novellhall Chapter 52 Leisurely Time
Chapter 52 Leisurely Time
"..."
Tsukimi Sakura's eyes showed some unease.
"What's wrong... Miyazawa-kun? Is something wrong?"
"Oh, no, I just think this outfit suits Tsukimi-kun very well."
Miyazawa Itsuki snapped out of his daze and smiled.
"To be honest, it's very beautiful. It even makes me a little overwhelmed."
Sakura's pretty face flushed slightly.
"So, Miyazawa-kun can say things that make girls blush."
"...I thought Tsukimi-san had heard plenty of this kind of flattery."
"Yeah, I'm getting really tired of hearing it."
Sakura Tsukimi's eyes narrowed slightly, her smile so beautiful it was mesmerizing.
"But the feeling is different when you hear it from the people around you, Miyazawa-kun."
……
Inside the Mori Cafe.
Miyazawa Itsuki and Tsukimi Sakuna, dressed in work clothes, were busy among them.
Because of the excellent coffee and desserts themselves, coupled with the rumor that "this shop seems to have an adorable employee," Morizumi Cafe is becoming increasingly popular.
Consequently, the workload in the store has become much heavier.
During peak hours, even Miyazawa Itsuki, who was in charge of serving desserts, had to give up his duties and hand them over to Tsukimi Sakura.
Fortunately, the girl's reliability is reassuring.
All you need to do is maintain that "saintly smile" and provide basic service, and your guests will be full of praise.
"Beauty is food for the eyes," is that the saying?
Her Highness's charm made even coffee taste better.
The number of positive reviews he received on social media is equivalent to the total number of positive reviews he received during the past six months of working here.
It made him realize that this is truly a world that judges by appearance.
Miyazawa Itsuki silently operated the oven, then glanced at today's sticky note.
Once this batch is finished, there shouldn't be any other desserts that require too much effort today.
After getting through the toughest peak season, there are only smaller orders left, so things can be a bit easier.
Miyazawa Itsuki handed the prepared dessert out the window, and Tsukimi Sakura gave it to the customer.
Then came a brief moment of free time, during which he looked out the window at Tsukimi Sakura's back.
Even when only a group of customers remained in the café, focused on chatting and eating, the girl's demeanor remained impeccable.
To be honest, it would be very difficult for Miyazawa Itsuki to consciously maintain a long-term "rent-a-boyfriend" mode.
He knew all too well how difficult it was during that time.
If a performance without an audience is to remain perfect forever, it can only rely on the actor's own will.
Or rather, it's a habit.
Miyazawa Itsuki walked out of the kitchen.
They came to Tsukimi Sakura's side.
The girl slightly shifted her gaze and revealed a faint smile.
"Miyazawa-kun, is the work in the kitchen finished?"
She asked in a low voice.
At this moment, she no longer resembled the perfect and dignified saintess, but rather a beautiful young girl appropriate for her age.
"Yes, that was the last one."
"oh."
She nodded obediently and said nothing more.
As time slowly passed, the last group of guests checked out and left.
It's time for a break before leaving get off work.
Tsukimi Sakura closed her eyes and breathed out softly.
Maintaining a saintly demeanor all the time must be quite tiring.
When Tsukimi Sakura relaxes, her aura and eyes become softer, making her seem easy to bully.
Miyazawa looked at her and suddenly said something.
"Tsukimi-kun, what would you like to eat?"
"Huh? Eh? Me? I feel fine. Are you hungry, Miyazawa-kun?"
Sakura Tsukimi said somewhat flusteredly.
[If Miyazawa-kun is hungry, can we make tonkatsu today?] She asked him, but Miyazawa Itsuki just shook his head.
"What I mean is, there are still some pre-processed but unused ingredients in the kitchen. Since they're going to be thrown away anyway, why not make some desserts for Tsukimi-kun if she wants some?"
"Oh, is that so?"
Tsukimi Sakura breathed a barely perceptible sigh of relief.
"Um... I feel like eating desserts too often can easily lead to weight gain."
The girl fidgeted with her hair, her gaze wandering.
Tsukimi Sakura doesn't dislike sweets.
I hesitated only because of the nemesis of beautiful girls: obesity.
"I think that if it's Tsukimi-kun, eating a little bit occasionally won't cause any major problems."
"Tsukimi-kun doesn't usually come to places like this to enjoy desserts, does she? In other words, she rarely eats sweets."
"Hmm, this is the first time I've ever had such a high-class dessert in such a fancy coffee shop."
"The phrase 'high-end dessert' can be removed; it's actually not high-end at all, just very ordinary."
Miyazawa Itsuki smiled and handed over the menu: "A wide selection of ordinary desserts, please feel free to choose, Miss Tsukimi."
Sakura Tsukimi smiled slightly, obediently accepted the menu, and pondered it carefully.
"Hmm... everything above looks so gorgeous."
"The price... is so expensive."
The girl muttered to herself.
For a child like Tsukimi Sakura from a single-parent, ordinary family, upscale cafes and exquisite, expensive desserts are parallel lines in her life that will never intersect.
If she hadn't been working here, Tsukimi Sakuna would never have considered entering this type of shop.
Her Highness prefers practical and simple things; to avoid causing trouble for her family, she even only wears old clothes. It's all thanks to her excellent natural beauty.
Last time, it was only for some reason that I fell in love with waffles at first sight. This is a rather common dessert.
After looking at it for a long time, Tsukimi Sakura looked conflicted.
"that……"
She asked Miyazawa Itsuki cautiously.
"What's Miyazawa-kun's best dessert?"
The boy didn't think for long:
"That must be crème brûlée."
In terms of skill and expertise, pudding is not much different from other desserts.
The skills provided by the panel allow Miyazawa Itsuki to not only hone his skills in making one dessert, but also to gain insights into other categories.
The goal is to make it as evenly distributed as possible, so that no one aspect becomes too prominent and another becomes a weakness.
However, when it comes to sentiment and personal commitment, crème brûlée has a slight edge over the others.
This is all thanks to Miss Qing.
Without her, crème brûlée would have been just another ordinary dessert among the many that Miyazawa Itsuki had mastered.
"Then let's choose this one."
Tsukimi Sakura smiled sweetly.
"I'm also really looking forward to Miyazawa-kun's specialty: desserts."
"Then please wait a moment, Miss Tsukimi. What you've been waiting for will be here shortly."
Miyazawa chuckled twice and returned to the kitchen.
The leftover pudding mixture today is more than enough to make one batch of pudding.
He proceeded with the dessert-making process at a leisurely pace.
Pour the granulated sugar into a small crucible, turn on medium-low heat, and slowly simmer it into a melted sugar syrup.
Once it turns a deep amber color, turn off the heat and quickly pour in a spoonful of hot water to make it boil vigorously.
Next, pour the caramel sauce into the bottom of the pudding mold, then add the prepared pudding sauce until the mold is almost full, and place it in the oven.