Everyone's Mother (Continued)

"Artoria, could you please leave the kitchen?" Shirou asked with a smile, placing a specially made, extra-large croquette into the girl's hand.

"Ahem, excuse me, I'll go do other work." The head maid accepted the bribe and replied with a serious expression.

"As expected, my maid training is still far from sufficient." Artoria said as she ate a giant croquette and walked outside.

With the kitchen destroyer finally gone, Shirou's chef's spirit was rekindled.

Just then, the glass was tapped twice. Shirou looked up and was startled.

There was a young girl with an Asian face pressed against the glass window, her face so pressed together that different colors showed through, completely unrecognizable. She seemed to be saying something to him.

The female student outside noticed that the boy had seen her, and then smiled and moved away from the glass window.

It was then that Shirou recognized her as an upperclassman from the same school with whom he had had dinner earlier.

So it was imitating something with its movements, flapping its wings, pecking at food on the ground with its beak, and then gesturing with its hand to indicate the shape of an oval ball.

"Egg...?" Shirou picked up an egg, looked at his senior, and mouthed the question.

Wei Lian nodded, then made a gesture of wrapping his hands around himself.

Shirou couldn't understand this at all.

However, there was a food preparation window on the other side. Shirou walked over, pushed open the glass window, and asked, "Senpai, what did you want to eat just now?"

"Shirou-kun, please make me an egg roll~!" Yui pleaded, her eyes sparkling like stars.

"...Alright..." Shirou had little resistance to such requests, so he agreed.

However, this action was quickly noticed by the other girls!

"Hey? Can I order? I'd like a mille-feuille!"

"Order dishes!?" A girl at the UK branch who could understand Japanese exclaimed in surprise, prompting other girls to raise their hands in astonishment as well.

"Grill-Cheese-Sandwich~!" The British girl with long, ruddy, curly hair winked at her.

"Churros!" The blonde, tanned British beauty blew him a kiss.

"These aren't British dishes, are they?!" Shirou complained, even though he could actually make them—just fried sandwiches with grilled meat and Spain.

"Baumkuchen ..." a girl said in a clear, calm voice in Japanese.

"This is way too much!" Shirou was about to refuse when he turned around and actually found an oven that could be used to make large cakes, and next to it were long baguettes that could be installed and removed, which were used to make Baumkuchen (a type of Baumkuchen).

"Okay, okay." Shirou reluctantly agreed. As expected of an international high school, the kitchen, though not particularly large, was very well-equipped, with all the necessary utensils. They could even fulfill the girl's random requests.

Once the words were spoken, there was no room for refusal. From the moment I agreed to make egg rolls, this outcome was probably destined.

"That's enough!" Artoria's authoritative voice proclaimed.

"Hey hey..." Some of the girls cried out in disappointment because they hadn't had time to order, and were then scrambled away by the head maid's glare.

Beside Artoria stood a girl with a calm expression; she was the same child who had asked for the Baumkuchen earlier.

Both girls were expressionless, and at first glance, they could be mistaken for sisters. However, Artoria exuded more of the cold and dignified aura of a queen, while the other girl was more like a blank sheet of paper, pure and innocent like a child.

Artoria said, "This is Shiina Mashiro. She's the girl I was asked to summon, and she's currently taking care of and teaching her."

"Hello, is this child an international student at this school?" Shirou asked curiously.

"Baumkuchen..." Mashiro looked at the boy expectantly, like a little animal.

"Can you do it? Why don't I come in and help?" Artoria suggested.

Shirou decisively refused, saying, "No problem! No need! Leave everything to me! The facilities here are complete. I can just put in a little effort and finish in a bit. Artoria and your friends can find a place to sit and rest for a while; that will be a huge help to me."

"Is that so..." Artoria replied regretfully.

After seeing the two girls off, Shirou got busy on his own. To handle the orders from the young ladies, he had to dig out bread slices, bacon, beef, flour, and eggs again, and start doing the tedious work. However, after a lot of special training, multitasking was not impossible for him. Everything was progressing step by step, and with reasonable time allocation, he could finish before the mealtime.

Artoria, along with Mashiro, found an empty table, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Yes, head maid, I've finished my work for today," Rita, a girl with long, golden hair dressed in a maid's outfit, reported with a salute.

"Very well, Rita, please take your seat and wait for your meal." Artoria nodded in agreement.

"Okay, thank you so much. Are you playing FGO, head maid?" Rita replied.

"Well, I'm slightly interested in the people inside." Artoria looked at the Servant she possessed. She had all the Knights of the Round Table, but none of them were what she wanted, so she left them untrained.

"Ah, as expected of the head maid, your bond with the Knights of the Round Table unparalleled. They're all maxed out, but their levels aren't high enough. Ah... Mordred, on the other hand, is maxed out. Wait, why are you locking her and the Flame in the storage room?"

"Don't worry about such trivial matters. In this game right now, the only character I think I can get is the one riding a horse!" Artoria said calmly.

"Although I don't quite understand it, I'll play anyway. This game is surprisingly interesting. Like that Cake Queen who runs a gang with a black man, it's hilarious." Rita smiled, sat down, and took out her phone.

"Father King, what are you doing? Is this what they call a cell phone, and you're playing games with it?" Little Mo ran up excitedly and asked.

"Reporting to the head maid, we've finished too." A tired-looking Eriri, accompanied by an awkward Little Mo, arrived at the dining room and said.

"Is that so? Then you all go to the kitchen and help make breakfast," Artoria instructed.

"Eh? Why?!" Eriri had just thought she could finally catch her breath, but then more work came up.

"Let's go! Eriri, you're so useless. At times like this, just follow orders." Little Mo pulled the girl towards the kitchen.

The two girls entered the kitchen and called out to the boy, "Shirou, we're here to help!"

"Ah, Eriri, Little Mo, you don't need to help right now, but as kitchen staff, you have a privilege—come over here and try this."

Shirou brought over two small stools and placed them in a secluded corner where they couldn't be seen from outside, then invited the two girls to sit down.

Then he took out a plate containing hamburger patties, tempura, and croquettes, and handed them to the two girls.

"Delicious! Although the venison was amazing before, this is delicious too!" Little Mo said happily.

Eriri, her eyes brimming with emotion, said, "Oh, thank you. This is the taste of my mother's cooking that I've missed since I left home. Although my mother's cooking isn't this good."

"If Aunt Yuriko heard you say that, she'd be very sad," Shirou thought to himself.

"By the way, Eriri, what was Father King... no, head maid playing with earlier?" Little Mo asked curiously.

"That's FGO, do you want to play it too?" Eriri asked.

"Games? I'm not interested in that! Well, since Father... the head maid plays something, I'd like to try it too." Little Mo said awkwardly, arms crossed.

"I really can't do anything with you. Well then, I'll lend you my spare phone," Eriri said, pulling out two smartphones, one red and one green, from her ever-reliable maid apron.

"Really?! Thank you! Eriri, you're actually a pretty good girl." Little Mo took the red smartphone and happily hugged the girl with pigtails.

"Well, it would be great if you could be a little more polite to me when we're working. Although, frankly, it's not much different from playing a single-player game," Eriri said helplessly.

"But how exactly do we play?" Little Mo asked, puzzled.

"Well, the game mechanics are pretty standard. You'll get the hang of it after a few tries. Anyway, just click here first," Eriri said, instructing Little Mo.

Mordred exclaimed in surprise, "This... this!! What is this! Is it a god? Why is King Arthur inside?!"

"Well, she's a character who's practically the poster girl, though because there's so much expectation surrounding her, she's always at the bottom of the tier list..."

"What?! Is this a character from a game?!" Little Mo exclaimed.

"Yeah, sure, and Blue Saber is a permanent Servant, so you can pull for her anytime. Although she's a bit pricey, it's a game based on fandom, so there's no worry about whales not spending money. But I can earn back the money I spend on gacha pulls by drawing doujinshi featuring popular characters from the game, and even make a little extra money, so it's not a big deal."

"Huh? You want to draw King Arthur? It costs money, right?" Little Mo asked, feeling disheartened.

"Well, it is indeed too harsh on students who have no income, but you could ask your parents for a little help and get some pocket money."

"Oh yeah! That's one of those tricks! Shirou!" Little Mo jumped up in surprise and ran to the boy, saying, "Give me some pocket money!"

"Huh?" Shirou was cooking, looked at the girl who was reaching out her hand to him as if it were the most natural thing in the world with surprise.

"Eh!!!" Eriri, who was sitting in the corner, exclaimed in surprise. What is the relationship between this child and Shirou?!

"What's up? I'll help you out, so here's some pocket money!" Little Mo urged.

"I really can't do anything with you," Shirou said helplessly. Although it was the first time he had encountered Servant making such a request, from Little Mo's perspective, asking for compensation was indeed reasonable.

Thinking it's okay to be a little lenient with girls when it comes to money, Shirou said to Little Mo, "Your wallet is in your back pocket, take it yourself. Just give it back to me when you're done, but it's best not to spend the money on things you'll regret."

"Got it! Great!" Little Mo smiled and reached into Shirou's pocket, pulling out her wallet.

"Eek!!! They actually gave it to me! And I can take whatever I want!!!" Eriri's brain was violently shocked, and she screamed inwardly.

"Alright! Eriri, I have money now! Quickly teach me how to draw King Arthur!" Little Mo excitedly held up her wallet and ran back to the corner.

"I can't take the cash either. Okay, I'll exchange it with the money in my online bank account," Eriri said with a dry laugh as she took the wallet.

"Oh, can I smoke now?" Little Mo asked eagerly.

"Okay, I'll top up your account now. Anyway, based on online surveys, the average allowance for Gen is around 10,000 yen per month. Let's do one order first," Eriri said after considering for a moment.

"I know, it's all up to you!" Mordred said nonchalantly.

Thus, the ten-pull gacha for the permanent pool officially began.

Are you ready?

"Hmm, is pressing this enough? Ah! That shield below looks familiar... Ah! It's coming out!"

"Gold! A gold- Saber Class has appeared!" Eriri exclaimed excitedly. She might have even brought along a European!

"Oh oh oh oh!! It's coming, Father King!" Little Mo shouted excitedly.

A golden card flipped, revealing a swordsman wielding Greatsword, his body completely encased in silver-red armor, obscuring his true identity!

"Damn it, why aren't they coming out! King Arthur! Are you deliberately ignoring me?!" Little Mo shouted in frustration, frantically pressing the summon button repeatedly.

"No! This is not scientific! Why did I get so many Mordred and Camilles?" Eriri exclaimed in surprise when she saw Mordred that reached NP10 in a single pull.

"Huh? That's obvious, isn't it? So I already told you from the beginning, I am Mordred!" Little Mo said, pointing to himself with his thumb.

"Huh...?" Eriri was stunned for a moment, recalling how Little Mo had almost destroyed the toilet with her Monstrous Strength, showing a lack of common sense. In fact, Rita hadn't hidden the fact that the head maid had jumped out of the game from Eriri, who was Mashiro's manga teacher. Artoria hadn't been beating around the bush either, but had directly declared her guilty of defamation for drawing doujinshi. It's just that Eriri herself hadn't dared to believe it.

Now that she's witnessed a miraculous gacha pull, Eriri has to confirm it once again.

Eriri looked at Shirou for help and asked, "Shirou, what will happen if the head maid sees the original manuscript of the Artoria x Jeanne d'Arc Alter doujinshi I have on my computer?"

"..." Upon hearing this, Shirou's eyes showed a look of sadness and pity, and then he covered his face in anguish.

"So... my friend Little Mo is actually Mordred, and the head maid is actually King Arthur, meaning Little Mo is the head maid's daughter. And then I drew a picture book about my friend's father, and now I'm teaching my friend how to play the father's game?"

"Gah..." Eriri sat there in a daze, and something like white smoke came out of her mouth because she was thinking too much.

"Eriri? Whoa! Something's coming out of your mouth. Cheer up, Eriri ~!" Little Mo grabbed the girl's shoulders and shook her back and forth, shouting.

"Good morning... Why is it so noisy everywhere?" At this moment Sawako, a female teacher at Chiba School, who was suffering from a hangover and headache from drinking too much the night before, walked out and asked in a dejected manner.

"Shirou! What are you doing here, and with the head maid no less!?"

The girls from the Light Music Club whispered something in her ear.

"Oh, wow, you've got guts, kid. If it were before, I'd have arrested someone like that without a second thought, given them a lecture, and called their parents. But I can't really understand this kind of crush right now. This time, I'll keep it a secret from Shizuka-chan for you~!"

Sawako immediately understood what was going on, and then gave the boy a thumbs up!

"?" Shirou looked at Sawako with a puzzled expression. Although he didn't quite understand, he figured it was probably meant to encourage him, so he smiled, gave her a thumbs up, and responded.

Once all the dishes were ready, Shirou opened the order window. Golden tempura, croquettes, and juicy hamburger pies satisfied people's cravings for crispy, fragrant, and delicious food.

Open the oven and take out the long cylindrical Baumkuchen from the top rack. Remove the long stick from the center, which is a circular hollow like a paper tube. Cut it into sections with a knife, turning it into a wheel shape. On the cut side, because it has been coated with new ingredients many times before, you can see that the layers of rings are tightly connected together.

This makes this Baumkuchen richer and more flavorful than other types.

Spread a layer of oil on the griddle, and bake the bacon and ground beef until they are fragrant and oily. Then place triangular slices of bread on the griddle, top with a thick layer of meat, add two lettuce leaves with finely chopped tomato slices in between, and cover with another slice of bread to make a sandwich. Use a spatula to gently press down and fry both sides of the bread slices until they are slightly charred and crispy. That's it.

Finally, there were the deep-fried Spain -style churros, slightly larger than French fries. Compared to Chinese churros, they were firmer but still crispy, and served with various sweet sauces such as chocolate for the students to dip in.

The pot contained millet porridge, milk, goat milk, and oatmeal porridge.

With Eriri and Little Mo's help, the breakfast items were arranged one by one.

After tasting Shirou's cooking, the girls all showed happy expressions, as if their hearts had been healed.

"Damn it, this is so delicious! Shirou is such a bastard who's not giving women who aspire to be housewives a chance to live. This is the perfect taste of mom, how is this possible? It's so good!" Ritsu said angrily, stuffing her breakfast into her mouth.

"It really is delicious, but I feel like I've lost in every way. After graduating from university, I guess I'll just have to find a good company and work a regular job," sighed the pretty girl with long, straight black hair.

"Then I'll just be a NEET... This omelet is so delicious~! It's heaven~!" Yui said, slumped on the table, putting food into her mouth with a fork, looking blissful.

"It's true that Shirou very mature, and his cooking skills are beyond human comprehension, but you seniors, please cheer up a bit!" The only second-year student, a petite girl, puffed out her cheeks and advised.

"Don't be angry, don't be angry, come here, Azusa ~! Ah..." Yui scooped up a small bite of cake with a spoon and held it to the girl's mouth.

"Ah~ Delicious..." The girl couldn't resist the temptation and opened her mouth to taste the cake, revealing a look of pure bliss.

"Well, to be honest, this is already Michelin three-star level, but I think it would be better if everyone set their expectations a bit higher. Anyone else want some tea?" Young lady Tsumugi Kotobuki asked, holding up the teapot.