“Sorry for the wait. Here is the black coffee, the chocolate mousse, and the hot tea.”
The items we ordered were placed in front of me and Ryūguin-san.
Then, three staff members carried something unbelievable from the back of the shop.
“S-Sorry to keep you waiting. This is the Super Cosmo Grade Ultra Deluxe Parfait. Otherwise known as the Reckless Parfait.”
“...It’s way too big...”
First of all, the container was so large I wondered if it was actually a heat-resistant bowl. In it, various fruits, cream, and sweets were piled up like a mountain; at first glance, it looked like a jewelry box.
Even the inside of the transparent container was packed tight. Sponge cake, ice cream, pudding, flakes, and so on. It was clearly designed to keep you from getting bored.
Three of these things were brought to our table.
Naturally, they stood out. They stood out way too much. Look, even those college girls over there are taking photos. But I understand the feeling. I ended up taking a photo myself. You don’t get to see something like this very often.
“Hey, hey, hey! This looks worth eating!”
“It’s smaller than I thought. Well, I guess it can’t be helped.”
Is the sense of scale for these two broken? The two of them started digging in using curry spoons. Wait, are parfaits the kind of thing you eat with a curry spoon? ...Well, those two are fine. This is business as usual for them. I can just ignore it.
The problem was Riran.
Beyond the Reckless Parfait, Riran’s face was turning pale. I’ve never heard rumors about her being a big eater, so as I thought, she’s pushing herself.
“Rira... Kuonji. Don’t overdo it.”
“I-I’m not overdoing it. This much is easy!”
Just like the other two, she started eating with a curry spoon. Then, her eyes suddenly widened, and her cheeks flushed with excitement.
“~~~! Delicious... this is really delicious!”
Apparently, she took a liking to it. Without breaking her pace, she continued to eat the fruit, ice cream, and whipped cream. Her face looked like a child who had just been given a new toy.
Ryūguin-san, sitting next to her, also watched Riran with a warm gaze. ...She can actually eat more than I expected.
If this is the case, then maybe—
Five minutes later.
“Ueeeh... I can’t do it anymore...”
“That was way too fast!”
A surprisingly quick surrender. If it weren’t for me, I might have missed it. The Reckless Parfait had hardly decreased at all. Or rather, she just finished off all the fruit. All that’s left is whipped cream, ice cream, pudding, sponge cake, and flakes—things that are sugary and quite heavy.
This is what happens when you don't think about pacing at all, seriously.
“...Kuonji. If you’re not going to eat it, I’ll take it.”
“Fueh?”
“Watching you made me hungry. Besides, it would be bad to leave such a nice parfait behind.”
I got a spoon from the waiter and snatched the parfait away from Riran to eat it. Ugh... it’s more sugary than I imagined.
“Heh... so that’s how it is.”
“What is it, Ryūya?”
“Nothing? I just thought our dear Akito-kun was being very kind.”
Shut up. I ate the ice cream as if trying to cool down my burning cheeks. Gwah, brain freeze...!
“...Ah. D-Don’t just eat it without permission!”
“But you can’t eat anymore, right? So I’ll take it.”
“I can eat it! I can!”
She pulled the parfait that had been placed in front of me back toward herself, placing it right in the middle between us. Riran gagged for a moment, but she continued eating as if she refused to lose to me.
“Fufufu. Riran-chan, Sanada-kun. Look this way.”
“Hmm?”
“What is it?”
*Snap*
...Ah. A photo? She took one!?
“Wait, Rion!?”
“Don’t just take photos all of a sudden...”
“My apologies. It’s just because you two looked so happy.”
“That’s right, Akky. You looked just like a couple.”
“You two really are a great duo after all.”
Guh... stop teasing us, seriously. Look, even Riran is troub—”
“Au-au-au-au... c-c-c-c-c-couple...!?”
Correction. She’s completely flustered.
“Uuu...! Sanada!”
“Don’t get mad at me...”
“Shut up! It’s your fault, so take responsibility and eat it all! E-Eating from the same thing in front of everyone...! C-C-Coup... le... uuuuu!”
“Ow! Hey, don’t kick my shin!?”
And then she casually pushed the whole thing onto me! Wait, there’s still more than half left!?
In the end, I gave up with a third of it remaining. Neika ended up eating the rest for me. Neika really is amazing, I thought once again.