Chapter 416: The Future Shop Owner's Wife and the Girl Grabbing Cerberus's Ears
At that moment, Kobayashi Rindou stood just inside the kitchen doorway, a document folder clutched in her hand. She remained perfectly still, a bewildered expression painting her face.
Good lord, had she walked into the wrong kitchen?
Why did the two girls before her, a whirlwind of focused, passionate energy, bear such an uncanny resemblance to the famously tsundere Erina and her ever-composed secretary, Hisako?
To test her theory, Rindou quietly pulled the door shut again.
The soft click of the latch caused both Erina and Hisako to turn their heads in unison. Seeing nothing but a closed door, they exchanged a brief, determined glance before immediately returning to their culinary practice.
Peeking through the doorway's window, Rindou let out a quiet sigh of relief. 'It must be all the overtime I've been working lately,'she thought.'I'll definitely have to find Ren during the Stagiaire to recharge my batteries. But... this is definitely Erina's kitchen...'
She pushed the door open again, just in time to hear a sharp command.
"Hisako! The potato strips are not symmetrical!"
"Yes, Lady Erina! And this ginger is old!"
Rindou's mouth twitched. Good heavens, it really was them. Clearing her throat, she raised her voice. "Erina! Hisako! Stop!"
Her shout cut through the kitchen's tense atmosphere. Both girls froze, their movements halting mid-motion as they spun around. Recognizing Rindou, the frantic intensity in their eyes slowly subsided.
"Sister Rindou," Erina asked, a touch of confusion in her voice. "Aren't you swamped with council affairs? What brings you here?"
Rindou let out an exasperated sigh. "I was about to ask you two little rascals the same thing. Neither of you were answering your phones. I came all the way back here to find you, and you haven't even eaten."
Erina paused, patting her pockets before a hint of awkwardness crossed her face. "I canceled all my appointments and left my phone behind. Sister Rindou, I have some finished dishes here. Would you like to try them?"
Rindou's crimson eyes lit up. "Smart girl! But we'll eat later. I have something important to tell you. Hisako, you need to listen carefully too. These two matters are critical for both of you."
Hisako turned from the stove, adjusting the flame to a low simmer. She looked at Rindou, her expression puzzled. "What could be so important that you had to come in person, Sister Rindou?"
Rindou waved the document folder in her hand. "First thing's first: the Stagiaire. The dates have been set. Every member of the Elite Ten has a form with shop information. I've already gone ahead and filled out yours and Hisako's for you. All you need to do is sign. It's in this folder."
Erina nodded gratefully. "Of course! Thank you, Sister Rindou!"
"It's nothing," Rindou waved a dismissive hand. "At this point, I'm more familiar with the address of Ren's shop than I am with the school's."
"But I'm not a member of the Elite Ten..." Hisako pointed out, looking confused.
Rindou grinned. "Officially, it's for the Elite Ten's designated shops. In reality, it's just a way to get a few key people over to Ren's place without causing a stampede. They had to limit it to the Ten to keep the numbers down. If you're going, Ren's shop is the only place that makes sense. You'll just come with us."
Hisako nodded, her eyes scanning the document. Suddenly, her posture stiffened, and her voice rose with disbelief. "What?! There are only fifteen days left?! Sister Rindou! Are you serious?!"
Erina's expression grew just as grave, which in turn startled Rindou.
"What's with you two?!" Rindou exclaimed, taking a half-step back. "You're scaring me!"
Erina quickly explained her concerns about the short timeframe, and Rindou nodded thoughtfully as she listened. "That does make some sense," she conceded, before a mischievous smirk spread across her face. "But it has nothing to do with me, the future Shop Owner's Wife!"
"Since when are you the Shop Owner's Wife?!" Erina and Hisako shot back in perfect unison.
"It's only a matter of time~" Rindou sang.
"Hmph!" came the dual, synchronized reply.
Rindou tapped a finger to her chin, thinking seriously for a moment. "You could take some time to research it... but never mind. Pandora seems to only like the coffee Ren makes, anyway. Alright, alright, on to the second matter."
Erina and Hisako leaned in, their expressions expectant. For once, Rindou's playful demeanor vanished, replaced by a rare seriousness.
"This might not affect me as much, since I'm about to graduate, but it's huge for Totsuki. The WGO headquarters has officially relocated here. As a venerable institution, Totsuki will naturally be establishing various collaborations with them."
Erina tilted her head. "Various collaborations? Such as?"
"For example," Rindou explained, "graduating students can apply directly to become WGO members. Ingredient supply chains. The WGO will be holding regular open classes at Totsuki on advanced culinary theory and other topics. It sounds like even some of the Executive Officers will be guest lecturing. In short, there are a lot of benefits."
Erina nodded, a smile gracing her lips. "Isn't this a wonderful thing? Totsuki can advance even further! But... why does this concern me specifically?"
"It's just the biggest piece of news among a pile of smaller ones," Rindou said. "This was discussed in a meeting earlier, but you weren't there, so Director Nakiri just asked me to tell you when I got the chance. The rest of the Elite Ten have already agreed, and the school has also expressed its full approval."
Erina nodded in understanding. Just as she was about to speak, Rindou handed her the document folder. Then, with a practiced ease that suggested she'd done it a hundred times before, Rindou darted over to the counter, served herself a generous bowl of rice, sat down, and began to eat. As she chewed, she started offering commentary, her reliable big sister image dissolving into that of a happy glutton.
Erina clutched the folder, her thoughts drifting for a moment before she spoke, her voice soft. "Sister Rindou..."
"Mmm~ This Twice-Cooked Pork is quite authentic, isn't it?" Rindou mumbled through a mouthful. "Erina, what's on your mind?"
"Sister Rindou," Erina whispered, "you're graduating, too..."
Graduation meant separation. They might see each other once every few years, or perhaps never again, not even knowing where in the world the other was. The thought of parting was always a sad one.
Hisako's shoulders slumped slightly, her own expression turning downcast.
Rindou, however, just laughed, completely unfazed as she continued to eat. "I'm going to be the boss's wife! How could you not see me? Besides, it's not like we see each other that often at school anyway, right? Just think of it as the campus expanding to cover the entire city~"
Erina nodded, a small smile returning to her face. Then, her eyes scanned the counter. "Eh? Hisako, where's that bowl of chilies and Sichuan peppercorns that was here earlier?"
"Ah? They were used to make a dish."
Erina's eyes widened. "A single dish?"
"That's right."
"Which one?!"
"It's that one, over there..."
"It's the Water-Boiled Beef, right? The one improved from that hot pot steak recipe?"
Hisako stared, stunned, at the now motionless Kobayashi Rindou. "Eh? Sister Rindou, how did you know?"
"Because..." Rindou's voice was a strangled gasp, her face turning a shade of red that clashed with her hair. "It's... so spicy... it's killing me! Water! Water! Erina! What kind of chili was that?!"
"Uh..." Erina winced. "Ghost Pepper... Ghost Pepper soaked in chili oil..."
On the other side of the city, Cerberus looked up, her three heads tilting in unison. A small girl stood before her, her tiny hands firmly gripping the divine beast's floppy ears.
Their eyes met—six molten gold orbs staring into two wide, innocent brown ones.
And for the first time in a long, long while, the Guardian of the Underworld froze.
[Akarin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/AkarinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/AkarinTL
🔗 All My Links: linktr[.]ee/AkarinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]