Since we started selling fried rice, the shop has been extremely busy. The lack of staff was overwhelming to the point where I had to take a few days off from the academy to help out at the shop.

However, Father warned me, “You must keep your promises.” We had made a promise that if I couldn’t balance my school life, I would quit the shop.

I also wanted to avoid further absences from the academy, so with Luck-san’s introduction, I decided to hire one person to work in the kitchen and two for the hall, a total of three people.

Firstly, the new chef is Nicola, a disciple of Naraba, making her a junior disciple to Sona. She is twenty years old and quite skilled in cooking.

When we first met, Nicola greeted me politely.

“My name is Nicola. I came to work here to support Master Naraba and to create new dishes with my own hands! I look forward to working with you, Lark-san!”

“I look forward to working with you too, Nicola-san.”

“By the way, Lark-san, how did you come up with such a new dish?”

It’s a question I’ve been asked a few times before.

I thought for a moment and then answered as usual, “I like to read a lot. I happened to read a book about rice and gained knowledge from it. After that, I repeated trial and error, and somehow managed to shape it.”

“I see…Then, I will start reading books from now on too.” With that, Nicola laughed like a child.

Next, let’s talk about the new hall staff.

We have recruited a pair of twins named Tera and Mira.

Tera-san is the older sister, and Mira-san is the younger one. They are identical in face and physique, with the only difference being their hair length. Tera-san has a short bob, and Mira-san has long hair. Although we can tell them apart, if their hairstyles were the same, it would be impossible to distinguish them.

According to Naraba-san, they have a kind of telepathic bond and can help each other out even when the shop is chaotic and noisy. They were somewhat famous at the diner where they previously worked.

As proof, when I first greeted them, both were perfectly in sync.

“Are you sure it’s okay to move to my shop, Tera-san, Mira-san?”

“Yes, we have long wanted to work at Lark-sama’s shop, so we are truly honored to receive this offer from Luck-sama.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear that. I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes, we look forward to working with you.”

Tera and Mira responded with the exact same words and intonation. Afterwards, I had a conversation with the two, and their voices constantly overlapped, making my head hurt a bit, but that’s a secret.

◇

A few days later, we held a welcome party for the three new recruits. The members included me, Nicola, Tera, Mira, Naraba, Liliana, Sona, Leticia, and Rin who sometimes helps out. Everyone quickly got along, which was good.

In the middle of the welcome party, Leticia made a proposal. “Lark-kun, how about the three of us, you, me, and Rin-chan, go on an adventure on our next day off?”

“Ah, I agree. I’ve been adventuring alone recently, so it’d be nice to do it with everyone again. What about you, Lark-kun?”

“Yeah, let’s go. Thank you for the invitation, Leticia-san.”

When I answered this, whether she had been listening to our conversation, Nicola joined in. “Speaking of which, you’re a student and also an adventurer, aren’t you, Lark-san? And on top of that, you’re running a shop. Isn’t it tough?”

“Lark-kun really does dip his hands into many things. I’d be overwhelmed if I were in his shoes,” Liliana added.

“Well, I can’t deny that it’s challenging, but there are people helping me which makes it more fun than anything. In particular, Leticia-san, despite her main job being an adventurer, has been constantly helping out at the shop. No amount of gratitude could ever be enough for her.”

With a smile on my face, Leticia-san also smiled and responded, “I’m happy to help because it’s fun. And besides, it was my idea to live this lifestyle in the first place, and I plan to continue helping.”

“Thank you very much. Naraba-san, everyone, I’ve always relied on you to look after the shop when we go on occasional adventures, so please continue doing so.”

After saying this and bowing my head, Naraba and everyone else nodded with smiles on their faces.

Well, it’s getting late, so it’s about time to start cleaning up.

As I was storing the scattered items on the table in my “Useful Box”, Nicola, who seemed interested, struck up a conversation. “Is that your storage skill, Lark-san?”

“Yes, it’s quite handy. You can just throw things in and it organizes everything for you.”

“That sounds so convenient. I wish I had a storage skill,” said Nicola-san, looking envious. She then took the empty cup she was holding to the kitchen.

◇

A few days after the welcome party, Leticia, Rin, and I, as promised, received a request at the guild and had come outside the royal capital.

Today’s request was to subjugate goblins. Apparently, there have been frequent incidents recently of goblins stealing crops from fields before they hibernate. We had learned about this from our Father and immediately accepted the request. The reward money was better than usual.

Well then, let’s start the subjugation! …But before that, I’ve been curious about something and want to ask.

“By the way, what are your status levels, Leticia-san and Rin?”

When I asked in a slightly formal tone, Leticia-san let out an “Eh?”

“I think I’m pretty average… but more than that, I’m curious about your status, Lark-kun.”

Then, Rin joined in. “Ah, me too. Tell us your status, Lark-kun.”

Hmm, they asked me back instead. Well, it’s fine.

I pulled out a paper and pen from my “Useful Box”, checked my status with my “Appraising Eye”, and started writing down the numbers.

【 Level 】56

【 SP 】550

【 Strength 】5518（＋11）

【 Mana 】6373（＋28）

【 Agility 】5932（＋31）

【 Dexterity 】4196（＋8）

【 Luck 】51

Although I’ve been defeating monsters occasionally since the last ogre battle, my level hasn’t increased. The only thing that has slightly increased due to my daily strength training and magic practice at the academy is my ability values.

When I showed the paper, both of them widened their eyes.

“……Incredible”

“Ah~, as expected?”

There was a time when Father showed me his status, and I found out that my abilities were far superior to those of the same level. As for magic power, I’ve already surpassed Father. I have to thank Samady-san…

Leticia muttered in a stunned manner, “I’ve always thought Lark-kun was amazing, but I didn’t think he was this amazing…”

Rin looked at me suspiciously, narrowing her eyes. “Most of your abilities exceed 5000… Lark-kun, are you really twelve years old? Are you secretly an elf who’s lived for hundreds of years?”

“No, I’m just a regular twelve-year-old human, not an elf or a dwarf.”

I’ve been reincarnated and received many skills and special abilities from God…

I cleared my throat and brought the conversation back on them. “Well, just to clarify, I intend to attack and support from the rear using magic primarily. I can also do close-quarters combat as I’ve been trained by Father and Idel-san, but I’m thinking of leaving the vanguard mainly to Leticia-san.”

After saying this, I handed them the paper and asked them to write down their status to the best of their recollection. I could use my “Appraising Eye” to check, but I think it’s impolite and decided not to.

First, Leticia-san finished writing her status and showed it to me.

【 Level 】18

【 SP 】126

【 Strength 】900

【Mana】432

【Agility】684

【Dexterity】756

【Luck】61

Hmm, hmm… her magic power is a bit low, but the other stats are pretty high.

“This is how it stands. I last checked about a month ago, so I assume I’ve grown a bit since then… As you can see, my strength and dexterity are high, so I mainly fight on the front lines.”

“Indeed, you have the attributes of a front-line type.”

“Haha… I’m a little embarrassed about my low magic power. I used to do a lot of strength training for physical fitness, but since I didn’t practice magic, this is the disparity I ended up with,” Leticia said with a laugh.

Next, I checked the paper Rin handed over.

【Level】14

【SP】112

【Strength】448

【Mana】476

【Agility】588

【Dexterity】560

【Luck】49

Rin’s status is well balanced compared to Leticia-san’s. Her superior agility and dexterity perfectly fit Rin’s combat style of scouting and fighting with a bow.

“By the way, Rin, what was your level when you were in the village?”

“Hmm, I last checked about two years ago, and it was 12, I think? But, I believe my level increased after coming to the capital. I felt stronger after learning the basics of fighting from the Bears Family recently.”

“Eh? Rin, you were taught by the Doldos-san’s group?”

I had no idea she was doing that.

Rin continued her words with a smile, “Yeah, I was introduced by Guldo-san. I was happy when Doldos-san praised me saying, ‘You have a knack for scouting’… That’s when I acquired skills like ‘Detection Presence’…”

“Heh…”

I had no idea she was making such efforts behind my back… I had been noticing that Rin’s movements had improved in everyday life recently, and now I know why.

Of course, her quick growth is due to her own efforts, but it must have been a good experience to learn from a skilled adventurer. I should follow Rin’s example and work harder.

I nodded my understanding and issued the orders again. “Alright, now that we know everyone’s status, let’s start hunting goblins.”

“Okay”

“Yup”

We refreshed our spirits and started hunting goblins.

…But even though we were eager, the number of goblins we encountered was not normal. If we’re not careful, it might reach four digits… There has to be a limit to this kind of outbreak…

Well, there’s no choice but to cast physical enhancement magic on Rin and Leticia-san to improve efficiency and keep subduing them.

By the time we had hunted until no goblins were visible around us, it was already dusk. We collected the goblin materials as we hunted using the “Useful Box”, which resulted in an outrageous amount.

We decided to go back to the guild and complete the mission at Father’s counter.

“Welcome back. Now, show me the materials from the goblins you’ve defeated.”

Seeing Father produce a tray for inspection, I hesitantly opened my mouth, “Uh… that tray won’t be enough. Can I empty them out into a wooden box in the basement?”

“Huh? Ah, yeah… I feel like we’ve had this conversation before.” Father guided us to the basement, scratching his head.

I found an available box and started dumping the goblin materials. One box wasn’t enough, and I ended up using four. Seeing the huge amount of goblin materials piled up in the boxes was quite nauseating.

Father was standing agape, but then he regained his composure and started talking, “I was surprised when you were collecting medicinal herbs, but to think you hunted this many goblins… It’s impossible to inspect this amount of materials today. Well, even tomorrow might be tough… Anyway, I’ll call you when the inspection is over, so wait until then for your reward.”

We nodded, left the basement, leaving Father muttering, “I have to work overtime today…”

As we walked up the stairs, Leticia and I started a conversation.

“Well, it can’t be helped that they can’t inspect that amount right away.”

“Right. But I didn’t realize we hunted that many… The effects of Lark-kun’s physical enhancement magic are truly impressive.”

“Did Lark-kun’s skill level also increase? You’ve been maintaining it all this time, after all.”

“Eh, I wonder…”

When I checked with my “Appraising Eye” as a test, just as Rin had said, my “Physical Ability Enhancement” skill level had increased from 3 to 4.

Good, this was an unexpected harvest. I felt sorry for what I did to Father…

Tonight, I decided to cook a feast and wait for him. Rin and I parted ways with Leticia and headed home.