Chapter 154: Walking Against the Tide
The last spoon of Almond Tofu disappeared, leaving only the faint, sweet residue of syrup at the bottom of the porcelain bowl.
Inui Hinako sat quietly in her seat, her posture relaxed, a stark contrast to the usual rigid elegance she maintained as a Totsuki alumnus. The small, leather-bound notebook she carried everywhere had already been tucked away into her purse.
She exhaled a long, satisfied breath.
The culinary journey she had just experienced was nothing short of a roller coaster. It had begun with the aggressive, fiery assault of the Spicy Chicken and Twice Cooked Pork—dishes that roared with the heat of Sichuan peppercorns and chili oil, waking up every dormant nerve ending in her body. But just as the heat threatened to overwhelm her, this final course had arrived.
The Almond Tofu—Annin Tofu—was a masterpiece of tranquility.
It wasn't just a dessert; it was a cooling balm. The texture was as smooth as white jade, trembling slightly on the spoon, and it melted instantly upon contact with the warmth of her tongue. The subtle, nutty fragrance of the almond kernels washed away the lingering grease and fire of the previous courses, leaving behind only a refreshing, pristine sweetness.
Outside the window, the evening breeze of the shopping district picked up, brushing against the glass. The gentle ting-ting-ting of the glass wind chimes hanging under the eaves drifted into the shop, harmonizing with the distant, muffled sounds of the city at night.
Hinako cupped the glass of sour plum juice in her hands. The condensation on the glass felt cool against her palms, a perfect match for the slightly chilly night air. It was a moment of perfect, suspended comfort.
"Phew..."
While Hinako basked in the afterglow of the meal, the scene at the other table was far more energetic.
Ren leaned his chin on his hand, watching the silver-haired girl with dog ears who was currently demolishing the remaining food with the ferocity of a starving wolf.
"Cerberus really has a good appetite today, doesn't she?" Ren remarked with a gentle smile, his eyes crinkling with amusement. "You've practically wiped every plate clean."
Cerberus didn't answer immediately. Her cheeks were puffed out like a squirrel storing nuts for winter, stuffed to capacity with the savory remnants of the meat dishes. She chewed vigorously, her three heads—metaphorically speaking, though her singular body moved with the energy of three—bobbing in delight.
"Mmph! Mmmph!" She made a happy, unintelligible sound, her tail wagging invisibly behind her.
Lucifer, sitting elegantly across from her, took a dainty sip of her tea. The Queen of Hell let out a soft, helpless chuckle, shaking her head. "Cerberus is currently wondering if she forgot something important today. And usually, when she thinks too hard, she gets hungry. For her, thinking is quite the heavy workout."
Cerberus finally swallowed the massive mouthful of food and nodded vigorously, her dog ears flopping with the motion.
Ren tapped his finger on the wooden table, looking thoughtful. "Forgot something? Did Cerberus promise someone in your group to do something today? Like... walk the other dogs? Or perhaps paperwork?"
Ren's question made Cerberus freeze mid-chew. She blinked, her crimson eyes widening as she searched the vast, chaotic library of her memory. After a few seconds of intense processing, she shook her head repeatedly, dismissing the thought.
If she couldn't remember it, it probably wasn't important!
"Well," Ren sighed, reaching out to wipe a speck of sauce from the corner of her mouth with a napkin. "If you can't remember, don't stress about it. But you really shouldn't eat so much right before bed, Cerberus. You'll get a stomachache."
"Oh~" Cerberus replied vaguely, her attention already drifting back to the food. She continued to chew and ponder, caught in a loop of existential confusion and culinary bliss. Her appetite seemed to grow in direct proportion to her confusion, completely unstoppable.
Ren watched her for a moment longer, shaking his head with a doting smile, before turning his gaze to the other occupant of the table.
Lucifer was staring intently at her smartphone screen. Her expression was a kaleidoscope of shifting emotions—eyebrows furrowed in concentration one second, eyes widening in surprise the next, followed by a thoughtful nod, and then a sudden, suspicious blush.
"Eh?" Ren tilted his head. "Lucifer, what are you looking up so seriously? Why do you keep making those faces?"
Lucifer flinched as if she had been caught doing something illicit. She snapped her head up, locking her screen instantly. "Eh? W-what expression?"
"Just that look," Ren teased, gesturing vaguely at his own face. "The look of someone learning something profound. Sometimes you look expectant, sometimes serious... and just now, you looked a bit shy."
Cerberus, mouth still full, nodded in agreement. "Mmm-hmm!"
Lucifer's face flushed a brilliant shade of crimson, contrasting sharply with her pale skin and white hair. She cleared her throat loudly, trying to regain her regal composure. "It's nothing! I was just... I was just learning how to make white chocolate! That's all!"
"White chocolate?" Ren raised an eyebrow. "It's just white chocolate. If you're interested, I can teach you how to make it in the kitchen. You won't learn the proper tempering techniques just by reading online tutorials or watching videos."
"You underestimate me!" Lucifer huffed, crossing her arms and looking away, though her cheeks remained pink. "I can learn anything! Besides... don't you have work tomorrow? I wouldn't want to bother you."
"You can't make chocolate every day, can you?" Ren laughed. "After all, I don't sell chocolate in the shop. I have plenty of time."
Lucifer nodded stiffly, avoiding his gaze.
Of course, she wasn't looking up how to make white chocolate. That was a lie she had panicked and pulled out of thin air. In reality, she had been researching something far more... sensitive. Articles with titles like 'How to Captivate a Man's Heart Through His Stomach' and 'Top 10 Signs He Likes You Back' were currently open in her browser tabs.
It was better to say she was researching chocolate. If Ren, this dense carnivore of a man, knew what she was actually reading, he might react in an unpredictable way. And Lucifer wasn't sure if her heart—or her pride as the CEO of Hell—could handle that right now.
She buried her face back in her phone, pretending to read a recipe.
Ren glanced at her, sensing she was hiding something, but he didn't press the issue. He simply smiled and leaned back.
At that moment, Hinako, who had been observing their warm interaction with a quiet smile, spoke up.
"Mr. Ren," she said softly, placing her empty glass down. "I heard a rumor... Your shop has been chosen by the Director as a special practical training location for the upcoming program, hasn't it?"
The atmosphere in the shop shifted slightly. Both Lucifer and Cerberus paused their activities, their ears perking up.
Ren nodded, not seeming particularly bothered. "Yes, I heard something about that. But Rindou-san told me it's treated as a 'Hidden Shop' assignment. Apparently, only students at the level of the Elite Ten will be allowed to come here for their Stagiaire or field training."
Hinako's eyes lit up with understanding. She nodded approvingly. "Although it sounds a bit exclusive, I believe it is the correct decision. If ordinary students were sent to Shopkeeper Ren's place... frankly, it would be a waste. They wouldn't be able to comprehend the gap in skill."
"It's not so much a waste," Ren said humbly, waving his hand. "But mainly, it seems all the Elite Ten members of the current grade are participating in a special event this time. Rindou mentioned that ordinary restaurants wouldn't be challenging enough for their abilities, so they're looking for... unconventional locations."
Hinako paused, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "That is indeed interesting. The Stagiaire period is usually chaotic, but if the Elite Ten are gathering... it seems your quiet restaurant will become quite lively, Mr. Ren."
Ren shrugged. "Maybe. But whether it's lively or not shouldn't be a big problem. After all, I don't usually have many customers here. A few students helping out might actually be nice."
Hinako looked around the empty tables. It was true. For a restaurant serving food of this caliber, the lack of a line out the door was baffling.
"Shopkeeper Ren," she said with a sudden seriousness, her voice dropping a notch. "Your restaurant is... a bit too secluded. If you were on the main street, you would be fighting off customers with a stick."
"I like it this way," Ren replied, his voice calm and steady. "Only those who are fated to find this place come here. And generally, such people are very interesting. Like you, Inui-san."
Hinako stared at him for a moment, then sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. "I really envy your philosophy, Shopkeeper Ren. Freedom to cook what you want, for whom you want... But, never mind." She stood up, smoothing out her skirt. "Shopkeeper Ren, how much for the meal?"
"Fifteen hundred yen."
"Fifteen..." Hinako blinked. It was absurdly cheap. For the quality of the ingredients alone—the spices, the meat, the perfect Almond Tofu—it should have been triple that. But she had learned not to question Ren's pricing. "Never mind... I'm not surprised anymore."
She placed the money on the counter. "Shopkeeper Ren, if I have the chance, I'll come back to learn from you again."
Ren leaned back in his chair, smiling lazily. "Learning is welcome, but it's more relaxing to just be a diner, isn't it? Mr. Kojiro Shinomiya and Mr. Joichiro Yukihira were like that too. They came to eat more than they came to talk shop."
"I understand," she bowed slightly, a mark of deep respect. "Thank you for the hospitality."
Ren waved to Hinako as she walked to the door. The bell above the entrance chimed—ding-ling—and she stepped out into the night.
The transition from the warm, golden light of the restaurant to the cool, blue-hued street outside was jarring.
Hinako pulled her cardigan tighter around her shoulders. The shopping district was mostly asleep. Most of the shutters were down, painted with graffiti or advertisements for sales that had ended weeks ago. The only light came from the flickering streetlamps and the glowing hum of vending machines lining the sidewalk.
She began to walk, her heels clicking rhythmically against the pavement. Clack, clack, clack.
It was a solitary sound.
She was walking away from the station, deeper into the quiet residential area where her own restaurant, the Misty House, was located. She was moving against the flow of the city—away from the noise, away from the crowds.
After walking for a few minutes, she stopped under a streetlamp. The moth-light buzzed overhead. She reached into her small bag and pulled out her phone. She hesitated for a moment, her thumb hovering over a contact name, before pressing the call button.
Tuuu... Tuuu... Tuuu...
The ringtone echoed in her ear for a long time. Just as she was about to hang up, the line connected.
"Hello?" A male voice, cool and slightly impatient, answered.
Before the man could say anything else, Hinako puffed out her cheeks, her pent-up frustration exploding. "Shinomiya, you idiot! Why do all of you know about Shopkeeper Ren's restaurant, and I'm the only one who didn't?!"
On the other end of the line, in a high-end office in Tokyo, Kojiro Shinomiya pulled the phone away from his ear, wincing at the volume. He was currently reviewing the seasonal menu for his Tokyo branch, Shino's.
He pushed up his glasses, a vein throbbing slightly in his temple. "Because you're the closest to his shop, Hinako. We assumed you knew. And stop shouting." He paused, his voice softening with curiosity. "So... have you finally been to Shopkeeper Ren's place?"
"Yes!" Hinako exclaimed, kicking a small pebble on the sidewalk.
"And? Any thoughts?"
Hinako fell silent. She looked up at the moon, hanging pale and distant in the night sky. The taste of the Almond Tofu still lingered on her tongue—a phantom sweetness.
"It was..." she struggled for the right words. "It was a feeling that words can't describe. It wasn't just 'delicious'. It was... overwhelming. And then, completely peaceful."
Shinomiya took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He leaned back in his leather chair, staring at the ceiling of his office. He remembered his own visit, the humbling experience of tasting a dish that seemed to surpass the boundaries of genre.
"I see," Shinomiya said, his voice deep and serious. "It seems we... everyone... still has a lot to learn."
"Yeah," Hinako whispered.
"Get home safe, Hinako."
"You too, Shinomiya."
The call ended. Hinako held the phone for a moment longer, then slid it back into her bag. She didn't say anything else to the empty street. She just resumed her walk, her steps a little lighter than before.
She walked under the moonlight, her shadow stretching long behind her. She had come against the flow of people, and she left the same way. The night remained, and there were always people carrying worries, moving against the current.
Do not stop them, and do not say anything. Because in that solitude, they are growing.
Back inside the restaurant, the silence had returned, settling comfortably over the room like a warm blanket.
Cerberus had finally eaten her fill. The triple-threat demon was now slumped in her chair, limbs splayed out in a posture of utter defeat by food coma. Her eyelids were drooping, and she let out soft, contented sighs.
Ren stood up and began clearing the table, stacking the empty porcelain plates with practiced ease. "Cerberus," he asked again, looking at the sleepy demon. "Do you remember now?"
"No... no... no..." Cerberus mumbled, her voice slurring with sleepiness. "But I can't eat anymore... so full..."
Lucifer, who was sipping a final cup of tea to aid digestion, looked at her companion with a mix of annoyance and affection. "Don't you feel ridiculous? You ate enough for three people. Again."
Cerberus didn't respond; she just reached out blindly and grabbed the cup of leftover plum juice Ren had left for her, sipping it slowly through a straw. Her eyes were glazed over.
Ren chuckled as he wiped down the table. "Let her be. She's happy."
Although it was getting late, for the bustling spirits of the adjacent dimensions and for this strange little restaurant, the night was often just beginning.
Ren walked behind the counter to wash the dishes. The rhythmic sound of water splashing against ceramic filled the room.
Ding-ling.
The sound of the door chime cut through the quiet atmosphere.
Ren froze. His hands stopped moving in the soapy water.
Logically speaking, it should be impossible for ordinary customers to arrive at this hour. The sign outside was turned to 'Closed'. And as for customers from Another World... the connection usually wasn't this stable this late at night.
Lucifer and Cerberus also sensed the shift. The sleepy Cerberus instantly sat up, her eyes snapping open, alert and sharp. Lucifer lowered her phone, her gaze narrowing toward the entrance.
The space around the door seemed to warp slightly, shimmering like a heat haze. The wooden door groaned as it was pushed open.
A burst of light flooded the entryway, fading as quickly as it appeared.
Standing in the doorway was a boy. He looked to be a high school student, dressed in a dark blue uniform that seemed slightly too large for his slender frame. But it was his hair that drew the eye immediately—a gravity-defying, architectural marvel of black, magenta, and gold spikes that seemed to pulse with a strange energy.
He wore a bulky, pyramid-shaped puzzle pendant around his neck on a silver chain.
The boy looked around the restaurant with wide, bewildered violet eyes. He seemed disoriented, clutching the strap of his school bag tightly.
"Where..." the boy stammered, his voice trembling slightly with nervousness. He looked at Ren, then at the girl with dog ears, and finally at the white-haired woman. "Where is this...?"
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