Vol 1 Chapter 70 – Sushi【Vol 1 – Turning Point】

“Well, look at the time! All right! My dear ladies, would you care to join me for lunch?”

Kagemitsu-san said it abruptly. It was a playful way of speaking that shattered the all-business image I’d had of him until now.

“What was that about!? I’m the boy here.”

Right, he should be calling me “young master.” I may be dressed like this, but it’s not like I want to be a girl.

“That’s right… Rin-kun, you’re just so cute, I got carried away…”

My way of thinking might have been getting more androgynous lately. Whether I’m called cute or cool, I’m happy either way. Because both are compliments.

“Try not to get it wrong, okay!”

Mitsuru-san said, and the three of us laughed.

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And so, we came to eat lunch. In a hired car…

I think it’s extravagant, but we have the kind of income that allows for extravagance.

The venue is a sushi restaurant. It’s my first time at a place that doesn’t have a conveyor belt.

“Huh? There are no prices written down…”

“Sushi places like this are usually market price. That’s because the tastiest fish isn’t always the same, you see.”

It wasn’t so much an expensive sushi restaurant as it was one you’d find at a fishing wharf. The toppings, selected for their freshness, were glistening on the other side of the display case. You could tell they were delicious just by looking.

“Ooh, is this the place you recommend, Kage-kun?”

“That’s right, Mama. This is my special place for hospitality! Rin-kun is the guest of honor today, but I was planning on bringing you here eventually, Mama!”

Their conversation is really that of a parent and child.

“You’re a very young-looking mama.”

The chef whispered in my ear. He probably thinks I’m as young as I look.

“Ah, we’re not actually parent and child. He calls her Mama out of a work habit.”

I replied to the chef in kind.

But, with her uncannily good hearing, Mitsuru-san overheard my comment.

“So I’m not your mama if it isn’t about work?”

She looked like she was about to cry. It hurts me when she makes that face.

“Is it okay to think of you as my real mama?”

If it’s okay to think that, then I want to. Because Mitsuru-san truly cares for me. More so than my actual mother.

“You didn’t think of me that way…”

She looked crestfallen again, and I panicked.

“I just didn’t know if it was okay! From now on, you’re my real mama!”

“From now on, I’m Rin-kun’s mama?”

“Yeah!”

Mama is Mama, so I don’t want her to cry. I’ve never seen Mama cry, and I never want to.

“For the record, I thought of you as my mama the moment I first laid eyes on you.”

I think that’s pretty weird in its own way. After all, Mama and Kagemitsu-san don’t look that different in age.

“Gah! Here, eat this! I have a weak spot for stories about found families!”

Is the chef going to be okay, getting all emotional over that…?

By the way, what he served was a white fish sushi.

“Um, what kind of fish is this?”

“It’s called kurodai. Go on, try it.”

Since the chef said so, I put some soy sauce on the sushi and ate it.

Snap, Ooze…

My mouth is in a panic. The firm texture and the sweetness of the fat are unbearably delicious. So delicious I thought my cheeks were really going to fall off.

“Are you sure this is okay? Kurodai is a rare item, isn’t it?”

“It’s fine! Here, the three of you, eat up!”

The chef answered Kagemitsu-san’s question with a hearty laugh.

I couldn’t wait to share this deliciousness with everyone.

“This is really delicious! You too, Mama, and you, Onii-chan!”

So, I was as giddy as a child again. Because it was that delicious. This is the deliciousness of nature itself, not the deliciousness of cooking.

But, it’s definitely earned a spot in my ranking of favorite foods. Though, of course, first place is unshakable.

“Really? Then, Mama will have some too!”

I watched with bated breath as Mama said that and took a bite.

I knew right away that she found it delicious. Because her face lit up.

“Mmm! It’s delicious!”

“Right? Right?”

She called something I found delicious, delicious. That alone makes me so happy. And on top of that, I can tell she truly means it from the bottom of her heart. I’m so happy we can share this.

“Well, I guess I gotta have some too!”

Saying that, Kagemitsu-san now took a bite.

“Gah! As delicious as ever!”

It seems Kagemitsu-san had eaten it before and knew it was good.

“See?”

But I felt a sense of pride anyway. I was so happy, I couldn’t help it. I want to have Tachibana-san and Sadakuni-san eat this too.

I’m not the one who discovered it, though.

“Yeah, it’s super delicious! But I wonder, how do they get their hands on kurodai this good?”

“Well, you clean it right after you catch it! It loses freshness fast, so we serve it immediately! If we can’t serve it in time, the chef eats it himself!”

I see, no wonder it’s so delicious. The fish here is incredibly fresh.

“I see… that’s the advantage of being right by the fishing grounds!”

After that, lunch continued. We left all the toppings up to the chef. He kept making whatever fish was tastiest at the moment. The aori ika became a favorite of mine, though not as much as the kurodai. However, I didn’t really like the sazae.

Mama and Kagemitsu-san ate it, exclaiming how delicious it was. My sense of taste might be a little childish…