It seems that there are several popular restaurants in the vicinity of the top guild of the seventh district, but there is only one Chinese restaurant that I saw, and there was a line of people waiting to get in without a reservation.

　That seems to be the name of this restaurant. When the Four Seasons team, who were waiting near the sign, saw us, they walked towards us.

Oh, Alihito-sensei!　Good, we're almost to the appointment.

　Once back in their quarters, all four of the Four Seasons' men had changed their clothes. Ibuki was wearing a pair of denim shorts and a strange shirt with a Chinese character pattern on it - Misaki, who noticed that, turned her back and shook her shoulders as if she had hit the nail on the head.

'See, I knew you were laughing at me.......I'm more embarrassed while I'm looking at you.
No, that's not true. The teacher doesn't laugh at you. Didn't the maple tree take a long time to dress up, as you say?
What do you mean, it's normal to get all dolled up just to eat, right?
''I feel like ... Ryoko was in a hurry too, but let's not mention it.

　Ryoko-san reported on her search with me, so I guess she had to hurry to change her clothes as well. The boa coat on top of the swimsuit would be too conspicuous, as expected.

　The camisole, cardigan and skirt are an orthodox combination, but there are few people walking around in the labyrinth country wearing such an outfit, and it looks fresh. In the maze country, there are more people walking around armed with normal clothes.

'Did Ryoko-san and the others shop at the Boutique Corleone?　It's nice, isn't it, that shop's clothes?
Yes, it's one of the most popular stores around here. Compared to the shops in the Eighth Ward, there's a wider variety of clothes, and we were all very impressed when we first went there.
"Well........I didn't find that Ibuki-chan t-shirt that says 'Sincerity' on it, but can I ask you where you bought it for reference?

　Misaki cuts in - by the way, Anna is wearing a t-shirt that says 'honest' on it. I guess that means there are clothing stores like that, where the kanji look cool, so they designed it for now. Ibuki and Anna, who buy them, also have pretty good taste - I'm not averse to unusual T-shirts. I'm sure my friends won't look at me delicately if I'm just going to wear it as my sleepwear.

'There's a street vendor of clothes near the Intermediate Guild. It was cute, so I bought it with Anna. Do you want to buy some too, Misaki-san?
Well, um, I think that kind of traditional coordination is good, but for this season's mode, I'm thinking simple casual is good for me.
'If they sold clothes like that, I'd buy them too, but...'
As long as you have the right materials, you can have the clothes made to order, so I'm sure you can coordinate them like Misaki-chan said.

　Both Elitia and Igarashi-san seem to have their own personal preferences when it comes to clothing. I don't really care much about clothes, but I know that considering everyone's sentiments, they'll be happy to wear clothes they like.

'Kaede doesn't like this kind of rough stuff, she likes it fluffy. She's brave when she's fighting, but she's surprisingly maiden-like.
This is a normal thing to do, don't call me a virgin. It's not like you're different because your brother Arihito is here, you know?
After you.
Yes, I'll take my leave then, if you'll excuse me.

　A group of friends walk into the store, greeting the Four Seasons folks. There are a few seats out in front of the store as well, and you walk through the space between them and into the store - and then.

''Ah, it's those guys again. 'Alliance for Freedom', they're pretending to be.
You got the whole place to yourself.　I'm told the executives are drinking in a room full of female members, which is a perfectly good status.

　One of the customers waiting his turn, a young man with a warrior-type profession, is swearing along with his companions.

　Apparently, the store has clashed with the 'alliance' of Gray and the others - they won't be causally linked to the karma, but I'm still somewhat defensive about it.

'Our leader, Roland, wasn't like that in the past either. I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one who has changed since the fall in the pecking order.
That's why they're so greedy after one fall. If they keep adding to their ranks at this rate, the entire Seventh Ward will be held in check for a long time.
I don't want to say anything bad about it because I've had Daniela-san treat me in the labyrinth before, but...
'Oh come on, Kasha.......you still think you're not too far off from the 'Alliance' executives' offer.......'
Don't be silly, I wouldn't give in to that soft man's advances, even if it turned my whole world upside down. If karma hadn't been raised, I'd have hit him.

　How Gray recruited a woman named Kasha - the Four Seasons people who are experiencing recruiting are making bitter faces.

　In the meantime, a clerk who noticed that we were newly in, came over to us apologetically.

''Sir, we're currently full, and you'll have to wait for up to an hour or so...''
Oh, I'm sorry my name is Atobe and I have a room reserved for my guard dogs.
I'm sorry, you must be Mr. Atobe, who has reserved a pet-friendly room for twelve people. I will show you around.

　A waiter in a uniform reminiscent of a Chinese dress, perhaps to create an atmosphere, led us to a private room. We were ushered into a room with a large round table and seated in order.

We were seated in order. "Well then, may I have your drink order first?
'Yes. Um, the room next door seems to be pretty busy...
Well, there are a lot of people here, and they've reserved a couple of rooms.

　The room next door, of all things - we're a lot of people, too, so it's not unreasonable to say that we'd be next to each other in a big room.

Is everyone at the Four Seasons okay here?
'Thank you for your concern, Mr. Atobe but we'll be fine.
That's right, we've come all this way, and it's a shame to leave without thinking about them. Thank you for letting me use your private room, Madoka-chan.
'It seems that if there are more than ten of us, we'll be in this room. Arihito told me to book early, so I slipped in and made it.
"Rearward, you even managed the company's drinking party in spite of your busy schedule...
''.........Arihito is surprisingly social. I've never made a reservation like that or anything like that before...
'No, I'm not doing much of anything. With my Madoka license, I can always contact any store that's in the merchant's union.

　Even though I said that, for some reason, everyone was more impressed with my experience as the secretary of a drinking party. That sort of thing tends to be handled by employees who are easily approached by the higher-ups in the department as a role - and that's just my position as I was assisting Igarashi-san.

"Arihito brother, there's a drink called 'Ryoutenro's Special Lao Chu'. It seems to be available on the rocks and with water. What's rock?
'If you like to drink, fine, but that's the kind of stuff that burns your throat I'll take oolong tea.
And by barley wine, you mean beer. I wonder if "Cool Breeze Beer" is that kind of beer.
'It says that it makes you a little more resistant to wind attacks for a certain amount of time. So it sounds like it's a little more expensive than regular beer.

　As Suzuna pointed out, there was a proviso at the bottom of the menu, stating that some food and drink had an added effect. However, it doesn't mean that just drinking greatly affects the search, it seems to be just a bonus.

'Brother, do you not need to drink alcohol?　Don't worry about us, you can drink it!

　Igarashi-san and Ryoko-san are fidgeting with Misaki's proposal. Apparently they want to have a drink.

Well then, I'll order this 'Cool Wind Beer'.
'I'm sorry I kind of prompted you. Can I get the same one?
''Then I'll have a 'Cool Wind Beer' as well. I've had it once, and it's a refreshing throat, and I can't resist drinking it after I return from exploring...

　Ryoko-san seems to like drinking alcohol, and she puts her hand on her cheek and sings softly. I'm not particularly fond of beer, but it's nice to have a drink after work once in a while.

　There are other drinks on the menu, such as 'Trent's Apple Juice', and we each choose our own. I ask Sion for something called 'Armour Goat's Milk' - I wonder if it's a goat demon, since goths are goats.

　After ordering, we were chatting and laughing for a while when we heard a noisy voice coming from the corridor. Even though we are not on friendly terms with the 'Alliance for Freedom', it's no use being too blinkered.

''Excuse me, I'm sorry I'm late.''
'Thank you for your time, Louisa. I'm sure it's not too late to order a drink.
'The three of us have decided to have a drink since Mr. Rear offered to have one. Would you like to do the same, Louisa?
Well, I'll take you up on your offer and we'll go with the menu.

　Hearing the menu that Louisa-san called the waiter and ordered, both Igarashi-san and Igarashi-san rolled their eyes - it was because she asked for a lock of the 'Ryotenro Special Lao Chu' without hesitation.

　　◆ ◆ ◆

　We were allowed to make a toast, and while drinking and chatting for a while, we chose our food orders.


Well I like spicy food, so I'll ask.
'Are you okay, Melissa? I'd better have these 'soft milk beef noodles'...
'You're asking for that, Madoka?　Even just looking at the words on the menu, it looks kind of good, doesn't it?

　Igarashi-san asks for 'Soft Milk Beef Noodles' - no, so it doesn't really matter. If Louisa and Ryoko reacted in the same way when they asked for it, they would think I was a helpless person.

''This 'soft milk' is written as milk that softens the body, right?
'Nah, I see.......flexibility. Well, that's what I thought.
"Rearward, your face is red, is it hot?　It's not like you've already gotten around to drinking or anything. Why don't you drink some water?
Excuse me. I'm not usually that drunk.
They say your condition can change the way you get around alcohol, so it's best to be careful.

　I wasn't actually drunk, but Elitia suggested I drink some water. It tasted like something herbal and refreshing, and my mouth was refreshed. Is there something in it, even something like lemongrass?

''.......What, what?　Mr. Maple, Mr. Ibuki, stare at me so much.
Well, well...I just thought it was a nice vibe...Kyouka-san's concern for Arihito-san is so natural.
Arihito-sensei, you're going out with Kyouka-san, you know, I mean, you're going out with her and...
''What ... no, no, it's not that, I mean, I worked for the same company before I was reincarnated and I've known them for a long time...''
You had a good trusting relationship with the company before your reincarnation.
''Ugh ... well, that's just ... I wasn't a very complimentary boss either ...''

　When Anna says this, Igarashi-san becomes weak. If I help her out here, she'll still be suspicious of our friendship and it'll be an endless loop. So, I'm going to change the subject here.

''Has everyone decided what to order yet?''
'Oh, yes, I'll have this 'Sea Hummingbird Nest Soup'. And the Drunken Mud Shrimp........Drunken Shrimp?　I'd like to try this too.
I think we'll use that one too. And this 'Shoronpo'.......is this 'Shoronpo' pronounced Shoronpo?
'It says buns with meat and gelatin soup, so it must be true. I'm that and.....

　The Four Seasons people decide on the order. Elitia seems to be curious about the 'Ascending Dragon Treasure' as well, and she's talking about sharing it with Suzuna and Misaki.

　I showed the menu to Theresia, who was sitting next to me, and asked her to choose what she wanted - then.

''..........''
'You want to do the same thing with me?　Teresia doesn't seem to be enough, so maybe you should ask for a couple more.

　Theresia nodded persistently and chose the 'Fried Noodles with Six Vegetables and Roses in a Salted Sauce' and 'Sweet Bird's Round Grilled'. The latter was apparently eaten like Peking duck, and a picture of what kind of food was drawn on the menu.

　There was also a menu of rice dishes, and we were able to choose a menu according to everyone's request. I'm also interested in what kind of seasoning it is.

　　　◆◇◆

　Originally, soy sauce and most of the seasonings we know about did not exist in the Labyrinth Country, but thanks to the research and development of our predecessors, it has spread to some extent. To some extent, it's a matter of reproduction.

　Strictly speaking, in the seventh district, we have not been able to reproduce the taste of the soy sauce as we imagine it, it's something different, a different kind of flavor and aroma, but we enjoyed the food to the fullest - Melissa ate her extremely spicy noodles, and I and everyone else were stunned. It was taken away. Misaki, who tasted it, was in agony, so it wasn't actually spicy.

　What I asked for was "five-meal fried rice" and "hot and spicy force-boiled noodles", a dish similar to ramen.
It's a soup similar to pork bones, but it is said to have the effect of slightly increasing muscle strength due to the effects of the demon bone broth and the broth taken from the meat.

　Theresia is eating silently next to me, and I smile at her appetite, as usual. Occasionally wiping her mouth and drinking, she is now carrying it to her mouth like a food fighter to the portion the other members couldn't finish eating.

''........hmm......''

　I shouldn't be watching people eat, but since I can only hear what seems to be Theresia's voice at meals, I can't help but pay attention to it.

''Teresia-san, you have great style for eating so much........''
It's all energy, I think. My metabolism is very high.
'I'm jealous, it's really nice to be young... my kids are growing up, so they always eat sweets too.
Ryoko, if you say something like that, it's hard to ask for help...
'Don't you have to ask for a maple tree?　There's one called 'Fried Sesame Cake with Two Color Red Bean Paste'.
I'm not going in I'm full of bubbles.
What did you say, Anna?　Pompoms?
I'm not hungry.

　I could definitely hear it too, but I wonder if Anna could actually be mischievous in spite of looking cool. But perhaps she was embarrassed to say it, but her face is slightly red.

　No, Anna isn't the only one with a red face. Except for Melissa, everyone else has been hit by the air of the place - what a smell of alcohol, to say the least. It's because it's also used as a cooking liquor, but of course that's not the only reason.

'...Atobe-sama, I'm sorry, may I have another drink, if you don't mind?
'Louisa are you okay?　This is going around quite a bit....
I'm not a heavy drinker. I don't drink heavily. I don't get drunk at all.

　This is what people call being drunk to the point of being stoned, but even though Louisa-san is a strong person who likes to drink, was it still too strong?

''It's hot........isn't it hot?　This room.....
No, no, Louisa, calm down and take off your clothes in the shop....
Yes, sir.

　This kind of thing sometimes happens at the drinking table - no, as expected, it never happened before my reincarnation. It would be better to have Louisa-san moderate the amount of alcohol in the future.