Luke decided to prepare a tea that would help Yerna recover from the fatigue she accumulated staying up all night worrying about him.
Magic grass is mostly used as an ingredient in mana potions.
Fortunately, there was the Manello that Luke had offered as an apology.
Potion made from Manello needs a bit of finesse in handling mana, but that was no challenge for Luke.
If he were to gather all the elixirs and potions he has made over his lifetime, it would be enough to fill a decent-sized lake due to his overwhelming experience.
“Hmm.”
After such a long time preparing an elixir, he felt as if he were returning to the past.
The shapes of pots and dishes had hardly changed in 5000 years between then and now.
Swirl.
As he tasted a bit with the ladle he was stirring with, the magic had sufficiently dissolved, and he believed it would be effective for recovering from fatigue.
To add fragrance, Luke rummaged through the teacups and pulled out the tea leaves Yerna often used.
‘Tird leaves, huh?’
Tird leaves also had a slight effect on fatigue recovery.
If he mixes this in and awakens its effect with magic, the efficacy of fatigue recovery would surely increase.
He allowed the completed tea to cool down adequately while maturing its magic.
Using a circle, he enhanced the completeness of his fatigue recovery tea.
In fact, it was closer to a potion than merely tea.
After all, it contained magic, and while the principle was rudimentary, it was infused with a level of enchantment far beyond that of mere tea.
Luke strained out the leaves and flowers, pouring the brew into a teapot, and approached the worn-out Yerna.
“Yerna.”
“Yes?”
“Drink this. It will relieve your fatigue.”
“Ha… Thank you.”
After drinking the tea handed to her by Luke, Yerna opened her eyes.
‘He brews better than I do…’
The deep and subtle aroma, a feeling seeping into her chest…
It was truly a good tea.
‘I really feel like my fatigue is lifting.’
Since the age of ten, she had brewed tea every single day, but it felt a bit strange for Luke to do it so much better.
‘Maybe I’m not cut out for brewing tea…’
Thinking that made her feel a bit embarrassed.
After diligently brewing tea for nearly 40 years, to be told she had no talent…
So what if she had no talent? The tea was excellent, and her mood had vastly improved.
If only she had asked earlier instead of circling around.
With a sigh, Yerna spoke.
“Ha… This really is good tea. Thank you, Lu.”
“Anytime.”
Looking at Luke, who was holding the teapot and smiling, she felt that all the negative thoughts she had disappeared completely.
Now that there was nothing to worry about, it was a good thing…
This time, instead of sighing, Yerna took another sip of tea.
——–
“Hmm…”
With her fatigue completely restored, Yerna left for work, leaving Luke alone at home.
After tidying up the messy house and washing a blood-stained handkerchief, Luke read a book while snacking on some canned food.
While he had said, ‘You can eat whatever you want!’, it was indeed a bit annoying to prepare intricate dishes from morning.
No one can be diligent all the time, and Luke wasn’t one to seek out bold flavors right from breakfast.
“But what’s all this…?”
A variety of snacks Yerna had bought filled the kitchen.
As he took each one out and checked the pictures on the packaging, they all looked delicious.
“Hmm, is this made from corn?”
Corn is usually made into bread, steamed, baked, or pressed to make oil, but…
To make it like this was quite rare.
It was an intriguing shape.
However, why did they need to draw a character with eyes, a nose, and a mouth on the packaging, with a thumbs-up?
Was this the mascot of the snack?
Simply a ‘photo’ would have sufficed.
Luke turned the snack bag over.
This time, it was completely filled with letters.
Who on earth writes all this?
He was genuinely curious about the person who inscribed such small and clear letters on every product.
“This era’s packaging is quite chaotic.”
-…
Py seemed to agree, nodding.
Luke calmly read each word.
Corn, mixed vegetable oil, seasoning, glucose, fine granulated sugar, salt, acidity regulator…
Was this just a sweet and salty snack made from corn?
It was similar for the other snacks he picked up. The ingredients were not just one or two.
What in the world required so many components to make cookies?
Upon careful reading, he found many unfamiliar ingredients as well.
Additionally, some items had names that sounded dangerous.
They might sell them just because they are safe to eat…
It made him slightly uneasy.
While reading the nutritional information, it listed carbohydrates and sodium, percentages based on daily recommended intake, which seemed like warnings saying not to eat too much.
By the way, what are carbohydrates and sodium?
“In this era, it seems like even a single snack requires alchemy to produce.”
As he thought about this, he picked up the puffiest snack and shook it; it made a crinkling sound, likely because it was packaged with air.
“It seems they packaged it with air to prevent it from breaking.”
What an intriguing concept for packaging.
Luke speculated why this was the case.
Back then, the techniques for sealing and storing were so advanced (equivalent to 4th-circle magic) that they could not be mass-produced.
So, in the past, the only packaging done would be picking out a snack made that day from the confectionery and wrapping it in cloth before placing it in a basket.
But what about now?
Though he didn’t fully understand, it seemed that vacuum storage technology had significantly advanced.
Surely this was a completely sealed state, wasn’t it?
Thanks to this, the shelf life touted on the packaging was quite long.
“Hmm.”
This era was so different from the past.
Now that they could store things for extended periods safely, they could gather products in this state on many shelves for sale without needing to consume them on the same day they were made.
“Thinking about it now, it’s quite remarkable.”
Luke recalled when Renie had asked him to run an errand, saying she wanted some snacks.
Using a 10th-circle mage as a messenger was quite a bold move for that young lady.
Well, they were cookies delicious enough for people to line up for.
Luke quietly closed his eyes and recalled the memory.
———
Screeching-!
Mana swirls.
Renie knew what that meant and who had caused it.
She simply smiled as she watched the scene of space tearing apart.
For the man who would step out beyond and the joy he would bring.
Step, step, step.
“You’ve arrived.”
A man in a white robe stepped through the rift in space.
An alarming warp that ignored hundreds of magic interference barriers, leaping seamlessly from a territory thousands of kilometers away, yet he simply shook his head as if it was a bit troublesome and handed her a basket.
Inside, of course, were delicious-looking cookies.
These cookies were the popular menu item from the confectionery that she had discovered during the adventure to find the Hero of the Holy Sword.
Renie joyfully accepted it and took one to her mouth.
“Mmm, it’s delicious as always. Freshly made and still warm. Thank you, Luke.”
Since she had paused the basket’s time as soon as she was handed it and had jumped through space, it was hardly surprising.
Luke cleared his throat and said,
“Why didn’t you invite that confectioner to the palace? You could have eaten as many of his cookies as you wanted.”
“Hehe, Luke. You only know one side of things, not both.”
“What do you mean?”
Renie smiled lightly as she replied.
“These cookies are the tastiest when made there.”
Luke nodded, mumbling.
“Hmm. Is that so? It must be the local ingredients, the unique environment of that area, and the subtle differences only that place can provide.”
“Well, that’s not entirely wrong. But that’s not the main reason.”
“Hmm?”
Renie handed a piece of cookie to Luke.
“Here.”
Taken aback by the gesture, Luke looked at the round cookie before shifting his gaze to Renie’s expression.
“What does that mean?”
“These cookies aren’t made by the confectioner alone. It’s the people eating them who create them. Think about it. When you visited, what was that shop like?”
“Hmm…”
Luke recalled the memory.
Apologizing to the countless people waiting in line with happy expressions and saying, ‘We’ve given a little extra to those who’ve waited long.’
In response, the regular customers would joke, ‘It’s okay, Mr. Mustang. It’s not the first time.’
The relationship between producers and consumers wasn’t merely transactional.
They were living together, interacting there.
Luke looked at the cookie again.
Now it seemed more than just a slightly delicious cookie.
This was the heart of the confectioner.
“If I forcibly called him, he would come, but I wouldn’t be able to have the cookies made with joy like before. That’s not the kind of cookie I want.”
“Indeed…”
“Now you understand why I don’t let him into the royal court, don’t you?”
The overflowing emotions of the creator naturally imbue their creations with essence.
The feelings of the creator…
——
Luke gazed at the cookie.
“Feelings…”
He felt a bit bitter.
He remembered that the confectioner had ultimately closed his business on the second generation.
His cookies were ordinary products made just according to the recipe.
Yes, just like this cookie.
‘Not everything improves just because it’s this era.’
Crisp.
While the taste was good, there remained an emptiness that couldn’t be filled.
Because it contained no emotion.
-Luke…?
“Oh, Py.”
In response to the spirit’s concerned expression and question, Luke put on a nonchalant smile and said.
“It’s nothing, don’t worry. Just a bit of a lump in my throat.”
Crisp.
The taste was indeed good.
