Demon Girl ~Tale of a Lax Demon~

ard, we didn’t end up playing with the rubber ball.

Err…… How do you write circles on the road and play? As I picked up a pebble and drew a circle on the path, Misa also began to draw and write and play.

“What’s that?”

“Errrmh…… ramen.”

“Do you like ramen?”

“Yes, and when I grow up I’ll run a ramen shop!”

“Ah… Perhaps this one,”

 

“Yuzu!”

 

When I raised my head to look at the sudden interruption, I saw Kotone-chan who had a slightly angry expression on her face.
Behind her was Ooba-onii-chan who was drooping his head like a chastised child, and a tall man.

It’s an approximately 30-year old uncle, I guess? A little bit of a dandy uncle would be better, but maybe this person is with Kotone-chan?

“Ah, you’re done with your work?”

Misa walked over with a pleasant smile on her face as she looked at the uncle.
This person is…

“Misa’s ‘Father’!?”

“I’m still only 20!”

Haha, it was only a joke.

 

’

＊

 

“………I see”

I listened to their story.
It seems that he was one of the wait staff in the ramen shop, who is blood-related with Misa, but he’s not her father, but, rather, her older brother… They do look alike.

“Hey, Yuzu, did you come here with onii-chan……”

“I’m sorry… But why are you in this ramen shop?”

Since we were standing outside, we moved into the store to continue speaking, since the store was pretty vacant past lunchtime.

By the way, Ooba-onii-chan was seated on the floor because he’d bothered the store by going round the back.

“……Ah, erm…yeah… You know, Yuzu.
Misa-chan and he are our cousins.
That’s why I came to see how they were doing…okay?”

Kotone-chan’s cheeks were a little flushed while she glanced at him.

……Fuu~hn?  I was still a toddler, so my words were still lispy, but putting it all together, it seems that their parents passed away early.
Since their parents used to work with my father, they couldn’t rely on their relatives.
When their parents got into trouble, he distanced themselves from them.

He seems to be living with young Misa alone while working at this ramen shop.

…… Praise me for deciphering it this far.

 

“It’s fine, I love ramen.”

“That’s right! Onii-chan’s ramen is delicious!”

“It’s very thick, and everyone is eating my “ramen”, but, I don’t ask children to pay.”

A true Tokyoite!?

ehh? Why is Kotone-chan looking at him with enraptured eyes……? I am still a child, so I can’t understand.

Besides, isn’t it good just to eat it at your own convenience? Looking at the person who seems to be the shop owner, the tottering grandpa nodded with a gentle smile.

“I haven’t had a meal…”

“………”

I’m not being dumb, right!?

’

 

“Hey, here’s your ramen.”

While observing the grandpa in front of us the ‘ramen’ was served.

It seems that the ramen he makes is ‘ramen’.
It’s a very subtle difference.
Somehow I can understand it with my soul, but I can’t put it into words.

In front of Misa and I was ramen and a small donburi for children.
About two servings per person.

It’s especially precious, so Misa and I sat side-by-side and ate at the counter.

Foreigners who come to Japan misunderstand, but eating Japanese noodles with slurping is neither well-mannered nor a custom.
A dish that a chef cooks with spirit will go stale without the ‘spirit’ of the eater that it gets.

But my infant tongue is picky so I can’t eat it all at once.
……What do I do?

Somehow when I looked at Kotone-chan, she had a different bowl from ours, and ours was full of toppings like naruto fish cake, and seaweed.

They’ve thought properly about the nutritional value for children too… such a nice person.

While watching the seaweed that was moving under the convection current in the hot soup, suddenly the seaweed raised its “body” and one hand.

[Yoo, I, am not a bad wakame]…… or something like [Leave this to me eat up]?

After a while of the wakame seaweed wiggling, it sank into the ramen soup like it was drowning, and the auditory hallucinations of its last moments were left in my ear.

“…………”

Beside me, Misa was opening her mouth with a *pokan* expression while alternately looking at the donburi in front of her and me.
…… Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be a hallucination.

And as I tried eating the cooled ramen… ooooh? There was a “taste”!

“Dad, this is delicious!”

“I’m not Misa’s father!”

…… But you haven’t told me your name.

I don’t understand why, but it seems that I can still taste delicious things.
In fact, the sweets that were given to me at the shrine had its proper taste.

 

The strange “power” hasn’t appeared since I was at the park, so I guess it seems that I’m an abnormal person.

 

Author’s Notes:

Next time, she becomes an elementary school student.