You Problematic Logistics Uma Musume, Chapter 18

"By the way, Kagura, have you decided what to make for lunch?"

Seeing Kagura walking ahead with her phone in hand, stopping now and then to glance at the navigation map, Maruzensky felt that Kagura's shopping seemed quite purposeful, so she asked along the way.

"Yes. Besides lunch, I also wanted to look for some other ingredients... By the way, Miss Maruzensky, do you know where I can buy Chinese sausage?"

"Hm? Chinese sausage... Hmm... I don't think I've ever heard of that."

Maruzensky had always been rather perfunctory when it came to cooking, so naturally she had no idea where such ingredients could be found. When she cooked, her principle was simply to make whatever was left at the nearby supermarket.

"Um... It's a kind of air-dried meat sausage. The neighboring Huaguo often uses it in cooking."

Kagura didn't know how to explain what she wanted to a Japanese Uma Musume who knew nothing about Chinese cuisine. Although the ingredient wasn't essential to the dish she planned to make, it was simply her favorite flavor.

"Is it a specialty of Huaguo? Then you'll have to go to a specialty shop to buy it. There aren't any near Tracen Academy."

"I figured..."

Kagura sighed in disappointment. Within the distance she could cover on foot during the time currently available to her, there were no Huaguo specialty shops. Online shopping was convenient, but it couldn't immediately deliver the item to her.

Although she hadn't found the ingredient she wanted most, fortunately, the kitchen at Tracen Academy had all the cookware she needed. Whether it was cookware for Western food, Japanese cuisine, or Chinese cuisine, everything was fully prepared there.

"By the way, little sister, what are you planning to make that needs that ingredient?"

"It's a very simple dish. I'll cook rice in a clay pot, then put all kinds of ingredients inside... You can just think of it that way, Miss Maruzensky."

Kagura didn't know how to explain a specialty dish from neighboring Huaguo to a Japanese person, so she could only describe the general method. Explaining it by name was too abstract, since Japanese people wouldn't understand what clay-pot rice was.

"Oh... So the spareribs and fermented black beans you just bought are for that?"

"That's right~ I'm sure Miss Maruzensky will love it~"

Kagura had also bought quite a few extra ingredients so her friends could try some different flavors. She didn't know how her cooking would measure up to her friends' standards, but seeing how expectantly Maruzensky had looked throughout the trip, Kagura felt it should turn out all right.

Going out to gather ingredients for clay-pot rice had been the main purpose of Kagura's outing today, since she had decided to have it for lunch. Besides that main goal, she had also wanted to find ingredients for several other famous Chinese dishes. They were the dishes she had previously told Maruzensky were extremely difficult to make and not worth preparing in daily life. Unfortunately, the results were less than satisfactory, because many things couldn't be bought in Japan. She would have to find a way to obtain Huaguo specialties. Online shopping was a good option, but she wasn't very well-off at the moment, so she would have to postpone her grand cooking project.

After leaving the last supermarket, Kagura counted the ingredients she had bought. Seeing that it was about time, she began preparing to head back.

As expected, Maruzensky once again became a mobile shelf. Kagura was quite grateful to this warmhearted(?) senior Uma Musume. If she had come out to buy ingredients alone, she probably wouldn't have been able to shop so freely. Her small body had limited carrying capacity. Even though an Uma Musume's strength was tremendous, the available storage space was still limited.

"Thank you again for helping me, Miss Maruzensky~ I'm sorry to trouble you with carrying things again~"

"It's fine. Just remember to make me a portion later!"

Maruzensky shook her head with a smile while holding a huge pile of ingredients, signaling that Kagura didn't need to be polite. After all, she couldn't say she was helping for nothing—she had been craving Kagura's cooking for ages.

Of course, when she had first agreed to help Kagura shop, she hadn't only wanted to mooch a meal. She had also wanted to figure out the source of the captivating aura around Kagura and why she was always unconsciously drawn toward her. However, after following her all this way, she still hadn't found any clues. She felt it was probably because Kagura's personality and bearing were like a mother's, naturally making people want to get close to her.

It would be great if I could have a logistics Uma Musume like this...

Walking behind Kagura and watching her tail sway back and forth, Maruzensky couldn't help feeling envious of Rudolph Symbol.

After following Kagura for a short distance, they neared Tracen Academy. Maruzensky suddenly noticed a familiar person approaching them from the opposite direction. Kagura, walking ahead, noticed the approaching Uma Musume as well. When she looked up, their eyes met, and she could feel that the other person's gaze remained fixed on her.

Curious, Kagura stopped and looked at the Uma Musume slowly walking toward her. The woman was tall, far taller than the short Kagura.

She was a beautiful Uma Musume—or rather, none of the Uma Musume Kagura had met so far had been unattractive. But this woman was different. She was tall and mature, with black hair coiled at the back of her head and a mole at the corner of her eye. Her entire person gave off an alluring, almost otherworldly charm. Unlike Symboli Rudolf's gentle majesty or Maruzensky's youthful vitality, she looked more like a composed noblewoman.

Kagura didn't know whether all Uma Musume's hair was like this, but she noticed that this black-haired Uma Musume also had a lock of white hair at her forehead. It was clearly a different style from Rudolph Symbol's dyed streak.

"Good morning. I didn't expect to see you here, Kagura, and Maruzensky."

"Do we... know each other?"

Hearing the other woman call her name so easily, Kagura instinctively became wary.

"You've never met me, but I already know of you. When my younger sister collapsed on the track yesterday, thank you for helping her in time."

The woman's voice was steady and mature, carrying an inexplicable sense of pressure. Before even facing her directly, Kagura already felt a weight bearing down on her.

Kagura understood why the woman knew her name. The only incident connected to her on the track yesterday had been Mejiro Ardan's accident. This Uma Musume called Mejiro Ardan her younger sister, so she was clearly a member of the Mejiro family. Since she was from the Mejiro family, it wasn't strange for her to know about Kagura.

"Takamine, what are you doing wandering around here?"

Maruzensky recognized the woman and greeted her as well.

"I still needed to come over and learn more about Ardan's situation. You know how stubborn that child is. I was worried... What about you? Why are you here? And why are you carrying such a huge pile of things?"

"I came out to buy groceries with this child. We're preparing lunch."

"I see..."

Mejiro Takamine nodded, her gaze returning to Kagura.

"Kagura, regarding what happened before, we were presumptuous. Please allow me to apologize."

"Miss Takamine, you don't have to be so formal. I didn't really take it to heart... I was planning to refuse you anyway."

It seemed that the trainer from before had been sent by this Uma Musume. But Kagura hadn't taken the matter too seriously, since she had intended to refuse her in the first place.

"Is that so... Very well."

The answer hadn't surprised her. Mejiro Takamine seemed relieved as she let out a breath.

"Although this is somewhat presumptuous, there is still one thing I would like to ask of you, Kagura. I wonder if you would be willing?"

"Please go ahead. If it's something I can help with, I'll consider it."

"My sister has always been a handful. If you happen to see her doing anything dangerous at school in the future, please keep an eye on her and stop her."

As she said this, the oppressive aura Mejiro Takamine had carried all along disappeared. She now looked like nothing more than a helpless, headache-ridden older sister watching her younger sibling cause trouble.

"You don't need to ask, Miss Takamine. I'll keep an eye on her anyway."

"Then thank you, Kagura. I have something urgent to attend to, so I'll be going. If you have time in the future, you're welcome to visit the Mejiro family. The Head of the Family also said she would like to thank you personally."

With that, Mejiro Takamine gave Kagura a slight bow, then slowly walked away.

29. Increasingly Like I'm Raising Children—What's Going On? ()

Kagura felt as if she had somehow, without realizing it, become something like a cafeteria auntie.

After returning with Maruzensky and the ingredients, she naturally plunged straight into the kitchen to get to work. Since Maruzensky had nothing else to do, she simply sat on the side of the cafeteria near the kitchen and waited for her meal.

If Maruzensky had been the only one sitting there, that would have been one thing. But when Kagura carried several clay pots back to the stove, she glanced out through the window and discovered that another Uma Musume had appeared nearby at some point. The woman wore sunglasses and a full Tracen student uniform. She didn't look like a young student at all, but rather like a middle-aged mother going out for a stroll.

The reason Kagura called her a middle-aged mother was because she knew who she was. Even with sunglasses and a mask covering her face, her hair mixed with a few strands of white, along with the white ancestral streak at her forehead, had already exposed her identity. Still, Kagura couldn't understand why she had appeared here at this hour.

How did the Head of the Family sneak in!? And where did she even get a school uniform!?

Although Maruzensky hadn't recognized her, Kagura couldn't possibly mistake her. The person sitting there was clearly Speed Symbol disguised as a Tracen student. Of course, it was also possible that Speed Symbol wasn't pretending to be a student at all. Perhaps she had really attended school here when she was younger.

Seeing that Speed Symbol had no intention of revealing her identity yet, Kagura didn't rush out to expose her. She simply continued busying herself in the kitchen.

Kagura had to admit that even as a child, an Uma Musume's body was far more convenient than her former body had been, especially for laborious tasks like chopping spareribs and meat. With her current strength, she could chop the ribs into small pieces almost effortlessly. Carrying a whole stack of clay pots around also didn't make her tired right away.

She soaked the rice in water first, then cut the purchased pork belly into chunks and tossed them into a pot to render out the fat. During the intervals, Kagura chopped the spareribs into bite-sized pieces, then began washing the greens she would use later. She also took a moment to mark one of the clay pots. She remembered that Speed Symbol's tastes were slightly different from everyone else's, so she needed to adjust that portion accordingly.

Preparing the ingredients went by quickly. When the clock on the wall passed eleven-thirty, Kagura had just coated the bottoms of two clay pots with lard and put the soaked rice inside. She was preparing to start the first two pots for Maruzensky and Speed Symbol, who were waiting outside for food, when she saw a small orange-and-white figure emerge from the cafeteria entrance.

Chairwoman Akikawa, don't you usually avoid eating in the cafeteria!?

There was no need to look closely. Only Akikawa Yayoi throughout the entire academy had that color scheme. Yet Kagura had heard the other kitchen staff say that, to avoid disturbing the students' meals, the chairwoman rarely appeared in the cafeteria during mealtimes.

"Surprise! Little sister, you're actually cooking in the cafeteria today!"

Akikawa Yayoi had spotted Kagura bustling around inside the window from far away. She bounded over to the window and poked her head inside curiously, wanting to see what Kagura was making.

"Can you save me a portion too?"

Although she still didn't know what Kagura was making and couldn't tell from simply looking, Akikawa Yayoi chose to trust Kagura's cooking first.

"Th... certainly. Chairwoman Akikawa, you can sit over there first. It'll take a little while to cook."

Kagura quickly pointed toward the place where Maruzensky was sitting. She also took another clay pot, added rice and water, and covered it with a lid.

"Um... little Kagura, do you need our help?"

Several other workers saw Kagura sweating as she busily worked. Since they had finished serving the earlier dishes and had some free time, they came over to ask whether she needed help.

"P... please just bring me a few more clay pots!"

Kagura knew that these workers definitely didn't know how to make the dish she was preparing. They wouldn't be able to control the heat or judge when to add the ingredients, so she didn't dare ask for more help. It was enough if someone could bring over the cookware.

While adding rice to the newly arrived pots and lighting the fire, Kagura didn't neglect the clay pots already on the stove, whose cooking time was nearly up. When she saw smoke rising from the first two pots, she immediately used a cloth to lift their lids. She brought over the sesame oil bought that morning, scooped up a spoonful, held it against the edge of the clay pot, and drizzled it down along the side. Then she spread the spareribs and fermented black beans, along with the vegetables, over the rice, covered the pot, and put it back on the heat.

"Is... is this the legendary kitchen immortal...?"

Watching Kagura process ingredients, mix sauces, and keep an eye on several pots cooking on the stoves all at once, then looking at the chairwoman and Maruzensky sitting outside, the other uncles and aunties couldn't help regarding the little Uma Musume with profound respect.

Fortunately, I bought quite a lot of ingredients today. Otherwise, there really wouldn't have been enough to eat...

Kagura bustled frantically between four or five stoves, feeling fortunate that she had bought extra ingredients. With so many unexpected diners showing up, there was no guarantee that what she made would have been enough to go around.

At eleven forty-five, Kagura had just added meat and vegetables to the other pots and put them back on to simmer. Judging that the first two pots should be ready, and seeing that the others still needed more time, she put on gloves, placed the two pots on a tray, and carried them outside.

"Miss Maruzensky~ Your portion is ready."

"Ooh! It smells wonderful!"

Kagura lifted the lid in front of her. Before Maruzensky even picked up her utensils, the enticing aroma had already made her swallow repeatedly.

Kagura drizzled the prepared sauce over the rice and meat, then picked up Maruzensky's portion and set it before her.

"Please enjoy~ Don't be surprised if you find some crispy rice at the bottom. Fragrant, crunchy crispy rice is the soul of this dish~"

"Question! Little sister, did you save a portion for me?"

Akikawa Yayoi, sitting beside Maruzensky, had been unable to resist the smell for quite some time. However, when she saw that neither of the two portions Kagura had brought out seemed to be hers, she became curious about who the other one was for.

"The chairwoman's portion is still cooking. As for this one..."

As she spoke, Kagura carried the tray to where Speed Symbol was sitting and set down the clay pot. Just as before, she drizzled the sauce over it.

"...it's for Speed. Please enjoy, and be careful not to burn your mouth."

"Oh my... No wonder Rudolph said you had excellent counter-surveillance instincts. So I didn't fool you at all."

Knowing that her identity had been exposed long ago, Speed Symbol stopped pretending. She removed her sunglasses and mask, then rubbed her hands together expectantly.

"You were too conspicuous~ I was shocked when I first saw the Head of the Family disguised as a student here. Once you dress up, you really do look like a lively student, Head of the Family!"

"Haha, what a sweet-talking child... I just wasn't comfortable with you living alone at Tracen Academy, so I came to check on you. It seems you've adapted quite well."

Speed Symbol's main purpose in coming today had been to check on Kagura. Getting a meal had been an unexpected bonus. She had been thinking about Kagura's cooking at home for days, and today she had finally gotten to eat it.

"I'm doing all right... Hehe. And thank you for giving me this opportunity, Head of the Family. I'll definitely repay you for your kindness!"

"Well... I told you before. Living well is the best repayment you can give me."

Seeing Akikawa Yayoi's ghostly expression in the distance, Speed Symbol couldn't help wanting to laugh.

To control the heat properly, Kagura didn't dare chat with Speed Symbol for too long. She quickly returned to the kitchen. She vaguely heard Akikawa Yayoi making her distinctive noises outside, apparently complaining about how Speed Symbol had slipped in without saying a word or giving her any warning.

As for Maruzensky, she seemed to have quite an appetite today. She buried her head in the steaming-hot rice and ate fiercely, as though someone might come and snatch it away if she didn't finish quickly.

"Kagura~ I knew you'd be here!"

Not long after Kagura returned to the kitchen, she saw two little red ears appear above the window. Just as she wondered which expert had arrived this time, Nice Nature poked her head out.

"Oh, Nice Nature... What's wrong?"

"It's mealtime, and I thought I shouldn't keep troubling Kagura, so I came to eat in the cafeteria. I didn't expect you to be busy here today too."

It was indeed mealtime now, so there was nothing strange about Nice Nature appearing here. The only problem was that after serving so many waves of people, Kagura was already sweating profusely. She was extremely glad she had prepared several extra portions when she first put the pots on the stoves.

"I prepared a portion for you too. Go sit at the chairwoman's table..."

"Really...? Thank you, Kagura~!"

Watching Nice Nature trot over and sit down beside Akikawa Yayoi, Kagura hadn't even had time to breathe a sigh of relief when she saw a familiar chestnut-haired Uma Musume named Rudolph Symbol enter through the cafeteria doors. Feeling that today's workload had suddenly reached an entirely new level, Kagura felt a wave of dizziness.

Don't you people usually never eat in the cafeteria!?

30. Why Does It Feel More and More Like I'm Raising Children? ()

"Chairwoman Akikawa, you're..."

At around one in the afternoon, Miss Jun River, dressed in gleaming green, walked into the cafeteria from outside.

As soon as she entered, she saw several Uma Musume sprawled haphazardly near the right side of the cafeteria. Akikawa Yayoi, whom she had come to find, was also leaning back in a chair with her stomach full, looking thoroughly satisfied.

"Perfectly satisfied~! Deciding to come to the cafeteria today was absolutely the right choice!"

"Chairwoman Akikawa, what happened to you?"