Chapter 2: 2

Talent only determines how high one can reach in their professional field, but it is hard work and resourcefulness that determine whether one can progress and how far they can go on this path.

Wagashi is a general term for a part of Japanese pastries. There are many types, such as mochi, yokan, taiyaki, dango, and hato sabure. Because wagashi has a generally sweet flavor, it is typically served as a dessert in Japan, with the sweetness of the wagashi balancing the bitterness of tea.

It could be said that the so-called system's gift package just now has rapidly turned him from a beginner in the pastry field into a seasoned veteran with considerable cooking experience, at least in the field of wagashi. After giving this gift package, the system fell silent and no longer made any noise.

Ichiyo's expression remained unchanged as he went upstairs to arrange his luggage, and when he went back downstairs, a young girl had already arrived in the shop. A very delicate and beautiful young girl!

Her golden hair almost reached her waist, her violet irises were just like crystals, and her eyes contained only a gaze of scrutiny and rejection. She looked like a noble, even somewhat distant, big sister.

"Are you the manager here?"

"As of today, unless something unexpected happens, I will be."

"Can I have a pastry?"

"What pastry do you want?"

“Starry Sky Yōkan.”

"I can only make ordinary wagashi."

"Then bring out your best skills with wagashi!"

Ichiyo looked at the young girl with a somewhat intimidating expression and was silent for a moment before pointing to the half-transparent glass structure of the counter where the wagashi that the old man had made before but hadn't been taken down yet.

"It takes a lot of time to re-formulate the raw materials for wagashi at this time of night. You'll be faster if you just buy the ready-made ones."

"I have plenty of time, I can wait. As long as it's something you personally made!"

The girl's words were full of conviction and were not swayed by Ichiyo's words.

Her purpose for this trip was simply to check Ichiyo's culinary skills.

Ichiyo looked at her in silence, pursed his lips, and after a long moment, shrugged his shoulders.

"Alright, as you wish, but it might not be very cheap."

The girl huffed in response, clearly not looking like someone who couldn't afford a small pastry. Ichiyo's words were unnecessary.

Walking into the kitchen, Ichiyo lazily pulled up his sleeves, washed his hands, and began preparing various ingredients according to the process he remembered.

Most traditional warabi mochi is divided into two parts: the warabi mochi skin and the filling. The usual raw materials for the warabi mochi skin are mochiko (rice flour), glutinous rice flour, and sugar. It is processed and matured through a certain process.

During the process of maturing the warabi mochi skin, Ichiyo began preparing the filling for the wagashi. To showcase various colors and shapes, he needed to prepare multiple fillings, such as azuki bean filling, white bean filling, matcha filling, and fruit filling. These are all within Ichiyo's range of expertise.

It wasn't necessary for Ichiyo to go through such elaborate measures for a single girl's order, but considering that the pastry shop would still be open tomorrow, Ichiyo made a little extra semi-finished raw material.

Nakiri Erina found a chair and sat down next to the counter, attentively watching Ichiyo as he worked in the kitchen with smooth, practiced movements and a calm expression, like an experienced veteran.

Recalling the investigation information provided by Hisako earlier, Nakiri Erina raised an eyebrow. This level of fluidity and harmony with the kitchen was not something that someone who had been away from the kitchen for so long could achieve!

However, no matter what, Nakiri Erina absolutely could not admit that this unexpected fiance of hers was capable of such things.

Her purpose for coming today was only one thing: to show this man the reality of the situation, to make him see the gap between them, and then, privately reach a consensus and preserve their respective reputations with a divorce.

Ichiyo, of course, had no idea what was going through the mind of the girl outside the kitchen, nor did he know that she was his never-before-met fiancee.

He simply looked at the wagashi he had carefully molded and sculpted with various tools, feeling a bit curious.

As he looked at the wagashi, a data point appeared in his line of sight above the wagashi: completion rate 87%.

Is the wagashi delicious?

Actually, it's pretty average.

"Is it done yet?"

Erina saw Ichiyo standing in the kitchen, holding a piece of wagashi and zoning out, completely ignoring her as a customer.

At that moment, her impression of the man worsened and her tone became slightly more annoyed than before.

Upon hearing her voice, Ichiyo turned and looked at the girl, then put down the wagashi he had been making and resumed his work with his head lowered.

"Not yet, wait."

The customer is god? He doesn't believe in god anyway.

Ichiyo unexpectedly became a bit serious, constantly recalling his experiences in making wagashi while skillfully performing the tasks. He would occasionally look at the floating subtitle above the wagashi that only he could see.

Completion rate: 87%!

It was really eye-catching!

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Ichiyo considered himself to be a somewhat lazy person, but he had a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder. For example, if he saw a red notification dot on his phone, he couldn't help but click on it. When shopping, he would exchange his change for corresponding items. If someone called and he didn't answer, he would definitely call back. It was just that the red notification for missed calls annoyed him.

As for laziness, Ichiyo thought he was only moderately lazy. He was too lazy to retake exams or attend classes, but he would put in effort to study hard and rank in the top three of his grade. To gain more freedom and time, he would do his daily chores well in advance to earn his parents' approval.

Ichiyo's philosophy was that indulging in laziness and doing nothing was the lowest form of laziness. He was the kind of person who would do things perfectly, but in a way that saved more time in the long run, like a kind of energy conservationism.

As for advanced laziness, it probably comes from laziness itself, and in order to solve this problem, let the world adapt to oneself.

For example, if you're too lazy to write letters, you invent the internet communication technology; if you're too lazy to ride horses, you invent trains and planes; if you're too lazy to cook or go out, you develop a takeout app.

Although these inventions were not born out of laziness, their birth inevitably involves the idea of stealing laziness to make human life easier.

From the historical perspective of human development at the global level, such inventions seem to be mainstream, in order to save time and energy.

In a sense, advanced laziness changes the world.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder and laziness mixed together create a majority of people who are contradictory and integrated, including Ichiyo himself.

Now he looks at this incomplete 100% completion rate, like a game that is missing the final boss strategy, or a particularly inappropriate cartoon for children where the key frames are pixelated!

It's eye-catching!

Ichiyo is making various shaped sweets using the recipes that were previously rewarded by the system. As he continues to make them, his skill and proficiency increases, and the completion rate gradually increases. When it finally reaches 100%, the first to reach that completion rate is the Autumn Cherry Blossom sweets. It seems to contain something special as well. Ichiyo looks at the 100% completion rate with a thoughtful expression, and wonders if the random increase in mood buff from the probability is like this.

 

Ichiyo shook his head and decided not to dwell on it. He found a small plate specifically used for sweets like wagashi and brewed a cup of green tea. He then brought the wagashi to the counter where the impatient young woman was waiting.

"Please enjoy."

Nakiri Erina looked at the beautifully shaped wagashi on the small plate, then at Ichiyo, whose expression remained unchanged.

"Why not use the ones from before?"

"Those were just prototypes. If you wanted the best I could offer, this wagashi is probably the highest level I can currently achieve."

Nodding, Erina picked up the small plate and green tea from the counter and placed them on a slightly shorter table next to the counter. She used a special wooden fork made for eating wagashi and small sweets to gently cut off a petal of the wagashi and put it in her mouth.

The sweet flavor filled her mouth and was overwhelmingly delicious.

"It's too sweet!" Erina Nakiri said, frowning as she looked at the beautifully shaped confectionery on the small plate in front of her. She took another sip of her tea and tried to calm the anxious feeling that had been plaguing her all day since her grandfather told her he had arranged a fiance for her.

Ichiyo leaned against the counter, his eyes fixed on her as he watched her eat. "Is it good?" he asked.

Erina looked up at him, startled by the intense gaze. Her heart raced and she glared back at him. She had come here to break off their engagement, and she couldn't let him get the upper hand. She needed to hit him where it hurt. "No! It's too sweet!"

"Can I have a taste?" Ichiyo asked, his eyes glinting with mischief. "I've never made anything like this before, I'm curious to see how it tastes."

"No!" Erina exclaimed, her voice firm. Without hesitation, She refused and instinctively took a defensive stance, her face turning red as she realized what she had done. But she didn't back down.

Thinking for a moment, Ichiyo asked, "Our first rounds always came on the house?"

 

Erina replied, "I'm not short of money!"

 

Glaring at the man, Erina grabbed the remaining dessert with one missing petal off the plate and stuffed it into her mouth.

 

In an instant, the girl's delicate mouth was stuffed full, a little bit overflowing. She tried hard to swallow the contents of her mouth, but accidentally choked and became flustered for a moment. 

 

Fortunately, Ichiyo quickly handed her a cup of tea to help her recover.

As she struggled to swallow the dessert, a sense of wonderful joy rose in her heart. This was no illusion! It was also not like the taste and spiritual impact that chefs at school gave through their cooking. And, naturally, a sense of joy from the heart!

Erina closed her eyes, her face red as she savored the experience, still holding the teacup in her hand.

Seeing this scene, Ichiyo's gaze became increasingly sympathetic toward the girl. Probably another stupid little kid who was strictly prohibited from eating sweets by their parents from a young age. Unlike him, he was almost ruined by being deceived into eating sweets from a young age, and it was only after he gave up sugar for a long time that he finally calmed down!

"Eat slowly, I won't compete with you." Ichiyo leaned against the counter, his arms reaching almost to his chest, softly comforting the girl. Although, he felt like he was appeasing her.

Erina glared at him upon hearing this. It was as if she had intended to eat such a large dessert all by herself, it was because of his words that she didn't react in time due to being in a hurry.

"Since you've eaten it all, can you tell me what it feels like?" Ichiyo smiled and said, "Although I'm not a very professional chef, I still prefer to listen to customer feedback."

"It's not good, it's too sweet!" Erina mercilessly criticized without hesitation, her small face fierce as she said, "Besides the slightly better appearance, the taste is subpar. You shouldn't be a chef. Maybe you could go learn a handicraft or something and have a better future."

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