Chapter 33: Candy Roll

December 5th, 2022

Beta Reader: My_Own_Worst_NPC

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Hooray!

I did it, I really did it! Operation Riding Together was a big success!

I could’ve called Silver No. 1 and 2 so Gram and we could ride by ourselves, but I intentionally only called for one.

Wow, Gram’s body feels so soft and comfortable. Oh, I should take care not to hold on to her too much.

“You can really feel the breeze around here. It feels good, doesn’t it?”

“Uh-huh…”

Since the entrance to the dungeon is located near the sea, the closer we get to the water, the stronger the breeze gets.

“Seems like today is going to be a sunny day, which is preferable for working right? Since it would hinder the work if it’s raining, am I correct?”

“Uh-huh. No rain is good.”

All the way to the construction site, I was the one who did all the talking, and Gram only gave short replies. As usual, she didn’t say much, but I didn’t feel like she was rejecting me either. Besides, she looked really happy when I gave her the figurine set earlier.

I’m glad I made it that night.

We’re going to have a close working relationship for the month ahead, so it’d be better if we could get along well, and that’s something I’m looking forward to.

Also, Gram herself moved my figurine on board of the model ship, even though in this world it’s forbidden for a man to board one. It was the reason why I almost gave up on the idea of having my figurine model to be put on board of the ship. [1]

When I asked her why she allowed it, she said, “Because this is my own ship, inside my own world…” She might have said it expressionlessly then, but it was at that moment I knew she was actually a very kind person.

“By the way, Gram-sama, do you like Banana Cake? I just baked it this morning, and maybe we can eat it together during the snack time. Oh, is there a snack time in the army?”

“We have break time.”

I guess it’s alright then.

“There’s sweet smell from early in the morning.”

Ah, that’s right. I mixed together butter, egg, flour, and sugar, and when the batter was baked it released a harmonious sweet smell. After adding some bananas, it got even more fragrant, I’d say it was almost divine.

“Um, Gram-sama, you don’t mind, do you?”

Gram quickly shook her head. “I’m looking forward to the break period…”

I guess it’s fine then…

When we arrived at the construction site, all the soldier’s gazes were focused on us as we rode into the site on Silver. It seems like nobody expected me and Gram to arrive together.

“Keep working!”

Everyone rushed back to work after hearing Gram’s words.

“I arrived using one of the golems,” Gram said to her second-in-command as if trying to make out some excuse, even though it was pretty obvious. Meanwhile, Lane only let out a small chuckle, seeing Gram’s somewhat subdued expression.

The work was already well underway, and the soldiers were in the process of digging a trench around the ruins with earth magic.

“Gram-sama, is it alright if I take a closer look?”

“I don’t mind, but just be careful.”

“I will～”

I walked up towards the ruins while being careful so as not to disturb the soldiers.

The soldiers using earth magic seemed to be channeling mana through their palms and into the ground. The soil rippled like waves in the ocean, and it gradually accumulated on one side.

“Whoa, that’s amazing…”

One of the nearby soldiers turned her gaze on me. “Hey mister, you never seen magic before?”

…not quite, I experienced it firsthand when I was almost assaulted…

“It’s not that I’ve never seen magic before, but this is the first time I’ve seen so many people using earth magic together.”

“Izzat so? Well, feast your eyes on this!”

The soldier vigorously poured her will into the ground and in response, a huge wave of sand and dirt surged up from the trench and piled itself neatly to the side.

“Ooohh! That’s really awesome!”

I gave a small clap, and the soldier rubbed the top of her nose in embarrassment. She was a woman in her thirties, and she seemed to be really proud of her strength, or rather, the strength of her magic.

Huh, it never occurred to me that a masculine older sister figure could be so attractive… [2] The muscle on her upper arms really caught my attention. [3]

“Tch, whatever, you’re getting too full of yerself! Yo bruh, look here, I’ll show you something way better.”

This time a different soldier charged mana into her hands and activated earth magic. Again, a large amount of dirt and sand was pushed up from the trench.

“Wow, you’re amazing too!”

“Heh heh heh heh.”

And that was how the day proceeded, with everyone trying their best to show me how they were better than the others. I don’t know when the commander and her adjutant had come nearby, but they were talking contentedly.

“Thanks to Shiro, the work is going well, isn’t it?”

“It is.”

I guess the women here and men on earth have the same tendency to want to show off for the opposite sex……

The soldiers were working really hard, so I wanted to give them something, but I didn’t have enough supplies to feed 100 soldiers right now… but if it’s just a little snack, maybe there is something I can do…

After all, it’s the thought that counts, right?

“Sorry, I’ll be going back for awhile!” I ran over and jumped on top of Silver, racing back to the cave.

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“Iwao, put a large pot over the fire.”

I put water, sugar, starch, syrup, and salt into the pot prepared by Iwao and brought it to a boil. Just before the liquid in the pot starts changing color, when the boiling bubbles start getting bigger, pull it off the fire and put it in the prepared ice water to cool it down. Then when it is cool enough to touch, stretched it into a rod-like shape.

That’s right. I’m making Salt Candy. [4]

Working in a hot place makes you sweat a lot, and can cause mineral deficiency if you have excessive sweating since it make you lose important minerals in the body.  Having salt in the candy will help maintain mineral balance, so I’m sure it will help everyone. As a secret ingredient, I decided to add citrus grass essence to give it more flavor.

Iwao helped me stretch the candy, while the Gokus cut it into smaller bits. In less than an hour we had produced more than enough candies for the soldiers at the work site. Just as I thought, having 11 golems helped me really speed up the work.

After putting the candies inside ice-cold containers to prevent them from melting, I rode back to the construction site.

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“I’m back!” My eyes met with Gram’s, who appeared to be sweating lightly.

“Uh-huh.”

“I went to the cave to make this. Gram-sama, have one.”

“This is?”

“A salt candy. I heard that you lose salt when you’re sweating, so you should replenish it; eating this candy supposedly makes you feel more energetic. Please try it.”

When I raised the container and offered her a candy, Gram hesitantly picks one and put it in her mouth.

“Delicious. Lemon scent?”

“I used citrus grass for the aroma.”

“I see.”

The sight of Gram rolling a candy in her mouth was cute.

“Even so, you made a lot of them.”

“Yes, I did. I was thinking of distributing it among the soldiers. May I…?”

I hope she won’t be mad at me for interrupting the work flow.

“No problem… I’d be grateful if you would.”

That’s good. The commander has given her permission.

The first people I distributed the candies to were the officers, and after that I went to the soldiers, specifically the ladies who had shown me their magic earlier.

“Thanks for the hard work!”

“Heya bruh, you’re back!”

“Yep. I came here to give you something called salt candy. Supposedly it gives you strength when eaten on a hot day.”

“Really? Well, sorry for troubling you then, I’ll have one”. The soldier held out her hand, which was blackened with dirt.

“Your hand, it’s covered with dirt, you’ll get the candy dirty. Alright, open your mouth wide.”

“My mouth…?”

“Yeah. I’ll pop it in. Okay, say aaahh…”

“Uh… aaahh?”

The soldier looked embarrassed, but still opened her mouth. I then gently set the salted candy on her tongue.

“Is it good?”

“Y-yeah.”

The other soldiers around us just stared.

“Don’t worry, I have enough for everyone!”

I then walked around handing out candy to the soldiers. All of whom had suddenly become quite lively. Actually, I was more like placing candy into everyone’s mouth instead of handing them out, since none of them were holding out their hands and instead were opening their mouths like baby birds. [5]

Since there were still plenty of candies left, I was about to make another round when Vice Commander Lane stopped me.

“The soldiers have started focusing on you instead of their work, anymore of this and it will hinder our construction progress…”

“Um, is candy uncommon in the empire?”

“Candy is not uncommon, what’s uncommon is to be fed something directly by a man. No, rather than saying uncommon, it’s better to say that it’s something on the level of a fantasy romance.”

Maybe this is what they call a culture gap… Actually, even on earth, not many people would do it in public…

“I’m sorry. I grew up on this island, so I’m still lacking common sense…”

“Don’t worry. I know Okami didn’t mean anything bad, I just want you to understand the situation…”

Now I feel terrible for delaying their work progress. What should I do? Oh, I have an idea!

“Well then, I’ll hand out the candies after the work is completed. Everyone! Please do your best! I’ll give you all a treat when the moat is finished!”

A hushed murmur spread through the assembled soldiers, and then…

“Uooooooghhhhh!!!!”

Everyone started working at once with renewed vigor.

“Thank goodness. I hope with this we can make up for the delay in work, right Gram-sama?”

“Uh-huh…”

Gram looked at me in amazement. I took another candy and tried to give it to her, but she only held out her palm without opening her mouth.

I guess it would be inappropriate for a noble lady to be fed a treat in public. Or maybe she’s just being shy?

Either way, I have a good feeling about her.

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1 In previous chapter it was not explicitly told that Gram moved it on board of the model ship. Maybe she did it while admiring the figurine and took quite some time, hence while she’s being late to return to the construction site.

2 Shirou was using the term Gaten-kei Onee-san. Gaten-kei meaning the type of job that requires strong physical labor, ranging from civil engineering, construction workers, drivers, cooks, etc.

3 If he ever ends up dying there, probably because of Death by snu-snu

4 I’m guessing it’s Himalayan Salt Candy. ((MOWNPC: It could also be salt water taffy, which is a popular candy for hot days in some regions of the US.))

5 Wow. Shirou has everyone eating out from the palm of his hand, in literal sense. ((MOWNPC: I’m not jealous, not at all.))