Chapter 41: Opening A ‘Cafe’ With Young Lady

“Isn’t it too cumbersome, Mana?”

“…Young Lady, you are perfect right now.”

Have I ever dressed someone up so perfectly?

As expected, the ending of fashion is the face, and since the young lady is naturally pretty, she’s so cute!

“…It’s really too cute.”

“I like pink, but I don’t think it’s necessary to go this far!”

Kyaa! She’s cute even when she complains with both hands on her hips!

“Mana? Mana? Can you hear me?”

“Yes! I’m listening!”

A pink fur hat on her head, and a winter white and pink dress with a pink scarf! Pink gloves! And pink fur boots!

Everything is finished with white fur, so it’s even more cute!

It’s like a Santa Claus outfit, you know? A pink Santa!

“You’re so, so cute!”

“…Really?”

“Yes!”

“Hehe… okay! I’ll forgive you because I’m cute!”

Any girl would be cute in this outfit, but it seems to be a perfect match, especially with the young lady’s doll-like appearance.

“Now, shall we go?”

“Yes!”

I carefully hold the young lady in my arms and go to the construction site.

Four villagers are supposed to come today for this. I hope they’re good people!

“Hahaha! It’s fun, Mana!”

“I’m sorry, Young Lady. Is it a little fast?”

“No! I like it a lot!!”

Holding the young lady, I quickly pass through the forest and arrive at the meeting place in about an hour.

Ah, everyone is already here.

“Hello, everyone! I’m sorry. I’m a little late.”

“No, haha, we just came out too!”

Three sturdy middle-aged men and one young man who seems to have just turned 20.

I carefully put the young lady down and greet them.

“Nice to meet you all. My name is Mana, I’m the maid serving Young Lady Cieli here, and the person who requested the construction.”

“…White hair and red eyes?”

“C, could it be…”

“…”

…As expected, I can’t do anything about albinism.

But..!

“H, hello! My name is Cieli! Nice to meet you!!”

“…She’s cute.”

What adult would spit on a child who smiles so brightly and bows politely!

Everyone is very suspicious and wary, but they don’t completely reject her.

That’s enough.

You can’t expect to be full on the first try, this is a very good first impression.

It’s enough if they don’t push her away.

“Ahem, so I heard you want to build a building here.”

“Ah, yes. The size is about this… It’s just a small forest teahouse where children or people with free time can come and enjoy.”

“Oh, a teahouse?”

“My wife will like this.”

“I hope there will be 8 tables inside and 4 outside comfortably. For the kitchen, counter, and storage room…”

When I tell them about the image of the teahouse I envisioned in advance, everyone nods.

“Hmm… that would take about 2 weeks.”

“Right? Cut down the trees, level the ground, do the foundation work, raise the building, finish it, and do the interior work, that’s about it.”

You can build a building in just 2 weeks…

I thought it would take until next year at the earliest.

“…Will it be okay in just 2 weeks?”

“Hey, what do you take us for! We built half of the buildings in that village!”

“Hey, did you build it? The three of us built it, didn’t we? You’re young, but you have a lot of spirit.”

“Haha! I guess we have to show our skills. Everyone, let’s get ready! Let’s cut down the trees and level the ground today!”

“Okay!”

As if they’re used to it, the four skilled workers take out their axes and various equipment and start cutting down the trees.

Their confidence is not without reason.

With just a few swings of the axe, the tree already has a gap…

…Certainly, people who have been in a field for a long time are different.

“Young Lady, shall we prepare snacks?”

“Yes!”

It’s important to serve a delicious meal to those who work from morning like this.

Especially on a cold day like this, if there’s a warm soup, even more so.

I quickly start a fire in a suitable open space and start preparing the food.

“What are we going to do first?”

“First, coffee to drink warmly.”

“Yes!”

…The young lady is also good at cooking now.

Hmm.. I have mixed feelings.

The 9-year-old young lady isn’t good at cooking.

But I’m also proud of her because she said she wanted to learn.

I put a pot on the fire, boil water, and prepare coffee and lunch at the same time.

“What’s for lunch?”

“Hmm… I think the simplest stew would be good. But a stew with lots of meat. And I’ll warm up the bread too.”

“I’ll help!”

“Thank you~”

The four workers glance at this side while working.

Haha, look forward to it?

The young lady and I will serve you a wonderful meal!

“Wow, this is really delicious!”

“Gulp.. gulp.. slurp…”

“There’s a lot, so eat slowly?”

“Here, sir!”

“Haha… thank you.”

After serving a cup of sweet and soft coffee that will be sold at the teahouse, it’s lunchtime.

Normally, everyone should have lunch with their own lunch boxes, but today is different.

The stew made with venison and various vegetables was enough to harass the workers’ noses, and everyone is satisfied with the lunch I served as soon as it turned 12 o’clock.

This is also a strategy.

“Young Lady, bring this to that gentleman?”

“Yes! Here you go, sir!”

“Ah, sir… I’m still a ‘bro’…”

“What? You’re 20 years old and you’re not married, you’re an old bachelor, you brat!”

“Hahaha!!!”

The young man’s face turns red.

“Ah, no! I’ll meet someone good soon and get married!”

“Okay, okay, when you need a newlywed house, tell me. I’ll build it with you, okay?”

“Oh, you’ll build it 40 years later!”

“We’ll all be dead by then.”

“You guys!”

…Haha.

They seem to be very close.

“By the way, our employer,”

“Just call me Mana.”

“Okay, Mana, do you have someone to marry?”

“No. I’m still…”

“Haha! Then Tess, how about this guy? He doesn’t have any skills, but he’s a good person! He grew up well. When he was a kid, he was always snotty.”

“He was an apprentice knight when he was young, but he failed because he wasn’t good enough~”

“Ah, sir!!”

“Haha… I’m a maid. There’s a difference in status, how can I.”

I have no intention of getting married for the rest of my life. ^^

“Hey, serfs and maids are the same anyway!”

“Pfft! Look at this guy’s face, it’s red? Do you have a crush?? Do you have a crush??”

“Ah, no!! It’s a misunderstanding. Mana. I’m not like that..!”

“Mana? Mana?! This guy is all grown up? He said Mana! Hahaha!!!”

“Sir! Stop it!!”

“Stahp eet~~”

“Can I have some more stew?”

“Of course. Would you like more bread too?”

“Haha, thank you. I like that the bread is warm.”

The young man among the men is often the butt of jokes.

But they seem to be close.

Hmm?

The young lady is pulling on my clothes.

“…Is Mana going to get married?”

“Huh?”

“…Are you going to marry that man?”

“Wh, what are you saying, Young Lady? It’s not like that!”

“Hey! You got rejected! Pfft!!!”

“Tess was car~! Hahaha!!!”

“Ah really!!”

“…You’re not getting married?”

“Of course… I’m still too young to get married, you know?”

“…That’s a relief.”

The meal continues in a bright and pleasant atmosphere.

How nice it must be to have a warm meal after working hard in the cold winter.

I hope that, little by little, with the young lady and me, the image of the young lady in the bishopric will become that of a pretty and cute little lady.

The workers, who ate at least three bowls each, are slowly finishing lunch.

“Oh, I’m full, thank you for the meal~!”

“Tess! You’re a man, you have to try to challenge! Huh?”

“Ah, really..!”

“Haha, just let it go. Tess is of marriageable age, so everyone introduces him once like that.”

“Haha… thank you. You’ll find a good match.”

Well, brown hair, green eyes, ordinary if ordinary, but he’s pretty handsome, and he looks fit because he was a knight trainee.

I wonder if there’s a village girl who likes him? While thinking about it, I receive the bowls and clean them up.

“Now, now~ Let’s work~ Axe work is good for digestion~”

“Hey, Tess! Bring the hammer!”

“Ah, yes! Just a moment!”

Cheer up, clumsy Tess.

“Now, thank you for the meal.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Haha…

Tess’s face is definitely red.

Seeing that, the young lady grabs me tightly.

“…Mana’s.”

“Haha… we, well!”

After a round of meals, I clean up the leftovers.

“You did well, Young Lady. Please do the same next time, okay?”

“Yes! What are we doing now?”

“I’m going to make simple snacks. So that the workers can take them home when they leave.”

“I’ll help!”

“Thank you~”

So every day, the young lady and I prepared snacks and lunch for the workers, and desserts to eat at home.

Perhaps thanks to everyone’s hard work, the construction was completely finished in just 9 days.

“Thank you all so much. Here’s the payment.”

“Hey, you put in too much!”

“Well, you built it so perfectly, didn’t you?”

“Haha, thank you! I’ll spread the word!”

“Thank you~”

“Thank you!”

“Goodbye, little young lady~”

“Ah! So when will it open? I didn’t ask.”

“Yes! It will open in 4 days! The hours are from 10 am to 5 pm! For now, I think I’ll open it once a month!”

“I see~”

So 4 days later.

“Welcome~”

“Welcome!”

The cafe of me and the young lady has opened.

The four villagers who built this house, their families, and young children came as guests.

It’s not too many, but it’s not too few, it’s just the right number.

“Oh my! Two pretty young ladies are running the business?”

“That’s right~~”

“…Hello?”

“Ah, hello! Welcome!”

“I’ll show you to your seat~”

The young lady also put on a cute pink waitress uniform and started serving.

Hmm… as expected, everyone seems a little reluctant.

But?

“Wow…”

“She’s like a doll…”

Some people are already captivated by the young lady’s charm, you know?

“What’s good here, little young lady?”

“Um… the tea is delicious! The cake is delicious! The cookies are delicious!”

“I see..!”

…She’s still very inexperienced in serving.

“Since everyone is here for the first time today, if you don’t have anything you want in particular, I’d like to serve you what I’m confident in.. would that be okay?”

“Of course!”

“Please serve us!”

“I’m really looking forward to it!”

“Mom! Who is that child?”

“Hmm? I don’t know..?”

“The little young lady is admirable~”

Well, if it’s this atmosphere, I welcome it!

“Young Lady, please serve!”

“Yes! Leave it to me!”

For today… well, not really, but anyway, the young lady, who has polished her etiquette, shows off her neat elegance that doesn’t fit her 9 years old, and serves.

“Pretty…”

“Is she a sister?”

“Hmm… maybe?”

Seeing that, some of the children are already smitten!

“Oh my, the cake is pretty…”

“Wow..! It’s like what nobles eat!”

“Please tell me if you need more.”

“When are you planning to open here again?”

“Hmm.. this is the end of this month, and I think I’ll open it one more time next month.”

“Next month? That’s a shame…”

“Don’t do that, open it every day!”

“Hahaha, thank you. We’ll try to open it often too!”

So, in a good atmosphere, the young lady showed near-perfect service, and the villagers were still a little reluctant, but they seemed to have fallen for the cute young lady’s appearance.

The busy serving time is over and it’s time for only a few additional orders.

“Kids, let’s play!”

“Yes!”

“Um… what kind of game should we play?”

“Tag!”

“Hey!”

“Um..?”

“…Do you want to join too?”

Oh my!

“…Mana?”

The young lady looks at me as if asking if it’s okay.

Of course!

“Go quickly, Young Lady. Have fun playing with your friends, okay? Don’t overdo it?”

“…Yes!”

“Come quickly! I’ll order pickles for you!”

“What’s that?”

So the young lady went outside with the children of her age.

This is… a great success.

Yes!