Yes. While I Was Spinning the Wheel to Make Gyoza Wrappers, for Some Strange Reason, I Ended Up with This – Part 04

Since going straight home felt like a waste, I invited Tomonori to grab a bite.

We wandered into a nearby department store, strolling down a pathway lined with restaurants. Italian or Japanese? We pointed at the plastic food displays, laughing as we took our time deciding. For some reason, however, Tomonori kept glancing over her shoulder.

I’d noticed. Of course I did.

Two girls with ridiculously large bags were tailing us.

“Tomonori, ignore them. If you react, you lose.”

“Y-Yeah… but…” She clearly couldn’t.

Fine. I’ll handle this.

“Wait here,” I said and headed toward Haruna and Sera at a brisk pace.

Haruna wore a shirt and denim shorts. Sera had jeans and a camisole under a three-quarter-sleeve V-neck.

“What are you two doing here?”

“J-Just a coincidence!”

“Yeah, right. Sera, what’s going on?”

“If I had to say, this was the best plan I could come up with to somehow sabotage your happiness.”

“That’s fucked up.”

“I’ll never approve of you going on a date!” Haruna declared, baring her teeth like some kaiju about to spew radioactive breath.^[1] What was she to me, anyway?

“Anyway, Ayumu. Check this out!”

Before I could tell them to go home, Haruna proudly hoisted her massive bag.

“What is that?”

“A lunch box, obviously. It’s insanely good!”

Gulp. Just imagining Haruna’s cooking made my mouth water. No, no. I was here to tell them to leave.

“Is there somewhere we can eat this?” Haruna asked.

“Let’s go to the roof,” Sera said. She grabbed my arm and dragged me away.

Wait, hey! Let go!

So we were doing this by force now? Her grip was ridiculously strong. Had I done something to deserve this?

All I could manage was to glance at the flabbergasted Tomonori and mutter, “L-Let’s eat on the roof.”

We took the elevator up. Night had fallen, and there weren’t a lot of people.

Under the glow of the city lights and surrounded by potted greenery, Haruna laid out a multi-tiered box on a table.

“Sorry, Tomonori.”

“Hm? Oh, don’t worry about it, really. I’m pretty happy. I still got to spend time with you.” She laughed awkwardly.

Sera’s jade eyes were fixed on Tomonori like razor-thin blades. Tomonori forced a slightly sad smile, stretching her arms.

“Maybe I should head home first.”

She probably felt awkward with Sera there. And Sera, for her part, was surely considering the possibility that Tomonori might try to kill her, so she kept her guard up the whole time. They wouldn’t start hacking at each other in public, but the atmosphere was tense, ready to ignite at any moment.

Maybe out of guilt at the lonely look on Tomonori’s face, Haruna grabbed her arm. “Y-You can have some too.”

“Huh? No, I’m good. I don’t really get hungry.”

“Liar.”

“It’s true! I—”

Grrrooowwl. Tomonori’s face turned red.

There it was again. Why did she always claim she wasn’t hungry?

Haruna nodded. “Once you think about your stomach, it just starts growling.”

“I-It’s not!”

From there, Tomonori was her usual cheerful self.

“Let’s eat together,” I told her with a smile. Meals were always better with more people. “It’s fine, right, Sera?”

“I don’t mind,” Sera said warily. Her beautiful jade eyes held open hostility.

She might not mind herself, but Tomonori would surely refuse.

“Relax, Sera. You look terrifying,” I said. “Tomonori’s not like the other Vampire Ninjas, so stop glaring at her like that.”

“Your face is a lot more terrifying. And by terrifying, I mean gross.”

“I think I’ll just—”

“Come on, Tomonori. Eat with us. Please.”

“W-Well, if you really insist.”

Scratching her nose, Tomonori sat back down, and we exchanged a grin.

Haruna puffed her cheeks, looking strangely solemn. “You’ve got one of those smiles that makes me want to smack you with a five-iron.”^[2]

Why?!

As for today’s food…

I popped the lid open, full of expectation.

What’s this jelly that looks like it could recharge you in ten seconds? And these are just plain crackers.

“I made pufferfish and foie gras look like space food!” Haruna said.

What a waste! And what’s this meat that looks like it came from a cat-food can?

Grumbling, I took a bite. Whatever it looked like, Haruna’s cooking was always top-notch.

See? Damn it. It really was good. The seasoning and texture were perfect. That was all I could say.

Watching me, Tomonori swallowed hard.

“Go on, have some,” I told her.

“I think I’ll just—”

“Maelstrom,” Sera cut in, “you don’t need to lose weight.”

Busted, Tomonori’s ears turned bright red.

“Eat. I like watching you enjoy food,” I said.

“If you put it like that,” she muttered, then took a bite of the cat-food-looking meat.

“Wow! I’ve never had anything like this.”

Without a word of complaint, she dug into her bag and pulled out a bottle of sesame oil. She always carried dressings around.

“Tomonori, don’t you dare put that on.”

“What? Is that bad?”

Seeing her on the verge of tears, I handed her the lid as a makeshift saucer.

“I’m really feeling like full-swinging a sand wedge into you right now,” Haruna muttered.

Why?! Again Haruna puffed her cheeks and gave me that solemn look.

Sera, unable to pick up the jelly with chopsticks, stuck to the cat-food-like meat.

Tomonori, meanwhile, bit into a sesame-oil-covered jelly with pure bliss on her face. “This is amazing! Where’d you buy it?” she asked.

“Wuh? I made it myself,” Haruna said. “Oh, that’s Bahamut foie gras.”

The Dragon King’s^[3] fatty liver. Somehow, that sounded sad.

“That’s incredible! Can I call you Master?”

“Mas—wait, you’re talking to me?”

Haruna’s face went from looking annoyed to flushed.

“Master! Please teach me how to cook!”

“Wuh?” Haruna blinked in surprise, then broke into a smile that said she didn’t entirely dislike the idea. “Well… Sure, why nyot.”

D-Did she just say nyot? I had to do a double‑take at the flustered Haruna. Why was she talking like some catgirl? That was way too cute.

“Thanks, Master!”

“I-I’m only doing it ‘cause I have to, okay?”

“Yes! Aikawa, now I can make food that’ll blow you away!” Tomonori flashed a full-toothed grin.

“I take it back. I’m not teaching you!” Haruna growled.

Sera cleared her throat. Haruna, Tomonori, and I all turned toward the ponytailed beauty with jade eyes.

“My turn,” Sera said proudly.

Oh, hell no.

“Haruna… you didn’t let her into the kitchen, did you?”

“Nope. Not even once today.”

“Indeed. Haruna absolutely refused to let me in, so it took some effort.”

Sera set down a wrapping cloth even bigger than the bento box. Where had she been hiding that? Sneaky ninja.

Right off the bat, it looked strange. Why was it shaped like a jar? When she unwrapped it, sure enough, out came an actual jar. I didn’t have the courage to peek inside.

“Here you go,” Sera said.

Tomonori leaned forward eagerly to look inside. Tomonori, you reckless fool.

“Huh? It’s empty.”

She picked it up and shook it upside-down, but nothing came out.

“Well, Ayumu. Go ahead and take a bite.”

“Of the jar?”

Wait… no way.

“Yes.”

My hunch was right. The jar itself was the dish!

“This isn’t food,” I said. “It’s ceramics.”

“What an odd thing to say. It’s clearly gyoza.”

“Gyoza?!” Even Haruna was shocked.

“Yes. While I was spinning the wheel to make gyoza wrappers, for some strange reason, I ended up with this.”

“There’s nothing strange about it at all!” I said. “This is so weird my nose is running.”

“I wonder what it tastes like,” Tomonori said curiously.

Oh, no. Did she even value her life at all?

“Go ahead, Maelstrom. Have a bite.”

Sera, grim-faced before, was now smiling brightly, clearly thrilled someone had shown interest. Tomonori probably couldn’t see the Grim Reaper behind the jar beckoning her closer.

“All right! I’m digging in.”

She poured dressing into the jar’s mouth, opened wide, and—recklessly—bit straight into it.

Like a kid with their favorite snack, she chomped down with a beaming smile.

Like a sunflower turned toward the sun, she chomped down with a radiant grin.

And then, Tomonori’s time stopped. Like a candle’s flame going out, the light vanished from her eyes.

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1. Likely a reference to Godzilla.

2. A five-iron is a mid-range golf club used for moderate-distance shots, typically between 150–180 yards.

3. Bahamut, sometimes known by his epithet The Dragon King, is one of the most prominent summons in the Final Fantasy series.