The girls' life consultation didn't last long before Tokai Natural's voice called up from downstairs.
Mochizuki knew: that was Mom telling them it was time for breakfast.
Thinking so, she glanced at Teio. "Time to get up."
"Mm."
Teio nodded and got out of bed.
Before long, the two came downstairs one after the other—
And saw a breakfast you absolutely would not find in Japan.
"Breakfast is ramen."
"So it's ra—eh?"
Unlike Mochizuki, who took it in stride, Teio froze at the words. "Um, ramen isn't really…"
"It's Chinese-style ramen. The flavor's different from Japanese ramen." Natural paused for a few seconds, then added, "Eating noodles for breakfast is totally normal in China."
"I see…"
Teio nodded at the explanation, but her heart still held several doubts.
After all, in Japan, ramen wasn't really a "breakfast" thing.
Half-believing, she sat at the counter and picked up her chopsticks. "I'm starting."
Seeing how hesitant Teio looked, Natural didn't bother explaining further.
She simply shifted her gaze toward Mochizuki. "Need condiments?"
"Yes!"
Hearing that, Natural set a few small dishes beside her. "Add what you want."
Most of the items were simple vegetables—quite different from the usual toppings found on Japanese ramen.
Teio stared at the toppings in front of Mochizuki for a second, then decided to keep eating.
She would have liked to try them too, but the flavor she'd already tasted was good enough.
With that thought, Teio continued slurping her noodles mouthful by mouthful.
Before long, she finished the entire bowl.
Raising her head, she looked toward Natural. "Auntie Natural, the bowl…"
"Let Mochizuki take care of it. You don't really know where things go in the back yet, so leave it to her for now."
With that, Natural looked to Mochizuki.
Mochizuki simply nodded, then lowered her head again to continue eating her noodles.
Seeing that, Natural didn't say more. She just turned on the TV.
There wasn't much worth paying attention to in the news—at least not for Natural.
Seeing how uninterested she looked—
Teio turned her gaze slightly, then asked, "Auntie Natural, do you know what property Auntie Roman is going to check on?"
"That property…"
Natural fell silent for a moment.
Honestly, she didn't want to talk about it.
Her memories of that place weren't good—far from it. She didn't even want to go back if she could avoid it.
Thinking this, Natural stayed silent for a few seconds before answering, "If you want to see the place, I can ask Roman to take you sometime. Just… don't be shocked."
Saying this, Natural turned toward Mochizuki. "Mochizuki, do you want to see it too?"
"It sounds like it's something important?"
"You could say it's pretty important. It's basically a training and care base." Natural explained with uncertain phrasing before continuing:
"Strictly speaking, it used to be a Tokai Family asset. Even though the Tokai Family is gone, because of the circumstances around that place, the ownership ended up in Roman's hands."
Without mentioning why the Tokai Family disappeared, Natural turned back to Teio. "If you want to train there during summer break, you can."
"A training and care base…" Teio thought for a few seconds, then nodded. "Then… can I go with Mochizuki during summer break?"
Hearing that, Mochizuki immediately turned to Natural—
As if asking: Should we go together?
Natural met her daughter's gaze, paused for several seconds, then nodded. "Of course Mochizuki can go. But if she goes, I'll be going too. It's far away, and I wouldn't feel safe letting her travel alone."
Natural's unnatural nod didn't catch Teio's attention.
Instead, Teio picked up on something else in Natural's words. "Auntie Natural, you want to go back too?"
"Go back and take a look… yes, I do plan to," Natural answered. But then she paused for a few seconds before adding, "But it's mainly because of Mochizuki."
Her voice carried a stiffness she couldn't hide.
Even Teio noticed something was a bit off.
But she didn't press further. She just looked around the shop and asked a new question: "Is it always like this here?"
"Well—"
The shop door swung open.
"Natural!"
With the familiar voice and the loud entrance, Natural turned around with a headache. "Mr. C.B., what is it?"
"Just saying hi~"
Mr. C.B. looked around the shop—and quickly noticed Teio in her white staff uniform.
She froze for a second.
She'd never met Tokai Teio, but the uniform made the girl's identity obvious enough.
So she quietly shifted her gaze away and spoke instead: "I've been working nonstop these days. I'm exhausted."
With that, she sat down beside Mochizuki and continued, "Any breakfast recommendations?"
"Ramen."
"Eating that for breakfast sounds too heavy…"
"Chinese-style, not Japanese." Natural gave the brief explanation, then glanced at the dough left on the counter—just enough for one last bowl. "Do you want it?"
"Yes!"
The response came without hesitation.
Natural grabbed the dough and tossed it into the boiling pot.
After doing so, she asked, "Where's Maruzensky?"
"She's finishing the last bit of cleanup." Mr. C.B. paused for a moment, then added, "She should be here once she's done."
"I see… alright."
Then Natural looked toward Teio. "Sometimes, this place gets pretty lively."
Her tone was full of resignation.
And hearing the earlier exchange between Natural and Mr. C.B., Teio understood exactly what kind of "lively" she meant.