At the entrance of the Mapo Tofu Ramen shop
"One special Mapo Tofu Ramen, and one small bowl of Chashu Tonkotsu Ramen."
Kamitani Yuu, leading Sakura inside, addressed Kirei Kotomine, who stood behind the kitchen counter.
"Oh…"
Upon seeing the young Sakura following Yuu, a flicker of surprise surfaced in Kotomine Kirei's otherwise placid eyes. Then, as if grasping the situation, the smile on his face deepened, his voice laced with a distinct note of pleasure.
"Understood. One Mapo Tofu Ramen and one Tonkotsu Ramen. Please wait a moment, customers."
"Mhm, thank you, Kirei."
Saying this, Yuu gently picked Sakura up and settled her onto a high stool at the counter. Kotomine Kirei gave a slight, almost imperceptible shake of his head before turning to begin his preparations.
The ramen shop seemed to have only Yuu and Sakura as customers at the moment, lending the space a quiet, almost desolate air.
"Hmm… So, Uncle, you finally couldn't restrain your desires and laid hands on an innocent little girl? That's a crime, you know."
In the next instant, a clear, childish voice piped up from behind the counter, shattering the shop's calm atmosphere.
Hearing these malicious words, several metaphorical black lines appeared on Yuu's forehead. He looked down at the white-haired "marshmallow" sprawled across the counter and replied with a deadpan expression, "And where did you learn to say things like that? I don't recall Father Risei teaching you such stuff, Caren."
"Of course I read it in a book," the silver-haired girl named Caren declared, sitting up straight and waving the book in her hand as proof.
"Oh, I see. In that case, I should probably ask Father Risei to check what kind of books you've been reading lately," Yuu nodded, a perfectly pleasant smile on his face. "If there are any… inappropriate ones, a certain little sister's training regimen might just need to be increased."
Naturally, this was merely an uncle's proper concern for his adorable niece. It was definitely *not* retaliation for being called "Uncle."
Absolutely not.
"Urk…" Sensing the palpable malice in his words, Caren's cute face stiffened. She glared at Yuu with discontent. "What a mean-spirited uncle. And after you did all sorts of things to me…"
"Please don't phrase it in such a misleading way," Yuu interrupted, reaching out to pinch her soft, pale cheek, his expression long-suffering. "All I did was use magecraft to seal the abnormality in your body. I didn't do anything 'strange.'"
After all, one couldn't just say things like that carelessly. If someone else overheard, Yuu would surely be arrested by the police on suspicion of "indecent acts with a minor."
"Oww… I geddit alweady… Leggo!" Caren flailed her small hands, trying to escape his grip.
Sakura, seated beside them, watched their playful tussle quietly. A hint of envy flashed across her pale little face, but then, as if remembering something, the light in her clear blue eyes dimmed once more.
*'It seems being suddenly abandoned by her family has wounded this child deeply,'* Yuu thought with an inward sigh, having been closely observing Sakura's state. He released Caren and turned to the despondent black-haired little girl beside him, speaking softly. "Sakura, this child's name is Caren. Age-wise, she's probably about a year younger than you."
"That means you are her older sister."
"… Older sister?" As if not fully comprehending, Sakura unconsciously repeated the word.
After a moment, she raised her head and looked toward Caren. The mischievous little nun also turned her amber eyes curiously toward Sakura.
"…"
As if by fated encounter, their gazes met and held in that moment.
Perhaps it was true that birds of a feather flock together. From the very first glance, Sakura felt an inexplicable sense—that she and this girl named Caren would get along very well.
Yuu's eyes shifted between Caren and Sakura. For some reason, he suddenly felt a pang of regret introducing them.
*If I remember correctly, if Sakura grows up in a normal environment, doesn't she gradually develop into a little devil of a personality like BB?*
*Ah, this… When they grow up, they won't end up causing some world-shattering trouble for me, will they?*
Thinking this, Yuu's expression grew increasingly grim. He could already foresee his own tragic future.
*Haha. I'm done for.*
"Your ramen is ready, customers. Please enjoy."
Just then, Kotomine Kirei approached, carrying two bowls of ramen, one large, one small. He first placed the "ramen" bowl—piled high with bright red mapo tofu, with not a single noodle in sight—before Yuu. Then, he set the other bowl, which looked like a perfectly normal chashu tonkotsu ramen, on the counter in front of Sakura.
"It seems your skills have improved again, Kirei," Yuu said, temporarily suppressing his anxieties about the future. His gaze fell upon the bowl of mapo tofu exuding a hint of spicy aroma, and he nodded in appreciative praise.
Judging solely by appearance and scent, this mapo tofu before him was undoubtedly the genuine article, its quality not inferior to the signature dishes of famous Sichuan restaurants from his past life.
As for those localized, sweetened Japanese versions of mapo tofu? In his view, they were unforgivable heresy.
"Not at all, not at all. Compared to Chief Lan's, I still have a long way to go," Kotomine Kirei humbly shook his head in response to Yuu's praise. However, the slight upturn at the corner of his mouth betrayed how pleased he actually was.
After all, even with Yuu's referral back then, Kotomine Kirei had expended significant effort to learn the authentic method of making mapo tofu from that Chinese restaurant, "Kōshū Ensaikan・Taizan."
"In that case, I'll dig in."
"Please do."
With those words, Yuu picked up a piece of the vibrantly colored, tender tofu with his chopsticks and brought it to his mouth, savoring it slowly, an expression of enjoyment occasionally crossing his face.
"It's so red… it looks scary…" Sakura thought, eyeing the terrifyingly crimson mapo tofu with trepidation.
However, upon seeing her own, relatively normal-looking bowl of tonkotsu ramen, she breathed a sigh of relief, a feeling of gratitude welling up in her heart.
...
"Thanks for the meal."
After polishing off every last bit of mapo tofu and noodles in his bowl, Yuu's forehead was beaded with sweat, but he voiced his satisfaction contentedly.
Witnessing this, Kotomine Kirei also nodded with a smile, seeming to approve of Yuu's gusto. Then, his gaze shifted slightly, landing on Sakura, who was still engaged in her own battle with the ramen.
As a priest of the Holy Church, he naturally recognized both daughters of Tohsaka Tokiomi.
*It seems the Tohsaka head has entrusted his daughter to Kamitani-san… I have a feeling some interesting things are going to happen from now on…* Kotomine Kirei mused inwardly, a fresh wave of pleasure washing over him.