Active [Ryken] No Way Home

[Spoiled Bread]

This RP takes place within the city of Ryken. Whether it was in the adventurer's guild or the city hall. Asahi found a crudely made pamphlet asking for help to cook dishes from Japan. It was definitely an out of place request and other people seemed to be ignoring it, thinking that Japan was some sort of backwater place. But he knew what Japan truly is, so he decided to come into the address in the pamphlet.

Cast:
Asahi Fujikawa heartspan​

---

Asahi found himself at the city outskirt. In front of him was a cozy house that was a built a few distance away from the other houses, giving whoever living there ample room to enjoy the surrounding nature. Birds could be seen singing and bathing in a small puddle on the ground and he could spot squirrels running from one tree to another.

"Oh, my. A visitor?" Noticing his presence, a woman approached him from the back of the house. She was carrying a bucket of water on her left hand and a wooden scoop on her right. The tips of her fingers had a faded reddish color as if she just dipped them in some red paint and then failed to completely wash it. The woman seemed to be in her early thirty, with a rather unremarkable appearance except for her striking dark pink eyes.

"Are you looking for someone? My husband is currently at work so you need to wait until sunset if you want to meet him." She continued, confusing his intention for something else.​

 

[heartspan]

Asahi Fujikawa
​

Asahi wandered through the outskirts of Ryken in search of a particular address among the quaint homes and cozy cottages nestled in the city's lee. Somewhere, among the scattered trees and closely cloistered houses, lay a mystery Asahi was bound and determined to unveil. You see, while searching the adventurer's guild job board for work, Asahi had stumbled upon a very much homemade pamphlet. Within this pamphlet was scrawled a very simple request to be taught authentic Japanese cuisine. He wasn't certain how long the pamphlet had been posted there, but it was very obvious no one was interested in full filling the humble request.

Asahi on the other hand was definitely going to do it. Not only did he enjoy doing simple odd jobs like this, but his curiosity was 10000000000% piqued. When he had first arrived here he had thought himself the only person to have been isekai'd; a product of too many lonely days spent watching anime. However, it didn't take long for him to figure out that there were plenty of others like himself. Some had been whisked away with magic or science, just like he had been, and others had died and were then reincarnated here. Although to the best of his knowledge he had not met any as yet, and this spoke to their rarity in compare with the native population. It was with this in mind, among a thousand other similar things, that Asahi had embarked on his mission.

Now, as he finally found the comfy looking villa set away apart from it fellows, Asahi found he had a peculiar feeling in his tummy. A flood of conflicting feelings and thoughts bombarded him as he strode onto the property. He felt like maybe he should turn back, maybe this was a mistake? Yet, fate would not play partner with him as a warm and feminine voice interrupted his existence.

"Are you looking for someone? My husband is currently at work so you need to wait until sunset if you want to meet him."

The sudden appearance of the thirty something woman was so jarring that Asahi tripped on his own feet, and stumbled forward a few steps before catching himself. He turned to look at her. His eyes traveling the length of her, noting everything from the dye tinted finger tips all the way to her mousy brown hair. Coming at last to rest within the depths of her dark pink eyes.

" Um..uh, er, t.this..." He stammered as he held up the pamphlet " I came to find the person who wrote this request."



Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

The woman's eyes widen when she saw the pamphlet Asahi was holding, she was too stunned that she even dropped the bucket she was holding and spilled the water onto the ground below her. Her arms moved to cover her mouth as she tried to restrain her shock.

"F-for real? You actually come for my request?? Please come in." The woman opened the door into the house wide open and vanished inside.

The house was as cozy inside as it was on the outside, the first room that would greet any visitor would be a mixture of living room and kitchen. On one side there's the fireplace with wooden chairs and old sofa surrounding it, making it the perfect spot for a family to huddle together during a cold night. On the other side was a simple kitchen counter and a dining table placed next to it. Inside the room at the back of the house Asahi saw a glimpse of a dark room with what seemingly a large loom in the corner.

"I almost thought there wouldn't be any taker for it, you know. It had been two weeks and the guild keep pestering me for more money just to keep the request up." The woman chimes in as she appeares from a trapdoor that connects to the basement, she was hauling a box full of ingredients. She placed the box next to the dining table and started to sort the various vegetables and herbs on the table. Green leaves, mushroom, rice, tofu, beans, eggs, flour, alcohol and many more. There's an obvious lack of meat within the sorted ingredients except a few pounds of chicken breast and, surprisingly, a couple of squids that had been kept fresh inside another smaller box filled with ice blocks. Ryken wasn't built anywhere near the sea so the squids were likely the most expensive ingredients there.

"A-ah, where's my manner. My name is Aisha Reines, pleasure to meet you." The woman introduced herself and extended her right hand for a handshake.​

 

[heartspan]

Why did this woman have to be so damn adorable right when he had stumbled and bumbled like a damn idiot? Asahi wanted to die inside, his earlier questions forgotten in the heat of the moment. He shook his head at his own stupid ways and also at the woman's naivety. He could be a damn serial killer and she was just letting him on in the house. He grabbed her now painfully empty bucket and followed after the little cyclone as she disappeared into the depths of her rather cute and very homey home. He placed the bucket down by the door, shutting it behind him.

He liked the kitchen/living room combo, and the lived in family home vibe really reminded him of his home on earth. Of course it was minus two little brats messing about, and the fireplace would have to be replaced with a kotatsu for warm family times, but it was close enough. He also took note of the loom, and wondered if it was an accent piece, or if the woman could actually spin her own fabrics. Soon enough though, his thoughts were interrupted by the return of the woman, this time her arms filled with supplies. It was clear she had been eagerly waiting for this moment to come along and Asahi shook his head once more.

"I almost thought there wouldn't be any taker for it, you know. It had been two weeks and the guild keep pestering me for more money just to keep the request up."

" Yeah, they are kind of ruthless that way." He replied as he walked up to the table where she had set her supplies. " They are the same way with my monthly guild dues as well, bastards"

Asahi's eyes widened as he looked at her supplies. He could already think of some things to make from what he saw, but was disappointed in the lack of meat beyond the few squid and the chicken breast. Well who was he to judge really, or so he thought as he decided what he would teach her to make.

"A-ah, where's my manner. My name is Aisha Reines, pleasure to meet you."

He looked up at her as she spoke and then back down to her hand. He took it warmly and gave her a firm handshake and a warm friendly smile.

" Asahi Fujikawa, and the pleasure is all mine Onee-san." he replied. " By the way, what made you want to cook Japanese food? your husband an earthling?"

Asahi let go of her hand as he turned his attention back to the cooking supplies. He left his question hanging between them, best to get the awkward shit out of the way right away, rather than have it hanging in the corner of every other moment. Mentally he took inventory of her spices and ingredients.

 

[Spoiled Bread]

"Not my husband," The woman shakes her head at Asahi's question.

"It's my daughter. She's 16 years old now, but a few months ago she suddenly come home and cried about how she's from another world and took over my original daughter's place. Honestly, I didn't know how to respond to that, so at that moment I just said things that she needs to hear."

"The more I think about it though the more I feel it explain all of her eccentric behaviors, but... parts of me still didn't want to acknowledge it. Isn't it a mother's duty to understand their children the most? Yet I failed to do it from the very beginning." She said with regretful tone in her voice.

Feeling her topic becoming heavy too fast, the woman let out a long sigh before shifting her attention back to the table. She looks over at all the sorted ingredients and nodded in satisfaction, signaling to Asahi to start the lesson.

"It's ready, please show me how it's done. It might be late, but at the very least I want to give my daughter the taste from her home world that she might have missed."​

 

[heartspan]

As soon as she started telling her story Asahi knew that he had fucked up. He hadn't anticipated her having such a dark story, with a reincarnated daughter and all that. He mentally cursed the imaginary goddess of bad luck for granting him such a wonderful lack of foresight, and listened patiently as she spilled the tea. He had no idea what to say in this awkward ass moment; a moment he had brought about himself. He couldn't begin to imagine how her daughter felt feeling as if she was in another person's body, nor how this Onee-san felt hearing her daughter's confession. It was so much more than he had bargained for. He had no words to eleviate the remorse coating her words. He personally didn't think reincarnation worked the way that it was presented in her story, but hell he had no real clue. For all he knew it was entirely possible, in fact it was likely, considering that being reincarnated into the world was possible to begin with.

For a long moment he stared into the very soul of the rice and vegetables he had been taking stock of. His hands were covered in the blood and viscera of a former good mood, but thankfully Aisha also desperately wanted to escape the conversation. Her heavy sigh and swift topic change were proof of this and a very welcome escape hatch for Asahi. However, all of this gave him a rather good idea for a first dish. He had originally wanted to make Kaarage with the squid and chicken but instead he would make another dish he was very familiar with.

" Well then, Onee-san I have the perfect dish. It is easy to make, and common where I'm from. So she is very likely to have had it or a version of it." He declared warmly as he looked up from the ingredients and into her dark pink eyes. " Not only that, but it very much fits your situation since the dish is called Oyakodon, or the parent/child bowl."

He started getting out the chicken, rice, eggs, and other things they would need.

" Can you show me where your cooking utensils are and how to operate the stove?" He asked as he made his way into the kitchen. " Also, do you want me to make it and you watch how it is done, or do you want to do all the work and I will explain things to you?"

Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

"Parent/child bowl? That's a unique name." Aisha wasn't really sure what kind of dish that would be, that was something she never heard from her daughter so she's very interested to learn it. She leaned forward to get a better look on how Asahi would do the cooking but jumped back when he asked about the utensil.

"A-ah. I'm sorry I didn't thought about that!" She frantically opened all the cabinets and drawers on the kitchen, pointing at its contents while guiding Asahi through each one of it.

"This cabinet have all of the fancy ceramic plates. I usually only use these for big family events but feel free to use it."

"This one holds all the spoons and forks, the drawer above it has the knives."

"These are all my pans. There's bigger ones on the back, those can hold enough ingredients to cook for an entire family, just tell me if you need it."

"This is my stove that I got from my mother. She can be a bit silly sometimes so let me be the one to operate it." The woman introduced her stone stove as if it was an old friend, she started piling firewoods inside the chamber beneath the stove before lighting it up, then spend some time blowing the fire with a wooden pipe before finally closing the chamber.

"There's still one utensil left, please wait a moment." The woman once again vanished into the basement, when she came back up she was holding a pair of wooden sticks on each of her hands.

"It's the best cooking utensil, apparently!" She put the chopsticks down onto the table.

"Please do the cooking, I want to see how its properly done first"​

 

[heartspan]

Only when she jumped back did Asahi realize that Aisha had been hovering near him. His immediate reaction would normally have been to tease her a little, but he opted against it. The previous deep topic still clung to Asahi like motor oil on a baby duck. Thus he simply followed after her as she showed him the locations of all of her cooking utensils. Carefully noting it all in his head so that he would not forget them later. When she disappeared into the basement he carefully selected the necessary utensils for their adventure into culinary perfection, or Asahi-style cooking as it was more commonly known. He lay them all out on the table so that she could see what they would be using and as he did, memories of his past came unbidden to his mind. He smiled to himself as he remembered all the fun he had taking care of his siblings after school and family time on the weekends. There were certain parts of his past that he refused to remember or to acknowledge, it was his survival tactic, but making lunch for his mom and little sisters was definitely not among the forbidden ones.

"It's the best cooking utensil, apparently!"

"Please do the cooking, I want to see how its properly done first"

Her sudden reappearance nearly made him leap out of his skin and he quickly turned to face her only to see her slap a pair of chopsticks onto the table. Asahi stared at them for a very long moment before he looked back up to Aisha, a smile coming to his face once again.

{here he will begin to use his skill: Domestic Arts F}

" They are the best utensil, and absolutely necessary to this dish." He commented " So let me begin. first let's rinse the rice."

Asahi took a large sauce pan and a single cup of rice. Filling the pan with water he gently massaged the rice until the water had turned cloudy with rice powder. He carefully emptied it into a sieve, and then repeated the process again. He did this five times, or until the water barely had any color to it at all. Then taking another small pot he set the rice to cook.

" Other than rinsing it, I believe you already know how to cook rice so I will spare you the details of it. Just be sure to rinse it when you are cooking Japanese recipes. Don't know why, but it's definitely necessary." He mentioned as he worked.

Next he took a sauce pan and added enough water and dashi powder to make five table spoons of dashi stock.

" This is dashi powder, you use it to make dashi stock, which is a type of fish stock." He instructed " Next we will add 1 table spoon each of mirin, soy sauce, and sugar. After words we'll place it on the heat."

Following his own instructions he quickly made the sauce and placed it on the stove. While it began to heat he cut a single chicken breast into bite size pieces. He followed this by cutting a spring onion diagonally into small pieces. Lastly he took a single small white onion and after cutting the ends off he halved it. Then he cut the half into long pieces.

" Now that we cut up a spring onion and a regular white onion. we'll add the white onion to the pan along with the chicken. I'm gonna cook it for about 6 minutes or until the chicken is around 90% done." He continued as he placed his ingredients into the pan. " Since you have eggs and sugar, after this I can teach you how to make pudding. It's also very simple. Oyako and pudding were my two kid sisters' favorites."

He smiled as he cooked, reminiscing on the past as he did so, and humming k-on's fuwa fuwa time to himself absentmindedly. When he reached the desired 90% doneness he added the spring onion pieces. Then he let it rest while he cracked an egg into a small bowl.

" Here you need the chops sticks. This will get you the proper texture. You want to whisk these lightly till they are roughly half way to being full scrambled eggs." he stated as he cracked an egg into the dish and quickly whisked it up to the proper consistency. Showing her the bowl after he finished so that she could see what he was talking about.

" Now we add it to the bowl, and if all goes well the rice will be done nearly the same time as the rest." He said as he slowly poured the egg into the pan with the chicken. " you're gonna cook this for just a few seconds while swirling the pan then you will take it off the heat and let it set for another minute. this will make one portion so when you cook for everyone just adjust the amounts to match. Also it would be wise to do the rice a bit sooner than I did here so that it finishes cooking a bit before everything else. That way you don't end up with the egg mix cooling before the rice is done."

When everything was finished he scooped the rice into a soup bowl, poured the chicken mix on top of the rice, and taking a spoon he slid then both over to Aisha.

" There you go, Oyakodon Asahi-style." He said with a flourish

Spoiler: Oyakodon

Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

As Asahi cooks the dish, Aisha intensely stared at the process from the side as if she's trying to burn the sight into her mind. Her eyes curiously noted every ingredients he's taking, how much he's using and when. Once he's done with the food the woman bring the bowl close to her face to investigate it.

"I see, it's quite simple to make. The egg might have been set half done, but it's actually still being cooked by the heat from the rice. The chicken egg combination looks good and the name has a bit of poetic flare on it." Having satisfied in analyzing the dish, Aisha brought up her chopsticks and unsuccessfully tried to scoop the food with it. In the end she just gave up and used a spoon, taking a portion of the rice, egg, chicken and the onion as if she was making a mini version of oyakodon within each scoop. Aisha wasn't really sure if she eats it in the proper way, but she could feels the egg melts in her mouth and warm spread through her body. It didn't take long for her to empty the bowl and she must restrain herself not to jump into cooking and make a second batch for herself.

"It's great Asahi, I never eat something like that before. I can imagine it would taste even better during winter." The woman pointed at several of the ingredients that Asahi used for the cooking, mainly the mirin, the soy sauce and the dashi powder.

"You used a lot of the ingredients that I bought from The Shogun Store... Can you tell me more about what Japan is?" She asked, her eyes gleaming with curiosity. "I know it is a place, but I know next to nothing about it. What does it looks like? How do people live there? What is so different about here and Japan?"​

 

[heartspan]

Asahi watched as Aisha studied the meal intently, and he was confident she would like it. It was a simple yet hearty meal, and was sure to hit it's mark, carrying with it the unmistakable flavor of home.

"I see, it's quite simple to make. The egg might have been set half done, but it's actually still being cooked by the heat from the rice. The chicken egg combination looks good and the name has a bit of poetic flare on it."

Asahi nodded to himself at her astute observations and was glad to have such an keen person as his cooking student. He knew without doubt she would catch not just the method of cooking in a Japanese style but all of the intangibles that would bring Japan into her cooking. When she struggled to use the chopsticks to eat it was no surprise, and though it was in his nature to tease such a cutie, he decided instead to give her the proper respect for trying so hard for her daughter. Not many people would do the same in Aisha's position. This dedication deserved his respect completely. He smiled warmly at her as she ate with such enthusiasm.

"It's great Asahi, I never eat something like that before. I can imagine it would taste even better during winter."

" I definitely agree, and it is one of those meals you can have any time of the day without it being weird." He replied warmly.

"You used a lot of the ingredients that I bought from The Shogun Store... Can you tell me more about what Japan is?"

"I know it is a place, but I know next to nothing about it. What does it looks like? How do people live there? What is so different about here and Japan?"

Her question caught him a little off guard, though it was only natural to want to talk about it, especially considering her circumstances. Of course Asahi had no reason to hold back and would do his best to fill to her in as much as he could.

" Hmm, that is a good question. Japan is an Island country in a world of other countries. The other world, earth we call it, has no other races other than human. Japan being an island has few foreigners as well. Our world has no magic, or none that anyone there knows of." He began as he thought of how best to describe things. " However we have a lot of technology. I hear there is a place like that here, but I have not been to it. Our technology mimics some things magic here might do, and it makes life easier. You have devices to talk to each other even when miles away, and to see each other. Vehicles to travel over land sea and sky. Tall buildings with so many floors reaching upward, while the city sprawls for miles. The tallest buildings have over 100 floors. Not a single bit of that is done by magic. Japan is a leader in some technology , and art styles, but I was only a student so I can't say too much about it honestly."

He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts a bit more.

" There is so many differences but still many similarities too. If you want to experience a very similar culture travel to the Republic. I go there when I feel homesick a little. Though it is a beast-man land so that has it's issues, and it is more similar to Japan's past than it's present. I think our two world's must have a lot of bleed over. People from there come here, but I think people from here also go there. Earth's mythology, art, and entertainment are filled with stories of beast-men, fairies, and such the like. Reincarnation, hero summoning, and all of that. You and I know that travel to this place is real, and so I think the reverse must certainly be true too." He gave her an awkward smile as he continued " Sorry, I think I ranted a bit much, Is there any particular dish you wanted to make for your daughter. If I know how to do it, we can give it a shot."

Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

"That sounds like a very different place than anything here in Ryke." Aisha commented as she listened to Asahi's story, she couldn't really imagine how would a civilization that wasn't built with magic yet can conquer the sea and the sky.

"Japan having no magic is surprising though, my daughter is quite talented at it. She even got enrolled into the Ethereal Luminary Academy and joined a study group led by a rich classmate." She said proudly, though having said that now she wonders if that was actually the reason why she's interested with magic in the first place. It's like learning a completely new thing for her.

"It's okay, please talk as much as you want." She gave Asahi a reassuring smile before continuing.

"Though, I think my daughter did say she wanted to eat seafood." The woman glanced at the squids inside the ice box. The squids were as big as her hands so it had plenty to work with.

"Seafoods are expensive and they go bad real fast so I can only afford the squids."​

 

[heartspan]

" I got another easy thing you can make with the squid, but it can be done with chicken as well. The process is pretty much the same." He said as he looked over her ingredients.

{here he will begin to use his skill: Domestic Arts F, again}

Asahi would first prepare the squid by removing all of it's innards and other unusable parts, discarding them in the trash. He would follow this up by cutting the tentacles and winglets into pieces of roughly two inches or so, before cutting the body into similarly sized pieces.

" You could also do rings out of the body, but it's most for aesthetic appeal." He commented as he worked.

Once all the pieces were in the bowl he added three and a half table spoons of both her soy sauce, and the sake she had brought up. next he crushed a small clove of garlic with the flat of her kitchen knife. Following up by finely grating a teaspoon of ginger, all of which were added to the bowl. He gave the contents a small mix and then set it to the side.

" We got to marinate this for about an hour and while we do that I will show you another dish." He stated as he set the bowl to the side. " Normally we would refrigerate it for the hour but it won't matter honestly."

while the squid marinated Asahi got out one of her smaller sauce pans along with a ceramic cup, one he thought would survive being baked. He then mixed a single tablespoon of sugar with one and a half tablespoons of water in the sauce pan, heating it until it turned a nice golden brown. Then he poured the mixture into the cup. Following this he whisked a single egg until it's yolk and white were fully mixed together. Then in another small but deep pan he mixed 6 tablespoons of milk with a single tablespoon of sugar heating until the sugar fully dissolved. All the while he worked he would describe each step to Aisha so that she could understand what he was doing in addition to seeing it done.

His next step was to carefully mix the warm milk with the egg in such a manner as to not accidently begin to cook the eggs. The new mixture was then ran through a strainer and poured into the cup atop the caramelized sugar. He placed a small soup pan on the stove lining it with a towel and a small layer of water, roughly a quarter of the height of the cup of milk mixture. Lastly adding the ceramic cup and covering it with the towel and the pan with a lid. he would thus steam the mixture for about 3 minutes before removing it from the heat to let it set and finish it's cooking for an additional 15 minutes.

While they waited for the pudding to set he washed all of the dishes he had used thus far, and as he washed he made some small talk with Aisha.

" You know, it is pretty impressive that your daughter is going to a magic school and even managing to get the attention of some of her wealthy classmates." He mentioned as he cleaned " Funny enough I also know some magic, but I was partly self taught and partly helped out by people I met early on."

When the pudding was finished cooking he took a small knife and carefully cut it free from the cup, tipping it carefully onto a plate and with a fresh spoon he slid it to Aisha.

" Give this a taste and in a bit the squid will be finished marinating and I'll show you how to cook it. Though if you have vinegar and mustard I can show you a sauce to use with it as well." He stated as he awaited her opinion. " We call this purin, but it is also known as crème caramel in other parts of the earth."

Spoiler: Purin

Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Aisha nodded along as she listened to Asahi's explanation. Her mouth silently repeated what the boy said to help her memorize the steps. She wasn't really sure what Asahi would make out of the squids, but if he said it can also be done with chicken then it would probably some kind of stir-fry squids?

The next she was a bit familiar with, or at least she thought so. The ingredients he used was mostly the same as making cake, except he didn't use any flour and once the dessert was done it looks like a mixture of cake and jelly. She wanted to dip her finger into the still hot pudding just to test its consistency, but she held herself back. Instead she closely watches the pudding set like a kid impatiently waiting for the dessert, though her eyes were much analytical in watching it.

"You can do magic too, Asahi? If only my daughter is here, I'm sure you two would get along."

Once the pudding was ready, Aisha took the spoon and slowly scooped the pudding into her mouth. Her eyes close as she savor the gentle sweet taste that floods her mouth.

"This one feels like something a rich person would eat as snack. The purin just melts in my mouth and spread all of the flavor. I think I will try to make this one, share it with the neighbors. I'm sure the kids would love it."

Once she's done. She gathered all the same ingredients that Asahi used to make the pudding and started to make her own, but with a much bigger batch as if she's going to feed two families with it. She methodically copied Asahi step by step, though occasionally she would move the half-mixed ingredients very closely to her eyes as if looking for any abnormality. She also pulled out some vinegar and mustard from the cabinet and show it to Asahi.

"Thank you for coming here, Asahi. I'm sure my daughter would love these foods. Can I ask where you live, Asahi? I want to invite you and your family for a little party to show my gratitude." She asked the boy as she whisked a dozen egg inside a large bowl.​

 

[heartspan]

"You can do magic too, Asahi? If only my daughter is here, I'm sure you two would get along."

He Laughed a little to himself as he listened to her, carefully scrubbing her pots and pans just as he would have done at home in Tokyo.

"Maybe we would have. I think she will have the much greater understanding of magic though." He replied in a friendly tone.

He badly wanted to hear about her daughter's past life, just out of curiosity. He had never met another person like himself, but there was so much evidence of their existence. To top it off she had come here as a transmigrator and he had been spirited away, two totally different genre and it peaked his curiosity. Was she a forty year old office lady hiding in a teens body or a harsh logic driven Office manager in disguise. Maybe just a teen like himself but living a second life. He didn't dare to ask, but he stole a glance at Aisha. She was a good mother to put up with so much and to strive so hard. He smiled warmly as he caught her staring at the pudding like an ever eager little kid. His smile didn't fade as he served her and watched her face for her reaction.

"This one feels like something a rich person would eat as snack. The purin just melts in my mouth and spread all of the flavor. I think I will try to make this one, share it with the neighbors. I'm sure the kids would love it."

" I can guarantee the kids will love it." He replied.

He watched her work for a bit, enjoying her eagerness. She was such a child at heart it nearly made Asahi feel the pangs of homesickness. While she worked he got out a small bowl and filled it with flour, staging it for when Aisha had finished.

" When your pudding has set, you need to keep it refrigerated if you aren't gonna use it right away." He added as he staged some lard in a deep pan.

He thanked her warmly when she produced the mustard and vinegar. He got a few more ingredients out and dishes he would need for the next step, casually keeping an eye on Aisha as she cooked.

"Thank you for coming here, Asahi. I'm sure my daughter would love these foods. Can I ask where you live, Asahi? I want to invite you and your family for a little party to show my gratitude."

He paused for a moment, her remark catching him somewhat by surprise. He didn't like to think of his family much since it brought a deep abiding pain with it. To those he left behind it would have seemed as if he had just disappeared; abandoning the family. His father had done the same, though in exchange for a university age lover. To his little sisters it would have seemed like he had done the same, they were so young, just seven and nine. At least he felt his mother would know better, but what terrible pain she would suffer wondering what had happened to him. He placed his hands on the table and took a deep steadying breath before replying.

" I am glad to be here, it has been fun for certain, and I think your daughter will be very glad you put in all this hard work for her." He said, his voice warm and friendly despite his darker thoughts. " As for the rest, I live here in Ryken part time, and I travel a lot. I don't have any family here in this world, I wasn't reincarnated, rather I was spirited away. I don't mind coming to a party though, or helping you and your daughter out if it's needed."

Spoiled Bread

 

[Spoiled Bread]

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know something like that was possible."

Asahi's answer took the woman by surprise and she covered her mouth with her hand as she heard his story. Her plan to ask his parents for some parenting tips backfired. Her experience with otherworlder so far had only been her daughter so she thought Asahi was also reborn in this world, hearing the difference between her daughter's and his situation was something completely new and it made her feels bad to even pry about that.

"It's good if you enjoy your time here, but..." Aisha seemed to want to say something else, but ultimately decided not to and said something else. "Our door is open for you. Please do occasionally drop by to have some dinner with us."

Finishing her purin mixture, she ended up with an entire pot filled with it. It would probably took even longer for it to be ready so she put it away for now and pointed at the marinated squids.

"Is this one ready yet?"​