Fake Cheer Is Still Cheer

The next morning, I woke up.

I'd given the bedroom to the women, so I slept on the living room sofa. My back ached a little.

It was still before dawn.

I'd been told we'd start work around sunrise, so sleeping on the sofa to keep my sleep light had been the right call.

It was very quiet. The other three must still be asleep.

I knocked on the bedroom door to check, and sure enough, they were still sleeping.

It wasn't just my own Azu and Elza in there but Princess Yupe too, so it felt slightly inappropriate, but I opened the door and went in to wake them.

Princess Yupe was using the bed, while the other two had laid out blankets on the floor to sleep on.

All three were sound asleep.

I'd had them all stay in one room so we could respond quickly if anything happened, but it seemed my worry had been unnecessary.

It was rude to stare at sleeping women's faces for too long. Better to wake everyone up soon.

Starting with Azu and Elza.

Azu had fallen asleep leaning against Elza.

I shook both their shoulders to rouse them.

"… Huh? Oh, good morning."

Azu woke up first.

She was dazed for a moment, but snapped to attention almost immediately.

"Good morning. Looks like there weren't any problems during the night."

"No. Princess Yupe fell asleep right away after that, so we turned in early too."

"Good. That's a relief. Go wash your face."

Azu left the room with a cheerful "okay."

Elza was a deeper sleeper than Azu.

I had to shake her shoulders a bit harder before she finally woke up.

"Good morning."

She let out a soft groan and stretched her whole body.

"Slept well, it seems."

"My sleep has been getting deeper lately…"

"Has it?"

I didn't usually wake her up, so I couldn't really say, but she might be building up fatigue.

The concert had been a pretty grueling schedule, and she probably hadn't gotten enough rest.

"Once this is over, I'll make sure you get a proper break. Just hang in there a bit longer."

"Of course."

Elza hid a small yawn behind her hand.

She did look sleepy.

Finally, I went to Princess Yupe.

She was sleeping with perfect posture.

You'd never guess from how peacefully she slept that something like last night had happened.

Ideally, I'd let her keep sleeping, but she'd definitely protest later if I did, so I decided to wake her.

"Princess Yupe, it's morning."

I called out to her first.

But it had no effect.

Only when I shook her shoulder did I finally get a reaction.

"Mmm… five more minutes."

"You're definitely not getting up in five minutes. Come on, we have rapeseed to harvest."

"Rapeseed… abra-kadabra…"

She mumbled sleepily.

Time for the last resort.

I pinched her nose.

As her breathing grew strained, she woke up sputtering.

It was a bit rough, but the effect was outstanding. Princess Yupe was awake in no time.

"Couldn't you wake me up a little more gently?"

"I was plenty gentle. You didn't wake up, so I had no choice."

"Is that so… Yohane, you should really learn how to treat a lady."

"My apologies. I'm usually more careful with fragile merchandise."

"So I'm treated worse than a piece of goods?"

Saying how rude that was, she stood up.

"How are you feeling? If you're even slightly unwell, we should really…"

"Don't worry. I feel great. Losing some blood actually made my body feel lighter, if anything."

She put her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest.

There was no way she was completely fine.

The bravado was transparent, but considering what she'd said last night, it was probably best to let her do things her way to some extent.

I asked to check her scar, and there had been no change since last night.

"Goodness, you're such a worrywart. More importantly, I'm hungry, so get breakfast ready. I'm going to go wash my face."

"As you wish, Princess."

"At ease… just kidding."

I returned to the living room and began preparing breakfast.

Since we'd be doing hard physical work, we needed something filling.

I pulled food out of the supply bag.

I'd mostly just packed things with a long shelf life, so I had to figure out what to make.

Something different from the usual would be nice…

We also had some of the honey they'd given us.

First, I spread barley across a frying pan and dry-roasted it.

Once I heard the popping sounds, I transferred it to a mortar, crushed it fine, then mixed in honey.

The fragrant aroma blended with the honey smelled quite nice.

I served the paste in a deep dish.

It should go well spread on toasted bread.

"I'll help!"

"That'd be great. Elza, handle the soup. Here are the ingredients."

"Oh, this should make for a tasty soup."

For sides, I prepared sausages with a salty flavor to bring out the sweetness, along with a salad.

Then a soup made with rapeseed greens and eggs.

Elza stirred it while chanting "become delicious," and it was done.

Around the time Azu had the dishes set out, Princess Yupe emerged from the bathroom.

"Is there anything I can help with?"

"Then would you pour the tea for everyone?"

"Leave it to me."

Princess Yupe poured tea from the container into each person's cup, and breakfast was ready.

For something thrown together quickly, it looked pretty good.

The green of the rapeseed leaves added a nice touch.

"Well then, let's eat."

Everyone began eating.

"I think I might like this… It'd be even better with some cinnamon."

"Cinnamon is too expensive for everyday use."

"Then I'll supply the cinnamon, so make it again. That's fair, right?"

The honey barley paste seemed to have won her over.

Everyone cleaned their plates. If Princess Yupe could eat that much, her strength would recover soon.

We finished cleaning up quickly and changed into clothes we didn't mind getting dirty.

I lent Princess Yupe some of my clothes.

"Oh, they're a bit baggy on me."

"It might bother you, but please bear with it. We can't go ruining expensive clothing."

"What I came in isn't that pricey, but well, this is fun in its own way."

We all headed to the representative's house, where he was ready and waiting.

The sun was just peeking over the horizon, casting a faint light.

"Shall we get going then? The ripe rapeseed is this way."

We followed his lead.

It was still a little chilly at this hour.

A breeze blew, and with a soft rustling sound, the yellow rapeseed flowers all swayed in unison.

Princess Yupe was beside me, with Azu and Elza on the other side.

It was like a painting.

I thought I'd remember this scene for a long time to come.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Nothing. It's nothing."

I was too embarrassed to say it out loud, so I kept it to myself.