-san’s office and closed the door against the chaos outside. “Now, how can I help you, Mukouda-sama?”
“Ah, it’s nothing much really, I’d like to purchase some tableware. I bought some really good quality ones from Neihoff, but…”
“Ah, so Mukouda-sama would like a shop recommendation?” Marie-san clapped her hands once. “There is an excellent tableware shop just down this street, just turn at the second corner and you’ll find it. The owner gets his wares directly from Neihoff.”
“Oh?” naturally, I am immediately interested.
“Indeed, this tea set for example,” Marie-san waved her hand at a set of teacups and matching pot displayed on the wall. “We purchased this set from that place.”
“I see, the craftmanship is indeed very good,” I said, “as expected of a merchant’s wife, Marie-san is very well informed.”
“Ufufufu,”
“I have another question,” I said.
“Keep them coming, Mukouda-sama~”
“Ahem, um, I’m thinking of expanding my bathroom. Maybe put in a bigger bathtub or something…”
“Ah hah! I have just the person in mind,” Marie-san cheerfully reached for a pen and paper and began to rapidly write. “Our bathroom is constructed and maintained by this contractor, he does an excellent job if I may say so myself.”
With a flourish, she signed her name and handed me the paper.
“This is…”
“A letter of introduction. Naturally, with Mukouda-sama’s reputation, a letter is probably not needed, but it may expedite your request.”
“Wow, thank you…” I said, a little awed by her efficiency. I accepted the letter and put it away. Then, I remove a small jar from my leather bag. It was a gift I had prepared for this meeting. The jar was nothing special, just a generic earthenware jar we used to fill the hair mask for Lambert’s shop.
I handed the jar to Marie-san, “Thank you for the information. As a token of appreciation, please accept this.”
“This is…” Marie-san took the jar, “may I open it?”
“Of course.”
“Hmm, the scent is different…”
“Ah, that one is a special cream for the face. After washing your face at night, apply a little of this on your skin. It’s a special face cream that doesn’t dry out easily and will keep your skin nice and moist.”
“!!!”
Fire seemed to blaze in Marie-san’s eyes as she apply a little dab of the cream on the back of her hand. “!!! This- this face cream thing just… it absorbs so easily into the skin! It’s less dense than oil, but contains more moisture somehow and my skin…”
Ah, she’s rubbing her cheek against the back of her hand…
“Ahem, I’m… glad you… like it?”
“Oh, oh my, I seemed to have lost myself for a moment there, hohoho~”
“Haha, well, I’m glad you like it. It’s, ah, a bit tricky to source that gel,”
The blazing fire in her eyes dimmed slightly, “Ah, is that so… even so, I am grateful to Mukouda-sama. Naturally, if the situation happens to change…”
Ah, this shrewd businesswoman… “Ahem, I’ll see what I can do.”
Marie-san beamed.
[3]
Under Marie-san’s overwhelming smile, I quickly left Lamberts. Was it a mistake to hand over the face cream like this? I mean, it’s just an ordinary all-in-one face cream, but I guess it’s kind of revolutionary in this place?
Anyway, I had already given the face cream to her, let’s not think about it anymore.
Right, first, a visit to the tableware shop and then to the contractor.
Grandpa Gon needs his own set of bowls and plates, and I need a bigger bathroom to accommodate Grandpa Gon.
The tableware store was not very big.
More importantly, it was filled with expensive and breakable things. Therefore, I had Fer and the rest wait outside while I pick out the goods.
“Welcome,”
The proprietor was a middle-aged man with a short moustache fluttering over a welcoming smile, “How may I help you?”
[4]
“Well…” I took out Fer’s ceramic plate from the [Item Box] and showed it to the proprietor, [4a] “I would like something like this, but in a different colour if possible.”
“May I see it? Hmm, hmm… this looks like something from the Filmaino Workshop…” he muttered as he stroked his beard. “Please wait a moment.”
The proprietor went to the back of the store and returned with a similar-looking deep dish in elegant and sombre mustard colour.
“Ooh, that’s very nice. It’s the same dish, but gives off a completely different feel~” the colour matches Grandpa Gon’s dignified personality. “Yes, I’ll take it.”
“That will be 21 gold, please.”
I think I bought Fer’s dish for much less than 20 gold. Then again, considering the cost of logistics and other expenses, plus the seller’s profit, 21 gold is a fairly reasonable price.
Perhaps seeing my hesitation, the proprietor showed me a different plate.
“This is a work by Lawrence Workshop, they have been gaining popularity lately.”
The dish in question was a large porcelain flat plate with gold bordering and off-white background. The size was just right, however, considering the rough nature of my familiars, I think these would break too easily.
“…do you have anything more durable?”
“Hmm, we received this from the up-and-coming Ludwig Workshop just the other day,” said the proprietor as he placed a white, slightly translucent plate down. It certainly looked thicker than the Lawrence plate.
Moreover, food always looks nice against a white background.
“How much for this one?”
“Just 7 gold apiece, if you like them, we have five identical ones in store.”
“Oh, wow, that’s a big difference between new and established workshops, huh? Right, I’ll take all five.”
In addition to the dishes, I also looked at other large plates and bowls. I ended up buying five beige-coloured plates and seeing the perfect ‘Don’ bowls, I bought five of those too.
The total ended up being 96 gold.
Things were more expensive here compared to Neihoff, but that can’t be helped. Anyway, I was able to buy all the things I wanted, so it was a pretty good day.
After paying and putting everything away, the proprietor’s moustache was practically dancing as he sent me off with a beam.
“Everyone, I’m back.”
“Slow!”
“”Really slow!””
“”We’ve been waiting, Sui has fallen asleep on my head.””
“”Zzzzzz…””
“Sorry, sorry, anyway, my shopping’s done now, so as promised, tonight’s dinner will be grilled offal.”
““Yess!!””
[2]
[Gumihou: Yeah, deleted the original ending.]
[1] Fix the ‘guts are eww’ scene
[2] Delete, delete, delete
[2a] Deleted repetitive ‘It’s yum’ scenes
[3] Adjust ‘interactions with Marie-san’ scenes to make it more dynamic. They are talking about where to buy tableware, it’s already boring enough on its own without presenting it in narrative form.
[3a] Reduced the explanation for the ‘all-in-one gel’
[4] Adjust ‘interactions with tableware shop proprietor’ to make it more dynamic
[4a] Delete unnecessary explanations.
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