New chapter of Ordinary Person is out (1/2 chapters)

 

 

Chapter 19

(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)

I guided the foreign women to a ramen shop.

Not just one, but three of them. Plus, all of them were pretty beautiful women! Somehow, I feel like I look like a really ridiculous person, but… is that just my imagination?

I asked the staff if the ticket machine accepted the Japanese electronic money “yen”, then issued the tickets.

Come to think of it, the only “yen” I had was the guild trading currency.

I had only now realized the fact that even if I did trade at the guild, I never actually received physical cash in hand. Living expenses were transferred into my account by my parents, but cash wasn’t something I would bring into a dungeon, and credit cards were still restricted to those 18 and up. It was an event that made me painfully aware I still wasn’t used to society’s rules or this current lifestyle.

It was fortunate that Gin No.2 Branch～Sister Shop～, maybe due to its proximity to the dungeon, accepted “yen”, but with electronic money still not widely adopted, many shops didn’t accept it, which made me panic a bit.

I broke out into a cold sweat. And that was only the beginning.

Come to think of it, ramen shops are like sanctuaries for men, right? Especially the Jirou-style places, which have an even higher male-to-female ratio. They’re super hearty, after all! And yet, despite that, I went and recommended one of the most heavy-duty ramen places in the neighborhood. If it had been ‘Menya Shizu○’, it would have been a bit more geared toward the general public…!

I’m such an idiot…

As expected, all the other customers around us were men. I was accompanied by three women, and each of them very beautiful. Other than them, everyone in the shop, including the staff, was male… 100%.

I want to believe it’s just my imagination. But the gazes from the other customers feel like they’re stabbing into me… Every time a new customer enters the shop, they look this way in surprise. And once they realize I’m with these women, their stares pierce me like laser beams. In just this short time, haven’t I been cursed a million times already…?

“Do you have any preferences?” (Staff)

“Stronger flavor, extra garlic. Can you sear the chashuu?” (Kouta)

“Yes, we can.” (Staff)

“Then, please sear it.” (Kouta)

I answered on reflex, overwhelmed by a mysterious tension.

Coming to a shop with women and ordering extra garlic…

“Kouta! What am I supposed to do with this!?” (Emilia)

Eh!? Emilia, don’t they ask you that at other ramen shops too!? It depends on your own preference… or maybe the other shops didn’t ask her. What’s normal for Japanese people might be confusing for foreigners who don’t understand the language.

“You can choose the strength of the flavor—light, regular, or strong. Also, the firmness of the noodles, and how much garlic you want. This is your first time at this shop, right, Emilia? Then why don’t you try the shop’s standard flavoring to start?” (Kouta)

I somehow managed to answer Emilia, who was asking with incredible intensity.

“The thing you said last, ‘searing’, that’s grilling the chashuu, right!?” (Emilia)

“Yeah, that’s right. Though it’s just a matter of preference.” (Kouta)

Hnnn…

It was quite the scene where a beautiful woman with model-tier proportions struggling seriously over a ramen order.

Emilia suddenly looked up. It seemed she had made up her mind. Even that gesture was needlessly beautiful.

Making a firm decision over a ramen order… what the heck is that?

I was busy making mental retorts to myself.

“Standard!” (Emilia)

“Understood!!” (Staff)

Even the staff’s reply seemed more energetic than before. His voice was noticeably louder and happier than when taking my order.

Am I just being paranoid…?

“Then, I’ll go with standard too.” (Sofia)

“Yes! Thank you very much!!” (Staff)

The reply after taking Sofia’s order was clearly different from mine!!

“Stronger flavor, extra garlic, seared.” (Mira)

“Thank you very much!” (Staff)

Surprisingly, Mira-san ordered the same as me. I couldn’t compare myself to her at all, but among the three, she seemed the most intellectual, so maybe there was a reason behind it.

“By the way, Kouta-san.” (Mira)

“What is it?” (Kouta)

“I understand what garlic is, but what does ‘extra extra’ mean?” (Mira)

Should I tell her to ask the translation device to do its job? Or should I be retorting ‘you ordered without knowing’!?

I didn’t know which reaction to go with.

 

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(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)