Making octopus sausages was a simple comfort.
It merely required a few precise cuts at one end of the small red links. When they hit the hot, oiled pan, the heat did the rest of the work.
Sizzle.
The pinkish exterior darkened into a rich, glossy red. The boiling oil seeped into the slits, forcing the ends of the sausages to curl and pop open like tiny umbrellas.
Soon, a small army of red octopuses was dancing in the pan.
A few rebellious ones even tried to stand upright in the bubbling oil, forcing Yuto to gently press them down with his wooden chopsticks.
Once the 'legs' were perfectly curled and carried a slight savory char, Yuto plated the nine sausages and turned off the stove.
He carried the dish out to the dining room.
"Here you go. Fried octopus sausages," Yuto said with a warm smile, placing the plate in front of Reiko.
Reiko returned his smile, her eyes lighting up as she looked down at the steaming dish.
The neatly arranged sausages shimmered under the warm overhead lights, looking adorable and appetizing.
"Mmm... the Boss always makes everything smell so wonderful," she murmured softly.
She closed her eyes, savoring the rich, savory aroma.
When she opened them, she looked up at Yuto with genuine admiration.
"Eat them while they are hot. They lose their magic when they cool down," Yuto advised gently.
Reiko nodded.
She picked one up with her chopsticks and took a bite.
A satisfying crunch echoed as the crispy skin gave way to the hot, juicy meat inside.
A look of pure, quiet contentment washed over her face.
She visited the restaurant every single day just for this brief, peaceful comfort.
Sitting right next to Reiko, Kaguya had already finished her dessert.
The portion of candied apple was small—just a single apple sliced into wedges—so she had cleared her plate quickly.
Now, her ruby eyes kept darting secretly toward Reiko's plate.
She wasn't staring at the woman, her intense focus was fixed entirely on the adorable little octopus sausages.
Her glances were discreet and meticulous, masked perfectly by her aristocratic posture.
It was a flawless display of high-society upbringing, using a wall of ice to hide a simple, childish craving.
Yuto walked down the counter and lightly tapped the wood in front of Utaha, who was busy chatting with Shouko.
Utaha looked up, a hint of playful annoyance in her dark eyes.
"Kamisaka-kun, interrupting a pleasant conversation between two beautiful girls is very rude."
She delivered the line with a straight face.
She wasn't wrong, but her shameless honesty still amused him.
Sometimes he marveled at how thick her skin could be.
Shouko covered her mouth and giggled, her cheeks dusting with a shy blush.
"Kasumigaoka-san, please try to be just a little bit humble," Yuto teased.
Utaha just rolled her eyes at him. Their easy banter was harmless and comfortable.
"So, what was it you wanted to ask me earlier?" Yuto prompted.
Realization flashed across Utaha's face.
She had been so distracted by Shouko that she had nearly forgotten her main reason for visiting.
Yuto shook his head with a helpless smile; so young, yet her memory was already fading.
"Kamisaka-kun, can you tell me how you actually resolved things with the Hosen gang last night?" she asked, leaning in with eager curiosity.
"It was just a minor incident," Yuto began, keeping his voice casual.
He recounted the standoff in the rain but deliberately downplayed the sudden arrival of the Tokyo police and the specific involvement of the Shinomiya conglomerate.
Since the exact people responsible were sitting mere feet away, loudly praising their wealth and power to their faces felt incredibly awkward.
As Utaha listened, her expression shifted rapidly—from deep worry when he described being surrounded, to awe when the neighborhood hostesses stepped up, to relief when the situation was resolved.
Her heart was on a rollercoaster.
"And that was all," Yuto finished, hoping that would satisfy her.
But Utaha wasn't done. "Kamisaka-kun, did you see the news this morning? The police arrested the entire Hosen organization."
Yuto subtly shifted his gaze toward Kaguya.
He knew she could hear every word, but the wealthy girl's icy face didn't twitch.
"I didn't know. Was it on the broadcast?" he asked, feigning ignorance.
Utaha nodded.
"Well, isn't that a good thing? They were just a bunch of thugs terrorizing the streets," Yuto noted.
"I think it has to be connected to whoever bailed you out last night," Utaha deduced, her writer's intuition tingling.
"Did that VIP leave right after? Didn't you get their name?"
"I just... expressed my gratitude," Yuto deflected smoothly.
"What a shame. Anyone would be curious about someone with that much power," Utaha sighed.
"You are right about that," Yuto agreed.
He stole another covert glance at Kaguya and Hayasaka.
They remained as still and composed as marble statues.
Yuto felt a genuine wave of admiration.
To command that much terrifying power and not even blink when it was brought up—that was the true weight of a legendary family.
"By the way, there is one more thing," Utaha added, her tone shifting into a mix of amusement and disbelief.
"What is it?"
"After the police loaded Hosen into the transport vans, one of their top executives suddenly dropped dead on the way to the station. It caused a massive uproar," Utaha explained.
She certainly didn't feel sorry for the notorious gang leader, but the sudden death felt like an eerie dose of instant karma.
Hearing this, Yuto's eyebrow twitched.
A very bad, highly specific feeling settled in his gut.
The timing was far too suspicious.
"Do you happen to remember the executive's name?" Yuto asked carefully.
"I think... it was Matoba. Matoba Toushi," she replied.
The moment he heard the name, a cold sweat broke out on Yuto's back.
Matoba.
The guy who had tried to attack him with a pipe.
The probability that this sudden death was tied to a certain skeletal Overlord was staggering!
...
Down at the other end of the counter, Ainz was holding a court.
"Hahaha! And then, back when we were raiding the Lion King boss, I triggered an instant-death curse at the exact perfect moment and cursed him straight to the grave!" Ainz laughed heartily, waving his bony hand as he recounted his glorious gaming past.
Rimuru and Saitama just nodded and smiled, happily caught up in the epic tale.
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