After eating various street food such as yakitori, pork miso soup, grilled shellfish skewers, and mixed rice, we sat down in a chair at a sweet shop near the river to rest our bodies.

　There was no backrest, but the chair was covered with a red cloth, and it was just like a Japanese style chair in a sweet shop.

　There is a large river in front of me, and weeping willow trees are growing beside it, which is a very elegant scene.

　The weather is fine today, so it's not bad to sit outside like this and relax.

I'm tired. My feet are a bit tired when I walk around in unaccustomed footwear.

That's why I told you to use a low-bottomed one.

　What a lazy way to say it, Irvine and Malt also sit down in their chairs.

'I think we're here, right?　The guy at the stall recommended it!

I'm looking forward to the dumplings, which you say are sweet and chewy!

　Perhaps they like the sweetness of the food, but the women in the unfamiliar kimonos and footwear don't show any signs of fatigue. In fact, they seemed to say that this is just the beginning.

　They must have eaten a lot of food from the stalls, so why is the sweetness still there?

　After all, is it because of the loosening of the obi circumference? I'm sure you'll find that the belt around Aleusha and Ilya's belly is more swollen than it was at first. It was a good decision to loosen them up.

''........Alfreet-sama, weren't you staring at our belly bands just now?''

Can I ask you what you were thinking?

　As I was thinking about that, Aleusha and Illya asked me with a cold smile.

　How is it possible to pinpoint that much?

　I'm inwardly impatient, but I manage a flat expression.

''Well ... nothing in particular.''

Weird.

I doubt it.

　As Aleusha and Ilya leaned forward a great deal, they heard a woman's voice coming from the sweet shop building.

''Welcome! What can I get for you?''

　The shopkeeper comes in with a smiling face and a gentle smile of admiration.

　She looks like a girl in a pink kagura outfit with a string tied around her sleeve.

　I'm grateful for the waiter's good timing.

'Dumplings!　Give me some dumplings and a cup of green tea for everyone!

Which would you like to have, the spit dumplings or the mitarashi dumplings?

Two of each, please!

　Without us interrupting, Aleusha and Ilya place their orders.

　It seems that they had done enough preparation by listening in to the waitress's questioning that they were not upset.

　Probably the skewered dumplings are the dumplings without sauce, and the mitarashi is an example of dumplings with sweet sauce on them.

　The shopkeeper looked at the men as if they were okay with that, so the men nodded for now.

　Rather, it could be said that they had no choice but to nod due to the excitement of Aleusha and Ilya.

　They'd been so excited when they'd been drinking kagura sake over grilled chicken and shellfish skewers. Apparently, I'm more interested in food like sake and snacks than sweetness.

　The waiter, who wrote down our order, walked neatly back to the restaurant.

　As I pass through the mugwort-colored curtain, I hear a voice saying, "Twelve kushi-dango and twelve mitarashi-dango each.

　From the light voice that I heard earlier, I wondered if it was my father baking the dumplings.　Whatever it is, it's a peaceful atmosphere.

　I sit back in my chair and look at the view, turning my upper body back and sticking my hands behind my back.

　On the other side of the river are various houses, and from between them I can see people walking down the street.

　The busy Kagura people moving around and the occasional booming voice seemed somehow distant. That's how quiet the place we were in was, and the river flowing in front of us was calm.

　Leaves on the surface of the water are flowing slowly, and I can hear the sound of a small Japanese boat being rowed.

　I continue to watch the rowing boat, as it's a rare sight to see them rowing, and it seems that Roomba is the same.

　Rumba seemed to be the same, and was also following it with dazed eyes.

''It's ... a woman.''

Yeah, I'm pretty sure he's in shape.

　Irvine and Malt muttered in a voice that sounded as if it was filled with conviction.

　Apparently, the person rowing that Japanese boat is a woman.

　I thought her physique was a bit thin, but I understand now.

　While I was gazing at the Japanese boat and the weeping willow trees like that, my order arrived.

　First, hot green tea was served, and then plates of skewered dumplings and dumplings made of midori dumplings were handed out.

'Wow!　That one!　It smells so good!

The sauce smells so aromatic!

　Do I smell like an old man reaching for the first cup of hot green tea?

　The women, Aleusha and Ilya, were frolicking at the sight of the mitarashi dumplings, while Lumumba, Irvine and Malt were biting into the skewered dumplings as soon as possible.

　No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

Zzzzz ... haha, I'll settle down.

'Whoa!　What is this?　Mochi!

Eat the one with the sauce on it, Irvine!　It's fragrant and delicious!

Really?　I know that sounds sweet, but.....yum!　I think I could use a drink too!

　Rumba, Malt, and Irvine sound like they're having fun.

　I'm starting to feel a bit empty, so I decide to get my hands on some mitashi dumplings too.

　They must have just been grilled a few minutes ago. When I held the skewer in my hand, it was slightly warm and hot.

　I blew on a little bit of air and slowly pulled one of the dumplings off the skewer.

　Then the chewy dumpling rolled over my tongue. In the midst of the heat, the charred surface crinkled as I bit into it, and the taste of the fragrant soy sauce sauce spread across my tongue.

　And the more I chewed, the more bouncy and resilient I felt, the more my mouth enjoyed it.

　I don't think I've ever been born in this other world before and I've never encountered a dish that is so mottled.

''It's amazing. I can't believe it has such a chewy sweetness to it.''

It's a completely different bounciness than freshly baked bread. It's interesting to eat.

　Aleusha and Ilya also seem to be pleased with the taste of the dumplings and are eating them happily, breaking their chemistry.

　The way they eat elegantly while holding their sleeves so that the sauce doesn't get on their sleeves is beautiful and looks like a Kagura man. I thought so while sipping hot green tea.



　◆


... uh, I'm full.

''I don't want to walk anymore. I'd like to loosen my belt, but I feel like that would be a lose-lose situation.

　Ilya and Aleusha groaned.

　After meeting the new sweetness, Ilya and Aleusha got into a good mood and continued to refill their refills, competing with Rumba to see who could eat more.

　Normally they would understand that they would never be able to compete with each other, but with the tension raised by the sweetness, they challenged each other two-on-one.

'What, is it over?　Can you eat more?

　Still, he was no match for Roomba.

　In contrast to the two who were moaning and groaning in pain, Roomba was eating the dumplings without a care in the world.

　He's a strong man, putting two dumplings in his mouth in one bite and then putting the other two in his second bite.

　The way the round dumplings are stuck in his mouth and his face looks like a squirrel is very surreal.

''I can't do it anymore.

I'm here...

　Ilya and Aleusha moaned as they rubbed their belly bands, which were more puffy than before.

'There's no way I'm going to beat Rumba-san.

'Well I thought with so many separate bellies we could win.

　Aleusha responds to Irvine's voice with a pained look.

　Wasn't it one thing for a woman to have a separate belly, according to her?

　I've heard that women have many secrets, but this is the first time I've heard that there are so many separate bellies. As usual, a woman's body is a mystery to me.

'Can I walk home?'

　When I ask them that, Aleusha and Illya just shake their faces in silence.

　Maybe if this was a Japanese-style room at an inn, they would have been lying down while moaning "ahhh" or something like that.

　But still, I'm troubled. The sun had set and it was almost evening.

　There's no way I can leave the two of you in this state. Probably, it will take about an hour to recover until they can walk.

　Then, if we go home slowly, it will be past dinner time by the time we return to the inn.

If walking home is difficult for you, why don't you try the Japanese-style boat?

　As I'm thinking about getting a piggyback ride from the Rumba or Irvine or Malt, the sweet shopkeeper nudges me with a suggestion.

'A Japanese boat is a boat on that river, isn't it?'

'Yes, sir. If you talk to the boatman over there and negotiate with him, he'll give you a lift to the place you want.

　The shopkeeper pointed toward the river, and I looked in that direction, and the boatmen on the Japanese boat waved to me.

　It seems that there are many people who ride home from this sweet shop. It seems that many people come back from this sweet shop.

Can you give me a lift to a place called "Hidamari no Yado" with no problem?

That inn is just a short walk from the river down west in the residential area.

　I see, it seems there is a river running through Kagura more than I thought. Come to think of it, we saw the river a lot while we were walking around.

　Ilya and Aleusha can recover their physical condition while on the peace boat, and we can easily return home while sightseeing.

　It's not a bad idea to take a ride back to Kagura to see the city from the ship in the Japanese boat.

''Why don't we all take a ride back on the Japanese-style boat?

'Yeah. It's a pain in the ass to carry those guys home in clogs, and more importantly, it's embarrassing.

　If you think about it calmly, it's pretty painful to walk around town with grown men and women piggybacking on you.

'Wouldn't it be nice if we could just get on the boat and go home?

It wouldn't be so bad to take a boat home on the river.

　Molto and Rumba then agree.

'Is that okay with Ilya and Aleusha too?　It's okay if you're just on the boat, right?

"Oh, please.

　When I asked Ilya and Aleusha again, I got a powerless reply, as if they had managed to shake it off.

　Will the rocking of the Japanese ship cause you to vomit? That's the only thing I'm worried about.