What surprised Kagura was that Nice Nature had also crouched in the cafeteria early today. However, she didn't look like she had come to mooch a meal off Kagura, because she had already gotten herself a serving and was eating it.
"It's fine... Anyway! Didn't I tell you that you should eat some protein for breakfast? Go get some milk or eggs. Don't eat so much fried food in the morning. Food that's too oily and salty is bad for your health."
"I... I know!"
After Kagura reminded her, Nice Nature smiled helplessly, picked up her plate, and slunk off to get some more food.
Kagura went into the kitchen to look for ingredients and began preparing breakfast. Nice Nature was handling her own meal today, so Kagura didn't need to worry about her. All she had to make was Rudolph Symbol's breakfast.
Miss Ardan probably hasn't gotten up yet either. I might as well make a serving for her too.
After thinking it over, Kagura decided to make an extra serving and take it up to Ardan in the dormitory. She had no idea what Ardan's tastes were like or whether she would be used to the food Kagura made.
She opened the refrigerator and took a look. Her jars of newly pickled radishes were still sitting inside. Kagura figured they would be ready to eat in another couple of days, though of course that wasn't what she needed to focus on right now.
Not long ago, Kagura had bought an unexpected product from a Chinese specialty shop far from Tracen Academy—century eggs. To her Japanese friends, the things seemed to possess terrifying magical destructive power, but Kagura loved them.
"Humming~"
Humming a tune, Kagura sliced the century eggs and lean pork, put them into the pot for the congee, and prepared some shredded ginger and chopped scallions on the side.
Rudolph Symbol had gotten used to eating Chinese food by now, so she didn't mind trying the sort of "dark cuisine" that Japanese people found frightening. If anything, she had reacted quite positively after trying it.
It was still early, and cooking congee didn't take too long. Kagura even had time to make some egg pancakes. Tracen didn't have the specialized cookware needed, which made the process somewhat inconvenient, but that wasn't a problem for Kagura.
"Hm?"
When Kagura emerged from the kitchen carrying two packed breakfasts, she saw a familiar "student." Early in the morning, she was sitting beside Nice Nature, who was eating carefully at her side with an expression of immense pressure on her face.
"Head of the Family?! You're up so early? Why are you at Tracen?"
"You haven't been getting much rest lately. Rudolph's next race doesn't require your attention for now, and there shouldn't be any major matters in the short term. Based on the results of my comprehensive investigation, I order you to take a few days off. Come home with me now. You'll never be able to rest at school."
"Ah..."
Kagura had just been about to say something, but after exchanging a glance with Speed Symbol, she saw that Speed Symbol was completely unwilling to negotiate. Kagura didn't dare say anything more.
"Nice Nature, if you have time outside of training, you're welcome to visit the Symbol family and spend time with Kagura."
"Yes... Yes!"
Nice Nature hurriedly nodded, afraid that a slow response would offend Speed Symbol. She had returned to her former, somewhat insecure state. It seemed that Speed Symbol's pressure on her was truly immense.
"Um... Head of the Family, let me deliver breakfast first, then I'll come home with you. Is that all right?"
"Of course. I'll wait for you at the school gate. Just come find me when you arrive."
Kagura first carried the breakfasts to the classroom building and gave one to Rudolph Symbol. She also explained that Speed Symbol had personally come to take her home for a few days of rest. Rudolph Symbol seemed to hesitate briefly, but she still nodded repeatedly to show her support for Speed Symbol's opinion.
Rudolph Symbol truly felt that Kagura needed a break. Although it meant she wouldn't be able to eat Kagura's cooking for a while, it wasn't worth tiring the child out just for the sake of temporary satisfaction. Besides, Tracen's cafeteria wasn't too bad. She could make do with it.
"By the way, has the young lady's next race been decided?"
"Toujou, the trainer, asked me the same question. I said we could choose the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes. After all, it's a G1 race where the Uma Musume of the same generation compete for the title of champion. The media generally expects me to enter the Asahi Hai too... Kagura, what do you think?"
"If possible, I personally hope you won't enter the Asahi Hai, young lady. A championship race would put extremely severe pressure on your body. You already push yourself hard enough in your daily life. If you enter the Asahi Hai as well, your training pressure will increase several times over what it is now... That wouldn't be good."
Hearing Rudolph Symbol's race plans, Kagura couldn't help frowning. She was no longer a novice who knew nothing about racing. In order to help Rudolph Symbol, she had taught herself a great deal about the subject, and she felt that Rudolph Symbol's choice wasn't wise.
If Rudolph Symbol hadn't entered that special race earlier, or had entered another race sooner, Kagura felt the schedule wouldn't have been so tight. But there simply wasn't enough time now. If Rudolph Symbol wanted to compete, she would inevitably have to push her body to its limit. Kagura was afraid that this might cause some irreversible damage.
"I see... Then, Kagura, which race do you hope I'll enter?"
"The open race at the end of November. If you really want to run in a G1 race, I recommend the Hopeful Stakes in late December. At least the time pressure won't be so great that way."
"I see... Hehe, Kagura, your opinion is exactly the same as the trainer's."
Kagura's assessment wasn't wrong. Rudolph Symbol nodded with a smile of approval. She did want to enter a G1 race as soon as possible, but just as Kagura and Toujou Hana had said, doing so would make the training schedule extremely tight. It wouldn't be good if her body broke down.
"The young lady's goal is next year's Triple Crown Race, right? There's no need to push yourself to the limit so hastily."
"Mm... All right. I'll pass your opinion on to the trainer. We'll discuss it and make a decision. Is that okay?"
"Yes. Toujou is a professional trainer, so she must be thinking farther ahead than I am. Whatever decision Toujou ultimately makes, I'll support you with everything I have, just as I always have."
Kagura bowed slightly to Rudolph Symbol, then turned around.
"If there's nothing else, I won't disturb you any longer, young lady."
"All right. You too, Kagura. Go home and get some proper rest."
Meanwhile, when Kagura returned to her dormitory, she found that Ardan had already woken up, washed, and was moving around in the room.
"Good morning, Miss Ardan. I seem to have overexerted myself last night and caused some trouble. I'm very sorry for inconveniencing you."
"No, no, no! I... I don't mind at all. Kagura, you don't have to apologize so formally!"
Ardan hurriedly stopped Kagura.
To be honest, Ardan had actually slept very comfortably the previous night. Holding Kagura while sleeping had felt wonderfully comfortable in a way she had never experienced before. She had slept deeply, and Kagura's soft body had felt lovely in her arms. It had even made her wonder whether she could ask Kagura to sleep with her again in the future.
"I brought you breakfast that I made myself, Miss Ardan. After you finish eating, just return the dishes to the cafeteria. Someone will clean them up."
"All right... Huh... That smell is so familiar... Did you make century-egg-and-lean-pork congee, Kagura?"
Before Kagura could even open the lunch box she had brought, Ardan had already identified what might be inside.
"Oh? You've had it before?"
"Before I came back, Invincible took me to eat it several times. At first, I thought it was a little strange, but after trying it, I discovered that century eggs were unexpectedly delicious. Later, I went out to find them every morning and eat them myself. Unfortunately, after I came back, there was nowhere here that served them..."
"I see... I'm glad you don't dislike it. Give it a try."
Kagura smiled as she opened the lunch box on the table, handed Ardan the utensils, and guided her over to sit down.
Ardan hadn't tasted Chinese food in quite some time. The familiar aroma reminded her of the days she had spent living in the neighboring country. She picked up a spoonful of congee, blew on it to cool it slightly, and then placed it in her mouth.
The warmth in her stomach instantly made Ardan feel as though she had come back to life. She especially loved that sensation. It was comfortable, and Kagura's cooking was flawless, with the genuine taste of Chinese cuisine. The long-missed flavor filled Ardan with nostalgia.
"How wonderful... Kagura, your cooking is amazing! It tastes exactly like what I had at the restaurants over there!"
"It's just home cooking. It's very simple, so I wouldn't call it a skill. I'm just glad you like it, Miss Ardan."
Seeing how much Ardan liked her cooking, Kagura finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"The Head of the Family is waiting for me at the entrance. Since you don't need me here for anything else, Miss Ardan, shall I take my leave?"
"Lady Speed Symbol came to take you home to rest, didn't she? You've really worn yourself out lately, Kagura. Make sure you recuperate properly."
"I will. Thank you for your concern, Miss Ardan."
Kagura nodded and turned to leave the dormitory.
Ardan looked at the century-egg-and-lean-pork congee in front of her, then at Kagura's departing back, and fell into a daze.
Kagura's cooking is so good... It would be wonderful if I could keep eating food made by her in the future...
65. The Dessert Demon's Temptation
At noon, Maruzensky came to Tracen's cafeteria for the first time in a while, hoping she might run into Kagura. She was pleasantly surprised to see Akikawa Yayoi and Rudolph Symbol eating there too, but when she looked behind them, the kitchen Kagura usually occupied wasn't lit at all. Even the door was locked.
"Huh? Strange. Why are only the two of you here? Where's Kagura?"
"She's been working too hard lately. My mother-in-law couldn't stand watching it, so she called her home and forced her to rest for a few days."
Rudolph Symbol answered while gnawing on a carrot. The fresh, crisp radish made a crunchy sound in her mouth that involuntarily made anyone listening swallow.
"What a shame! I came all this way hoping to mooch a meal, but the little sister isn't here. Maruzensky, go get some food and come sit with us. I brought radishes I grew myself."
"Exactly..."
Maruzensky returned carrying a full plate and slumped down listlessly. She hadn't seen Kagura for quite a while. After hearing that Nice Nature had won the selection race, she had assumed Kagura was finally free and come to visit. She hadn't expected Speed Symbol to whisk her away so quickly.
"You should all go easy on Kagura too. She can't handle you mooching meals that frequently."
"How unfortunate! Maruzensky and I already agreed to space out our visits as much as possible. I only come twice a week, and Maruzensky comes twice too..."
"There are only seven days in a week!"
Rudolph Symbol complained with dark lines across her forehead.
Fortunately, not many people usually came to mooch meals from Kagura. Rudolph Symbol calculated that, aside from Nice Nature and herself, whom Kagura looked after every day, there seemed to be only the chairwoman and Maruzensky. Mejiro Ardan hadn't shown any signs of doing so yet, and the two heads of families who occasionally appeared in the cafeteria couldn't be counted.
She wondered whether that number would increase in the future. Given Kagura's personality, Rudolph Symbol felt that more and more people would certainly come. If too many people began mooching meals, Kagura probably wouldn't be able to keep up. She wondered whether Kagura had any plans for dealing with it. Surely they couldn't rely entirely on Maruzensky and the chairwoman's self-imposed agreement to limit themselves.
Meanwhile, in the park beside Tracen Academy, Kagura was lying beneath a tree with nothing to do, scrolling through videos on her phone.
Kagura didn't actually have this sort of hobby. If she had to sit around doing nothing, she would rather find something to work on. Unfortunately, she wasn't allowed to. Whenever she tried to find work at the Symbol family home, a maid would suddenly emerge from some bizarre angle or location and stop her. Kagura couldn't help wondering whether these maids were ninjutsu masters disguised as ordinary servants.
Thus, with nothing else to do, Kagura could only go out for a walk. Before she knew it, she had wandered to the park. Speed Symbol had fed her until she was stuffed at lunch, and the drowsiness soon hit her, so she lay down beneath the shade of a tree to rest for a while.
"Eh? Kagura-neechan, what are you doing here?"
Just as Kagura felt her eyelids growing heavy and wondered whether she should sleep on the warm grass, she heard a familiar, childish voice call her name.
Kagura immediately sat upright and looked toward the voice. Sure enough, it had come from Mejiro McQueen. She had no idea why McQueen had wandered over here too. She had a small bakery bag in one hand and a cup of honey tea in the other, so it seemed she had just bought some food.
"Oh, it's McQueen... I'm on vacation, and the Head of the Family won't let me work. She told me to rest properly, so I came here to lie down."
"Vacation? If I remember correctly, today is a school day. Don't you have to go back for afternoon classes, Kagura-neechan?"
"I have permission to skip classes, so I don't have to attend... Speaking of which, you little glutton, are you stuffing yourself outside again? If Miss Takamine and Miss Ardan found out, wouldn't they scold you?"
As far as Kagura knew, Mejiro Ardan and Mejiro Takamine had been paying close attention to their new younger sister lately. More specifically, because Mejiro McQueen was such a glutton, the Mejiro family had been forced to find someone to keep her overeating under control.
"I got permission to come buy something to eat! Mm... My family has been watching me so strictly lately! I understand why, but every time I pass a shop and see the cakes in the display case... Aah—!!"
Mejiro McQueen let out a distorted wail. It was obvious that she was suffering terribly. Kagura was reminded of the time her former best friend had tried to lose weight for a cosplay. Whenever Kagura had gorged herself in the dormitory, her friend's expression had looked much like McQueen's did now.
"Oh my... Your self-control is pretty good. So why did you dare come talk to me? I thought you might be craving something again."
Kagura suddenly felt like teasing the adorable child a little.
"Why wouldn't I—wait, why do you smell so delicious, Kagura-neechan?"
After Kagura pointed it out, Mejiro McQueen realized that the sweet, enticing aroma she had noticed was coming from Kagura.
"Maybe some of the fragrance got on me while I was making snacks at noon. I made a little too much, so I brought some with me to eat when I got tired from walking this afternoon. Do you want some?"
As she spoke, Kagura pointed to the tightly wrapped lunch box sitting beneath the tree beside her.
She watched Mejiro McQueen's eyes visibly widen. McQueen swallowed instinctively, but it took nearly five seconds of silence before she finally waved both hands and desperately shook her head.
"No! I can't eat any more! I'll turn into a little fat horse!"
"Chinese desserts are delicious without being overly sweet. Generally speaking, this kind of dessert doesn't contain much sugar. It focuses on the original flavor of the ingredients and the balance between that flavor and a little sugar... So the calories are actually fairly low. Compared to heavily oiled, sugar-laden things like cakes, they're less likely to make you gain weight."
Kagura smiled and spoke with a perfectly serious expression. She saw that the determination on Mejiro McQueen's face was about to break, which reminded her of the pleasure she had once taken in tormenting her friend despite being unable to gain weight herself.
Mejiro McQueen was still holding on to the last scraps of her reason. The person standing before her was practically a devil in a maid outfit—but the devil's offering was simply too tempting!
"McQueen said you got permission to come out and eat today, right? If you've already decided to relax, why are you still keeping yourself so tense?"
"Kagura-neechan... You really are a demon!"
"Oh my~ I'm only telling the truth. If you're worried, I can teach you a way to control your weight afterward."
Those words from Kagura were the final straw. She watched Mejiro McQueen stare blankly for a few seconds before finally surrendering and nodding. McQueen took the lunch box from Kagura's hands.
"...You have to keep your word, Kagura-neechan!"
"Hehe, I didn't bring much to begin with. Eating this little won't make you gain weight. If you're free, rest here after you finish, and I'll teach you some weight-loss exercises. You don't have anything else planned this afternoon, do you?"
"Really?! I-I don't have anything to do this afternoon!"
Mejiro McQueen was delighted. She nodded repeatedly, afraid that if she answered too slowly, Kagura might suddenly leave.
"Of course. Would I lie to you? I'm going to buy some water. It wouldn't be good if you got dehydrated while exercising. You eat here for now."
Kagura reached out and patted her on the head, telling her to keep eating, then left to buy water.
Mejiro McQueen nibbled at the snacks Kagura had brought while watching Kagura walk toward the small shop selling honey tea in the distance. For some reason, a strange impulse suddenly welled up in her heart.
Kagura-neechan is so gentle... and kind... If she were really my big sister, wouldn't that be wonderful?
Before you continue