It was two days before the cultural festival.

The preparations were almost completed as the day came to a close.

On the pretext of inviting the Owner to the cultural festival, Ryoko-chan and I went over to the Evening Rain.

 

We walked down the Dutch Slopes, lit up by the setting sun, while chatting with each other.

 

We recently found out that the second floor of the Evening Rain seemed to be an office and workplace and that the Owner was there on weekdays.

According to his message, he was still working today.

As usual, the Owner was still mysterious and there was no sign of him teaching calligraphy.

 

「Oto-chan, Owner Mukai is definitely not a calligraphy teacher, right?」

「I wonder? Maybe he just doesn’t teach public calligraphy classes.」

「Well yes, but.」

 

Maybe he did calligraphy work at the request of companies or private shops.

 

「I don’t think he would be able to maintain the store without a decent income.」

「Thats right. It’s kind of suspicious.」

「I can’t deny that, but~.」

 

It’s not the first time that the Owner’s behaviour has been suspicious, so I didn’t worry about it.

 

「But, his clothes and accessories are all good items, I’m sure he has money, Oto-chan.」

「You even noticed that.」

「Of course!」

 

She told me that it was a precautionary measure to stop me from getting caught by bad people.

 

「Ryoko-chan……I don’t know what to say.」

「I feel that I have to properly see Oto-chan all the way through from job hunting to marriage.」

「T-Thanks.」

 

I’ve known Ryoko-chan, who has always been thinking about me, for more than a year now.

Our first meeting was during the university’s open day.

Coming from Tokyo, she was the one who took care of me because she happened to be next to me during the briefing.

As soon as we became friends, we exchanged emails, worked hard and encouraged each other during exam season, all up to now.

 

「What about Ryoko-chan?」

「What?」

「A boyfriend.」

「No.」

「Is that so.」

 

I felt there was a good atmosphere when she was with Iida-san, so I thought they had a close relationship.

Although I was worried, Ryoko-chan didn’t say anything, so I didn’t press further.

 

While talking about that, we arrived at the Evening Rain Cafe.

Ryoko-chan knocked on the closed door and called out to the Owner.

Meanwhile, I looked up at the Western-style building. The white walls and blue roof were bathed in the light from the setting sun, making it much prettier than looking at it at night.

As I was looking, the Owner opened the door and showed his face.

It’s been 15 days since I last saw him? I’ve exchanged a few messages though.

His eyes were bloodshot, maybe he was short on sleep.

He invited us in, but Ryoko-chan quickly handed over a ticket to the school festival and then headed off.

 

「Sorry. I have part time work now.」

「I see.」

「Take your time Oto-chan.」

「Ah, I’ll go with you–.」

 

When Ryoko-chan checked the time on her phone, she said ‘Oh no!’ and gave a bow towards the Owner before running off.

I was going to follow but the Owner grabbed my wrist.

 

「Do you have anything to do after this?」

「N-Not really.」

 

After saying that, I was dragged into the shop.

 

◇◇◇

 

The Owner looked to be in a really tired state.

And listening to him casually, it seems that his work wasn’t progressing as well as he wanted.

I didn’t think it’s something I could help with.

 

「Would you like me to brew some tea?」

「No, I’ll do it.」

「I understand.」

 

Previously, he had said that brewing tea and coffee was like a hobby to him, so I let him do it. I felt apologetic for letting the tired Owner prepare it.

He declined my help, so I sat down and waited.

 

After a while, the Owner returned with a tray.

He placed down something covered in white sugar and warm tea.

 

「What is this?」

「Pickled pomelos.」

「Pomelos……it’s the first time I’ve heard of it.」

 

Pomelos are a citrus fruit about the size of a baby’s head, it seems to be cultivated in Shimabara, Nagasaki.

 

「It’s processed by peeling the skin to take out the fruit.」

「I see.」

 

The skin of a pomelo is very thick. I heard that it could be up to 5cm thick.

 

「Actually, this is the rind.」

「Ehh!?」

「After peeling off the rind, the white of the rind is used.」

「Why is that!!」

 

After boiling the rind of a pomelo several times in water to remove the bitterness, it is carefully boiled in syrup.

It is then completed by sprinkling sugar over it.

 

Any how, I was surprised. Because he said it was made from the pomelo fruit, I thought it was just the flesh of the fruit.

Maybe it’s something like orange rind.

I was interested in what it tasted like, confectionery made from the rind.

I was prompted to try some, so I decided to try one right away.

 

「Then, I’ll have one……」

 

Picking up a pickled pomelo with my fingers, I popped it into my mouth.

 

「Sweet, isn’t it?」

「That’s because it’s boiled in syrup.」

 

But not only is it sweet, it also has a faint sour and slightly bitter taste. It also has the fresh aroma of citrus fruits.

The surface was crispy because of the sugar coating, but the inside was jelly like and the sweetness gradually spread through my mouth.

 

Pomelo (zabon), was named after the Portuguese word for soap (sabão). At that time, it seemed that pomelo leaves and roots were used as soap. Although pomelos actually came from China, it was called pomelo (zabon) because of the many Portuguese people that stayed in Nagasaki. (※There are various theories!)

 

In addition to Nagasaki, pickled pomelos are loved as a famous confectionery in Kyushu in Oita and Kagoshima.

Some say that it was first introduced in Kagoshima.

The reason for its roots in Nagasaki was probably because of the abundance of sugar and the fact that the technique of ‘syrup pickling’ was introduced from China.

The name was from Portugal, the method of processing from China and its taste spread throughout Kyushu. It was a collection of Wakaran culture.

 

I ate the sweet pickled pomelos and took a sip of the bitter green tea. Yes, it was delicious.

There was a gentle taste that gave some kind of relief.

 

The Owner, who had finished talking about the pickled pomelos, stared at me without sitting down.

It felt weird to offer a chair, so I just spoke to him.

 

「Thank you for the food. It was very delicious.」

 

After hearing the Owner’s response, I thought that I should get going.

I took out my wallet to pay for it, but he said I didn’t need to because they were leftovers.

 

「Ehh~, then, thank you for that.」

 

I said that, but there’s not much else I can do.

Cleaning, throwing out the garbage, weeding the garden?

 

「Then–.」

「Yes.」

「I want to go out with you.」

「Eh?」

「There’s a place I want to go.」

「Oh, o-of course~~!」

「?」

 

I replied to the Owner, who was looking at me with a questioning expression, that it was nothing.

I’ll keep it a secret that I thought he meant he wanted to date me when he said he wanted to go out with me earlier.

 

「So, where do you want to go?」

「Morning market in Sasebo.」

「Ohh, a morning market!」

 

Sasebo is a port in the northern part of Nagasaki prefecture. From Nagasaki city, it is about 2 hours by car.

Even so, to want to go to a morning market, should I say he has good taste?

 

「I understand. When are we going?」

「How about tomorrow?」

「That’s okay with me.」

 

The day after tomorrow was the cultural festival. Preparations were completed, So I had been told to take it slow on Sunday. So the main question was tomorrow’s schedule.

 

「When does it open?」

「3am.」

「Eh!?」

「We’ll leave here at 1am.」

「Well, it’s early, isn’t it?」

「If it’s too hard, you don’t have to come.」

「No, no, please let me come with you.」

 

If I go home and take a nap now, I’ll be fine.

Speaking of that, the Owner said that he would send me home.

 

「It’s still bright, so I’ll be okay. Owner should also get some rest.」

「No, I’m not going to sleep yet. I have a feeling that my work is going to progress.」

「Then, just continued your work.」

「I just want to send you back.」

「Ah-, yes, then I won’t be polite…… Thank you.」

 

Like that, the Owner sent me home.

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