Chapter 133 – Bear-san And The Bear-san’s Diner Opening
A few days had passed since Sherry had been kidnapped by Mylene-san.
The preparations for the restaurant were advancing well, and everyone was doing their best to get everything ready for the opening day.
I was also doing my best!
I made bears outside the restaurant, made bears inside the restaurant, made bears outside the restaurant, and made bears inside the restaurant. It was something important, so I said it twice.
To make it look like a restaurant, I made deformed bears holding plates, forks, spoons, or chopsticks at the entrance. To point out that we would be serving fish, I also made a bear holding a fish.
Since I was sure that we would be getting a lot of male visitors, I made the interior design different than that of the『Bear-san’s Relaxing Shop』.
I carved out real bears on the pillars since it was important for the restaurant to look cool.
I used the bears I had met at the bee tree as a reference, since they would only end up cute if I made them with Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear in mind.
As for the ingredients, a lot of rice and seafood had already arrived from Mireera.
The seafood had been kept frozen by the ice magic stones I had procured from the snow daruma at the top of the Erezento’s mountain range. Sadly, normal adventurers couldn’t really climb the high mountain to bring us more.
I heard that you could easily procure some if you went north where there was snow. I had Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear, though , so I was able to climb the mountain easily, the feat which was impossible for normal people like Ranya-san and Damon-san, who were crazy enough to try.
No wonder there was no trade between Mireera and Crimonia until now.
With the tunnel finished though, trade had finally started to pick up.
I had given the ice magic stones I had gotten from Erezento’s mountain range to the Commerce Guild at Mireera. In exchange, they had promised to give me good prices and all the fish I wanted.
Mylene-san got angry when she heard about this deal since it put her Commerce Guild at a disadvantage, but she calmed down as soon as she heard about the tunnel.
Even though the tunnel was more or less managed by Cliff, the Commerce Guild would also profit from it quite a bit.
I would also be getting a part of the passage fee, but looking at the long term, those reduced prices wouldn’t really mean that much as the Commerce Guild was now selling both seafood and salt. Salt transactions were overseen by Cliff, who was acting under the king’s command, of course, but I was sure that the Commerce Guild also made some profit.
I didn’t know the exact method of making salt, but it was depicted as difficult in one of the fantasy novels I had read.
That was why, when I heard them talking about the salt, I asked them to not cause too much trouble for the people of Mireera.
If they were used under terrible conditions,
「The tunnel might end up being destroyed by some natural occurrences.」
was what I whispered in Cliff’s ear.
I didn’t plan running the restaurant if it caused too much trouble for the people of Mireera, and Cliff also seemed to understand what I meant since he nodded in agreement.
The restaurant’s name had finally been decided as 『Bear-san’s Diner』.
It seemed that, just like me, the women from Mireera didn’t have any naming sense.
Mylene-san complained that it had no impact, but when she couldn’t find a better name, the 『Bear-san’s Diner』 was set in stone.
「My job isn’t to think of a name, but to decide from one of the names you propose, after all.」
She said as an excuse.
I shouldn’t be talking about others, of course, since I couldn’t think of a better name, either. It might be more correct to say that I didn’t think of a name at all, and more importantly, I honestly already thought that 『Bear-san’s Diner』 Anzu came up with was good enough, so I put my vote on that one.
Anzu and the others also voted for it, of course, and since almost everyone voted for 『Bear-san’s Diner』, it was unanimously chosen. Mylene-san couldn’t really oppose it, and the signboard was ordered.
Sherry finished the Bear Aprons in no time. She was really good, being able to make several for everyone in such a short time.
She didn’t make the aprons only for the five people working at the restaurant; she also made aprons for Nifu-san and Arn-san, who came to encourage the restaurant team, and for the children who would help at the restaurant.
The couple from the tailor shop was really impressed by her speed.
Sherry didn’t just do the embroidery; she also helped to make the aprons themselves.
The couple at the tailor shop recognized her skills, and it seemed that she would be working at their place from now on. She wouldn’t only do embroidery but also learn how to make things like clothes.
She still seemed to lack confidence, though, as I often heard her mutter:『For me to...』
Yet, she seemed quite happy that the things she had learned from her mother were recognized. She didn’t know how far she could go, but she decided to do her best at the tailor shop for now.
She thanked me for giving her this chance, even though I didn’t really do anything. I told her that it was all thanks to her skill and the effort she had put in, and she responded with a happy smile.
As the opening day was drawing closer, we also made sure to get some publicity with the help of Mylene-san and Terumi-san’s advertisement, and a tasting party at the 『Bear-san’s Relaxing Shop』.
Anzu prepared some fish and other sample foods while we made some onigiri, bamboo shoot rice, and a lot of other different rice meals prepared with all sorts of ingredients.
We also made a few things with soy sauce, and even prepared a hot pot, then offered everything to the people who came to the 『Bear-san’s Relaxing Shop.』
There was a great proverb for this situation: You must lose a fly to catch a trout.
Even though we knew it was delicious, it was difficult to get people to pay for unknown dishes, but they were always willing to eat it for free, and when they learned it was delicious, they were sure to come to the restaurant to eat it again. Also, the customers who ate it would tell others that it was delicious, bringing in even more customers.
As long as they tasted Anzu’s food at least once, I was sure that her skills would be recognized.
On the opening day, a lot of people came, and the restaurant was really flourishing.
This must have been all thanks to the tasting party and the power of gossip.
Rice was, surprisingly, the most popular dish, especially appreciated when served with other side ingredients.
Second place went to the soy sauce as many people ordered it because they liked the taste.
By the end of the day, a lot of bodies were lying around; it was so busy that even though Nifu-san and Arn-san came to help, everyone was collapsed on the tables.
I helped, too, of course.
I was stationed at the entrance, threatening anyone who might have tried to make a fuss. I wasn’t alone, though. I hired Rurina-san and Gill, who previously helped me at the『Bear-san’s Relaxing Shop』, and as thanks, they got free food for a week.
So, with three adventurers (one not really looking like one) at the entrance, there was no trouble.
「I’m going to die...」
「To think that it would be this busy...」
They all looked at me resentfully.
It wasn’t nice of them to look at me like that. I had told them that this would happen; Anzu’s food was delicious, so of course it ended up being popular.
Still, the tasting party must have helped more than I had thought, bringing in so many people.
「If you want to be mad at something, be mad at Anzu’s delicious cooking.」
The children were tired, too, but they were still talking to each other happily; it seemed that they had more stamina. They were the ones who normally took care of the cluckers and helped Liz-san cook lunch; I felt quite bad for taking five of them from Liz-san.
At least the restaurant would eventually calm down, and Nifu-san and Arn-san would be able to go back and help the orphanage.
「So, Anzu, do you think you can keep this up?」
「I was anxious at first, but I’m really happy that so many people are enjoying my food.」
「There were so many of them that it became unbearable, though...」
「Well, people will come here from everywhere since this is something unusual for now, but the fish and rice markets will stabilise soon, so they will be able to eat them at many different places, and when that happens, the restaurant should calm down a bit. Then, the most important thing will be the taste. You will have to show them your skills, Anzu.」
Anzu answered vigorously, even though her body clearly showed exhaustion.
As long as she stayed that way, the restaurant should be just fine.
Anzu’s arc is now finished.
To celebrate the book’s release, I made the prologue of the VRMMO part of the『The Bears Bear a Bare Kuma』.
It’s like a side story.
Like I normally do, I wrote it without a plot and just went with the flow.
I would be happy if you read it.
http://mypage.syosetu.com/507429/
The new arc will be about mining, and I’m really sorry if I stop updating for a while.