After eating breakfast, I was walking down the corridor to return to my room when I heard a sizzling sound coming from the kitchen.

　This is the sound of oil.........is he frying something on the magic stove?　

　A little curious, I walk into the kitchen, where Bartolo is making what looks like fried food.

　If I continue to approach him from behind, I tend to surprise Bartolo, so I deliberately make a large turn to appear in his line of sight.

　I don't care how much I'm criticized for being too shadowy or uninspiring, but I'm in the middle of frying something, so safety comes first.

''What?　Did the boy come to snack on it too?

No, no. I just had breakfast. The way you're talking, did you come to grab a bite to eat before me?

You must be Elinora's daughter and Meena.

　Oh, what an obvious face.

　Sister Elinora left the dining room abruptly, but maybe she heard the sound of fried food and left.

'By the way, why are you making fried food in the morning?　There was no vigilante rehearsal for Sister Elinora today, was there?

　We just finished our breakfast now. Normally, Bartolo's and the maids' meals would be on the same menu as the ones we ate. It doesn't take a lot of time or money that way.

　It's not surprising that we don't serve fried food in our house in the morning, so it's also possible that this was made from scratch just now.

　There is no need for a lunchbox today since Sister Elinora doesn't have any vigilante training. Nevertheless, I'm wondering why Bartolo has been preparing fried food since this morning.

''Oh, that's my bento, not your daughter's,''

Bartolo's?

I'm going up the mountain to get some water.

Couldn't you just use water from the well or something?

　There's a well in the garden of the mansion, even if you don't bother to go to the mountains to get water from the spring.

　I ask a simple question and Bartolo says emphatically.

I ask him a simple question and Bartolo says emphatically, "No, no," he says. The water here in the village is clean and even the well water is good. But the spring water in the mountains tastes even better.

　Heh, I'm curious about the spring water if you say that much.

　I've drunk water from rivers and other sources, but I've never drunk spring water from the mountains.

"You know what I mean... Most of the tea you monks drink every day is spring water.

Did your mother tell you to do this, Erna?

...Yeah, because I hear it tastes best when made from spring water.

　When I ask with astonishment, Bartolo replies with a faraway look in his eyes.

　

''I didn't expect you to send him to the mountains to fetch spring water for tea, mother Erna is also a hardcore tea lover.

No, you're not. He used his magic to build a kitchen and fire because he wanted to eat on the spot. By the time you get to Sylphid's territory, I heard that you built a house with earth magic because you didn't want to sleep in the carriage?

'Magic is a useful thing that enriches our lives. So there's nothing wrong with my use of it at all.

'........this is really the kind of thing that makes you and your father alike.

　When I told him once and for all, Bartolo looked at me as if he was somewhat dumbfounded.

　I would have liked to see a little more resemblance in appearance than in character.

I'm going to the mountain. I'm not sure if you want to come with me.

　Hmm, I'm wondering where the spring water you usually eat is located and what it tastes like.

　I'm going up the mountain in search of good water and eating my lunch there.

　It's a bit like a picnic.

　I feel sad about the fact that you and your uncle are alone, but it's hard to relax when you take your sister Elinora with you.

''Yeah, I'm also curious about the taste of the spring water, and I'll be there.''

'Oh, that's good to hear. If possible, it would be very helpful if the monk could haul the water away in a psychic...

　Bartolo asks for it, emphasizing the "very" part.

　Well, water is pretty heavy. But when it comes to me carrying it in my psychic, I don't have to deal with that kind of hardship.

Okay, that's enough.

Yes!

　Bartolo is happy to be in the gut.

　Even for the powerful Bartolo, it must be hard to carry a good amount of water from the mountain to the mansion. His joyfulness spoke volumes about the hardship.

Then I'll make lunch for two. I'll make the onigiri, so can I leave this fried food to the boy?

Yeah, sure.

　This is how I ended up making my lunch to go to the mountains, too.



　◆





　After we finished making our lunches, we walked out of the mansion.

"By the way, kid. How big of a container can you magically carry?

'Hmm?　I can afford a dozen barrels of water, though.

　I've never tried to see how heavy I could lift anything, but I've lifted whole trees and even large rocks. You can probably spare a barrel of water for ten or even a hundred barrels.

"Oh, oh, well, we don't need ten, so let's just get one barrel this time.

　With that, Bartolo goes around to the back of the mansion and brings a barrel.

　I put it on my psychic and levitate it.

　Yeah, it's nothing more than floating a barrel.

"Alright, it looks like we're all good to go.

　I nod at Bartolo's words and walk out of the mansion.

　The weather outside today is nice and warm again. It's not as hot as the other day, but it's hot enough to make you sweat as you walk.

　The path leading from the mansion is so open that there is no shade for the trees.

　I can't wait to get into the mountain where there is shade. If there was a spring, it would be cooler in the shade and humidity.

　I wiped my sweat off my face as I imagined the sound of the cool spring water.

Do you have your lunch in your back basket?

　Walking next to him, Bartolo has a large back basket on his back.

　The fact that he doesn't have his lunch box with him anywhere suggests that he probably put it in it.　I don't want to make it and then forget about it or something, so I ask to make sure.

Yeah, it's in here. The boy has made it a lot easier for me. And I'm going to get the food from the mountains as well.

　I see. If you're going to carry heavy water by yourself, you won't have time to collect it, right?

　So that's why you're happy about it.

"What's good this time of year?

Wildflowers: birch and no-bill.

　The syllabi are thick stalks that look like leeks, with two leaves growing on them. They are soft and sweet and taste like a leek. It's delicious cooked and tender and bitten whole.

　The nobile has long, slender leaves like chives with small turnip-like bulbs on the roots. You can chop them up into small pieces and use them as a condiment, or you can boil the roots and use them as a salad.

I've been getting a lot of orders for strong flavored dishes lately. We need to give them something light and nutritious to eat.

They've installed a magic stove.

But still.

　Since I bought the magic stove in the capital, I've been cooking more and more fried foods such as karaage and shish-kebabs. Well, the magic stove is useful for making such things, so it's only natural to use it, but due to the demands of Erna's mother, Elinora's sister, and Meena, many of these dishes have been added to the menu.

　I guess I'll have to moderate it nutritionally.

　I'm a fan of low-tasting food, so I agree with Bartolo's thinking.

'I'm going to abstain from fried foods from today.

But we have fried food in our lunchboxes, don't we?

　That said, I just made fried food this morning.

　We've got a lot of fried food in our lunches.

　Bartolo froze for a few seconds at my words.

We'll be fine.

That too, I suppose.

　I'd be tempted to say, "Hey," but I'd be in trouble if someone said no fried food, so I nodded my head.

　It's because you can't miss fried food for an onigiri bento.