Extra Story: The Nerin Chronicles — Part Two

Extra Story:
The Nerin Chronicles
Part Two

 

I WAS FEELING WELL-RESTED when I woke up and got out of bed. It felt like the physical and mental fatigue of the last few days had disappeared. The weather looked great outside—it would’ve been so miserable if it’d rained or something on my first morning in Crimonia. I gathered my things and headed to the first floor with the map Elena had drawn for me.

“Thank you for looking after me, Elena.”

“No need to thank me. You’re going to work at the Bear’s Lounge then?”

“If Auntie Morin allows me to.” I’d made that promise with my aunt and uncle ages ago. Once I turned fifteen, they said they’d let me work at the shop…but there was a chance that the situation had changed. I still didn’t know how things would work out.

“If you decide to stay, why don’t you hit me up? I could show you around the town.”

“Oh, I’d love that!” I said, smiling brightly. It seemed like I was about to make my first friend since getting to Crimonia.

With that, I headed out. Now…when I looked at the map that Elena had drawn, it said that the bear girl’s house was close by, right? “Um, so Yuna’s house is supposed to be that way, right?”

According to Elena, I’d know it as soon as I saw it. When I saw the strange building, I knew she was right. “Is that a bear?”

I could barely believe it. I tried getting closer to it, and…

“Yep, that’s definitely a bear.”

There it was right in front of my eyes—a house shaped like a bear. I couldn’t decide if it was cute or strange. I just knew that it was…a bear. There wasn’t any other way to describe it. Just like Elena had said, I recognized it as soon as I saw it. This had to be Yuna’s house.

As I thought back on that mysterious girl I’d met at the capital, the door of the bear house opened. Yuna, still dressed as a bear, came out of it. She hadn’t come out because she’d noticed me staring at her home, had she? No, she seemed surprised when she caught sight of me.

I still hadn’t gotten the money to pay her back yet. For now, I’d just thank her for her help at the capital.

“Who are you?” Now that I hadn’t expected. Yuna tilted her head to the side quizzically. I’d been so grateful to her, but she’d entirely forgotten who I was. I’d never been sadder in my life.

I explained to her that we’d met at the capital and, finally, she remembered me. Was I that forgettable? If I’d been dressed like the girl in front of me, there’s no way anyone would forget me.

Yuna told me that she was heading to Auntie Morin’s shop, so she’d show me the way.

But…how had Yuna gotten back here so quickly?

She dodged the question when I asked. Maybe she’d come by horse? I tried imagining it. A girl dressed as a bear on horseback—it was a completely incongruous image. There was no way anybody would travel dressed like that.

 

A huge building came into view. That was Auntie Morin’s shop, apparently, but what was with the stone statue of a bear holding bread up front? I’d already heard about the shop from Elena, but seeing it was mystifying. There were bears on the signs, bears on the second floor…and while I marveled at them, Yuna walked ahead like it was nothing special. I followed after her in a hurry.

There were six kids inside, all between about eight and twelve years old. When Yuna came in, the kids were ecstatic to see her. Yuna talked to them for a minute, then they ran off further into the shop. Finally, Auntie Morin and Karin came out. They really were here! I’d already heard about it from Elena, but seeing the two of them doing well was such a relief.

Just…thank goodness!

“Auntie Morin, Karin, it’s been such a long time.”

“Nerin?”

I nodded. “Nerin.”

They seemed so surprised. I explained what had happened until now. I told them just how much I’d been worried about them, and…then Auntie Morin told me that she’d already told my dad everything, from how her husband had died to how they were moving to Crimonia.

Ugh, so the whole thing had been caused by my dad being forgetful?! The next time I saw him, I’d have to really get on his case about it. Did he even know how worried I was?

Oh, well, I’d worry about that later. For now, I asked if they’d let me work at the shop.

“If you want to work here, you’ll need to ask Yuna.”

“Why would I ask Yuna?”

“It’s Yuna’s shop.”

Now I had even more questions. What did she mean about this being Yuna’s shop? I looked at Yuna for answers, but she just looked tired of talking about it.

I just had no idea what was going on anymore.

“Yuna, this is my older brother’s girl, Nerin. She’s been saying for a while that she’d like to work at my shop. My husband promised her that if she still felt the same way once she turned fifteen, we’d let her. I’d like to employ her, if you’re fine with it.”

Yuna said I could work, as long as I didn’t skip out or pick on the kids. Not that I’d do either of those things! I was going to work my butt off, and I’d never bully kids.

I gave the children a smile and a greeting to show them I was friendly. They responded in kind. They were pretty cute! Everything was cute; both the shop and the kids. I was excited to start work.

The only thing I hadn’t expected was that I’d be dressed as a bear while working. A girl named Mil showed me the bear uniform. Yuna’s bear clothes were baggy, but Mil’s bear outfit was designed to go right over her regular clothes. She even had a tail on her bum!

Apparently, the kids dressed as bears while they worked. I was told I’d have to dress the same way if I wanted the job.

I just blurted out that I’d do it. It was a little embarrassing when you thought about it. But if I refused, there was a chance I’d be out of a job. Plus, Mil looked so adorable dressed as a bear. Would I look that cute? Or…oh, it didn’t matter. As long as I worked hard, almost any outfit would do.

 

They were going to taste-test some new confectionary, so they asked me to try it out too. Would it be good? I was starting to look forward to it.

Meanwhile, I looked around the store. It was filled to the brim with bears. There were bears on the walls and pillars too, each table with its own posed bear. The one at the table I was sitting at was doing a handstand!

They were all adorable. I guess that’s just what Yuna liked. I’d never met someone so infatuated with bears…but I sort of wished she wouldn’t drag me and my own fashion choices into it.

 

While I was looking around the shop, the door opened. Two adult ladies and two girls came in. I’d seen one of the girls before–she was definitely the one who’d accompanied Yuna at the capital.

The girl from the capital was named Fina, the other girl was her sister Shuri, and the nice-looking lady was Tiermina. Tiermina was their mother, and she did everything for the shop behind the scenes.

The serious-looking lady with her was the Merchant Guild’s master, Milaine. I was so surprised that someone so powerful would be at a taste-testing. Anyone involved in business would be overly nice to the Merchant Guild master, but Yuna was pretty hard on Milaine. Just who was Yuna?

Once all of us were gathered, Yuna brought out a white, round confectionary with strawberries on top from…her bear glove?! Was that bear glove an item bag?

Yuna cut into the round thing with a knife and started serving it on plates for all of us, including me. When I looked closely at the thing, it looked like layers of soft bread. Sandwiched between the layers was white stuff and some strawberries. She called it “strawberry shortcake.”

Once we each had a plate, we started the tasting.

The soft shortcake broke apart with my fork easily. I took a bite and the cake’s sweetness filled my mouth.. The strawberries went splendidly with the white stuff! I scooped up some of that white stuff onto my fork and licked it. The moment it touched my tongue, it melted. The sweetness spread throughout my mouth.

I couldn’t stop eating! All of us just kept saying just how delicious it was.

Had Yuna—this girl in a bear outfit—really made something this delicious? I couldn’t stop looking at her now. Really, just who was Yuna?

Elena from the inn had said that Yuna was an adventurer, but for a girl this cute, that just couldn’t be…right? She had to be joking. Had she really been pulling a prank on me? Elena didn’t seem like that type of person.

The mysteries surrounding Yuna just kept multiplying.

 

We kept going with the tasting, and they started talking about how the strawberry shortcake was going to be sold at the shop.

I agreed. They simply had to sell it! I’d never had a confectionary as delicious as this before. Maybe the upper-class families and aristocracy had eaten this before, but a commoner like me? Never! If it started selling here, normal people like me could have it too.

Auntie Morin and Yuna went back and forth about details, considering all kinds of things. Auntie Morin didn’t know whether they had time to make it—or enough people. In the end, Auntie Morin and Karin concluded that there wasn’t enough time to bake the cake every day.

But I couldn’t allow it. I took a small, deep breath, then spoke up. “Please let me bake the cake.”

After a lot more talk and way more details, it was decided that I’d be making the cakes.

I was thrilled by that, but…could I really do it? There was no going back after blurting that out, though. If Auntie Morin and Karin couldn’t do it, then I’d have to take up the mantle of cake.

 

Later that evening on that day, Auntie Morin and Karin told me all about what had happened to them until now.

When Uncle had passed away, they’d fallen prey to a terrible merchant, been attacked by ruffians, and almost had their bakery taken from them. But Yuna had appeared and saved them. Then, she’d invited them to open up a bakery in Crimonia, gotten them a location—the building we all worked in—and all the things they’d needed for a shop. Just imagining how much all of that cost sent shivers down my spine.

“Is Yuna from a rich family?” I asked.

“Hmm. She claims herself that she’s just an adventurer, but I don’t know any other details. I’m not one to ask, and you shouldn’t either. People have things they can’t talk about, Nerin.”

But I really, really wanted to ask her about it! The mysteries surrounding her just kept mounting…even if Elena and now Karin had both told me that Yuna was an adventurer.

“I know she doesn’t look like one, but she really is a powerful adventurer,” Karin had said. “She beat up these huge men when she saved us too.”

Hmm. I doubted that both Elena and Karin would lie, but I just couldn’t even imagine Yuna fighting.

“Yuna is incredibly kind,” they told me. I already knew that. She’d talked to me in the capital when I was in trouble and had lent me so much money. The kids seemed to really adore her too.

“That’s because she rescued them,” they told me.

She’d saved all the kids at the orphanage. Tons of people would turn a blind eye to something like that. Some might offer a helping hand, but most wealthy people stopped short at offering money and food. Yuna, on the other hand, had given the kids work that let them survive by themselves. She hadn’t forced them to work, either.

“She even gives them breaks. She’s so kind, and she really does think of what’s in the kids’ best interests. She said she’s having the kids work at the shop so that when they grow up, they’ll have a job. I’ve even taught the kids how to bake bread. The thought of the recipe your Uncle and I thought up, along with some of Yuna’s creations, spreading around just makes me so happy!”

Auntie Morin really did seem happy, yeah!

But…seriously, just who was Yuna? The mysteries were almost tripping over each other!

 

We practiced making the cake the next day. The kids would help Auntie Morin in the morning, and I’d help with the customers when the shop opened.

“We’re fine here, Nerin, so you can go practice baking with Yuna,” Karin said while I was cleaning shop. I accepted Karin’s proposal and went to practice. Hopefully, I could get a little better or faster through repetition. Even if I made a spectacularly tasty cake, it wouldn’t matter if I was too slow. Developing my technique and speed was just another reason to practice.

I knew that because I’d helped out at Auntie Morin’s bakery in the capital. Trying to make anything would cost money because of ingredient and labor expenses. If I took hours making a single cake, she couldn’t pay my wages.

Yuna told me to practice and that I could use tons of eggs. At first, I’d been nervous about using them, but then I found out that the kids went through a hundred eggs a day just for pudding. When I saw them doing that, I relaxed.

Whenever the kids had spare time, they’d make pudding. At first I was like…what is pudding? But then I found out it was this delicious treat. Amazingly enough, Yuna had made that too.

I was shocked when I saw the kids kneading the dough for bread and making pudding like they knew exactly what they were doing. I couldn’t let a bunch of kids outdo me.

Wow. This shop was a strange place.

 

While I was practicing, Yuna suddenly told us that we’d serve tea at the shop too. I suppose tea would go well with cake, considering how sweet it was, but I couldn’t have ever guessed that we’d go to the feudal lord’s very own estate in order to learn how to serve it.

It was the most nerve-wracking experience in my entire life. I only learned later, but the lord was Yuna’s acquaintance. He and his daughter would stop by the shop to buy bread and eat. What was even going on with this place? The feudal lord himself was visiting the shop? I’d never heard of such a thing. And Fina was friends with the lord’s daughter?!

I couldn’t wrap my mind around it anymore.

 

The day finally came, and it was time to put out the cakes I’d made in the shop. I was so nervous the night before, I could hardly sleep. What if they didn’t sell? What if people said they tasted terrible? So many things swirled in the back of my mind. I’d never thought I’d be so sensitive about this stuff. I pulled the covers over me and closed my eyes. I just wanted to sleep...

 

The sunlight streaming in from the window woke me up. I guess I had fallen asleep at some point.

I changed immediately and headed to the kitchen. I had my normal meal for breakfast, which was bread baked by Auntie Morin and Karin.

From there, I started making cakes with help from the kids. I made the shortcakes and spread whipped cream on them. Then I used this tool that squeezes out the whipped cream to make the decorations. This was the hardest part. If all of it wasn’t even, it wouldn’t look nice. Nervous as I was, I still decorated the cake with whipped cream.

“Whew!” Cleanly too, somehow. After that, I decorated the cake evenly with strawberries and cut it into slices. I needed to slice the cake evenly too, or we’d get customer complaints. With a few more clean cuts, the cake was done.

Now I just had to do it again.

 

The cakes I’d made lined the shelves in the shop.

I was nervous. What if no one bought any? What if everyone bought them and said they didn’t taste good? I was a ball of nerves. I hadn’t messed up somewhere, had I? I hadn’t mixed up the salt for the sugar, had I?!

The door to the shop opened. Our normal customers came to buy bread as usual. And then there was someone who ordered the cake. It was an easygoing woman in her mid-twenties. She was my first customer.

She ordered the tea along with it, so I prepared that just like Lala had taught me. The customer took the cake and tea and went to sit down. I followed her with my eyes.

When she took a bite of the cake, her face broke out into a smile and she ate the whole thing up. I was so giddy! We kept selling cakes until we were sold out.

I’d been overflowing with emotions the whole day from anxiety, relief, excitement, happiness, joy, and gratitude.

I’d never forget that day…even if we were way, way too busy!