CHAPTER 6
A Country Girl, a History Addict, and the Aroma of Wheat
Linaria’s history hunt continued.
Since the whole period from late winter through early spring was a holiday, neither of us was too concerned with the return trip. Far from it. We told each other optimistically that no matter how far we got from Latorita, we could just head back when the holidays were drawing to a close. But we ended up traveling for so long in this cheerful state of mind that I wondered whether we might really have gone too far to make it back by the end of the holiday, no matter how hard we might try.
Still, we weren’t worried.
Our first priority was to enjoy the present, not worry about the future.
“Looks like there’s a little city there if we go just a bit farther this way,” Linaria said, sitting atop her broom with the map spread out in front of her.
“What kind of place is it?”
At my inquiry, Linaria closed the map suddenly and answered, “There’s no further information.”
Oh-hoh, I see!
Which means…
“So we can look forward to finding out once we get there?”
Linaria just smiled at my words. “We sure can.”
Immediately after we’d passed through the city gates, I said confidently, “Oh, this is definitely a good city, no doubt about it!”
Right next to the gates, in the best possible place to attract hungry travelers, there was a small shop with an incredible aroma wafting out of it.
The place wasn’t obviously flourishing, but neither did it seem to be in decline. Sending out another wave of that wonderful fragrance, the baker, who had apparently been on the watch for customers, opened the door and waited for us to come in.
Three girls with smiles on their faces stood in front of the shop, shouting, “Fresh-baked bread!” and “It’s delicious!” and so on.
At first glance, I could see that this was a lively city.
“Miss, are you a traveler? If you like, how about trying some of our bread?”
One of the girls, holding a basket filled with lots of fresh-baked loaves, pressed one into my hand.
Oh, what?
“Um, ah, I don’t have much money to spare right now…”
“That’s fine. I’ll give you one for free.”
The girl pushed more insistently.
Huh? For free? Is that for real? Hooray!
Completely captivated by the delicious smell, I took a bite of the bread.
“Ah…so good…”
The flavor of the bread, soft and warm like sunlight, spread through my mouth. It felt like flowers were blooming all around me. It was just my imagination, but that’s what it felt like eating the bread. I was filled with joy.
“Linaria! This is so good! It’s incredible! Try some—here!”
I vigorously pushed a bit of the bread into Linaria’s hands, but she tilted her head quizzically.
“Incredible, you say? Then shall we go buy some of each type?”
Contrary to my wild excitement, Linaria’s response was extremely dry. There was even a slight air of condescension.
Who are you, my mother…?
As I munched on the rest of the free bread, I started walking, with Linaria following behind me. Seeing as how I worked part-time at a bakery, we could kill two birds with one stone and scope out the competition by getting some of each type of bread in the store and eating every last bit. Filled with energy, I headed for the store.
And the bakery welcomed us.
“Oh-hoh!”
Well, well.
The bakery was very clean inside, and the place had obviously just opened recently.
Two women stood on the other side of the counter, smiles on their faces just like the girls outside, and they greeted me and Linaria when we entered, “Welcome!”
One was a lovely young woman with blond hair that went down about to her shoulders. She had a refined look to her. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties.
Next to her was a young woman with black hair and dark skin. She appeared to be about the same age as the blonde, and at a glance, she seemed like a lively character.
The two women appeared to be running the place.
“Hello.”
After bowing slightly to the two of them, I strolled around the inside of the shop.
In a quiet city, in a peaceful shop, Linaria and I enjoyed a little break, in a bakery run by two women who seemed tremendously happy.
The shop’s name was The Black and Gold and Gray Bakery.
When I asked the two proprietors what the name meant, they looked at each other and smiled roguishly.
“It’s confidential.”
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login