Even as I was a bit intimidated by the ratio of baby castella stalls, Kuro took me by the hand towards their direction.

  [Let’s try them one by one.]

  [U- Unnn.]

  ……”One by one” means we’re trying out each stall, right? We’re not just going to try one baby castella after another, right? It just so happens that the first stall we were heading to is a baby castella stall, right?

  Feeling a little uneasy, I arrived at the baby castella stall with Kuro.

  There are three sizes available: large, medium, and small. Kuro chooses the large without hesitation and receives it on a paper bag from the shopkeeper.

  [Here, Kaito-kun too.]

  [Yeah, thanks.]

  Taking one of the baby castellas from the paper bag, I brought it into my mouth.

  [Unnn, it’s delicious. It goes well with the atmosphere of the festival.]

  [Right~~ It tastes even better when you eat it in a place like this.]

  In response to my comment, Kuro smiled and agreed with me, “while receiving a new paper bag filled with baby castellas from the shopkeeper”…… Arehh? Where’s that paper bag she was carrying earlier?

  [Do you want another one?]

  [Ah, u- unnn.]

  Being offered another baby castella again, I took one from the paper bag and brought it into my mouth. I kind of feel like I just saw something strange earlier…… Was it just my imagination?

  [……Unnn. I guess the difference in ingredients also makes a difference in tastes huh~~]

  [………………….]

  With a large grin, Kuro “received a new paper bag filled with baby castellas from the shopkeeper”…… N- No, wait, what about that paper bag of baby castellas you received earlier?

  Stunned by the strange sight, Kuro held out a paper bag in front of me for the third time. Taking one of the baby castellas…… I didn’t bring it into my mouth this time, and kept on staring at Kuro.

  Thereupon, Kuro took the paper bag that I had finished taking a baby castella out of…… “Folded it, gave it back to the shopkeeper, got a new paper bag again, before folding it again”.

  ……What the heck is that, a magic trick!? Where did all the baby castellas in that paper bag go!? D- Don’t tell me…… she already ate all of it? She ate it so fast that I couldn’t even perceive it……


  [……U- Ummm, Kuro?]

  [Unnn?]

  [……How many of those baby castellas have you eaten?]

  [……Errr, around “10 bags”?]

  She isn’t even describing it with pieces anymore, but the number of bags. I know what the words mean, but my brain refuses to understand.

  [……I- Is that so.]

  [Unnn! Ahh, please give me another “50 bags” for take away…… Unnn, thanks. Keep the change.]

  ……I just blankly stared at the sight of Kuro handing the shopkeeper a gold coin as she stored a large number of paper bags in a black vortex.

  I may have underestimated Kuro’s passion for baby castellas. After all, we are still in our first stall…… If she continues to eat at this rate, how many baby castellas would she be able to eat in just this one day……


  [Come on, Kaito-kun! Which “baby castella” should we try next?]

  [……………..]

  [There are many to choose from, it’s hard to decide~~]

  ……Did I get what I just heard right? The choice isn’t A or B, but baby castella or baby castella? Eating baby castella after having some baby castella is a bit too avant-garde for me.

  But of course, Kuro, the Incarnation of Baby Castellas, would not wait for me, and she headed for the next baby castella stall, pulling me by the hand.

  As we continued like that, visiting several stalls…… all of which were of course, baby castella stalls, Kuro suddenly stopped in her tracks.

  [……Kaito-kun! Look! Look at that!]

  [Unnn? …… “Ice Cream-Filled Baby Castellas”……]

  [That sounds amazing! That should be absolutely delicious, let’s go!]

  [Y- Yeah……]

  Do all of you just about anything into baby castellas? No, well, I was also getting tired of maple baby castellas, so a baby castella filled with ice cream doesn’t sound so bad.

  Apparently, Kuro is also quite interested in it, as her eyes were glittering while she’s pulling me by the hand…… she looked really cute.

  Chuckling at Kuro’s childish behavior, we walked towards the stall……


  [Welco——- Migyaaahhh!?]

  Thereupon, I immediately smacked the head of the “idiot in the penguin costume”. Seriously, what the heck is this idiot doing!? You want some prize for perfect attendance!? I’ve seen her every day since the Six Kings Festival started.

  [Arehh? Haven’t I seen you in Shalltear’s store before?]

  [Y- Yes…… I mean, Kuro-san? You’re not reacting to that? I was smacked just now, you know…… This is a terrible case of Domestic Violence, I’m telling you……]

  [Eh? I mean, Shalltear…… “You’re so happy to have Kaito-kun’s attention that you’re letting hit you on purpose”, right?]

  [……………….]

  Alice turned her head to the side, as if to avert her gaze, even though we couldn’t see her face when she’s in her penguin costume, at Kuro’s blunt words…… I already know that she’s just fooling around, but hearing Kuro put it into words, I kind of feel embarrassed.

  [W- Well, anyway, please eat. The first one is free!]

  Apparently, Alice was feeling embarrassed too, because she switched the conversation a bit deliberately and offered me and Kuro an Ice Cream-filled Baby Castella.

  I was expecting it to be cold because of the ice cream in it, but the baby castella I received was warm to the touch. When I ate it though, I felt the coldness of ice cream within it, making it a dish that was warm and cold at the same time.

  It tastes like ice cream on a pancake, and the ice cream nicely complements the slightly sweet aftertaste of the baby castella.

  Hmmm, as expected of Alice, it was very tasty.

  [A- Amazing…… The dough stays warm, but the ice cream inside is cold…… Shalltear! How did you make this!?]

  [Fufufu…… It’s all thanks to State Preservation Magic!]

  [W- What did you say!?]

  [The baby castella has a magic that preserves only the ice cream inside. The spell was only removed when you touch anywhere other than the dough.]

  [I- I see! That way, the moment you bite down and your teeth make contact with the ice cream, the spell will be released……]

  I see, that’s certainly an interesting idea. Preserving the state of the ice cream insides, not the whole baby castella itself…… I think such concepts could also be applied in many ways.

  [That’s right! With this method, you can even put any liquid inside a baby castella if you want to!]

  [Wha!? T- That’s amazing! In that case, it’s possible for me to make baby castella flavors that I’ve given up on, like “tea-filled” or “miso soup-filled” baby castellas!!!]

  Oi, idiot, stop that…… Don’t pass down new skills to the Spirit of the Baby Castellas. Who do you think is harmed by your actions!?

  As I was thinking this, in contrast to the excited Kuro, Alice spoke to her with a complicated expression on her face.

  [Yes, it is as you say…… but Kuro-san.]

  [Unnn?]

  [Why don’t you give up with those two flavors? They would definitely taste nasty……]

  [……You see. I’m a person who pursues all the possibilities that baby castellas could have…… I want to be adventurous.]

  [Please stop with that thought. The world doesn’t need your adventures.]

  ……Arehh? That’s strange. Somehow, Alice seems to be a more sane and sensible person now.

  Or rather, Kuro’s persistence to try it at least once, even though she was told that it would never taste good, was terrifying. To be more specific, the future where I would be fed such a thing…… was terrifying.

  Dear Mom, Dad————– It’s usually Alice who was acting like an idiot…… But when it comes to baby castellas, Kuro is the abnormal one. I mean, I have thought of this many times, but her passion for baby castella———— Where the heck did it come from?

  **********