Chapter 53

It had already been two months since I stayed in the livestock shed.

It was while I was grilling infertile eggs in the storage room.

– Moo~.

Lapin, who came early on a weekend morning, turned her gaze toward the sound.

“The cow says it feels good.”

“……Really?”

According to Lapin, it seemed that the management had not been too bad so far.

I wondered if the academy was aware of this situation.

‘At this point…… I can assume the school has completely lost interest.’

The academy made no mention of me handling food, clothing, and shelter in the shed, nor about its produce.

‘No one even comes to collect the produce. From the start, not a single supervisor or manager has shown their face, right?’

They were so uninterested that even the firewood and the feed for the livestock had to be supplied by me.

‘Thankfully, the fields are nearby.’

Fortunately, there was a small field near the farm where rice and wheat were planted.

Of course, these too looked untouched by any caretaker, left in their natural state.

‘Maybe the proximity of the fields was intentional on the academy’s part.’

The livestock shed was practically abandoned by the academy.

I could guess what the school’s idea of the shed was.

We won’t care, so let’s see if you can solve everything on your own.

That might have been the academy’s answer.

‘Do they think it’s just a space to punish me?’

If the academy considered the shed even slightly important, they wouldn’t have treated it this way.

‘Of course, being neglected works in my favor too.’

I looked at the eggs.

They were supposed to be discarded, but for nearly two months I had been using them as my daily meals.

‘By now, I could probably use things other than eggs and nothing would happen.’

It wasn’t just eggs.

The produce here was more diverse than I thought.

Milk, goat’s milk, eggs, vegetables, and more.

If such precious resources were left unused and discarded, wouldn’t that be an insult to farmers?

I had thought it over many times, but in the end, it was right for me to take them.

‘So, today I started milking…….’

Bubble, bubble.

Just then, a soft sound came from the pot on the stove.

Looking inside, the pure white milk was gently boiling.

I had already pasteurized it once at a low temperature, and now I boiled it again.

“A savory smell.”

The scent was so appetizing that Lapin came trotting after it.

‘Well, that’s thanks to the help of an item.’

Just from its aroma and color, one could tell it was different from ordinary milk.

“Villed.”

She called my name and gazed longingly—was she wanting to drink the warmed milk?

That request, I could not grant.

I spoke firmly, my eyes resolute.

“This wasn’t boiled to drink.”

“Then?”

“Because I’m going to make something tastier.”

I looked at the lemon and salt I had taken out from subspace.

The lemon was cold.

‘Does the system preserve even the temperature of items?’

I had chilled the harvested lemon and stored it in subspace.

Even after a whole day, the temperature remained the same.

Seeing this, I came up with two hypotheses.

‘Either the temperature is preserved in subspace, or time itself stops the moment items are stored.’

……Of course, I couldn’t easily determine the answer.

I still hadn’t fully grasped subspace.

Conversely, it meant there were endless possibilities to use this ability.

As I sprinkled lemon juice and salt and stirred lightly, Lapin tilted her head.

“Villed, what are you making?”

“Cream cheese.”

“Cheese…….”

So this one liked cheese?

Though Lapin’s expression didn’t change, her eyes sparkled.

Just then, the liquid milk began to curdle.

It was about when it started to clump together.

“Ugh.”

Lapin, who had been full of anticipation, suddenly stepped back.

The shed filled with the peculiar fishy-yet-savory smell of freshly made cheese.

“A weird smell…….”

Drawn by the savory aroma, she had approached the pot, but now it seemed unbearable.

She hurriedly escaped outside the shed.

I could tolerate it, but perhaps her chimera senses made her more sensitive.

‘Either way, I’ll keep making it.’

I turned off the fire and poured the pot into a strainer lined with cloth.

After pressing it down and opening it, a smooth, snow-white cheese appeared.

‘Ricotta cheese.’

But that wasn’t what I wanted.

I blended the leftover whey and salt in the pot together with the ricotta cheese.

It didn’t take long.

I placed the moist and firm mass on a dish.

With that……

Fresh cream cheese was complete.

‘I wonder how it will turn out.’

I scooped some with my finger and tasted it.

It was tangy, sweet, soft, and delightfully light.

‘……This is quite good.’

It was good enough to pass.

But since I wasn’t much of a dessert enjoyer, it was hard to give an objective judgment.

Holding the dish, I stepped outside the shed.

It wasn’t hard to find Lapin.

She was squatting near the shed, looking up at me.

I scooped a spoonful of cream cheese and approached.

“Have a bite.”

“Mmh.”

I put the spoon in Lapin’s mouth.

She hesitated, but ate all the cream cheese I offered.

“……Mhm.”

Her eyes sparkled as she let out a small exclamation.

“How is it?”

“It’s tasty.”

It seemed she liked the cream cheese.

‘I only made it as a test, but at this level, it could be useful.’

I planned to sell cakes made with cheese at the festival.

Of course, I wasn’t the one who would bake the cakes.

‘Since an unexpected episode appears during the festival, I’ll need to step away.’

Therefore……

I had already chosen a proxy to run the booth in my place.

“Did you call for me?”

Wearing a black suit and with neat pink hair,

Rupina, a low-ranking staff of Yggdrasil, smiled a professional smile.

‘So she came after all.’

It was thanks to hiring Rupina for a hefty sum a few days ago.

When I summoned her, she had gladly accepted.

“But…… Are you saying you want me to cook at the festival?”

“Yes.”

“I’ve never cooked even once, though?”

“I know.”

“Pardon?”

Rupina showed a flustered expression.

As the words implied, I already knew that Rupina had no knowledge of cooking.

……However.

‘Rupina’s efficiency and learning ability were the best among all staff.’

If taught, she was the perfect all-rounder who could rise to a considerable level.

That was Rupina.

Recalling Rupina’s background, there was a note that she often frequented dessert cafés.

“You don’t need to think too hard. Just follow this and it’ll be enough.”

I handed her a dessert recipe I had written using knowledge from the game.

Rupina received the notebook and flipped through the pages.

Smacking her lips, her eyes grew brighter.

“Who made this? Just from the ingredients, it looks delicious.”

“My family’s chef passed it down.”

“Even as a layman, I can tell it’s amazing.”

“If you recognized that, you have talent. Just read the recipe and use your own experience of what you’ve eaten to recreate it.”

“Is that so?”

Though she showed interest in dessert cooking, there was still a trace of concern in her eyes.

“I don’t know if I’ll do well.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t scold you even if you fail. Just make it comfortably, freely.”

With those words, I flicked my thumb, ping–! and tossed her a coin.

“It’s your advance payment. Once the festival ends, I’ll add a good sum.”

Clutching my entire fortune in both hands, Rupina answered with a bright smile.

“Why not, I’ll give it a try.”

The ingredients were already provided.

Rupina’s arms began to move busily.

A few hours later.

“Master Villed!”

Hearing the call, I entered the shed.

“It’s finished!”

Rupina wore oven mitts, holding a tray with a cake on it.

“If I may say so…… I’m confident……!”

Rupina’s eyes were now brimming with confidence.

Lapin stood quietly next to Rupina, staring at the cake.

If she had a tail, it would surely have been whirling like a helicopter.

‘The smell is good.’

The savory aroma filling the shed already hinted it was something special.

“Please, both of you, have a taste.”

She skillfully sliced the cake like a café worker and served it onto plates.

I cut a piece with a fork and brought it to my mouth.

As soon as it entered, a soft and deep flavor exploded in my mouth.

After swallowing it all, I set down the fork and answered.

“Well done.”

“Th-thank you!”

I didn’t show it outwardly, but I almost burst into a laugh.

‘This will definitely succeed.’

I could be very certain of it.

The dessert was already highly rated in the game, and now the ingredients were top-class.

‘I want to keep eating it.’

The fork with cake seemed drawn to my mouth like a magnet.

Almost like a drug.

Lapin too, with sparkling eyes, silently put cake into her mouth.

“If you’re thirsty, how about this as well.”

Rupina handed glasses to Lapin and me.

“I tried making it while the cake was baking.”

A cold purple drink.

Seeing the fruits floating in it, I guessed what it was.

‘There shouldn’t have been ice, so she must have used magic to freeze it.’

She did well even with things I hadn’t asked for.

They said she graduated with good grades, and her speed of learning and adapting was fast.

I took a sip of the smoothie.

A fresh and refreshing taste spread through my mouth.

Quietly setting down the glass, I spoke.

“Tasty.”

“Thank you!”

I judged this to also be a good menu item for main sales.

It was blueberries I had personally collected near the farm.

‘There were several fruit trees near the farm too.’

They looked untouched by human hands, left unmanaged.

Probably grown in the wild as they were.

Rather than rotting away, being turned into smoothies or cakes was better for the blueberries.

‘There are still seven pieces left out of ten.’

It was far too many for just the three of us.

I had already summoned Keirin and Karin.

For a variety of evaluations, the more tasters the better.

‘The three of them will give objective opinions about the taste.’

Not long after, the two entered the shed.

“Rupina unnie?”

“Ah, Keirin.”

“Seeing you here! What a surprise!”

It seemed Keirin and Rupina already knew each other.

“……”

Karin, perhaps uncomfortable with the number of people, still hadn’t spoken.

Either way, as I intended, the two sat together at the table.

“Here, please try it.”

Rupina handed over two plates with cake.

Karin carefully cut a piece with her fork.

As she put the piece in her mouth……

“……Mhm!”

Her eyes widened as she let out a sound of admiration.

“Unnie!”

Keirin immediately stood up.

After swallowing the cake, she grabbed Rupina’s hands.

“It’s so delicious! Just quit being a staff member and open a café! I’ll come as a regular every day!”

Rupina, a little flustered by Keirin’s reaction, belatedly laughed and replied.

“Ahaha……. I appreciate your words, Keirin, but I plan to keep working at the school.”

Though still a low-ranking staff, Rupina was ambitious.

No matter how good her cake-baking talent was, she would remain as academy staff.

“Still, I’m glad you think what I made is delicious!”

Rupina answered with a bright smile.

It wasn’t a professional smile, but one that seemed sincere.

At that moment.

Step.

Footsteps came from the shed’s entrance.

There shouldn’t have been any more invited guests.

Naturally, my gaze turned there.

“……You all?”

It was Elined, the noble lady with violet hair.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.