Vol. 2 - Chapter 71 - Katariona Rejoices in her Reunion After a Long Time
I’ve been fidgeting since this morning. Today is the day that Tojurou-san, Kikuno-sama, and Chris, who went to the royal capital, will return.
I\'m going to serve them the Flowering Tea that I finished making after a hard struggle. And I have already finished the sweets for the tea ceremony yesterday and stored them inside the space. Everything has been prepared.
“You’ve been strangely restless since this morning, Rio. Are you that eager for Chris and the others to come back?”
The fluffy boy curled up on my lap was the usual Fluffy Leon.
“Of course. I\'m actually quite nervous about how I\'m going to start talking to them, and how I\'m going to show them my flowering tea.”
I fluffed Leon to calm down a bit. Ah, it\'s soothing.
And then I started to play my new favorite game. I wrapped Leon in my hands to make him even rounder, thus creating a fluffy ball. In the beginning, Leon resisted, but recently he has gotten used to it and will do as he is told.
“I don\'t know what\'s so fun about this, but it\'s nice to be small.”
Cats like to be in small spaces, they feel safe when they are in a place where they can fit. I\'m not sure if it\'s just my imagination or if Leon is becoming more and more like a cat, despite the fact that he\'s supposed to be a god.
◇◇◇
Chris and the others came back just before the afternoon.
I was sitting on a garden chair on the balcony, reading Kikuno-sama\'s new book when I saw a carriage pulling into the lord\'s mansion.
I hurriedly made my way to the entrance. After a while, Tojurou-san, Kikuno-sama, and Chris arrived at the entrance.
They had finally returned. When I saw the three of them, I was overcome with a strong feeling of nostalgia. It had only been two weeks since the three of them had left for the royal capital, but I guess I had missed them. I couldn\'t help myself and ran out.
“Chris! Kikuno-sama! Tojurou-sama! Welcome back!”
“Rio! I’m home!”
Chris, who noticed my appearance as well, lit up. And we hugged each other.
“You guys are so dramatic. You\'ve only been apart for two weeks, yet you look like two lovers.”
“Chris was fidgeting and restless all the way until we arrived, you know.”
In contrast to Tojurou-san\'s dumbfounded expression, Kikuno-sama had a smiling face. Apparently, Chris was just as restless as I was.
“I just really wanted to see Rio. I can’t help it.”
“Me too. I was lonely without you.”
“If one of you had been a man, you might have gotten married in the future.”
Tojurou-san jokingly said, scratching the top of his head.
“If I were a man, I would have taken Rio as my wife.”
“If I were a man, I would have chosen Chris as my wife.”
If Chris had been a man and the crown prince, I might have been happy with the engagement.
As for Leon, his odd-eye eyes were half-lidded. Could it be that he is stunned?
“You are really close, aren\'t you? It\'s a good thing that I\'m not the only one who has trouble with this.”
Ayano-san is a childhood friend of Kikuno-sama and Tojurou-san. It seems that Kikuno-sama and Ayano-sama have been the best of friends since they were children.
“I\'m not sure why Kikuno and Ayano have been so close since they were kids, given their opposite personalities.”
“You must be tired, everyone. When you have finished changing, please come to the parlor. Milady has something she wants to show you.”
Marie said, clearing her throat to grab our attention as we stood talking.
“I\'m sorry to keep you here. Please make yourselves at home in the sitting room first. Marie, take care of everyone.”
I hastily asked Marie to show the three of them to the guest room and headed for my kitchen. I need to prepare the flowering tea. The sweets are stored in the space, so I just have to take them out.
◇◇◇
With Leon\'s help, I prepared the flowering tea in the parlor.
For sweets, I made an edible flower cake. Edible flowers are flowers that can be eaten. Ordinary edible flowers only have the scent of flowers and almost no taste. However, the edible flowers used in this cake have been modified to have a sugar content as high as honey.
The sponge was made with a mixture of rice flour and wheat flour. In between the sponge is fresh cream and strawberries. The cake was decorated with whipped cream in the shape of roses and edible flowers.
(TL: P.S. I love this cake!)
The day before, I made another cake and had Leon and Marie taste it, and it was a big hit. It was approved by both of them, so it should probably taste fine. By the way, Leon devoured half of the whole cake in one sitting.
“I thought that edible flowers would be a little difficult to eat, but they turned out to be quite tasty.”
I smacked the young Leon as he reached for the cake to snack on the edible flowers. Leon frowned, staring wistfully at the cake.
“Leon is such a glutton. You can eat it when everyone is here. Until then, be patient!”
“I have a delicious-looking cake in front of me. Even if you tell me to be patient, I still want to eat it.”
(TL: me lol. )
The guardian deities of our country are very human in terms of their senses. I wonder what the gods of other countries are like.
“I plan to grow edible roses next time.”
There are many kinds of edible flowers, but I\'ve heard that some roses are edible as well, so I have ordered some seedlings.
“We’re still waiting for the seedlings to arrive. If they turn out well, we can have rose cakes, right? I shall cooperate with you in growing edible roses.”
“Leon\'s idea of cooperation is to taste the roses, right?”
“No, of course not! I’m cooperating in the whole growing process. Of course, I’ll also taste them……”
Uh-huh. Tasting them was his main goal.
“I’ll be counting on you then, Leon.”
I said, giving Leon a light peck on the cheek.
“U, uh-huh. You can count on me!”
Leon’s face was dyed a light shade of red as he pressed his hand on the spot where I kissed him.
“You guys are in love, aren’t you.”
“Well, it’s hot in here isn’t it.”
Tojurou-san and Kikuno-sama, who opened the door to come in, teased us.
“Fluffy-kun. Rio is still a child, so you must behave like a gentleman.”
Chris cautioned Leon as if she were talking to a child.
“I don’t need you to tell me that! I am a gentleman.”
I was the one who behaved unladylike. I do the same thing to Leon in his little beast form. My face is red now after having done that.
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