When I woke up in the morning, Anzu and her friends were already at work.
"Good morning, Dad. Did you sleep well?" (Anzu)
"Ah, I slept well. Is Anzu preparing for the shop?" (Deiga)
"Yeah, we’re all checking the ingredients and seeing what dishes we can serve today. Just because we run out of sea ingredients like we did at Mileela doesn’t mean we can go buy them right away."
When I was working with Mileela, if I ran out of ingredients, I would go to a nearby store to buy them or asked my son's fisherman acquaintances to give me the extra ingredients.
But you couldn't do that in Crimonia.
Apparently, there were some stores that sell fish, but they didn't have as good a selection as Mileela.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" (Deiga)
"Not right now. Dad, why don't you take a tour of the city of Crimonia? You'll learn a lot." (Anzu)
"But, about you..." (Deiga)
"This isn't dad's shop." (Anzu)
"That's right, Uncle Deiga. Anzu-chan is a full-fledged chef."
"And we’re with her, so it’s okay."
I was pushed out of the store by Anzu and the others.
The bear girl and Fina girl were watching me.
The bear lady heard my story and decided to show me around the city of Crimonia.
As I thought yesterday, it was a really big city.
There were various shops lined up and many people doing business. There were many shops I had never seen before.
At my request, I was asked to focus on ingredients and cooking.
There were various shops. Every single one of them was a learning experience.
Ingredients I had never seen before, dishes I had never seen before. If I lived in a place like this, I would probably learn a lot of new dishes.
I was looking at Anzu's cooking yesterday and there were some new dishes.
Also, some of the shops came from Mileela, our hometown, and were running shops like Anzu.
The owner of the shop also said that although it was difficult at first, the number of customers gradually increased, and they were recognized by the residents of Crimonia.
I was happy, but I also felt sad when I thought of her leaving Mileela.
But it was good to try a new city.
Anzu also tried new things and was where she was today.
And that was all thanks to the bear girl next to me.
That bear girl was in charge of the preparations for opening the shop, and Fina's mother, Tilmina-san, was in charge of arranging the food suppliers.
Furthermore, it seemed that many people had been told in order to attract customers to the Anzu's shop. Anzu told me that it was passed from person to person, and people started coming to the store.
I thanked the bear lady for that.
"That's how it was at first. The reason people keep coming back for the second and third time is because Anzu's food is delicious." (Yuna)
The lady was right. If it tasted bad, they wouldn't go to that restaurant again.
For customers, it was one store among many. If it didn't taste good, they would go to another store.
That's why, we couldn't afford to cut corners when it came to cooking.
After that, I went to another restaurant run by a lady with food connections.
There, the bakers Morin and Karin, who I met when they came to Mileela, were making bread.
I tried it and it was really delicious.
Although Anzu and I cook differently, we were passionate about bread.
It was not an easy taste. It must have been difficult to get this much flavor. I respect them as a chef.
In addition to the taste, there were many dishes with bears' faces on them, such as bear bread, to please children.
If this was the case, my child would want to come again.
When it came to food, taste was important, but appearance was also important as well.
Octopus and squid could be deliciously eaten when cooked, but I once showed a live octopus and squid to a customer, and it caused a stir.
We were used to seeing them, but for people who didn't know about octopuses and squid, it might be a bit off-putting.
The taste was great though.
Then, I went to see Tilmina-san, the mother of Fina, who took care of Anzu, to thank her.
I might not be able to eat any more, but I was planning on saying hello to the people who took care of Anzu.
"Welcome Deiga-san. I heard from Fina that you really came to see Anzu-chan." (Tilmina)
"It’s embarrassing." (Deiga)
"There's nothing shameful about worrying about your daughter. It's better to have parents who worry than parents who don't." (Tilmina)
"It would be helpful if you could say that." (Deiga)
"However, if you talk too much, your child will hate you, so let's be careful of each other." (Tilmina)
Tilmina-san said that and looked at Fina.
Although I had been raising children for longer, I felt like she knew them better than I did.
I had raised a daughter and a son, but when they were young, I had left them to my wife. So, after my daughter said she wanted to learn how to cook, rather than raising a child, I might have raised a chef.
Maybe that's why I felt lonely after she left me.
Even though my wife was able to be separated from our child, it seemed like I wasn't able to.
"So, let's watch over each other from a distance. That's the role of parents." (Tilmina)
"That's right." (Deiga)
If Anzu ever had a problem, she could help.
"So, if Anzu finds a man, please contact me. I'll check to see what kind of man he is." (Deiga)
Tilmina-san's eyes widened at my words, and she started laughing.
Did I say something strange like that?
"I'm sorry. I was saying the same thing as my husband. However, from my point of view as a woman, if my father did something like that, I would feel that I would have to take extra care of him and that he would hate him, so please be careful." (Tilmina)
My wife had also said the same thing.
But if you get caught by a strange man, you would be in trouble.
"Besides, as long as Yuna-chan is here, no strange man will come near her, so it's okay. Because no one wants to die." (Tilmina)
Tilmina-san said scary things.
But somehow I understood. The bear lady was protecting Anzu.
Everyone believed in that bear girl.
I was one of them too. That's why I was able to entrust Anzu to the bear lady.
I felt like I was able to get rid of something that was bothering me, just a little bit.
After that, I went back to walking around town with the bear lady who was playing with the children.
After eating all sorts of things, I thanked the bear girl and Fina for staying with me until late, and then headed back to Anzu's restaurant.
The girls went home rubbing their bellies.
She went out with me, and we ended up eating all kinds of food.
When I returned to the store, there were a lot of customers coming in for dinner.
When I looked into the store through the window, I saw more and more customers coming in. Inside the store, Seno and Forne were busy moving around and serving customers.
Cleared away dishes, wiped the tables, and served new customers. Then, they received orders and pass them on to the kitchen. Then, the food was brought out from the kitchen one after another.
I thought about it yesterday too, but I guessed they were working properly.
I stayed silent and stared inside the shop.
As I was planning to watch the restaurant until they were finished, my eyes met with Seno who was wiping down a table near the window.
Seno opened the window.
"Uncle Deiga! Welcome back!" (Seno)
I gave up on hiding and approached Seno.
"Oh, I'm back." (Deiga)
"Would you like something to eat?" (Seno)
"No, it's okay. I've eaten." (Deiga)
"Yeah, I can't believe it. You're not eating Anzu-chan's cooking, but another chef's cooking." (Seno)
"No, I was eating to study." (Deiga)
"It's a betrayal." (Seno)
"Seno, don't embarrass Uncle Deiga." (Forne)
Forne appeared and nudged Seno on the head. And then looked at me.
"Uncle Deiga, if you are not hungry, please help me." (Forne)
"But this is Anzu's shop. Besides, you said I didn't have to help you in the morning." (Deiga)
"I only said that because I wanted Uncle Deiga to watch Crimonia. If you're free after watching Crimonia, that's a different story." (Forne)
"..." (Deiga)
"Also, Anzu-chan said something like that, but she seemed happy that she was able to cook together yesterday." (Forne)
"……Really?" (Deiga)
"However, I don’t think it’s a lie to ask Uncle Deiga to see Crimonia." (Forne)
Forne smiled.
"I understand. I have to work to pay for the accommodation." (Deiga)
I entered the store and headed to the kitchen.
"Dad?" (Anzu)
"I've seen the city. I have some free time. Give me some instructions. You're the chef at this restaurant." (Deiga)
Anzu looked at me and nodded.
"Then, dad, go ahead and handle the fish there." (Anzu)
"Oh, got it." (Deiga)
I moved according to Anzu's instructions.
Anzu's instructions were clear and on par with a veteran chef.
She cooked food efficiently and gave instructions to Bettle, who helped her.
Seno and Forne brought the finished dishes and served the customers.
"Thank you for your business."
"I'll be back again. Seno-chan."
A customer left the store with a satisfied face.
"Dad. Next time I'd like some meat, please." (Anzu)
"Got it" (Deiga)
I remembered when we were cooking together in Mileela.
It was fun.
As I thought yesterday, she was growing.
I had no idea she had grown so much before I saw it.
...That fun time was coming to an end.
"Then, Uncle Deiga, please help me out when you're in Crimonia, just for dinner."
"Ah, got it." (Deiga)
"Well, tomorrow is our day off, so please be nice to Anzu-chan and go out." (Forne)
Forne asked me and I nodded.
I was glad everyone seemed to be having fun.
This was all thanks to the bear lady.
The next day, the store was closed, so I went out with Anzu.
Anzu was as knowledgeable about the city as any resident of Crimonia, and explained many things to me.
"Dad, are you listening?" (Anzu)
"Oh, I'm listening." (Deiga)
"It’s fun because we have ingredients that Mileela doesn’t have." (Anzu)
"It’s also coming to Mileela." (Deiga)
Thanks to the construction of the tunnel connecting Crimonia and Mileela, many ingredients that had never been seen before were coming in.
"That's right. However, the problem with Crimonia is that it's difficult to get seasonings and ingredients from Land of Harmoni. Even so, they give priority to them. This is also thanks to Yuna-san." (Anzu)
"I see" (Deiga)
"What happened earlier?" (Anzu)
"It's nothing. I'm happy to know that Anzu is growing, but I just feel a little lonely." (Deiga)
"I know you’re happy, but why lonely?" (Anzu)
"As a parent, I'm happy to see my children grow up. But I'm sad to see them leave my hands. You'll understand once you get married and have children." (Deiga)
"How many years later? Besides, I haven't left my father yet. I'm currently working in Crimonia, but I've learned many different dishes, and someday I'll return to Mileela town and feed everyone." (Anzu)
"If Anzu leaves Crimonia, the bear lady will miss you." (Deiga)
"If it's about cooking, don't worry. There seems to be a child at the orphanage who likes to cook, so I just teach that child and there won't be any problems. Neaf-san seems to be teaching a lot of things now. Next time, I'm going to let you try it out at the shop." (Anzu)
"I see" (Deiga)
"My dad's taste will be transmitted to many people." (Anzu)
Anzu smiled.
"You can't easily imitate my taste." (Deiga)
"That's why, every day is training." (Anzu)
It was really nice to see Anzu's face.
No matter where she was, she was always my daughter.
She continued to cook without getting complacent.
However, I was worried about whether I would be able to hold my grandchildren.
Well, let's wait patiently.
A few days later, I returned to Mileela.
As souvenirs, we received various ingredients from Anzu and the bear lady.
If Mileela needed it, they would send it to me.
I was still learning so that I wouldn't lose to Anzu.
Author's Note
Thank you to everyone who watched the anime.
...
* Thank you to everyone who reports typos.
Please note that some kanji have been revised to match the book, so some may not have been revised.